ABOARD THE ARCTIC SUNRISE (Reuters) - The trip began in Punta Arenas, the capital of Magallanes region, Chile. We had spent three days aboard the Arctic Sunrise, a Greenpeace ship docked in one of the city’s harbors, to test our equipment and conduct security drills. I was eager to get to Antarctica.
Greenpeace, the global environmental group, organised the journey to raise awareness of, and support for, a European Union proposal to create the biggest protected area on Earth in Antarctica. The plan was to create a safe haven for marine life there from industrial fishing.