Almost there.

So I made it to Punta Arenas, Chili. Landed around 3:30 PM local time (12:30 PM, MDT) Overall, the flight was okay. How can traveling for 22+ hours by economy air actually be good? We were late landing in Santiago, Chili, so we were rushed through customs, and I didn't get to really pay attention to the surroundings our what's going on. About all I noticed was that the area was in a valley, surrounding be pretty tall mountains. It seemed to hold in a lot of particulate in the air. Not sure if you can tell from the bellow picture, but I was able to grab it from the view out the window of my plane before it took




Punta Arenas seems nice. It's certainly not like any other place I've been before. Not really sure how to describe it. Most of the buildings and roofs are all kinds of bright colors, which are neat. There is a square in the middle of town full of what seem to be really old trees and a big Bronze monument. Roomer has it, you have to rub its toe before sailing off for a good trip. I'll be sure to get a picture of it on my return. I'd bet there some cool history here. Some buildings seem pretty neat. Below is a picture of that square as seen from the window of my hotel room.

I'll get my ECW (extreme cold weather) gear tomorrow at 9 AM, and then embark on the LMG (aka the Gould) at 3 PM. I'm not sure about connectivity, but I think there should be a way to post here. I'll spend the first day getting through the straights of Magellan, the next 2 in the Drake Passage ,and the last day under the shelter of the Antarctic Peninsula, heading to Anvers Island where Palmer Station is located.

So given that this is my first time to the Southern Hemisphere, I was excited to flush a toilet. Unfortunately, they are very European in design here, and just seem to "flush down." So I can't confirm that the water acutally spins in the opposite direction yet. I'll fill up the tub a bit tomorrow when I take a shower, in hopes to make the observation. So other than that, I'd say for anyone else making this trip.... It helps to know a little Spanish (of which I know, very, very little) Adios!