6/20
Last night, I had a five course meal and a variety of wines with our English officers. Definitely a lot of fun. If you ever have the chance to dine with a British seaman, do it.
I woke up this morning and showed up to my 0800 class ~15 minutes early. My professor is in there already. “Have you looked outside this morning? The Azors are visible from the port side window.”
LAND! There is this overwhelming feeling of excitement when you see land after a week of seeing nothing but ocean. At this point, we are now over halfway to Barcelona. We are scheduled to arrive at 0800 on Thursday, in 4 days.
On another bright note, today is the first day it is actually warm enough to go outside without a hoodie. During my first sunbathing session of the year on the 7th deck (pool deck), a girl yelled out “DOLPHINS!” Sure enough, a large pod of dolphins played in the wake of the ship.
Class is tough but super interesting. Imagine your typical graduate course load and reading assignments, but imagine having class every day, including Saturdays and Sundays. That’s a lot of reading. The past two days haven’t been so hectic, but things are starting to normalize on the ship too.
Alright, time to attend a surprise birthday party for a seahort member and take a test....yes, on a Sunday :-(. And we enter another timezone tonight, so we have to wake up an hour earlier tomorrow...
Ooh! I purchased a calling card today and called my family to wish my dad a happy Father’s Day. That was exciting.
Holly.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
In the Atlantic/The Beginning of the Voyage
Lat: 39 Long: 42 (ish)
I haven't posted in a while, so let me catch up:
I haven't posted in a while, so let me catch up:
6/15
Today at 8, we began checking in students. The line to board the MV Explorer stretched outside the pier and wrapped around the block. Although the boarding times for students were in alphabetical order, most students arrived much earlier. Unfortunately, some of the students’ luggage got lost in transit. Others did not label their luggage and it did not make it from the pier to their cabin.
When all of the students boarded, we began our lifeboat drills. All of us put on life jackets and stood in front of our corresponding lifeboat. They look watertight and sturdy, like they could take on any weather. I guess that’s a sigh of relief. The captain told us this was the best evacuation drill he’s ever seen on the MV Explorer! Soon after, it was time to disembark. Many parents, previous staff, and SAS alums waved goodbye to us as the anchor lifted. When we started heading out to the Atlantic, we had dinner followed by a community meeting and our individual sea meetings. Instead of floors/decks, we have seas. I am a program advisor for the Arabian Sea and all of the students are so excited to be here.
6/17: Long day of orientation. We learned what to do in emergency situations like having a man overboard and the captain also advised us not to try and hang out with our fingers in the door jam. Rogue waves have been known to hit and many fingers have been amputated. The day started at 0800 and did not end until 2200, the end of our second sea meeting. We played Apples to Apples last night....that was fun! Bad news: we are entering a new timezone and must wake up an hour earlier tomorrow.
NOW.....THE CURRENT HAPPENINGS!
Today is 6/17 and we just had our first day of classes. The unfortunate part? After all the excitement of sea/community meetings, we entered a new time zone and had to wake up an hour earlier to get to class on time at 0800. To top it off, we all woke up to a roll so hard it knocked all of our belongings off the desk and shelves. My roommate and I had a good laugh because I was brushing my teeth in the background and she woke up to the crashing and me stumbling out of the bathroom door with a toothbrush in my mouth saying "oh crap!"
I had breakfast with my professor this morning. She used to live on a sailboat and still suffers from occasional seasickness. She advised me to put a "barf bag" in my back pocket just in case...when we hit rough seas, I almost had to use it! Luckily, the infirmary has free mecklizine (sp) outside of their office for students. It works really well!
Class is awesome. It is difficult for me to pay attention sometimes because I'm still on Cloud 9 from this whole experience and looking outside. She is holding on to the podium to keep herself stable, but we got through class one successfully. This class will demand a lot, but the ship is very accommodating to various study techniques. I hung out in the faculty/staff lounge today at the front of the ship sipping coffee and reading the texts. There is a beautiful view of the ocean in front of us. Whenever the ship would take a hard roll to starboard (as it seemed to do every now and then), this young teacher next to me and I would giggle. A new friendship started at that moment and we got together for lunch in the aft of the ship. She just graduated with her masters in education from Teachers College (Columbia U) but currently teaches hockey. She used to play for UVM. She even lives in Russia for a while to coach their team.
(I realize this next passage is in past tense. I don't feel like modifying it so please just bear with me. )
Tonight we had 2 optional lectures to attend. One lecture featured a ton of information about things to do in Spain/Barcelona, the other had to do with a disturbing video on alcohol that was shown during orientation. For my job, I attended the alcohol one. Afterward, I went to the observation deck at the front of the ship where a professor showed us how sailors would navigate the stars. The captains turned the outside lights of for us.
Dinner today was awesome. We sat on the outside deck to watch the ocean and the wake, but we saw DOLPHINS!! They couldn't keep up with us though....we must have been traveling at 20 knots. It is not uncommon for students, faculty, and staff to just gaze out at the ocean and take it all in. Sometimes I will just stop in my tracks to look at the view. I have NEVER seen an ocean this blue. I wonder if I will ever have the chance to travel this far again on a ship to see the Atlantic shift from brown/green to a beautiful blue.
This bring me to where I am presently, so yes: this is in present tense. I am sitting in the faculty lounge sipping a mojito and hearing about the many previous SAS voyages from the environmental science professor. This is his 17th voyage! A good deal of my seahort is surrounding me (as well as my roommate) and we are finishing up our reading.
We are setting our clocks forward another hour tonight since we are about to pass another time zone. This means I should probably go to bed soon....
Holly.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Boarding the Ship
Lat:43 Long:63
6/14 – 2200
As the cab driver took us to Pier 20, we saw the top of the ship with the huge “SEMESTER AT SEA” logo. Reality hit the seahort: we are really going on this ship across the world! We boarded at 1pm but had to go through a lot of security. They checked our bags for contraband (over 2 L of alcohol), fruits/plants, wildlife, and the usual things you should not bring on a ship. They will even open your bottles (shampoo, mouthwash, etc) and sniff them for alcohol. They seem to know all the tricks people use to get alcohol and contraband into the ship. I do not mind ithe searches because I have never had a bad experience with Canadian Customs. They are friendly, have a positive attitude, and shared their excitement for us as we boarded the ship.
This ship is incredible! There are 7 decks: the first deck and part of the second are crew quarters. Decks two through four are mostly cabins but the counseling center is also on the second deck. The fifth deck holds Tymitz Square where the purser, deans, and FDP offices are. FDPs are group trips the students can sign up for. Some are required for part of their grade. The fitfth deck also holds the library, computer lab, dining facility, coffee shop, piano bar, classrooms and student union where Global Studies is held and broadcast throughout the ship and classrooms. The sixth floor has the spa, pool, faculty/staff lounge/bar, larger cabins, and sports/workout facilities.
The staff comes from all around the world. Much of the stewards are from the Philippines, the desk managers are from Russia and Germany, the captain is from England, and the list goes on.
My job is cut out for me. The students have not even boarded yet and I already have 2 cases. This will be interesting. I also met with my supervisor, the assistant dean of students. She works for the University of Arizona and her family joined her on this voyage. Since they are all so outgoing and helpful in building community, everyone pretty much knows who they are.
Kathy Manning ran into us while in Tymitz Square. She is laid back and said this is not her first time living on a ship, however her undergraduate course will be the largest class she’s ever taught. I also met my Global Studies professor. He is from the University of Manitoba and is very excited. This is going to be a good summer for academics.
Holly.
6/14 – 2200
As the cab driver took us to Pier 20, we saw the top of the ship with the huge “SEMESTER AT SEA” logo. Reality hit the seahort: we are really going on this ship across the world! We boarded at 1pm but had to go through a lot of security. They checked our bags for contraband (over 2 L of alcohol), fruits/plants, wildlife, and the usual things you should not bring on a ship. They will even open your bottles (shampoo, mouthwash, etc) and sniff them for alcohol. They seem to know all the tricks people use to get alcohol and contraband into the ship. I do not mind ithe searches because I have never had a bad experience with Canadian Customs. They are friendly, have a positive attitude, and shared their excitement for us as we boarded the ship.
This ship is incredible! There are 7 decks: the first deck and part of the second are crew quarters. Decks two through four are mostly cabins but the counseling center is also on the second deck. The fifth deck holds Tymitz Square where the purser, deans, and FDP offices are. FDPs are group trips the students can sign up for. Some are required for part of their grade. The fitfth deck also holds the library, computer lab, dining facility, coffee shop, piano bar, classrooms and student union where Global Studies is held and broadcast throughout the ship and classrooms. The sixth floor has the spa, pool, faculty/staff lounge/bar, larger cabins, and sports/workout facilities.
The staff comes from all around the world. Much of the stewards are from the Philippines, the desk managers are from Russia and Germany, the captain is from England, and the list goes on.
My job is cut out for me. The students have not even boarded yet and I already have 2 cases. This will be interesting. I also met with my supervisor, the assistant dean of students. She works for the University of Arizona and her family joined her on this voyage. Since they are all so outgoing and helpful in building community, everyone pretty much knows who they are.
Kathy Manning ran into us while in Tymitz Square. She is laid back and said this is not her first time living on a ship, however her undergraduate course will be the largest class she’s ever taught. I also met my Global Studies professor. He is from the University of Manitoba and is very excited. This is going to be a good summer for academics.
Holly.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Finally Here! 1st Blog
Halifax, NS (LAT 44.640270 LONG 63.624436)
Whew! After riding in planes all day, I am finally in Halifax! The plane ride from Detroit to Halifax comprised of almost all college students and some parents. I sat next to a student from the University of Colorado that almost could not make it. A man rear ended her in April, totaling her car and sending her to the hospital. She had to back out of her spring semester because of her injuries. To make matters worse, errors on UC's transcript gave her 2 Fs instead of Incompletes! Fortunately, her doctor cleared her to board the MV Explorer and UC worked everything out with the Institute of Shipboard Education (ISE).
I arrived at 9:30 pm Atlantic Time, just in time for the sunset. Halifax is hidden by huge green forests. None of us had ever seen so many trees! It was also cold and a little rainy last night at ~50 F. Sad to say, I did not expect such cold weather in June!
Customs in Canada was just as friendly as the last time I crossed over from Michigan, just a few more regulations. Everything here is in English and French. By the time I handed the customs official my letter, he had already read it enough times to know what it said at the sight of the ISE letterhead.
I then attempted to take the shuttle to my airport, but the shuttle did not go that far. The woman at the ticket window advised me to take the shuttle for $20 to the last stop then have a cab take me the rest of the way. She looked at me with a serious face and said, "That will be MUCH cheaper than taking a cab all the way from the airport." She was right as I later found out.
We had to drive almost 15 minutes through unlit forest. Finally, we reached the city, which was more spread out than we all expected. The city is almost the size of Austin with a little under a million people, but the shuttle driver mentioned Halifax spreading out over multiple counties or something like that...so the city did not look that big. The guy next to me (also from UC Boulder) visited with me until his stop for the hostel toward the end of the route. He was in shock to see the speed limit posted at 100 and other signs in metric. I'll add, both students from UC Boulder were not happy with their move to the Pac 10 conference :).
My stop to the furthest hotel came dead last and I was the only passenger left. I told the driver my plans and he graciously told me he would go ahead and just take me to my hotel! I tipped him well and went up to my room to meet two of my seahort members: one from Old Dominion in VA and the other from Clemson in SC. I found out then the cab ride to the hotel was $60 CAD!! Oh, FYI, that's about $55.
That's about it for now. My sleep schedule is already thrown off since I'm now 2 hours later, but I'll adjust :). We are staying on chocolate lake and the fog is intensely heavy. We board the ship at 1pm then it sounds like we are free to wonder around some more...no orientation? Oh well, at least near the pier we should not be so dependent on a taxi!
Holly.
Whew! After riding in planes all day, I am finally in Halifax! The plane ride from Detroit to Halifax comprised of almost all college students and some parents. I sat next to a student from the University of Colorado that almost could not make it. A man rear ended her in April, totaling her car and sending her to the hospital. She had to back out of her spring semester because of her injuries. To make matters worse, errors on UC's transcript gave her 2 Fs instead of Incompletes! Fortunately, her doctor cleared her to board the MV Explorer and UC worked everything out with the Institute of Shipboard Education (ISE).
I arrived at 9:30 pm Atlantic Time, just in time for the sunset. Halifax is hidden by huge green forests. None of us had ever seen so many trees! It was also cold and a little rainy last night at ~50 F. Sad to say, I did not expect such cold weather in June!
Customs in Canada was just as friendly as the last time I crossed over from Michigan, just a few more regulations. Everything here is in English and French. By the time I handed the customs official my letter, he had already read it enough times to know what it said at the sight of the ISE letterhead.
I then attempted to take the shuttle to my airport, but the shuttle did not go that far. The woman at the ticket window advised me to take the shuttle for $20 to the last stop then have a cab take me the rest of the way. She looked at me with a serious face and said, "That will be MUCH cheaper than taking a cab all the way from the airport." She was right as I later found out.
We had to drive almost 15 minutes through unlit forest. Finally, we reached the city, which was more spread out than we all expected. The city is almost the size of Austin with a little under a million people, but the shuttle driver mentioned Halifax spreading out over multiple counties or something like that...so the city did not look that big. The guy next to me (also from UC Boulder) visited with me until his stop for the hostel toward the end of the route. He was in shock to see the speed limit posted at 100 and other signs in metric. I'll add, both students from UC Boulder were not happy with their move to the Pac 10 conference :).
My stop to the furthest hotel came dead last and I was the only passenger left. I told the driver my plans and he graciously told me he would go ahead and just take me to my hotel! I tipped him well and went up to my room to meet two of my seahort members: one from Old Dominion in VA and the other from Clemson in SC. I found out then the cab ride to the hotel was $60 CAD!! Oh, FYI, that's about $55.
That's about it for now. My sleep schedule is already thrown off since I'm now 2 hours later, but I'll adjust :). We are staying on chocolate lake and the fog is intensely heavy. We board the ship at 1pm then it sounds like we are free to wonder around some more...no orientation? Oh well, at least near the pier we should not be so dependent on a taxi!
Holly.
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