The Falkland Islands

The sea was going to make us suffer to get into The Falklands.  Over night the swell was huge and we were tossed around in bed and I didn’t sleep much.  Not helped by a bedside drawer that sprung out every so often and made us jump.

But made it we did, even with the wind blowing a hoolley.  We were at Port Stanley.

voldemort Island, or the island with no name, well in Argentina anyway.

I think this bus is going to be late

We h% to go to the pub off course!

We booked on a short trip across the island to Joe’s Gentoo Penguins.  I chose it in the name of my cousin Joe who we sadly lost a few years ago.  But I just knew he would have loved this trip and all the penguins.

We caught a small bus which took us out of town to the homestead, where we changed into jeeps for the rough terrain.

As we drove out of town we could see people cutting out strips in the fields.  We learned these people were doing mine clearance from the war.  It is probably going to take 20 years to get rid of them all.  Also we passed some beautiful beaches, but they are blocked off because of th mines, and they are not sure they will ever be clear, as they shift around.

After twenty minutes we reached the water and a small colony of Gentoo penguins, that were just lovely.  We stayed around for about and hour watching their antics, and then moved down the coast.  At one cove, the abbatoir on the other side of the island, dumps its offal into the sea.

There must have been about 1,000 giant skewers, giant petrals and a huge hawk of some kind.  The coastline was very rugged, with waves crashing into the coves.  We both thought it reminded us of western Scotland and the isles.

Back in Port Stanley we wandered around the streets, the memorial, passed Thatcher Close with a bust of herself on the green. I think there are about 3,500 people in The Falklands with about 2,500 living in Stanley.  Living is made by fishing, tourism and sheep farming mainly.