It's two weeks out from my second consecutive White Christmas. There's no snow fall here. No reindeers. No Christmas markets or Christmas trees (well, real ones). We’ve got belting sunshine, icebergs and year-old frozen oysters.
This year I half expected to celebrate and bring the New Year in at Davis Station but after a sequence of events, I found myself on a solo intercontinental flight across to Mawson.
The team here had been without a chef for quite some time and I was welcomed into the community with open arms.
You see, there's rarely a Mawson ‘summer’ chef role. It's a remote station and a chef is usually here for a whole year. I guess I lucked out – that's three stations now in two summers, and gee they've kept me busy.
So, back to Christmas. Preparations are well underway at Mawson for our 31-strong celebration. Menus are getting typed out as we speak and slushies are gearing up to jump in and make this a pretty unique family affair.
The decorations have been up from the first of December as tradition dictates. Most weekday dinners now have been accompanied by expeditioners in Christmas hats, and those that don't oblige receive a raucous booing from the already seated diners.
Thanks to our back-up of supplies, I’ve already made a Christmas ham for lunch. There will be plenty more to come as well.
Our main resupply happened way back at the beginning of the year, yet it's crazy how well-stocked we are for the grand buffet to come; turkeys, prawns, oysters, more hams, rib eye, whole salmon, parma ham and not to mention the dessert buffet I’m set to make. It’s crazy the amount of protein we have after a year on the ice.
Running as a solo chef is a bit of a slog. You're in complete control of every single person's bowel movements.
While the year winds down here, mine is about to enter its busiest period. Like all challenges in life, they’re tough but rewarding and wholeheartedly worthwhile. It’s Mawson, it’s home after all.
Michael Morsello
