Antarctica Revisited has begun
It is finally time to start my journey back to the ice. Hurray!!!
Well, I say that now, right as I’m about to board the plane. We’ll see how I feel after two days of traveling. The trip from Memphis to McMurdo Station, Antarctica is no quick jaunt!
For those of you who have been participating in the ‘Get Fit’ challenge, you know that the journey from Memphis to McMurdo is 8,764 miles. That distance, however, is a direct route or ‘as the crow flies.’ It’s a bit different when traveling by plane, and it’s safe to say that I will be adding ‘a few’ more miles to my actual route. I wish there was a flight that would take me directly to Antarctica. Darn, the luck! In fact, I will be taking 5 different flights to get to McMurdo.
Take a look at this video, titled Where in the World is Ms. Alex. It highlights all the different places I will ‘touch down’ before making it to Antarctica.
Pay close attention while you are watching the video. I’ve added a few ’challenges’ for you. Try to figure out:
• How many miles will I travel?
• How long will it take for me to get there? In other words, what will my actual flight time be (i.e., time in the air not including layovers)?
• Of the five flights, which will be the shortest? Which will be the longest?
• How long will it take me to get to Christchurch, New Zealand (my last stop before Antarctica)?
• And for more of a challenge – what percentage of total travel time was each flight?
• How many different airports will I spend time in?
• How many nations/countries will I set foot in?
• How many different continents will I visit?
Your challenge questions
It’s time to answer your challenge questions.
Question 1 – How many total miles did I travel?
Question 2 – How long was I actually ‘in the air;’ in other words, what was my actual flying time?
Question 3 – Of the 5 flights, which one was the shortest? Which was the longest? Boy, I hope I am not stiff and tired by the end of that leg of the journey.
Question 4 – How long did it take me to get from Memphis, TN to Christchurch, New Zealand? I’ll get a break at this point of the trip and have a couple of days to stretch my legs and see a bit of New Zealand. I am really looking forward to sightseeing.
Question 5 – What percentage of my total flight time was each flight? This is a more challenging math question, but I hope you try to tackle it because the answers are very revealing.
Question 6 – How many different airports did I visit to get all the way to Antarctica?
Question 7 – How many nations/countries did I set foot in? Think about this one carefully. It’s a little tricky.
Question 8 – How many different continents did I visit? How many continents are there on Earth? Seven, right? Can you name them all? Which ones did I visit?
Submit your answers to ‘Ask the Team.’
What’s next?
I’m sitting in the Memphis International Airport now. And since I will be ‘in the air’ or sitting at an airport for, at least, the next two days, I’ve had time to decide on my next two journals. Here’s a hint: One will be in-‘quiz’-ative, while the other will be an introduction.
Stay tuned and thank you for following my journey!
My journey started in Memphis on Thursday, November 6th when I boarded a plane around 1:50 pm. My first stop was in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, where I quickly caught my second flight of the trip to Los Angeles, California. This flight was quick – it only lasted a little over an hour. Then it was time to wait until my flight to Sydney, Australia.
The flight to Sydney is the longest flight I have on my trip. The good news is that the flight left at 11:55 pm so there is plenty of time to sleep! Sometime during this flight, the plane crossed the International Date Line – an imaginary line that separates the Eastern and Western hemispheres. This is also the point where the ‘day’ starts – so by crossing the International Date Line (traveling westward) I lost a day. That means when I got on the plane in Los Angeles it was Thursday night, and when I got off the plane in Sydney it was Saturday morning. I completely lost my Friday somewhere over the ocean.
Once in Sydney, I had one last stop before heading to Christchurch, New Zealand. Christchurch is the last city I will be in before heading down to McMurdo Station. It is also where I get my ECW gear and meet up with the team before heading down to the ice.