Several of the ship’s company were guests of honour at Government House today. With our need to sail for South Georgia by mid-afternoon, morning tea (with scones, jam and cream) was provided in the quite impressive reception hall. It was hosted by acting Governor, Mr Ric Nye and attended by Richard McKee, South Georgia’s Executive Officer and other officials. Mr Nye decided to adopt the ambitious title given by David so the whole party signed in under the heading of “The Last Voyage of the Heroic Age”. Of course the Hon. Alexandra was there and the Wild Bunch and Angie Butler and the concentration of media flashes could have lit the moon. Local and international press were on hand in all forms, written, spoken and televised. It was also a chance to meet the new passengers – the BBC film crew and our service-officiating minister, the Rev Dr Richard Hines and Mrs Hines. Ric Nye gave a short speech in which he reflected on the significance of the undertaking. In general discussion it was remarked that there was relatively little deliberation upon the matter – once Wild’s ashes had been found the Governor quickly decided that his last wishes to be buried in South Georgia by The Boss should be respected.
Cakes consumed, the party took pictures of each other in the conservatory, where grapes are growing, before rugging up and plunging back into the wilds of a very soggy Stanley day.
