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By Diane Daniel, Globe Correspondent, 04/14/02
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More on Florida Sensible traveler Destinations Where they went Travel gear Student travel |
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Mattera, 36, a third-grade teacher at MacArthur School in Waltham, expanded her vacation into a traveling classroom. She and her husband, Chris, a sixth-grade teacher at the Garfield School in Revere, devised a teaching unit about Antarctica, with Mattera's trip as the focus. The lessons, which follow MCAS guidelines, ended up being taught in about 25 classrooms at their schools and those of friends.
Mattera and Tomlinson, 70, spent about two weeks on the Russian vessel the Kaptain Dranitsyn and about a week in transit via Argentina. Run by Quark Expeditions, the 100-passenger vessel is designed to teach tourists about wildlife and the environment and "is not like a glamorous cruise ship. You have to be very flexible." (Mattera should know; she has worked on cruise ships as a DJ and stage manager.)
"Antarctica is such a world apart from any place," she said. "Even when you're breaking through the ice, it's like being on the moon. The scenery is amazing. It's peaceful. Everything's white. It's one of the last remaining wilderness areas on the planet."
During a ride on a Zodiac (motorized rubber boat), humpback whales swam right next to them. "You could see their tails and smell them."
What does a whale smell like? "Rotten fish. It is the worst smell," Mattera said. "The leaders said it was from their breath."
Quark vessels are known for going farther south than most. Mattera's ended up being the first passenger ship to go through the narrow Bourgeois Fiord. She and her father also were lucky enough to see a a sunset phenomenon. "As soon as it touches the water, it's this bright green neon flash. It's rare." (On the horizon, the top edge of the sun, because of an atmospheric refraction, momentarily turns green. Less a flash than a fraction of a second spark, observers have to know what to look for.)
Mattera estimates her trip cost about $8,000, including air fare. She and her father were with travelers from all over the world, including Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, and Holland. The BBC was filming a children's program on the trip as well.
Each day Mattera would compose an e-mail to her students and send it home via the ship's satellite Internet service. Her husband would in turn forward the e-mail to teachers, students, friends, and families. Students also could e-mail questions to Mattera.
Students were especially awed by Mattera's account of a "polar plunge," where she jumped into the frigid sea while the ship was docked in frozen Crystal Sound. "They tell you not to jump in, but to wade in, because of all the ice, but I jumped anyway. Coming out I had a Weddell seal swimming right next to me."
After every visit on land, passengers' boots and raincoats were hosed down to prevent any disease spreading from the penguin guano. "We mostly landed on islands," she said. "We only landed on the continent once. We climbed up a peak and then you slide down on your bum. It was fun."
What she and her father didn't particularly enjoy were two days each way crossing some of the most treacherous waters on earth, the Drake Passage, where the Pacific and Atlantic meet. "We had 15-foot waves and were told it was very calm," she said. "They even have safety belts in your bed."
Mattera and her husband have shown photos and a slide show to students and are working on a video. The photos and e-mails are on display at the school library, and Mattera still uses the e-mail address (pen
guinteacher@attbi.com) to answer teachers' and students' questions.
"Anyone in my class can tell you about birds, penguins, seals. Even the parents were really excited," she said.
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