St Andrews D(eparture) – Day (56° 20′ N, 2° 48′ W)
We set off from Scotland in high spirits on a grey drizzly Friday afternoon. As most of our fellow students and staff were heading to the pub for weekend drinks we boarded a plane to Paris, and from there crossed the Atlantic bound for southern South America. Thirty-two hours, three flights and a good 14,000km later we touched down on the beautiful shores of the Beagle Channel with an impressive background of mountains, forests and sea. 
We enjoyed splendid views of Ushuaia as the plane circled above the Beagle Channel to loose height in preparation for landing at Islas Malvinas airport after having just cleared the jagged peaks of the Martial mountain range to the North. A quick transfer to the hotel, check-in, showers, and off we went for dinner in a cosy local restaurant. What a smooth, comfortable start to our southern adventure.
(Sonja, teaching staff – to kick off the blog, but it’s over to the students from now on!)