Casey went all out this year with celebrating Christmas. It was even more special leading up to Christmas Day as the station had been very busy with resupply duties.
For expeditioners Christmas can be a stressful time being away from family and friends but fortunately our newfound friends on station helped make this time of year special.
The festivities started with a Christmas Eve barbecue in the green shed. Chefs were given the night off so they could prepare for the next day and also helped with setting the scene for the festive season.
On Christmas Day we awoke to a marvellous brunch which was followed by a very traditional Christmas lunch. We had nearly a 100 expeditioners for lunch as we were joined by some Chinese colleagues and other passing expeditioners on transit to Davis.
Santa made his usual appearance and this year he bought Mrs. Claus with him. After making sure everybody had been good, Santa set about giving out presents.
During our Christmas lunch we all got a surprise when another very special visitor made an appearance: none other than Stay. Stay is the Antarctic mascot ‘dog', who started life as a Guide Dogs for the Blind donation dog in Hobart. In 1991, as something of a protest by expeditioners against the removal of the husky sledge dogs from Antarctica, she made her way to Antarctica. Ever since, Stay has travelled from station to station and is now considered the most travelled expeditioner in Antarctica. It is a challenge for each station to try and get Stay to winter with them as she normally disappears in the most dubious or mysterious of ways. It was believed, until Christmas Day, that her fate and current whereabouts were unknown as she had disappeared from Hobart last summer. Like a lot of lost dogs, she found her way home to Casey and she is securely locked in her kennel for winter.
