NEW RE-CAP May 29, 2015
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Wardroom Dinners on board the Discovery in Dundee
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Some of you might be planning to visit Dundee before or after the gathering. Dundee has many Antarctic connections and is home to Scott's Discovery and the excellent on-shore museum at Discovery Point. Dundee is 132 miles east of Craobh Haven. The Wardroom of the Discovery is available for catered dinners for up to 14 persons. It's a marvelous experience—I know as I was present at a dinner on May 5, 2001 along with several people who will be at the SouthPole-sium. (You can see some photos of that dinner at http://smu.gs/1re8GRL) I have booked the Discovery for dinner on the evenings of Monday 4 May and Tuesday 5 May and have paid a total of £400 in deposits. Attached is complete information on the dinners. There are two options: The Captain's Dinner at £95 per person and the Admiral's Dinner at £110 per person. One menu must be chosen for all (except for those with dietary requirements). It may seem expensive but I guarantee you will think it well worth it. And you'll have exclusive use of the Discovery from 7pm to midnight. UPDATE: Based on the responses shown below the Admiral's Dinner has been selected for all attendees at £110 each. (As of 27 March 2015 this is ca. $165. If the exchange rate changes dramatically leading up to the dinners, a surcharge may be requested so that I am not too much out-of-pocket when I pay the bill.) All Starters, Main Courses and Desserts must be the same (with the exception of those with dietary requirements) and based on the responses below fish has been selected for all attendees. The Main Course will be sea trout, crushed potato & soft herbs, seasonal greens, tomato & lemon dressing, coriander leaf. The choice of Starters, Intermediate Courses and Dessert will be left to later. I ask that one person for each night volunteer to serve as Captain to assist in the arrangements through the whole process. Among the tasks: selecting wines for the dinner (and collecting the costs), determining the seating plan, producing any extras such as a menu or keepsake, acting as the point of information for the evening and the contact person in Dundee with the Discovery Point people. In return you get to say that you served as Captain of the RRS Discovery! (More than one person could take on this role each evening, a couple, for instance.) The Captains will be provided with their tablemates' e-addresses and will be expected to communicate with their tablemates on choices, costs, payments, etc. I'm prepared to pay the price of each evening's dinner costs but will need to have received payment—as described below—no later than 17 April 2015. Payment for wine and other drinks will be extra and will have to be coordinated by the Captains. Wine will need coordination and must be ordered two weeks ahead of the dinner. It will be the task of the Captain each of the evenings to query their table mates and come up with choices, quantities and deal with the payments. Wines are listed at gathering2-dinners.pdf. Whites range from £19.50 to £32 per bottle; reds from £19.50 to £31.50. Of course, some diners may not wish wine. Payment: Payment may be made at any time but no later than two weeks prior to the SouthPole-sium, i.e. 17 April 2015. Payment may be made the same way as with the SouthPole-sium registration itself—a £cheque for £110 made out to "R. B. Stephenson" or a $check for the equivalent amount (presently $165)—made out to "The Antarctic Circle." These cheques/checks should be sent to The Antarctic Circle, P. O. Box 435, Jaffrey, NH 03452, USA. You may also make a direct deposit into my UK bank account (Royal Bank of Scotland account—Sort Code 160079; Account 10030641; Account Name: Mr R.B.Stephenson; IBAN: GB83RBOS16007910030641; BIC: RBOSGB2L).Another interesting prospect has developed. Paula Williams, Curator of the Maps, Mountaineering & Polar Collections at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh has offered to host a group at the Library on either Tuesday the 5th or Wednesday morning the 6th. "I think the most likely format would be a sort of show and tell—I can get out some of our best polar pieces and talk through what our collections hold. The exact format of this may depend on how many of you come." Those interested in this opportunity could attend on the way to or when returning from a Tuesday dinner on Discovery. The Royal Scottish Geographical Society has its headquarters in Perth, which is on the way to Dundee from both Craobh Haven and Edinburgh. We're looking into what the RSGS might have in the way of Antarcticana and whether it could welcome those going to or from Dundee on the 5th or 6th. More later.
Costs for wine, other drinks and any extras may be paid later once known and will be coordinated by the Captains. Schedule for each evening:
19:00 Guests arrive and piped aboard RRS Discovery
19:30 Private tour, above and below decks (this tour will last approximately 45 minutes)
20:30 Dinner served in the Wardroom at the Captain's table
12 midnight—Guests depart. Click here for full information on the dinners and wine. To learn more about Discovery, Discovery Point and the Dundee Heritage Trust, go to http://www.rrsdiscovery.com/index.php?pageID=129 Gill Poulter, Heritage and Exhibitions Director at the Dundee Heritage Trust, has expressed a willingness to do something special for those attending each evening. Here's what she says: "I'm sure we could organise something such as a special tour of the ship or perhaps the chance to see some of the collections we have in store. Pretty much all our polar collections are on-line now so people could search in advance for items related to people or expeditions they are interested in and we could get them out (within reason of course). Access is either via a link on our main website 'Explore our collections' button or directly through http://www.dhtcollections.com" More on this possibility later.
| Number | Name | Preferred Date | Fish vs Meat | Menu Preference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jim McAdam | Tuesday 5 May | Fish | Admiral's |
| 2 | Geraldine McAdam | Tuesday 5 May | Fish | Admiral's |
| 3 | Brad Borkan | Monday 4 May. Tuesday 5 May OK | Meat | Admiral's |
| 4 | Regina Daly | Monday 4 May. | Meat | Captain's |
| 5 | Mike Tarver | Tuesday 5 May | Don't care | Don't care |
| 6 | Ken Thomas | Tuesday 5 May | Don't care | Don't care |
| 7 | Richard Gutman | Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Don't care |
| 8 | Kellie Gutman | Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Don't care |
| 9 | Rick Dehmel | Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Admirals but flexible |
| 10 | Suzy Dehmel | Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Admirals but flexible |
| 11 | Larry Conrad | Tuesday 5 May. Monday 4 May OK | Fish | Admiral's |
| 12 | Diana Henderson | Tuesday 5 May. Monday 4 May OK | Fish | Admiral's |
| 13 | Pat Quilty | Monday 4 May or Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Either |
| 14 | Eva Meidl | Monday 4 May or Tuesday 5 May | Fish but flexible | Either |
| 15 | David Hirzel | Tuesday 5 May | Fish | Flexible but prefer Captain's |
| 16 | Alice Cochran WALKED THE PLANK | Tuesday 5 May | Fish but meat OK | Flexible but prefer Captain's |
| 17 | Joan Boothe | Monday 4 May or Tuesday 5 May | Prefer meat | Either |
| 18 | Barry Boothe | Monday 4 May or Tuesday 5 May | Dietary choice | Either |
| 19 | Emma Jane McAdam | Tuesday 5 May | ? | ? |
| 20 | Mike Wells | Tuesday 5 May | ? | ? |
| 21 | Marj Spoerri | Tuesday 5 May | Fish | Admiral's |
| 22 | Cathy Corbishley Michel | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 23 | Geoff Michel | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 24 | Val Kerr | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 25 | Don Kerr | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 26 | Sue Bonham | Monday 4 May | Dietary choice | ? |
| 27 | John Bonham | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 28 | Seamus Taaffe | Tuesday 5 May | ? | ? |
| 29 | Beth Fitzsimmons | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
| 30 | Joe Fitzsimmons | Monday 4 May | ? | ? |
MONDAY NIGHT, 4 MAY 2015
Captain for the evening: Emma Jame McAdam Wells. She's in charge. She'll be contacting her fellow officers of the Wardroom soon.
Number Name Payment Received Notes 1 John Bonham £110 2 Sue Bonham £110 Dietary choice 3 Regina Daly $173 4 Beth Fitzsimmons $162.50 5 Joe Fitzsimmons $162.50 6 Eric Jarvis £110 7 Don Kerr £110 8 Val Kerr £110 9 Capt. Emma Jane McAdam (with Mike Wells) £110 10 Eva Meidl (with Pat Quilty) Paid to DHT £110 11 Cathy Corbishley Michel £110 12 Geoff Michel £110 13 Pat Quilty (with Eva Meidl) Paid to DHT £110 14 Mike Wells (with Emma Jane McAdam) £110