First Port: Dominica!

I am now on the way from the first port, Dominica, and headed to
Brazil! It's hard to believe that we are already past a port.
Dominica was amazingly beautiful - it surpassed my expectations
completely. To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect, but the view
from port was an island filled with rolling mountains, jungles and
bright houses.

The First Day: I had a Marine Biology FDP at 1:30, and so did my
roommate Lucy, so we went with some other people into downtown Roseau
and just walked around the markets. It's a very interesting city:
Most of the shopping seemed to be these markets set up specifically
for tourists, and I bought a couple of souvenirs. Lucy and I went
back to the ship for lunch to save money, and then I went to my first
FDP: Snorkeling in Champagne Reef. We had a bus with a tour guide
there, and that was unexpectedly really interesting. We learned many
facts: Like that Dominica is about 60% uninhabited, which is pretty
incredible. She also gave us her insider's view of Dominica's
politics and economy, which was interesting as we toured the city. I
felt like I could see areas that seemed fairly poor right next to
nicer looking houses, so that was interesting. The actual Champagne
Reef was quite pretty - there wasn't really a beach, since the jungle
went almost right up to the shore. Dominica is a volcanic island, and
Champagne Reef has vents that bubble up, giving it the name of
Champagne The coral and the fish of the reef were pretty, but not the
best that I've ever seen. However, when you looked back at the
"bubbles" in the sunlight, it was quite beautiful. My friend Mike and
I had plans to meet up with a few people after snorkeling, but could
never find them. It's hard to find people without a cell phone! So
instead, we just went to a local bar, JR's, in Dominica. It was
pretty fun, there were a lot of SAS kids there, and the locals were
pretty interesting. I kind of feel like Dominica has more character
than Nassau - it at least feels less touristy. After that, we went to
Krazy Koconut. It's a club in Roseau that's usually closed on Monday
nights, but it opened up just for Semester at Sea. It was pretty fun
to hang out with a lot of SAS kids there, and was just like one giant
party.

Today, my day started with a Whale and Dolphin Safari. I had high
expectations, since Dominica is supposedly the "Whale Watching Capital
of the World". However.... I did not see a single marine animal. Oh
well, it was pretty cool to get pictures of the SAS boat at the dock
from the sea. I really wanted to explore Dominica's jungle before I
had to board the ship, and so did a guy named Alex from the whale
cruise. We recruited two other girls, Jessica and Caroline, and
together we went to Trafalgar Falls. It was a short hike there, and
then we scrambled up some rocks to get to a pool beneath a waterfall.
The whole place was unbelievably beautiful, I've never seen anything
like it. The jungle is just so big, never-ending, and incredible. I
can't really put into words what an amazing sight it was - you'll have
to wait for my pictures!

At first I was disappointed when our Cuba port got cancelled, but I
think it worked out with Dominica. If we hadn't gone here, I would
never have known what Dominica was, but it's an incredibly gorgeous
island. People don't seem to go here because of its lack of beaches,
but the rainforest was a beautiful and unique place. It made me
excited for the Amazon!

Classes On a Boat

Well, school is officially in session on the MV Explorer. Today was
the second day of class, and we have now had one A day and one B day.
I'm happy that my class schedule is fairly evenly divided - I have two
classes on A days, and two on B days. As all the students learned
yesterday, there was some miscommunication about the FDP policy.
Older syllabuses and alumni had made it sound like FDP's (Faculty
Directed Practica) were really flexible, and teachers often let you
substitute independent travel for FDPs. Turns out they are not that
flexible about it: We have to do two FDPs for each class, except for
Global Studies. It's not too bad - some things, like going to Cape
Point and seeing the penguins (an FDP for Marine Biology), are things
that I wanted to do anyways. Others I wouldn't have done on my own,
but they all sound really interesting. The hardest part is now
planning around these FDPs, and now there's just less free time in
some ports. For example, I had to add two FDPs in South Africa, so
with my safari, I only have one totally free day in Cape Town. I'm
thinking of purchasing another SAS trip on that free day - there's a
trip to a winery/cheetah conservation center that sounds really cool.

The classes themselves seem pretty interesting, if you can get there!
I definitely got lost trying to find some of my classes, especially
since some are set up with fake walls that don't exist all the time.
On A days, I start with East Meets West, an art history class that
focuses on the historical trade routes, and how that influenced art
worldwide. Professor Wilkinson seems very nice. I didn't realize
this was an upper-division class, but I don't think I'll have any
problems! I have to do FDPs for this class in India and Hong Kong.
One thing to watch out for in class is the boat rocking - it feels
like being rocked to sleep, which makes staying awake at times
difficult...
My next A class is World Prayer. This class seems like it will be
very interesting, and a very different way of analyzing prayer. It
feels very open-ended, which is good, because I think any class
involving prayer should be quite open-ended.

Today was a B day, which meant that I had Global Studies and Marine
Biology. Global Studies is the class offered on every SAS voyage, and
everyone has to take it. I've heard that the Global Studies professor
can make or break a voyage. Good thing my professor seems like he'll
be a great teacher! We learned about Dominica's history today, and it
was actually really interesting. The professor is clearly really into
it, which makes the lecture engaging. I'm excited, because I think
this class will end up being very interesting. My teacher for Marine
Biology was also very enthusiastic. I definitely feel like I'll have
an advantage, after taking Intro to Oceanography last semester.

So far, ship life is going well. I've met a lot of really interesting
people. It's pretty funny to see everyone attempt to walk in a
straight line as the ship is rocking back and forth. The food is
unexpectedly good, and so far I have yet to feel seasick. I'm not
sure if that because of the ear patch - I put one on before we left,
just in case - or if I don't get seasick. I'm hoping I just don't get
seasick! I actually think the rocking is pretty fun.

We had a Student Involvement Fair, and I signed up for a few things:
Yoga, Insanity and Extended Family. Yoga on a moving deck seems like
it would be really fun. I've never done/heard of Insanity before, but
apparently it's super intense cardio - I'll at least check it out.
Extended Family seems like it will be a really cool program - you get
matched with a Lifelong Learner, or a professor you don't have, along
with a few other students. Together, you form a "family" for the
voyage. I just think it will be another great way to get to know more
people on this voyage.

Tomorrow we get to our first port! It's pretty exciting, and I think
Dominica will be a lot of fun. At first I was disappointed to not go
to Cuba, but Dominica seems like a really unique place in its own
right, as the "Nature Island" of the Caribbean. It's where they shot
scenes for Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and 3, and it's sperm whale
mating season, so our chances of seeing sperm whales are quite high.
Good news for the Whale and Dolphin Safari I'm signed up for!

Ahoy, Matey! Day 2 of the Ship

I have now left the Bahamas (kind of - not really. The ship still
hasn't moved). Yesterday, I got to board the ship early, to begin my
official work study duties. I am a Communications Assistant, and I
think it's going to be a really good job. There are two
Communications people, and we work with the photo and video assistants
as one media team. I didn't know there were only two people for my
position - I feel pretty proud of myself now. Our supervisors seem
really relaxed and cool, and I think it'll be a great opportunity.
It'll give me a chance to put Semester at Sea on my resume! I'm still
not entirely sure exactly what I'll be doing, but I like how the vague
description sounds. Our supervisor says that, more than any other
work study program, we get a continually changing job, and the chance
to produce a product we'll be proud of. I think that's really exciting!

The ship seems really nice. It feels really new and polished. I
lucked out with my Economy cabin as well - I got a room on Deck 4
Outside, which means I get a window! That is very exciting. I have
two roommates, two juniors named Brynn and Lucy. Both girls seem
really nice, so I think this room will work out great. The only
problem is that the closet and storage space in our room is really
only built for two - so it's a pretty crowded room! I've had fun the
past two days exploring the ship, but I'm very excited for classes to
start and for us to leave port. Tomorrow is an orientation day, and
Saturday we start classes. Monday we're in Dominica! I still can't
believe this is really happening.

Well, that's all for now. I'll give another blog update when I get
more adjusted into ship life. For now, I'm just ready for us to leave
port and begin our journey!

Bahamas Life

Day 2 in the Bahamas!  This means that I successfully made it from Denver to Nassau.  Somehow, despite sitting at the correct gate in Miami for about an hour, my SAS buddy Lexi and I still nearly missed our flight to the Bahamas.  I'm not sure how we missed the boarding call, but all of a sudden we heard the last call for boarding for our names.  Oops!  After that, it was smooth sailing into Nassau, and we easily found our hotel.  It's a cute, small place and Melissa and Sabrina arrived in the lobby shortly after I did.  We all had fun last night going to Senor Frog's and meeting a bunch of SAS alumni, on their way to Florida on the reunion voyage.  However, it turns out Nassau is pretty quiet at night.  It transforms from a bustling port city during the day into a quiet city with not much nightlife.  We'll probably go back to Senor Frog's tonight, since it's a good place to hang out with SAS kids.  It turns into a nightclub on Tuesday nights, which we're excited for.

Today, Melissa, Sabrina and I decided to check out the famous Atlantis hotel.  We were prepared to pay around $40 for a day pass - we wanted to see the hotel, and maybe swim in their pools and go on the water rides.  However, the real price tag for what we wanted to do?  $120.  That was just a bit more than we wanted to spend.  We decided to try to see as much as we could for free, which turns out to not be very much.  Eventually, we gave up, and got a drink at a nearby public beach.  It was very nice, but after awhile slightly chilly, so we decided to walk the beach.  We headed back to Atlantis and were actually let into the water park from the beach!  We greatly enjoyed the many beautiful pools, and were just starting to swim in a pool when an employee started talking to us.  When we told him we hadn't purchased the pack that gave us access to the rides, he offered to take us to a water slide, free of charge.  We did the Leap of Faith: a nearly vertical, 60 ft. drop into what appears to be a shark-infested tank.  In reality, you go under the tank, but it was a lot of fun.  Not a bad deal for free!

The Last Night in Boulder!

Tonight is my last night in Boulder.  Very, very early tomorrow morning I will leave for DIA, and be on my way to the Bahamas.  I can't believe it's really here!  Packing has been an adventure in its own right.  I would be helpless without my sister Carrie - as an SAS alumni, I basically depended on her to make sure I packed everything I needed.  Even with her help, I still feel like I must be forgetting some very important things.... Oh, well.

What do you do with your last day?  I won't be back in Boulder until early May.  I should make the most of it so I... spent two hours at Urgent Care, in typical Szoke fashion.  Last night, I managed to knock my elbow into my closet doorframe... incredibly hard.  This sounds ridiculous, but it hurt really, really badly.  Then today my elbow still hurt pretty badly and my pinky and ring finger were numb.  Normally, I would ignore stuff like this, at least for a couple of days, but with my flight so early tomorrow, we decided to take no chances.  The result was two hours at Urgent Care, with the vast majority of that time spent only waiting.  The good news, though, is that my elbow is not fractured or broken - i just have swelling around the nerve, causing the numbness.  Could have done without that whole thing though...


I anticipate very little sleep tonight - I want to try to see all my friends, and hang out with my family.  The current plan is a family dinner while watching the Broncos game (although I'm actually more excited about tomorrow's Giants-Packers game), then trying to meet up with all my friends.  It's sad to leave everyone behind, but it still can't take away from my excitement for SAS.  I feel like an added bonus from this experience will be greater appreciation for my home and life in Boulder.  I'm very excited for this trip - but also very excited that I have such a good life to return to. 

The Beginning

Ten short days from now, I will be on a plane heading to Nassau.  Thirteen days from now, I will board the MV Explorer, and begin my work study job as a Communications Assistant.  Fourteen days from now, the ship will leave Nassau, and my Semester at Sea will begin.

It is hard to believe that I am about to leave.  I have been anticipating this journey for so long - about 11 years in fact, ever since my older sister went on the Spring 2001 voyage.  I will be studying abroad for my Spring 2012 semester of college through Semester at Sea.  I will go to 11 different countries, all around the world, while taking my classes and working on a ship, with about 650 other college students.  I'm currently a sophomore at the University of Colorado in Boulder, studying English and Business.  I'm in Boulder for two more weeks, and I feel like there are so many things I need to do before I leave. I have to keep reminding myself that I will be back, the night of May 2nd, so there's no need to worry about doing everything possible in Boulder for the rest of Winter Break!

The Itinerary: Listed below are all the places I will be going to.  I have never been to any of these places before, which makes me even more excited for all of them.
1st stop: Nassau, Bahamas.  This is where the ship will leave from.  I'm very excited to have two very good friends of mine, Melissa and Sabrina, come to Nassau with me!  They're not coming on Semester at Sea, but I think our three short days together in the Bahamas will be a lot of fun.  This is also where I'll be first meeting all the people coming with me on the voyage!
2nd stop: Manaus, Brazil.  The highlight of this port will be the Amazon.  I have always wanted to go to this rainforest, and I've signed up to go on an Eco Park Jungle Lodge trip.
3rd stop: Tema, Ghana.  Our first stop in Africa.  I've heard many good things about Ghana, and here I've signed up for one of the trips I'm most excited for: a homestay in a monkey village!
4th stop: Cape Town, South Africa.  I recently watched the movie Invictus, which was very good, and got me even more excited to come here.  I've signed up for a safari, a cycling tour through winelands, and there are a lot more things here that I want to do, like climb Table Mountain.  I think this will be a very busy port!
5th stop: Port Louis, Mauritius.  We are only on this island, which is between Africa and Asia, for one day.  I have no plans here yet, but it certainly seems like an amazing tropical island to experience!
6th stop: Cochin, India.  We were originally supposed to go to the more well-known city of Chennai, but our port changed a couple months ago.  Cochin is in the Indian state of Kerala, which is supposed to be very beautiful.  The Alleppey Backwaters are supposed to be amazing, and so far, that is my only plan for India!
7th stop: Singapore.  Again, we're only in Singapore for a day.  I've heard a lot about this big city, and will have to find a way to make the most out of my one day...
8th stop: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.  This is a port that I'm very excited for.  I've heard a lot of really good things about Ho Chi Minh City, and I can't wait to explore it.  I'm also planning on going to the Mekong Delta, Cu Chi Tunnels and Cao Dai Temple while I'm here.
9th stop: Hong Kong, China.  From Hong Kong, I'm signed up to go on a multi-day trip to Beijing.  Something I'm really excited to see is the Great Wall of China!  After Beijing, I'll meet back with the ship in Shanghai.
10th stop: Kobe, Japan.  So far, I have nothing planned in Japan, but there's a lot I want to do!  I want to find a way to go to Tokyo and Mt. Fuji, but I don't want to miss the port cities, Kobe and Yokohama, either.
11th stop: Hilo, Hawaii.  I've been to Hawaii once before, but I was six weeks old, and so don't remember much of it.  I've always wanted to go back, so I'm glad this is one of our stops.
12th stop: San Diego, California.  The semester ends here, and I will be flying back to Boulder on the same day the ship gets to San Diego!

One of my favorite travel quotes, from Martin Buber, says, "All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware."  I'm not quite sure what to expect from my Semester at Sea.  My plan is to just immerse myself fully into the experience, enjoy all the "secret destinations", and see what happens!