Antarcticness at the ends of the world

At the southern tip of Argentina stands a sign, proudly proclaiming the city of Ushuaia as being at ‘the end of the world’ (Figure 3.1). In the background, cruise ships come and go, carrying parka-clad visitors who look to the south with adventure on their minds. For them, this town is not an ending but a beginning, the starting point of their Antarctic encounters. The port of Ushuaia is a hub of Antarctic activity during the summer season. Between November and March, the docks heave with a mix of Antarctic research and resupply vessels, fishing boats bound for the far south, and tourist ships that transport more than 70,000 visitors a year to Antarctica (International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators 2020). While those tourists return from the white continent with memory cards full of penguins and ice images, and brimming with stories to share back home, a sense of Antarcticness is not limited to direct encounters with the continent. The cities from which people depart have their own stories to tell about Continent Number Seven, and those who live in the Antarctic gateways participate in the performance of southern connections in a wide range of ways.