Not much to report on today – I purposefully took a flight a day earlier than last year’s so that I could ensure I would get a full night’s sleep before the two weeks of insomnia starts. I took a morning flight to Ottawa that was fairly uneventful and arrived in Ottawa to pretty much the same temperatures and humidity that I had left in the ‘Peg. Got to the hotel, checked in, and immediately met up with Scobie Pye, one of my fellow SOI staffers from last year.
Scobie is the consummate adventurer – our Tasmanian devil, as we refer to him. And if you spend an afternoon and evening with him, you get regaled with every story imaginable. On the ship last year, his stories were legendary, told during the evening wind-ups. The students (and yes, even the staff who had heard them many times before) hung on every word. And today, I had the master storyteller all to myself. I spent hours listening to him spin yarns about his home in Tasmania, trips to Antarctica, and expeditions around Norway. His stories ranged from the hilarious (Zodiac mishaps) to the alarming (few polar bears spotted around the Norwegian coast this season). It was truly a relaxing and entertaining start to my journey this year.
Tomorrow is a relatively late start (8:15am). Getting picked up by the SOI staff and put to work preparing for the arrival of the remaining expedition staff. I’m looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and meeting some new ones. Meetings, collaborative planning time and an all-staff dinner round out the day. And even some students from a few Northern communities will arrive! Can’t wait…
For now, sleep beckons. Good night!
Scobie is the consummate adventurer – our Tasmanian devil, as we refer to him. And if you spend an afternoon and evening with him, you get regaled with every story imaginable. On the ship last year, his stories were legendary, told during the evening wind-ups. The students (and yes, even the staff who had heard them many times before) hung on every word. And today, I had the master storyteller all to myself. I spent hours listening to him spin yarns about his home in Tasmania, trips to Antarctica, and expeditions around Norway. His stories ranged from the hilarious (Zodiac mishaps) to the alarming (few polar bears spotted around the Norwegian coast this season). It was truly a relaxing and entertaining start to my journey this year.
Tomorrow is a relatively late start (8:15am). Getting picked up by the SOI staff and put to work preparing for the arrival of the remaining expedition staff. I’m looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and meeting some new ones. Meetings, collaborative planning time and an all-staff dinner round out the day. And even some students from a few Northern communities will arrive! Can’t wait…
For now, sleep beckons. Good night!
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