Having made my way to the airport in Rio and transferred in Buenos Aires, where I would return in around 10 days time, I eventually made it to Ushuaia, at the bottom of Argentina for the real part of the holiday to begin.

Getting from the airport to the hotel was pretty quick as the city was rather small, yet it became immediately clear that 'summer' here was much more like a Scandinavian summer than it had been in Brazil.

After having met some new travel companions already, I settled in for the night after a long day of travelling, prepared for the new adventures ahead.

The following morning I left my suitcase in the lobby before having breakfast and enjoying views over the city from the hotel restaurant, perched on the top of a hill. With embarkation not until 4pm, I then headed off for my exploration of the city, beginning with a walk to a vantage point along a harbour road for views of the city with mountains in the background.

Then I headed towards the Plaza Islas Malvinas, where a big square had been converted into a memorial for the Falklands War thirty five years previously. Curiously (or not?) a man constantly sits in a box watching the square all day. Can't think why.....

Continuing, I made my way to the information centre, where I obtained a certificate for having reached the southernmost city in the world. However like most things Argentinian, this is debatable. The city of 70,000 is located on Tierra del Fuego, an island south of the continent itself; whilst there are also settlements on the southern (Chilean) side of the Beagle Channel such as Puerto Williams which are only classed as "towns" with populations of approximately 3,000.

Nevertheless I took the certificate anyway and continued towards past the harbour stopping at the End of the World sign and having views of the ship I would be boarding later on.

The next stop was the End of the World museum, for some history on the city, before turning back and heading to the gift shops and supermarket eventually returning to the hotel to wait for the transfer at 3pm.

Enjoying my last drops of internet, we then all boarded the coach getting to know each other whilst we travelled, eventually making it to the port to board the ship. Getting a swipe on/off card, we had our photos taken and there we were - on board ready to set sail for Antarctica.

Having paid for my trip well in advance, I bagged the cheapest tickets for which I was required to share a Quad, and I soon met my travel companions - Cameron from the USA (who I had shared with the previous night), Gary from Canada and Bastian from Germany.

Not long after boarding we had an introduction with the staff of the ship in the lounge, which included the safety drill, testing our life jackets and even getting to sit in one of the covered lifeboats.

The ship then set sail and not long after we had our first dinner in the restaurant, where over views of the channel I got to know more people on the boat, which was made up of about 30% equally Americans, Brits and Australians, a with a handful of Canadians, and a scattering of others from Europe and Asia making up the rest of the numbers.

It quickly became clear that many people had the same ideas as me, booking this trip well in advance to secure the cheapest rooms! Isn't it always fun to meet people who have done the same thing?

Collecting my nice thick parka coat that would keep me warm for the duration of the trip, I then settled in for the night before tomorrow's rough crossing of the Drake Passage.

A great start to an unforgettable adventure.