Twelve Months in Antarctica

Minus thirty degrees! That's what greeted me when I stepped off the plane.

零下三十度！這就是我走下飛機時迎接我的溫度。

I'd signed up for twelve months at a research station in Antarctica.

我報名在南極的一個研究站待十二個月。

My job was to study the ice, and how quickly it's changing.

我的工作是研究冰層，還有它變化得有多快。

In summer, the sun never sets, not even at midnight!

夏天太陽從不下山，連半夜都不會！

We worked around the clock, drilling ice cores thousands of years old!

我們日夜不停地工作，鑽取好幾千年前的冰芯！

Each layer is like a page in the planet's diary.

每一層都像是地球日記裡的一頁。

Holding that ancient ice, I felt incredibly privileged.

捧著那塊古老的冰，我覺得自己無比幸運。

Then, in February, the last plane left.

後來到了二月，最後一班飛機離開了。

After that, there was no way in or out for eight months.

從那之後，整整八個月都沒辦法進出。

By May, the sun had vanished altogether.

到了五月，太陽已經完全消失了。

Total darkness... for weeks on end.

全然的黑暗……一連好幾個星期。

Well... people often ask me what the hardest part was.

嗯……常常有人問我，最難熬的是什麼。

Honestly, it wasn't the cold. It was the isolation.

老實說，不是寒冷，而是與世隔絕。

There were just fourteen of us, cut off from the world.

我們只有十四個人，跟外界完全斷了聯繫。

Some nights, I'd stare at photos of my family for hours.

有些晚上，我會盯著家人的照片看好幾個小時。

But winter had its own kind of magic, too.

但冬天也有它獨特的魔力。

One night, the sky exploded into green and purple light!

有一天晚上，天空突然綻放出綠色和紫色的光芒！

And not far from the station lived a colony of emperor penguins.

離研究站不遠的地方，住著一群皇帝企鵝。

Thousands of fathers huddled together, keeping their eggs warm through the storms.

成千上萬的企鵝爸爸擠在一起，在暴風雪中替蛋保暖。

Then, one August morning, I heard someone shouting in the corridor.

後來，八月的某個早上，我聽到有人在走廊上大喊。

The sun was back! A thin orange line on the horizon!

太陽回來了！地平線上一道細細的橘色光線！

We all ran outside and just stood there, laughing and crying.

我們全都衝到外面，就站在那裡，又哭又笑。

I'd never been so grateful for an ordinary sunrise.

我從來沒有這麼感激過一次普通的日出。

When I finally flew home, well... everything felt overwhelming.

當我終於飛回家時，嗯……一切都讓我招架不住。

Traffic, crowds, fresh fruit... it was all too much!

車潮、人群、新鮮水果……一切都太多了！

But Antarctica taught me something I'll never forget.

但南極教會了我一件永遠不會忘記的事。

Light means far more when you've lived without it.

當你經歷過沒有光的日子，光的意義就大得多。