For pictures go to:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061267&id=1512240018&l=7ba7947636
and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjZhadx-TS0 for a slideshow/video that I put together.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Hawaii and Home
We finally made it the USA! We had our longest stretch yet on the ship –10 days—and it really went by much faster than I thought it would. First, because I was anxiously anticipating the arrival of my dad and brother Jon in Honolulu, and second because I had 3 papers, 2 presentations, 1 project, and various other assignments to complete. Everything seemed to pile up towards the end, but that’s just how it goes sometimes, especially when you’ve only had 6 days of class in the last 5 weeks. I managed to get everything done and still have 2 days to relax and hang out before Hawaii.
The morning we arrived I could hardly wait for them to announce the ship was clear so I could run off and meet my dad. He had gotten there a few days before; I was so excited to see him and just thrilled that he was there waiting for me.. We headed to Waikiki beach just a few minutes from the port, and sat by the beach and talked for a few hours. After, we headed up to the North Shore and jumped off some big rocks in Waiamea Bay, a beautiful beach where they hold the Pipeline surf competition every year. We also saw some huge sea turtles swimming around the rocks. We stopped at another beach on our way back down south and my dad and a friend that was with us did a little bit of surfing. The conditions weren’t great, so I was content to nap on the beach (unusual for me, but that just shows how exhausted I was at this point). It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with Hawaii and the beautiful ocean water, white sand, blue sky and sunshine. We snorkeled, watched the sunset, and headed back down to Honolulu and picked up Jon at the airport! So glad to be with my dad and brother! After picking up some of my girlfriends, we went to a nearby Hibachi Japanese restaurant. My chicken teriyaki was delicious! That whole day it felt very different and weird to be back in America, driving in a rental car with my dad, and knowing that I could speak to anyone in English! I was a foreigner in my own country and realized that once I got back, it would be an adjustment.
The next morning, Dad, Jon and I surfed at Waikiki Beach. And by surfed I mean paddled around, tried to avoid the rocks, attempted to catch a wave or two, got a tan and a great workout, and watched Jon and Dad catch waves. My dad did great and Jon caught some waves and then crashed into coral and is still healing from that. Good times! We then went and climbed Diamond Head, a volcano that my dad had climbed the last time he was there when he was in high school. The boys ran the whole way up; I ran most of the way. The view of the ocean and the city of Honolulu from the top was beautiful! After our descent (much easier to running down), water and fresh pineapple, we headed back to the ship so I could give them a tour. They got to eat a ship meal (what a treat), see my cabin, and meet some of my friends. That night we sailed to the big island and they stayed in Honolulu. Jon flew back to LA the following night, and Dad stayed for a few more days. What a life!
Our time in Hilo, on the big island was pretty relaxed. The first day we went to Richardson’s beach, only a few miles from the port. With black sand and a rocky shoreline, it was different than any other beach I’ve been to, and there were sea turtles! We got some lunch down the street at Verna’s, then went back to the beach. The nice thing was that there were big white vans that shuttled us from place to place for $2 a person. That night, a few of us went to a volcano area and got to stand on the hot volcanic rock and see the orange lava flowing underneath. Pretty cool. The next morning I went on an awesome run with my friend Brittney which ended at Ken’s pancake house with a delicious breakfast of whole wheat banana pancakes, orange juice and scrambled eggs. We also went to Walmart to get duffel bags (yes, I left with more stuff than I came with), and boy, was it weird being in Walmart. Can’t say that I’ve missed that! Back on the beach by 12, we soaked up the sun and savored our last few hours in our final port. The mood was pretty somber once back on the ship that evening as everyone knew we were heading back to the mainland. The fact that we had exams over the next few days didn’t really help. So off we went…San Diego here we come!
The first 4 days were full of studying and exams, which ended up going very well, and the last two were full of packing (came with two huge duffels, left with 4), enjoying friends, the ambassador’s ball, convocation, map signings, and not a lot of sleep. It was truly bittersweet and the fact that this incredible voyage was basically over didn’t really hit until the second to last night. The tears came the night before, along with an hour of sleep before the 6am sunrise as we neared San Diego Harbor. It was a beautiful, clear, blue-sky morning as we pulled in (typical San Diego) and everyone crowded on the back of the ship as we docked to wave to the parents and families at the port. I called my mom and she was there with Jon and my friend Jessica from school to see us pull in. Then came waiting for clearance during which time we took pictures, finished last minute packing, and said goodbyes, more like, “see you laters.” Around 11, they finally announced that disembarkation could begin and since my sea had won the sea Olympics, that meant first off the ship! There I was, swiping my ship ID at the top of the gangway for the last time before handing it in. I paused before beginning my final descent off the ship and let the tears stream down my cheeks. Sounds depressing I know. I made it to the bottom, hugged our Academic Dean David and Dean Sue and found my bags in the baggage tent. My mom was there to meet me in the pick up area and the tears continued. What a journey it was; I was finally back on American soil. I waved to those still on the ship as Mom, Jon, and headed out to enjoy San Diego for the next two days! We arrived home in Nashville on December 15, 2010 and I hugged Joelle and Troy, my dogs, and slept in my amazing bed. It was wonderful; however, I felt like a foreigner in my own country. It felt strange to be home and I knew that feeling would continue. After a week in Pennsylvania for Christmas, and a roadtrip across the country with Jon, I am starting to ease back into normal life. I love being back in San Diego.
I couldn’t be more thankful for this incredible opportunity that changed me. I experienced joy and heartache. I laughed and I cried. I learned to trust humanity. I saw extreme poverty and extreme luxury. I made lifelong friends. I acquired a global perspective. I appreciated clean water. I bungee jumped. I slept on the Great Wall of China. I danced with orphans. I slept under the stars in the middle of the Sahara. I rode an elephant and a camel. I went shark diving. I stood in front of the Taj Mahal. I was in constant awe of God’s perfect creation. I circumnavigated the globe on the MV Explorer. I had the best time of my life.
The voyage is over, but the journey has just begun. Thank you to all who have lived vicariously though me. Thank you Semester at Sea. Thank you Mom and Dad. And thank you God, the One who created it all.
Please stay in touch. I hope to continue to update my blog (heatherhipp.blogspot.com) with my future adventures, although it will be hard to beat this! For pictures go to:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061267&id=1512240018&l=7ba7947636
and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjZhadx-TS0 for a slideshow/video that I put together.
Love,
Heather
The morning we arrived I could hardly wait for them to announce the ship was clear so I could run off and meet my dad. He had gotten there a few days before; I was so excited to see him and just thrilled that he was there waiting for me.. We headed to Waikiki beach just a few minutes from the port, and sat by the beach and talked for a few hours. After, we headed up to the North Shore and jumped off some big rocks in Waiamea Bay, a beautiful beach where they hold the Pipeline surf competition every year. We also saw some huge sea turtles swimming around the rocks. We stopped at another beach on our way back down south and my dad and a friend that was with us did a little bit of surfing. The conditions weren’t great, so I was content to nap on the beach (unusual for me, but that just shows how exhausted I was at this point). It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with Hawaii and the beautiful ocean water, white sand, blue sky and sunshine. We snorkeled, watched the sunset, and headed back down to Honolulu and picked up Jon at the airport! So glad to be with my dad and brother! After picking up some of my girlfriends, we went to a nearby Hibachi Japanese restaurant. My chicken teriyaki was delicious! That whole day it felt very different and weird to be back in America, driving in a rental car with my dad, and knowing that I could speak to anyone in English! I was a foreigner in my own country and realized that once I got back, it would be an adjustment.
The next morning, Dad, Jon and I surfed at Waikiki Beach. And by surfed I mean paddled around, tried to avoid the rocks, attempted to catch a wave or two, got a tan and a great workout, and watched Jon and Dad catch waves. My dad did great and Jon caught some waves and then crashed into coral and is still healing from that. Good times! We then went and climbed Diamond Head, a volcano that my dad had climbed the last time he was there when he was in high school. The boys ran the whole way up; I ran most of the way. The view of the ocean and the city of Honolulu from the top was beautiful! After our descent (much easier to running down), water and fresh pineapple, we headed back to the ship so I could give them a tour. They got to eat a ship meal (what a treat), see my cabin, and meet some of my friends. That night we sailed to the big island and they stayed in Honolulu. Jon flew back to LA the following night, and Dad stayed for a few more days. What a life!
Our time in Hilo, on the big island was pretty relaxed. The first day we went to Richardson’s beach, only a few miles from the port. With black sand and a rocky shoreline, it was different than any other beach I’ve been to, and there were sea turtles! We got some lunch down the street at Verna’s, then went back to the beach. The nice thing was that there were big white vans that shuttled us from place to place for $2 a person. That night, a few of us went to a volcano area and got to stand on the hot volcanic rock and see the orange lava flowing underneath. Pretty cool. The next morning I went on an awesome run with my friend Brittney which ended at Ken’s pancake house with a delicious breakfast of whole wheat banana pancakes, orange juice and scrambled eggs. We also went to Walmart to get duffel bags (yes, I left with more stuff than I came with), and boy, was it weird being in Walmart. Can’t say that I’ve missed that! Back on the beach by 12, we soaked up the sun and savored our last few hours in our final port. The mood was pretty somber once back on the ship that evening as everyone knew we were heading back to the mainland. The fact that we had exams over the next few days didn’t really help. So off we went…San Diego here we come!
The first 4 days were full of studying and exams, which ended up going very well, and the last two were full of packing (came with two huge duffels, left with 4), enjoying friends, the ambassador’s ball, convocation, map signings, and not a lot of sleep. It was truly bittersweet and the fact that this incredible voyage was basically over didn’t really hit until the second to last night. The tears came the night before, along with an hour of sleep before the 6am sunrise as we neared San Diego Harbor. It was a beautiful, clear, blue-sky morning as we pulled in (typical San Diego) and everyone crowded on the back of the ship as we docked to wave to the parents and families at the port. I called my mom and she was there with Jon and my friend Jessica from school to see us pull in. Then came waiting for clearance during which time we took pictures, finished last minute packing, and said goodbyes, more like, “see you laters.” Around 11, they finally announced that disembarkation could begin and since my sea had won the sea Olympics, that meant first off the ship! There I was, swiping my ship ID at the top of the gangway for the last time before handing it in. I paused before beginning my final descent off the ship and let the tears stream down my cheeks. Sounds depressing I know. I made it to the bottom, hugged our Academic Dean David and Dean Sue and found my bags in the baggage tent. My mom was there to meet me in the pick up area and the tears continued. What a journey it was; I was finally back on American soil. I waved to those still on the ship as Mom, Jon, and headed out to enjoy San Diego for the next two days! We arrived home in Nashville on December 15, 2010 and I hugged Joelle and Troy, my dogs, and slept in my amazing bed. It was wonderful; however, I felt like a foreigner in my own country. It felt strange to be home and I knew that feeling would continue. After a week in Pennsylvania for Christmas, and a roadtrip across the country with Jon, I am starting to ease back into normal life. I love being back in San Diego.
I couldn’t be more thankful for this incredible opportunity that changed me. I experienced joy and heartache. I laughed and I cried. I learned to trust humanity. I saw extreme poverty and extreme luxury. I made lifelong friends. I acquired a global perspective. I appreciated clean water. I bungee jumped. I slept on the Great Wall of China. I danced with orphans. I slept under the stars in the middle of the Sahara. I rode an elephant and a camel. I went shark diving. I stood in front of the Taj Mahal. I was in constant awe of God’s perfect creation. I circumnavigated the globe on the MV Explorer. I had the best time of my life.
The voyage is over, but the journey has just begun. Thank you to all who have lived vicariously though me. Thank you Semester at Sea. Thank you Mom and Dad. And thank you God, the One who created it all.
Please stay in touch. I hope to continue to update my blog (heatherhipp.blogspot.com) with my future adventures, although it will be hard to beat this! For pictures go to:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2061267&id=1512240018&l=7ba7947636
and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjZhadx-TS0 for a slideshow/video that I put together.
Love,
Heather
Japan
Konichiwa!
Say it out loud—it’s a fun word! Now you know how to say hello in Japanese. So at this point in my travel log, we are finally in Japan! (In real life, I’m in Pennsylvania with my family—So hopefully I’ll see some of you Pennsylvanians in the next few days). We arrived in Kobe, Japan early on November 22, and were met with a very strict customs clearance process that took several hours for everyone to get through. Ana, Kimmi, Issy, and I, once cleared, headed out with no real plans for the day which is one of the best ways to experience a new country. That first day we ended up at a food court for a Japanese lunch of noodle soup and shrimp tempura, the mall, Starbucks, and a traditional Japanese bath house. That was quite the experience—two levels of showers, hot tubs, cold baths, warm pools, saunas, and steam rooms. Feeling refreshed, we continued our exploration of Kobe, found a nice restaurant for dinner, and did a little bit of shopping. It didn’t take us a full day to realize that this country was going to have the biggest language barrier. However, when we did find people who spoke some English, they proved to be extremely helpful and accommodating. If they didn’t know the answer to our question, they would go find someone else who could help us. One young man walked with us for about ten minutes to a certain restaurant because we asked him where we could find chicken teriyaki and he wanted to make sure that we found it.
We crashed early that night and were up the next morning to take a bus to Kyoto with a SAS group. It was a trip I had to do for my World Religions class and it took us to four different temples and gardens. At the first temple, Sanjusangen-do, we removed our shoes upon entrance, and followed the carpeted path through the doorway and into a long temple that was home to 1001 gold statues of the Buddhist deity—1000 smaller figures and 1 large Buddha in the center. The lights were dim and the smell of incense filled the air as we slowly made our way through the temple past some people praying, bowing, and lighting candles for a fee to honor Buddha. Next we went to the Ryoanji Temple and found ourselves surrounded by the beauty of fall. We followed a path along a pond under a canopy of red, orange, and yellow. I sat silently next to Zen rock garden, letting my mind wander and reflect in the peaceful setting. We wandered through yet another garden and ended at the Zen Buddhist Temple of the Golden Pavilion, which was absolutely stunning as it reflected the sunlight. From there, our goal was to find the train station and make our way to Tokyo that night, as all the hotels were booked in Kyoto due to the Full Moon Festival.
Upon finding the train tickets to be fairly expensive, we considered our next option—the overnight bus that left at 10:30pm. So, we walked around and grabbed some dinner before boarding. I managed to sleep for about 3-4 hours of the 8-hour trip and then got off at the Tokyo stop. Exhausted, we were happy to get cab, despite the outrageous price, to our hotel by 7am only to find that they wouldn’t allow early check-in. Great. By this point, we had been fully introduced to the weakness of the dollar against the yen so after our expensive dinners and cab rides, we decided to walk everywhere and eat McDonalds. I had a delicious egg sandwich and hash browns. We also had the pleasure of meeting the sweetest Japanese woman named June who ended up meeting us for karaoke that evening with her five year old granddaughter, Haruka! We had a wonderful time getting to know her and we were even able to go to her house the next day where we played with Haruka, while June made some mystery food, talked about her life and family, and showed us her bridal kimonos. It was quite a treat to be shown such hospitality by someone we had just met. That afternoon we walked around, shopped in the Harajuku district, and ate crepes. Stores and sidewalks are just crowded with people and it was quite overwhelming at times. But I guess this is to be expected in a city with a population of 13 million. We headed back to the Shibuya district where our hotel was located, took a lot of pictures walking and jumping in the world’s busiest pedestrian crosswalk, and skipped McDonald’s for dinner and had Japanese food instead. Later that evening we met up with some more SAS kids. On our last day there, we just wandered around in the morning, went to the Starbucks that overlooks the world’s busiest crosswalk and took more pictures. We somehow managed to then figure out the metro system to get back to the ship in Yokohama (the ship had sailed from Kobe to Yokohama while we traveled independently). I’m sure it’s very efficient once you figure it out, but boy, were we confused (partially due to our utter exhaustion as well). A couple times we scared ourselves into thinking we were on the wrong line, but we found some people who knew enough English to assure us that we were still headed to Yokohama. While savoring our last few hours on international ground, we made it to the port and waited in line to board the ship. This was goodbye foreign travel and hello USA!
Not ready for this to be over,
Heather
Say it out loud—it’s a fun word! Now you know how to say hello in Japanese. So at this point in my travel log, we are finally in Japan! (In real life, I’m in Pennsylvania with my family—So hopefully I’ll see some of you Pennsylvanians in the next few days). We arrived in Kobe, Japan early on November 22, and were met with a very strict customs clearance process that took several hours for everyone to get through. Ana, Kimmi, Issy, and I, once cleared, headed out with no real plans for the day which is one of the best ways to experience a new country. That first day we ended up at a food court for a Japanese lunch of noodle soup and shrimp tempura, the mall, Starbucks, and a traditional Japanese bath house. That was quite the experience—two levels of showers, hot tubs, cold baths, warm pools, saunas, and steam rooms. Feeling refreshed, we continued our exploration of Kobe, found a nice restaurant for dinner, and did a little bit of shopping. It didn’t take us a full day to realize that this country was going to have the biggest language barrier. However, when we did find people who spoke some English, they proved to be extremely helpful and accommodating. If they didn’t know the answer to our question, they would go find someone else who could help us. One young man walked with us for about ten minutes to a certain restaurant because we asked him where we could find chicken teriyaki and he wanted to make sure that we found it.
We crashed early that night and were up the next morning to take a bus to Kyoto with a SAS group. It was a trip I had to do for my World Religions class and it took us to four different temples and gardens. At the first temple, Sanjusangen-do, we removed our shoes upon entrance, and followed the carpeted path through the doorway and into a long temple that was home to 1001 gold statues of the Buddhist deity—1000 smaller figures and 1 large Buddha in the center. The lights were dim and the smell of incense filled the air as we slowly made our way through the temple past some people praying, bowing, and lighting candles for a fee to honor Buddha. Next we went to the Ryoanji Temple and found ourselves surrounded by the beauty of fall. We followed a path along a pond under a canopy of red, orange, and yellow. I sat silently next to Zen rock garden, letting my mind wander and reflect in the peaceful setting. We wandered through yet another garden and ended at the Zen Buddhist Temple of the Golden Pavilion, which was absolutely stunning as it reflected the sunlight. From there, our goal was to find the train station and make our way to Tokyo that night, as all the hotels were booked in Kyoto due to the Full Moon Festival.
Upon finding the train tickets to be fairly expensive, we considered our next option—the overnight bus that left at 10:30pm. So, we walked around and grabbed some dinner before boarding. I managed to sleep for about 3-4 hours of the 8-hour trip and then got off at the Tokyo stop. Exhausted, we were happy to get cab, despite the outrageous price, to our hotel by 7am only to find that they wouldn’t allow early check-in. Great. By this point, we had been fully introduced to the weakness of the dollar against the yen so after our expensive dinners and cab rides, we decided to walk everywhere and eat McDonalds. I had a delicious egg sandwich and hash browns. We also had the pleasure of meeting the sweetest Japanese woman named June who ended up meeting us for karaoke that evening with her five year old granddaughter, Haruka! We had a wonderful time getting to know her and we were even able to go to her house the next day where we played with Haruka, while June made some mystery food, talked about her life and family, and showed us her bridal kimonos. It was quite a treat to be shown such hospitality by someone we had just met. That afternoon we walked around, shopped in the Harajuku district, and ate crepes. Stores and sidewalks are just crowded with people and it was quite overwhelming at times. But I guess this is to be expected in a city with a population of 13 million. We headed back to the Shibuya district where our hotel was located, took a lot of pictures walking and jumping in the world’s busiest pedestrian crosswalk, and skipped McDonald’s for dinner and had Japanese food instead. Later that evening we met up with some more SAS kids. On our last day there, we just wandered around in the morning, went to the Starbucks that overlooks the world’s busiest crosswalk and took more pictures. We somehow managed to then figure out the metro system to get back to the ship in Yokohama (the ship had sailed from Kobe to Yokohama while we traveled independently). I’m sure it’s very efficient once you figure it out, but boy, were we confused (partially due to our utter exhaustion as well). A couple times we scared ourselves into thinking we were on the wrong line, but we found some people who knew enough English to assure us that we were still headed to Yokohama. While savoring our last few hours on international ground, we made it to the port and waited in line to board the ship. This was goodbye foreign travel and hello USA!
Not ready for this to be over,
Heather
China
Nǐ Hǎo!
That’s hello in Mandarin Chinese and about the only word I picked up while there. Now that the voyage is over, I figured I needed to get the rest of my updates finished. We were in China a month ago, from November 11-16 and then we had a few days on the ship before arriving in Japan. We had two ports in China, Hong Kong and Shanghai and most people opted to travel independently over land instead of on the ship. In five days we took a ferry to Macau and bungee jumped, flew to Beijing and toured the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Olympic Stadium, and Summer Palace, made dumplings, slept and hiked on the Great Wall, bargained to the point of exasperation, gasped at Chinese Acrobats, slept on an overnight train, and learned how to navigate through a city filled with 22 million people who don’t speak your language.
It all began with our arrival in Hong Kong on November 11th, which I realized when flipping through my passport, was the exact day that I had left Hong Kong four years earlier after visiting Jon. The port was connected to a huge mall, that took almost 30 minutes to exit. Because this was my second visit, I wanted to do something I hadn’t done there before, and that was bungee jump in Macau, off of Macau tower (the highest in the world). Though nothing can top my first time off the bridge in South Africa, this was still exhilarating! Afterwards, I had just enough time to take a cab back to the ferry station and catch the 4:00 ferry (with 3 minutes to spare) over to Hong Kong, which got me back to the port just in time to sprint through the mall and meet my group on the ship in time to leave for a field trip to the Cantonese Opera. This elaborate performance left my ears ringing for the next couple of days but was a rich cultural experience of an ancient Chinese tradition (even though I didn’t understand anything). The next morning about 200 SASers found their way to the Hong Kong airport and boarded flights to Beijing to begin our “Great Wall” trip, booked through The China Guide. After boarding buses and checking into our hotel, Ana, Kimmi, Issy, and I headed out to the Silk Factory. A big challenge was getting a cab, and once we did, communicating where we needed to go was difficult. More than once we had to ask around until we found someone who spoke English and could write down our destination in Chinese. Several times the four of us would just look at each other very confused, hoping that we would end up where we wanted to go, and usually we’d just start laughing. It wasn’t worth getting frustrated over and everything always worked out, but never in the way we expected. We made it to the Silk Factory, which is seven stories filled with vendors selling everything from winter clothes and silk robes, to bags and purses, to jewelry, electronics, and movies. Our priority was to get winter attire because freezing in the 20 degree Beijing weather was quite the climate change after sweating in Vietnam. I found some great stuff (a knock-off North Face jacket, gloves, hats, and boots) and it was the most intense bargaining I’ve experienced. I literally had to pry one woman’s fingers off my forearm before I could leave. I made several vendors angry, was called stupid, but usually got the price I wanted which would end up being around 20% of the price they started at.
The next morning, we got into groups of thirty outside of the hotel in a very unorganized fashion, met our guide, Rita, whom we fondly referred to as “piglet,” because instead of having a blue flag that said “The China Guide” for us to follow, she had a stuffed piglet attached to the end of the pole she carried. She was absolutely fantastic and kept us moving through both the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. They were both filled with other tour groups learning about the history, architecture, and significance of these sites. We stopped for lunch, which was the first of many “family style” meals with a variety of dishes –rice, chicken, dumplings, spring rolls, mystery vegetables and sauces, soups, pork, beef, salads. We made another stop at the Silk Factory (I wasn’t as overwhelmed this time and got used to people aggressively pushing past me in the crowded aisles) before beginning our three-hour bus ride away from the city to the Great Wall of China.
All eight buses arrived at the base camp around the same time. There was a restaurant and a couple of little shops full of “Great Wall” souvenirs, like panda hats, and “I climbed the Great Wall” sweatshirts. We ate dinner, and yes, I did buy a panda hat to wear over my other hat, and a sweatshirt (to add to my collection of “I climbed the Great Wall” stuff), which I later used as a pillow. Before making the trek up to the wall under a star-filled sky, everyone changed and added about three layers of clothing to prepare for the “high of 12 degrees” that night. I was wearing three layers of pants, two shirts and a sweatshirt, and a winter jacket, gloves, wool socks, a scarf and two hats. Luckily, we all got two subzero sleeping bags, a mat, and a flashlight. A couple groups had already gone up before us but we soon found room on the wall to “set up camp.” They had large boxes of snacks for us (which was actually breakfast, but we ate most of them that night) and lots of drinks. Some people promptly got into their sleeping bags, some were really loud and obnoxious, but we stayed up and explored the wall and celebrated Ana’s 21st birthday at midnight! Talk about an awesome place to be on your birthday. Finally, we settled down and I crawled into my sleeping bag and stayed surprisingly warm the whole night. In the morning, everyone was awake by around 6:30 in time to catch the end of the sunrise. It took all the willpower I could muster to emerge from my warm cocoon into the bitter cold. My bottle of water was frozen solid. But we were met with an incredible view of the glowing horizon, mountains, and the 4000-mile architectural wonder, the Great Wall, extending further than the eye could see. I munched on some of the leftover breakfast food, took off one layer of pants, brushed my teeth, and wished there was a bathroom (I would have been happy with a squat toilet even!). Anyway, we started our hike on the wall around 8:00 and despite the cold, it was a beautiful day. We ended a few miles later feeling exhilarated, accomplished, and excited that we had conquered our second of the seven wonders of the world. Once again, we piled back onto the buses and left the Wall behind us as we headed back to the city and toured the Olympic Stadium and Natatorium. And by toured I mean took lots of pictures jumping, doing handstands, and making human pyramids outside of it. Then it was off to a Chinese tea parlor for afternoon tea before a massage at the hotel and dinner with live entertainment.
On our last day there we went to the Summer Palace, a drum tower (where some of the drummers were those who performed in the opening ceremonies for the Beijing Olympics), a nearby home to make dumplings, the Silk Factory for some last minute purchases, and a Chinese Flying Acrobatics Show! It was an awesome performance that displayed incredible strength and flexibility. After, we were all dropped off at the train station for our overnight train to Shanghai where the ship was now docked. Each cabin had 4 beds and somehow we managed to squeeze our luggage in as well. At one point, we had 18 people crowded into one cabin, hanging out, laughing, reflecting, and having some great conversations. We finally went to bed and were woken up early the next morning by a steward who peeked his head in our cabin saying “Shanghai? Shanghai?” It wasn’t our fault they didn’t announce the stops in English! We scrambled out of bed, threw our stuff back in our suitcases and boarded a bus that took us back to the ship. It was definitely a welcome sight. There were only a couple of hours left that day to explore Shanghai so I walked around the city and went out with some friends for a few drinks. I was so exhausted that it was nice to just take it easy; I definitely had some sleep to catch up on over the next few days in between homework. Well, that wraps it up for my trip to China. Next stop—Japan!
Heather
That’s hello in Mandarin Chinese and about the only word I picked up while there. Now that the voyage is over, I figured I needed to get the rest of my updates finished. We were in China a month ago, from November 11-16 and then we had a few days on the ship before arriving in Japan. We had two ports in China, Hong Kong and Shanghai and most people opted to travel independently over land instead of on the ship. In five days we took a ferry to Macau and bungee jumped, flew to Beijing and toured the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Olympic Stadium, and Summer Palace, made dumplings, slept and hiked on the Great Wall, bargained to the point of exasperation, gasped at Chinese Acrobats, slept on an overnight train, and learned how to navigate through a city filled with 22 million people who don’t speak your language.
It all began with our arrival in Hong Kong on November 11th, which I realized when flipping through my passport, was the exact day that I had left Hong Kong four years earlier after visiting Jon. The port was connected to a huge mall, that took almost 30 minutes to exit. Because this was my second visit, I wanted to do something I hadn’t done there before, and that was bungee jump in Macau, off of Macau tower (the highest in the world). Though nothing can top my first time off the bridge in South Africa, this was still exhilarating! Afterwards, I had just enough time to take a cab back to the ferry station and catch the 4:00 ferry (with 3 minutes to spare) over to Hong Kong, which got me back to the port just in time to sprint through the mall and meet my group on the ship in time to leave for a field trip to the Cantonese Opera. This elaborate performance left my ears ringing for the next couple of days but was a rich cultural experience of an ancient Chinese tradition (even though I didn’t understand anything). The next morning about 200 SASers found their way to the Hong Kong airport and boarded flights to Beijing to begin our “Great Wall” trip, booked through The China Guide. After boarding buses and checking into our hotel, Ana, Kimmi, Issy, and I headed out to the Silk Factory. A big challenge was getting a cab, and once we did, communicating where we needed to go was difficult. More than once we had to ask around until we found someone who spoke English and could write down our destination in Chinese. Several times the four of us would just look at each other very confused, hoping that we would end up where we wanted to go, and usually we’d just start laughing. It wasn’t worth getting frustrated over and everything always worked out, but never in the way we expected. We made it to the Silk Factory, which is seven stories filled with vendors selling everything from winter clothes and silk robes, to bags and purses, to jewelry, electronics, and movies. Our priority was to get winter attire because freezing in the 20 degree Beijing weather was quite the climate change after sweating in Vietnam. I found some great stuff (a knock-off North Face jacket, gloves, hats, and boots) and it was the most intense bargaining I’ve experienced. I literally had to pry one woman’s fingers off my forearm before I could leave. I made several vendors angry, was called stupid, but usually got the price I wanted which would end up being around 20% of the price they started at.
The next morning, we got into groups of thirty outside of the hotel in a very unorganized fashion, met our guide, Rita, whom we fondly referred to as “piglet,” because instead of having a blue flag that said “The China Guide” for us to follow, she had a stuffed piglet attached to the end of the pole she carried. She was absolutely fantastic and kept us moving through both the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. They were both filled with other tour groups learning about the history, architecture, and significance of these sites. We stopped for lunch, which was the first of many “family style” meals with a variety of dishes –rice, chicken, dumplings, spring rolls, mystery vegetables and sauces, soups, pork, beef, salads. We made another stop at the Silk Factory (I wasn’t as overwhelmed this time and got used to people aggressively pushing past me in the crowded aisles) before beginning our three-hour bus ride away from the city to the Great Wall of China.
All eight buses arrived at the base camp around the same time. There was a restaurant and a couple of little shops full of “Great Wall” souvenirs, like panda hats, and “I climbed the Great Wall” sweatshirts. We ate dinner, and yes, I did buy a panda hat to wear over my other hat, and a sweatshirt (to add to my collection of “I climbed the Great Wall” stuff), which I later used as a pillow. Before making the trek up to the wall under a star-filled sky, everyone changed and added about three layers of clothing to prepare for the “high of 12 degrees” that night. I was wearing three layers of pants, two shirts and a sweatshirt, and a winter jacket, gloves, wool socks, a scarf and two hats. Luckily, we all got two subzero sleeping bags, a mat, and a flashlight. A couple groups had already gone up before us but we soon found room on the wall to “set up camp.” They had large boxes of snacks for us (which was actually breakfast, but we ate most of them that night) and lots of drinks. Some people promptly got into their sleeping bags, some were really loud and obnoxious, but we stayed up and explored the wall and celebrated Ana’s 21st birthday at midnight! Talk about an awesome place to be on your birthday. Finally, we settled down and I crawled into my sleeping bag and stayed surprisingly warm the whole night. In the morning, everyone was awake by around 6:30 in time to catch the end of the sunrise. It took all the willpower I could muster to emerge from my warm cocoon into the bitter cold. My bottle of water was frozen solid. But we were met with an incredible view of the glowing horizon, mountains, and the 4000-mile architectural wonder, the Great Wall, extending further than the eye could see. I munched on some of the leftover breakfast food, took off one layer of pants, brushed my teeth, and wished there was a bathroom (I would have been happy with a squat toilet even!). Anyway, we started our hike on the wall around 8:00 and despite the cold, it was a beautiful day. We ended a few miles later feeling exhilarated, accomplished, and excited that we had conquered our second of the seven wonders of the world. Once again, we piled back onto the buses and left the Wall behind us as we headed back to the city and toured the Olympic Stadium and Natatorium. And by toured I mean took lots of pictures jumping, doing handstands, and making human pyramids outside of it. Then it was off to a Chinese tea parlor for afternoon tea before a massage at the hotel and dinner with live entertainment.
On our last day there we went to the Summer Palace, a drum tower (where some of the drummers were those who performed in the opening ceremonies for the Beijing Olympics), a nearby home to make dumplings, the Silk Factory for some last minute purchases, and a Chinese Flying Acrobatics Show! It was an awesome performance that displayed incredible strength and flexibility. After, we were all dropped off at the train station for our overnight train to Shanghai where the ship was now docked. Each cabin had 4 beds and somehow we managed to squeeze our luggage in as well. At one point, we had 18 people crowded into one cabin, hanging out, laughing, reflecting, and having some great conversations. We finally went to bed and were woken up early the next morning by a steward who peeked his head in our cabin saying “Shanghai? Shanghai?” It wasn’t our fault they didn’t announce the stops in English! We scrambled out of bed, threw our stuff back in our suitcases and boarded a bus that took us back to the ship. It was definitely a welcome sight. There were only a couple of hours left that day to explore Shanghai so I walked around the city and went out with some friends for a few drinks. I was so exhausted that it was nice to just take it easy; I definitely had some sleep to catch up on over the next few days in between homework. Well, that wraps it up for my trip to China. Next stop—Japan!
Heather
Vietnam
Well I started this before Japan but I am just now finishing it and sending it out. We have been so busy with traveling, but now are over halfway through our ten-day stretch to Hawaii. I have only two things left on my ‘to-do’ list, which is an absolute miracle, and I am so excited to see my dad and Jon in Honolulu!
The ship is rocking, the sun is shining, and the air is brisk. This is the part of the voyage where I realize things are coming to an end and school gets pushed to the back burner as traveling, relationships, and sleep takes priority. Everyone is busy trying to make plans for Japan in addition to finishing up endless amounts of papers and projects. Before I get too behind though, I wanted to send out a re-cap on Vietnam which was a very full five days of traveling (luckily, I have bullet points for every day in my journal so I don’t forget because it all starts to blend together). Although many other students enjoyed three-day trips to Cambodia and Hanoi/Ha Long Bay, I enjoyed staying mostly in Ho Chi Minh City doing lots of exploring, sightseeing, and shopping.
Our time in Vietnam (November 3-8) was full of emotion---beginning with lots of joy as parents arrived on the first day, and ending with tears due to the passing of a fellow student. It is a country packed with culture, history, people, and mopeds (yes, even more mopeds than Morocco and India). I had my first experience riding on the back of one. It’s a great way to get around for just one US dollar. They’ll take you anywhere and would overwhelm us as we walked out of the Saigon port gate. The best was when there was a group of nine of us and we all hopped on mopeds for rides to a nearby restaurant. Good times and even better pictures. I saw a water puppet show with my theatre class, which is a traditional form of Vietnamese entertainment and consists of puppets being wielded on long poles in a pool of water from behind a pagoda-like set. The entire show was narrated in Vietnamese so I missed whatever story was being conveyed but we were very pleasantly entertained.
Another day Ana, Brittany, and I took a taxi to the Mekong Delta River. It took us about an hour to find a taxi driver who would take us for a decent price and understood where we wanted to go (thanks to a wonderful woman named Miss Vi who overheard us attempting to communicate and came over to help translate). She is just one of many very nice people that we were able to meet. I still have the paper where she wrote down her name and phone number in case we had any other problems. The Mekong Delta was a neat experience. We rode on a large boat across the river with our tour guide and new friend, Sang, who showed us all around. We watched the process of how to make coconut candy, ate honey off of a hive covered with bees, tried some exotic fruits (my favorite was bright pink dragon fruit), and rode in a canoe down a small canal, wearing rice hats of course. Later that day when we were back in Ho Chi Minh City, it started raining and I couldn’t believe how close the water level of the river was to the houses along it. Lack of infrastructure and flooding are a huge problem in Vietnam. And rain doesn’t decrease the moped use either – they just throw on ponchos! Our new friend Ruby (also the tailor we used to get dresses made), couldn’t make it into the shop that day due to the flooding so we had to reschedule our appointment for the next day. Even though our dresses didn’t turn out quite the way we wanted, I am thankful to have gotten to know Ruby and hear a lot about her life. She was eager to exchange email addresses and said she will come to the US someday and visit Tennessee. We also visited a school for the disabled and were able to spend a couple hours interacting with mostly deaf and mentally challenged children between the ages of six and eighteen. Even though though they couldn't really speak, some of the older ones had excellent written English, and we had conversations using the chalkboard. These kids loved the stickers we gave them and were all smiles as we watched them run around outside, jump rope and play on their swingset and sliding board.
We were able to experience a lot of history while we were there too at the Cu Chi Tunnels and American War Museum (which is what they call the Vietnam War). I thought the tunnels were pretty cool, but was shocked at how small they were when we crawled through them for 100m, especially after hearing that they had been made larger for tourists. There were several replicas of weapons and booby traps used by both the Vietnamese and US armies. There was also a shooting area complete with AK47s and M16s, and I had been looking forward to shooting those guns ever since my brother did a few years ago when he was there. I shot both and released a bit of my inner Rambo while wearing noise reducing headphones and a chain of bullets. On a more somber note, the last day we went to the War Museum. It was full very vivid and graphic pictures portraying the horrors and detrimental effects of the war. Already physically and emotionally drained after the shock of Andre’s death, this experience was overwhelming; it’s hard to describe all the thoughts and feelings that went through my mind. The pictures were heartbreaking and what astounded me most were the deformities inflicted on those impaired by Agent Orange, both directly, and in the children of those with the chemical in their system. It provoked a lot of thought and reflection on what those affected by the war went through for almost two decades.
This entry would not be complete without mentioning the shopping in Vietnam, massages, and food! The Ben Sangh Market received a lot of business from Semester at Sea. It was a large square with endless shops on the outside and too many aisles on the inside. Shop after shop of basically anything you could ever want. I got several bags and purses (designer knock-offs mostly), t-shirts, chopsticks, placemats, artwork, dishes, sunglasses, DVDs, etc., all for great prices (especially since I’m becoming an expert bargainer). I actually got two massages (I couldn’t pass up 90min for only $20), and they felt great after long days of shopping…oh wait, I mean sightseeing. The first one was a true cultural experience but that’s another story. We ate lots of Pho, a traditional Vietnamese dish with noodles and chicken (or beef) in a bowl of broth, spring rolls, rice, stir fried noodles and vegetables.
I really enjoyed my time in Vietnam. This is just an overview of some of my experiences but hopefully it gives you a little insight into Vietnamese culture. Sorry it’s taken so long for me to send this out. It may not be timely, but you will get updates about China and Japan! Happy Thanksgiving, and I look forward to hearing from some of you! We are now only seven hours behind central time (I think; I tend to lose track) after crossing the International Date Line and repeating November 27th! Yes, I basically have conquered time-travel and have had two November 27ths. How cool is that!
Finally bound for the USA,
Heather
The ship is rocking, the sun is shining, and the air is brisk. This is the part of the voyage where I realize things are coming to an end and school gets pushed to the back burner as traveling, relationships, and sleep takes priority. Everyone is busy trying to make plans for Japan in addition to finishing up endless amounts of papers and projects. Before I get too behind though, I wanted to send out a re-cap on Vietnam which was a very full five days of traveling (luckily, I have bullet points for every day in my journal so I don’t forget because it all starts to blend together). Although many other students enjoyed three-day trips to Cambodia and Hanoi/Ha Long Bay, I enjoyed staying mostly in Ho Chi Minh City doing lots of exploring, sightseeing, and shopping.
Our time in Vietnam (November 3-8) was full of emotion---beginning with lots of joy as parents arrived on the first day, and ending with tears due to the passing of a fellow student. It is a country packed with culture, history, people, and mopeds (yes, even more mopeds than Morocco and India). I had my first experience riding on the back of one. It’s a great way to get around for just one US dollar. They’ll take you anywhere and would overwhelm us as we walked out of the Saigon port gate. The best was when there was a group of nine of us and we all hopped on mopeds for rides to a nearby restaurant. Good times and even better pictures. I saw a water puppet show with my theatre class, which is a traditional form of Vietnamese entertainment and consists of puppets being wielded on long poles in a pool of water from behind a pagoda-like set. The entire show was narrated in Vietnamese so I missed whatever story was being conveyed but we were very pleasantly entertained.
Another day Ana, Brittany, and I took a taxi to the Mekong Delta River. It took us about an hour to find a taxi driver who would take us for a decent price and understood where we wanted to go (thanks to a wonderful woman named Miss Vi who overheard us attempting to communicate and came over to help translate). She is just one of many very nice people that we were able to meet. I still have the paper where she wrote down her name and phone number in case we had any other problems. The Mekong Delta was a neat experience. We rode on a large boat across the river with our tour guide and new friend, Sang, who showed us all around. We watched the process of how to make coconut candy, ate honey off of a hive covered with bees, tried some exotic fruits (my favorite was bright pink dragon fruit), and rode in a canoe down a small canal, wearing rice hats of course. Later that day when we were back in Ho Chi Minh City, it started raining and I couldn’t believe how close the water level of the river was to the houses along it. Lack of infrastructure and flooding are a huge problem in Vietnam. And rain doesn’t decrease the moped use either – they just throw on ponchos! Our new friend Ruby (also the tailor we used to get dresses made), couldn’t make it into the shop that day due to the flooding so we had to reschedule our appointment for the next day. Even though our dresses didn’t turn out quite the way we wanted, I am thankful to have gotten to know Ruby and hear a lot about her life. She was eager to exchange email addresses and said she will come to the US someday and visit Tennessee. We also visited a school for the disabled and were able to spend a couple hours interacting with mostly deaf and mentally challenged children between the ages of six and eighteen. Even though though they couldn't really speak, some of the older ones had excellent written English, and we had conversations using the chalkboard. These kids loved the stickers we gave them and were all smiles as we watched them run around outside, jump rope and play on their swingset and sliding board.
We were able to experience a lot of history while we were there too at the Cu Chi Tunnels and American War Museum (which is what they call the Vietnam War). I thought the tunnels were pretty cool, but was shocked at how small they were when we crawled through them for 100m, especially after hearing that they had been made larger for tourists. There were several replicas of weapons and booby traps used by both the Vietnamese and US armies. There was also a shooting area complete with AK47s and M16s, and I had been looking forward to shooting those guns ever since my brother did a few years ago when he was there. I shot both and released a bit of my inner Rambo while wearing noise reducing headphones and a chain of bullets. On a more somber note, the last day we went to the War Museum. It was full very vivid and graphic pictures portraying the horrors and detrimental effects of the war. Already physically and emotionally drained after the shock of Andre’s death, this experience was overwhelming; it’s hard to describe all the thoughts and feelings that went through my mind. The pictures were heartbreaking and what astounded me most were the deformities inflicted on those impaired by Agent Orange, both directly, and in the children of those with the chemical in their system. It provoked a lot of thought and reflection on what those affected by the war went through for almost two decades.
This entry would not be complete without mentioning the shopping in Vietnam, massages, and food! The Ben Sangh Market received a lot of business from Semester at Sea. It was a large square with endless shops on the outside and too many aisles on the inside. Shop after shop of basically anything you could ever want. I got several bags and purses (designer knock-offs mostly), t-shirts, chopsticks, placemats, artwork, dishes, sunglasses, DVDs, etc., all for great prices (especially since I’m becoming an expert bargainer). I actually got two massages (I couldn’t pass up 90min for only $20), and they felt great after long days of shopping…oh wait, I mean sightseeing. The first one was a true cultural experience but that’s another story. We ate lots of Pho, a traditional Vietnamese dish with noodles and chicken (or beef) in a bowl of broth, spring rolls, rice, stir fried noodles and vegetables.
I really enjoyed my time in Vietnam. This is just an overview of some of my experiences but hopefully it gives you a little insight into Vietnamese culture. Sorry it’s taken so long for me to send this out. It may not be timely, but you will get updates about China and Japan! Happy Thanksgiving, and I look forward to hearing from some of you! We are now only seven hours behind central time (I think; I tend to lose track) after crossing the International Date Line and repeating November 27th! Yes, I basically have conquered time-travel and have had two November 27ths. How cool is that!
Finally bound for the USA,
Heather
Singapore
Many of you have been asking about an update on Genna. Just the day after I sent out my email we received the following update from her father:
"For one week those watching over Genna have been waiting for the "breakthrough" day. A day when things stabilize or get better and there are no more setbacks or issues. It is the day that all of those prayers, good thoughts, and meditation hums do what they were supposed to do. That day for Genna was day 12 at the ICU at Apollo Hospital in Chennai. Last night, on board the Semester at Sea ship, the Explorer, Archbishop Desmond Tutu led other students and staff in a meditation for Genna. This effort, combined with the good thoughts of each of you seemed to tip the scale for Genna. I can tell, because now she is hungry!"
Thank you all for your prayers. We were also just informed that she is now out of the ICU and recovering well. Unfortunately, we have also suffered a tragic loss. Just two days ago while in Vietnam, a fellow student, Andre, died. This is the initial notification we received from the president of SAS later that night.
"It is with the deepest sadness and remorse that I inform you of the loss of one of our students today aboard the MV Explorer while docked in Vietnam. Andre Ramadan, 20, a sophomore at the University of California-Santa Barbara, died of unknown medical causes. The Institute for Shipboard Education and senior voyage administrators are in close contact with the U.S. State Department, Vietnamese officials, representatives from UC Santa Barbara, and Andre's family. We wish to convey our condolences to them and to his many friends. Please keep them in your thoughts."
I found out through a friend just after it happened. I did not know Andre too well, but I’d had lunch and dinner with him a few times and I am fairly close to his best friend on the ship. It’s been overwhelming to say the least and his death has affected everyone. I personally am physically exhausted from our adventures in Vietnam, but am also emotionally and mentally drained. Despite the tragedy, it’s been a blessing to see everyone come together and support each other. Today we had a memorial service that concluded with a tradition of throwing flowers off of the back of the ship in memory of Andre. I would greatly appreciate prayer for Andre’s family, friends, and everyone here.
As for an update on my travels, our three days of sailing from India to Singapore took us from one end to the other on the scale of cleanliness, order, and security. It was a welcome contrast and I loved it! I felt very safe the whole time. We were prepared for all of Singapore’s laws and thankfully everyone made it back on the ship safely (let’s just say that this was the first time in a couple years that SAS was allowed to port here). There are lots of rules: no spitting, no selling gum, no jaywalking. And basically anything having to do with drugs gets you the death penalty. Singapore is the 2nd most densely populated country in the world, with five million people inhabiting the 14 x 26 mile island. No one wanted to run a marathon with me across the island while there, so I guess I’ll have to do that next time! Our cruise center terminal where we docked was similar to an airport terminal in the way of customs/security. Connected to it was a huge shopping center and just beyond that was the cable car that took us to Sentosa Island, which is basically a giant resort with beaches, hotels, Universal Studios, and lots of nice shops and restaurants. I haven’t felt so comfortable and safe just walking around in quite a while. On the island we saw the Merlion statue (lion head and body of a mermaid, national symbol of Singapore), and went into a few shops. We returned by cable car, ate some great Asian food at the mall food court, and then hopped on the metro. Singapore is home to the biggest Ferris wheel in the world. It’s huge, but it moves so slowly and takes over 35 min to make one rotation. No thanks; I’ll pass. Instead, we decided to go to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, where many of our friends had booked rooms. It was awesome to shoot up to the 57th floor and hang out in the infinity pool and look out over the views of the city. Later, I went on a night safari and because it was Halloween it was haunted, but really not that scary. We saw lions, elephants, tigers, deer, buffalo, hyenas, and flamingos. Pretty cool.
The next morning was a highlight for me. Ana, our friend Paul, and I took a cab to the Botanical gardens, a beautiful park outside the city full of gardens and flowers. I went for an hour long run and it was absolutely exhilarating. It was the first time in a while that I have been able to just take off on a run by myself and it felt great. I ran through the evolution garden, across the reflexology footpath, through the rainforest and ginger garden, under a waterfall, around swan lake, past the orchid garden and people doing tai chi, and ended with a bowl of fresh fruit, granola, and yogurt at a little cafe. Before on ship time, I got lost in the mall for a while and then skyped with my family at Starbucks! It was nice to just do my own thing. We only had one day between Singapore and Vietnam so it was a quick turnaround. Six day re-cap of Vietnam coming soon. Things are a little crazy right now with everything going on but schoolwork needs to get done before we get to China in two days. I’m missing everyone at home but I’m ready for our last three ports.
Taking things one day at a time,
Heather
"For one week those watching over Genna have been waiting for the "breakthrough" day. A day when things stabilize or get better and there are no more setbacks or issues. It is the day that all of those prayers, good thoughts, and meditation hums do what they were supposed to do. That day for Genna was day 12 at the ICU at Apollo Hospital in Chennai. Last night, on board the Semester at Sea ship, the Explorer, Archbishop Desmond Tutu led other students and staff in a meditation for Genna. This effort, combined with the good thoughts of each of you seemed to tip the scale for Genna. I can tell, because now she is hungry!"
Thank you all for your prayers. We were also just informed that she is now out of the ICU and recovering well. Unfortunately, we have also suffered a tragic loss. Just two days ago while in Vietnam, a fellow student, Andre, died. This is the initial notification we received from the president of SAS later that night.
"It is with the deepest sadness and remorse that I inform you of the loss of one of our students today aboard the MV Explorer while docked in Vietnam. Andre Ramadan, 20, a sophomore at the University of California-Santa Barbara, died of unknown medical causes. The Institute for Shipboard Education and senior voyage administrators are in close contact with the U.S. State Department, Vietnamese officials, representatives from UC Santa Barbara, and Andre's family. We wish to convey our condolences to them and to his many friends. Please keep them in your thoughts."
I found out through a friend just after it happened. I did not know Andre too well, but I’d had lunch and dinner with him a few times and I am fairly close to his best friend on the ship. It’s been overwhelming to say the least and his death has affected everyone. I personally am physically exhausted from our adventures in Vietnam, but am also emotionally and mentally drained. Despite the tragedy, it’s been a blessing to see everyone come together and support each other. Today we had a memorial service that concluded with a tradition of throwing flowers off of the back of the ship in memory of Andre. I would greatly appreciate prayer for Andre’s family, friends, and everyone here.
As for an update on my travels, our three days of sailing from India to Singapore took us from one end to the other on the scale of cleanliness, order, and security. It was a welcome contrast and I loved it! I felt very safe the whole time. We were prepared for all of Singapore’s laws and thankfully everyone made it back on the ship safely (let’s just say that this was the first time in a couple years that SAS was allowed to port here). There are lots of rules: no spitting, no selling gum, no jaywalking. And basically anything having to do with drugs gets you the death penalty. Singapore is the 2nd most densely populated country in the world, with five million people inhabiting the 14 x 26 mile island. No one wanted to run a marathon with me across the island while there, so I guess I’ll have to do that next time! Our cruise center terminal where we docked was similar to an airport terminal in the way of customs/security. Connected to it was a huge shopping center and just beyond that was the cable car that took us to Sentosa Island, which is basically a giant resort with beaches, hotels, Universal Studios, and lots of nice shops and restaurants. I haven’t felt so comfortable and safe just walking around in quite a while. On the island we saw the Merlion statue (lion head and body of a mermaid, national symbol of Singapore), and went into a few shops. We returned by cable car, ate some great Asian food at the mall food court, and then hopped on the metro. Singapore is home to the biggest Ferris wheel in the world. It’s huge, but it moves so slowly and takes over 35 min to make one rotation. No thanks; I’ll pass. Instead, we decided to go to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel, where many of our friends had booked rooms. It was awesome to shoot up to the 57th floor and hang out in the infinity pool and look out over the views of the city. Later, I went on a night safari and because it was Halloween it was haunted, but really not that scary. We saw lions, elephants, tigers, deer, buffalo, hyenas, and flamingos. Pretty cool.
The next morning was a highlight for me. Ana, our friend Paul, and I took a cab to the Botanical gardens, a beautiful park outside the city full of gardens and flowers. I went for an hour long run and it was absolutely exhilarating. It was the first time in a while that I have been able to just take off on a run by myself and it felt great. I ran through the evolution garden, across the reflexology footpath, through the rainforest and ginger garden, under a waterfall, around swan lake, past the orchid garden and people doing tai chi, and ended with a bowl of fresh fruit, granola, and yogurt at a little cafe. Before on ship time, I got lost in the mall for a while and then skyped with my family at Starbucks! It was nice to just do my own thing. We only had one day between Singapore and Vietnam so it was a quick turnaround. Six day re-cap of Vietnam coming soon. Things are a little crazy right now with everything going on but schoolwork needs to get done before we get to China in two days. I’m missing everyone at home but I’m ready for our last three ports.
Taking things one day at a time,
Heather
India
Namaste! India was incredible. It is a country crowded with people, full of chaos, and littered with garbage, but underneath it all is rich, beautiful culture. Our six days there had a very strong impact on me. It was culture shock to the max. There is really no way to describe some of the people I saw, the things I witnessed, the feelings I felt. How do you respond when a child of about three or four walks up to you, looks you in the eye, and moves his hand to his mouth motioning for food? What do you do when an old, frail man with no legs is begging for money on the street? Images of women holding naked babies, barefoot children rummaging through piles of garbage, and others crippled with disabled and deformed body parts, can’t be forgotten. It’s one thing to read about this, see pictures, and hear people talk about it, but to see it first-hand and have it stare right back at you is completely different. It was truly sobering and I am still reflecting on the whole experience. But in the midst of the chaos, the poverty, the dirt, and the stench, are the smiling faces of men, woman, and children. We were welcomed into their lives. They are a people of talent, faith, and tradition who happen to live life differently from our own.
Each day there brought something unexpected. I remember getting off the ship on the first day, feeling a little nervous. Eighteen of us were bussed to the airport in Chennai. There was so much commotion outside when we got off the bus until we got through security. I was relieved to be sitting at the gate with time to spare. After our arrival in Delhi, we were picked up by Chaman, our tour guide (a group of us booked this trip through and Indian tour agency). We visited a nearby orphanage that houses boys up through age 18. Our quarter mile walk there was probably my first true taste of India. Nostrils filled with an overwhelming stench, we walked past two cows standing in the middle of road, through mud puddles (the roads are in terrible condition), and by buildings that looked as though they were about to collapse. The boys sang and danced for us and afterwards we got to hang out with them. I talked with one 12 year old boy for quite a while about school, sports, and siblings, and then taught him how to play rock-paper-scissors. Cameras were a highlight once again and I have lots of photos.
The first two days involved a lot of driving but that first night we stayed in Agra, and went to the world famous Taj Mahal at sunrise the next morning. While standing in line to enter, we had our first experiences with Indian vendors who don’t take “no” for an answer. As much as I want to help them out, there are just some things that I don’t want no matter how many rupees it costs! I just want to go see the Taj Mahal! Pictures don’t do it justice; it is a magnificent wonder. Depending on the sun, the marble reflects various shades of white, with pinkish or orange-ish tints. The inside walls are covered with beautiful designs and marble that changes color when light is shined on it. We walked through the inside, which houses the tomb. I still can’t believe I was actually there just short of a week ago. It seems unreal. Agra was very poverty stricken from the emaciated looking horses to the constant appearances of poor and handicapped people. Because desperation is everywhere—streets, sidewalks, under trees, tarps, makeshift shelters serving as people’s homes—you can’t avoid it. What really struck me was the extreme beauty and luxury of the Taj Mahal next to that hardship.
The next day we had a little bit more of a rural cultural experience in a little village outside of Jaipur, about a six hour drive from Agra. Our accommodations were at Castle Kalwar, a recently renovated ancient fort which now has 14 unique suites. Part of our stay included a tour of the village by camel cart which allowed us to see Indian livelihood in action. Wood carving, pottery, shoe making, blacksmithing, bangle making. Rarely frequented by tourists, the whole village seemed excited with our pass through. Kids ran beside the carts, some pulled out cell phone cameras, but most just smiled and waved. And some just stared. Indian men are definitely not afraid to stare, so sometimes I would just stare right back. We bought bangles, sarees, and pottery, well made and well meant purchases. There was one semi-paved road, but we were mostly just on the dirt. We finished the day with an elephant safari in Jaipur. Wearing our sarees, Ana and I sat next to each other on a painted elephant named Mookshi. Jaipur gave us the experience of a little more well-developed Indian city. We toured rug and gem factories and went into various shops in the evening. Traffic is always chaotic but it gets worse later in the day. Not only do cars use the road, but bikes, mopeds, people, cows, pigs—all moving at different speeds—move in any available space. Now that I can cross streets in India successfully (quite scary, because there’s no such thing as “yield to pedestrians”), I think I can cross them anywhere.
A trip to India would not be complete without riding a rickshaw which is a vehicle with three wheels, either motorized or bike. They are a very common form of transportation. We took one in Delhi, a large city where we saw the India gate, and in Chennai to the mall on the last day. It’s quite the adventure, weaving through cars, people, and animals. Four of us were crowded into one that’s meant for two people! The mall was four stories, and very nice, making me wonder who really shops there, besides tourists but there are a number of wealthy people in India too, however, we didn’t really see that side of the country. We had a delicious lunch in the food court and even got a tour of the kitchen afterwards. I really like Indian food. I avoided the extremely spicy dishes but for the most part I enjoyed the rice, noodles, curry chicken or beef, sauce and cheese (which was kind of like tofu), and veggie dishes. Naan bread (basically like flat or pita bread) is a staple with every meal and I ate piece after piece. Sometimes, I didn’t really know what I was eating, but I love trying everything, and if there’s a problem, that’s what Pepto is for!
By the end of the week I was both glad and disappointed to be leaving India. Happy, because I had been overwhelmed by the poverty and filth and I wanted to feel clean and safe again back on the ship, but also sad because I wanted to see more of a country where I learned more and saw more than I ever expected. I grew to love India in six days—barefoot children flying kites at dusk, cows blocking traffic, running across streets hoping you won’t get hit, rickshaws, our bus magically fitting through the smallest spaces, squat toilets, monkeys scampering across buildings, intricate architecture, painted elephants, dirty feet, bargaining, women in beautiful sarees, and sacred places. One person described India as chaotic beauty. It was overwhelming yet rewarding because it really opened my eyes to a life so different from my own—one where people live on $2 a day, sleep under a tarp, and go to the bathroom on the side of the road. Appreciate where you live and what you have because not everyone has even their basic needs fulfilled.
We are on to Singapore next, which will be quite the contrast after India. Love the people around you and do what you can, where you are, to make the world a better place. Oh, and hug your family because I wish mine was here. One last thing, please pray for one of our fellow students, Genna. She was hospitalized in Chennai for one of the most severe forms of Malaria and has been in the ICU for twelve days. Her parents flew in the day we arrived and her condition is still unstable. Tonight Archbishop Tutu led us in a prayer for her. I remember meeting her at the beginning of the voyage but don’t really know her that well. We are all hoping for the best, seeing as it could have been any one of us. That’s all for now. Hope all is well with everyone!
Heather
Each day there brought something unexpected. I remember getting off the ship on the first day, feeling a little nervous. Eighteen of us were bussed to the airport in Chennai. There was so much commotion outside when we got off the bus until we got through security. I was relieved to be sitting at the gate with time to spare. After our arrival in Delhi, we were picked up by Chaman, our tour guide (a group of us booked this trip through and Indian tour agency). We visited a nearby orphanage that houses boys up through age 18. Our quarter mile walk there was probably my first true taste of India. Nostrils filled with an overwhelming stench, we walked past two cows standing in the middle of road, through mud puddles (the roads are in terrible condition), and by buildings that looked as though they were about to collapse. The boys sang and danced for us and afterwards we got to hang out with them. I talked with one 12 year old boy for quite a while about school, sports, and siblings, and then taught him how to play rock-paper-scissors. Cameras were a highlight once again and I have lots of photos.
The first two days involved a lot of driving but that first night we stayed in Agra, and went to the world famous Taj Mahal at sunrise the next morning. While standing in line to enter, we had our first experiences with Indian vendors who don’t take “no” for an answer. As much as I want to help them out, there are just some things that I don’t want no matter how many rupees it costs! I just want to go see the Taj Mahal! Pictures don’t do it justice; it is a magnificent wonder. Depending on the sun, the marble reflects various shades of white, with pinkish or orange-ish tints. The inside walls are covered with beautiful designs and marble that changes color when light is shined on it. We walked through the inside, which houses the tomb. I still can’t believe I was actually there just short of a week ago. It seems unreal. Agra was very poverty stricken from the emaciated looking horses to the constant appearances of poor and handicapped people. Because desperation is everywhere—streets, sidewalks, under trees, tarps, makeshift shelters serving as people’s homes—you can’t avoid it. What really struck me was the extreme beauty and luxury of the Taj Mahal next to that hardship.
The next day we had a little bit more of a rural cultural experience in a little village outside of Jaipur, about a six hour drive from Agra. Our accommodations were at Castle Kalwar, a recently renovated ancient fort which now has 14 unique suites. Part of our stay included a tour of the village by camel cart which allowed us to see Indian livelihood in action. Wood carving, pottery, shoe making, blacksmithing, bangle making. Rarely frequented by tourists, the whole village seemed excited with our pass through. Kids ran beside the carts, some pulled out cell phone cameras, but most just smiled and waved. And some just stared. Indian men are definitely not afraid to stare, so sometimes I would just stare right back. We bought bangles, sarees, and pottery, well made and well meant purchases. There was one semi-paved road, but we were mostly just on the dirt. We finished the day with an elephant safari in Jaipur. Wearing our sarees, Ana and I sat next to each other on a painted elephant named Mookshi. Jaipur gave us the experience of a little more well-developed Indian city. We toured rug and gem factories and went into various shops in the evening. Traffic is always chaotic but it gets worse later in the day. Not only do cars use the road, but bikes, mopeds, people, cows, pigs—all moving at different speeds—move in any available space. Now that I can cross streets in India successfully (quite scary, because there’s no such thing as “yield to pedestrians”), I think I can cross them anywhere.
A trip to India would not be complete without riding a rickshaw which is a vehicle with three wheels, either motorized or bike. They are a very common form of transportation. We took one in Delhi, a large city where we saw the India gate, and in Chennai to the mall on the last day. It’s quite the adventure, weaving through cars, people, and animals. Four of us were crowded into one that’s meant for two people! The mall was four stories, and very nice, making me wonder who really shops there, besides tourists but there are a number of wealthy people in India too, however, we didn’t really see that side of the country. We had a delicious lunch in the food court and even got a tour of the kitchen afterwards. I really like Indian food. I avoided the extremely spicy dishes but for the most part I enjoyed the rice, noodles, curry chicken or beef, sauce and cheese (which was kind of like tofu), and veggie dishes. Naan bread (basically like flat or pita bread) is a staple with every meal and I ate piece after piece. Sometimes, I didn’t really know what I was eating, but I love trying everything, and if there’s a problem, that’s what Pepto is for!
By the end of the week I was both glad and disappointed to be leaving India. Happy, because I had been overwhelmed by the poverty and filth and I wanted to feel clean and safe again back on the ship, but also sad because I wanted to see more of a country where I learned more and saw more than I ever expected. I grew to love India in six days—barefoot children flying kites at dusk, cows blocking traffic, running across streets hoping you won’t get hit, rickshaws, our bus magically fitting through the smallest spaces, squat toilets, monkeys scampering across buildings, intricate architecture, painted elephants, dirty feet, bargaining, women in beautiful sarees, and sacred places. One person described India as chaotic beauty. It was overwhelming yet rewarding because it really opened my eyes to a life so different from my own—one where people live on $2 a day, sleep under a tarp, and go to the bathroom on the side of the road. Appreciate where you live and what you have because not everyone has even their basic needs fulfilled.
We are on to Singapore next, which will be quite the contrast after India. Love the people around you and do what you can, where you are, to make the world a better place. Oh, and hug your family because I wish mine was here. One last thing, please pray for one of our fellow students, Genna. She was hospitalized in Chennai for one of the most severe forms of Malaria and has been in the ICU for twelve days. Her parents flew in the day we arrived and her condition is still unstable. Tonight Archbishop Tutu led us in a prayer for her. I remember meeting her at the beginning of the voyage but don’t really know her that well. We are all hoping for the best, seeing as it could have been any one of us. That’s all for now. Hope all is well with everyone!
Heather
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