The first part of any expedition to Antarctica is, of course, the infamous Drake Passage. Long known for some of the worst seas in the world, many guests wonder what it will be like when we cross it. All and all, our crossing was fairly average. There is a bright side to a windy crossing, and that is birds. This is the Southern Ocean, home to the masters of long distant flight, the albatross. By the end of breakfast, we had spotted four species. Mostly, we observed light-mantled albatrosses. One species rather rare to this area, the Atlantic yellow-nosed albatross, was also spotted. This was a very special bird for a very special first day.