Anna: Today is Wednesday, February 19th. Our originally scheduled departure date was yesterday. If we don't fly out tomorrow, we won't get to go to Antarctica at all.
Our flight got cancelled this morning due to poor conditions (did I mention that it's very windy in Punta Arenas?), and we can't push the itinerary back at the other end, even though we have days built in. If the trip gets cancelled, the Chileans will be invited back for next year's trip, which happened the year of the last major earthquake in Santiago. For us, however, that option is not possible.
Luke: Yesterday at lunch we had a great meal of mashed potatoes and some sort of beef, with a bowl of chicken/egg soup. After lunch we headed to the INACH lab to understand how plants can survive in Antarctica. About an hour after eating, I began to feel less "great" about lunch. Suddenly egg soup was my greatest enemy. I won't go too far into details about how the rest of the day was, but let's just say over the course of the next six hours I probably lost around 10 pounds. It really wasn't fun. I tried to rest at the hostel but I wasn't feeling any better. Later that night I learned that three other girls were getting sick as well.
We decided to go to a hospital to try to understand what was making us sick. So at 10 PM Juan, four of the Chilean girls, and I left to go to a Chilean army hospital. After checking in, I was led to a small room where a young doctor asked me my symptoms. The male doctors wore white from head to toe, and the nurses dressed in similar, army-like fashion. We were all hooked up to IVs to help hydrate us. The IVs had anti-nausea medicine, and by the time the IV was finished I felt a lot better. We were surprised when the Health Department at the hospital asked to interview us on what we had eaten so they could try to find what had made us sick. We told them that we were staying at Hostel Cordillera, and they remarked that a week before someone had gotten a sickness similar to ours. This wasn't exactly reassuring, but I was glad to know I didn't start the chain of sickness. Most of their questions involved food and what meals we had all eaten in common. We all went back to the hostel all pumped up on drugs and feeling much better.
The doctor was fairly certain at the hospital that what we had was a virus and not food poisoning. We were still worried that because of the sick students, our likelihood of going to Antarctica wasn't looking great. Later, on Wednesday, the doctor called for all of the students that were sick to go back to the clinic to see if we were looking healthier. The check up went fine and we are all pretty much feeling better but the results were still uncertain. It is sad to think that we might not be able to go to Antarctica but I have nothing to complain about. This past week has been so much fun and I've met tons of great friends. How many kids can say they've been to Chile anyway? No matter how this trip ends up I've already had my fair share of fun... But I still hope we go to Antarctica of course.
Anna: Yesterday, a plague struck Luke and quickly spread throughout the group. By this morning, seven people had gotten sick, and many of them had visited the hospital. Most of them are feeling better now, but the sickness added another hurdle we had to jump to get to King George Island: interviews with the Chilean health ministry. They had to ask us about what we have been eating for the past few days and if we had any symptoms, and I was able to understand all of it! Juan just told me that tonight all of the sick people have to go to the clinic and get evaluated before we can be cleared to go, almost like a second PQ.
Hopefully all goes well and we will be in Antarctica tomorrow. If not, we will still have fun here. INACH will take us to a South American penguin colony, and we will spend a day hiking in Torres del Paine, which is a national park in Patagonia. I'm a bit disappointed, but I'm really glad to be in Chile and looking forward to the next few days, no matter which continent I spend them on.
Luke and Romina being interviewed by the health department at Punta Arenas, Chile.
Claire: Right now, we have no idea if we will go to Antarctica or not. The Chilean Air Force has pushed our flight back twice, and now we're dealing with an outbreak of some sort of virus. Our flight is tentatively scheduled for tomorrow morning (Thursday), but the Air Force could still change that.
Our fate also depends on our health. Quite a few of us have been sick, and Luke got to experience a Chilean clinic last night. This morning, a pair of employees from the health department visited the hostel; they asked us what we'd eaten, and then they inspected the kitchen. Additionally, we just found out that at 6 this evening, the people who were sick have to visit a clinic to be evaluated by a doctor who will decide whether or not they can go to Antarctica.
When we first found out we were going to Antarctica, it was hard to believe that we were actually going. I think I've gotten used to the idea, because now it's impossible to believe that we might not go. I'm holding onto a scrap of hope; We won't know anything for sure until tomorrow morning. I am also consoling myself with the knowledge that even if we don't go to Antarctica, we will still probably get to visit some mountains and a penguin colony here in Punta Arenas.
Although I felt close to tears when I found out we weren't flying out today, I'm more hopeful now. I really don't know what to expect, though, especially if we don't go; how will I answer all the "How was Antarctica?!" questions?
Here's hoping the chilean health department likes us!
Comments