The weekend at last!

It is now Saturday morning, just after 8am, and I'm surprised that I woke early today after last night! The BAS team decided to have a barbecue and a ceilidh in one of the buildings at Grytviken and we all gathered at around 6.30pm for 3 different stews (cooked earlier and heated up on the fire) and rice, mulled wine and punch - ghurka stew, chicken and chickpea tagine and chilli con carne - which we ate standing round the fire in the cold wind. The musicians went in to tune up so a few of us less hardy mortals ate inside, listening to the music. At around 8pm the ceilidh started. Jon called the dances, explaining the steps, and it was so funny watching them all crashing about till they got the idea. Unfortunately I couldn't join in (more later) and reckon I had the best entertainment sitting watching. The dances were performed with great skill and enthusiasm (and by Richie and Tommy with much leaping and bounding!) and by the end of the evening I was exhausted from laughing so much. Thanks to Rob and George, the fiddlers, on fiddles they had made themselves, and to Jon on bhodran (? - celtic drum - no Lynsey, not the tambourine!!), and George also played on his home-made digeridoo. VERY talented young men. I walked back round to KEP with Ruth and Keiran with one headtorch between us - and it's not easy spotting grey/black fur seals in the darkness. Fortunately we didn't step on any and none jumped out at us.

Now back to Wednesday night. We went down to see the elephant seal weaners at the jetty - large grey torpedoes of cuteness, and sat with our wellies in the water whilst they carefully sniffed and chewed at our boots. There is a minimum 5 metre rule for approaching wildlife here, but we can't help it if THEY come up to us!!! They spent ages peering at us with their lovely large round watery eyes, rolling round on their backs, splashing us with their back flippers - it was such lovely interaction with very wild creatures. The weaners eventually got bored with us and swam off so we walked along the beach, and suddenly a young male fur seal shot out of the water and chased us. I panicked and ran, and tripped over, but he was chased off by one of the others who saved me from being bitten! We stopped off for a drink and a natter before heading back to our home in Larsen House, by which time my knee was very painful, and when I checked it was very swollen. I went to bed but couldn't bear the weight of the duvet on my knee and it was painful all night and kept me awake. I was really worried I might have done something really bad to it and was terrified that it would mean the end of my stay here on South Georgia. In the morning I asked the doctor to have a look at it, and she said there was nothing broken, no infection etc., so gave me painkillers and a painkilling gel to rub on, and I went back to bed to sleep and rest it. I got up later to hobble around - the paracetamol made it possible!, and Ruth called round to say we had been invited for supper on the cruise ship "Vavilov" - I had missed seeing all the passengers in the Museum and shop that afternoon - and as I wanted to see the presentation some of the scientists were giving on board and also Ruth's fundraising talk, I dosed myself up and hobbled down to the boatshed to be fitted for a boat suit. This is a thick, warm, waterproof suit with wellies on the end of the legs which I had to struggle into + lifejacket, and fortunately the BAS people almost lifted me off the jetty into the Zodiac for the trip out to the ship, and out again when we got there - poor old dear! We had to mingle with the passengers (99 of them) and then joined them for their Thanksgiving supper, before gathering in the bar for the presentations. I now know all about the Antarctic food chain - algae, phytoplankton, zooplankton, krill, fish, penguins, seals etc., and how they check their diets by looking at stomach contents and (I hope you are not eating ...) poo! More mingling, then back into my boatsuit and into the Zodiac and home. More paracetamol, then a good night's sleep!

I walked on my own round to the Museum (about 3/4 of a mile) and swept and mopped all the floors in readiness for the next ship on Monday in penance for having the day before off sick. Made soup for lunch while I was eating my breakfast in Larsen House, so we had that with the bread we make in the Museum every morning, did more work in the Museum, then walked back to KEP to get ready for the ceilidh.

Sorry if I have confused you by jumping from one day to the next. Today I'm going to take it easy although my knee is just about better, just a little wobbly. Lynsey and I are going to make Scottish tablet as we found a big stash of condensed milk in the food store and have a birthday present to produce! Last night at the ceilidh Paula brought in a lovely chocolate cake for one of the men's birthdays - she had made chocolate fudge frosting to go on top and had put it in a pot in the fridge, but one of the other scientists had been clearing out the fridge and thought it was some old sauce from a few nights before and poured it down the sink ... thinking at the time, mmmm - that smells like chocolate!!! I'd made some of my chocolate spread/sauce for Ruth earlier in the week, and when Paula went to see her in distress about the lost frosting Ruth gave her the choc spread so the cake was saved!