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Pink Saturday Goes to the Falkland Islands


Welcome to Stanley, the capital of the Falkland Islands

I know I said I was just about finished with Antarctica/South America posts, but I decided to make one last visit for Pink Saturday. I've missed sharing in the Pink Saturday fun by posting too late, but  this earlier post will let me participate this week.

Without getting into complicated political and historical details, the Falkland Islands,  three hundred miles from the coast of South America, is a British Overseas Territory. The population is approximately three thousand people and the area is beautiful.
 
Christ Church Cathedral
 
I spent the morning exploring Stanley. My favorite site was Christ Church Cathedral, the southernmost Anglican Cathedral in the world. It is the parish church of the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the British Antarctic Territories. The monument in front of the church is the Whalebone Arch, constructed of the jaws of two blue whales, and raised in 1933 to commemorate the centenary of British rule in the Falklands.

The view from the dock in Stanley

The Celebrity Infinity from the tender boat to Stanley. The port of Stanley is too small to permit a cruise liner to dock and much smaller boats were used to go from the ship to the port.

Gentoo penguins

I enjoyed my morning in Stanley very much -- both for the scenery and the seemingly endless array of penguin souvenirs. I stopped myself from going completely wild, but I did find a few treasures that came home with me. My favorite is a pair of penguin socks that I suspect will often be seen in future photographs. But the real treasure of the day was a visit to the coastal plain where the Gentoo penguins live. The trip to the penguins included the absolutely most bumpy 4x4 ride imaginable. There are no roads and in the back of the 4x4 I could feel every change in the landscape that we encountered. However, seeing the penguins made the trip well worthwhile. It was an adventure and a fabulous memory.

Our "road" to the penguins. 
 
Now I officially conclude my South American Adventure posts. What remains are fabulous memories, new friends, greater knowledge and appreciation of South America and Antarctica and yes, penguin socks.  
 
This is just in time for the latest adventure, which begins in approximately twenty-four hours. It's a lot shorter, a lot nearer and I don't need winter clothes or currency other than United States dollars.
I do anticipate a lot of fun, great memories and photographs to share. 
 
As ever, thanks for sharing and have a great week!
 
  

 

4 comments

Mimi said...

Travel is just not in my destiny. So I'm enjoying yours.

TARYTERRE said...

I have so enjoyed this trip of yours. The whalebones are quite impressive only to be outdone by those adorable penquins.

Sybil said...

This has been an amazing adventure..thank you so much for sharing it with us. I must say I am quite concerned about the fact that you had to use a tender to get onto the island, I expect that will be the same with our ship...but I am trying my best to think of getting of that ship without wheelchair if need be..might be a wheelchair on board that I can persuade a kind passenger to push for me..even if it's just in the..town...I would hate to go all that way and not be able to get of to see at least some of the Penguins ......ah well. Lots of prayers I think will help and we have till next year to solve it !!......just back from a weekend retreat in Devon lovely place called Lea Abbey near Linton you can look it up if you like.....it was lovely and we had two days of wall to wall sunshine....Thank you once more xxx

I'm mostly known as 'MA' said...

Hard to believe you are off traveling again, hope you have a wonderful trip and take more pictures for us to enjoy!