I wasn't even in the base for 5mins after the CAT train when Ulwin came pretty much running up to me informing me that Takeover games will be starting tonight and team Springbokkies, which later changed to team Melktertjies (no, I had no part in the naming of our Pool doubles team!!) is also playing.
So throw down duffel bag in room, raid the kitchen/fridge for dinner leftovers to eat, shower (think that one was the most necessary since it was like 5 days since my previous shower, and even if you are cold, you still sweat when you work!), and then off to the games room to see what shinaniganz they had going on. I have to say the Takeover games was pretty strictly refereed, he even had a button shirt on (which is a big deal here..). So me and Ulwin were up against Will and Ben, and thank goodness Will sank the black ball in the middle of the game, so yay, we survived round one. The first table tennis match was postponed till the morning, and I was really glad, cause my sukkel-to-get-the-sled-hooked-and-get-my-finger-caught-between-the-pin-and-the-safety-clip finger was still purple, twice the original size, and seriously killing me.
After the first round of games my bed welcomed me with open arms...not for long though, day two of takeover games started early on and soccer was up first. First game was against team 50 - the old vs the new, and obviously we totally beat their asses!! So after a couple of other rounds we were in the finals against the Titan team. A bizillion bruises later we lost, 0-1 :(. Was quite an awesome game though and we did enjoy it thoroughly, even if we didnt win.
Next was tug-of-war, and we had a major weight disadvantage in this one, so we didn't get very far. Then boot throw, where you have to throw a 'Pampoenskoen' backwards over your head. My first throw was kinda in the opposite direction than intended, woops, but atleast the other two throws were good enough to get me first place for the girls.
After some fire alarm drama and cleaning up we could finally start getting ready for the official Takeover function where we would be signing away our lives for the next year. Kinda scary if you think about it like that! So the girls got their dresses, and all the boys got their suits (or whatever kinda clean outfit they had lying around), and we were ready for our 4 course meal. Somewhere inbetween there were speeches and contract signing and pic taking, but in the end it was really awesome.
And after dinner the games continued..more pool, foosball, table tennis, darts, and vodca jelly babies. It was a total blast!!
Two days ago it was time for my first CAT train with the drivers. The mission at hand: drive to RSA bukta (about 180km away), transfer the fuel that was pumped from the ship to the 18000liter fuel bowzers to the now empty 25000liter bowzers and bring them back to SANAE to be emptied into the diesel bunkers so we can have enough fuel for the year here.
8am meeting with the drivers, 7 seriously hardcore-looking dudes with beards that would scare even a blind viking baby, plus me, Jako and Mike. We all get assigned our Challengers and what load which team pulls. Bez (a Dozer ninja and previous overwinterer) and me would go in Challenger 5, which is kinda small, but super cozy and totally drives like a snow Hummer. The drivers go in their usual teams and Jako and Mike is in Challenger 3. First thing after the meeting is to clean up our challengers that are pretty snowed in/under after the storm the past couple of days. That being done, we grab lunch, steal some of the freshly baked breadrolls for the road (I'm pretty sure the chef has a huge crush on me, so I just flash him the killer smile and giggle a bit and then the breadrolls are all mine [evil grin]), and load our gear and supplies.
So we jumped in our orange chariots, and off we went, well, off to the summer depot to hook the loads and fist fight for who gets to drive in front. We took 3hour turns to sleep/drive and stopped fairly often to plant some waypoint poles. The best part of the stopping was to see how these uber hardcore men turn into little boys that have snowball fights at every opportunity.
Upon getting there we fired up the Caboose's genny, set up the pot for coffee, and then headed out again to dig out the snowed under bowzers. After lots of digging, dozing, and sukkeling, we finally had all the bowzers out and ready to be emptied. Everyone was beyond tired, so we divided up into teams so we could take turns sleeping and working. After what felt like forever we were finally done and we could depot the empty bowzers at RSA bukta for the winter. Driving back and forth between where we pumped the fuel and where we depot the bowzers I got to use Challenger 6, which is seriously awesome and way fast.
The way back was looong and bumpy, and much slower since we now had more than double the load. First problems started when we hit the second big hill, Challenger 5 got stuck, so I had to jump out, unhook the second sled, then we drove up the hill, unhooked the first sled, drove back, got the one we left behind, drove up again and hooked up both sleds again. By the fourth (and massive) hill, Bez decided that there was no way we would make it with both bowzers atached, so we ditched the one and drove on. And then came the dreaded Vesles hill, where you tend to get stuck, even if you are only pulling one load, so a few of the others had to ditch their second loads too, and Challenger 3 couldn't even get up with one sled, and then most of us were stuck...and then blondie over here had the lightbulb plan of the century...take the dozer off the sled #1 is pulling (which then makes it easy for 1 to get up) and use said dozer to pull up some of the bowzers that the challengers are struggling with!
After a few breath-holds and skipped heartbeats, we were finally at the top, which meant we only needed to depot the loads and refuel our challengers, and we would officially be back home! When we arrived at the diesel bunkers to refuel, some of the boys drove over on a skidoo to come say hello. It included a group hug (more like a group squish-the-stef) and lots of babbling about whats been going on at the base. Was the best welcome ever - it realy felt like I was home!
Our local pub, where the topless table and mock charges are just a few indicaions that this crazy bunch is having an awesome time. Offcourse we have our (far too) regular visitors that even started up their own brand of (puke-inducing-when-smelled) mampoer, but for the rest of us this is just a place to hang out, talk crap, play a game of liar dice, and listen to the best music ever - depending obviously on who the DJ for the night is, but generally the bad ones are just booted out and replaced with DJ vZ - totally the best DJ in AntA (even if he is the boss during the day...)
Was flown off to the Germans today to go install some equipment for work purposes there. The chopper trip was really long and not all that interesting since its pretty much just whiteness when you looked out the window... on the way we stopped at the SA Summer Station to drop off a few thing the drivers needed for their repairs to the place, and then we were off again to Neumayer.
Thank goodness the installation went without any hickups, so the system was up and running within 30minutes, if even that long. We had to wait for some of the medical equipment to be sterilized (our sterilizer thingy is too small for some of the medical equipment to fit in, so the Germans are kind enough to do it for us) so we had some coffee and took a mini tour around the base. All of their systems are pretty much brand new and looking very spiffy. One thing of their base that I looove is the huge windows. I can just imagine the view if we had such big windows in our base!
We met three of the overwintering team members, and they seem really cool. Hopefully I'll get to see them again..
The trip back was spent playing with cameras and I'm sure working on Gideon's nerves. I have like a hundred random pics on my cam of people's beards and chins and who knows what, thanks Renier!!
At the end of yet another long hard day of work, about 12 of us (3 old year-team members, 3 new year-team members, and a bunch of summer peeps) had the opportunity to go on a trip to Crystal Palace. It is about 15minutes drive from the base by Skidoo. We hooked a couple of passenger sleds, packed our gear, and off we went. Nobody really knew what exactly to expect, except for the part that there must be crystals there (yea, don't know where we got that clue from either, we just totally figured it out by ourselves!).
After an awesome skidoo ride, a little hike up the hill, a slide down on our bums, and a few slips and falls on some really slippery ice, we finally made it.
The one part is like a frozen lake, but as you walk over, you can actually see bubbles as the water under the first layer of ice moves.
I bought some crampons before I came on the trip, so this was an ideal time to try them out. It feels really weird walking with them the first bit, but after a while you get used to the feeling. The scariest part is when you are walking around on the ice and it makes all these really loud cracking sounds...made my heart stop a few times!
Was an awesome trip, and the best part is nobody was mamed and/or killed by 'the crampons'...
Last night was the BEST NEW YEARS EVE EVER!!
The countdown was done outside the base on the ice and after a few of us went up to the base's roof for pics and champagne. First ever New years countdown in broad daylight..
Ridiculously awesome!
