Elephants and Swans*

*No elephants. Sorry about that. Was going to put some in for the sake of it but they were just too... irrelephant.

Hello everyone! Just a very quick thank you for all the links left on the last post - extremely helpful (and also wildly entertaining).

We had a chap on the news this morning, Polar Explorer Robert Swan, who was a) talking about Antarctica and how we need to not mine it but keep it as a place of scientific research for ever and ever and b) introduced as "the first person to walk to both the North and South Pole on foot".

Two questions:

Where did he walk from? Base camp? The edge of the ice? The equator? His snowmobile, parked five minutes away? I want to know exactly how impressed I need to be.

Also, he walked on foot? How else does one travel on foot?

Robert Swan, first person to walk to both the North and South Poles on a horse.

I put this question to two of my friends, T and S, and here is how the conversation went. S was a bit quiet because she was working, so it starts off (as all good things do) with solid T & A.

T: Robert Swan, the first person to walk to both the North and South poles…………equivalent on a stairmaster.

A: Robert Swan, the first man whose last name was also a type of bird to walk to both the North and South poles.

T: Robert Swan, not to be confused with Edward Cullen, the first man to walk to both the North and South poles.

A: Robert Swan, not to be confused with Rupert Bear, the first man to walk to both the North and South poles, although Rupert Bear went to a castle once.

T: Robert Swan, coming soon to a pole near you, the first man to walk to both the North and South poles.

A: Robert Swan: Out of Poles

S: Robert Swan: Aimlessly circling the equator in search of east pole

T: We're clever.

I have some great friends. They are the friend equivalent (in terms of awesomeness) as this squirrel, who has apparently outfitted himself with battle armour.


Having imparted these marvellous gems of wisdom it is now time for me to do some more work.

(If you want to listen to Robert Swan talking about Antarctica - it is quite interesting - then here is where to do that.)