Saunders Island, West Falklands: Incongruous might be the one word to describe this place. A white sandy beach decorated with red-brown fronds of kelp glowed in the early morning sunshine. The water was a turquoise blue, the kind you would expect to find on some romantic island in the South Pacific. The familiar hum of penguin murmurs didn't seem to fit as it reached our ears from a rise of darker ground brightened by the lemon-yellow blooms of sea cabbage. Sheep grazed the grassy hillsides, wandering between hummocks housing burrows. From each dark hole stared the striped face of Magellanic penguins, both adults and chicks. Between them all, standing proudly tall were majestic and regal king penguins guarding their one-and-only progeny. An abandoned egg lay in their midst. Bouncing from cliffs high above the surf, rock- hopper penguins with golden brows stair-stepped their way from cliffs above to water below, stopping momentarily to bathe in a tide-pool bathtub. The deep dark eyes of a down-covered black-browed albatross chick seemed to drink in the scene from his nest.
Carcass Island, West Falklands: Grass. Beautiful flowing green and golden grasses. We walked in the verdant pastures stopping to watch a parade of handsome upland geese or to smell the array of minuscule wildflowers. Tussock mounds protected penguin burrows and seed-eating black-chinned siskins while brazen Tussock birds sauntered in between. An oasis far in the distance beckoned. Hidden in dark conifers, a bright frame house threw open its doors for happy smiling hikers. Boots and jackets were scattered across the lawn between lounging bodies soaking up sunshine. Inside, tea was on the stove and the dining room table groaned with sweet treats prepared by gracious hosts.
