The Suite Life on Deck

The pool has officially been filled. Why the crew/staff decided to fill up the pool with water as we enter cold weather is beyond me. Regardless, the weather today was about as nice as it could get. The picture (thank you Ivy) is up on the top deck where the pool and snack bar is and hopefully does a good job of showing what most kids do in between classes… Global Studies (the core curriculum class that every student takes) was cancelled today meaning I ended my school day at 10:45 AM. Contrary to the belief of many I actually did spend a few hours studying last night for a test I had this morning… it went very well. Sea school is a nice break from Michigan and even though my particular classes are not that challenging I am doing a lot of work and learning from them.

I continue to be friendly with the crew. I enjoy learning about their backgrounds, what brought them to ship life, and about their home lives. My main crew friend is named Vic (short for Vicente), approximately fifty years old, and Filipino. He works in the main dining hall on deck five and is a genuinely nice man. It’s a very awkward dynamic to watch him wait on many young kids. A lot of the time when I’ll go to get my own silverware or drink he insists on getting it himself. Though he is clearly doing his job, it is his smile and the consistent “Hello Alex” that makes me keep sitting in his area of the dining hall. On top of it he sang a Filipino version of happy birthday to Brooke, who he always calls Brookes. Nothing more about Vic for the time being, I just felt like giving him a little shout out on this blog.

I met my family or part of my family for the first time last night. Unlike most of my friends who were assigned to single-parent families, I have two parents- Bob and Luana Hill. They are from Oregon and Bob actually went on Semester at Sea in 1968 but around South America, Africa, and the Mediterranean. Ten kids are assigned to each family. Rather than meeting in the dining hall for dinner, we were invited to meet upstairs at Pub Night to get acquainted. Five students of the ten came (apparently some were sick or had school work). We are representing a large range of the country with San Diego, Los Angeles, Oregon, South Dakota, Massachusetts, and Maine. We have another dinner after crossing the International Date Line and hopefully more kids will come.

Rachel and I were talking last night about how we have been on the ship for two weeks. I am definitely in a routine and feel accustomed to ship life but it does not feel like I have been here that long. Projecting forward I realized that in two weeks I will have been to Japan and be a day away from being in Shanghai. Our global studies teacher, Don Gogniat, keeps repeating that Asia is like a machine gun… pow, Japan… 2 days, pow China, 2 days pow Viet Nam, it’s March 4^th. Got to live it up on the ship because it’s going to be over sooner than we know it.

Also if anyone has any suggestions for a topic on Sustainability that I can compare and contrast in six of the countries I’m going to visit let me know. It ‘s a group project and we have leeway to do whatever we want with it but the top projects will get a grant from UVA. Some topic ideas are: living on less than a dollar a day (comparing what a dollar gets you in each country), food consumption, water consumption, transportation, etc…

We lose ANOTHER hour today. Right now we are 3 hours behind Pacific time, 6 behind Eastern Time… this is all a pointless because we’re crossing the date line on Feb 2^nd so everything will get more mixed up anyway. At least we keep gaining hours… sucks for the voyages that went the other way.

Oh, safe travels to all those who are finally or almost finally leaving to Buenos Aires, Prague, Australia and China!

Also Sami, my dear dear twin sister, does not read my blog and for that matter has not even looked at it, her roommates do but she doesn't... just know if she went abroad I would follow hers :D

HONOLULU- LIFE IS JUST BETTER WHEN YOU'RE TAN!

Waikiki Beach, LOST, paddle surfing, sailing, 80 degree weather in January, the New York of the Pacific… if I didn’t already live in the best place in the world I would move to Honolulu in a second. It amazes me that people would choose to suffer, literally suffer, in negative degree weather when they could live somewhere with sun and beach all year long. Though I admit I love Michigan, let’s be honest, I’m moving back to California the second I graduate. On that note- East Coasters: there’s a reason why your grandparents live in Florida or Arizona.

Moving on from hating on the rest of the country and literally having to wear Eskimo gear from January basically through April in Ann Arbor, Honolulu is AMAZING. Granted, I’ve been to Honolulu before. The summer before 8^th grade my soccer team composed of a lot of my best friends that I grew up with, went to Honolulu for a tournament. I of course ended up in the ER to have XRAYS taken on my wrist at some point during the trip but regardless Honolulu was just as amazing then as it is now. In fact, I would be willing to say that Honolulu is more fun as you grow older, or more specifically if you are fortunate enough to visit it with 585 college kids.

After our early, over-eager start in Hilo, we decided to wait a little longer to get off the ship. This meant we were on the beach by 10 AM rather than 8 AM. The first day in Honolulu Rachel, Brooke, Jimmy, Flicker (real name’s Robbie but from here on out he’ll be referred as Flick or Flicker), and John went to Waikiki Beach to enjoy a normal sand beach. After lying down for about an hour we decided to start the day off right and go on a sail boat on a small trip off shore. For a small fee we were entitled to a two hour ride off shore, unlimited beverages, and an ocean swim. After renting mopeds, Ivy and Jill met up with us to enjoy this sailing cruise. One would expect mostly college aged or younger kids to be on this boat but to my surprise there were couples and people of ALL ages. Fun can be had at any age. Apart from the few rules (don’t jump in the water if you don’t know how to swim, choose to hold on to the boat rather than your drink if the water gets rough, and have fun) we were free to enjoy the music and relax. Swimming in the middle of the ocean was definitely a highlight of the day and thank you to Jimmy and his waterproof camera. After Jill blew the conch to clear swimmers out of our way to shore, we ventured back to the beach.

It was now 1:30 PM and after a day of mostly beverages and not much eating, we were overdue for lunch. Quick lunch followed by more beach followed by walking down Waikiki and looking around the shops and international market place. Most importantly Rachel and I got our JAPAN RAIL PASS which entitles us to the use of unlimited bullet trains for a week in Japan. This rail pass is essential to us being able to go anywhere and everywhere in Japan.

By 5 PM I was back on the MV Explorer, napping, and getting ready for dinner and a night out. The same day group met up at 8 PM to go back to Waikiki for dinner followed by bars and clubs. Though we were in Hawaii we all decided we wanted P.F. Chang’s which is kind of funny and kind of random. After a great dinner (in comparison to the luau which resorted to me eating a lot of Pringles later that night) we proceeded to Senor Frogs. I want to note that I think it is beyond weird that SASers chose to go to Senor Frogs while in Hawaii. I associate Senor Frogs with Cancun and Acapulco and to see it in an American context and still so popular was confounding. I expected a popular Hawaiian bar or club to be the choice of preference. Anyway about half of us are 21, so after one ID got taken away we soon departed from there. After a series of events Rachel, Brooke, and I ended up in a couple different bars and finally at a club with the majority of kids from our ship. All in all it was a fun night- pictures were taken, friends were made, dances were danced, and drinks were drunk.

After a long night, Brooke luckily woke me up at 8:15 for my 8:30 FDP. FDP- field directed practica, certain field trips we have to do for our classes. This one happened to be for my Global Mental Health class and more importantly went to the Hawaiian Psychiatric Hospital. After running to the bus a total of 21 of us headed to the other, rainy side of the island. I saw dressed for sunny Hawaiian weather and in a t-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. For the entire stay at the hospital it was raining and on top if it we had to walk outside for a lot of the time- I got soaked.

We met with the head psychiatrist and coordinator and learned that most (97%) of these patients were sent here involuntarily from the court settings. These were criminals who were unable to communicate adequately and thus sent over to psych to determine the level of sanity. The overall feeling I got from the mental hospital was one of despair. The hospital was essentially a prison or holding cell. Most of the patients had been there for years and this was not a place of rehabilitation but rather one of confinement. The interaction with the patients was strained- I believe the feelings of fear followed by curiosity were mutual. It was an intense morning and since this was a state funded hospital I was interested in the comparison between a hospital where patients were involuntarily admitted as opposed to one in which patients voluntarily admitted themselves. I did not see medicine trying to benefit mentally ill patients and get them back in the community but rather clients who were staying there indefinitely.

Since I would be at sea for the next 10-12 days (we cross the International Date Line so the amount of days and class days are really confusing- I think we miss February 3^rd completely) let alone out of the country until May 5^th I needed an amazing last meal which of course was at CPK. I went with Jenny to CPK at this huge Hawaiian shopping mall. It made Century City look like a joke. After walking around and getting some last minute souvenirs to send to my Vicarious Voyage classroom in Washington (I am a pen pal to a 3^rd grade classroom and will be mailing items to them throughout my voyage) we went back to the ship. I was exhausted. I made my last AT&T carrier phone calls to family and friends and was on my way.

Hawaii is amazing and honestly I wish we spent more time there. After a week of class we were in an unbelievable paradise. I looked at the calendar today for the rest of the trip and discovered that we never have more than 4 straight days of class! Also I got my extended family, a married life long learner couple, and will be meeting with them tomorrow. I’ll keep updating my blog pre-Japan. We just met/ played Apples to Apples with a Japanese student, Rina, who is staying with us on the voyage to Japan. Apparently we have native students from each country we are visiting, stay on the ship before each port. Also we lost another hour tonight! Finally it’s weird that we are disconnected from the real world- finding information out delayed, like the deaths of J.D. Salinger and Howard Zinn is shocking. Sending my love from the middle of the Pacific.

HILO or as R Berman would say HILU

ALOHA!

For the past two days I thoroughly explored the coastal city of Hilo, Hawaii. Hilo is located on the North Shore of the Big Island, Hawai’i. The Big Island is the largest of the islands and all the other islands can easily fit inside of it. The main attractions of the Big Island are its five volcanoes, two of which are active, and Volcanoes National Park.

The ship arrived in the port of Hilo at 5 AM, Monday morning, and we were woken up and sent through customs by 6. The ship was cleared at around 8 and everyone rushed off to step on land for the first time in a week. A lot of people felt “landsick” or like they were still swaying at sea even though they were on land. Once you step into the main section of the pier there are lots of Hawaiian guides, taxis, and companies waiting to pounce and take us around.

My friends Rachel, Jill, Jenny, and Ricky all jumped in a cab and explored downtown Hilo. We went to a farmers market and a couple of the shops (keep in mind it’s 8:30 AM and the majority of stores are still closed). We found an amazing café, Bear’s Coffee and got some food. The one thing I haven’t been able to eat on the ship is my standard Turkey and Cheese sandwich so even though it was early I ordered one. After eating and walking around a little more, we got in a shuttle for $2 a person, and went to Richardson Beach. On the way to the beach, our shuttle driver, Teresa, insisted on pulling over and buying us beer and an ice chest for the beach- it’s legal to drink alcohol on Hawaiian beaches.

We got to the beach and there were already a lot of SASers there. This was the first “black sand” beach that I ever went to, and for those of you who don’t know what a black sand beach is, it basically translates into black volcanic rock. The “sand” part of the black sand beach was missing. Anyway after carefully trekking in flip-flops around beach boulders we found a nice rock and stayed there for a few hours enjoying the sun and ocean.

Jill, Rachel, Ricky and I headed back to downtown Hilo where we met up with our friend Luke and had lunch. If anyone’s interested, hot dogs in Hawaii are legit red.

I was able to buy a Luau ticket and went to a Luau that night. The program consisted of a tour of the University of Hawaii- Hilo campus (they have a fishbowl too), then going to their agricultural farm where the Luau took place. We made leis, enjoyed the performances, and ate (squid, pork, rice, salmon, chicken and noodles, and Hawaiian Poi). One of the cooler performances was done by a group of Samoan students who did a cultural dance. They definitely had the most fun out of any of the other performance groups. The energy and noise they produced was insane. I also attempted to Hula Dance on stage… that went well… Most importantly and memorable, I played with two Hawaiian children, a five year old boy and his seven year old sister. Both were adorable and after telling the girl my friend thought we looked alike, she quickly responded that we didn’t look alike but that I looked like Carly from iCarly.

Post Luau a bunch of us went to Margarita Village. Note: Margarita Village is NOT Margaritaville. No Jimmy Buffett was present. The bar was close to the pier but I think the amount of SASers was too much for the small place. It got more fun as the night went on, but bottom line was that I was in bed by 12:30.

Day 2 of Hilo started out with a Helicopter Tour of the “ring of fire,” some waterfalls and the ocean. Rachel, Jenny, Jill, Ivy, and I joined Pilot Will Curry, and honestly the whole experience was really cool. We were assigned seats in the copter but I luckily got to sit right next to the pilot in the front. We were all given headphones and microphones to communicate with. It was my first time in a helicopter and they are really fun, I barely felt use land. We went over the ocean where we saw lots of humpback whales followed by waterfalls, craters, VOG (fog caused by volcanic gases), the aftermath of a volcanic eruption and LAVA. The helicopter ride was definitely worth it.

I’m collecting flags in each country and on the first day in Hilo I bought what I assumed to be was a Hawaiian flag but in reality an American flag. After this realization we headed back to downtown Hilo for lunch, a second visit to the flag store- this time correctly purchasing a Hawaiian flag, and a homemade ice cream shop. The final big trip in Hilo was to a Wal-Mart. We had to stock up on snacks, DVDs, and last minute items we forgot from home. After Hawaii we will be on sea for 12 days straight until we get to Japan. These snack items were pretty important.

We have to go through security at two different points before being allowed back on the ship. The first time the check is done by the pier security and the second check is performed by SAS crew members. The main reason is to make sure we don’t sneak on alcohol or other prohibited items. I bought some sealed turkey and string cheese at Wal-Mart for my room (we have a fridge in our room) but was skeptical if it would be allowed on. Cold cut meats apparently aren’t allowed but since it was sealed I figured I would see what happened. I put the turkey at the bottom of the Wal-Mart bags in hopes of the staff being lazy. After easily making it through security check number one, I of course was intensely checked by SAS security, and the turkey was obviously found. The lady let me keep the turkey, “this time,” but made me give her my ID. She wrote me up for bringing in turkey… apparently turkey is the new vodka.

I’m happy Hilo was our first port and we got used to being off the ship in our own country. A lot of SASers think it will probably be our lamest or worst port only because it’s in the US and there wasn't that much going on. All I know is that I had two great days and if that’s the worse place we’re going to I’m in for a very amazing trip. I’m actually in Honolulu right now and resting before we go out but more about Honolulu in a later post. Aloha and mahalo for following/reading/commenting on my blog.

Smooth Sailing

The huge storm that hit the West Coast definitely impacted life onboard. After having to tape our drawers shut to prevent them from opening and slamming in the middle of the night as a result of the insane rocking, it’s nice to finally have calm waters. I can finally walk straight and not have to hold on to the wall in fear of falling over in the shower.

Though it took some getting used to, ship life is amazing. The fact that we can go to the top deck in between classes and tan while drinking fruit smoothies is pretty sick. Classes are going well and are interesting. It was my roommate Brooke’s 21^st Birthday yesterday and we ordered this ice cream cake that the kitchen staff made. Even though we were only allotted our three beers a night, lots of kids kept buying her drinks so it turned out to be a pretty good 21^st. More celebrating to come in Hawaii…

We dock in Hawaii tomorrow morning at 5 AM! We will be in Hilo for two days followed by Honolulu for two days. I’m trying to get on a trip that is going to a standard Hawaiian luau. Even though I’ve been to Hawaii before I’ve never been on to a luau. I am going to a Hawaiian mental hospital on Thursday in Honolulu for my Global Mental Health class. I don’t really have any expectations for that but it should be interesting. I’m also planning on revisiting Pearl Harbor, snorkeling, maybe seeing some volcanoes, and hopefully surfing. Apart from that I have a couple bucket list plans that will hopefully be put into effect… more to details to follow on that post Wednesday, no need to worry my parents prematurely.

Missing Michigan winter and going to Hawaii tomorrow followed by the rest of the world… don’t mind if I do. Oh and I get to see THAT each night… click on that picture, Benjamin Aaron, hopefully you’ll enjoy it more than the last…

The Hidden Picture Frame

After coming back from our first ever Pub Night, we began to explore the secrets of our room. Like the graffiti of names and “whose been here” signatures in cabins at camp, SASers have another, less visible way of sharing their experience. Each cabin comes with a framed picture mounted to one of the walls. When one dismounts the framed picture, hidden messages and notes from years of SASers are revealed on the back of the painting. The plethora of information and tips revealed was eye-opening and I have decided to share the most noteworthy on this blog. Enjoy.

It’s true what they say. This trip (voyage) will change your life. I have met the most incredible people in the last three and a half months aboard the MV Explorer. Tonight is our last night before arriving back in the USA and I find myself over-whelmed with so many feelings. You MUST read these comments in the beginning and then once again at the end. It will all make sense then. Here are some tips for the future inhabitants that we have gathered along the way of our Spring 2007 Voyage:

1. 1. Don’t get blacked out and go work out on the treadmills- the waves and alcohol don’t mix
2. 2. Do anything in your power to sit at the captain’s table for the ambassador’s ball (endless alcohol)
3. 3. Become friends with your Steward. Tip him well as the voyage goes on, he’ll keep his mouth shut about everything
4. 4. Ask for 2 pillows
5. 5. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You can’t get these days back.
6. 6. Remember when you are in port don’t waste any days hung over or too drunk
7. 7. Sneak alc on/in your bra or clothes in little shooter bottles
8. 8. They drug test like three people during the whole voyage so… have fun
9. 9. Love your roommate and take care of each other
10. 10. If your voyage has Mexican kids on it be friends with them, it benefits (I guess I somewhat count)
11. 11. In the end you’ll remember the times when you seize the opportunities

1. Words of wisdom? Not so sure, but sounds like a time well spent.

At Sea

UBUNTO- an African phrase that means “people are people through other people.” My friend Max that went on the voyage last spring stressed the importance of this concept. Having only been on the boat for two days I can already appreciate the meaning of this phrase. Though the boat is primarily made up of students (585) there are also faculty, staff, life-long learners (adults who audit classes and go on the voyage because they love traveling and interacting with students), crew members, and children of the staff that make up another 300 people. I have already begun interacting with the crew, kids, staff, and lifelong learners and it really is amazing how much you can learn from someone else.

Today is the first full day that we have been at sea. Last night the ship was really swaying and a lot of students got sick. Luckily I used my patch (my throat is SO dry now) and took some meds and they seem to be working. I’m pretty confident that I will throw up at some point over the next four months because of seasickness... it’s only a matter of time.

I ended up switching rooms to a room on the fourth floor with a window. My roommate’s name is Brooke and she goes to Berkeley but is from southern NJ. We have a lot in common which is great including having signed up for one of the same classes and two overnight trips in China and Cambodia.

We had orientation all day today and were lectured about everything ranging from joining various clubs to drugs and alcohol. Some of the key points from the various speakers were that Semester at Sea is a “get to” not a “need to.” Each student GETs the privilege of going on this voyage. Our theme for the voyage is sustainability, and how we can better sustain the world we live in. The speakers also stressed the importance of flexibility- the more flexible we are, the more we will gain from the experience. By the end of the voyage the faculty and staff hope that we will leave with full minds and full hearts.

The faculty and staff explained that we were an integrated learning community… SAS seems very NELP like in that regard. Though nothing could ever come close to describing NELP, both programs have many of the same values- living as one community, learning and living together, taking care of each other…

Here are some fun (if not unnerving) facts about the 2010 SAS Voyage:
• 66% females, 34% males 
• Our ship is 25,000 tons
• Fastest cruise ship of its kind
• The top five represented schools are: University of Colorado- Boulder, Chapman University, University of San Diego, Bucknell University, and the University of Virginia.
• Total of about 1,000 passengers including students, faculty, staff, crew, life-long learners and families of the staff/faculty
• There are about 20 children who come along on the voyage because their parents are professors- age range: 4 – 17 years old
• The MV Explorer is a SHIP not a BOAT
• Circumnavigating the globe is a VOYAGE not a CRUISE

My classes right now are: global mental health, global perspectives on work and family, and global studies. Global studies is a required course that preps the students about the countries we will be visiting. I got kicked out of my marketing class that I was originally signed up for because I had not taken a prereq class (which was not mentioned at all in the original syllabus). Now I have to meet with the registrar and hopefully get into another psych class.

I have been meeting a lot of nice, cool, people and it seems for the most part that everyone is in the same boat (literally) in not knowing other people. I also volunteered myself to represent our hall or in this case our “sea” and be on Sea Council. I figure it’s just another way to meet people and get involved. I registered to participate in “Vicarious Voyage” which means that I will act as a penpal correspondent with an entire classroom of middle school students. I also signed up for a boat family which is comprised of a faculty/staff/life-long learner and about 6-8 students.

So far I am having a great time and getting used to the ship. It’s kind of cool to look out the window and see nothing but deep blue ocean.

Hello Feuers! Jenny is doing well and we are about to have lunch in 20 minutes :D

bon voyage

I am writing from the Sheraton Hotel in San Diego, hours away from being shuttled to Ensenada, Mexico where we will board the ship. We went to the Parent's Reception tonight where our parents were assured that we would be well taken care of and have "a life changing experience." Though I'm sure this will be the experience of a lifetime, I'm skeptical to see how much I will change as a person. Time will tell.

I am finally ready to go with:

1. malaria/diarrhea pills
2. typhoid/yellow fever/ polio/ h1n1 vaccines
3. lots of over the counter drugs
4. two digital cameras
5. lots of $1 and $5 bills
6. two very over-packed bags
7. two thumb drives
8. magnets
9. 6 huge packages of gum
10. surplus of passport pictures
11. etc. etc.

Quick shout out and thanks to: Max, Jason, Alex, and Taylor for all giving me lots of advice and answering all of my questions. I really appreciate it and can't wait to experience everything you all rave about.

12:57 PM

the one advantage/downfall of living in Los Angeles is that I get to drive down to San Diego whenever I want. No airfare or advance scheduling required. The problem is that it is 12:57 PM, the Parent's Reception is at 6 PM tonight and I am not really packed. Most kids are already in San Diego and have been packed for days. Oh well.

Advisory Notice

To My Future Readers:

My twin, Sami, warned me about keeping a blog. Since most of the kids at Wesleyan go abroad during the fall semester, Sami has had experience reading, ignoring, criticizing, and laughing at numerous blogs. Her main problem with "abroad blogs" is the over-description of everything happening across seas- or in my case on the sea. According to her most readers could care less about what I eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or what I wear to class. In fact, if I do include such minute details, I will undoubtedly be the source of ridicule and inside jokes between readers (or at the very least Wes Kids). Two points well taken.

Unfortunately for Sami I am ignoring her words of wisdom and keeping this blog. I opted to write a blog to narrate my 109 day voyage on Semester at Sea to make it easier to share my experience with everyone back at home. Rather than flood your inboxes with countless, unwanted emails, by having a blog it is up to you, the reader, to follow my journey. Do with it as you please.

That being said, understand that I am writing this more for myself than for you readers (sorry Sam). Though i'll try not to make each post a novel and burden you with unnecessary details, I can't make any promises. After all, I am trying to document a voyage to over ten countries and numerous cities. Read, comment, email, or just live vicariously through me over the next four months!

Bon Voyage,

Alex