Back to a bit of England

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Geo: -51.701, -57.8492

January is summer in the Falklands, but this place is not a place to sunbathe. It has a lot of rain and temperatures hover in the 50s. We were lucky in that it remained dry for the day we were there, but we had to wrap up against the wind. The ship berthed just outside the inlet to Port Stanley and we were tendered over to the dock. First impressions were that we were on the Yorkshire Moors but surrounded by water. Heather and rocks with few roads most of which were built by the British after the conflict. Stanley contains most of the population but it is small and walkable. We visited the Christchurch cathedral with flags and memorials to the fallen. Further along the road there is the post office with red telephone boxes and mail box- all very Brit looking and a memorial naming all those who lost their lives. Shops are scattered about mainly selling anything they can put a penguin on and there are a few pubs.

In the afternoon 4 of us got in a Land Rover driven by Pete a born and bred Falklander with impeccable English accent. He drove us out of Stanley and past the mine fields. There are still loads of mines which are being destroyed every day to try and clear the area. We saw the high points where the Brits fought to get so they could take over the area and finally after a very bumpy ride over the mud and gorse we arrived at Bluff Cove. The place was full of Gentoo penguins with chicks of various ages. In the middle stood 3 King penguins covering their eggs until they hatched. Adults were going up and down to the sea bringing back fish for their babies. The older chicks ventured nearer to the sea so they could get fed earlier while the youngest had to wait further inland. It was so funny to see these guys walking back along the path. We walked down the beach and found they were shier than the Magellanic variety. After a cup of tea, served in a variety of tea cups with recognizable patterns such as Indian Tree and Ironstone, in a little cafe near the beach it was back in the Land Rover for the bumpy drive back and then to the ship. I was so glad to have been to this bit of the UK- recent history was brought to life, and of course nice people.

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Photos

christchurch cathedral
whale bones in front

Comments

[Helen theuma]

It seems you are terribly nautical these days- 3 technical terms in 1 sentence! It's heaps hotter in peru but I'm tipping the wine is better in chile! Xxx