Michele Travels

On Thursday we visited the Garibaldi Fjord and Glacier, Chile. The schedule called for 90 minute zodiac cruises in the area surrounding and up to the glacier.

As we boarded our zodiac, our guide Sebastian made a statement. He said, “I am going to warn you all. I might become emotional. I was born here in Chilean Patagonia. It is my home. This is the first time I have returned in over 3 years. I am so excited to be here and to be able to show it to you.”

At first, the eight of us were “awww, that is so nice.” Little did we know… the next two hours became the most memorable and meaningful experience of the cruise.

Sebastian has an incredible personal history. As earlier stated, he was born in the Chilean Patagonia region. His family moved to Santiago when he was young. He went to university and became an architect. While in Santiago, he helped build a hospital. He was then part of a project that built a hospital and orphanage/school in Zimbabwe. It was there that he realized he wanted to connect more with the natural world. He returned home and began training for his current profession – and has never looked back.

As far as we’re concerned, he made a great decision! His passion for his profession and the environment is palpable. Really inspiring.

First we headed toward the cliffs that lined the glacier. We were shown every plant, tree and rock. We were able to touch the bits of ice bobbing in the water. Sebastian even took the zodiac close enough to the cliffs so we could be showered by glacial waterfall.

For the rest of this post, I am going to let the videos and photos speak for themselves. It is impossible to convey the scale of what we were seeing. I urge you to listen to Sebastian’s commentary in the videos. You can hear the pride and passion in his voice.

Next stop – Agostini Fjord.