Happy Easter!
Well I'm actually celebrating Groundhog's day in a sense. We are crossing the international date line and having two April 12ths! So today is my second day celebrating the risen Lord. And now I will be behind the States instead of ahead. All of those days of losing an hour finally gave us an entire day. Interestingly enough-
"the first person credited for circumnavigating the globe was the Portuguese mariner Ferdinand Magellan. He left Seville with 5 ships in 1519, but unfortunately was killed by a local chief named Lapu-Lapu on Mactan Island in the Phillipines on April 27, 1521. However, members of his crew made it back to Spain on the sole remaining ship in early 1522. Comparisons of their shipboard calendars with the date of their arrival in Spain revealed that their diary was a day ahead (e.g. a Thursday rather than a Wednesday) of the actual date, even though they had accurately kep count of the days along the voyage. This discrepancy was of great interest at the time and was understood to be a consequence of faining a day by traveling west to east around the world. Emissaries were even sent to the Pope to explain this geographical novelty. Over the ensuing years, the need to determine longitudinal position with precision was solved by the invention of accurate clocks that would keep track of and httime at a fixed location. That location was established in 1675 to be the Greenwich Royal Observatory in London and the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) became the international standard."
A few albatrosses seem to be living above the water where we are right now. It's amazing how birds can live so far away from land. We are about 800 miles from land right now. They live off the fish in the water and can even sleep in flight- their wings have sort of an automatic locking system that allows them to glide in the wind that comes off of the ocean. Between the professors and the other Lifelong Learners there are a number of avid bird watchers who get extremely excited by bird citings. Which leads to large debates about what type of bird it is, how big its wing span is, etc. Earlier on the trip, between Mauritius and India there were a number of red-footed booby birds.
Just a quick note for now. I have lots to blog about and hope to post about India, Cambodia, China and Japan soon! Always, Rose.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Vietnam
Waking up at 4 am I ran upstairs to watch us enter the Saigon River from the South China Sea. I soon realized that there was not much to see in the dark and went back to bed until 6 when the sun came up. Riding up the river was quite exciting- somewhat of a jungle cruise only we shared the water with dozens of smaller fishing boats. We docked in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) around 9 am and were greeted with a mound of mail to sort (one of our jobs as Life Long Learners). Once free of our duties, my friend Nichole and I set out to explore the city on our own.
We took a cab to the “backpacker” area of the 9 million person city (although there is debate as to where the city actually ends and some estimate the population to be as high as 20 million) in a country of 86 million. Also commonly called “motor bike city” there are 4 million registered scooters, mopeds, motorcycles, etc. in Saigon. We looked around at a couple hostels before choosing a suitable room with its own bathroom and a double bed- yes, we could have slept on the ship (which might have been my preference) but I do feel like I had a more authentic Vietnamese experience by staying there ($9 a night for each of us!) We left our things at the hotel and took off to explore the city on our own.
We first visited the War Remnants museum. Very cool, undoubtedly my favorite part of Ho Chi Minh City. Unfortunately it was under reconstruction while we were there, but the ground floor exhibit was still very impressive. I was surprised to learn from the students that they knew extremely little about the Vietnam War. After a few days, I came to the conclusion that we are just far apart enough in age that our parents are different generations. And while my dad and uncle had draft numbers, their parents were still in elementary or middle school. While I feel that I have always been aware of the Vietnam War (and its music J), most of my knowledge comes from a couple of classes in the Honors College at U of O that specifically studied the war, protests, and rhetoric of that time. The focal points of the museum for me were the many pictures depicting the consequences of war. Close ups, soldiers, aerial photos of forests wiped out, victims of chemical warfare, etc. They also had a number of US airplanes and tanks that had been shot down or bombed.
One very neat story I’d like to share I learned the next day from a local. Regarding one of the pictures in the museum- a quite famous picture of a woman running down a road naked after having been exposed to a napalm bomb. She was naked because the chemicals literally burned the clothing off of her body. She subsequently moved to Toronto and now works for the UN. The photographer of that picture actually won a Pulitzer prize for his photo and the local man also had a picture of the photographer and the woman meeting Queen Elizabeth! About ten years ago the US pilot who dropped the bomb in that specific area (a town close to the temple we went to the next day) learned about her and asked to meet her to ask for her forgiveness. She agreed and I got to see the picture of them reuniting for the first time as well.
We wandered down through the streets on our way to the market. On the way we passed a set of park blocks almost identical to Portland! I took a picture to document the similarity. The market ended up being strikingly similar to most of the markets we have seen before. Not really needing any trinkets, we did somewhat of a quick walk through. While it is cool to see all of the unique fish and meat available to buy, it is also quite smelly J. We stopped in a tailor store just to look around and walked back out with dresses ordered- ready to be picked up the next day-a tailored dress for $35! We carried on back to the “backpacker” district and found a place to sit outside for a drink. Truly great people watching- I think it was the most diverse group of nationalities I have seen on this trip yet. Travelers young and old wandered the streets, some with backpacks and other clearly staying in nicer places.
After a rather warm day, we showered and got ready for dinner. SAS had a list of suggested restaurants around the city and so we took a cab to a recommended establishment in a restored Vietnamese house. Soon we realized that though we were in a nice restaurant, it was in the center of the Japanese brothel district of town. We enjoyed a nice dinner before promptly returning back to our hostel in the “backpacker” district.
The next day we rose early and joined a driver and guide (arranged by our hotel for us) and took off on our three hour drive to the Cao Ming Temple. Our guide, Jimmy, about 50 years of age, was a hoot and loved telling us all about his homeland. The temple we went to was particularly interesting. It was built for the indigenous religion of Caodaism (the product of an attempt to create the ideal religion with aspects of Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity and native Vietnamese spirits). Worshippers of Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism gather to pray there together at 6am, 12pm, 6pm and 12am daily. While most of the worshippers are dressed in all white, the officials wear one of three colors (red, blue, or yellow) depending on their specific religion. The temple was very colorful, lots of dragons, and we were there in time to observe the 12pm chanting/prayer. We had a fantastic lunch at a local’s place near the temple. High up in our own tree house we dined on sweet and sour tofu, steamed vegetables and rice. I’m finally getting good at chopsticks!
Our next stop was the famed Cu Chi Tunnels- a 200km long system of tunnels built underground and used in times of war. “From the mid-1940s onward, the tunnels were used as a base from which the Viet Cong could launch strategic attacks and then seemingly disappear into thin air. The tunnels had well-hidden entrances and thick roofs which were capable of withstanding the weight of tanks and the impact of bombs. Most of the tunnels are 2 feet wide and 4 feet high.” We first viewed a video about the tunnels with authentic footage from the war. It was particularly interesting to hear the narration that had a very anti-American point of view, but also a sense of very legitimate pride. The Cu Chi people were protecting their land and were able to fight off well trained and equipped armies with only their own hand made weapons and tunnel system. We had the opportunity to see a number of the original bamboo traps as well as climb through the tunnels. The main tunnel for tourists has four exits- I only made it to the first one until my claustrophobia set in and I raced up to daylight, however Nichole was a trooper and made it all the way through- you literally have to crawl through 2 by 2.5 foot openings 8 meters underground- no thank you! There is also the opportunity to shoot AK 47s and other guns at a shooting range, but it didn’t really seem appropriate to me so I skipped that opportunity (plus the targets were large bunny posters!) Before our drive back to town we sampled a local staple- tapioca root dipped in crushed peanuts with sugar and salt. This interesting treat reminded me of a sweet potato but slightly stringier.
That night we met a fellow American at dinner near our hostel who is a pilot, Joe, from LA. He went to Embry-Riddle and has been flying for Delta for the last few years, however with the economic slump pilots are being given as much unpaid leave as they like. So being able to fly all over the world for practically free, he is taking advantage of the recession and seeing as much of the world as possible. After dinner I picked up my dress and we hit the hay as we had to rise early to get back to the ship for our trip to Cambodia!
We took a cab to the “backpacker” area of the 9 million person city (although there is debate as to where the city actually ends and some estimate the population to be as high as 20 million) in a country of 86 million. Also commonly called “motor bike city” there are 4 million registered scooters, mopeds, motorcycles, etc. in Saigon. We looked around at a couple hostels before choosing a suitable room with its own bathroom and a double bed- yes, we could have slept on the ship (which might have been my preference) but I do feel like I had a more authentic Vietnamese experience by staying there ($9 a night for each of us!) We left our things at the hotel and took off to explore the city on our own.
We first visited the War Remnants museum. Very cool, undoubtedly my favorite part of Ho Chi Minh City. Unfortunately it was under reconstruction while we were there, but the ground floor exhibit was still very impressive. I was surprised to learn from the students that they knew extremely little about the Vietnam War. After a few days, I came to the conclusion that we are just far apart enough in age that our parents are different generations. And while my dad and uncle had draft numbers, their parents were still in elementary or middle school. While I feel that I have always been aware of the Vietnam War (and its music J), most of my knowledge comes from a couple of classes in the Honors College at U of O that specifically studied the war, protests, and rhetoric of that time. The focal points of the museum for me were the many pictures depicting the consequences of war. Close ups, soldiers, aerial photos of forests wiped out, victims of chemical warfare, etc. They also had a number of US airplanes and tanks that had been shot down or bombed.
One very neat story I’d like to share I learned the next day from a local. Regarding one of the pictures in the museum- a quite famous picture of a woman running down a road naked after having been exposed to a napalm bomb. She was naked because the chemicals literally burned the clothing off of her body. She subsequently moved to Toronto and now works for the UN. The photographer of that picture actually won a Pulitzer prize for his photo and the local man also had a picture of the photographer and the woman meeting Queen Elizabeth! About ten years ago the US pilot who dropped the bomb in that specific area (a town close to the temple we went to the next day) learned about her and asked to meet her to ask for her forgiveness. She agreed and I got to see the picture of them reuniting for the first time as well.
We wandered down through the streets on our way to the market. On the way we passed a set of park blocks almost identical to Portland! I took a picture to document the similarity. The market ended up being strikingly similar to most of the markets we have seen before. Not really needing any trinkets, we did somewhat of a quick walk through. While it is cool to see all of the unique fish and meat available to buy, it is also quite smelly J. We stopped in a tailor store just to look around and walked back out with dresses ordered- ready to be picked up the next day-a tailored dress for $35! We carried on back to the “backpacker” district and found a place to sit outside for a drink. Truly great people watching- I think it was the most diverse group of nationalities I have seen on this trip yet. Travelers young and old wandered the streets, some with backpacks and other clearly staying in nicer places.
After a rather warm day, we showered and got ready for dinner. SAS had a list of suggested restaurants around the city and so we took a cab to a recommended establishment in a restored Vietnamese house. Soon we realized that though we were in a nice restaurant, it was in the center of the Japanese brothel district of town. We enjoyed a nice dinner before promptly returning back to our hostel in the “backpacker” district.
The next day we rose early and joined a driver and guide (arranged by our hotel for us) and took off on our three hour drive to the Cao Ming Temple. Our guide, Jimmy, about 50 years of age, was a hoot and loved telling us all about his homeland. The temple we went to was particularly interesting. It was built for the indigenous religion of Caodaism (the product of an attempt to create the ideal religion with aspects of Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity and native Vietnamese spirits). Worshippers of Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism gather to pray there together at 6am, 12pm, 6pm and 12am daily. While most of the worshippers are dressed in all white, the officials wear one of three colors (red, blue, or yellow) depending on their specific religion. The temple was very colorful, lots of dragons, and we were there in time to observe the 12pm chanting/prayer. We had a fantastic lunch at a local’s place near the temple. High up in our own tree house we dined on sweet and sour tofu, steamed vegetables and rice. I’m finally getting good at chopsticks!
Our next stop was the famed Cu Chi Tunnels- a 200km long system of tunnels built underground and used in times of war. “From the mid-1940s onward, the tunnels were used as a base from which the Viet Cong could launch strategic attacks and then seemingly disappear into thin air. The tunnels had well-hidden entrances and thick roofs which were capable of withstanding the weight of tanks and the impact of bombs. Most of the tunnels are 2 feet wide and 4 feet high.” We first viewed a video about the tunnels with authentic footage from the war. It was particularly interesting to hear the narration that had a very anti-American point of view, but also a sense of very legitimate pride. The Cu Chi people were protecting their land and were able to fight off well trained and equipped armies with only their own hand made weapons and tunnel system. We had the opportunity to see a number of the original bamboo traps as well as climb through the tunnels. The main tunnel for tourists has four exits- I only made it to the first one until my claustrophobia set in and I raced up to daylight, however Nichole was a trooper and made it all the way through- you literally have to crawl through 2 by 2.5 foot openings 8 meters underground- no thank you! There is also the opportunity to shoot AK 47s and other guns at a shooting range, but it didn’t really seem appropriate to me so I skipped that opportunity (plus the targets were large bunny posters!) Before our drive back to town we sampled a local staple- tapioca root dipped in crushed peanuts with sugar and salt. This interesting treat reminded me of a sweet potato but slightly stringier.
That night we met a fellow American at dinner near our hostel who is a pilot, Joe, from LA. He went to Embry-Riddle and has been flying for Delta for the last few years, however with the economic slump pilots are being given as much unpaid leave as they like. So being able to fly all over the world for practically free, he is taking advantage of the recession and seeing as much of the world as possible. After dinner I picked up my dress and we hit the hay as we had to rise early to get back to the ship for our trip to Cambodia!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Thailand!
My trip around Thailand was absolutely unbelievable! The way that the people of India really shaped my Indian experience, the landscape is undoubtedly what I will remember the most about Thailand. Never have I seen such incredible limestone cliffs and islands covered with lush jungle vegetation. I went on a five day independent trip with 90 other students that had been organized on Facebook. The tour company did an incredible job packing our days full of unique experiences, while also providing a less rigid schedule than that of the usual SAS trips. On a personal note, I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to meet and make friends with students as I often find myself hanging out with staff friends on SAS trips.
Our first day, two large double decker buses picked us up at the port of Laem Chabbang, for our two hour drive to Bangkok. The port is in an industrial area 30 minutes outside of Laem Chabbang, while not a great city to port in, it is the only one that allows ships our size. Thailand is roughly the size of Spain and has a population of 63 million. The central area of Bangkok, a city of 8 million, has a river and canal system similar to Venice. We arrived in Bangkok and took a boat taxi to a large restaurant that looked out on the main river. There they had a massive buffet of all sorts of Thai delights set up for us. I was quite impressed with all of the Thai food I had on my trip. While fearful of things being too spicy, I was pleasantly surprised by Thai foods five elements- spicy, sweet, bitter, sour, and salty. Rice with curry sauces and pad Thai noodles with chicken or tofu were staples of our trip. We also tried dragon fruit- a relative of kiwi I think – a red fruit the size of a small cantaloupe with green spikes coming out of it, while the inside is the white with black seeds similar to a kiwi. We left lunch and walked by the grand palace on our way back to the bus. Our one hour flight to Phuket included a three course meal – while most of us weren’t hungry, it was still interesting to see the difference in service.
Phuket is an island off the south tip of Thailand. While accessible from a bridge connected to the mainland- a flight was much faster than what would be a 550 mile drive from Bangkok. Phuket is about miles wide and miles long. Mostly a tourist destination, the lush vegetation is dotted with beaches and hotels. We stayed at a great resort, DuangJitt, about 2 blocks from the beach. We didn’t get in until rather late, but I ended up with a great roommate named Katie. I went out to dinner with a group of students- one of whom I know because her cousin was one of my corps members this past summer at Institute. We had great Thai food and mai tais served in pineapples. The live entertainment was truly something else! A ten person group that covered pretty much any top ten song from America’s charts in the last thirty years. We had a quick drink at a Tiki bar on the way back to the hotel before resting up for the next day.
We rose early to board 14 person vans and take off on a 2 hour drive north off of the island. I had met one of the girls in my van before, and became friends with the other ten people by later in the day. Somewhat out of my comfort zone, I was pleased to not have a staff member to just stick with. We first did an inflatable canoe trip through the jungle under limestone cliffs. We had men who paddled for us- pointing out frogs, birds, flowers, etc. At one point we stopped to swing off a large branch into the water. Apparently all of my pushups in yoga are not paying off as much as I might have hoped, because I didn’t hold on tight enough and ended up cutting my foot on a rock. Before judging my decision to jump into a river in the Thai jungle, keep in mind that the other 89 people safely landed in the water, so it’s not that it was an unsafe decision as much as an unlucky result. However, thanks to Mom I have many a band aid and my foot is almost healed (the doctor on board checked it out and said it looks good.) The cliffs were in incredible! 90 degree straight limestone cliffs with the jungle growing up on either side loomed over us. After our two hour boat ride we loaded up in the vans and headed to a Thai lunch at a jungle restaurant. There I tried my first fried pineapple and fried sweet potatoes that were delicious!
Next we were off to ride elephants through the jungle! Each elephant had its own guide and could hold up to two people on the seat attached to their bodies. I was worried about how they might treat the elephants, but was pleased to see that the elephants were quite well trained and responded to barked Thai orders. Each of the guides also had a stick with a metal hook on it in case the elephant didn’t respond to orders, but fortunately I didn’t witness it being used. I ended up with my own elephant because we were an odd number. We rode for about an hour altogether through small rivers, muddy terrain, lush grass and rocky creeks. I was also excited to see rubber trees lining the trek with their bowls full of white sap! We took a break halfway and wandered up to a waterfall while the elephants played in the water. On the ride back I got to ride on my elephant’s neck! Holding onto its massive skull it had cute prickly black hair sprouting out of its head. Ten minutes from the end, we were inundated by a full on jungle downpour! Once again, I truly felt like Aunty Mama in my trek around the world.
That night we went out to a rather famous Cabaret show with all male dancers- all the girls were actually boys J, That night we went out to Mexican food, which although not truly authentic Thai, it was a delicious treat that reminded me of home.
The next day (St. Patrick’s Day!) we rose early again and drove to the northeast corner of the island to board a boat. We had about 50 people on our boat for the day- the back of the boat filled with blow up canoes for later. We took a 30 minute ride out to James Bond Island- where they filmed part of Man with a Golden Gun back in the day. Phuket has 42 smaller islands that also belong to it which are incredible! Like nothing I have seen! Limestone cliffs covered with vegetation just popping out of the blue water. We spent half an hour exploring the small island before taking off to our next. At the next point we stopped and boarded our canoes- each one had a man paddling for you and two students. We went through some incredible tunnels/caves that opened up into open water areas inside of an island. However, this experience only prepared us for the next island! At our next island we went through a small tunnel/cave that took about 15 minutes to get through to get to the center area with open daylight. We had to lie completely flat in our canoe as the cave’s ceiling literally came inches over our faces at certain points. If anyone is claustrophobic at all- this is not the trip for you! We then entered an incredible inner bay with open sky above. The boys got out to climb on the trees- that water was pretty shallow- about a meter. One kid, Murphy, ended up getting bit on the wrist by a snake- he had two big fang mark cuts! (On the boat they had a wash to treat it- it wasn’t poisonous.) We were fortunate that of all the people on our trip, he is probably the most laid back and least worried- if it had been a girl- I am quite sure the boat would have been commandeered back to the main land to a hospital. On the way back out of the cave we were stuck in one place for about 15 minutes with only our little flashlight to see, as a large line of German tourists were coming in. (During this time I had to keep reminding myself that tsunamis are very rare and not to worry, haha.) We made it out alive and got to jump off the boat a few times before boarding.
We had a delicious Thai lunch onboard as we headed out to a larger island. I was sitting up in the front of the ship and could see huge jelly fish in the water as we zoomed by. We arrived at a beautiful beach to swim around at, but unfortunately we only had about 30 minutes there before we had to head back to Phuket. Arriving back at the hotel, a few of us went to get ridiculously inexpensive massages. I had a back and shoulder massage that I have to say was quite painful- I think I have a low tolerance for elbows sticking into my back, haha. That night we went out on the town to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at the local pubs and bars.
Much of our fourth day was taken up by our traveling back to Bangkok. Upon arrival we made it to our hotel and then I wandered to meet up with my friend Janetta (one of the counselor’s onboard) at another hotel (that looked 2 blocks away on my map, but was a good 2 mile walk!) A student joined us for dinner for a unique Thai/Mexican dinner. We wandered on to the notable “Night Market” where you can buy pretty much anything you might ever need. Think Saturday market times fifty. I found a few small bargains before it closed at midnight and we headed back.
The next day we had a whirl-wind tour of Bangkok. Beginning with a river tour and ending at the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha temple. It was hot!!! Without the nice Phuket breeze to cool us, we realized just how warm Thailand can be. Nonetheless, the palace buildings were truly impressive and fun to see. Thais are extremely proud of their royalty and revere them greatly. We took a two hour bus back to the ship where we were happily greeted by cold showers and our own beds. Thailand is probably one of my favorite countries to date. While a major part of India was experiencing the people, I feel that visiting Thailand I was overwhelmed by the unbelievable landscape. I am surprised that I have not heard more about Thailand as a travel destination in the past as I would highly recommend it to others! India blog still coming! Thank you for reading! -Rose.
Our first day, two large double decker buses picked us up at the port of Laem Chabbang, for our two hour drive to Bangkok. The port is in an industrial area 30 minutes outside of Laem Chabbang, while not a great city to port in, it is the only one that allows ships our size. Thailand is roughly the size of Spain and has a population of 63 million. The central area of Bangkok, a city of 8 million, has a river and canal system similar to Venice. We arrived in Bangkok and took a boat taxi to a large restaurant that looked out on the main river. There they had a massive buffet of all sorts of Thai delights set up for us. I was quite impressed with all of the Thai food I had on my trip. While fearful of things being too spicy, I was pleasantly surprised by Thai foods five elements- spicy, sweet, bitter, sour, and salty. Rice with curry sauces and pad Thai noodles with chicken or tofu were staples of our trip. We also tried dragon fruit- a relative of kiwi I think – a red fruit the size of a small cantaloupe with green spikes coming out of it, while the inside is the white with black seeds similar to a kiwi. We left lunch and walked by the grand palace on our way back to the bus. Our one hour flight to Phuket included a three course meal – while most of us weren’t hungry, it was still interesting to see the difference in service.
Phuket is an island off the south tip of Thailand. While accessible from a bridge connected to the mainland- a flight was much faster than what would be a 550 mile drive from Bangkok. Phuket is about miles wide and miles long. Mostly a tourist destination, the lush vegetation is dotted with beaches and hotels. We stayed at a great resort, DuangJitt, about 2 blocks from the beach. We didn’t get in until rather late, but I ended up with a great roommate named Katie. I went out to dinner with a group of students- one of whom I know because her cousin was one of my corps members this past summer at Institute. We had great Thai food and mai tais served in pineapples. The live entertainment was truly something else! A ten person group that covered pretty much any top ten song from America’s charts in the last thirty years. We had a quick drink at a Tiki bar on the way back to the hotel before resting up for the next day.
We rose early to board 14 person vans and take off on a 2 hour drive north off of the island. I had met one of the girls in my van before, and became friends with the other ten people by later in the day. Somewhat out of my comfort zone, I was pleased to not have a staff member to just stick with. We first did an inflatable canoe trip through the jungle under limestone cliffs. We had men who paddled for us- pointing out frogs, birds, flowers, etc. At one point we stopped to swing off a large branch into the water. Apparently all of my pushups in yoga are not paying off as much as I might have hoped, because I didn’t hold on tight enough and ended up cutting my foot on a rock. Before judging my decision to jump into a river in the Thai jungle, keep in mind that the other 89 people safely landed in the water, so it’s not that it was an unsafe decision as much as an unlucky result. However, thanks to Mom I have many a band aid and my foot is almost healed (the doctor on board checked it out and said it looks good.) The cliffs were in incredible! 90 degree straight limestone cliffs with the jungle growing up on either side loomed over us. After our two hour boat ride we loaded up in the vans and headed to a Thai lunch at a jungle restaurant. There I tried my first fried pineapple and fried sweet potatoes that were delicious!
Next we were off to ride elephants through the jungle! Each elephant had its own guide and could hold up to two people on the seat attached to their bodies. I was worried about how they might treat the elephants, but was pleased to see that the elephants were quite well trained and responded to barked Thai orders. Each of the guides also had a stick with a metal hook on it in case the elephant didn’t respond to orders, but fortunately I didn’t witness it being used. I ended up with my own elephant because we were an odd number. We rode for about an hour altogether through small rivers, muddy terrain, lush grass and rocky creeks. I was also excited to see rubber trees lining the trek with their bowls full of white sap! We took a break halfway and wandered up to a waterfall while the elephants played in the water. On the ride back I got to ride on my elephant’s neck! Holding onto its massive skull it had cute prickly black hair sprouting out of its head. Ten minutes from the end, we were inundated by a full on jungle downpour! Once again, I truly felt like Aunty Mama in my trek around the world.
That night we went out to a rather famous Cabaret show with all male dancers- all the girls were actually boys J, That night we went out to Mexican food, which although not truly authentic Thai, it was a delicious treat that reminded me of home.
The next day (St. Patrick’s Day!) we rose early again and drove to the northeast corner of the island to board a boat. We had about 50 people on our boat for the day- the back of the boat filled with blow up canoes for later. We took a 30 minute ride out to James Bond Island- where they filmed part of Man with a Golden Gun back in the day. Phuket has 42 smaller islands that also belong to it which are incredible! Like nothing I have seen! Limestone cliffs covered with vegetation just popping out of the blue water. We spent half an hour exploring the small island before taking off to our next. At the next point we stopped and boarded our canoes- each one had a man paddling for you and two students. We went through some incredible tunnels/caves that opened up into open water areas inside of an island. However, this experience only prepared us for the next island! At our next island we went through a small tunnel/cave that took about 15 minutes to get through to get to the center area with open daylight. We had to lie completely flat in our canoe as the cave’s ceiling literally came inches over our faces at certain points. If anyone is claustrophobic at all- this is not the trip for you! We then entered an incredible inner bay with open sky above. The boys got out to climb on the trees- that water was pretty shallow- about a meter. One kid, Murphy, ended up getting bit on the wrist by a snake- he had two big fang mark cuts! (On the boat they had a wash to treat it- it wasn’t poisonous.) We were fortunate that of all the people on our trip, he is probably the most laid back and least worried- if it had been a girl- I am quite sure the boat would have been commandeered back to the main land to a hospital. On the way back out of the cave we were stuck in one place for about 15 minutes with only our little flashlight to see, as a large line of German tourists were coming in. (During this time I had to keep reminding myself that tsunamis are very rare and not to worry, haha.) We made it out alive and got to jump off the boat a few times before boarding.
We had a delicious Thai lunch onboard as we headed out to a larger island. I was sitting up in the front of the ship and could see huge jelly fish in the water as we zoomed by. We arrived at a beautiful beach to swim around at, but unfortunately we only had about 30 minutes there before we had to head back to Phuket. Arriving back at the hotel, a few of us went to get ridiculously inexpensive massages. I had a back and shoulder massage that I have to say was quite painful- I think I have a low tolerance for elbows sticking into my back, haha. That night we went out on the town to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at the local pubs and bars.
Much of our fourth day was taken up by our traveling back to Bangkok. Upon arrival we made it to our hotel and then I wandered to meet up with my friend Janetta (one of the counselor’s onboard) at another hotel (that looked 2 blocks away on my map, but was a good 2 mile walk!) A student joined us for dinner for a unique Thai/Mexican dinner. We wandered on to the notable “Night Market” where you can buy pretty much anything you might ever need. Think Saturday market times fifty. I found a few small bargains before it closed at midnight and we headed back.
The next day we had a whirl-wind tour of Bangkok. Beginning with a river tour and ending at the Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha temple. It was hot!!! Without the nice Phuket breeze to cool us, we realized just how warm Thailand can be. Nonetheless, the palace buildings were truly impressive and fun to see. Thais are extremely proud of their royalty and revere them greatly. We took a two hour bus back to the ship where we were happily greeted by cold showers and our own beds. Thailand is probably one of my favorite countries to date. While a major part of India was experiencing the people, I feel that visiting Thailand I was overwhelmed by the unbelievable landscape. I am surprised that I have not heard more about Thailand as a travel destination in the past as I would highly recommend it to others! India blog still coming! Thank you for reading! -Rose.
Friday, March 13, 2009
South Africa Part 3 of 3
My third day in South Africa was undoubtedly the most eye-opening and rewarding. I participated in an SAS service trip with an organization named Operation Hunger. With locations across South Africa, Operation Hunger is a small, but critically important, privately funded non-profit. Its goal is to supplement the diet of children in the townships. Most children eat plain bread or biscuits (the equivalent of a dried out English muffin) with tea for nearly all of their meals. Operation Hunger tries to provide one or two heartier meals each week to as many township children as possible. Ideally, they try to provide protein in the form of chicken or cheese. However, more common is a soup that they prepare from a powder mix that is fortified with protein and vitamins. Another aspect of Operation Hunger is to try and track malnutrition across the regions- both for their own knowledge and to aid in fundraising. In Cape Town, Operation Hunger has a special relationship with Semester at Sea. With only one full-time employee to serve the Cape Town region, monitoring the children is nearly impossible without helping hands. The 2-3 times a year that Semester at Sea stops in Cape Town, the students participate in what the operator named, The Semester at Sea Malnutrition Monitoring Program. Which I will come back to in my story.
Our day began with a 45 minute bus ride out to a more rural township, named Green Valley. In the majority of the townships, the shacks are built extremely close together. (This leads to problems when the government does offer to build small houses for them because one house takes up the space of three shacks, so two families are displaced. As they don’t know which of the three will end up getting the house, the people resist the change.) However, Green Valley is unique in that the shelters have small parcels of grassy land between them- each lot is probably close to the size of a small classroom. However, this allows the people to do some sustenance farming which is critical because being so far away from the city, jobs are rare. As I wrote in my previous blog, the unemployment rate in the townships is roughly 80% and education opportunities are few. I would guess 20% of the children go to school, but I’m not really sure. When I asked Lavinia Crawford Brown why people don’t vote to change the income tax structure to provide more services to these people, her response was that people might be willing to vote for such a change, but their doubt in the government’s ability to spend the money wisely (not corruptly) keeps them from voting for such change.
A group of SAS students did the same township visit as us the day before. They began a gardening project outside the community center with ten tires filled with dirt mixed with manure. We finished this project by planting seeds, setting up a very basic sprinkler system, and putting up an awning. The goal of this project is to develop seedlings that can be transplanted to people’s gardens. The students the day before also did a collection of their own money ($300) and gave it to Lavinia to buy toys. So we had the delightful job of getting to pass these toys out to the children in the community center.
The community center in Green Valley is a one room building with open doors and windows. There were three elderly women watching over twenty children under the age of two. It was truly a site that I had never seen before. Children who could barely sit up on their own, were sitting on the dirty cement floor, covered with flies and playing with bug- covered toys. When we first arrived, many of them began crying. Our guide informed us that the only white people they usually see are the doctors who come to give them shots. Parents often wait as long as possible, using home remedies, before bringing their children to the doctor, leading to the need for shots instead of medication. So their first thought upon seeing twenty of us was that twenty doctors had come to give them shots. After they calmed down we played with them, unveiling the new toys and building forts. I thought it strange that even though the majority of the parents do not have jobs, they still drop their children off for childcare during the day.
Later a number of us went on to the other community center in town where the older children pass their days. They danced and sang songs for us and we passed out stickers and played games. Most of the townships speak a rural dialect of Africant, but the children usually know a few words in English. There we measured the arm circumference, height and weight of all the children for the malnutrition tracking program. We said our goodbyes and were off to have lunch at a quite posh truck stop complete with a small grocery store and burger restaurant. The ship had packed us boxed lunches- the usual for day trips- a bologna sandwich, a chicken leg, a hardboiled egg, a lemon bar, Oreos, an apple and a Capri Sun (it’s always exactly the same, haha). Our guide encouraged us to buy bread instead of candies or other treats for the next community. Altogether, we bought out the store’s bread supply and arrived at the next township with over 80 loaves of bread.
At our next community, designated as a “coloured township,” we met a living saint named Sabil. She welcomed us into her home- by far the nicest home in the township. We learned that she lives there by choice, even though she could afford to move to a much nicer neighborhood. For over twenty years, she has served a meal to the township’s children nearly every single day. She finds funding for this through her church, Operation Hunger, another non-profit, and her own money. As much as we were overwhelmed to hear her story, she was overwhelmed by all of us there to help. While we crowded into her house to hear her story, her double garage was filling up with children. By the time she introduced us, there were over 200 people smushed into her garage sitting on the floor, smallest to largest. They sang a number of fun songs to us and we returned the favor by doing the hokey pokey. After our introduction, we promptly set to work making sandwiches out of our lunch leftovers. We peeled the shells off the eggs and mixed it with the mayonnaise and mustard packets to make egg salad. We picked the chicken off the bones and mixed it to make chicken salad. We cut up the bologna sandwiches into halves, and made egg and chicken salad sandwiches. One girl had bought a couple jars of nutella, so we made apple slice and nutella sandwiches as well.
Before the children ate, we set up a system to measure arm circumference, height and weight. The mothers were all very thankful to have this information for their own knowledge and tracking. Our guide also recorded the information for his research. To go through all 150 children, it took us about 2 hours. Afterwards, we played with the children in the front yard for about another hour or two. Once again, our stickers were very popular! The children were ecstatic to play with us. I think I gave about a hundred piggy back rides. The tall boys in our group were particularly mauled, as the children wanted to sit up on their shoulders. The children loved getting their pictures taken and borrowing our cameras to take pictures on their own. I was amazed by how clever they were- they figured out how to work my camera in about 2 seconds and later taught me about certain features I didn’t even know I had, haha. Finally, after the children had waited nearly four hours, the food was served. Meanwhile, our guide had plotted the malnutrition information from the afternoon. He said it was actually far worse than he had thought, with the boys’ malnutrition nearly off the charts. The mothers’ reply to this was that the girls stay close to home all day, near their mothers. However, the boys take off during the day, often playing in unsanitary areas of the township. Therefore, when there is a little bit of extra food around the girls are there to have some. With the boys out and about in the dirt, they consequently get diarrhea frequently- one of the most troublesome illnesses in the townships. Our guide, though shocked by the data, was very thankful to have it so that he could go back and secure more funding. We said our goodbyes and were off back to the ship.
On the extreme opposite spectrum of South Africa, we went to a professional rugby game that night. Cape Town’s Stormers against the New Zealand Reds. It was quite violent- they don’t wear any padding and frequently punch each other for no reason. I enjoyed the efficiency of the game though- more like soccer than football- the clock doesn’t stop. They play two 40 minute halves with a 15 minute half time. It was quite speedy- the game started at 7:10 and we were out of there by nine. It was very fun to watch, but I don’t think I will ever let any of my children play, haha.
The last two days I spent around Cape Town. Hayley and I did one of the red double decker bus tours one day and got to visit Camp’s Bay as well as the District 6 museum. By the last day we were exhausted and mostly hung out around the port area and did a few smaller museums. All in all, South Africa was an incredible experience and I look forward to hopefully returning someday.
More to come on India soon!!! Xoxo Rose.
Our day began with a 45 minute bus ride out to a more rural township, named Green Valley. In the majority of the townships, the shacks are built extremely close together. (This leads to problems when the government does offer to build small houses for them because one house takes up the space of three shacks, so two families are displaced. As they don’t know which of the three will end up getting the house, the people resist the change.) However, Green Valley is unique in that the shelters have small parcels of grassy land between them- each lot is probably close to the size of a small classroom. However, this allows the people to do some sustenance farming which is critical because being so far away from the city, jobs are rare. As I wrote in my previous blog, the unemployment rate in the townships is roughly 80% and education opportunities are few. I would guess 20% of the children go to school, but I’m not really sure. When I asked Lavinia Crawford Brown why people don’t vote to change the income tax structure to provide more services to these people, her response was that people might be willing to vote for such a change, but their doubt in the government’s ability to spend the money wisely (not corruptly) keeps them from voting for such change.
A group of SAS students did the same township visit as us the day before. They began a gardening project outside the community center with ten tires filled with dirt mixed with manure. We finished this project by planting seeds, setting up a very basic sprinkler system, and putting up an awning. The goal of this project is to develop seedlings that can be transplanted to people’s gardens. The students the day before also did a collection of their own money ($300) and gave it to Lavinia to buy toys. So we had the delightful job of getting to pass these toys out to the children in the community center.
The community center in Green Valley is a one room building with open doors and windows. There were three elderly women watching over twenty children under the age of two. It was truly a site that I had never seen before. Children who could barely sit up on their own, were sitting on the dirty cement floor, covered with flies and playing with bug- covered toys. When we first arrived, many of them began crying. Our guide informed us that the only white people they usually see are the doctors who come to give them shots. Parents often wait as long as possible, using home remedies, before bringing their children to the doctor, leading to the need for shots instead of medication. So their first thought upon seeing twenty of us was that twenty doctors had come to give them shots. After they calmed down we played with them, unveiling the new toys and building forts. I thought it strange that even though the majority of the parents do not have jobs, they still drop their children off for childcare during the day.
Later a number of us went on to the other community center in town where the older children pass their days. They danced and sang songs for us and we passed out stickers and played games. Most of the townships speak a rural dialect of Africant, but the children usually know a few words in English. There we measured the arm circumference, height and weight of all the children for the malnutrition tracking program. We said our goodbyes and were off to have lunch at a quite posh truck stop complete with a small grocery store and burger restaurant. The ship had packed us boxed lunches- the usual for day trips- a bologna sandwich, a chicken leg, a hardboiled egg, a lemon bar, Oreos, an apple and a Capri Sun (it’s always exactly the same, haha). Our guide encouraged us to buy bread instead of candies or other treats for the next community. Altogether, we bought out the store’s bread supply and arrived at the next township with over 80 loaves of bread.
At our next community, designated as a “coloured township,” we met a living saint named Sabil. She welcomed us into her home- by far the nicest home in the township. We learned that she lives there by choice, even though she could afford to move to a much nicer neighborhood. For over twenty years, she has served a meal to the township’s children nearly every single day. She finds funding for this through her church, Operation Hunger, another non-profit, and her own money. As much as we were overwhelmed to hear her story, she was overwhelmed by all of us there to help. While we crowded into her house to hear her story, her double garage was filling up with children. By the time she introduced us, there were over 200 people smushed into her garage sitting on the floor, smallest to largest. They sang a number of fun songs to us and we returned the favor by doing the hokey pokey. After our introduction, we promptly set to work making sandwiches out of our lunch leftovers. We peeled the shells off the eggs and mixed it with the mayonnaise and mustard packets to make egg salad. We picked the chicken off the bones and mixed it to make chicken salad. We cut up the bologna sandwiches into halves, and made egg and chicken salad sandwiches. One girl had bought a couple jars of nutella, so we made apple slice and nutella sandwiches as well.
Before the children ate, we set up a system to measure arm circumference, height and weight. The mothers were all very thankful to have this information for their own knowledge and tracking. Our guide also recorded the information for his research. To go through all 150 children, it took us about 2 hours. Afterwards, we played with the children in the front yard for about another hour or two. Once again, our stickers were very popular! The children were ecstatic to play with us. I think I gave about a hundred piggy back rides. The tall boys in our group were particularly mauled, as the children wanted to sit up on their shoulders. The children loved getting their pictures taken and borrowing our cameras to take pictures on their own. I was amazed by how clever they were- they figured out how to work my camera in about 2 seconds and later taught me about certain features I didn’t even know I had, haha. Finally, after the children had waited nearly four hours, the food was served. Meanwhile, our guide had plotted the malnutrition information from the afternoon. He said it was actually far worse than he had thought, with the boys’ malnutrition nearly off the charts. The mothers’ reply to this was that the girls stay close to home all day, near their mothers. However, the boys take off during the day, often playing in unsanitary areas of the township. Therefore, when there is a little bit of extra food around the girls are there to have some. With the boys out and about in the dirt, they consequently get diarrhea frequently- one of the most troublesome illnesses in the townships. Our guide, though shocked by the data, was very thankful to have it so that he could go back and secure more funding. We said our goodbyes and were off back to the ship.
On the extreme opposite spectrum of South Africa, we went to a professional rugby game that night. Cape Town’s Stormers against the New Zealand Reds. It was quite violent- they don’t wear any padding and frequently punch each other for no reason. I enjoyed the efficiency of the game though- more like soccer than football- the clock doesn’t stop. They play two 40 minute halves with a 15 minute half time. It was quite speedy- the game started at 7:10 and we were out of there by nine. It was very fun to watch, but I don’t think I will ever let any of my children play, haha.
The last two days I spent around Cape Town. Hayley and I did one of the red double decker bus tours one day and got to visit Camp’s Bay as well as the District 6 museum. By the last day we were exhausted and mostly hung out around the port area and did a few smaller museums. All in all, South Africa was an incredible experience and I look forward to hopefully returning someday.
More to come on India soon!!! Xoxo Rose.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
South Africa Part 2 of 3
The first of my five days in Cape Town, I went on an SAS trip to Robben Island. The ferry ride out to the island was about 25 minutes. From the island, Cape Town is quite visible, which must have made it that much more difficult to the prisoners to be so close. Robben Island had served as prison since the Dutch colonization days in the 1600’s- which is when the only successful escape ever occurred. The island is actually quite large- larger than Alcatraz. However, most of it is covered with grass and plants with buildings spaced intermittently. We took a driving trip around the island before touring the infamous political prison. The guards and their families lived on the island. Their former homes, school, church and 9 hole golf course (now deserted) still remain. A few people who currently work in the museum live on the island.
A highlight for me was the rabbit citings!! The rabbits on Robben Island are almost identical to my precious Seamus. On a sad note, I learned that over Christmas 10,000 rabbits were caught and euthanized as they were taking over the island and burrowing under the historic buildings. They have plans to try and capture the rest before they over-populate again, but fortunately I got to see a few. Robben Island is also inhabited by the African Penguin, so we got to see a number of penguins as well. (The rabbits were much cuter!)
Both traditional convicts as well as political prisoners were held on Robben Island in the last century. At first, they had them housed together. However, the convicts quickly converted to the ideals of the political prisoners and when subsequently released added to the political unrest. Shortly thereafter, the traditional convicts and political prisoners were in separate buildings on either side of the island. On our drive we passed the limestone quarry in which political prisoners worked. There was actually no need for the limestone, it was crushed and added to the roads around the island, thus the work was more a form of punishment. A number of prisoners later went blind from their years spent in the sun-drenched white quarry.
Over 60 former political prisoners now serve as guides at the infamous prison where they were held. Our guide was held at Robben Island for about 2 years in the 1970s; however we did not learn specifically why he was there. The first room was where the prisoners lost their names and were given a number- the year followed by what number entering prisoner they were that year- for example ’64-124. He showed us the room the monitored all mail coming and going through the island. Emotional torture was common- the administration would write fake letters to the prisoners from their loved ones, and likewise fake letters to their families. Often times, they would write that a wife was filing for divorce, etc. Next we visited the courtyard where prisoners sat on the ground crushing the limestone from the quarry. They had large photos of the exact courtyard filled with prisoners and guards.
Our tour led us to the highest security area where the prisoners had individual rooms, including Nelson Mandela’s cell. We went on to view the small bathroom, dining room, and chapel that these prisoners used. Next we went on to view the “bunk rooms” in which one room housed up to 30 prisoners on bunk beds. These men were kept separated from the higher security prisoners. However, one of the ways they communicated was through tennis balls. During their rec hour, they would slip notes into a slit in a tennis ball and “accidentally” hit it over to the neighboring rec courtyard. One prisoner, who was an accomplished mathematician, figured out the exact dimensions of the main key after glancing at it repeatedly on a guard’s belt. He gave these dimensions to a prisoner who was a metal worker, and at one point they had a key to every lock in the buildings. However, the key was never used; it was found hidden under a bush in one of the courtyards. When the two men confessed, they were each given an additional ten years to their sentences.
A number of reunions for former prisoners have taken place over the past years. A number of blown up photos depict these bittersweet reunions around the island. The shop at the end of the tour sold a number of books written by of course Mandela, and other prisoners. Interestingly, the island and tour have a celebratory sense to them. They do not dwell on the injustices as much as the overcoming. The theme on most of the souvenirs depicts “The triumph of the human spirit.”
That evening we were hoping to go to the top of Table Top Mountain, but the clouds prevented our journey. We ended up going out to dinner at a jazz restaurant, the Green Dolphin. Cape Town is famous for its jazz scene.
The next morning we awoke early for a day trip to the wine lands. My travel companions were three of the younger staff members, Brad, Andrea, Kate, and my fellow Life Long Learner Hayley. Our guide was a Cape Town resident by the name of Carol who was very pleasant. We piled in a large tourist van and were off on our 45 minute drive to the wine lands. It was a beautiful drive! The land cascaded from high crests to low valleys with various streams and rivers. Bike riding in the wine lands is very popular and I could see why.
Our first stop was the Andrew Beck Vineyard. Of the three we visited, this was by far the largest and most modern. Unfortunately, it is not like Napa Valley in that you do not usually get to take tours of the entire wine making process. Nonetheless, the architecture and grounds of Andrew Beck was very impressive. We sampled three whites, three reds, and champagne. As always, I liked most of the whites, was so-so on the reds, but I did think the champagne was rather good. We learned that it was actually the champagne served at Obama’s Inaugural Ball and so we each purchased a bottle to share with our fellow liberals on the ship. Unfortunately, we are only allowed to bring two bottles on alcohol on the ship in each port. While this normally is never a problem (especially seeing that we are visiting so many Muslim countries), it was kind of a bummer in South Africa.
We carried on to the next, and my favorite, vineyard. The drive took about 30 minutes climbing up into the higher region of the wine lands. Carol pointed out a hotel that Prince Harry and his girlfriend frequent, which we all, except for Brad, were very excited to see. Arriving at the second vineyard we checked in and were then whisked away in a golf cart up through the flower covered estate. The tasting room was nestled into the flower garden at the top of the estate. The woman working there was particularly friendly and knowledgeable and had just learned that she and her husband were expecting their first child which was quite exciting. Here I loved the whites, enjoyed the reds, and was not so fond of the champagne. Seeing as we had to ration how many bottles we could bring back, I bought some great coasters and Hayley had a case sent home to her brother in Texas. We boarded the trusty golf cart and were off to the motor museum on the estate- which was specifically why I voted for this winery. Four large white buildings symmetrically spread out across a large grassy field below cloud covered cliffs housed about 120 collector cars. Everything from Model T’s to a Ferrari Enzo were showcased. Needless to say, I took a number of pictures. Highlights were one of the first VW bugs ever produced, a collector’s Aston Martin convertible, and of course the Ferrari collection.
We headed into the town of Stellenbosch for lunch. It was an extremely charming town that hosts a number of upscale b & b’s and restaurants. Ironically, we ended up eating at a Lebanese restaurant while in Stellenbosch, however it was quite good. After our leisurely lunch, we carried on to our final vineyard of the day. I don’t recall the name of the third one either, but I will add it soon. Certainly the smallest and quaintest of the three, the third winery has been family owned for over 100 years. As we walked in to the small cluster of buildings we zigzagged through the barrels back to the tasting room. The room was lit with a large stain glassed window where they have been cultivating cobwebs for over thirty years! There is even a sign that says, “Please do not disturb the cobwebs.” A very nice young man was hosting the tasting, which was far more informal than the previous two. My friends liked the third winery the best, but I have to say I did not like any of the wines nor the set up of the room- very awkward. The host was very funny though and he appreciated our company. He told us that the valley can actually get very warm- two days before we were there it was 120 degrees!
We made it back to Cape Town in time to take a cab up to Table Mountain. There was somewhat of a long line for the gondola, but fortunately it went quite quickly. The ride up was far steeper than any ski gondola- it literally went right up the cliff! There are two hiking paths as well that are described as hard and harder. They each take about 4 hours so we declined the challenge. We made it to the top in time to watch the sunset. It was incredible! It reminded me a pinch of the Cliffs of Moher, but others might disagree. Fortunately, it was completely clear and we could see almost all of Cape Town as well as Camps Bay off the other side. Unfortunately, it was very windy and extremely cold so we didn’t stay terribly long. We ended up at a funky restaurant for dinner with Bob Marley posters and music. We later ventured to a famous restaurant/bar called Mama Africa’s. They had live African music with dozens of people dancing. It was an interesting mix of locals and tourists. I was quite tired, but I’m thankful for the experience to see the dancing.
A highlight for me was the rabbit citings!! The rabbits on Robben Island are almost identical to my precious Seamus. On a sad note, I learned that over Christmas 10,000 rabbits were caught and euthanized as they were taking over the island and burrowing under the historic buildings. They have plans to try and capture the rest before they over-populate again, but fortunately I got to see a few. Robben Island is also inhabited by the African Penguin, so we got to see a number of penguins as well. (The rabbits were much cuter!)
Both traditional convicts as well as political prisoners were held on Robben Island in the last century. At first, they had them housed together. However, the convicts quickly converted to the ideals of the political prisoners and when subsequently released added to the political unrest. Shortly thereafter, the traditional convicts and political prisoners were in separate buildings on either side of the island. On our drive we passed the limestone quarry in which political prisoners worked. There was actually no need for the limestone, it was crushed and added to the roads around the island, thus the work was more a form of punishment. A number of prisoners later went blind from their years spent in the sun-drenched white quarry.
Over 60 former political prisoners now serve as guides at the infamous prison where they were held. Our guide was held at Robben Island for about 2 years in the 1970s; however we did not learn specifically why he was there. The first room was where the prisoners lost their names and were given a number- the year followed by what number entering prisoner they were that year- for example ’64-124. He showed us the room the monitored all mail coming and going through the island. Emotional torture was common- the administration would write fake letters to the prisoners from their loved ones, and likewise fake letters to their families. Often times, they would write that a wife was filing for divorce, etc. Next we visited the courtyard where prisoners sat on the ground crushing the limestone from the quarry. They had large photos of the exact courtyard filled with prisoners and guards.
Our tour led us to the highest security area where the prisoners had individual rooms, including Nelson Mandela’s cell. We went on to view the small bathroom, dining room, and chapel that these prisoners used. Next we went on to view the “bunk rooms” in which one room housed up to 30 prisoners on bunk beds. These men were kept separated from the higher security prisoners. However, one of the ways they communicated was through tennis balls. During their rec hour, they would slip notes into a slit in a tennis ball and “accidentally” hit it over to the neighboring rec courtyard. One prisoner, who was an accomplished mathematician, figured out the exact dimensions of the main key after glancing at it repeatedly on a guard’s belt. He gave these dimensions to a prisoner who was a metal worker, and at one point they had a key to every lock in the buildings. However, the key was never used; it was found hidden under a bush in one of the courtyards. When the two men confessed, they were each given an additional ten years to their sentences.
A number of reunions for former prisoners have taken place over the past years. A number of blown up photos depict these bittersweet reunions around the island. The shop at the end of the tour sold a number of books written by of course Mandela, and other prisoners. Interestingly, the island and tour have a celebratory sense to them. They do not dwell on the injustices as much as the overcoming. The theme on most of the souvenirs depicts “The triumph of the human spirit.”
That evening we were hoping to go to the top of Table Top Mountain, but the clouds prevented our journey. We ended up going out to dinner at a jazz restaurant, the Green Dolphin. Cape Town is famous for its jazz scene.
The next morning we awoke early for a day trip to the wine lands. My travel companions were three of the younger staff members, Brad, Andrea, Kate, and my fellow Life Long Learner Hayley. Our guide was a Cape Town resident by the name of Carol who was very pleasant. We piled in a large tourist van and were off on our 45 minute drive to the wine lands. It was a beautiful drive! The land cascaded from high crests to low valleys with various streams and rivers. Bike riding in the wine lands is very popular and I could see why.
Our first stop was the Andrew Beck Vineyard. Of the three we visited, this was by far the largest and most modern. Unfortunately, it is not like Napa Valley in that you do not usually get to take tours of the entire wine making process. Nonetheless, the architecture and grounds of Andrew Beck was very impressive. We sampled three whites, three reds, and champagne. As always, I liked most of the whites, was so-so on the reds, but I did think the champagne was rather good. We learned that it was actually the champagne served at Obama’s Inaugural Ball and so we each purchased a bottle to share with our fellow liberals on the ship. Unfortunately, we are only allowed to bring two bottles on alcohol on the ship in each port. While this normally is never a problem (especially seeing that we are visiting so many Muslim countries), it was kind of a bummer in South Africa.
We carried on to the next, and my favorite, vineyard. The drive took about 30 minutes climbing up into the higher region of the wine lands. Carol pointed out a hotel that Prince Harry and his girlfriend frequent, which we all, except for Brad, were very excited to see. Arriving at the second vineyard we checked in and were then whisked away in a golf cart up through the flower covered estate. The tasting room was nestled into the flower garden at the top of the estate. The woman working there was particularly friendly and knowledgeable and had just learned that she and her husband were expecting their first child which was quite exciting. Here I loved the whites, enjoyed the reds, and was not so fond of the champagne. Seeing as we had to ration how many bottles we could bring back, I bought some great coasters and Hayley had a case sent home to her brother in Texas. We boarded the trusty golf cart and were off to the motor museum on the estate- which was specifically why I voted for this winery. Four large white buildings symmetrically spread out across a large grassy field below cloud covered cliffs housed about 120 collector cars. Everything from Model T’s to a Ferrari Enzo were showcased. Needless to say, I took a number of pictures. Highlights were one of the first VW bugs ever produced, a collector’s Aston Martin convertible, and of course the Ferrari collection.
We headed into the town of Stellenbosch for lunch. It was an extremely charming town that hosts a number of upscale b & b’s and restaurants. Ironically, we ended up eating at a Lebanese restaurant while in Stellenbosch, however it was quite good. After our leisurely lunch, we carried on to our final vineyard of the day. I don’t recall the name of the third one either, but I will add it soon. Certainly the smallest and quaintest of the three, the third winery has been family owned for over 100 years. As we walked in to the small cluster of buildings we zigzagged through the barrels back to the tasting room. The room was lit with a large stain glassed window where they have been cultivating cobwebs for over thirty years! There is even a sign that says, “Please do not disturb the cobwebs.” A very nice young man was hosting the tasting, which was far more informal than the previous two. My friends liked the third winery the best, but I have to say I did not like any of the wines nor the set up of the room- very awkward. The host was very funny though and he appreciated our company. He told us that the valley can actually get very warm- two days before we were there it was 120 degrees!
We made it back to Cape Town in time to take a cab up to Table Mountain. There was somewhat of a long line for the gondola, but fortunately it went quite quickly. The ride up was far steeper than any ski gondola- it literally went right up the cliff! There are two hiking paths as well that are described as hard and harder. They each take about 4 hours so we declined the challenge. We made it to the top in time to watch the sunset. It was incredible! It reminded me a pinch of the Cliffs of Moher, but others might disagree. Fortunately, it was completely clear and we could see almost all of Cape Town as well as Camps Bay off the other side. Unfortunately, it was very windy and extremely cold so we didn’t stay terribly long. We ended up at a funky restaurant for dinner with Bob Marley posters and music. We later ventured to a famous restaurant/bar called Mama Africa’s. They had live African music with dozens of people dancing. It was an interesting mix of locals and tourists. I was quite tired, but I’m thankful for the experience to see the dancing.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
South Africa Part 1 of 3
Before I get into my travels in South Africa, I feel the need to explain a bit about what I learned about the people of South Africa.
Arriving in Cape Town we were welcomed by a beautiful view of the city including Table Mountain and Lion’s Head Peak. The ship literally pulls up right into the city, one block away from a mall that rivals the Galleria in Houston. Perhaps this is representative of South Africa in general where the discrepancy between wealth and poverty overwhelms the country. Honestly, one could easily spend weeks in Cape Town without seeing the desolate state in which the majority of citizens live.
A Brief Summary of South Africa’s Socioeconomic Situation
I had the wonderful opportunity to get to know and speak with Lavinia Crawford Brown who’s husband is a professor on the ship. Lavinia and her husband are South African natives and she was actually Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu’s personal secretary for over 25 years. Needless to say, she is quite interesting. Much of the more informal information in my blog comes from our discussions.
Stemming from apartheid, South Africa is split into three social groups: the “whites”, the “blacks” and the “coloureds.” The first two being more straight forward, the third is actually not based on skin color quite as much as language ability. “Coloureds” are black, indigenous, Indian, mixed race, etc. that are able to speak English. Therefore, people who fall into the “blacks” category means they only speak their own local tongue- usually related to a tribal language. During apartheid, the three groups were quite strictly separated and opportunities were unfairly rationed out which has led to the current socioeconomic situation. South Africa is noted for its extreme difference between wealth and poverty. The “whites” being the upper class, the “coloureds” being the middle class (which is actually below the poverty line), and the “blacks” making up the lowest class. When I asked Lavinia if she felt racism led to the continuation of this segregation, she had a different answer. She said obviously racism plays some part, but she feels that socioeconomic reasons keep people in the same place. She gave the example that a wealthy person does not want anything to change in order to protect their wealth. So it is more out of protecting what one does have, that keeps the opportunities limited.
The fourth day in Cape Town I had the opportunity to visit the District 6 museum. District 6 was a neighborhood from the 1920’s through 1966 where “blacks” and “coloureds” lived a prosperous and enjoyable life. The museum commemorates this happy and progressive time and neighborhood. District 6 was close to the dock, where all of the jobs were, and allowed for people to do quite well for themselves. However in 1966, apartheid laws forced the residents to sell their homes for next to nothing and more out into the “cape flats” or townships. The city bulldozed the homes of District 6 and created high end housing for the “whites.” At various points, non-whites were not even allowed within Cape Town city limits. With few jobs outside of the city and no transportation into the city to work at the port, the once educated and prosperous “blacks” and “coloureds” fell into poverty.
Townships (basically squatter villages) cover the landscape outside of the city. People make their homes out of anything they can- pieces of plastic, tin, wood, etc. Lavinia said that the shacks within the townships of South Africa are built unusually close together. As we were driving in the countryside, the townships literally went on for miles- millions of people. Many townships have electricity through a single wire brought in from the highway and everyone hooking up to it. The government provides limited/no resources to the townships. Public education is not free, and many to most children in the townships do not attend school. Some townships have as high as 50% HIV/AIDS infection rate. While the national unemployment level is 40%, townships frequently have an unemployment rate of 80%. As people are pushed farther and farther from the city, jobs are more and more scarce.
We had a graduate student from South Africa join us between Morocco and South Africa, Dayle, who gave a number of wonderful speeches about her childhood and the current issues in her native country. South Africa has roughly 12 political parties, the ANC (Nelson Mandela’s party) has been in control since his presidency. The other 11 parties do not really actually have a chance of ever acquiring power. However, in recent years the ANC has become quite corrupt and another group split off from it making a new political party. Elections are coming up this April and for once the ANC will have significant competition from this new break off group. From what I gather, the country would be better off with this new party. The candidate for the ANC has been convicted of both major financial scandals and rape in recent years.
More to come… :-)
Arriving in Cape Town we were welcomed by a beautiful view of the city including Table Mountain and Lion’s Head Peak. The ship literally pulls up right into the city, one block away from a mall that rivals the Galleria in Houston. Perhaps this is representative of South Africa in general where the discrepancy between wealth and poverty overwhelms the country. Honestly, one could easily spend weeks in Cape Town without seeing the desolate state in which the majority of citizens live.
A Brief Summary of South Africa’s Socioeconomic Situation
I had the wonderful opportunity to get to know and speak with Lavinia Crawford Brown who’s husband is a professor on the ship. Lavinia and her husband are South African natives and she was actually Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu’s personal secretary for over 25 years. Needless to say, she is quite interesting. Much of the more informal information in my blog comes from our discussions.
Stemming from apartheid, South Africa is split into three social groups: the “whites”, the “blacks” and the “coloureds.” The first two being more straight forward, the third is actually not based on skin color quite as much as language ability. “Coloureds” are black, indigenous, Indian, mixed race, etc. that are able to speak English. Therefore, people who fall into the “blacks” category means they only speak their own local tongue- usually related to a tribal language. During apartheid, the three groups were quite strictly separated and opportunities were unfairly rationed out which has led to the current socioeconomic situation. South Africa is noted for its extreme difference between wealth and poverty. The “whites” being the upper class, the “coloureds” being the middle class (which is actually below the poverty line), and the “blacks” making up the lowest class. When I asked Lavinia if she felt racism led to the continuation of this segregation, she had a different answer. She said obviously racism plays some part, but she feels that socioeconomic reasons keep people in the same place. She gave the example that a wealthy person does not want anything to change in order to protect their wealth. So it is more out of protecting what one does have, that keeps the opportunities limited.
The fourth day in Cape Town I had the opportunity to visit the District 6 museum. District 6 was a neighborhood from the 1920’s through 1966 where “blacks” and “coloureds” lived a prosperous and enjoyable life. The museum commemorates this happy and progressive time and neighborhood. District 6 was close to the dock, where all of the jobs were, and allowed for people to do quite well for themselves. However in 1966, apartheid laws forced the residents to sell their homes for next to nothing and more out into the “cape flats” or townships. The city bulldozed the homes of District 6 and created high end housing for the “whites.” At various points, non-whites were not even allowed within Cape Town city limits. With few jobs outside of the city and no transportation into the city to work at the port, the once educated and prosperous “blacks” and “coloureds” fell into poverty.
Townships (basically squatter villages) cover the landscape outside of the city. People make their homes out of anything they can- pieces of plastic, tin, wood, etc. Lavinia said that the shacks within the townships of South Africa are built unusually close together. As we were driving in the countryside, the townships literally went on for miles- millions of people. Many townships have electricity through a single wire brought in from the highway and everyone hooking up to it. The government provides limited/no resources to the townships. Public education is not free, and many to most children in the townships do not attend school. Some townships have as high as 50% HIV/AIDS infection rate. While the national unemployment level is 40%, townships frequently have an unemployment rate of 80%. As people are pushed farther and farther from the city, jobs are more and more scarce.
We had a graduate student from South Africa join us between Morocco and South Africa, Dayle, who gave a number of wonderful speeches about her childhood and the current issues in her native country. South Africa has roughly 12 political parties, the ANC (Nelson Mandela’s party) has been in control since his presidency. The other 11 parties do not really actually have a chance of ever acquiring power. However, in recent years the ANC has become quite corrupt and another group split off from it making a new political party. Elections are coming up this April and for once the ANC will have significant competition from this new break off group. From what I gather, the country would be better off with this new party. The candidate for the ANC has been convicted of both major financial scandals and rape in recent years.
More to come… :-)
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Namibia
My three short, but incredible days in Namibia
We arrived in Walvis Bay (pronounced Wall fish) on Saturday morning and the US Embassy boarded our ship to give us a diplomatic briefing. Namibia is roughly the size of Texas, but with a population of 2 million. The vast majority of it is miles of sand dunes making up the Namib Desert. One of the really cool things is that the dunes literally come right up to the water. Namibia was long a German colony and continues to have a strong German presence. There are 12 official languages but the main 3 are: English, German and Africant (which is a mix of Dutch, German and a native tribal language). The original inhabitants of Namibia are the Ovahimba people who live in the Kalahari Desert to the east. While I did not have the opportunity to travel to their tribal lands (you have to take a plane), there were a number of women and children in traditional garb at a few of the places we went. Their traditional clothing is similar to that one might wear to a topless beach. They cover their skin and parts of their scalp with red clay to serve as protection from the sun. Because they do this so frequently, even when washed off, their dark skin still has a red tint.
I traveled with my fellow Livelong Learner, Hayley, the Communications Coordinator, Mark and one of the Resident Directors, Bradford. We began our adventure by going on the SAS run City Orientation of Swakopmund (a town about 30 miles north of Walvis Bay). Walvis Bay is a more industrial town- it’s port serves both all of Namibia and Angola. Swakopmund on the other hand is more of a tourist destination, but also a popular place to live for Namibians. We first went to a crystal museum where the largest Quartz crystal in the world is housed. Namibia’s main exports are uranium, salt and crystals. We then went to a rug making factory that was quite impressive. They start with the raw wool, wash it, dye it, spin it and then proceed to make incredible rugs in various sizes. You can even send in a picture and they can make an identical rug of it.
We wandered around Swakopmund that afternoon. It has a nice beach and because it was a Saturday all of the local children were out in the water. We went to a fantastic museum about Swakopmund and Namibian history- very well done. That evening we ended up at the Lighthouse Pub that overlooked the same beach. Ironically we had pizza and burgers. I have to say for being neighbors with South Africa, a famous wine country, all of the wine I tried in Namibia was terrible! Then again, most people go to Namibia for the German beer. We really lucked out with a great hotel that night with a balcony that overlooked the ocean where we got to watch the sun set.
The next day we woke early and had a traditional European breakfast at the hotel- it reminded me of Ireland. A van picked us up and we made our way back to Walvis Bay for a catamaran. We had an incredible three hour trip on the catamaran- it could hold probably about 45, but there were only 25 of us so we were able to move around quite a bit. We were the only Americans- mostly German tourists. A seal even came up on our boat and we got to pet it! We toured around the bay seeing islands full of seals, a fifty year old ship wreck and incredible views of the dunes from the water. We dined on oysters- one of the foods for which Namibia is famous. That afternoon we headed back to Swakopmund and hung out a terrific beach bar/shack while Mark had an interview with a local reporter.
The second night we stayed at Rossmund Golf Lodge about 5 km north of Swakopmund. After checking in, we hit some balls at the driving range and then went for a swim. At the clubhouse we met an SAS kid from San Francisco who actually plays golf for Willamette- small world! We went back into town for dinner that night and ran into a bunch of SASers who had great stories of their trips so far- Namibia is a huge Adventure Sports place with skydiving, parasailing, dune surfing, sand dune buggies, etc. We tried Ostrich for dinner- very good actually, and again some terrible wine, haha. Our bungalows that night at the lodge were great except for the lack of air conditioning- it was quite warm!
We awoke early the next day for our 8 o’clock tee time. Hayley’s dad and brother are big time golfers (her brother almost went pro) however she has never played. Nonetheless she made a great golf cart driver and helped me with some of my putting. The boys are both decent golfers, but not very serious. Fortunately, it was cloudy for the first nine- keeping it slightly cooler before the sun really came out for the second nine. The clubhouse is closed on Mondays so we were literally some of the only people out on the course. When looking at it, it really looks like an oasis of green with desert on all four sides. We joked that we felt like we were on safari because the course was covered with herds of Onyx (like a small antelope) and various types of birds. I didn’t keep score, but nonetheless it was fun to golf in Namibia!
After our long game it was time to head back to the ship. Today is our only day on the ship before we get to South Africa where we will spend five days. More to come soon!! Love always, Rose.
We arrived in Walvis Bay (pronounced Wall fish) on Saturday morning and the US Embassy boarded our ship to give us a diplomatic briefing. Namibia is roughly the size of Texas, but with a population of 2 million. The vast majority of it is miles of sand dunes making up the Namib Desert. One of the really cool things is that the dunes literally come right up to the water. Namibia was long a German colony and continues to have a strong German presence. There are 12 official languages but the main 3 are: English, German and Africant (which is a mix of Dutch, German and a native tribal language). The original inhabitants of Namibia are the Ovahimba people who live in the Kalahari Desert to the east. While I did not have the opportunity to travel to their tribal lands (you have to take a plane), there were a number of women and children in traditional garb at a few of the places we went. Their traditional clothing is similar to that one might wear to a topless beach. They cover their skin and parts of their scalp with red clay to serve as protection from the sun. Because they do this so frequently, even when washed off, their dark skin still has a red tint.
I traveled with my fellow Livelong Learner, Hayley, the Communications Coordinator, Mark and one of the Resident Directors, Bradford. We began our adventure by going on the SAS run City Orientation of Swakopmund (a town about 30 miles north of Walvis Bay). Walvis Bay is a more industrial town- it’s port serves both all of Namibia and Angola. Swakopmund on the other hand is more of a tourist destination, but also a popular place to live for Namibians. We first went to a crystal museum where the largest Quartz crystal in the world is housed. Namibia’s main exports are uranium, salt and crystals. We then went to a rug making factory that was quite impressive. They start with the raw wool, wash it, dye it, spin it and then proceed to make incredible rugs in various sizes. You can even send in a picture and they can make an identical rug of it.
We wandered around Swakopmund that afternoon. It has a nice beach and because it was a Saturday all of the local children were out in the water. We went to a fantastic museum about Swakopmund and Namibian history- very well done. That evening we ended up at the Lighthouse Pub that overlooked the same beach. Ironically we had pizza and burgers. I have to say for being neighbors with South Africa, a famous wine country, all of the wine I tried in Namibia was terrible! Then again, most people go to Namibia for the German beer. We really lucked out with a great hotel that night with a balcony that overlooked the ocean where we got to watch the sun set.
The next day we woke early and had a traditional European breakfast at the hotel- it reminded me of Ireland. A van picked us up and we made our way back to Walvis Bay for a catamaran. We had an incredible three hour trip on the catamaran- it could hold probably about 45, but there were only 25 of us so we were able to move around quite a bit. We were the only Americans- mostly German tourists. A seal even came up on our boat and we got to pet it! We toured around the bay seeing islands full of seals, a fifty year old ship wreck and incredible views of the dunes from the water. We dined on oysters- one of the foods for which Namibia is famous. That afternoon we headed back to Swakopmund and hung out a terrific beach bar/shack while Mark had an interview with a local reporter.
The second night we stayed at Rossmund Golf Lodge about 5 km north of Swakopmund. After checking in, we hit some balls at the driving range and then went for a swim. At the clubhouse we met an SAS kid from San Francisco who actually plays golf for Willamette- small world! We went back into town for dinner that night and ran into a bunch of SASers who had great stories of their trips so far- Namibia is a huge Adventure Sports place with skydiving, parasailing, dune surfing, sand dune buggies, etc. We tried Ostrich for dinner- very good actually, and again some terrible wine, haha. Our bungalows that night at the lodge were great except for the lack of air conditioning- it was quite warm!
We awoke early the next day for our 8 o’clock tee time. Hayley’s dad and brother are big time golfers (her brother almost went pro) however she has never played. Nonetheless she made a great golf cart driver and helped me with some of my putting. The boys are both decent golfers, but not very serious. Fortunately, it was cloudy for the first nine- keeping it slightly cooler before the sun really came out for the second nine. The clubhouse is closed on Mondays so we were literally some of the only people out on the course. When looking at it, it really looks like an oasis of green with desert on all four sides. We joked that we felt like we were on safari because the course was covered with herds of Onyx (like a small antelope) and various types of birds. I didn’t keep score, but nonetheless it was fun to golf in Namibia!
After our long game it was time to head back to the ship. Today is our only day on the ship before we get to South Africa where we will spend five days. More to come soon!! Love always, Rose.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Greetings from the Equator!!
Tuesday at about 3:30pm we passed the 0 degrees latitude commonly known as the equator. The captain came on the loud speaker and said that because of the swells we would not be able to see the actual line, but to look for it nonetheless, haha. Monday we celebrated Neptune Day to mark our crossing-although it didn’t happen till today. Various traditions of Neptune date back to the 16th century when navies crossed the equator. People who have not crossed it by boat are called “pollywogs” and those who have are called “shellbacks.” Classes were cancelled for the day- which was fortunate because at 7am the crew came through the halls banging pots and pans while shouting. Festivities began at 9am with a parade. All Shellbacks were painted green and had various forms of togas on. The weather was incredible all day long! The initiation of a Pollywog involved standing in the kiddie pool while having green colored water “fish guts” poured on you. Then you had to kiss Kind Neptune’s ring (the captain) and bow to the queen. Before jumping in the pool to clean off, you had to literally kiss a dead fish that someone was holding. After climbing out of the pool, a Pollywog then is knighted by another person and officially becomes a Shellback. I’m actually in the middle of a cold, so I did not participate in the activities, but served as a loyal spectator. The die-hards then go on to have their heads shaved. Altogether I think about 50 guys and 15 girls shaved their heads! Needless to say, I still have my hair.
I am becoming more and more involved with activities on the ship. I am the “mother” to a group of 8 students in the extended family program- 6 girls and 2 boys. We all had dinner together the other day and played a few games. They were all very nice and excited to join the family- notably one girl is from Jackson Hole and goes to Santa Clara and another one is an Alpha Chi at Bucknell. Later this week we are going to have a scavenger hunt. Thanks to Molly and Bridget, I have lots of great art supplies to make fun signs and invitations for them- reliving my days as a fourth grade teacher :-)
My fellow Lifelong Learner Hayley and I are also participating in the Vicarious Voyage program. We were paired up with a 4th/5th grade science/social studies class in Houston! It is an alternative learning school called The Joy School. Hayley is from just outside of Houston so hopefully we will be able to visit the classroom at the beginning of June while I’m at Institute. The teacher went on SAS herself while she was in college and is very enthusiastic. Hayley and I have both been busy collecting things from Spain and Morocco to send to the kiddies. They wrote us letters the other day that were adorable! Hayley taught 2nd grade the last two years, so between the two of us, I think we will do a good job of sending our experience back to The Joy School.
Lastly, I’m also serving on the Olympics Committee and Student Council. We have the Sea Olympics in-between Mauritius and India. It is an all day long event in which all of the “seas” compete against one another. Each sea is basically one of the halls and then all of the faculty/staff/ LLLs are on one team together- I am one of their representatives. While most of the seas have normal names- the Yellow Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Arctic Sea, etc., our group is called the Oddies-C. I also get to attend the student council meetings with another woman on behalf of the LLLs and learn about shipboard events, plans, etc. The topic of the first meeting revolved around the problem of there not being peanut butter at the lunch service… I’ll keep you posted on other breaking news. To be honest though, I think the majority of us realize how extremely fortunate we are to be on this voyage and don’t get caught up in such small stuff.
Catching up on Morocco!!
I truly enjoyed my time in Morocco, even though it was cut a day short because of bad weather in Gibraltar. The first two days I went on an SAS trip to Marrakech and Ourika Valley and had the third day to explore Casablanca. Our bus ride to Marrakech was about 3.5 hours long, but greatly interesting. We traversed through the large metropolis of Casablanca to pastures filled with sheep. Morocco is quite fertile for being so close to the Sahara. The main exports are phosphates (for fertilizers), oranges and tomatoes. Some of the soil is clay like though and the rural homes are made out of adobe- similar to Native American homes in the southwest. The land also reminded me of Ireland in that the people cleared the field of rocks and made fences out of them. Not to brag, but the Irish made better walls. :-) I really enjoyed getting to see the shepherds out with their small herds. I wasn’t exactly sure why someone would look after only a dozen sheep or so and I had varying answers: to make sure they weren’t lost or stolen, to keep away predators, and to ensure they only eat the best kinds of grass. It was neat to see such a completely un-touristy site. Most of the small clusters of adobe homes did not have electricity and if they did, it was a single wire carried out from the highway to one of their homes.
Morocco was long a French colony and thus Arabic and French are the two main languages, followed by Berber. Arriving in Marrakech we first ventured to a famous garden of a French furniture maker. In his day, he was known far and wide for his extraordinary collection of plants- I think there were over 1,000 different kinds of plants in the garden- including almost every variety of cacti. Funny enough, there was also a memorial for Yves Saint Laurent, the designer, who spent much time in the garden during his life and had his ashes spread there about his death last June. Next we visited one of the palaces of Marrakech- my understanding is that it is still owned and utilized by the royal family. However, despite royal wealth and the many tourists paying to see it, it sadly was not well kept at all. No furnishings or rugs- the main attractions were incredible mosaics and tile work. Though it was quite impressive, it doesn’t hold a candle to the Alhambra in Granada.
We then ventured on into the Medina of Marrakech- the Medina is a large wall holding the old part of the city- probably about 2 miles by 2 miles. Inside is the biggest mosque in the city, the main square, the Souks (the vendors) as well as a Club Med and other hotels, haha. The driving in Morocco is absolutely unbelievable!!! First of all, similar to most places other than the US, all of the cars are very small- a mini would be considered a larger sedan. Secondly, mopeds/scooters weave in and out of traffic at their leisure. Thirdly, there is NO space in-between cars. Our huge bus would literally pull up about 10 inches from the petite vehicle or bike in front of us. I cannot believe I didn’t witness any accidents, but I hear they do have a rather high rate. Nonetheless, it was truly something else- do not rent a car in Morocco!
In the Medina we first visited a public library before trekking by the Mosque to the square. Non-Muslims are only allowed in specific mosques at specific times and unfortunately, we were unable to go in. The town square was truly something else! Granted much of the spectacle was directed towards the many American and European tourists there, it still was cool to see. Monkeys, serpents rising from baskets, music, henna tattoos, storytelling, dancing, etc.
We had a delightful lunch at a neat restaurant that overlooked the plaza. We dined on traditional Moroccan grub- An eggplant and pico de gallo salad, a lamb with prunes and nuts main course, and plain yogurt for dessert. The main courses are served in a dish called a “Tajin.” It’s a clay plate with a lip around it with a teepee looking top part that is removed once the meal is served. Traditionally, the food is cooked in this clay “pot” over embers- but nowadays it’s usually just served in one.
After our dinner we ventured with our two guides into the Souks. I have no idea how many miles and miles of small meandering passageways make out the Souks and I am quite certain there is no map- it would be nearly impossible to make one. These narrow and sometimes medieval looking roads are bordered by shop after shop selling anything from dried fruit, to cow brain, to tourist magnets, to local pottery and more! As if these crowded streets, often lined with those less fortunate asking for money, weren’t crowded enough- people ride their bikes and motor scooters through them at full speed. It was crazy! I can’t believe I didn’t see anyone get hurt. Our guide took us to three specific shops, where I think he got a kickback from what we bought. We first went to a pharmacy where they ushered us into a backroom filled with seats and lined with hundreds of jars filled with who knows what. Clearly a tourist production, a guy came out with two assistants and promptly put on a show explaining their products. I thought no one would buy anything and it would be an awkward goodbye, but to my surprise- much of my group ended up buying random remedies and teas. I bought a few containers of saffron to bring home, but that’s it. As we checked out other shops, I also bought a small carved wooden rabbit :-) and a very mini “Tajin.”
We then headed to our hotel to clean up before dinner. I was paired up with a student from Quinnipiac who was very nice, however I felt terrible for her as she ended up rather ill from something she ate. The hotel was okay, nothing to go on about. At 8:30 our bus picked us up again and we travelled about 30 minutes out into the country to our dinner. Somewhere in-between Disneyland and Moroccan Medieval Times, we found ourselves at a huge venue with dozens of other tourist groups to witness the reenactment of traditional Moroccan life. Although I must say it was very well planned out and we didn’t even realize how many other people were there until we all left at the end. We walked through a line of gun toting men on horses into a fake cave to replicate where Moroccans used to keep their loot. We then walked through about 8 different groups of men and women each dressed in different traditional Moroccan wear. These same groups later came into our dining room and sang, drummed, hollered, and danced for us. Our dining room resembled the inside of a royal tent. We dined on more traditional Moroccan food-Bread, a tomato salad, a meatball with fried egg and tomato sauce dish, and then a large Tajin with chicken, vegetables and couscous, and for dessert- oranges. After dinner we made our way out to a large stadium where we witnessed belly dancing, men doing tricks on horses while the horses are running at full speed, camels, dancing, horses charging and men shooting off guns and a traditional Moroccan parade. It was truly a spectacle, but also kind of cool to see as I think it was rather accurate to the old days.
The next day our bus picked us up and we headed up into Ourika valley in the mountains outside of Marrakech. Again we were able to witness locals going about their everyday lives. We stopped at one Berber home- made more out of mud than adobe and saw a very primitive, but still in use, grain mill. They also had a small shop where I purchased a small stone carved rabbit J. We visited another Berber home and participated in a traditional tea service. Mint tea with sugar is the drink of choice in this Muslim country. While visiting this home, which also had their cows living just outside of the kitchen, I also got to use my first squat toilet- enough said. On the way back into town we had the opportunity to stop at a local school. It was actually a charter school with an emphasis on the study of nature. The principal said that the poorest in the community have the opportunity to attend. They are realistic in their studies and in middle school begin to focus on trades- handcrafts for the women and agriculture for the men. In the schools, the students learn classical Arabic, French and also how to properly write the common Arabic that they first learned. On a side note- there is skiing in Morocco! We passed the road up to the ski area while up in the mountains- I also took pictures of the snow covered hills.
We returned to Marrakech and to the main square for lunch. It was actually my favorite Moroccan meal of all. We started with a tomato salad with hard-boiled eggs and olives, and then a tajin with potatoes, green olives and chicken baked with a salty saffron sauce- I loved it! Lastly, we tried orange sections in orange juice sprinkled with cinnamon for dessert. After lunch, I picked up a few trinkets to send back to my vicarious voyage classroom before we boarded the bus to return to Casablanca. I spent that night on the ship- we would have gone out to see the town, but unfortunately the port is not centrally located and it was raining quite hard so we decided to stay in.
Our last day in Morocco a friend and I ventured into town and had lunch at Rick’s Café- it’s the restaurant from the movie Casablanca. I actually have not seen the movie, but it was very fun nonetheless. Also, the tech guy on our ship who is also a fairly famous guitar player was playing there that day so we got to listen to some great music with lunch. After that we wandered around a bit, unfortunately it was raining, and found a great souvenir shop where you don’t have to barter. I am not very good at bartering and usually don’t get a very good deal- so it was nice to just have the prices set out- which were all very fair. I actually didn’t get anything there, but my friend found a number of trinkets to spend his last “Durhams” on. It’s a big deal to get back to the ship on time- so we promptly made our way back after that.
More to come soon! Love always, Rose.
Tuesday at about 3:30pm we passed the 0 degrees latitude commonly known as the equator. The captain came on the loud speaker and said that because of the swells we would not be able to see the actual line, but to look for it nonetheless, haha. Monday we celebrated Neptune Day to mark our crossing-although it didn’t happen till today. Various traditions of Neptune date back to the 16th century when navies crossed the equator. People who have not crossed it by boat are called “pollywogs” and those who have are called “shellbacks.” Classes were cancelled for the day- which was fortunate because at 7am the crew came through the halls banging pots and pans while shouting. Festivities began at 9am with a parade. All Shellbacks were painted green and had various forms of togas on. The weather was incredible all day long! The initiation of a Pollywog involved standing in the kiddie pool while having green colored water “fish guts” poured on you. Then you had to kiss Kind Neptune’s ring (the captain) and bow to the queen. Before jumping in the pool to clean off, you had to literally kiss a dead fish that someone was holding. After climbing out of the pool, a Pollywog then is knighted by another person and officially becomes a Shellback. I’m actually in the middle of a cold, so I did not participate in the activities, but served as a loyal spectator. The die-hards then go on to have their heads shaved. Altogether I think about 50 guys and 15 girls shaved their heads! Needless to say, I still have my hair.
I am becoming more and more involved with activities on the ship. I am the “mother” to a group of 8 students in the extended family program- 6 girls and 2 boys. We all had dinner together the other day and played a few games. They were all very nice and excited to join the family- notably one girl is from Jackson Hole and goes to Santa Clara and another one is an Alpha Chi at Bucknell. Later this week we are going to have a scavenger hunt. Thanks to Molly and Bridget, I have lots of great art supplies to make fun signs and invitations for them- reliving my days as a fourth grade teacher :-)
My fellow Lifelong Learner Hayley and I are also participating in the Vicarious Voyage program. We were paired up with a 4th/5th grade science/social studies class in Houston! It is an alternative learning school called The Joy School. Hayley is from just outside of Houston so hopefully we will be able to visit the classroom at the beginning of June while I’m at Institute. The teacher went on SAS herself while she was in college and is very enthusiastic. Hayley and I have both been busy collecting things from Spain and Morocco to send to the kiddies. They wrote us letters the other day that were adorable! Hayley taught 2nd grade the last two years, so between the two of us, I think we will do a good job of sending our experience back to The Joy School.
Lastly, I’m also serving on the Olympics Committee and Student Council. We have the Sea Olympics in-between Mauritius and India. It is an all day long event in which all of the “seas” compete against one another. Each sea is basically one of the halls and then all of the faculty/staff/ LLLs are on one team together- I am one of their representatives. While most of the seas have normal names- the Yellow Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Arctic Sea, etc., our group is called the Oddies-C. I also get to attend the student council meetings with another woman on behalf of the LLLs and learn about shipboard events, plans, etc. The topic of the first meeting revolved around the problem of there not being peanut butter at the lunch service… I’ll keep you posted on other breaking news. To be honest though, I think the majority of us realize how extremely fortunate we are to be on this voyage and don’t get caught up in such small stuff.
Catching up on Morocco!!
I truly enjoyed my time in Morocco, even though it was cut a day short because of bad weather in Gibraltar. The first two days I went on an SAS trip to Marrakech and Ourika Valley and had the third day to explore Casablanca. Our bus ride to Marrakech was about 3.5 hours long, but greatly interesting. We traversed through the large metropolis of Casablanca to pastures filled with sheep. Morocco is quite fertile for being so close to the Sahara. The main exports are phosphates (for fertilizers), oranges and tomatoes. Some of the soil is clay like though and the rural homes are made out of adobe- similar to Native American homes in the southwest. The land also reminded me of Ireland in that the people cleared the field of rocks and made fences out of them. Not to brag, but the Irish made better walls. :-) I really enjoyed getting to see the shepherds out with their small herds. I wasn’t exactly sure why someone would look after only a dozen sheep or so and I had varying answers: to make sure they weren’t lost or stolen, to keep away predators, and to ensure they only eat the best kinds of grass. It was neat to see such a completely un-touristy site. Most of the small clusters of adobe homes did not have electricity and if they did, it was a single wire carried out from the highway to one of their homes.
Morocco was long a French colony and thus Arabic and French are the two main languages, followed by Berber. Arriving in Marrakech we first ventured to a famous garden of a French furniture maker. In his day, he was known far and wide for his extraordinary collection of plants- I think there were over 1,000 different kinds of plants in the garden- including almost every variety of cacti. Funny enough, there was also a memorial for Yves Saint Laurent, the designer, who spent much time in the garden during his life and had his ashes spread there about his death last June. Next we visited one of the palaces of Marrakech- my understanding is that it is still owned and utilized by the royal family. However, despite royal wealth and the many tourists paying to see it, it sadly was not well kept at all. No furnishings or rugs- the main attractions were incredible mosaics and tile work. Though it was quite impressive, it doesn’t hold a candle to the Alhambra in Granada.
We then ventured on into the Medina of Marrakech- the Medina is a large wall holding the old part of the city- probably about 2 miles by 2 miles. Inside is the biggest mosque in the city, the main square, the Souks (the vendors) as well as a Club Med and other hotels, haha. The driving in Morocco is absolutely unbelievable!!! First of all, similar to most places other than the US, all of the cars are very small- a mini would be considered a larger sedan. Secondly, mopeds/scooters weave in and out of traffic at their leisure. Thirdly, there is NO space in-between cars. Our huge bus would literally pull up about 10 inches from the petite vehicle or bike in front of us. I cannot believe I didn’t witness any accidents, but I hear they do have a rather high rate. Nonetheless, it was truly something else- do not rent a car in Morocco!
In the Medina we first visited a public library before trekking by the Mosque to the square. Non-Muslims are only allowed in specific mosques at specific times and unfortunately, we were unable to go in. The town square was truly something else! Granted much of the spectacle was directed towards the many American and European tourists there, it still was cool to see. Monkeys, serpents rising from baskets, music, henna tattoos, storytelling, dancing, etc.
We had a delightful lunch at a neat restaurant that overlooked the plaza. We dined on traditional Moroccan grub- An eggplant and pico de gallo salad, a lamb with prunes and nuts main course, and plain yogurt for dessert. The main courses are served in a dish called a “Tajin.” It’s a clay plate with a lip around it with a teepee looking top part that is removed once the meal is served. Traditionally, the food is cooked in this clay “pot” over embers- but nowadays it’s usually just served in one.
After our dinner we ventured with our two guides into the Souks. I have no idea how many miles and miles of small meandering passageways make out the Souks and I am quite certain there is no map- it would be nearly impossible to make one. These narrow and sometimes medieval looking roads are bordered by shop after shop selling anything from dried fruit, to cow brain, to tourist magnets, to local pottery and more! As if these crowded streets, often lined with those less fortunate asking for money, weren’t crowded enough- people ride their bikes and motor scooters through them at full speed. It was crazy! I can’t believe I didn’t see anyone get hurt. Our guide took us to three specific shops, where I think he got a kickback from what we bought. We first went to a pharmacy where they ushered us into a backroom filled with seats and lined with hundreds of jars filled with who knows what. Clearly a tourist production, a guy came out with two assistants and promptly put on a show explaining their products. I thought no one would buy anything and it would be an awkward goodbye, but to my surprise- much of my group ended up buying random remedies and teas. I bought a few containers of saffron to bring home, but that’s it. As we checked out other shops, I also bought a small carved wooden rabbit :-) and a very mini “Tajin.”
We then headed to our hotel to clean up before dinner. I was paired up with a student from Quinnipiac who was very nice, however I felt terrible for her as she ended up rather ill from something she ate. The hotel was okay, nothing to go on about. At 8:30 our bus picked us up again and we travelled about 30 minutes out into the country to our dinner. Somewhere in-between Disneyland and Moroccan Medieval Times, we found ourselves at a huge venue with dozens of other tourist groups to witness the reenactment of traditional Moroccan life. Although I must say it was very well planned out and we didn’t even realize how many other people were there until we all left at the end. We walked through a line of gun toting men on horses into a fake cave to replicate where Moroccans used to keep their loot. We then walked through about 8 different groups of men and women each dressed in different traditional Moroccan wear. These same groups later came into our dining room and sang, drummed, hollered, and danced for us. Our dining room resembled the inside of a royal tent. We dined on more traditional Moroccan food-Bread, a tomato salad, a meatball with fried egg and tomato sauce dish, and then a large Tajin with chicken, vegetables and couscous, and for dessert- oranges. After dinner we made our way out to a large stadium where we witnessed belly dancing, men doing tricks on horses while the horses are running at full speed, camels, dancing, horses charging and men shooting off guns and a traditional Moroccan parade. It was truly a spectacle, but also kind of cool to see as I think it was rather accurate to the old days.
The next day our bus picked us up and we headed up into Ourika valley in the mountains outside of Marrakech. Again we were able to witness locals going about their everyday lives. We stopped at one Berber home- made more out of mud than adobe and saw a very primitive, but still in use, grain mill. They also had a small shop where I purchased a small stone carved rabbit J. We visited another Berber home and participated in a traditional tea service. Mint tea with sugar is the drink of choice in this Muslim country. While visiting this home, which also had their cows living just outside of the kitchen, I also got to use my first squat toilet- enough said. On the way back into town we had the opportunity to stop at a local school. It was actually a charter school with an emphasis on the study of nature. The principal said that the poorest in the community have the opportunity to attend. They are realistic in their studies and in middle school begin to focus on trades- handcrafts for the women and agriculture for the men. In the schools, the students learn classical Arabic, French and also how to properly write the common Arabic that they first learned. On a side note- there is skiing in Morocco! We passed the road up to the ski area while up in the mountains- I also took pictures of the snow covered hills.
We returned to Marrakech and to the main square for lunch. It was actually my favorite Moroccan meal of all. We started with a tomato salad with hard-boiled eggs and olives, and then a tajin with potatoes, green olives and chicken baked with a salty saffron sauce- I loved it! Lastly, we tried orange sections in orange juice sprinkled with cinnamon for dessert. After lunch, I picked up a few trinkets to send back to my vicarious voyage classroom before we boarded the bus to return to Casablanca. I spent that night on the ship- we would have gone out to see the town, but unfortunately the port is not centrally located and it was raining quite hard so we decided to stay in.
Our last day in Morocco a friend and I ventured into town and had lunch at Rick’s Café- it’s the restaurant from the movie Casablanca. I actually have not seen the movie, but it was very fun nonetheless. Also, the tech guy on our ship who is also a fairly famous guitar player was playing there that day so we got to listen to some great music with lunch. After that we wandered around a bit, unfortunately it was raining, and found a great souvenir shop where you don’t have to barter. I am not very good at bartering and usually don’t get a very good deal- so it was nice to just have the prices set out- which were all very fair. I actually didn’t get anything there, but my friend found a number of trinkets to spend his last “Durhams” on. It’s a big deal to get back to the ship on time- so we promptly made our way back after that.
More to come soon! Love always, Rose.
Monday, February 2, 2009
So much to catch up on….
So I met a man in Spain and we’re engaged… hahaha, just kidding. Spain was a blast and I was thankful to have the opportunity to visit some places I had been before and see new ones. The stretch between the Bahamas and Spain included 7 straight days of classes- no weekends for us! My typical day on the ship begins with the Global Studies class from 9:20-10:35- the entire ship attends this class. This is the class that preps us for our upcoming ports and often features guest speakers from the country who sail with us for a few days. The lecturer for Spain was a University of Virginia professor of Spanish named David Geis- he was a hoot! In fact, he was knighted by the Spanish king for all of his contributions to spreading Spanish culture- he has authored a number of books.
Our days are lettered A and B days- needless to say I have more or less forgotten the normal Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. On A days I am taking a class about Islam and politics followed by an International Strategic Management class. The later is far more interesting and is taught by a delightful British woman. On B days I have been sitting in on a variety of classes- unfortunately because the classrooms are rather small, we can’t check all of them out. Most of all, I feel like I have learned a lot about Islam and the history of northern Africa. At first it was hard to stay awake in class with the rocking of the ship, but I’m doing well now.
We were blessed with fantastic weather in Spain! The first day my friend Nichole and I walked around Cadiz and took in the sights- it’s a beach town on a peninsula. We were very brave and ordered the “tapas variadas” for lunch- a variety of local cuisine: fried sardines, risotto with lamb, fish egg sausage with pineapple in a cream sauce, oysters with salsa. That night we went to a flamenco show with SAS. It was way out in the country at a ranch with a little corral complete with seats. They did traditional flamenco dancing with a horse (a very well trained one) out in the corral. Then they had a mini-bullfight. A bull ran out who was not much bigger than Guinness and one of the students yelled out the funny nickname “Killer.” Obviously no swords were involved and the bull returned to his mother unharmed- after trying to a couple of naps during the show. We then went inside for sangria and tapas and more flamenco dancing. That night we went out to a couple bars in Cadiz and had a good time.
The next morning my fellow lifelong learner Hayley and two students, Josh and Maverick, went on an SAS trip to see the white towns of the south. We first visited Arcos De La Frontera which looked out on a valley and then on to Ronda- also on a cliff. We had a lunch of traditional food- pork, rice, French fries and a soup with egg and ham. We then split from the group to find our hotel. David Geis had told us about a great hotel named the Parador. There are 83 of them altogether- like McMenamins, most of them are old buildings that have been redone. We got a great internet special and were able to stay at the Parador right on the famous cliff. We wandered the streets of Ronda and took in the sights. The next day we took a 2 hour bus to Seville. Unfortunately we got a little lost trying to find our hostel- but it served as a great way to see the city. We went out for a traditional Spanish dinner that night- we tried paella (the national dish of spain- rice with saffron and a myriad of seafood) and traditional sausages. We went out a little bit that night- the streets were packed with US students studying abroad in Seville. The next morning we toured the Palace and hoped to see the Cathedral- but unfortunately didn’t get to. I had seen the palace before, but it was neat to see it again- lots of Arabian tile work! We boarded a bus back to Cadiz to make sure we weren’t late- you get “dock time” for being late which means at the next port you have to stay on the ship for a while.
We only had one day on the ship between Cadiz and Casablanca, but we stopped in Gibraltar to fuel. There ended up being a big storm, so we had to stay overnight anchored in Gibraltar until the seas were calm enough to bring the fuel out to us. Some of the students thought we had stayed there just so we would get enough television reception to watch the SuperBowl- but that wasn’t the case, haha. We did get a foggy reception and about 300 people stayed up until 1:30am when it started. So we ended up losing one of our days in Casablanca, but there isn’t much we could do about it. Fortunately, it doesn’t affect my main trip which leaves tomorrow morning. More to come on Morocco soon!! I love you all lots!!
So I met a man in Spain and we’re engaged… hahaha, just kidding. Spain was a blast and I was thankful to have the opportunity to visit some places I had been before and see new ones. The stretch between the Bahamas and Spain included 7 straight days of classes- no weekends for us! My typical day on the ship begins with the Global Studies class from 9:20-10:35- the entire ship attends this class. This is the class that preps us for our upcoming ports and often features guest speakers from the country who sail with us for a few days. The lecturer for Spain was a University of Virginia professor of Spanish named David Geis- he was a hoot! In fact, he was knighted by the Spanish king for all of his contributions to spreading Spanish culture- he has authored a number of books.
Our days are lettered A and B days- needless to say I have more or less forgotten the normal Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. On A days I am taking a class about Islam and politics followed by an International Strategic Management class. The later is far more interesting and is taught by a delightful British woman. On B days I have been sitting in on a variety of classes- unfortunately because the classrooms are rather small, we can’t check all of them out. Most of all, I feel like I have learned a lot about Islam and the history of northern Africa. At first it was hard to stay awake in class with the rocking of the ship, but I’m doing well now.
We were blessed with fantastic weather in Spain! The first day my friend Nichole and I walked around Cadiz and took in the sights- it’s a beach town on a peninsula. We were very brave and ordered the “tapas variadas” for lunch- a variety of local cuisine: fried sardines, risotto with lamb, fish egg sausage with pineapple in a cream sauce, oysters with salsa. That night we went to a flamenco show with SAS. It was way out in the country at a ranch with a little corral complete with seats. They did traditional flamenco dancing with a horse (a very well trained one) out in the corral. Then they had a mini-bullfight. A bull ran out who was not much bigger than Guinness and one of the students yelled out the funny nickname “Killer.” Obviously no swords were involved and the bull returned to his mother unharmed- after trying to a couple of naps during the show. We then went inside for sangria and tapas and more flamenco dancing. That night we went out to a couple bars in Cadiz and had a good time.
The next morning my fellow lifelong learner Hayley and two students, Josh and Maverick, went on an SAS trip to see the white towns of the south. We first visited Arcos De La Frontera which looked out on a valley and then on to Ronda- also on a cliff. We had a lunch of traditional food- pork, rice, French fries and a soup with egg and ham. We then split from the group to find our hotel. David Geis had told us about a great hotel named the Parador. There are 83 of them altogether- like McMenamins, most of them are old buildings that have been redone. We got a great internet special and were able to stay at the Parador right on the famous cliff. We wandered the streets of Ronda and took in the sights. The next day we took a 2 hour bus to Seville. Unfortunately we got a little lost trying to find our hostel- but it served as a great way to see the city. We went out for a traditional Spanish dinner that night- we tried paella (the national dish of spain- rice with saffron and a myriad of seafood) and traditional sausages. We went out a little bit that night- the streets were packed with US students studying abroad in Seville. The next morning we toured the Palace and hoped to see the Cathedral- but unfortunately didn’t get to. I had seen the palace before, but it was neat to see it again- lots of Arabian tile work! We boarded a bus back to Cadiz to make sure we weren’t late- you get “dock time” for being late which means at the next port you have to stay on the ship for a while.
We only had one day on the ship between Cadiz and Casablanca, but we stopped in Gibraltar to fuel. There ended up being a big storm, so we had to stay overnight anchored in Gibraltar until the seas were calm enough to bring the fuel out to us. Some of the students thought we had stayed there just so we would get enough television reception to watch the SuperBowl- but that wasn’t the case, haha. We did get a foggy reception and about 300 people stayed up until 1:30am when it started. So we ended up losing one of our days in Casablanca, but there isn’t much we could do about it. Fortunately, it doesn’t affect my main trip which leaves tomorrow morning. More to come on Morocco soon!! I love you all lots!!
Friday, January 23, 2009
Catching up!
Hi all,
Today is my fourth day on the ship- time flies! I made it safely to Nassau and met a fellow voyager on the plane named Phoebe, who is from California. When we arrived at the airport we were greeted by a steel drum band a man dressed in a light blue tux with matching shoes welcoming us. Phoebe and I shared a cab into town with a very helpful driver who helped us get our bearings. My hotel was alright, not fabulous, but not bad. Phoebe and I met up for lunch and walked around town. The main dish in Nassau is called Conch Salad. They hammer a conch shell to break the animal’s suction to the shell and then pull it out alive. I had never seen a live conch before! Then they promptly cut it up raw and mixed it with chopped peppers, lettuce, onion, salt and lemon juice. I watched a man prepare numerous conch salads, but didn’t end up trying once since I had also witnessed the hygiene level of the operation.
A friend that I had made on facebook awhile back who was staying at the same hotel, Josh from New Hampshire, arrived and we showed him the sites. We went to the Pirates of Nassau museum which was interesting, but also quite depressing- pirates did not have very pleasant lives! Both Phoebe and Josh were eager to try local cuisine and culture, I realized that I do probably stick closer to tourist joints than others, so I appreciated their influence. I had “conch snappers” for dinner- kind of a fish and chips sort of thing. It was pretty good- conch is sort of a chewy white meat. We tried three of the local beverages- I had “sky juice” which is gin mixed with coconut water, Josh had a “Miami Vice” which is pina colada mixed with daiquiri served similarly to chocolate and vanilla soft serve ice cream, lastly Phoebe tried the local beer which in my opinion tasted exactly like Bud Light, haha. We briefly ventured to Senor Frogs later that night and partook in dancing as well as a conga line.
Phoebe and Josh boarded earlier than me on the next day (they both have internships on the ship) so I had a while to look around and take in Nassau. It is set up sort of similarly to Lahaina, but not quite as nice. They had a few nice stores mixed in with markets and local shops. I walked through the famous “Straw Market” where you can buy any fake handbag, jewelry, etc. that you like in addition to regional straw baskets and fans.
I took a cab to the port and was quite concerned when he didn’t just drive right up to the gang plank. Most of you know that I am a light packer, but even I had a number of belongings for such a long voyage. To my relief a man came up with a trolled and took my bags all the way to the ship for me. While I was boarding, I met a fellow Lifelong Learner named Hayley from Sugarland, Texas (just north of Houston.) It turns out that there are two other younger Lifelong Learners-Hayley is 27 and Nichole (from DC) is 31. We have nicknamed ourselves the “tweeners” for being somewhat in between the students and the traditional Lifelong Learners. I have really appreciated having them here and look forward to traveling with them!
Fortunately, we all boarded a day before the students so the madness didn’t really begin until the next day when 725 students boarded. My room is quite small, I have to say I was somewhat taken back by it at first sight. However, I have it all to myself so I can’t complain. It has bunk beds but I was able to fold the top bunk up against the wall to make more space. The ship is quite large, however not nearly as big as some of the commercial cruise liners. All together I believe there are just over a thousand people on board. I have to say that it is much rockier than I had anticipated, but I have gotten use to it and have been taking a Bonine anti-seasickness pill every morning- thanks Mom! The food is mostly cafeteria style and has been pretty good so far. The service is incredible! I had no idea I would have people waiting on me, fixing my room everyday, and going out of their way to do things. I also have privilege to the faculty/staff lounge which is fantastic! It’s on the top floor at the front of the ship with windows all the way around- although there is not much to see besides ocean right now. We have a full service bar with happy hour 5-6 and general service 9-11. Perhaps the best part is that instead of nuts, they serve Pepperidge Farm goldfish to go with your drinks. I have also had the chance to meet a number of faculty and their spouses which has been quite interesting. The only down side to the ship is that the workout room is rather small and the sign up sheet system doesn’t work that well just yet. Also, the back deck is a little windy, but I’ve somehow managed to get a little sun time, haha.
Everyone on the ship takes a “Global Studies” class every morning. The Lifelong Learners had to wait a few days before picking classes. I still have just been sitting in on various classes and haven’t quite decided which ones I will take regularly. More to come on classes- although I have to say that the gentle rocking of the ship makes it hard to stay awake sometimes!
We have about 4 more days on the ship until we reach Spain so I am working on finalizing my travel plans. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to add pictures to my blog until I get to Spain since the bandwith on the ship doesn’t allow it. More to come soon!
Today is my fourth day on the ship- time flies! I made it safely to Nassau and met a fellow voyager on the plane named Phoebe, who is from California. When we arrived at the airport we were greeted by a steel drum band a man dressed in a light blue tux with matching shoes welcoming us. Phoebe and I shared a cab into town with a very helpful driver who helped us get our bearings. My hotel was alright, not fabulous, but not bad. Phoebe and I met up for lunch and walked around town. The main dish in Nassau is called Conch Salad. They hammer a conch shell to break the animal’s suction to the shell and then pull it out alive. I had never seen a live conch before! Then they promptly cut it up raw and mixed it with chopped peppers, lettuce, onion, salt and lemon juice. I watched a man prepare numerous conch salads, but didn’t end up trying once since I had also witnessed the hygiene level of the operation.
A friend that I had made on facebook awhile back who was staying at the same hotel, Josh from New Hampshire, arrived and we showed him the sites. We went to the Pirates of Nassau museum which was interesting, but also quite depressing- pirates did not have very pleasant lives! Both Phoebe and Josh were eager to try local cuisine and culture, I realized that I do probably stick closer to tourist joints than others, so I appreciated their influence. I had “conch snappers” for dinner- kind of a fish and chips sort of thing. It was pretty good- conch is sort of a chewy white meat. We tried three of the local beverages- I had “sky juice” which is gin mixed with coconut water, Josh had a “Miami Vice” which is pina colada mixed with daiquiri served similarly to chocolate and vanilla soft serve ice cream, lastly Phoebe tried the local beer which in my opinion tasted exactly like Bud Light, haha. We briefly ventured to Senor Frogs later that night and partook in dancing as well as a conga line.
Phoebe and Josh boarded earlier than me on the next day (they both have internships on the ship) so I had a while to look around and take in Nassau. It is set up sort of similarly to Lahaina, but not quite as nice. They had a few nice stores mixed in with markets and local shops. I walked through the famous “Straw Market” where you can buy any fake handbag, jewelry, etc. that you like in addition to regional straw baskets and fans.
I took a cab to the port and was quite concerned when he didn’t just drive right up to the gang plank. Most of you know that I am a light packer, but even I had a number of belongings for such a long voyage. To my relief a man came up with a trolled and took my bags all the way to the ship for me. While I was boarding, I met a fellow Lifelong Learner named Hayley from Sugarland, Texas (just north of Houston.) It turns out that there are two other younger Lifelong Learners-Hayley is 27 and Nichole (from DC) is 31. We have nicknamed ourselves the “tweeners” for being somewhat in between the students and the traditional Lifelong Learners. I have really appreciated having them here and look forward to traveling with them!
Fortunately, we all boarded a day before the students so the madness didn’t really begin until the next day when 725 students boarded. My room is quite small, I have to say I was somewhat taken back by it at first sight. However, I have it all to myself so I can’t complain. It has bunk beds but I was able to fold the top bunk up against the wall to make more space. The ship is quite large, however not nearly as big as some of the commercial cruise liners. All together I believe there are just over a thousand people on board. I have to say that it is much rockier than I had anticipated, but I have gotten use to it and have been taking a Bonine anti-seasickness pill every morning- thanks Mom! The food is mostly cafeteria style and has been pretty good so far. The service is incredible! I had no idea I would have people waiting on me, fixing my room everyday, and going out of their way to do things. I also have privilege to the faculty/staff lounge which is fantastic! It’s on the top floor at the front of the ship with windows all the way around- although there is not much to see besides ocean right now. We have a full service bar with happy hour 5-6 and general service 9-11. Perhaps the best part is that instead of nuts, they serve Pepperidge Farm goldfish to go with your drinks. I have also had the chance to meet a number of faculty and their spouses which has been quite interesting. The only down side to the ship is that the workout room is rather small and the sign up sheet system doesn’t work that well just yet. Also, the back deck is a little windy, but I’ve somehow managed to get a little sun time, haha.
Everyone on the ship takes a “Global Studies” class every morning. The Lifelong Learners had to wait a few days before picking classes. I still have just been sitting in on various classes and haven’t quite decided which ones I will take regularly. More to come on classes- although I have to say that the gentle rocking of the ship makes it hard to stay awake sometimes!
We have about 4 more days on the ship until we reach Spain so I am working on finalizing my travel plans. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to add pictures to my blog until I get to Spain since the bandwith on the ship doesn’t allow it. More to come soon!
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