Thanksgiving dinner and Jacob's departure

As I've mentioned, this was my first South Pole holiday. That's me in the lower right corner, facing away from the camera. The two guys standing on either side of the picture are our winter-overs, Felipe (on the left) and Blaise (on the right). I'm leaving in 7 days, but they're here for 11 more months!

The dinner was great, three kinds of turkey (roasted, smoked, and deep-fried), a couple of different kinds of stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and three different pies (pumpkin, pecan, and apple). As you can see, there was also wine, though we're limited to one of the 6 or so different wines available from the store. I know I had a great time!

Jacob, the guy in the blue and white hat, just left today. He and I met up in L.A. and traveled to the Pole together, along with Ralf, the guy in gray just beyond Jacob. Jacob's plane came in with some cargo and a handful of D.V.s (Distinguished Visitors), people from the National Science Foundation who are touring the South Pole to look at the various science projects then heading back this evening.

Jacob was the only outgoing passenger and there wasn't any outgoing cargo this morning, so he's flying back to McMurdo on an empty plane with 5-6 National Guardsmen. Not a bad way to end the trip!