An Unforgettable Lunar New Year in Antarctica

Text and photos by Yuanli Chenxiao

Meipian ID 29727770

According to statistics, during the 2024 Dragon Year Lunar New Year, fewer than one in a million people in the world reached Antarctica. Those who both crossed the Antarctic Circle and landed at Great Wall Station during that period were rarer still.

Fortunately, I was one of those very few people.

For that reason, the Dragon Year Lunar New Year of 2024 was extraordinary for me and unforgettable for life.

For a full 20 days, I was lucky enough to spend the New Year with whales, penguins and other creatures, kings of the sea and beloved polar wildlife, on Antarctica, the only pure land on Earth. I also proudly set foot on our own Chinese Great Wall Station and joined friends from different countries in creating and performing a splendid Antarctica Spring Festival gala.

For me personally, this grand journey truly away from worldly noise was the peak of my life. As the old line says, sing while there is wine, for how long is life?

I still remember Lunar New Year's Eve last year. The weather was not very good, and the wind and waves were huge, but our captain had predicted that we would cross 66 degrees 34 minutes south, the Antarctic Circle, that day. I waited eagerly for that glorious moment.

At 5:30 in the morning, I took high-powered binoculars and went to the top deck of the ship. I waited for Antarctica's dazzling sunrise while facing ocean spray and a sword-like cold wind. Like a hunter, I stared at the sea, wishing my nearsighted eyes could instantly become as sharp as a hawk's and pierce directly into the water in search of seals and whales.

But the sea was filled with icebergs of different sizes and shapes. Holding my binoculars, I watched the water for a long time, hoping that beneath some giant drifting iceberg there might be orcas at play. Sadly, apart from one lovely penguin after another leaping out of the sea, I did not see whales for a long time. I only saw more and more icebergs breaking away from their parent bodies and drifting slowly across the ocean.

Standing in the polar world, I could not help but worry deeply about the warming of the Earth and what terrible consequences the many creatures that depend on this environment might face in the future. The thought was frightening. I could only pray silently for them. Here, I strongly call on humankind to obey the laws of the ocean and cherish, protect and safeguard these polar marine creatures.

After several days of Antarctic expedition life, I gradually learned some of the patterns of whales and seals: when and where they might appear. For example, if you see a dark shape in the distance, with vapor rising from the water from time to time, it is most likely a whale. If you are lucky, you may see them playing together. But if you cannot control your excitement and let out a loud cry, they will disappear into the sea and ignore your longing gaze completely. All you can do is stamp your feet in the Zodiac and sigh at the ocean, regretting that you failed to stay quiet.

After that, whenever another target appeared, we communicated only with our eyes and gestures, staring silently and motionlessly at their hunting performance. Once they found fish, shrimp or krill they liked in large numbers, they quickly reached a kind of understanding. In an instant they formed a great circle, making you feel as if they were performing underwater ballet, while in fact they were surrounding their prey. Then they opened their mouths wide and swallowed quickly. A whale can eat a ton of krill a day. The sound of that hunt, like a dragon's roar or tiger's call, was deafening even from more than ten meters away. It also made some nearby towering icebergs and glaciers tilt and collapse like dominoes, scattering with a roar and leaving us all stunned.

Day after day, the ship carried us forward through the ocean.

Finally, around 9:00 a.m. on Lunar New Year's Eve, the ship's broadcast came with an excited bilingual announcement: we were crossing the Antarctic Circle; we had successfully crossed the Antarctic Circle.

At that moment, more than a hundred Chinese travelers on the ship, this was a charter voyage, erupted in celebration. Everyone used both hands and eyes, flashing phones and telephoto cameras. Beautiful images flew to every corner of the world, reaching relatives and friends near and far. I still remember sharing that exciting moment with my family through satellite signal. A young family member soon sent me a short poem, creating a mutual moment of emotion:

Through a 360-degree ring of light

Was that purest sky and sea.

And you

Were the red spirit of perfect beauty

Between that sky and sea.

Because of you

That purity had a soul.

Because of you

The blue and white became even more pure.

That evening, our Chinese New Year's Eve, the Romanian captain, the Portuguese first officer and the crew prepared a very generous dinner for our Chinese group. The captain said that every meeting in life is a kind of art: the pastries prepared by the chef, the rooms cleaned by the attendants and every sincere speech. Because every word came from the heart, and because we were gathered together, it was already beautiful.

Because Antarctica and Beijing are 12 hours apart, we could not watch the China Central Television Spring Festival Gala at the same time as people back home. Instead, we created and performed our own brilliant Antarctica Spring Festival gala.

At 9:30 p.m., the cultural gala of what we called the Antarctica branch venue officially began. Among our group of more than 120 people were scientists and experts from many fields, a truly talented gathering. Speaking, singing, dancing, reciting and Wudang martial arts all seemed to come naturally to everyone. It felt like a grand gathering of brothers and sisters from around the world. Even I, a person who does not swim, was swept up by the joyous atmosphere and joined everyone in the sea of celebration. The evening reached its climax when Serbian singer As performed several classics by Bocelli, and the whole room turned into an ocean of joy.

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, February 12, 2024, I was lucky and honored to set foot on Great Wall Station.

The moment I landed at Great Wall Station, I cried.

Excitement, emotion and pride filled me. I was proud of myself, and even more proud of the growing strength and prosperity of my country.

Great Wall Station is China's first research station in Antarctica. It was opened on February 20, 1985, at the southern end of King George Island in the South Shetland Islands of West Antarctica, about 2.5 kilometers from Chile's Frei Montalva Station and 17,500 kilometers from Beijing. Its coordinates are 62 degrees 12 minutes 59 seconds south, 58 degrees 57 minutes 52 seconds west. It sits on ice-free rock at an elevation of about 10 meters and is named after one of China's greatest structures, the Great Wall.

When the researchers at Great Wall Station saw us, they were also very excited. In their words, seeing us was like seeing family, because they rotate only once a year, and throughout that year only a dozen or so of them remain at this research base at the southern end of the world, surrounded by ice and snow.

Especially worth mentioning is the station chief, Mr. Wang, who had worked in Antarctica for a full 35 years. We could not help but feel deep respect for him and for all the researchers at the station.

As another new year arrived, I once again offer them my highest respect.

There is one more thing I want to record. On the afternoon when we crossed the Drake Passage, more than 85 percent of the people on board suffered serious seasickness, and a small number were so miserable they felt they could not go on. I felt relatively fine, so I walked into the banquet hall and sat down happily at the piano, where a pianist played for everyone at fixed times each day. I began to play several pieces I loved.

Perhaps I was too immersed in the music to notice that more and more teammates had gathered after hearing familiar melodies. So when I finished playing Für Elise, Romance de Amor, Auld Lang Syne and several other classics and stood up, I suddenly found a group of teammates standing beside and behind me, applauding warmly and kindly. In that moment, I was startled and dazed. It felt as if I had entered a scene from a film, something not quite real.

When I realized it was not an illusion but an actual scene, I quickly bowed in embarrassment, gratitude and emotion. I knew my playing was only ordinary. It was simply that the music itself had soothed and eased the physical discomfort caused by seasickness.

Even now, when I think back to that warm and moving moment, my heart still fills with emotion. I want to thank my Antarctica teammates once again.

Time passes swiftly. In a flash, the 2025 Year of the Snake Lunar New Year is about to arrive. As the New Year bell prepares to ring, I wish everyone a happy New Year and all things as you hope.

The auspicious dragon swings its tail, blessing the old year.

The lucky snake raises its head, opening new beauty.

Let us wave goodbye to the beautiful memories of 2024 and raise our hands to welcome the bright and splendid 2025.

Poetry and Distance: Antarctica, Part 16