Hawai'i!

Hawaii was a great end to our trip. I wish we had more than a day there, but I think we have gotten really good at doing everything we want to do in a short amount of time. We started the day early since we had an SAS trip we got to get off the ship first. We went to Pearl Harbor and the Arizona Memorial which was really interesting to see since on our last day in Japan we had been at Hiroshima. I wonder if the museum seemed as biased to other people as the Vietnam war museum did to us. The weirdest part for me was the reverse culture shock that I didn’t expect. There were Americans everywhere! For the past 100 days if I heard an American accent I knew that the person was probably with SAS. If they weren’t, we at least had a connecting point and usually started some sort of conversation. My favorite story of that was the bartender in Cambodia, I think he was from like Iowa or something. Anyway, it was really very weird to see all these people. Also, we were able to use American dollars in the store and actually get change back! And the ATM gave out dollars, and there were brands of snacks we knew. It was all a really weird experience. By the ATMs and vending machines some guy asked us for money and we just looked at him. Then he said “haven’t you seen that commercial?” and we all just started laughing. No! We haven’t! Add to that the fact that beggars have been a very real part of our lives for the last 3 and a half months, and we were just completely blown away. After we went through the memorial, we had a city tour of Honolulu. We saw the palace and the punchbowl national cemetery. When we got back from our trip, Kendall, Jeff and I went to Subway for lunch where they had... drum roll please…. FREE REFILLS!!!! That was super exciting, except the fountain that said Diet Coke was actually Dr. Pepper. I was disappointed. We were in a little shopping area, and the bathrooms had….. TOILETS!! and……. TOILET PAPER!!! This was an amazing afternoon. We were shopping a bit when we ran into Jen, one of our ship sisters. We all decided to go to Waikiki, which was supposed to be close. So after we walked for a really long time, we got to another beach and decided to hang out there. It was cool because it was much more of a local beach with people bringing their kids and surfing, not a bunch of girls laying in their bikinis. The picture above is of the Aloha I made in shells while we were sitting there. We played around a bit there and walked some more, then we found a mall with Taco Bell for dinner, yummy! Then we introduced Jen to the wonders of Dippin’ Dots. I never knew all of the things I would miss until I left, and I still didn’t think of things like Dippin’ Dots until I got home. Then we took the bus to an International Market where we met up with one of the professors and his family, and then did some really fast last minute shopping before heading back to the ship. By the way, there is one purse that I almost bought in Malaysia, and then I saw it again in China and thought it was good I hadn’t bought it since it wasn’t really that special, and I saw it again in Hawaii. I really want to come back someday, btu I'm very happy with the day I had there! This is Jen, Me, and Kendall a little after sunset on Waikiki beach.

Last night was had a meeting about what its going to be like getting off the ship and going home. It was kind of funny because they did it like they do meetings about what to expect in each port. They told us what the top 3 movies are and none of us had ever heard of them (except Spiderman 3). We also got to reflect a little bit on the voyage. I am really excited to get home, but at the same time I am a little bit scared. Luckily I have an amazing support system, and I can’t wait to see what lies ahead!

SOS Auction/ Ambassador's Ball

The two big events that happen at then end of the voyage took place in the last couple of days. First we had the Students of Service Auction which I have been working on for the last month or so. Kendall put a ton of time and effort into it, but we all met and worked on preparing for it. We had a raffle for certain items (I won a stuffed ship and a pilates circle), a silent auction (a basket of my Ukranian eggs went for $45!), and a live auction. During the live auction one of the items up for bidding was to pie the academic dean in the face, but for some reason we had an apple pie instead of a cream pie. Dr. Matt ended up winning, and as "Vana White" for the evening, I held the plate while he took the pie and rubbed it in Dean Mike's face. With what was left over, he got me, it took me a long time to get the goo out of my hair, but it was really fun. We raised a lot of money, I'm not sure about the total but I think it came out close to $20,000. One girl payed almost $1000 to get off the ship second in San Diego.
The Ambassador's ball was kind of cool, but not as great as I'd hoped. The dinner was different from what we normally have, but it wasn't that great. The cool part was dessert. There was a giant chocolate Taj Mahal, some really cool carvings in watermelons, and various other cool things. I didn't get to eat any of it though, by the time I got up to the deck it was way too crowded and I decided just to go back to my room and hang out rather than fighting to get one cream puff or something like I heard a lot of people did.
Today was our last Global Studies exam, which is pretty exciting. I think I did pretty well, but I'm not sure if I got the 96 I needed to get an A in the class. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Tomorrow we're in Hawai'i!!

Japan- Part Dos

Yes, I still love Japan! Aside from everything being really expensive, it is an incredible place. The things that I have seen and done in the last few days have been so great. First of all, my sister says I forgot to talk about the internet cafe really. They are huge here! Right now I am in booth 60 of who knows how many. They also have vending machines with free drinks of almost every kind of soda or coffee you can imagine. If you want, you could buy a beer instead. The seats are super comfy and if you want to pay more you can have a reclining massage chair or a sofa with a flat screen monitor. There are balnkets, showers, toilets with heated seats, and even a tanning booth! You really could live here if you wanted to only eat the ramen noodles or other junk food that they sell. On our last day in Kyoto, we saw some temples and a geisha apprentice girl came and talked to us and danced for us, which was really cool. Then we saw the temple of 1000 buddhas which has (surprise!) 1000 buddhas. After that, Kendall and I left the group to catch our train to Tokyo. The taxi dropped us off by the station at a place where we could do a little shopping and have lunch since we still had an hour or so before we had to get on the train. When we had to cross the street people were looking at us weird because we were giggling so much because the walk signal plays this happy song while you walk across the street. We had to find a post office since thats the only place there are international ATMs, and then we could not figure out where our train was supposed to be, so we had to ask a lady at information. Finally, we figured it out and were on our way. Before we left, we had agreed to meet our friends at the exit of the Tokyo train station. In retrospect, this was possibly one of the worst ideas anyone has ever had being that there are at least 7 main exits. That was like telling someone you would meet them at the exit of Grand Central Station. Needless to say, we didnt find them and were kind of panicking because things were starting to shut down and we didnt know where to stay. We found a Kinkos in the train station and after doing some quick internet research, reserved a hotel close to Disneyland. This was definitely not the cheapest way of doing things, but it was all we could figure out at the time. After doing that, we had to figure out which train took us to the area of Tokyo that we needed to be in. That took us a while, and it ended up being in the 4th level below ground! We finally got off the train, and found a taxi with a driver who spoke no English and didnt understand when we showed him our hotel information. We eventually got things figured out and got into our room ok. The next day we went to DISNEYLAND!!

It was one of the best days of my life. We had so much fun, it's hard to even describe. The people that worked there were so into what they did, it made the whole place just seem so real and magical. It was such a great time, and even more fun to listen to all the stories of the rides in Japanese. It started raining at about the time we were done with everything we wanted to do, and so we headed back to Tokyo to get an earlier train back to Kobe. Once we got back, we had to figure out how to take the subway to the station for our lightrail thing back to the ship. This brough tup the interesting subject of how many forms of transportation we have used on this trip. The list includes: plane, bullet train, regular train, ship, ferry, water taxi, taxi, bus, monorail, motorcycle, rickshaw, trishaw, tuk tuk, walking, tender, and a safari jeep. We almost got on a street car in Hiroshima, but we couldnt figure out how to buy tickets. The next morning, we went to visit the memorial at Hiroshima which was a really powerful experience. I was amazed at how unbiased and fair the information seemed in comparison to the very anti-American feel of the war museum we saw in Vietnam. When we got back to Kobe after that we hung out for a while and ended up at this huge store that had everything from lumber to wedding invitations. It was so fun to look around, but everything was really expensive. We had McDonald's for dinner and I tried a Teriyaki McBurger which was actually very good. Then it was time to head back to the ship. After we got back on the ship we met up with all the people we missed in Tokyo and had a great time just sitting around and talking. I haven't heard of anybody that had a bad time in Japan, everyone loved it. I can't wait to get home, but Japan was so much fun I definitely want to go back soon!

Japan (Part 1)

I LOVE JAPAN!!! I know I have said that about a lot of ports, but this has been so much fun! Everything here is so happy and smiley and fun. The people are incredible, and there is always just so much energy. On the first day, we kind of just hung out in Kobe. We met some college students at a reception we had on the ship, and later they took us out for Karaoke, which was amazing! I never thought I would be in a karoke bar in Japan singing We are the World with 4 American friends and about 6 Japanese friends. It was such a great time. We also had dinner at this place where you order from a machine by touching the picture of what you want to eat. When you insert your money, the animated waitress on the screen bows and prints a ticket. Everything here is in vending machines. Soda machines are everywhere, but so are cigarette machines, coffee machines, even machines that you can buy french fries, hot dogs, and hamburgers from! Today we went to Nara and Kyoto, which were both old capitals of Japan. We saw the oldest wooden building in the world (a pagoda), a place where deer roam around and come right up to you to be fed, and the famous geisha district including lots of places from Memoirs of a Geisha.

We had a great lunch and an incredible dinner. I forgot the name of the dish, but tonight we ate cooked beef and vegetables that were dipped in raw egg. It sounds really gross, but it actually was not so bad. We are staying at a traditional Japanese ryokan Inn, with futons and kimonos and everything. Tomorrow we are seeing the golden pagoda and some other things, then Kendall and I are meeting some friends in Tokyo. We will stay the night in a hostel, then go to Tokyo Disney the next day before going back to the ship in Kobe. The last day we might go to Hiroshima, or we might stay in Kobe, but either way it will be super fun! More on Japan later!

China

Ok, so sorry this is really late but the internet on the ship has been rediculous. I am currently in a really strange internet cafe in Japan which you will get to hear all about in my Japan posts. Unfortunately, I have no pictures with me so that will have to wait for another time. Also, if you are wondering why there are no contractions in this posting, it is because I cannot find the apostrophe on the Japanese keyboard.

China was amazing! I had a really great time, although I am now official tired of museums, temples, and other various historical sights. As soon as our ship arrived in Hong Kong, we had to leave for the airport which is sad because everyone said they loved Hong Kong. Oh well, I just have to go back some day. The airport was great though, and I have never in my life been more excited for Burger King. We also saw a random vending machine where you could buy reusable shopping bags. Pretty smart idea!

Our first stop in mainland China was Beijing. We had Peking Duck at the restaurant that supposedly invented it. I think that lots of places say that though, so who knows for sure. They sure were into their duck though! Every dish we had contained duck and all of the decorations were ducks. We walked around Tian-an-men (that is how the Chinese spell it) Square both at night and during the day. There were so many people there! The weird thing was how many asian people wanted to take pictures with us, I felt like a celebrity. We also got to see the Forbidden City, which was HUGE and the Summer Palace of some emperor. Of course, the Great Wall was really cool, because I really did not think I would ever be there in my life. I climbed the first part of the area we were at, but it was really steep and so I did not make it all the way to the top of the hill.

The second city we got to in China was Xian, which actually has an apostrophe between the i and the a, but we already addressed that issue. I really enjoyed our time here, especially at the Terra Cotta Warriors Museum. It is the underground clay army of an emperor that was discovered in 1972 by some farmers digging a well. There are over 8000 life sized soldiers standing in battle formation. We also saw another museum that was the tomb of a later emperor who did not have as much money and so it was an army of smaller soldiers. Later in a market we met some Chinese students majoring in English and walked around with them. They were so cute, and so happy to talk with us. I felt bad because they knew so much about American movies and music, but all I could think of that was Chinese was Kung-Fu movies. They were super nice though and Kendall got their e-mails, so I hope we can stay in touch.

On the last day we met the ship in Qingdao and explored the city a little bit. We went to a small place for lunch where we just had to point at things we wanted to eat, and we never really found out what some of them were, but for all four of us to eat and have drinks, it was less than $8. We also found a really cute cafe/bar with a really nice waitress. She told us that we could borrow DVDs for free if we brought them back, but when we told her we were leaving for Japan, she got really sad and told us that she wanted us to come back and visit. She even gave us little pins with the name of the place as gifts. We had a pretty fun time, except for when it came time to get back on the ship. The taxis could not drive into the port area and had to drop us off like a mile away from the ship from where we had to walk through places that would be illeagal to be in without hardhats in the States. Overall though, good times in China!

Vietnam/Cambodia

I love Vietnam! I love Cambodia! The few days we spent in port at Vietnam were some of the most interesting and fun of my life. I didn’t have a lot of time to spend in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), but the time I was there I had so much fun. I got a beautiful traditional Vietnamese outfit tailored for me, and it fits me so well. It is a gorgeous deep red silk top with satiny white pants. I also visited a school for deaf children and children with Down’s syndrome. The kids were so cute. We played with play-doh and colored in books. I also showed them a game that we play at Girl Scout camp. Yay for counselor skills! The older class wanted to show us a dance that they do, and when we watched them, it turned out to be the Macarena! They were really excited that we knew it and did it with them. A lot of the children at the school get mainstreamed and go to high school, but those with the most severe hearing loss who cannot communicate very well at all end up getting job training at the school. I bought some embroidery that was made by the kids. Here are some of the kids.

In Cambodia, I was amazed by what I saw. The area where we were staying around Angkor Wat was really highly developed with a huge number of hotels. My favorite temple was called Angkor Tom. It’s also called the jungle temple because the temple was so engulfed by the trees and roots in the jungle.

It was so cool, it reminded me a lot of Indiana Jones. Angkor Wat was huge and beautiful in its own way. It was very interesting to see how it had been built as a Hindu temple to Vishnu, but then the Buddhists took it over. Most people think that Angkor had been lost for a long time, but to the Cambodians it has never been lost. The area had been vacated due to Siamese invasions, but they always knew it was there. We also saw a floating village. The playground of the school was like a big floating cage. It was really cool to see. The people around the lake build their houses out of bamboo so that they can easily pick them up to move them when the seasons change. The lake grows about 3 times its dry season size during the rainy season. I'm sure there's lots more that I can't think of right now because we're going to be in Hong Kong tomorrow and I have a huge trip all through China leaving in the morning. Great Wall, here I come!

Malaysia

Malaysia was the perfect place to stop after India! It brought me just enough back into my comfort zone to let me relax a little bit, but it was still different enough for me to realize that Asia is something completely different from anywhere I’ve been before. I found some beautiful clothes there, I swear Malaysian designers make clothes just for me. The night we got into Kuala Lumpur we saw a cultural show with our dinner. The Malaysians sure love their bananas! There was banana bread, baked bananas, banana pudding, and some other random banana things. During the show we saw traditional Malay, Chinese, and Indian (the 3 main cultures in Malaysia) dances. Here is a picture of the one of the Chinese dancers.

We also got to see the Petronas Towers which were the tallest towers in the world when they were built. They are 88 stories high because in Chinese culture, 8 is a lucky number and about 26% of the Malaysian population is of Chinese descent. That also means there was delicious Chinese food there. Too bad we ate it so much though, I’m already sick of Chinese and we aren’t even in China yet! On the first day we went to an enormous shopping mall and had Pizza Hut for lunch. That’s the third port in a row where I’ve had Pizza Hut, and it has been good every time. It’s not that I’m not willing to try the local food, but I can only eat so much rice. That seems to be the staple both in India and Malaysia and I don’t see it changing much as we enter Asia. Malaysia has a really large Muslim population, so in our hotel there was an arrow pointing toward Mecca so people know which way to pray. Our guide was this adorable Chinese man who was a retired high school teacher. He had the perfect mix of telling us what things were without being obnoxious and talking too much about nothing. We visited the national history museum and the national monument. At the monument some Malaysian girls on a field trip asked if they could take pictures with some of the American boys. They were so giddy, it was really cute.

We also stopped at the KL Tower which is an amazing place to view Kuala Lumpur from. It was built to help with Cell phone reception, but the Malaysians realized that tourists would pay to go up it, which was true. We are in Vietnam in on Monday morning (Sunday evening for the US) and I have a visit to a school for disabled children and then my big trip to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat. I’m really excited!

India!

India was an overwhelming and exhausting experience, in every sense. The first thing that I noticed about India was the smell when we arrived. All through our trip, the stink would come and go, but could not be ignored. Kendall and I had a few hours after we arrived and before we left on our trip, but we didn’t get off the ship. We used that time to rest up and pack. Then it was off to the airport, driving through Chennai. One of the first things I realized about India was how much they love to play and watch cricket. There were people playing it everywhere! Our flight to Delhi was about 2 ½ hours. We stayed at a beautiful hotel called The Ashok. When we got there, they greeted us with leis made of real flowers and little glasses of soda. Indian Fashion Week was taking place there and so there were all these fashion designers, press, and models walking around. There was even this mirror with “Welcome Semester at Sea” spelled out in flowers.

The next day we got a wake up call at 4:15 am so that we could catch an early train to Agra. We walked around an old palace that was built by the 3^rd mogul emperor of India. On the ground of one of the courtyards was a giant Parcheesi board. The emperor had people who would be the pieces and he would watch from his balcony as they played the game for him. Then we went to the Agra Fort. The emperor that built the Taj Mahal was imprisoned there by his son. He only ever saw the completed Taj from his prison cell. Then we went to see the one and only Taj Mahal! After China and the great wall, I'll have seen 2 of the 7 wonders of the world! This is a picture of my Friend Jen and I at the Taj.

The whole day we were being chased by people trying to sell us little trinkets and things. At first it was kind of fun to see what they had and to try haggling with them, but after a while it got really old. We had Pizza Hut for dinner, which was nice to have something sort of familiar after eating weird and usually very spicy foods. While we were all sitting down to eat, about 4 waiters stood in a line and then some music came on and they all started doing this choreographed dance. It was so funny! They also seemed amazed when someone told them that the waiters in the States don’t do that. After dinner, we had a train ride back to Delhi where we stayed the night. We had another early morning the next day as we had to catch our flight to Varanassi. Varanassi was an amazing city, a holy site for both Hindus and Buddhists. We got to see the site where Buddha preached his first sermon and the Ganges river. On the Ganges at night we saw a beautiful Hindu candlelight ceremony where they light candles and float them onto the river as an offering to the goddess Ganga. We also saw the burning ghat which is a crematorium. The hindus believe that if you die or get cremated by the river Ganges, then you will be free from the cycle of reincarnation, so people from all over India and the world come there to die or to cremate their loved ones. It was a very touching place. Because of the holy nature of the place, we weren’t supposed to take any pictures. One of our friends did though, and as soon as he took the picture his camera died. It started working again a while later after we were away from that place. That was pretty creepy. One of the weirdest things about India is the cows. In the Hindu religion, cows are considered sacred, and so the cows are allowed to roam free wherever they choose. There were so many cows just wandering down the streets. We even saw one just laying on the floor in a shop, and nobody was even noticing that it was there! We took rickshaws between the river and our hotel. That was quite an experience! On a lot of streets in India there are no lines to divide the lanes, and running a red light carries a fine about equal to $2.50. The driving is crazy! On our last day, we again had to wake up around 4:15am. We went on boats in the Ganges River to watch the morning bathing that Hindus do to cleanse themselves of bad karma. It was really interesting to see how the kids would just kind of splash around in the water, but some older people were much more serene and subdued in their bathing. I took this picture from the ghat (steps leading to the river) before we got in the boat.

We walked around Varanassi for a little while before we went back to our hotel, and then the airport. By this point I was running on very little sleep and very little food, and I wasn’t feeling well at all. After the first bumpy plane ride, I thought I was going to pass out. I was so sick! On the second plane ride, things just got worse and I had a fever. We didn’t get back to the ship until close to 11, and I was feeling so sick all I wanted to do was sleep. I managed to drag myself upstairs to buy a Gatorade, but I fell asleep before I could drink it. This morning I still felt sick, but I was doing a lot better. I took some more medicine and slept for a pretty long time. By the time Kendall was leaving to shop with some other people, I was feeling ok so I went with them. I bought a gorgeous purple silk sari (thanks mom!) and some other shirts and a cashmere shawl. Then we had to rush to the post office to get there to buy stamps before it closed. Our rickshaw driver offered to go inside and get our stamps for us, saying they cost 20 rupees each. When I looked at the stamps he brought back, I noticed that actually they were 15 each. That meant I had given him an extra 30 rupees (so that’s why he wanted to do it!) Since that is about equal to 50 cents, I didn’t really care and I just let him keep the extra money. He probably needed it much worse then I did. Then he took us back to the ship where Kendall and I had dinner. I’m still not feeling all that great so my dinner consisted of a few bites of a PB&J and some peanuts. Tomorrow is a no class day, which would be really exciting except I have to meet with a group and work on a project all day. Then we only have two days of class before we get to Malaysia!

Mauritius

This is a fun picture that we took on the beach of Me, Kendall, Tina, and Denise. We were taking the picture and then a wave came and got our shorts all wet right as we took the picture!

We left Mauritius last night. The people on the ship spent the last week or so talking about how wonderful Mauritius is and how it’s like a Heaven on Earth. That made me expect for it to be the most beautiful place I had ever seen. I had some fun, but the place was a bit overwhelming. Before we even got off the ship, we could smell molasses from the molasses company that was right by our ship. They use that molasses to make rhum. No, I didn’t misspell rum, that’s what they call it. The first day, we arrived about 4 hours late so my trip was cancelled. This was a trip where I was going to visit a hospice, and I was really upset that I couldn’t go. Kendall and I went with our friends Tina and Katie to the market and then we had dinner at a really good steak place. The second day we did the volcanic island tour. We got a lecture on the geologic and social history of Mauritius, then we drove around the island stopping at certain craters formed by volcanoes. There were some truly beautiful sites. My favorite was a lake that is a holy place for the Hindu people of Mauritius. There were statues of their gods, incense, and people performing rituals which were all amazing. We got our foreheads painted to symbolize our third eye, and the man that did them was saying that it was for things like health, prosperity, and liberation. There were also some monkeys there and lots of kittens. There were a bunch of fish in the lake that people were feeding bread to, and the kittens stood by the edge of the lake and tried to catch the fish. It was pretty cute. We had lunch at the most beautiful restaurant I’ve ever been to. It was open-air with a gorgeous view of the ocean. We also saw sugar cane plantations and salt making places. They take ocean water and put a thin layer into a brick pool. Then, when the water evaporates, they have salt. Our last stop of the trip was to a beach. I found some really beautiful sea glass that I wanted to keep, but they wouldn’t let me take it on the ship, because it could be a weapon. They didn’t even care that the edges were not sharp at all or that they let the girl behind me bring in empty glass bottles, which would make much more effective weapons. I was pretty angry about that. Yesterday was our last day, and it was my favorite. I went to an adventure park which was basically a big ropes course, but most of the things were pretty low to the ground (10-15 ft.) I finished almost the entire course; I skipped one obstacle because my body was just too tired. We had smoked marlin sandwiches for lunch, which were really good. Then we went to flic en flac beach. It was really pretty and I went swimming with two people from CU who I met earlier in the day. We got back to the ship, showered, and then went to dinner. We found a Pizza Hut, and I was so excited! The breadsticks were pretty small and weird, but the pizza was good. They did give me ketchup with the pizza though, which was interesting. I had like 500 rupees left over, which is close to 15 dollars. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to exchange them in India or at home, so I bought like 15 sodas. I asked for 6 Diet Pepsis and the woman thought I was saying the wrong number or that she was misunderstanding me. She showed me 6 fingers and was amazed when I said yes. It was pretty funny. I had a few minutes left on my phone card, but the lines were ridiculously long to use the payphones and it is really bad news if you’re late getting on the ship, so I decided just to come back with a few people.

Today is Sea Olympics. Whoever wins gets to get off the ship first when we get in to San Diego. Our team hasn’t been doing so well at most of the events. We lost at dodgeball, tug-o-war, and juice pong. Kendall and I played Dean Mike Says. I got third place! We are the Red Sea, so our RD got everyone Santa hats to wear. It’s nice to have a break right after a port, but I would much rather have had the break in the middle of the week. Starting tomorrow we have class for 6 straight days. Classes are hard to go to, but there’s not much else to do on the ship besides sleep, so it’s easier than at school. The gym is also much easier to get to since it’s just up stairs. I’ve been working out like 5 or 6 times a week since February 9^th, and I’m very proud of myself. I don’t know if I’m losing any weight, but I can feel how much healthier I am which is encouraging. Before we get to India, we only have to put our clocks ahead twice. The weird thing is that one of the time changes in only 30 minutes. Also, the day we get to India is the halfway point of the trip. That’s exciting and sad at the same time.

Hopefully this part of the trip will be calmer than the last part. We had to a void a major storm which is what caused us to be late to Mauritius. Even though we avoided the main part, the winds and seas were still pretty rough. I got so sea sick that they had to give me a shot. It made me feel better, but mostly it just made me sleep through practically a whole day. I bought some sea sick patches from the clinic though, so I think that will help the situation a lot. Wish me luck on the next 6 days!

Cape Town, Part 2

We were supposed to leave Cape Town at 11 last night. Because of the winds, we had to wait until early this morning to get to the refueling station, and we are still sitting in port. We still have to go to classes today though, which is hard since we can see the beautiful city outside. So much has happened since I last posted my blog that this is going to be a pretty long entry I think. As it turns out our “safari” to Kagga Kamma was not actually a safari. It was on a private game reserve, and was really fun, but we didn’t get to see any of the big 5. The big 5 are animals you look for on safari and include elephants, rhinos, leopards, zebra, and giraffes (I think). We did see ostrich, blue wildebeest, bontebok, springbok, dassies, eland, and oryx. We also saw rock paintings done by the San people (bushmen) between 200 and 6,000 years ago. If you look above my head in the picture, on the left is something they aren't sure what it is, but it appears in more than one spot. On the right is a picture of the people moving since they were nomadic.

It was really interesting to see the way that they went from using their fingers to using brushes to make more details and also how they crushed up different rocks to make the paint. Our guide explained that the shaman would go into a trance and would then paint what he saw. We also got to look through a pretty powerful telescope and see Saturn, the nebula that’s in Orion’s belt, and the moon. He pointed out the Southern Cross to us which was pretty cool to see since you can’t see it in the US. It was a fun time, and I’ve decided that I’ll have to go on a safari in Kruger Park the next time I’m in South Africa. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I can come back! The day after we got back from Kagga Kamma, Kendall and I went on a service visit through a program called Africa Jam. This is an amazing Christian program where they go into schools in the townships (the poorest areas) and give kids opportunities to better themselves. They have after school clubs like a band and a drama group so that kids can have somewhere to go and stay out of trouble. Also, they host leadership camps and tell kids that it doesn’t matter what their past is like because they can do what they want with the future. Our guide had been changed by the program, and he is now planning to go to college with the financial help of the program. This experience touched me so much, because we got to meet and hang out with kids (10-18) who were so full of hope and vitality even though they were living in such conditions. This is a picture of me with some of the girls. They love having their picture taken!

A few of them took us to their homes, and the ones who went with Kendall and me gave us chicken feet to eat. We tried them, and then gave the rest to the kids to finish up. It wasn’t as bad as I’d expected, but one time eating chicken feet was enough for me. The day after that, Kendall and I went to Robben Island in the morning. I saw 2 pairs of penguins, and 1 penguin on his own. The jail was pretty interesting, but so was the history of the entire island. I didn’t expect to see a small village on the island. After we did that, we had “the sandwich” for lunch. The sandwich is a chicken club sandwich at a little café that everyone had been raving about. It was actually pretty good, but I can’t say what makes it special, you just have to try it sometime. After lunch we went to Green market. I love markets because of all the fun things there are, but I am so bad at bargaining. I’m getting better though. I got something for 200 rand that started at 800. I know that sounds like a ridiculous amount of money, but it’s less than $30 US. Yesterday was our last day exploring Cape Town. Kendall, PT, Emily, and I went on a wine tasting tour with 2 other SAS girls and a British woman named Nikki. We stopped at five wineries and had between 5 and 6 wines at each place. It was a really fun day and a great way to end our time here. I really wanted to buy a few bottles to ship back home, but it was going to cost between 300 and 400 US dollars just for shipping, so I gave up on that idea pretty quickly. I know that this blog can’t really express what Cape Town is, so let me just say how much I love it here. Brazil and Puerto Rico were fun to visit, but I would love to live in Cape Town if I could. The people and the scenery are all so beautiful, and I feel drawn to this place in a very weird, but strong way. Tomorrow is a no class day, and then we only have 4 days of class before we get to Mauritius. I have a trip planned for all 3 days we’re there, and I’m really excited about all of them. Now it’s time for my intro to world religions class!

Cape Town, Part 1!

Anybody have a thesaurus handy? I really need some new words for amazing, awesome, and incredible. I feel like that’s all I have to say about things lately. This morning we woke up around 5:45 to watch us come into port. The wind was freezing, and everyone was exhausted, but the views of the sun rising over table mountain were well worth it. There were sea lions swimming around by our ship as we approached, and since we docked, I’ve seen tons of them. They’re so cute! As we came into port, the view of Cape Town with Table mountain in the background was simply stunning. The picture above is of me and my ship parents as we were coming towards Africa. Then it was time for breakfast and a nap while we cleared customs. When we were finally able to get off the ship about 4 hours later, Kendall and I walked with our new friends Emily and PT (they’re also from CSU) to a tourism office. We booked a wine tasting tour for Thursday. We get to visit 5 wine estates in the Stellenboch area, which should be really fun. Then Kendall and I bought tickets to go to Robben Island on Wednesday. We’re hoping we’ll also have time to take the cable car to the top of Table Mountain that day. We had a quick lunch at a pizza place in the mall, which served pizza with “chips” AKA French Fries. A homeless man asked if he could have the left overs before I through them out, and I wanted to buy him his own slice, but he was perfectly happy to take what we didn’t want. It was a really humbling experience. After that we went with a SAS group to the District 6 museum which memorializes all of the black people who were forced out of their homes during apartheid. Then we went to a few townships which are the poorer parts of Cape Town. They seemed really sad at first, but we saw some things that made it seem like things were starting to turn in a positive direction. We went to a community center that trains people in the arts, and then sells their artwork to help run the show. Then they provide support for the people as they start their own businesses. Here are some cute kids from the township.

We also drove by some major places of conflict during apartheid (such as where Amy Biehl was killed) and the hospital where the first heart transplant was done. Then we went to dinner and I had ostrich filet and springbok. I really liked the ostrich a lot. Now it’s bedtime because I have to leave in about 8 hours for my SAFARI!!! It’s only been one day and I’m already in love with Cape Town!

Almost to Cape Town!

Tomorrow we land in South Africa! I am so excited, that I don’t know what to do with myself. I have a test this morning in my International Conflict Resolution class, but after that I won’t have any school stuff to worry about until after South Africa, when I have to write a 5 page religion paper in about 2 days. The past few days have been really interesting. We had “apartheid day” during which we were separated into two classes. The elite class was those people who had shaved their heads, and the rest of us were restricted for the day. We couldn’t eat in the upstairs dining room, use the elevators, or go on the pool deck and if someone with a shaved head wanted your gym equipment you had to leave. Well, for the most part it didn’t really affect me because I don’t eat upstairs or go by the pool usually, and I almost never use the elevators. At dinner time though, the downstairs dining room was completely packed so Kendall and I decided to eat upstairs in protest. When we got there, a bunch of people had set up outside the dining room protesting apartheid, it was really interesting. We were some of the only people brave enough to go in and eat though. People were chanting and yelling at us and one girl even shoved me. It was actually kind of traumatic. We just got our food though and sat down and ate. Nobody really bothered us after a while. Also, Desmond Tutu has spoken in a few of my classes. He is incredible! The things that he has seen and been through would be enough to make anyone bitter. But he is so joyful, you can almost see the holiness come out of him as he smiles and dances (which he does ALL the time). He has definitely touched my heart, and I don’t think I will ever forget some of the things he has said. In our Global Studies class today he is taking questions. To make it fair, they had us submit questions and they will choose a few to ask him. I asked what his experience has been with aging and what advice he would give to us who will be working with older adults and to everyone as we all get older. I really hope they ask him that, I’ve been wanting to know his thoughts for a while. I’m so excited to get to South Africa, it’s going to be amazing. I’ll take lots of pictures and post them when I can. It’s really nice getting emails from people, so if you have a few minutes, drop me a line and say hi!

Neptune Day!

I am now officially a shellback. Yesterday was Neptune Day during which we got initiated into the world of those who have crossed the equator. Before this, I was a "pollywog" aka somebody who has not ever crossed the equator. To officially become shellbacks, we had to go through the ceremony in which they poured “fish guts” on our heads. We then jumped into the pool and then had to kiss two dead fish on the lips and then kiss King Neptune’s ring. The fish guts were actually just watery oatmeal, and King Neptune was played by our British captain painted green. Then lots of people shaved their heads, but I definitely did not take part in that. Ryder, the 9 month old baby got a Mohawk shaved into his hair, it was very cute! Last night we had a barbecue. You can guess how happy I was that we had both corn on the cob and red jello! It was the best dinner I’ve had on the ship in quite a while. It was also very very nice to have a day not having to go to class. I took a much needed nap in the afternoon. Now it’s time to do some homework, workout and get to bed since we had to set our clocks ahead an hour last night again for the third night in a row. I am so tired! 23 hour days are not fun. Also, we have to do it 2 more times before South Africa. Only 5 more days now until I get to South Africa, though which I’m so excited about!

Brazil.. I love Brazil!!

My 6 days in Brazil were really great, but incredibly long. On the first day, we pretty much didn’t stop. We went to the Modelo Mercado as soon as we were able to get off the ship. There were these really aggressive women who took your hand and said a prayer or something and then tried to make you pay them. I gave them one dollar, but it wasn’t enough and they started yelling at me, so I got scared and gave them 10 more. Besides that though, the Mercado was fun. I got some beautiful paintings. After that, we met up with some other SaSers and walked around Salvador for a little bit. Then we had to catch a taxi back to the ship for our Panoramic City Orientation. We drove around Salvador and then walked some more through the city. We got to go to this gorgeous church which contains the room of miracles. It is said that if you leave a model of the body part you need healed or the picture of a person in the room, a miracle might happen. There were wax feet and arms everywhere! We also saw the flavellas which are the poor neighborhoods in Salvador. There are houses packed in every possible inch of unoccupied land. When we got back to the ship from that we had to hurry and get ready for our big night out at the local restaurant. The show that they put on was really animated and was great for showing off the people’s African heritage. The next morning was an early one since I had to be ready for my trip to Lencois at 8am. This trip was quite possibly one of the best experiences of my life. Lencois is a cute little town with great hikes all around. We hiked hard core for three days! We went straight up some rivers and across others. At one point we had to cross a river that was over our waists. The guides strung a rope across the river the idea being that you were supposed to walk through while holding onto the rope. I did more swimming than walking, but I made it! We got to swim and play in a waterfall, and we climbed to one of the highest points in Bahia. The picture above is when I finally made it to the top. This was my major accomplishment of the week. Our hotel was so beautiful; I can’t believe I actually stayed there! The pool looked over some rapids of the Lencois river, and there were gorgeous flowers everywhere. The name “Canto das Aguas” means “Song of the waters”. We had a hammock to put up on our patio, and the food was so yummy! It was really nice to get to meet new people too. I feel like I’m kind of good friends with some of the people that I didn’t even know before a few days ago. I guess traveling together can let you get to know people really well. Brazil has been the first port where I have had a really great time, and I am so excited to get to South Africa. We are watching a travel video on South Africa right now, and it’s getting really hard to decide what we’ll do on our independent days. Also, I’m creating this really awesome video that I can show everybody when I get home. Hopefully it won’t bore you all to death, it’s nearly 8 minutes now and we’ve only had 3 ports. Maybe I’ll have to trim it down a bit. Kendall and I also got to go on a tour of the bridge yesterday. That was so much fun! We got to sit in the captain's chair and wear his hat. It was interesting to learn about all the stuff that goes one. They said that we use like 2000 gallons of fresh water a day on the ship! The other picture below is us being goofy on the bridge. We were so far in the middle of the ocean that no other ships were even showing up on the radar, so there was absolutely nothing that we were actually looking at.

PS-All of the post offices in Brazil were closed for Carnaval, so all of the letters and postcards I was going to send will have to wait until South Africa. Also, if anybody sent me any mail in Brazil I won't get it until South Africa. Crazy national holidays!

PPS- For anyone that watches lost, there is a crew member on the ship that looks like the guy from the training videos. It's pretty creepy, I'm gunna try to take a picture of him to show everyone.

I am now in the Southern Hemisphere

We are almost to Brazil! We have one more day of classes and then we land! I feel like I’ve been on this ship for months, and I cannot wait to get on land again. The picture I’ve posted above is of the equator, which we passed over yesterday. They made an announcement about it, but as you can see it looks pretty similar to the rest of the ocean. Today Kendall and I met our adopted family. It’s through a program on the ship where the faculty and lifelong learners can adopt a few undergrads. It was really fun and our “parents” seemed really sweet. They have traveled all over Europe. Last night there was a poetry reading where anybody could get up and say poems they had written. He surprised her by reading a sonnet that he had written for her. I hope I can be like them when I’m older. The older adults on this trip are absolutely amazing. We sometimes eat with this woman named Donna. We asked her where she had traveled to and she said “name it, I’ve been there” We got the replies back for our trip signup I got almost all of the ones I wanted. I’m doing a bunch of fun stuff that you will all get to hear about later! I’ll just tell you my Brazil plans for now. When we arrive, I’m doing what’s called the “Panoramic City Orientation” which is where we get a tour of the city of Salvador where we are landing. Then Kendall and I want to check out the big market that is there. That night I’m going to what is called “Bahia by night” which is dinner at a local restaurant followed by a show of the local culture. 80% of Salvador’s population is of African descent making it the largest African city outside of Africa. We get to see lots of cool things that the slaves brought over from Africa including Capoiera (dance fighting) and Candomble (Dancing African religion that was disguised as Catholicism so the slaves could keep practicing it). After that I hope I can see a little bit of Carnival festivities before heading to bed. The next morning I’m headed to Lecois, which is an amazing national park that I’m really excited about. We watched a video about it in one of my classes and there’s a small chance that I might find a diamond in the river we get to play in. Keep in mind that this is a very very small chance, but it would be cool! The thing I’m most worried about in Brazil in trying to speak and understand Portuguese. This is one of the countries where very few people speak English and from what I understand Portuguese is just different enough from Spanish to make communication difficult. After Brazil we have another long week at sea until we get to Cape Town, South Africa.

PS-Thank you Mom and Dad! I’m so glad that I’m getting to do this, it’s an amazing experience so far, and we’ve only just left!

In the middle of the Atlantic

We are in the middle of a very strange week. We had classes over the weekend, so today really does not seem at all like a Monday. Yesterday we passed within 3 miles of the island of Barbados in case anyone is wondering where exactly I am. I think we should be going over the equator sometime between now and Wednesday, which is pretty exciting since I have never been in the Southern Hemisphere. Today Kendall and I had lunch with one of the lifelong learners. I am so glad that we have older adults on the trip with us. Her name is Donna and she has traveled all over the world including Antarctica, Egypt, and Nepal. She said this trip is great for her because she gets to check off some of the places on her life list of places to go including the Amazon and the Great Wall. This experience has been great for her and I hope that one day I’ll be able to come back on the ship as a lifelong learner. We also sat with the woman who works in the bookstore. She’s been on SaS before and was telling us how India and Africa could really change our lives. I’m not really sure what she means, but I guess I’ll find out soon enough! We get into Brazil on Saturday, then I leave on Sunday morning for a hiking trip in the mountains. I’m really excited about this trip but also kind of sad since I’ll miss most of the Carnaval action. I do get to slide down some waterslides that are naturally carved into the rocks and see some amazing views though, so it should be a really great trip. We signed up for more trips yesterday and I’ll have to wait and see which ones I got into. The one I’m most hopeful for is the trip in China to see the Great Wall and the terra-cotta army. Also in Japan I’m hoping to get into a trip to Kyoto during which we get to stay in a traditional Japanese Inn. I’m missing everyone and I can’t wait to hear from people. Sorry that I’m a little slow with responding to e-mail, but internet is very slow and very expensive. I hope you’re all doing well!

PS- Natalie, I opened my water bottle this morning, thanks

Tonight we are leaving Puerto Rico after having been here for three days. When we came into port, the governor of Puerto Rico came on the ship to welcome us. Then I had to rush through the immigration line and go to the doctor. Of course I left my malaria pills at home and had to get a new prescription and get it filled. Luckily, there were about 10 other people who had to do the same thing and some of us got a cab together. Our hike through the rainforest was really interesting yesterday. We saw lots of different kinds of ferns that ranged from being about half an inch long to being the size of trees. There was a waterfall that some people swam in, but I guess we missed the “bring your bathing suit” memo so Kendall and I just looked around some more and took pictures. We also heard some birds and some tree frogs, but we couldn’t see either one. Our guide told us lots of really interesting things about the rainforest and about Puerto Rico in general. When we got back to the ship, we had a quick dinner and then we went to Caribbean University where the students had put together a reception for us. They greeted our busses with music and people in costumes and on stilts. Then the mayor of their city came to talk to us. Then we went outside where we watched some traditional dancing and ate some Puerto Rican appetizers. Yesterday afternoon Kendall and I went to Old San Juan with our friend Jeff. We were told that the walk wasn’t too far so we headed out. By the time we had walked 45 minutes in the heat we were ready for a cold drink. Luckily, there was a Coldstone. It was surprising to find one right when I needed some ice cream, but it was very nice to have a little bit of home. We walked around Old San Juan some more and saw some interesting architecture and cute shops. While we were in one store we found some pretty beaded bows and things. I decided to buy a patch or something in each country that we visit and attach them to some cloth to make a blanket of memories from my trip. I might also look into getting pictures printed on cloth to attach. This is kind of a project in the works, but I wanted to make something out of things I get in every port and this is the best idea I’ve had so far. Our bioluminescent bay trip was cancelled which was pretty sad since everybody that went said it was amazing. Today Kendall and I were smarter and took a taxi to El Morro. This is a fort that was built in the late 18th century to protect Puerto Rico. From the top there was an incredible view of the city and ocean. Then we tried to find a grocery store which took us a very long time. I had to mail a letter to some 6th graders in the States that I am doing a pen pal type thing with. So we lugged our bags of groceries to where the map said the post office was and wandered around until a man told us it had moved to some far away location and we would have to catch a trolley to get there. I saw a mailbox and decided it would be better just to go buy stamps at the Wallgreen’s nearby and drop my letter in. Kendall waited in a park with all of our bags while I ran into Wallgreen’s to buy the stamps. When I came out I saw her surrounded by hundreds of pigeons who were eyeing our grocery bags and quickly closing in. We grabbed our bags and I put the letter in the mailbox and then we set out on the fun adventure of trying to find a taxi. We ended up sharing a cab with a nice couple who were on a cruise ship close to ours, and by the time we got back, I was in desperate need of a shower. We are pulling out of port in about 30 minutes. We are at sea (in class) for the next seven days and then we get to Brazil a week from tomorrow!

Bahamas, Ship Life

This is a cute picture that my Dad took of Jared and I on the beach that was right by our hotel in the Bahamas.

Today is our first full day on the ship, and I so far it’s been a little hard. I can’t seem to find my “sea legs” and have been trying to keep myself standing upright for most of the time we have been at sea. I’ve been feeling queasy, but it’s not as horrible as I thought it would be. The food here is really good considering they have to cook for over a thousand people. I had some roast beef for dinner last night and some fruit and eggs for breakfast this morning. Since I wasn’t able to post in the Bahamas, I’ll run down some of the highlights. The people there are really nice and friendly. We saw a horse splashing around in the ocean right across the street from our hotel. The scenery was beautiful and the sunset was great. We could see the place where all the cruise ships were and I got to watch our ship come in to port. Jared and I went snorkeling with Kendall (my roommate on the ship) and her fiancée Patrick. That was one of the best things I have ever done. There were amazing fish and coral, and we got to swim with sharks. If anyone has ever seen Jaws 4, there is a part where they crash a plane into the ocean. We swam around that plane which is still at the bottom of the sea. So far this trip has been absolutely amazing with the exception of yesterday. It was much harder to say goodbye than I had expected and I found myself in tears when Jared and my parents had to leave the ship. It’s good that I have lots of pictures to look at and some presents that Natalie (Jared’s sister gave me). I can’t open the presents yet because she put specific days for me to open them, but I get to open the first one tomorrow! We land in Puerto Rico on Wednesday, and Kendall and I have a good itinerary for there including:
1. El Yunque- the only rainforest under the protection on the US National Park System.
2. Welcome Reception- local college students throw us a party with cultural food, music, and dancing.
3. Bioluminescent Bay- The water and biological elements of this place light up when the chemicals in the react with oxygen, making them glow blue, green, or purple.
4. Bacardi Factory- this is something we are considering if we don’t find something better to do on Thursday.
5. Wal-Mart- thankfully this is close to the port because there are lots of things that I forgot to pack! (Snacks, pens, pencils, hairbrush etc.)

PS- For all of you in Denver, I thought I would let you know that it is currently 80 degrees and sunny here!

On my way!

After lots of time spent packing and planning, my trip has officially started! We are now in the airport waiting for our flight to the bahamas. We had an awesome time in Florida looking for seashells, swimming, and just generally relaxing. It turns out that Jared is an awesome seashell hunter and he even found a dried seahorse! We toured a wildlife reserve and got to see a ton of really cool animals and trees. We had lots of great food and good times. I can't wait for the bahamas and all of the rest of my travels. Thanks to everybody for the well wishes!!

Calendar and Mail

This is a link to a calendar of when I will be at what ports as well as to the addresses of the ports in case anybody wants to send me some mail while I'm gone. I know that I would love to get mail from everybody! Also, now you can know where I will be on any given day when you are stuck at home missing me :)

https://www.ise.virginia.edu/asp/mydocuments/calcomm.pdf

Welcome to my Blog!

I leave for my semester at sea trip on January 28, 2007. My parents, Jared (my boyfriend) and I will spend about a week in Florida, then a few days in the Bahamas before my ship leaves on Suday February 4, 2007. From there, I will actually be going all the way around the world!

Here is our Itinerary:
~San Juan, Puerto Rico February 7-9
~Salvador, Brazil February17-21
~Cape Town, South Africa March 2-8
~Port Louis, Mauritius March 15-17
~Chennai, India March 25-29
~Penang, Malaysia April 2-5
~Ho Chi Mihn Cuty, Vietnam April 9-14
~Hong Kong & Qingdao, China April 17-22
~Kobe, Japan April 25-29
~Honolulu, Hawaii May 7
~San Diego, California May 14

I am so looking forward to this trip, although I know that I'll miss everybody. I'll try to update this blog as much as I can, but internet on the ship is really expensive so it might only happen at ports. I would love to get email from everyone and I'll try to get back to you when I can!