The winds were behind us which made the Akademik Shokalkskiy cross the Drake Passage much faster than usual for the 1,000 Km from Ushuaia to the South Shetland Islands.
The ship was built in Finland in 1982/83 and carries maximum 48 passengers and 32 staff and crew. The Akademik Shokalskiy comes from Vladivostok and the captain and his crew have a lot of experience sailing through ice. The Russian staff is very friendly and always willing to help. The catering staff was from Germany & we had an Argentinean chef who prepared excellent dishes. The expedition staff was from Australia, Norway, France and USA, all very experienced in Antarctica.