The tables range in price, starting with the North Pole Table $25,000 (Benefactor table), South Pole Table $11,000 (Platinum table), Arctic Circle Table $5,500 (Patron table), Individual Tickets $300.00 and finally (all the way in the nose bleed section), the Sponsored Student Ticket/Junior Ticket (under 30) $250.00."

I asked my son, Spencer, to accompany me. First off, because I thought it would be awesome to see him in a tux, and second, because I like exposing him to different things and unique people – especially those who change the world. At first he said "yes", but then upon hearing about the exotic cuisine, changed his mind. So in his place, my good friend Ali stepped up to the plate—literally!

All the tickets, except for the $300 tickets, were sold out a month before the event. I grabbed two tickets and was set. Okay, lets face it. I would have grabbed the $300 tickets even if the others weren't sold out.

The evening started at 5 p.m. for those "special" guests (the one's with the mega bucks) then the general reception was at 6 p.m.

I was a little late to the reception because I just drove four hours from Philly to home, after doing the "Write to Heal" show I was in. I had less than a half an hour at home to put some makeup on, wash my hair, call my neighbor, Wanda to buy a wireless bra for me (that's when you know you have a true friend), get into an evening gown, do the bra exchange, put some fancy jewelry on, throw on some boots (so I didn't slip on the snow and ice) and get back into the car.

Ali was already at the Waldorf when I got there. We tried on some shawls in the bathroom, fixed our boobs to look perky, changed from boots to dress shoes and then headed to the reception.

Just as we entered the reception room, a fancy bell tone rang to signal the reception was over and that it was time to head to the Grand Ballroom. Of course, there was no way Ali and I were going to miss the reception cuisine, so since I never follow rules anyway, we headed in while everyone else was headed out…That was of course after we quickly filled out a raffle ticket to win a $25,000 Rolex watch. (Hey we didn't come all this way to only experience half an event!)

Ali and I practically ran over to the buffet table (as daintily as we could of course, since we were in evening gowns and didn't want to look like linebackers) before they took all the food away.

The first thing we came upon was Feral Hog. We decided to pass. As we went around the table we realized, Wait! This is where all the exotic food is, dinner itself is probably normal. With that realization we decided we better step up to the plate and explore these dishes – it was now or never. So we piled out tiny plates with things we never dreamed we'd eat in a million years.

Now, just so you know, they don't just randomly throw down any animal carcass. There is an exotic foods chairman, Gene Rurka, who is an authority on the subject. He brings food to the Explorer's Club members so they can share the experience of what many explorers have had to rely upon in the great outdoors. His passion for indigenous foods has led him to explore rare cultures in Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Alaska, British Columbia and the islands of the Caribbean. He is a conservationist (although at first thought you may not think that), but he is known world wide and international experts in scientific fields provide him with information for his next exotic creations. (I'd like to hear that conversation…"Hey Gene, we got some lizard snout and camel dung…interested? We can fry it up real nice, put a flower or two next to it to dress it up.)

With that being said, I tasted; Swedish Kangaroo Meatballs (which didn't make sense since I thought they were from Australia), Ostrich Eggs, Alligator Gumbo, Elk Stroganoff, and oven roasted North American Beaver (okay, no nasty comments.)

Ali and I snapped pictures as we sampled each of these items. The thing that got to me the most was that the animals looked like the animals. I mean there was an Alligator head and foot near his dish.

I think it might have been easier for me if it was all cut up. But then again, those explorers out there in sub-degree weather, or in the wilds of the jungle, didn't have that option, so I think this is as real as it could get.

They were cleaning up as we were taste testing so we did miss out on a lot of dishes…like the Sweet and Sour Bovine Penis prepared with testicular partners (a dish I'm sure a large population of males indulged in); the earthworm canapés (had these in my backyard for years and killed them – Who knew one day I'd pay $300 bucks to eat them); the teriyaki-infused Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches (the only dish that if it was there, I wouldn't try…yup I think I'd starve to death at that point). We also missed the; mealworm Maki; crispy scorpions dotted with goat cheese; savory roasted candied ants, tempura battered tarantulas and if that didn't do it, the honey glazed Tarantula. The list goes on, but I don't want to make you salivate any more than necessary.

The funny thing was Ali and I had just come off from doing the miracle cleanse diet for the second time so we hadn't eaten for ten days. They say come off the diet slow and watch what you eat. I'm sure our bodies were saying, "Okay, hold the phone…what the hell is all this? When did we start eating zoo animals? What happened to good ole' fashioned peanut butter and jelly?"

Anyway, after we had taken a sufficient amount of pictures, enough to prove to our friends and family what we ate, we waltzed into the grand ballroom. Our seats were on the third floor with the table by the balcony so we could see the moderator, big screen and stage.

Each table was decorated with the explorers Club flag. The flag has special significance. Club members have carried it on hundreds of expeditions since 1918. To carry the Club flag is considered an honor and a privilege. The flag has flown at both poles, from the highest peaks of the greatest mountain ranges, traveled to the depths of the ocean, to the lunar surface, and to outer space. Not just anyone can carry a flag on an expedition. The expedition must be deemed to further the cause of exploration and field science. Today there are 202 numbered flags, each with its own history.

I gotta say I loved the atmosphere…imagine…me who loves exploring and trying new adventures being surrounded by 1400 other people who feel the same way I do! I was in heaven! These people understood my passion for the unknown. For example at our table alone this guy who monitored the migration of Bengal Tigers and was a history teacher. This other guy worked for the Foundation for Glacier and Environmental Research…an organization that has been around since 1946 doing the longest continuous study of any glacier system in the world. He told us that from East Antarctic ice cores we know that over the last 850,000 years when greenhouse gases rise or fall, temperatures rise or fall. A few degree change in temperature in past history has wiped out whole civilizations. These are people with vital information and definitely not your normal 9-5'ers.

After we introduced ourselves…the President, Dan Bennett welcomed everyone, then the Master of Ceremonies, Dan Rather took the stage. Dan asked everyone to take a moment of silence to acknowledge our troops. He presented an award to Kathy Sullivan, oceanographer, educator and the first American Woman to walk in Space. She played a key role in developing the tool kit to fix the Hubble Telescope. She accepted her award via satellite because she was out somewhere in the polar region with penguins. Go figure 

Next up was a speaker, Rune Gjeldnes…this man became the first and only person to cross the world's three largest ice sheets unsupported; (Greenland, Artic Ocean via Siberia then North Pole to Canada and Antarctica via South Pole…Solo)…that's one brave and very cold man.

We then took a break and dinner was served. Our three-course meal consisted of salad, beef and a citrus medley for dessert. Rather boring after hissing roaches and bison penis.

After dinner a very familiar face took the stage…it was the face of television personality Jim Fowler (You know the guy on mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, the same guy that used to bring animals on the Johnny Carson show.) Well not to leave us out…he brought live animals to the dinner; bobcats, artic wolves, an adorable baby polar bear, which he let Dan Rather feed a bottle to, and a hawk.

Jim had the animal trainer let the hawk loose to show his flying precision, and apparently this bird didn't to want to go back so soon. He flew around and around the ballroom, for a good ten minutes…twice landing right next to us on the balcony. Everyone got a kick out of it – everyone except the trainer who was standing on a table in the middle of the ballroom.

After the hawk's defiant display, we heard from a few more honored speakers, each having done fantastic accomplishments. Then came the live auction…where trips to Patagonia, the Galapagos, Cape Hope, an Underwater Flight School and a chance at a zero gravity charter flight with 11 of your friends in Star City Russia were auctioned off. I was feverishly making notes on which adventures I wanted to try next. There was also a silent auction with items donated from the likes of Buzz Aldrin and Dan Aykroyd.

As the evening wound down and we realized we hadn't won the Rolex watch, we slipped out ten minutes early before the event ended and the mad dash to the coatroom began. We got our "stash" bag which consisted of survival rain ponchos, a ECAD cap, a Fodor's Guide to NYC, posters, and a cinnamon cake (I checked it had nuts in it, no insects.)

The topping of the proverbial cake came when I walked to get my coat and I spotted a familiar face – It was Anatoly Salgalevitch…the Russian scientist who designed and piloted the Mir 1 that took me down to the Titanic! Right next to him stood, Mike McDowell an Australian diver, climber, adventurer and the owner of Deep Ocean Expeditions, which arranged the whole Titanic adventure for us.

We chatted, took pictures and joked about the Japanese woman on our trip who just kept yelling out, "Me #1 Japanese! Me first to go down to Titanic. I need to take more pictures! I want you to back up and take picture of whole ship!" (You can read this whole story on my website, www.francapo.com under world records.)

We reminisced, talked about upcoming adventures, and then Anatoly asked me to send him a couple of my books. I happily agreed.

As we headed out Ali and I grabbed a nearby waiter and snapped one last parting shot of us in front of a Narwhal. The Narwhal in case you are not familiar with it, (meaning "corpse whale" in Old Norse) and is a rarely seen Arctic whale. This whale is known for the VERY long tooth that males have. Very little is known about this whale, except that all narwhals have two teeth in their upper jaws, and for some reason after the first year the left tooth grows outwards in a spiral fashion (a dentist dream come true). The tooth can grow to ten feet long. Some believe these whales are what started the legends of unicorns. To us, it was the perfect ending to a magical evening.