I know it has been over a month since I last updated, but it is time that I fill all of you readers in on the happenings since Semester at Sea. As you can tell I have returned safely and have recovered from the rigors of school on a ship. After an enjoyable interim I have returned to North Central and finished my first week of classes. I have found that transition fairly easy. I can say that I think differently and that I look at the world in a new way. One example is how I compare large purchases to houses. I also see money as just a piece of cloth that runs the world. I realize that the thing that really matters is people.

Through my experiences on Semester at Sea my career plans have not changed, but they have become more defined. I still plan to go into a helping profession. But I know now that I can slow down and get my feet wet before choosing a definitive career. I currently plan on working in a teen home for a few years to experience the field of therapy and helping before choosing a specific therapy to become an expert in. For now, I need to spend time with my friends and work on homework as I am in a normal academic setting where there is a considerable amount of work.

I thank all of you for following me through my voyage of discovery. If you are interested in Semester at Sea go to www.semesteratsea.com and check it out. If you have any questions for me please feel free to contact me at wpmoeller@noctrl.edu.

Thank you all and I hope to hear from you soon.

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It’s coming to an end. Only two more time changes and less than 1,000 nautical miles before I touch USA soil again. It has been a crazy three months, but an amazing three months. I am excited to get home so I can “process” everything that has happened. Everyone on the ship is being nostalgic, but they are all worrying about finals. I finished all my classes yesterday, but many people still have a class or two.

These last days have been great. The sea was rough at the beginning, but that is usual for the Atlantic Ocean. I wish I had more to tell you all, but at this moment I am trying to process what I have been through the past few months. I wish you all could ask questions because that is going to be the best way to help me remember things. The other thing that is going to help me remember things is a little round box that a friend gave me, within which I have saved a token from every country I have been too, and my journal.

I’ll give you all updates as I reflect and go through my memories and as I have more realizations. I know that I am going to have more paradigm shifts when I return to home and I see the USA through new eyes.

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With a few blasts of the horn we were off. Saying Adios to Spain and my voyage around the world. Granted I still have well over 3,500 nautical miles to travel back to Ft. Lauderdale I waved good-bye last night to the last foreign port of call. This whole adventure has been amazing. I am still “unpacking” things mentally and I will be for weeks, if not months, afterwards. It is going to be good to have the post-study abroad seminar at North Central when I return, but my experience is going are profoundly different from everyone else in that class.

While in Spain I met an American professor that teaches at an American military base in Spain and I had a very difficult time explaining what I have experienced in the past three months to him. To make my conversation with the professor even more troubling he has traveled much more of the world than I have and it was still very difficult to vocalize what I have experienced even though he has probably seen many of the things I have seen. At this moment I feel it is appropriate to apologize to all of you in advance for my inability to give you succinct summary of my experiences. As a warning to all of you who are going to ask the inevitable question, “how was it,” you will likely get a short answer and if you pry for more you may get a longer answer than you wished for.

Anyway, Spain was very nice. I stayed in the port town of Cadiz. There was plenty to see and do. I have found I prefer depth in experiences over breadth. While breadth is great if you want to see a lot, which I have, but after seeing so much you just want to make some deeper connections. The biggest surprise to me, in Spain, was the hours of operation the whole country works on. Most shops do not open until 9 or 10 am and then they close at 2 for Siesta, every day! They do not open again until between 4 and 6 and they stay open until late. The nightlife in Spain is absolutely insane. Most Spanish people will stay out until 4 AM, regardless of age! While in Spain I could think of a few of my friends from North Central that should move to Spain simply because the times when people are working, playing, and sleeping almost identical, but to us American’s seems absurd.

Right now we are headed a bit southward to avoid the rough northern Atlantic seas, as a matter of fact, we are avoiding a few storms. At the moment we have high swells, which is making life on the ship interesting for many people. Tomorrow (11/29) we have the Ambassador Ball, which is the shipboard communities big dance. It has an Indian theme (the official theme is “A night in Bollywood”) and it will be a night to remember. Currently, much of the student body is scampering around attempting to get papers and projects completed in the 3 days of lectures we have left. Since I am used to having heavy workloads at North Central I have managed my time very well and I am enjoying these last few days. For now I am going to enjoy walking around the ship again and savor the last days we have.

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Turkey was cold, but a pleasant change. We docked in Istanbul, which is the largest city in Europe and spans across Europe and Asia (separated by the Bosporus river). Turkey was cold simply because my 6 month summer ended. Average temperatures were around 50, which isn’t that cold. But since I am used to 90’s, the 50’s are really cold. Regardless of temperature it was very nice to be in an area that felt more like home. Istanbul is very European compared to everywhere I have been thus far. It is sad to think that this voyage of discovery is about to end, but I am very eager to return and see how I have changed and how the changes are going to affect my life in a specific way and more generally.

There was one very strange thing that happened while Semester at Sea was in Istanbul. One morning while a group of friends and I were walking to the Tram station and sirens started sounding. At first we didn’t think much of it because we were used to hearing the prayers being belted from the Mosques across town and in the US there are regular air-raid siren tests. But I soon noticed that something was wrong. So I stopped walking for a brief moment to assess the situation. I quickly said “Stop, STOP. Look…” and with that everyone in the group stopped and we quickly realized that EVERYTHING, yes EVERYTHING (from cabs to trains and people on the street), had stopped. No one in Istanbul was moving or talkin, just standing and looking off into the distance. Many thoughts went through all of our minds. Should we run? Should we hide? What do we do? Are they praying? But we realized that they were not facing Mecca, so it wasn’t religious. We figured they would have been running had it been a sign of impending doom. But one minute later, as quickly as it had started the sirens stopped and everyone continued as if nothing happened. It was like a scene out of a movie. Sirens go off and everything stops. It was the eeriest thing I have ever experienced. We later noticed all the flags were at half-staff and found out that the siren was to honor the death of Ataturk, who is a national hero that took Turkey from a corrupt militaristic Islamic state to the modern, democratic, secular state it is today.

I am now headed to Croatia, the second to last port. It is sad to think that this journey is almost done, but it has been amazing. For now I need to get to my schoolwork and the yearbook as it is calling my name. Luckily I have found the workload to be lighter than what I am used to at North Central so it won’t be too difficult.
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Despite all the rumors on the ship the Explorer docked in Egypt for the full 5 days. It has been an honor to be one of the first SAS students to set foot on Egyptian soil in a number of years. From what I understand SAS has attempted to go to Egypt in the recent past, but have been diverted because of unrest in the Middle East. I also heard that the last time SAS docked in Egypt was a number of years ago. So it has truly been a unique opportunity to travel in Egypt through SAS.

What did I do with this great opportunity? I traveled to the Great Pyramids, the Sphinx, tour Islamic Cairo, played games with local people, and had tea with a local man to discuss issues in the Middle East. I am unsure of my favorite experience from Egypt, but two stick out: causing a small disturbance (because of my hair and skin color, I think) at the Pyramids and playing ping-pong and backgammon with local people on the streets of Alexandria.

I have decided that in the coming ports I am going to walk the local streets to experience more depth rather than covering more sights. While on my way to the catacombs in Alexandria I noticed a neighborhood that looked particularly intriguing. So instead of taking a cab or horse cart back to downtown Alexandria my friend and I walked. As a result, we ran into a group of children playing ping-pong, which we ended up playing and later played a game of backgammon with some older men to escape the dozen children that were following us through the streets. There was a large language barrier during this whole time, but it was great to share friendly competition with someone regardless of language.

Egypt has been interesting in a number of ways, but I cannot go into great detail. Many of the generalizations about the Middle East do not hold true in Egypt, while there are people in Egypt that are seeking an easy dollar (usually by cheating or lying to tourists). There are also genuine people who just want to talk and meet with people from another countries. One major generalization about the Middle East is that most Muslims are okay with the Taliban and terrorism. This is not true. I found out by talking to a local man over tea (as well as through lectures on the ship) that most of the Muslim community does not like the Taliban and the majority of the Muslim community looks upon terrorism negatively. I have learned a lot about Islam while in Egypt, which has definitely changed my views about the Middle East. I just hope that I will be able to cultivate some of this change in others. But for now I need to look forward as I will be in Turkey in on Tuesday, which means I will have another culture to experience and learn about.

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Despite the fact that Semester at Sea has created a school environment that is lavish, in India Semester at Sea provided students with an experience that was abysmal to some and amazing for others.

While in India I went to Delhi, Agra, and the Taj Mahal with a Semester at Sea sponsored trip. The first day, of the three-day trip, was spent traveling to Agra. We started off by leaving the ship at 4:15 a.m. to catch an early flight from Chennai to Delhi. Once in Delhi we caught a train to Agra, which took about 5 hours. The train ride took 5 hours because it was a second-class train. While a number of the students complained about the trains lack of air conditioning, odor, plethora of beggars at every stop, regular vendors, iron barred windows, and lack of cleanliness; I embraced the experience. (It should noted that the return first-class train ride took about 2 hours to go from Agra to Delhi, which was air-conditioned, free from beggars/vendors, and relatively clean.) I was very fortunate to find an India family sitting near where I was sitting and I took advantage of my position and talked with the family for the majority of the train ride. I spoke with the father and played with the boy’s and we had a grand time. The children taught me how to speak some Hindi. I taught the children how to play a few simple games. We talked about school, the caste system, and life in India. It was an amazing experience and I am extremely glad I had the opportunity to meet and speak with the family.

In Global Studies (the class everyone on the ship is required to take), we have been told that there is a difference between a tourist and a traveler. I believe that I understand the difference. I would like to think that I am a traveler. While I am a tourist at times, I also travel. I take opportunities that most people would never think of doing and turn them into experience that people yearn to experience. While I was in Myanmar I was taking pictures of a friend of mine talking with some local people and one thing led to another and next thing I knew it is 7:30 p.m. and I am riding in a pony drawn cart to this families house to have dinner with them. Traveling is more than just seeing the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall, or Angkor Wat. Traveling is about experiencing a culture. Traveling has depth, soul, and heart. Traveling is experiencing a culture and not just seeing it. I do not believe I am some amazing traveler or anything, but I have learned how to experience a culture in a different way and that is how I am a traveler and not just a tourist.

Semester at Sea is like no other experience I know of. You travel around the world in an extremely short period of time. You see so much in such a short period of time. I truly believe that in mid-February I am going to sit down with some friends at North Central and suddenly realize I have traveled the world. I have had the fortunate experience of seeing things that so may people dream of seeing. I hope that when I return to America that I can be a good ambassador of the world and show people what the rest of the world is truly like. Help other people see the world in a new way. Help make the world a much more globally aware society.

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Have you ever walked down the street with a man talking about something and have them shush you? I can now say that I have. These past few days I have been in Myanmar (pronounced me-an-mar and formerly known as Burma) and let me tell you that this country is like no other place I have been. Myanmar is run by a military dictatorship and because of this you really cannot talk about the government without threatening the life of the person you are talking to and your own well-being. Also, because of the military dictatorship the United States has created and enforced a number of trade sanctions, which means that no one in the United States is allowed to legally trade with Burma. This means no foreign investment, which is a major disadvantage to economy in Myanmar. However, I did read a local newspaper and found out that China has begun to invest in Myanmar, which will help the countries economy.

Myanmar is decades behind the rest of the world. I went to an “internet café” with a friend of mine and well the café was a room with an old computer in it and dial up internet. The power was so unreliable and unsteady that the computer was on a major surge protector and an extra power supply. Every few minutes you would hear a few clicks and a beep from one of the many boxes in the room, which indicated that the power had surged or dropped and the computers support system prevented it from being destroyed. There are so many other ways that Myanmar is behind, but it is hard to describe them all. I will just say this…I took a hot air balloon ride early one morning and got into a conversation with the British balloon pilot. He said that occasionally they will land in places were no white people have ever been seen. In these cases the pilot will speak the little Burmese that he knows to assure the villagers that the people in the balloon are not gods or evil beings.

I did not know that my world could be this shaken up. I experienced things in Myanmar that I am going to have a difficult time describing. I have realized the best thing I can do is tell everyone stories and let everyone come to his or her own conclusions. However, I know that telling stories is nowhere near the same as experiencing it, but stories are the best I can do at explaining my experiences.

I have begun to wonder what I will think of everyone and everything when I return to America. I might be getting ahead of myself and I might be worrying about the changes I am going through too much (when I should not worry). But all I know is that the past two ports and the next few ports are really going to change my already changing worldview.

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As all of us on Semester at Sea (SAS) have been told we are on a voyage, a voyage of discovery. Up until this past port, which was Vietnam, the voyage had sort of “honeymoon” feeling, but as I told myself earlier this week…THE VACATION IS OVER. This week the honeymoon feeling left and the world gave me a giant slap upside the head. While my worldview has been shaken since I left Ensenada over a month ago my world took a real tumble this past week.

Vietnam was the first port where I actually had to slow down to process things and it made a much more profound experience. The voyage has just become even harder to explain, but I can share some of my realizations and how those realizations came about. The Vietnam war became much more vivid in my life because of my stop in Vietnam. What brought about this change was seeing the Cu Chi Tunnels, the traps the Vietnamese created, the non-American biased presentation on the war, the Zippo lighters being sold to tourists, the dog tags being sold to the tourists, and the American soldiers class rings being sold to tourists. Also, wondering how my peers could be so fixated on shooting an AK-47 at the Cu Chi Tunnels made the Vietnam War more salient. While I was at the Cu Chi tunnels all I could think about is how 30 years ago if I were in that very same location I would fear for my life. The guns shots I was hearing would strike fear in my every step. I would be concerned about a Vietnamese soldier appearing out of the tunnels and killing me or me stepping into one of the horrendous traps the Vietnamese created. War is scary. War is real. And War is hard to comprehend when you through a television, a newspaper, or a textbook. Seeing the burn victims ask for money or the amputees asking for money across Vietnam and Cambodia made war more real to me. The honeymoon ended in Vietnam and my world was turned upside-down in Cambodia.

Despite the fact that the voyage is going to become even more “eye-opening” the people in these places are happy. While we might look at them and think about how bad we would feel to live as they do, we need to remember that we are looking at it through our cultural lenses. They are often times very happy. Maybe we are the people that need help. Maybe we are the deprived ones. We are the ones that are unhappy and we have everything at our feet. Maybe instead of trying to help them we should try and help ourselves learn to be happy with less material items. Maybe we should learn from them to be happy. Maybe it’s a Buddhist perspective, but they all seem to be fairly happy in Vietnam.

One a happier note my birthday passed while I was in Cambodia. Though I toured a genocide museum and the killing fields on my birthday having my birthday in Cambodia on SAS was unforgettable and receiving cards from friends and family was amazing. Not everyone can say that they had a birthday like I did; however, it was kind of depressing to be where I was on my birthday. But sometimes your birthdays aren’t the happiest day ever. But I know one this for sure. I will not forget my birthday few quite a while.

But for now I am going to enjoy my time on this ship. Take in the scenery, the people, and learn to be happier with what I have.

Oh and on a departing note…crossing the street in Vietnam was almost as thrilling, if not more thrilling, than skydiving in Hawaii.

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I am glad that I decided to write a personal journal while on this voyage because I have definitely began to forget things that I have seen. Memories of Japan are becoming less vivid and China is replacing them. What I find as important to remember is becoming less important and the lessons I learn from my sights are becoming more important. The way I see it is by the time I get to Spain, Japan will be a faint memory. That is why my personal journal and pictures will help me remember what I saw.

China was interesting. I did not think that China was going to be as different from Japan as it is, but they are very different. If I were to describe Japan in a few words it would be clean, efficient, generous, and safe. However, if I were to describe China in a few words it would be dirty, wasteful, and requires travelers to be cautious. China is not a bad place, but when compared with Japan the difference is great. It is somewhat eye opening to see China because it gave me some insight. We were told in a lecture that if China were to consume natural resources as fast as the US does the world would be unable to handle the demand. Global warming would accelerate at an exponential rate, the seas would rise, pollution would destroy our eco-system, and humanity would need to rally to save itself before it destroyed itself. It is frightening to think that China is a developing world power because there is wide spread poverty, their governmental control, and how they are nowhere near as efficient as the Japanese. It is important to remember that the United States is not a gleaming example. If anything the US should learn a few lessons from the Japanese. But seeing China has defiantly opened my eyes to pollution and the problems of the world.

I believe that I have this cold from the pollution in Hong Kong. We were ported in Hong Kong, but I spent much of my time in Beijing. Even though they are the same country the 100 year lease of Hong Kong to Britain as really made its mark on the area. Hong Kong is “European China,” but you can see how the Chinese culture, politics, and ideas have flooded Hong Kong since 1997 when the lease ended. I believe the scariest thing about China was the amount of waste and pollution. It has definitely left me thinking about how I can do my part in keeping pollution and waste down. The scariest realization I have had lately is the fact that the countries are not going to get any safer, cleaner, or more hospitable. I feel like I am seeing with new eyes, but I believe it is going to change even more before I get back to the US.

I’ll be in Vietnam tomorrow where I am sure my world is going to get rocked again. I am going to see Phenom Phen and Angkor Wat in Cambodia as well. It is exciting, but I hope I get over this cold before I get there.

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The sea’s have calmed down quite a bit. The first night after Japan was fairly rough. I think it is safe to say that I am not going to get seasick during this voyage. Classes are going quite well. We took our first test in global studies. I did average on the test, which is ok for me, but considering the class is completely different from what I am used to I think I did good. The whole shipboard community is in global studies. That means about 650 people are in this class. It is by far the biggest class I have ever been in. As for my other classes, I have taken a test in abnormal psychology. Most people got a D on the test where I got a B. I know I can do better. My psychology professor grades about the same as North Central’s psychology professors, I just need to get used to his grading style and this new environment. I am most definitely well prepared for SAS classes because of what North Central has taught me. I definitely love my class schedule. I have class every other day, but that is because I planned it that way and since I am used to the pace of trimesters I feel like the pace of class on the ship is casual, which is allowing me to truly enjoy the voyage.

I am going to be in Hong Kong tomorrow (Thursday, September 21). I cannot wait. It is going to be very exciting. I will be going to the Great Wall, Tian’amenn Square, the Forbidden City, and I am staying with a group of SAS students at Tsinghou University. I am way more excited about playing volleyball and interacting with the Chinese university students than seeing the Great Wall or anything else. One thing I learned through a friend of mine and by taking one of the Verandah classes at North Central is to go to the “off-beat” places. Go to the hole-in-the-wall restaurants. Be a tourist and try and try to be a local. By going to the unusual places and off-beat locations you really get to experience a culture. You get to see the side of a place that isn’t inundated by tourist attractions. But it is very important to be safe when doing the off-beat things.

But for now I am going to go work on the yearbook and get some rest because I don’t think I am going to be sleeping much while I am in China and we only have two days after china before we get to Vietnam.

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Incredible. Insane. Unbeatable. That is all I can really say to describe what has been going on in my life right now. I want to apologize for leaving you all in the dark for the past few days about my adventures while at sea, but it has been non-stop. On Tuesday, September 11th, I got off the ship and set foot on foreign soil for the first time. From that moment forward until about 6:00 p.m. Saturday I didn’t stop except to eat and sleep. I would have written this earlier, but I have been trying to figure out how to explain it all to you and what I should say. The best I can do is give you a brief rundown of the best of Japan.

Japanese people are very nice. Japanese people would definitely give southern hospitality a run for its money. I have received a lot of hospitality from southerners while serving through Break Away at school, but the Japanese are extremely generous. Everywhere you go there are gifts to buy to give to people. You do not tip at restaurants because the owner would then be in debt to the customer. And Japanese people just give. I went to karaoke with a group of Japanese college students and they paid for our karaoke. They paid $70 for about 8 of us Semester at Sea students to karaoke with them and we met them no more than 2 hours earlier!

The trains in Japan are very timely, are extremely clean, and very safe. Almost everyday I would get on the train and say “WOW! These are soo clean!” The whole town was clean and everything is very efficient. It is amazing how clean and efficient everything is in Japan considering how many people there are. Kobe, which is the town we were docked at, was very clean and had over 1.5 million people in a small space. Japan is so safe young children, around the age of 10 or even younger, ride the trains to and from school alone!

What did I see in Japan? Well, I went to a public bath, which was most definitely outside my comfort zone. But after the experience I definitely felt great. Pushing yourself outside your comfort zone is something that everyone needs to do on a regular basis. I also saw Hiroshima, which was an interesting experience. It was interesting to see another cultures perspective on a disaster where my country was the primary player. I climbed a mountain somewhat on accident and went to a major festival. The festival was like nothing I have ever seen before. The people in the festival line the streets and wait for these army’s of men and children pulling these shrines to run by them. It is a giant competition between different parts of town. It was awesome, but crazy because you could walk down the street and buy food (like squid on a stick) at vendors. However you had to watch out for the shrines because they would run you over. It was amazing.

It is difficult to disseminate everything that I experienced in the five days I was in Japan. The days went extremely fast and were non-stop. I am now on my way to Hong Kong. The ship is not going to be stopping in Qindao China because typhoon ShanShan has developed and is projected to run right through our planned shipping path from Kobe to Qindao. Therefore we are have shipped back into the Pacific to avoid the typhoon and we are headed to Hong Kong. So instead of having two days in Hong Kong we have four.

This experience has been amazing and I am just beginning to realize what changes are going to be happening. I realized this week while in Japan that I am going to be away from all my friends at school for a few months. I felt like this was just a brief stop in Japan, but I realized I am traveling around the world on an amazing journey that is really only to be experienced. I am finding it exceedingly difficult to explain to you all what this trip is like. But for now I am going to go back to experiencing the world.

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Today is September 11, 2006 and while my friends at home are getting used to life back on North Central’s campus and preparing for their first days of classes; I am just miles outside of Japan and am preparing for an adventure I cannot imagine. I have traveled over 3,000 nautical miles and I am about to set foot on soil for the first time in a foreign country. What signs will I see? What sounds will I hear? This amazing journey is about to begin.

While my experiences thus far are going to be difficult to describe to everyone when I get back. It is only going to become exceedingly difficult to explain this experience as time goes on. How do I describe what the ocean looks like when the seas are calm? How do I create an image of an ocean that looks like blue silk when there is no wind? How do you explain this experience?

I guess I will just worry about explaining it all later, but for now I am going to enjoy the experience. Taking in every moment from working on the yearbook to enjoying my professor calling his wife his “roommate,” which always makes me smile. The classes are great, as they are very similar to the classes at North Central. The small class sizes give way to great dialogue relating subject matter to the countries we are traveling to. I am excited to get to port so I can begin my first writing assignments, since my writing skills have greatly improved because of North Central. But this is all in the future. I need to remember to live in the here and now.

For now I am going to go enjoy the last moments on the ship before my adventure becomes reality and before I am in port. Starting tomorrow I will be in port for the next 3 weeks sometimes with a day or two of shipboard life in between countries and sometimes not. It’s time that I go and read. Waiting on the bow of the ship for the first sighting of land…for Japan.

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I am now in the 5th day of one of the longest sailing periods of the semester. There are three sections of shipping that are 8-9 days. The first, which I am currently in, takes the ship from Hawaii to Japan. The second takes the shipboard community from India to Egypt and the third is the return voyage from Spain to Ft. Lauderdale. As of noon yesterday (Wednesday, September 6th) I was about 1500 miles east of Japan. The ship has experienced calm seas and good weather despite the tropical storm off the eastern coast of Japan.

Everyone is settling into their regiments of class, clubs, and port preparation. I have been given the position of “technical copy liaison” for the yearbook, which is very exciting. Working on the yearbook could be very interesting because the multimedia lab is in the bow (front) of the boat, which is one of the areas that is most effected by the waves of the ocean. This means that long periods of time in the multimedia lab could have a dramatic effect of some of the editors’ stomachs. I am excited to see if it will affect me since the only thing I can call seasickness that I have experienced the whole voyage is minor headaches, which have been gone for some time.

Many of us on the ship are experiencing a strange phenomenon. We do not feel the rock and sway of the ship. Right now I am sitting in my cabin typing and I can see the horizon rise and fall about a quarter of the way up and down my window. However, I do not feel any rock or sway. This must mean I have my sea legs! But since I have my sea legs I want a storm or something to test my sea legs. A downside of having my seal legs is when I get Japan I am going to feel the reverse effects of having sea legs, which could be very interesting.

Today is mismatch day, so that is why I am sporting some stylish clothes, as are many of the students on the ship. Also, for you observant readers I am writing this on Friday, September 8 and yesterday was Wednesday, September 6th. That means we crossed the international dateline, which is somewhat strange. On Wednesday I was behind central time by about 7 hours, but now I am ahead of central time by 16 hours. It’s weird, but cool. Plus, now I can say September 7th 2006 never existed for me. Anyway, I am going to make the best of my 25-hour day. We have had 3 25-hour days in a row and I believe we will have another one today. Going back to 24-hours in a day is going to be rough.

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I have come to the realization that once this voyage reaches Japan time is going to fly. When do I get to Japan? In about 8 days (On September 12th). The time I spent in Hawaii flew by, figuratively and literally. So I imagine my time in the other ports is going to go just as fast.

What did I do Hawaii? Well, after spending the night on the top deck of the ship and watching the sun rise as we came into Honolulu I got onto a shuttle bus…to go skydiving. It is kind of a blur to me since I was the first person from Semester at Sea to jump, which means I was in the
air within 45 minutes of arriving at the skydiving place. It is also very difficult to explain what it is like to skydive in a few words. So here is a picture to aid me. I should note that it was not solo skydiving. It was tandem, which means there was an experienced skydiver strapped to me to make sure nothing went wrong. But we jumped from 16,000 feet, which is higher than most skydiving facilities on Hawaii, and did several flips out of the plane (as shown in the picture). To put it simply, it was an amazing experience and I would like to do it again. Oh yea and mom, we jumped from skydiving location with the best record for safe jumps in the U.S.

Skydiving did not take all day, so I met up with a friend and we ran some errands, went to a unique restaurant, and went to the beach. The experience was great. Even though we were running errands we were going to and through parts of town where tourists typically do not go. We spent some time giving a child, whose name was Amadeus, some attention because he asked me to open a container of Pringles for him. After completing our errands and playing with Amadeus we headed to dinner we chose the restaurant we went to because we asked a worker at one of the stores for a recommendation for a “hole in the wall” or “mom and pop” restaurant. She directed us about 1 block away to a Korean restaurant, which to our surprise was very ethnic and the woman who took our orders did not speak any English. She got another person who worked at the restaurant to translate for us to explain the menu items and how to eat what we ordered. I can say that it was some of the more adventurous eating I have done in my life, but it was fun and that is what this voyage is about. Discovering new things, changing old ways, and becoming a new person all while going to school.

We made our way back to the ship via some ice cream and a walk on the beach.

The number of homeless living in Honolulu amazed me. I always imagined Hawaii as this tropical oasis, but since I took the path less traveled I saw a side of Honolulu that you normally do not see, which included homeless showering on the beach and not so lush scenery. I am going to walk, both the path more traveled and the path less traveled, while I am on Semester at Sea. It is an experience of a lifetime and if I simply became a tourist on every trip I would miss things you never knew existed and would not be making the best if everything.

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Now that I have been at sea for about 5 days I really don’t notice the rock and sway of the ocean. Well, I still notice it from time to time, but for the most part I don’t even realize that the ship is moving. It will be funny getting off because I imagine it will be similar to that “extra” step in a staircase. You know, when you aren’t paying attention to the steps and you anticipate a step that isn’t there and stumble at the top. I imagine that is how all 558 of us students will look with our first steps on solid land. Anticipating the earth to rock and sway like the ocean.

Tomorrow I will be in Hawaii and I am going to do some VERY exciting things. It’s going to be amazing. However, I have to get up and be in the student union by 0645. Why? So as soon as the ship is cleared the group I am going with can get off and get going on our VERY exciting day.

I am thrilled about the yearbook club on the ship. It isn’t your typical yearbook. It is more of a picture book with quotes that will sit on a coffee table and spur conversation. I am hoping to become the Design Editor, which is basically the biggest position for the whole project. I have a good shot, but I fear that here might be a few people with more experience with InDesign than I, which would greatly reduce my chances of being head editor. But no matter what I am going to be an editor, whether it is Head Design or an Associate Editor. It will be a lot of fun, plus if I submit some good pictures I might get some of my pictures in the yearbook. With the guidance of the ships photographer, who is a professional photographer and went to one of the best photography schools in the country, and the critique of the photography club I think my skills will improve.

Things are starting to heat up on this trip because we are getting closer to land. But we still have much of the voyage left. We have 8 days of sailing after we leave Hawaii until we get to Japan. However, once we get to Japan we are in country after country. It will be very fast pace and they time will fly by once we reach the mainland. I realized a little bit today that once I return to the US I am going to be a changed person, but how changed? I don’t really know. I am just excited to see what the end product will be.

Anyway, I am going to go to some homework since I am on a “voyage of discovery” I have to do homework. But I think I will do it outside in the sun. I think my friend Megan misunderstood her professor because it has been sunny the past few days. But the water temperature has also been up from where it was. I guess we will see about the cloud deck as the trip goes on. But for now I am going to go soak in some wisdom and sun.

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So far we have been at sea for about 3 days and I can say I have not gotten seasick. The worse thing I have experienced is minor headaches, but they are almost non-existent now. I get them from time to time when I am in the Union, which is the major classroom on the ship, but I believe the headache occurs in that room because all of the windows are closed.

The trip is still somewhat mystical to me. We are about 1000 miles from everything. The nearest land is 1000 miles away. Hawaii is 1000 miles away and even Ensenada is about 1000 miles away. We are literally in the middle of nowhere. We make about 300 nautical miles a day. The speed of the ship has decreased to about 10 knots. I talked to the executive dean and he said it could be because we have made good time and we cannot get to port too early because we have a specific time reserved at the dock.

We had our first day of classes yesterday. I have four classes: abnormal psychology, global studies, digital documentary and audiovisual storytelling, and contending for public space: the sociology of religion in public spaces. They seem very interesting and the professors are great. I really enjoyed Professor Heniz in contending for public space because he was hilarious. The class laughed for about half of the period because of his jokes. It is nice having all of my classes, except global studies which is every day, on one day because that gives me plenty of time to do homework, write emails, hang out, and take in this AMAZING journey. It is somewhat like freshman year again. No one is scared to introduce himself or herself to anyone. No one is timid. We are all out here on a voyage of discovery learning about everything and everyone. This whole trip is exhilarating and we haven’t even made a port yet!

I am excited to get to Hawaii! I am not sick of the ship or anything its just I have some thrilling things lined up. Plus I want to see what it is like to walk on land now that I have my sea legs. It is fun walking on the ship with the rocking motion. I feel like I am walking like Captain Jack Sparrow. It feels very graceful and loose because you let the motion taking you. Plus it is a challenge to walk straight and I find any challenge fun

Every time I look out a window the ocean mesmerizes me. It is very blue and I never knew it was that blue. There is one sad thing about the ocean, though. My friend, Megan, told me that it will be cloudy for the majority of the time we are at sea due to some weather phenomenon she learned about in class. But for now I am going to go do some homework and continue to stare at the ocean.

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So where the heck am I? I don’t really know. I know I am somewhere between Ensenada Mexico and Honolulu Hawaii. Anyway, so far the voyage has been great. There are 558 students on the ship, which is sad because that is at least 100 less than capacity. However, it is good because the experienced students and staff say that 558 is about perfect. It is not too small and not too big. It is just right.

I am glad that I have not gotten seasick, yet. We have been sailing since about 1700 on Sunday and the worst I have gotten was a little headache, but still within a manageable level. It is scary to think that I will be in class tomorrow. This whole experience is very surreal. I mean I am in the middle of the Pacific Ocean! The closest mass of land is over 250 nautical miles away, which would take a while to get to since we have been traveling at an average speed of 16 knots (about 24 miles an hour). That sounds slow, which I guess it is, but the MV Explorer is the world’s fastest passenger ship. Since it is the fastest ship it is fairly windy outside of the ship. Last night I went onto the 7th deck (the top deck) and walked around outside and it was so windy. When I walked outside I was walking at an angle. It’s cool.

I don’t know if I will be able to explain this experience to all of you. It is just so incredible and so indescribable. How many people can say they sailed around the world? How many people spend a semester at sea? Even though I am on the trip, right now the whole thing is very surreal. I am sure my roommate, who is from the state of Washington, hates how every time I sit down and think about what is happening I say…”this is crazy.” Which it is crazy.

Not a lot has happened to talk about. I went into Ensenada for an hour before the ship debarked. It wasn’t really enough time to take it all it. But it was interesting. I just walked around with a group of people and we went into some shops. Wasn’t anything to exciting, but none the less I can now say I have been to Mexico. I’ll be in Hawaii in a few days, but for now it’s just 800 people, the MV Explorer, and the open sea.

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So here I am, going in to my senior year at North Central about to embark on an amazing adventure. I’m leaving in just a few short hours to travel around the world. This experience is so big I cannot even comprehend it. I still struggle with the idea that I am going to miss a few of my friends more than I can imagine. Let alone the fact I am going to about a dozen countries around the world. With my bags packed and my passport handy I am preparing to go on a trip that will be like no other.

But before I go let me tell you a little bit about how I got here. Towards the end of my junior year I realized that I finished my general education requirements and had just a few classes left to meet the requirements to get a B.S. in Psychology. So I decide to make my senior year the best year ever. I have created a schedule where I will get a minor in Religious Studies, experience Chicago Term, and participate in a study abroad program like no other. Not to mention leading a Alternative Spring Break Service trip, creating my own psychology experiment, and having the best time with great friends and amazing faculty/staff. Sounds exciting, right? I think so. I cannot wait. In just a few days and I will be aboard the MV Explorer shipping my way to Hawaii, which is our first stop of many. How did I end up on this study abroad program? Well, North Central allows students to study abroad virtually anywhere through the S.I.R.O.L. (Student In Residence On Leave) Program. This means that even if North Central doesn’t have a direct relationship with a study abroad experience you can make it happen. And I did. I saw a flier on campus for a Semester at Sea. I checked it out, applied, and a few months later here I am about to start the best senior year ever.

I hope you enjoy following me as I travel around the world. I will be stopping in the following ports (in chronological order): Honolulu, Hawaii, Kobe, Japan, Qindao, China, Hong Kong, PRC, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam, Yangon, Myanmar, Chennai, India, Port Suez, Egypt, Alexander, Egypt, Istanbul, Turkey, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Cadiz, Spain, and finally ending in Ft. Lauderdale, FL (U.S.A.). This all begins when I board the ship in Ensenada Mexico on Sunday. I cannot wait to share my adventure with all of you and I hope I don’t get seasick. Wish me luck and here I go.

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