Class

This week is one of those few times where we actually have class for four days in a row. I just got done with B day classes and am now sitting by the pool in my swimsuit soaking up the sun. It would be the perfect time to jump in the pool....except there's no water in it due to heavy wind and rough seas the past two nights. Leaving Dominica we jutted out into the Atlantic for a bit and it was really rough. Hopefully when we cross the Atlantic it will have calmed down by then...lets hope.

We are entering the Amazon tonight at 10 and we will have to go slow because its not as deep and well...its going to be awesome. I went to a seminar last night on Manaus, Brazil and it looks awesome. Now if there were only a Wal-mart there....we'd be set. I get SO hungry in the afternoons between lunch and dinner. I have a feeling I'm not eating enough. We've had some variation of pasta, potatoes, and chicken every single day for lunch and dinner for the past week. I hear there is a taco night at some point. I really hope it's soon. Laundry day was today and my bag was busting out of the seams....I had clothes in there from Nassau. I'm so excited to get laundry back.

It's very hard to get into a routine with classes here. Its pretty funny to see all the kids around the pool reading their textbooks instead of mind numbing magazines or trashy beach reads.

Yesterday I had my second class of International Marketing and we already had a pop quiz. I couldnt believe it. I really dont think I did so hot but luckily later last night I got three extra credit points for watching a movie...YES.

Today I had global popular culture where we mostly talked about advertising in Dominica the entire time along with textual analysis of photos. It was pretty fun. Then came global studies where we listened to a speaker talk about the sex trade of young 12 ear old girls in Nepal and how his non profit organization is helping them stay in school and go to "university." Lastly I had Ethnography where we mostly went over the basics of Anthropology and ethics surrounding that. Classes were interesting and now I guess I should be doing homework but I'm always wanting to check my email now....especially without facebook. I didnt really realize how addicted I was to facebook. Yikes...

 

That's it for now. Hopefully when I get to Brazil I'll be able to find some free wi-fi and I can upload some photos either here or on facebook. Thanks to everyone that reads my blog. I appreciate all the comments, keep 'em coming!

Dominica - "This is school!!!"

So lets see....we docked in Dominica on Sunday morning around 7:30am. We have to swipe our ID cards when we get on and off the ship. The gangway was on the fifth deck during this port and so we had to walk down this super long metal staircase and down a pier. Dominica is kind of like Nassau, but even poorer and the Taxi drivers do everything to try and get you into their taxis....minus actually throwing you in their taxis. So this really legit, and sincere looking Taxi driver came up to our group which ended up joining with two more girls that had split from another group (total of 7 of us). He offered us a ride for $20/person and he would take us to all of the sites, waterfalls, and beach. We bargained it down to $15/person and hopped into his van. Our tour guide's name was Shwaly. He ended up being SO COOL! He took us on these windy roads (outside Roseau there are no speed limits=scaryness!) towards our first stop which was these two waterfalls....which of course I can't re
 member the name of....but they're on a postcard I'm sending....but probably in Brazil since I didnt fill them out! haha Anyways...back to my story. So Shwaly stopped along the way to the waterfall to show us a cinnamon tree, cocoa bean tree, avocado tree, bananas, and lemon grass. He told us about how cinnamon was made and how the lemon grass makes you feel better. Apparently most people use herbs as medicine and dont go to the doctor. So we finally made it to the waterfall which was a 15 minute hike. But then of course we wanted to SWIM in the waterfall....hello we dont want to just LOOK at it!! So then we started climbing on these ginormous rocks that were all slippery and hard to grip. And Shwaly helped us all the way....he was climbing around like a monkey on the rocks. We kept on saying how if our mothers heard about this they would kill us. So we got to the top and got to swim under the waterfall which is SO refreshing! And then we clambered back down and climbed to the other waterfall which is warm water. There were natural hot springs that we sat in which were so refreshing and according to local stories the springs make you feel 10 years younger...which seemed pretty accurate! After that we went to the van and he took us through these villages that were so run down and there were lots of buildings made from shipping containers. It made you really appreciate America. We passed this guy who found this boa constrictor and he charges a buck to have your picture with him. I did not get anywhere close to that thing but a bunch of the girls did. So after that we went up this mountain where we stopped and we looked down on Roseau and could see the ship, and the national futbol stadium. We also saw a mini boiling lake....theres a bigger one in the middle of Dominica. It smelled like sulphur...yucky. Lastly we went snorkeling in Champagne Reef. It's named that because it's supposed to look like your swimming through a glass of champagne. (Thats kind of an overstatement) Lets just say....I suck at snorkeling. I can't get the whole breathing through my mouth thing down...so of course I swallowed all sorts of ocean water. Yummm. It was SO cool though. The ocean is so crazy....you dont realize how deep it is until your looking at it. We saw lots of Finding Nemo fishies....eels, pufferfish, and of course bubbles! Then we had some Rum Punch which was unbelievably strong and I honestly couldnt drink it...yuck! We ended the tour in town which is really kind of sad. It was a sunday first of all so there was NOTHING open and they opened a bar just for SAS. There are lots of homeless people walking around. We talked to a kid on a bike for a while who was 14 years old. He was telling us about his ex girlfriend that was mean to him and how he loves to walk to school. They have computers at the schools but not all kids use them. I snagged some internet time at a cafe and got on facebook for a few minutes to say hi. At night I went
 to the bar that opened for us, but only for about 15 minutes. It was a super small bar and PACKED. So then I came back to the ship and ran into my roommate and a few of her friends. We played cards out by the pool for a while and a ton of kids were just hanging out there.

I woke up on Monday morning to the captain telling the crew to go to their muster stations for a "crew only" emergency practice....not a fun wake up call. I headed out by myself after that....hoping to find a travel buddy. As soon as I was on the pier a girl asked me if I was alone and we ended up walking around town together. We went to breakfast at Cartwheel Cafe where tons of other SAS kids ate too. It was yummy! Then we went around finding postcards and I found a Dominican flag....which is kind of a lot different than the one I got in the bahamas but still cool! So then it was time for lunch and we went back to the ship where I ended up eating with two other girls that were going river tubing which was an SAS trip. We got into vans and the company that took us tubing was called Wacky Rollers. First we went to Emerald Pool which is a waterfall that has a natural pool at the bottom to sleep in and the water looks like a deep emerald color because of the reflection of all the greenery around us. It
  was really cold but so fun! And then we walked back to the vans which took us to the riverside where we got into tubes....literally like a tube that you would go tubing with. We got helmets, a paddle, and lifejacket and went for two miles down Dominica's longest river. (Dominica has 365 rivers) It was beautiful and there were some rapids which was fun. At the end we had fresh fruits including pineapple, grapefruit, oranges, and coconut. I HATE coconut but fresh coconut is absolutely DELICIOUS! By that time it was time to head to the ship and get onboard. I quickly got to the room and showered before my roommates got there.....SO NICE to have some peace in our rooms! Dinner...which consisted of chicken stirfry and mexican linguini...which was actually delicious...was on the deck looking at the rainbow. Someone brought their Bose and we were listening to awesome music too. And the juice for dinner tonight was some pineapple concoction which was outstanding and a nice change from water every night.

And now I'm here....looking back on my awesome time in Dominica. I'm sure getting to ports will become more routine but its really exciting. Im wondering where homework fits into this whole thing? So hopefully I'll get some done tonight and tomorrow!

Thanks for all the comments on my blog....keep them coming! They're awesome to read!!! Unfortunately I can't reply back to comments but I'll try and remember to answer questions in blog posts!

Classes

I had my first class today, International Marketing. It sounds AWESOME. The best part about taking classes on a ship is that all the classrooms are made out of random partitions spread throughout the ship. Some of them are in dining halls, others in the hallways, and some are more normal classrooms. It's pretty funny. And there are about 30 chairs jammed into the spaces so you get to know people pretty quickly.

 

Before class I went to lunch and two guys sat down at the table with me. One from Columbus who knew a lot about Miami but goes to Pepperdine in LA and the other from Massachusetts and he goes to Nichols College. Two more girls joined us, one from Berkley and the other from Providence College in Rhode Island. We had an awesome conversation talking about our schools, Miami's reputation with our Sororities who get kicked off campus and our mutual love of Chipotle....and how much we sadly already are craving it....can someone overnight me a bowl and some chips and guac to Dominica? I'd really appreciate it....

 

We're stopping somewhere tonight for fuel....I can't imagine why we're already stopping for fuel but hey....seeing land should be fun!

 

Thats about it for now, everyone headed straight to the pool after classes and the deck is SUPER crowded. The pool is about the size of two medium sized kitchen tables and probably 5 feet deep. I think I'm going to head outside and start homework....at least I get to look at the ocean.

 

 

 

 

 

Bon Voyage

The past 24 hours pretty much the only thing I've been thinking is....what did I sign up for? And what is everyone at home doing right now while I'm in the middle of the ocean looking at nothing but ocean for as far as I can see. I'm excited for classes to start so that I can get into a routine.

 

I boarded the MV Explorer at 11AM on Saturday and waited in a huge long line outside the docks. It was great that Chris was able to stay with me in line for so long. It was hard to say goodbye as expected but I can’t wait to meet him in San Diego on the other end of the voyage. After going through security they took our bags and passports. Our bags were delivered to our rooms.

 

After boarding the ship we went to lunch. The food is good but certainly doesn’t live up to Miami’s standards. I ate lunch with some girls from Hawaii and Texas. Then we walked around the ship to look at all the amazing facilities. After that I went to my room. Of course my ID card used to unlock my room didn’t work, so Crispen (He’s Chinese), our cabin steward, unlocked it for me. The door opened into a room that looked like a double. It has a big window. But then I realized both double beds were taken. Crispen opened another door which opened into a room that has two more beds. I took the one that is up against the wall so I can lean against it. You can hear the engine so much but I think I’ll get used to it…..it’s almost like a really loud fan noise. I unpacked everything and had room to spare. I also put up my pictures on the wall and of course Lady BG and Bongo are chillen on my bed.

 

After that we had our lifeboat drill which took forever! But it was nice to hear they have food and water and all sorts of goodies in the lifeboats if ever they were needed. (Let’s hope not)

After that it was almost time for dinner. I sat with two really nice girls…one goes to University of Miami which is kinda funny. They were really interested in seeing my quad room so I showed them that. The one girl Holly, from U of Miami has a single….which looks kinda nice haha.

 

My roommates seem somewhat quiet and reserved. One goes to UVA and is Chinese….another is American and goes to Penn State. The girl that lives in my little area with me is like Ethiopian and goes to Minnesota. I probably shouldn’t say this on a study abroad trip like this but….why do I always get put with like non-Americans?... Oh well.

 

Finally it was time for the ship to depart around 8:30 PM. By that time it was dark but everyone gathered on the deck to wave goodbye to Nassau…it was really cool. We then had an orientation meeting where we met all the special people on the ship like the administrators and deans and the captain. The Captain, Captain Jeremy, is British and it’s pretty awesome to hear him speak. He’s been a captain of SAS for about six years but has all sorts of awesome credentials that make us feel like we’re in REALLY good hands.

 

Lots of people are feeling sea sick but I took one Dramamine yesterday (Jan 12^th) and felt fine. I didn’t take anything this morning and feel fine (knock on wood!) We had another 3 hour orientation session today followed by lunch, a break, and more meetings this afternoon. We already lost an hour with the time zone changes, plus the rocking ship, and so much activity is making everyone super tired.

 

I’m sure there will be more to come in the next few days but for now I’m just trying to learn everything and try to meet new people. It’s like freshman year all over again.

 

Miss and love you all….

 

Packing Commences

I started packing....annnnnd it's taking a while. And my room looks like a bomb went through it. I really wish I could learn how to pack light for once....

Waiting for the ship to come in...

17 days.

1. Semester at Sea

Is this real life? Did I really sign up for a trip around the ENTIRE WORLD?! I can hardly believe it. Chris and I leave for Nassau in exactly 17 days. To Chris, it's just a little 5 day trip to Nassau...but I'm packing for four months and I can't exactly stop at the nearest Wal-Mart.

2. Santa

It feels SO nice to be home from school! It was really weird to say goodbye to everyone after I realized I probably won't see them until August 2011. There are so many pro's and con's to studying abroad in the Spring. I get to miss the really boring, yucky, cold winter months of January and February, don't miss any really big holidays, and I have the whole summer to look forward to as well! The only bad thing I can think of is, while everyone packed up for three weeks of winter break, I had to pack up my ENTIRE room and move it all home in 6 inches of snow. YAY. (And then once the car was packed, the car battery was dead. But that's another story....)

I was so excited and surprised to see Chris walk through the door the night I moved back home. We got to have a little Christmas together after all and I couldn't ask for anything better! What an awesome 12 hours!! He's the greatest!

I feel like I can't even think about packing for SAS until Christmas is over, especially since I believe lots of Christmas is going to revolve around the many random things I need for SAS. Christmas is almost here, the best time of year by far! The days until Jan 8th are ticking away but I'm trying to enjoy as much family and relaxation time as possible....I must say, so far it's been wonderful.

3. Summer

Spring is the time of year to look for internships in the advertising industry for the summer months. Except that's a problem. Because I'll be in the middle of the ocean. But of course Chris came to the rescue once again and contacted a mutual friend who offered me an internship for the summer at Clutch Studios in Chicago. I am SO excited to be in Chi-town for the summer. The best part about it is I wont be wondering where I'll be interning in the summer. Knowing before I leave is such a nice feeling! Now I just have to wonder where I'll be living....Maybe Oprah will offer me a little closet in her condo?

Where Does Time Go?

Where does time go?

I'm asking myself this now...wondering how I will fit everything in before my Jan 8th flight to Nassau. I'm sure I'll also be asking myself this very question on April 24th when we arrive back in the states.

Lots has happened since the last time I posted. Last Wednesday I received my two vaccines for yellow fever and typhoid fever. I don't think having a cold helped while getting these shots. I thought I was on the mend with this yucky cold I have had, until Thursday morning when I felt like I was dying of some strange southern hemisphere disease....maybe yellow fever? I felt like that girl in the "Sick" poem by Shel Silverstein: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16480 ...except I most certainly didn't want to go out and play.

I keep talking to my Mom about all the things that need to be packed from clothes that cover my knees in India to dresses for the Ambassador's Ball to European plug converters to the amounts of shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, and ....girlie products I'll need. Apparently lots of it can't be purchased past South Africa. Shampoo+conditioner combination bottles NEVER work for me. Until I found this Garnier Fructis stuff. Which means, less luggage space taken up by bottles and more space for....everything else I need to jam in my bag for four months.

Everyone keeps asking me how excited I am to go on my "cruise." Or how big the boat is. Or they say it's so not academic and just a party at sea the whole time.

Lets clear some things up:

1. It's most definitely not a cruise. There IS indeed schoolwork involved. The syllabi are freaking me out. I'd call it more like a voyage.

2. It's not a boat. I'm not going to be floating around the world in a dinghy. That could get pretty intense and with my clumsiness, I probably wouldn't even make it to Dominica before falling out and being eaten by sharks. It's a ship.

3. I'm excited yes. But I'm also really scared. When I tell that to people everyone is like "But WHY are you scared? That's silly" Are you kidding me?! I've never step foot outside of this country (Canada doesn't count.) I'm scared to be in the minority, to be looked at as the "Ugly American." I'm scared I'll get lost, won't know how to communicate with locals, won't be able to call my Mom or Chris at a moments notice when I feel like the world is collapsing around me!!!!! But I'll make it. I know I will.

What else....

I got my visas back from Pinnacle and boy do they look SPIFFY!

I applied for a scholarship.....there's about a 1 in 325346 chance I'll get it. Plus with my luck with scholarships my chances decrease to about a 1 in 32534678390 chance. But hey, it's worth a shot. Like the lottery....ya can't win if you don't play. (That just made me sound like a lottery addict. Definitely not.)

I bought a trip to the Taj Mahal. I had a theory that after looking at pictures of it which look fake EVERY time, that the Taj really didnt exist. So my job, is to prove that it does exist. In order to do this Chris says I have to chip off a piece of the Taj and bring it back to him. I'll tell you how that pans out when you receive a letter from me in an Indian jail guarded by elephants. So after a million bank fiascos and talking to fraud and unblocking my debit card (thanks Mom!), I was finally able to book my trip to the Taj through an Indian travel agency's website...travelmyindia.com.

I also signed up for some trips in Dominica, Brazil and Ghana. River tubing, an Amazon culinary class, night time gator hunting on the Amazon (What am I thinking??), and some kind of Castles and Slave Dungeons in Ghana. SAS trips work like a lottery so I might not get any of these but figured I'd sign up for them as a back up.

I REALLY want to do this Basic Great Wall trip where you sleep in sleeping bags on the Great Wall for a night. But I don't know how it will work out with my required field practica for classes. So we'll see.

So I have exams this week. And I should be studying for them. But combinations of a bad cold and thoughts of SAS lead to little productivity and....Facebook. Or YouTube.

Here's a video that was posted by another SASer on Facebook....which led me to YouTube. Imagine that!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5xCGZuvhWI&feature=youtube_gdata_player

It's slightly ruined by the fact that it's a Louis Vuitton commercial. But I thought about it and this commercial ties in SO well to my interests (and vices...I like luggage/backpacks/bags)

The combination of culture, discovery, travel, pop culture, advertising, and thought provoking messages make me absolutely LOVE the message in this commercial. And the music is perfect too! :)

That's all for now....guess I should study. SIX DAYS LEFT!!!!