We spent the last days “harvesting” Antarctic tourists who returned to Ushuaia after their trips to the White Continent and who we had contacted before their departure. In what amounted often quite literally to coffeehouse anthropology, we talked through their trips, experiences and memories and got stuffed with cake, hot chocolate (called submarino) and beagle negra. 

Lots of new challenging questions arose thus making this research stay not only a great scientific experience in itself, but also opening possibilities for future research, collaborations and partnerships. Our deep-hearted thanks go to the entire team of CADIC who were great hosts and partners, the tour operators, expedition team members and lecturers who talked to us and the many, many tourists who shared their stories and private photo albums. 

The Southernmost carnival is over. The icy rain coming from the west made us seek refuge at home. Not a big catch today – we had one interview in Oficina Antarctica with Valeria who is doing her Licenciatura  in Tourism. 

Last week we met Lorane Kriwoken, a Univesity of Tasmania social scientist who  just finished the season  as a scientist in residence on one of the Quark Cruiseships.

Saturday – I had a fast hike up 1200m. for a lookout of the Darwin range in the west and the Drake Passage far in the South. 

This evening we met two girls who were about to go on a cruise to Antarctica. Amazing how young the Antarctic-faring “expeditioners”  are. Well, it is not only rich American pensioners going for a trip below the 60th  south. In fact  “cheap” Antarctic trips (cheap means 3000 euros for a ten day trip) are possible if you get one of the last-minute offers  in Ushuaia. We met several young Europeans who have hitched  all the way to Ushuaia sleeping in tents and eating rice with beans, just to  have their ultimate Austral experience: icebergs, wildlife, isolation, “Drake shake” and  scientists living  in containers (some of them Portuguese....).

A rumour went that Tom Cruise came a few days ago on one of the cruiseships. And excited Peruvians came in the Antarctic Office asking if their president was in town.

The cruiseship “Celebrity Infinity” with its 2000 on-board residents just called in for a few hours of pinguin-related souvenir snatching before sailing to Paradise Bay. Ushuaia resembles a beehive when the ships come in and it is deserted when they are gone.

Internet has shown no signs of life for four days. Today it woke up in the morning and died by lunch. Otherwise we have a wonderful house with a kitchen, excellent heating (a bit exaggerated though), and a vista over the Ushuaia Bay. We take turns to cook and do the everyday chores.  We go shopping in a supermarket which we christened Continente and the other one is called La Anonima.

One day  it is snowing in the mountains, another day it is windy and sunny. And then suddenly we have a proper summer day.

Yesterday we met Daniel Martinioni, a geologist from Buenos Aires, who moved to CADIC in 1990s and spent 11 seasons in Antarctica in the field. Since 2008 he is an Assistant Expedition Leader and lecturer on the “Ushuaia”, which  is  the only Argentinian  Antarctic cruiseship. But not the first: during the 1980s Argentina's national Antarctic hero  Gustavo Giro Tapper and his wife Maria Edelia started a tour-business called “Antartur”. Chartering transport vessels of the Argentinian navy they organized trips to the Antarctic Peninsula to visit stations and organize snowcat and dog-sleigh excursions.  The first ship was lost in the Malvinas war. The second sunk  near Palmer station.  We met Maria Edelia yesterday evening at her house over tea and biscuits and   she told us  about her husband's passion for Antarctica and their joint projects.

In the beginning of the Antarctic tourism tourists spent most of their time during the landings at the scientific bases while today landscape and wildlife are the main attractions.  Yet many stations   - Port Lockroy, Vernadsky, Brown, Esperanca and even Palmer – are regularly visited by the cruiseships and yachts. We are curious to talk to our “hard-science” colleagues about their experiences of touristic visits.  You are stars:)

Now we are waiting for “our” expedtioners to return to  Ushuaia and “see”  in their eyes the reflections of Deception Island, Neko Harbor, Kodak Alley and Iceberg Cemetery.

 

Dennis Zuev and David Picard

ANATOCU, Ushuaia 2013

No dia 30 de Janeiro 2013, os investigadores do projeto ANATOCU, David Picard e Denis Zuev, chegaram a Ushuaia no extremo sul da Argentina do Sul para começar o seu trabalho sobre as culturas turísticas  da Antártica.

Considerando que Ushuaia é o mais importante porto mundial para cruzeiros antárticos (mais de 30,000 partidas por ano), a equipa vai passar três semanas nesta cidade para falar com operadores turísticos e líderes de expedições antárticas, guias e lecturers trabalhando nos barcos turísticos, e turistas de volta das suas viagens da Antárctica.

O objectivo deste trabalho é explorar as praticas da viagem turista, o seu quadro institucional e logístico produzido pela industria turística e o sistema do tratado da Antártica, e também o “poder atrativo” de diferentes sítios e atrações visitados durante a viagem (o mar, paisagens antárticas, fauna e flora, traças arqueológicas das atividades históricos de caça de baleias e de exploração geográfica, estacões científicas, sítios da guerra das Malvinas, e também sítios fantasmagóricos inscritos no imaginário turístico: bases secretas alemães, aeroportos de Óvnis, entradas no dentro da terra, etc.).

A equipa trabalha em estreita colaboração com os investigadores do Centro Austral de Investigações Científicas (CADIC), uma delegação do Centro Argentino de Investigação Científica e Tecnológica (CONICET), a Universidade Federal de Terra del Fuego, e a Oficina Antárctica do governo provincial de Terra del Fogo.

David Picard e Denis Zuev