Author: Shen Yunxi Source: "Diplomats Say Things"
About the Author
Shen Yunxi, born in July 1937, is a native of Cixi, Zhejiang; He graduated from Beijing Foreign Affairs University in 1960 and joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the same year. He has successively served as a staff member and attaché of the Chinese Embassy in Cuba, deputy director and director of the Department of Europe and the United States of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, first secretary and counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Peru, deputy director of the Department of American and International Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chinese ambassador to Argentina, Chinese ambassador to Brazil, president of World Knowledge Publishing House, and Chinese ambassador to Mexico. After his retirement in 2001, he served as Vice President of the China-Latin America Friendship Association.
In January 1987, while serving as the mainland's ambassador to Argentina, I had the privilege of visiting Antarctica. It was an unforgettable trip.
In the early morning of January 27, we took the plane of the Argentine president and flew south from Buenos Aires to most of the country's borders to Rio Grant, the capital of Tierra del Fuego, with a three-hour flight. Then transfer to a local small plane and continue south, flying to the world's southernmost city, Ushuaia, where it will board the Antarctic transport ship Paradise Bay.
Ushuaia has a resounding business card - "The End of the World". It is not only the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, but also the southernmost city inhabited by humans.
It was a 10,000-ton passenger and cargo ship with an orange hull, under the jurisdiction of the Afghan Navy, with 160 sailors on board, and the captain was Rear Admiral Bueredon. At 6:30 p.m. that day, the Paradise Bay set sail eastward through the Beagle Strait, crossing the islands of Lenon and Nueva before heading south to the Antarctic Peninsula, a distance of 521 nautical miles (965 km).
Beagle Strait
Located to the south of Tierra del Fuego, the southern border of Latin America, the Beagle Strait is often mentioned in literature and is very familiar to see it today. The mountains and rivers on both sides of the strait are beautiful, the scenery is beautiful, and the two islands of Laynon and Nueva are mountainous and verdant, and they are lush and green.
January is the middle of winter on the mainland, and in the southern hemisphere it is midsummer, but the remnants of snow still remain in the low-lying areas of the slopes of the two islands, as if to remind us that this is a high-latitude region after all. Unfortunately, the sky is getting dark, and the surrounding scenery is beginning to be hazy. I gazed at the scenery on both sides of the bridge for a long time, trying to make as much impression as possible, until I couldn't see anything clearly, and then I went back to the cabin to rest.
The sign of approaching the South Pole - ice floe
During the day on the 29th, continue to sail south in the Drake Passage. Due to the fog, the speed is reduced and the wind and waves are lighter.
Drake Passage location
From the morning of the 29th, there were signs of approaching the South Pole: dozens of ice floes could be seen floating on the surface of the sea, far or near, scattered in the front and rear of the ship, left and right. They are white and blue, with strange shapes and a variety of postures. Some of the ice floes also have penguins parked on them. Whenever the ship approached, they often jumped into the water in a row and jumped forward in the water. Occasionally, whales are seen draining and some of their wings are exposed to the surface.
The ocean near Antarctica, which was the world's largest whale producing region, is declining due to overfishing in some countries. Some passengers even saw dolphins, but unfortunately I didn't have that blessing.
After more than two days of air and sea sailing, we finally saw signs of approaching the Antarctic continent, and everyone was excited and hurried to take some ice floes with their cameras.
Actually, we're too impatient. Because the later it gets, the larger the ice floe (so it is also called "iceberg"), and the number of ice floes is also more and more, dense and innumerable. If you look closely at the ice floe nearby, there are many perforations on it, probably caused by the seawater. On the larger ice floes, in addition to penguins, seals and seabirds also live.
As the Paradise Cove approached the Antarctic Peninsula, it had to make a detour to find a spot with less ice floe due to a large area of ice floes blocking the way, including tall icebergs like cliffs.
According to sailors, each piece of ice floe looks like a behemoth, but only a small part of it is actually floating on the surface, and about 6/7 of the volume of each ice floe is submerged under water. The phrase "the tip of the iceberg" is often used in the press to refer to this meaning.
"Hope" Station and "Antarctic Gentleman"
At about 7 p.m. on January 29, we finally arrived at Antarctica, the "seventh continent" covered by ice and snow for many years. To be precise, it is to reach the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, across the ocean from South America, where Argentina's "Hope" station is located.
Esperanza Station, Argentina, near the Bay of Hope, there is an Argentine scientific research station with the Spanish name "Hope" - Esperanza Station, Argentina.
Before the ship was properly moored, we put on a complete set of warm clothes, hats, shoes and socks specially prepared for us by the host for Antarctica, and the outermost was a thick orange down jacket. Since we were all heavily armed, bloated and bulky, we looked like space pilots who had landed on the moon, and we couldn't help but look at each other and laugh.
The "Paradise Bay" was too large to dock directly, so we landed in small boats in batches. The permanent staff of the "Hope" station lined up at the pier to welcome us. Among them are 9 scientists, 20 logistics soldiers, and a group of family members and children. It's a big festival for them, as it's rare to see them all year round.
January is the summer in Antarctica, the warmest season in the region. Despite this, the temperature in the Antarctic Peninsula is still below freezing, and the local residents wear down jackets, hats and gloves. This is still in the relatively warm coastal areas of Antarctica, and if you go deeper into the interior of Antarctica, then even in summer, the temperature will be between minus 15°C and minus 35°C. The average annual temperature of the Antarctic continent is minus 55 °C to minus 57 °C, and the absolute minimum temperature can reach minus 88 °C.
In the howling cold wind, we visited their studios, post office, radio station, kennel farm, newly opened bank and much more. The "Hope" station will be able to communicate with the South American continent by telephone and telegraph. Water depends on freshwater lakes and electricity depends on self-set power stations. Tourism has begun to rise on the peninsula, with about 400 tourists visiting the peninsula every year, so the Afghan side is planning to build hotels on the peninsula. According to reports, it is a good business to sell Antarctic commemorative stamps stamped by the post office of the research station to tourists.
Residents of the "Hope" station accompanied us to see the scenery of the peninsula. Due to the low temperature throughout the year, the plant species of the Antarctic continent are poor, and only lichens, mosses and Juncao grow in the area, and there are no flowering plants. However, the Southern Ocean is rich in animal resources, and people can see penguins, walruses, sea lions, seals, seagulls and more.
The most striking thing is the penguins. Penguins are the size of geese. Young penguins have small and dense gray fluff, and when they grow up, they have a black back and a white belly, and they are slightly goose yellow near their necks, which is very beautiful. They stand with their heads held high, swagger when they walk, and are very personable, so they are known as "Antarctic gentlemen". In winter, they migrate north in groups to the Malvinas Islands and return to Antarctica in the summer to lay their eggs.
Antarctic emperor penguin
Penguins are good swimmers in icy water, are fast as flying, and can dive. It is said that there are more than 20 species of penguins, and what we see here is the "Emperor Penguin", which may be named because of its grandeur. Seeing a large flock of penguins for the first time in my life, I couldn't help but cautiously approach them and ask Ambassador Barrios to take a few photos for me.
That night, we had dinner at the "Hope" station, and drank some whiskey as usual before the meal, but this time it was not the usual ice cubes in the refrigerator, but the natural ice of the Antarctic continent.
It is said that in Antarctica, which is covered with ice and snow all year round, the local ice is tens of thousands of years old. Whisky is usually measured in 10 or 12 years to show its quality. Because of the addition of ice cubes with a history of tens of thousands of years, everyone joked that this time they drank the rare "10,000-year-old whisky". Some people even boldly imagine that if Antarctic ice can be transported to Europe and the United States in boxes on refrigerated ships to be used as a condiment to whiskey or other cold drinks, the drink will be worth a hundred times its value.
We sat in the warm dormitories of the resident staff of the "Hope" station, chatted for a long time, and asked them about their life and work in Antarctica. It was not until 1 a.m. on the 30th that we returned to the "Paradise Cove" to rest.
King George Island with elephant seals
On the morning of the 30th, we sailed at night to King George Island (called "May 25 Island" in the Arab side). This island belongs to the South Shetland Islands, close to the Antarctic Peninsula, and many countries have stations on this island.
King George Island
For the whole day on the 30th, we visited the "Houbani" station in Argentina, the "Altigas" station in Uruguay, the "Marsh" base in Chile, and the "Great Wall" station in China.
King George Island, where China's "Great Wall" station is located, is the closest Antarctic zone to other continents, and the conditions for building the station are the best.
The "Hubani" station is small, and there are several scientists studying the local geology, fish, etc. Other family members came from Argentina to visit their relatives during the summer. The station has its own radio station, and the water is taken from the lake. This place is located at 62° south latitude and belongs to the subpolar zone. There are lower plants such as lichens and mosses on the island.
Antarctic elephant seals
We visited in the neighborhood and the most striking animal was the elephant seal. Its head is as small as a leopard, its tail is as small as a shark's fin, its middle body is as large as an elephant, and its legs are as short as wings. Because of its small head and tail and large middle, it moves clumsily on land, squirming like maggots, but moving freely in the sea.
When the elephant seal opens its mouth, it shows a pink palate and tongue, and there are large marks on its body, which makes it look horrifying. In the past, I have seen descriptions of "opening the mouth of blood" in literary works, which may refer to this kind of scene. We approached them with trepidation (and didn't dare to get too close) and posed for a photo with them.
The "Altigas" station in Uruguay is also located on King George Island, not far from the "Houbani" station, but due to the difficult access on land, we went by helicopter to save time. The station had only been built for two years, only a week before the "Great Wall" station on the mainland. There are civilian personnel in the station, as well as military personnel who provide logistical support, and they rotate every year. We visited their meteorological observation station etc.
It was a visit by Chinese guests in January 1986 to the base residential area of Marsh in Chile in Antarctica.
The Marsh base in Chile is named after Lieutenant Marsh of the Chilean Air Force. This base was built by the Chilean Air Force and has a good runway. It is Chile's largest logistics base in Antarctica and an important hub for air communication between Antarctica and the South American continent. Because of the base's relatively complete facilities, other countries that have built stations in Antarctica have also benefited a lot.
King George Island Airstrip
When we arrived, there were two planes parked at the airport, one helicopter. At its peak, more than 400 people were said to have worked at the Marsh base. At the time of our visit, there were still 15 families with more than 40 children. In addition to Chileans, several German scientists are engaged in kelp research here. We visited their laboratories, weather stations, post and telecommunications offices, banks, guest houses, etc. The weather station at the base issues weather forecasts every 12 hours.
The guest house at the Marsh base should be said to be quite comfortable in the conditions of Antarctica. We rested for a while in the lobby of the guest house, where the warmth and elegance of the interior made us forget about the snow and ice outside. There are also several pots of evergreens in the guest house, apparently brought from the South American continent and needing to be kept alive by indoor heating. Because of this, it reflects the owner's painstaking love for beauty and his pursuit of life.
[Source: The Diplomatic Career of Contemporary Chinese Envoys (Volume III)" (published in April 1996)
Author: Shen Yunxi
Editor: "Diplomats Say Things" Fengfeng]