About two years ago, I visited the Antarctica.
In February 2014, completing the scientific station on the mainland of the Antarctica, South Korea joined the ranks of advanced countries to spur the research on the South Pole for the future.
I could stand on the Antarctica because I was a journalist to cover that historic moment.
As you may expect, the road to the station was a long and winding road.
First, it took 24 hours from Seoul, South Korea to Christchurch, New Zealand, the gateway to the Antarctica.
There we took LC-130 air carrier which required a 5-hour flight. And then, we had to take an icebreaker at the runway of the Terra Nova Bay and sail to the station.
It took another half day from the Terra Nova Bay to the new scientific station.
During the challenging voyage, I have learned the mystery of the South Pole.
Chapter 2: Mysterious summer and winter
In summer of the South Pole, there are only bright days but no dark night.
Amid such 'White Night', our icebreaker cruised through floating ice-filled sea, and there I met a countless number of penguins, seals, and whales.
In winter of the Antarctica, the sea is entirely frozen so that even icebreaker cannot sail and there is no day but night only.
In that period, Antarctic bases are isolated and surrounded by total darkness and coldness of -40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Such isolation, darkness, and coldness sometimes drove some workers to lose mind and even life. The only solace is beautiful aurora in a jet-black sky.
About two years ago, I visited the Antarctica. In February 2014, completing the scientific station on the mainland of the Antarctica, South Korea joined the ranks of advanced countries to spur the research on the South Pole for the future. I could stand on the Antarctica because I was a journalist to cover that historic moment. As you may expect, the road to the station was a long and winding road. First, it took 24 hours from Seoul, South Korea to Christchurch, New Zealand, the gateway to the Antarctica. There we took LC-130 air carrier which required a 5-hour flight. And then, we had to take an icebreaker at the runway of the Terra Nova Bay and sail to the station. It took another half day from the Terra Nova Bay to the new scientific station. During the challenging voyage, I have learned the mystery of the South Pole.
Tags: Antarctica, South Pole, adventure, a long and winding road
Here's a link to my podcast site: https://www.buzzsprout.com/61443/392553-a-long-and-winding-road-to-the-antarctica
And here's a link to download my audio story mp3 file: http://www.buzzsprout.com/61443/392553-a-long-and-winding-road-to-the-antarctica.mp3
In summer of the South Pole, there are only bright days but no dark night. Amid such 'White Night', our icebreaker cruised through floating ice-filled sea, and there I met a countless number of penguins, seals, and whales.
In winter of the Antarctica, the sea is entirely frozen so that even icebreaker cannot sail and there is no day but night only.In that period, Antarctic bases are isolated and surrounded by total darkness and coldness of -40 degrees Fahrenheit.Such isolation, darkness, and coldness sometimes drove some workers to lose mind and even life.The only solace is beautiful aurora in a jet-black sky.
In February 2014, completing the scientific station on the mainland of the Antarctica, South Korea joined the ranks of advanced countries to spur the research on the Antarctica for the future.
I could stand on the Antarctica because I was a journalist to cover that historic moment. At that time, I was the reporter of YTN, the 24-hour news channel of South Korea. The special air carrier and icebreaker could accommodate the small number of people. For that reason, the competition was cutthroat. Fortunately, I was appointed as a representative of Korean journalists because I was regarded as the most appropriate reporter who will deliver news to other journalists swiftly and precisely. Therefore, my goal was describe what I will experience in the Antarctica vividly for those who have not visited there. The problem was that communication situation of the Antarctica is extremely horrible. Even satellite mobile telephones usually did not work. In order to use the Internet, I had to arrive at the scientific station or use the satellite internet of the icebreaker. But, the internet connection was slow, unstable and conditional. If the ship was not directed to the satellite, the connection was lost. So, when we transmitted news contents to South Korea, we had to stop the icebreaker for a stable connection.
LC-130 air carrier
As you may expect, the road to the South Pole is a long and winding road. It takes 24 hours from Seoul, South Korea through Auckland, New Zealand to Christchurch, New Zealand, the gateway to the Antarctica. If we take an icebreaker, it takes one week from Christchurch to the Terra Nova Bay of the South Pole. Fortunately, we took LC-130 air carrier which required a 5-hour flight. Arriving at the Terra Nova Bay was not the end of our long journey. Because the new scientific station did not have a runway, we had to take an icebreaker and sail away. It took another half day from the Terra Nova Bay to the new scientific station.
The long journey had one merit. We could enjoy the mysterious scenary of the South Pole. While the icebreaker made a way through the slightly frozen sea, I could see the march of penguins on the floating ice. Taking a rest on the ice, seals welcomed me. Sometimes whales appeared and showed off a giant breath.
"Day" time of winter in the Antarctica
During the voyage to the station, I have learned the mystery of the South Pole.
While the northern hemisphere was in winter, the Antarctica in the southern hemisphere was in summer.
Even in summer, it was 17 degrees Fahrenheit and very windy outside.
In summer of the South Pole, there are only bright days but no dark night.
Amid such 'White Night', our icebreaker cruised through floating ice-filled sea, and there I enjoyed the endless sunshine for the first time in my life.
In contrast, in winter of the Antarctica, the sea is entirely frozen so that even icebreaker cannot sail and there is no day but night only.
Aurora above the station
In that period, Antarctic bases are isolated and surrounded by total darkness and coldness of -40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Such isolation, darkness, and coldness sometimes drove some workers to lose mind and even life.
The only solace is beautiful aurora in a jet-black sky.
Even though the communication condition of the South Pole was miserable, I used a satellite telephone to report what I was experiencing there on live.
At long last, I arrive at the first Korean scientific station on the mainland of Antarctica. It had its name after Jangbogo, the general who controlled the maritime power around Korean Peninsula in the 7th century. The station adopted an aerodynamic architecture to endure a strong wind of 214 feet per second in winter of the South Pole. Because this station has to bear an extremely low temperature of -40 degrees Fahrenheit, it also used an energy-efficient engineering technology. Unfortunately, we could stay there only for a half day since we had to follow the fixed flight schedule. The weather of the Antarctica is so fickle that even the heavy air carrier sometimes cannot guarantee a stable flight schedule. If we lose the plane, we have to wait for several days or a week. Therefore, there was no moment to lose.
To take a shot of a distant shot, we took a helicopter. While flying above the station, everything was fine. But, when we flew to take a shot of neighboring Italian station, a gust of wind suddenly attacked our helicopter. The helicopter lost the balance and dropped abruptly. At that dire moment, I had a premonition of my death and said good-bye to my family in my prayer. But, miraculously the helicopter regained the control and saved my life. My legs were shaking even after I escaped the helicopter. I had to overcome the shock right away because I must cover the historic moment of the building dedication ceremony and the inside of the station. While covering the story and transmitting the news contents to fellow journalists in Korea, the rest of time flied like an arrow.
I also had the privilege to be the first Korean journalist who visited the world-largest Antarctic station of the U.S. McMurdo station, which is playing a leading role in the research on the Antarctica.
The base can accommodate 1,200 people and has a cathedral, inn, souvenir shop, Starbucks and even Wells Fargo ATM.
You can view my report as shown below:
My reports filled with illustrative description received high praise because they helped the public understand the reality of the Antarctica and the necessity to invest national budget into the research on the Antarctica.
So, I was honored to receive South Korea President’s Award of Appreciation for my contributions to the improvement of communication between government and the public.
However, a bigger reward for my trip to the Antarctica was the unforgettable memory of priceless moments.
There are 3 reasons why Steve Jobs Stanford commencement speech is powerful and memorable.
First, the character is eye-catching. After he passed away, there are already two movies that illustrated his life. This implies that his story is compelling that much. An innovator ahead of his time had the value to get attention. When he passed, I was the reporter to deliver Korean people's lament on his demise. He was regarded as the most famous rebel in Information Technology industry by a lot of Korean people.
What he said reminded the audience of his dramatic life and his innovative works. Who else can say "stay hungry, stay foolish" more plausibly than Steve Jobs? Bill Gates? No kidding.
Second, his story had well-built story structure. Based on story structure, his second story can be analyzed like this:
1) You: Job started Apple.
2) Need: He got fired.
3) Go: He decided to start over.
4) Search: He entered one of the most creative periods of his life.
5) Find: He started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar.
6) Take: Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story.
7) Return: Apple bought NeXT, he returned to Apple.
8) Change: The technology he developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance.
Third, the context of Stanford commencement was as good as it gets for Jobs. He was one of the representative entrepreneurs who succeeded in the Silicon Valley. Stanford University is the representative educational institute the Silicon Valley got. It is quite dramatic that Steve Jobs who dropped out the university made a commencement speech in the finest university in the world. Such context made his speech powerful and memorable.
In February 2014, completing the scientific station on the mainland of the Antarctica, South Korea joined the ranks of advanced countries to spur the research on the Antarctica for the future.
I could stand on the Antarctica because I was a journalist to cover that story.
While the northern hemisphere was in winter, the Antarctica in the southern hemisphere was in summer.
Even in summer, it was 17 degrees Fahrenheit and very windy outside.
In summer of the South Pole, there are only bright days but no dark night.
Amid such 'White Night', our icebreaker cruised through floating ice-filled sea, and there I met a countless number of penguins, seals, and whales.
In winter of the Antarctica, the sea is entirely frozen so that even icebreaker cannot sail and there is no day but night only.
In that period, Antarctic bases are isolated and surrounded by total darkness and coldness of -40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Such isolation, darkness, and coldness sometimes drove some workers to lose mind and even life.
The only solace is beautiful aurora in a jet-black sky.
I also had the privilege to be the first Korean journalist who visited the world-largest Antarctic station of the U.S. McMurdo station, which is playing a leading role in the research on the Antarctica.
The base can accommodate 1,200 people and has a cathedral, inn, souvenir shop, Starbucks and even Wells Fargo ATM.
Even though communication condition of the South Pole was horrible, I used a satellite telephone to report what I was experiencing there on live.
My reports filled with illustrative description received high praise because they helped the public understand the reality of the Antarctica and the necessity to invest national budget into the research on the Antarctica.
So, I was honored to receive South Korea President’s Award of Appreciation for my contributions to the improvement of communication between government and the public.
However, a bigger reward for my trip to the Antarctica was the unforgettable memory of priceless moments.
First, Ganley signified the necessity of traditional storytelling in local community. In stressing on reciprocity to sharing stories, and the transformative strength of listening, I agree with her assertion that we are missing those crucial values today. So, as she mentioned, we are living in the ear of distrust. She warned us with a meaningful sentence. "Without trust, all we had was fear." Data-driven design cannot make people regain trust. For example, recently I made a reservation through a website. Although there was the flood of data such as price and rating, what I cared was people's comments. At last, I finally chose a hotel which had few bad comments.
Second, she said "story made certain facts memorable." In this summer, I work as summer research assistant. My job is analyze top 50 local television stations' top news in prime time. While watching videos, I realized that news reports using storytelling absolutely appealing and memorable.
Third, we are living in "networked individualism." Ganley implied that "mixed-media communication technologies in collaborative, social, participatory era" are a new possibility and a challenge to a storytelling. I think that they are surely a new possibility rather than a challenge. Even though modern audiences are fragmented by proliferated channels and media, interactive trans-media enables us to make use of storytelling in more immersive way. When I had a chance to visit a local TV station in Syracuse, I observed how new media can ameliorate storytelling. Making use of comments and information provided by viewers, the local broadcasting station can interact with them and create a vivider story.
The reason why so many cultures have their own version of Cinderella story would be transmission of the original story and its adaptation into the local area.
In Korea, we have Kongji and Patzzi story as our Cinderella story. Also, Japan, China, and Vietnam have the similar story. Even in ancient world, there was a transmission of information across continents. However, it was delivered through mouth to mouth of oral storytellers. Accordingly, the local storytellers sometimes might have improvised part of the original story although the original story cherishes the main theme.
You can read the Korean version of Cinderella story:
Once upon a time, there was a beautiful girl named Kongji. Her mother died when Kongji was 100 days old. She grew up with her father. The man remarried again when Kongji was fourteen years old. Kongji's stepmother was a cruel widow who had a daughter named Patzzi. Her father died eventually. Since then, the stepmother and Patzzi have treated Kongji very unfairly. They starved her, dressed her in rags and forced her to do all the dirtiest works in the house.
One day, the stepmother forced Kongji to plow a field with a wooden hoe. The hoe soon broke, leaving Kongji in tears, for fear that her step-mother would beat her again. A cow appeared and comforted her. He plowed the field in her place, and sent Kongji home with a basket of apples, a gift from the cow. Her stepmother accused her of stealing the apples and gave the entire basket to Patzzi. And she refused to give Kongji her supper.
The next day, the stepmother gave Kongji enormous pot with a hole in the bottom. She has to fill it with water before she and Patzzi return home from town. Kongji kept bringing baskets of water but the pot was never filled. The water leaks out from the hole. A turtle appeared and blocked the hole for her. With his help, Kongji filled the pot with water. The stepmother was even angrier. She spanked Kongji black and blue.
After a time, the prince announced that he is looking for a wife. A dance will be given in his honor, to which every maiden must attend. Kongji and Patzzi are invited. The stepmother was hopeful that Patzzi would be the lucky one but was afraid that Kongji would spoil her own daughter's chance. Before they left, the stepmother gave Kongji a huge sack of rice to hull. She must accomplish it before they return from the dance. Kongji asked for help from the heavens, and a flock of sparrows appeared and hulled the rice. A fairy came down from heaven and dressed Kongji in a beautiful gown and a delicate pair of colorful shoes. She was transported to the palace by four men in a grand palanquin. Kongji hurried towards the dance.
Everyone admired her because of her beauty. The prince went to her to ask her name. But when Kongji saw her stepmother and stepsister among the guests, she fled with terror. Patzzi remarked to her mother that the strange girl looks like her Kongji. As Kongji crossed a bridge, she tripped. One of her shoes fell into the stream. The prince found the shoe and vowed to marry the owner of the shoe. Servants tried the shoe on every woman in the land until they arrived in Kongji's village. It fits no one, only Kongji. She was the last to try the shoe. Then she produced her clothes and the other pair of her shoes. The prince and Kongji got married.
Patzzi was jealous of Kongji's marriage and drowned her in a river. Patzzi disguised herself as Kongji to live with the prince. Kongji's spirit haunted anyone in the river. A brave man confronted her ghost and she told him everything. The man reported this to the prince, and the prince went into the river. Instead of a dead body, he retrieved a golden lotus. He kissed the lotus and it was changed back into Kongji.
The prince sentenced Patzzi to death and Kongji's stepmother fell in a faint from which she never awoke.
