subject: Visiting Antarctica [print this page] Cruises are a great way for the average person working with an average income to see distant parts of the world comfortable and safely. The Caribbean and Mediterranean are famous for their cruise ship tours, but there are other areas of our bright and beautiful world that are easily viewed from the deck of a massive cruise ship. An Antarctica cruise will boggle your mind with the strange, unique beautiful of huge ice bergs, frozen water landscapes and a horizon of flat tundra. Of course, there are animals and plants, too, that manage to endure the environment here that you will get to see first hand.
There is some geographical confusion about the two poles that divide our planet. If you go as far south as possible, you will run into Antarctica. It is a continent with a base of earth and rock just like all the other continents. It can support animals as well as plants.
If you travel as far north as possible, you will find the Artic. Not a continent, the Arctic is completely made up of frozen ice and snow. There is no foundation of earth and rock like continents have. Because we generally think of north as up, most people imagine and most maps portray the north pole as being at the very top of our planet.
Because the Antarctic is so far south, the closest settled land is most often Argentina. Though most people don't realize it, this most southern part of South America reaches notably close to the Antarctic itself. It makes a perfect port stop for Antarctic cruises.
As an actual continent, the Antarctic is fully able to support penguins and other wild life. Many people incorrectly associate penguins with the north pole, or arctic. In reality, penguins only exist on our southern pole.
Lots of other species manage to live and even thrive in Antarctica despite the harsh weather. For many people who take an Antarctic cruise, seeing the unique and rare wildlife of the area is a high point of the trip.
Get rid of the mental image you have that the Antarctic is full of only snow and ice. In the springtime, just like nearly anywhere on earth, plants sprout up through the icy, rocky ground. Flowers bloom against a backdrop of cold, flat tundra. Far from lush, the hardy and persistent plants and flowers that manage to survive the climate are decidedly memorable.
Don't forget that Antarctica is in the Southern Hemisphere. This means that a springtime Antarctica cruise would occur in September and October, just as those of us in the North Hemisphere are preparing for winter! It's a perfect getaway as cold weather sets in
