My hypothesis – Hell follows Heaven, or at least shares the same entrance.  Let me explain.

The very next day, after having one of the best views of the universe accompanied by naked, stark streaking of Aurora Australis, Heaven closed its windows and the wind picked up.

The curtains were drawn across the sky, the wind hit 10.5 metres per second and a complete whiteout pursued.

I opened the front door for a brief moment- the door was caught and forced open and my senses invaded by the cold chilling polar winter darkness.  I felt like I had been electrocuted.

I don’t know if there is a ‘God of Wind’ but if there is, they must be angry that we had peeked into Heaven.

The wind pounded at my window long into the night.  I pulled the duvet up high over my face and felt gratefully dead, to be inside.  In such conditions Concordia feels like a tomb of sorts.  You are locked in and could be buried in the ice and lost forever.

Dante on ice, Canto 32

Dante on ice, Canto 32

I turned on my music player to distract my mind from impending doom – Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash, blazed out.  If Hell had a theme tune, it would be Ring of Fire sung by Cash as you plummet through all nine circles of Dante’s Inferno  – life here is an eternal Divine Comedy without an ending.   Like the Divine Comedy, it began today on Friday.  And for complete authenticity, this is a part-Italian station after all.

 

Halfway Somewhere

We sit here ‘half way along life’s path.’  We are here lost in a dark wood, in front of a mountain on which an angry God stands, bellowing down at us from high above.

Gustave Dore's engravings illustrated the Divine Comedy (1861–1868); here Dante is lost in Canto 1 of the Inferno

Gustave Dore’s engravings illustrated the Divine Comedy (1861–1868); here Dante is lost in Canto 1 of the Inferno

 

Hell in Earth?

Albert Ritter made this sketch of the Divine Comedy’s geography: proposing that the location of Hell’s entrance is near Florence with the circles descending to Earth’s centre.  I agreed that you may descend to the fires of Middle Earth but I think Ritter had actually meant ‘Antarctica’ as the location, not Florence.  And if I may, I further suggest that Heaven and Hell share the same entrance – as in the past two days, we have peered into both.  Perhaps Hell is, like Antarctica, so so cold in fact that it burns, burns burns….

Albert Ritter's proposed location of Dante's Hell

Albert Ritter’s proposed location of Dante’s Hell

 

The main blog photo below was taken in similar conditions to those experienced in the past day – highlighting some of the challenges of being outside in such conditions.  Life here is a battle.  And if you fight nature, you will loose.  You have to wait until its not watching to take control, but sometimes you get caught out.

Hell on earth

 

Song of the day:
‘Ring of Fire’ by Johnny Cash