Pictures!!
http://community.webshots.com/user/KateAtSea2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Namibia
Post 5
So it turns out that Namibia is Africa’s national secret. OK, not a complete secret since Brad Pitt owns a house on the beach just a few minutes from where we were docked! Walvis Bay is a small port city of about 50,000. Most of our time in Namibia was spent in Swakompmund around 30km (18 miles) north. Swakompmund was the first German city (it was a German colony) in the early 1800s. It is very interesting to go from Walvis Bay, a newer South African type city, to Swakompmund . The architecture, the food and even the language was as if the city had been lifted straight out of Germany!
On My first day in Namibia, I was on a SAS trip called the “Treasure of the Namib.” The Namib desert is claimed to be the second largest desert in the world (apparently two countries both claim to have the second largest desert). The group of 60 SASers were split up into 12 jeeps for a day in the desert. We spent a lot of our time exploring the “river” area even though no running water was present. Clearly, from the vegetation in the riverbed, water was coming from somewhere. The native plants of the Namib are known to have root systems that go as deep as 300ft. The “river” is an underground river that at center is only a meter from the surface and the further from the center the farther down the roots must go to reach water. The Namib Desert is famous for it’s 18 hole golf course that is as green as the desert is dry due to plentiful amounts of water being pumped from the river. In addition to learning about many of the desert plants and how they survive the conditions, we also spotted reptile life, a Jackal dog, and our guide caught a scorpion to allow us to have a closer look. The scenery was spectacular which ranged from massive sand dunes, to granite cliffs, and basalt rivers (previously molten rock). On the way back to the ship we stopped at Dune 7, the areas tallest dune and raced to the top. It was probably quite a sight to see 60 US students racing to the top of a dune! About half actually made it to the top and I came is 2nd (1st girl)! The best part though was coming down! Because of the steepness of the dune, all you had to do was jump away from the dune and you can cover quite a distance, but because when you landed the sand went half way to your knees, it was a very soft landing. So, discovering this, I “sprinted” down the dune much like I was walking on the moon! I couldn’t convince anyone else to try this since running down something that you climbed up on all fours doesn’t seem like a good idea, but to me it felt just like landing off of a drop fence with a horse and the sand slowed most of the downward momentum (hence the moon walking feeling). By the time I got down many people were still only about twenty feet from the top sliding down on their bums, so I went back up and did it again!
On the second day, I spent the morning around town just seeing things and interacting with the local people. In the afternoon, I had another SAS trip. We went ocean kayaking for about 5 hours and were able to get amazingly close to the marine life. The first thing we spotted was a big red jellyfish around 12-15 inches across! It was just inches from our boat. We paddled about a mile out of the lagoon and into the open waters where we surrounded by seals. Hundreds of seals lined the beach and the pups were just beginning to explore the waters edge. The mothers, however, would swim and jump all around our kayaks! After much convincing that the big jellyfish (and there were hundreds of them too) were not harmful, just painful, I spent some time swimming with the seals. It turns out the seals are naturally playful and will interact with people without any training. Best of all, I did not touch any jellyfish! We also spotted dolphins many times and as close as 50 feet from us. Overall, it was awesome experience getting up close to the sea life!
That evening, my friend Jenna and I decided we would try some of the local dining (we had been eating the “free” food on the ship so far in this country) and the only place open on Sunday night was a place called “Crazy Mammas.” We went not knowing what to expect, but it turned out to be a really neat African themed restaurant. In Namibia, everything is done at a much slower pace and dinner was no exception. It took us 3.5 hours from arrival to check, but it was well worth it. Having the place jam packed with SASers probably did not help any though either! The best part of the meal was my discovery of “monkey gland” sauce. The closest thing I could relate it to is sweet and sour sauce, but more tangy. I had it again on a chicken burger in S. Africa yesterday and I it is now a new favorite!
On the last day in Namibia, Jenna and I were, planning “quad-biking and sandboarding tour” in the Swakompmund area dunes. This turned out to be the best thing we have done on this trip so far. You come at a dune at full speed, go up it and flip a u-ey near the top and fly back down at twice the speed! I most enjoyed the rhythm section type areas that would be up to 5 miles long. It was a good way to learn how to keep the quad on the ground and go through them as fast as possible. It was much like going through a gymnastic line with a horse, but I didn’t have to worry about knocking down poles, lol! The sandboarding was also quite a kick! It is just like snowboarding, but going down sand dunes. I was just glad that I didn’t have any sand in my teeth by the end; others were not so lucky!
The last couple of hours I had in Namibia, I spent walking around Walvis Bay. I went to the grocery store for some snacks, stocked up on sunscreen, and so on. Here, everybody sells one or two types of things in their shop so I would say Walvis Bay was like one big Wal-Mart, but with a lot more walking in between! I did find a Christian book store (70% of Namibians consider themselves Christian) and picked up a book called The Shack as well as a CD and I finally found a day planner. It was really nice to be in a place were one of the major languages is English. My day planner is in Afrikaans, however, but it’s pretty neat. I only wish I could read the quotes in it; many are written by John Maxwell, but the only part I can read is his name!
So it turns out that Namibia is Africa’s national secret. OK, not a complete secret since Brad Pitt owns a house on the beach just a few minutes from where we were docked! Walvis Bay is a small port city of about 50,000. Most of our time in Namibia was spent in Swakompmund around 30km (18 miles) north. Swakompmund was the first German city (it was a German colony) in the early 1800s. It is very interesting to go from Walvis Bay, a newer South African type city, to Swakompmund . The architecture, the food and even the language was as if the city had been lifted straight out of Germany!
On My first day in Namibia, I was on a SAS trip called the “Treasure of the Namib.” The Namib desert is claimed to be the second largest desert in the world (apparently two countries both claim to have the second largest desert). The group of 60 SASers were split up into 12 jeeps for a day in the desert. We spent a lot of our time exploring the “river” area even though no running water was present. Clearly, from the vegetation in the riverbed, water was coming from somewhere. The native plants of the Namib are known to have root systems that go as deep as 300ft. The “river” is an underground river that at center is only a meter from the surface and the further from the center the farther down the roots must go to reach water. The Namib Desert is famous for it’s 18 hole golf course that is as green as the desert is dry due to plentiful amounts of water being pumped from the river. In addition to learning about many of the desert plants and how they survive the conditions, we also spotted reptile life, a Jackal dog, and our guide caught a scorpion to allow us to have a closer look. The scenery was spectacular which ranged from massive sand dunes, to granite cliffs, and basalt rivers (previously molten rock). On the way back to the ship we stopped at Dune 7, the areas tallest dune and raced to the top. It was probably quite a sight to see 60 US students racing to the top of a dune! About half actually made it to the top and I came is 2nd (1st girl)! The best part though was coming down! Because of the steepness of the dune, all you had to do was jump away from the dune and you can cover quite a distance, but because when you landed the sand went half way to your knees, it was a very soft landing. So, discovering this, I “sprinted” down the dune much like I was walking on the moon! I couldn’t convince anyone else to try this since running down something that you climbed up on all fours doesn’t seem like a good idea, but to me it felt just like landing off of a drop fence with a horse and the sand slowed most of the downward momentum (hence the moon walking feeling). By the time I got down many people were still only about twenty feet from the top sliding down on their bums, so I went back up and did it again!
On the second day, I spent the morning around town just seeing things and interacting with the local people. In the afternoon, I had another SAS trip. We went ocean kayaking for about 5 hours and were able to get amazingly close to the marine life. The first thing we spotted was a big red jellyfish around 12-15 inches across! It was just inches from our boat. We paddled about a mile out of the lagoon and into the open waters where we surrounded by seals. Hundreds of seals lined the beach and the pups were just beginning to explore the waters edge. The mothers, however, would swim and jump all around our kayaks! After much convincing that the big jellyfish (and there were hundreds of them too) were not harmful, just painful, I spent some time swimming with the seals. It turns out the seals are naturally playful and will interact with people without any training. Best of all, I did not touch any jellyfish! We also spotted dolphins many times and as close as 50 feet from us. Overall, it was awesome experience getting up close to the sea life!
That evening, my friend Jenna and I decided we would try some of the local dining (we had been eating the “free” food on the ship so far in this country) and the only place open on Sunday night was a place called “Crazy Mammas.” We went not knowing what to expect, but it turned out to be a really neat African themed restaurant. In Namibia, everything is done at a much slower pace and dinner was no exception. It took us 3.5 hours from arrival to check, but it was well worth it. Having the place jam packed with SASers probably did not help any though either! The best part of the meal was my discovery of “monkey gland” sauce. The closest thing I could relate it to is sweet and sour sauce, but more tangy. I had it again on a chicken burger in S. Africa yesterday and I it is now a new favorite!
On the last day in Namibia, Jenna and I were, planning “quad-biking and sandboarding tour” in the Swakompmund area dunes. This turned out to be the best thing we have done on this trip so far. You come at a dune at full speed, go up it and flip a u-ey near the top and fly back down at twice the speed! I most enjoyed the rhythm section type areas that would be up to 5 miles long. It was a good way to learn how to keep the quad on the ground and go through them as fast as possible. It was much like going through a gymnastic line with a horse, but I didn’t have to worry about knocking down poles, lol! The sandboarding was also quite a kick! It is just like snowboarding, but going down sand dunes. I was just glad that I didn’t have any sand in my teeth by the end; others were not so lucky!
The last couple of hours I had in Namibia, I spent walking around Walvis Bay. I went to the grocery store for some snacks, stocked up on sunscreen, and so on. Here, everybody sells one or two types of things in their shop so I would say Walvis Bay was like one big Wal-Mart, but with a lot more walking in between! I did find a Christian book store (70% of Namibians consider themselves Christian) and picked up a book called The Shack as well as a CD and I finally found a day planner. It was really nice to be in a place were one of the major languages is English. My day planner is in Afrikaans, however, but it’s pretty neat. I only wish I could read the quotes in it; many are written by John Maxwell, but the only part I can read is his name!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Delay
Hello everyone. Sorry about the delay in updating the blog! I was having technical difficulties. The most current blogs are at the top, so be sure to read from bottom to top. I've started numbering them and hopefully that will make it less confusing! Happy Readings! Feel free to send emails!
Morocco After Word
Post 4
Morocco, Morocco, Morocco!! What an amazing country! Although, I would not choose morocco as a vacation spot for the future, this trip was absolutely amazing. The main language of Morocco is Arabic and this was my first experience of the language other than CNN :). The language is actually very beautiful sounding and the people all speak with very soft tones. “Hello” in Arabic (only in Morocco) is actually translated into “peace” and the people of Casablanca and Marrakech were all very polite and welcoming!
We arrived into Casablanca around 8pm (14 hours late) and the custom official were very accommodating allow the ship to be cleared that night. My SAS trip to Marrakech left at 7:30 the next morning and they were practically passing out passports as we were running out the gangway (exit) to make up for missed time (we are only given our passports when we must have them). In Morocco, all foreigners are required to carry passports and “police passes” on them at all times.
Our first stop was at a gas station half way to our destination, Marrakech. Inside, rather than finding typical snacks and drinks, there was a full bakery and coffee shop. I had a “crepe” for $1USD that was nothing like the European crepes most are used to. Instead it was a square of croissant type bread about a half inch think and covered a whole plate when doubled over. It was delicious!
We arrived in Marrakech around 11 and after a traditional Moroccan lunch of chicken and couscous we went to the camel stables to begin our camel trek. The things that we saw on our trek were amazing. We went right through the middle of a small village that was little more than palm trees, mud, and the occasional concrete slab. There ability to make a roof out of palm trees was very impressive as it was a tightly woven pattern of branches around a half-inch thick. The children in the village would come out of their huts when they heard us coming and were all smiles as they waved at the unknown strangers on camels. They seemed very happy to see new people coming through the village; they stared at us until we left their sight. We rode until the late sunset, which was an amazing sight across the oasis palm trees of Marrakech.
The next day we did a combo walking/bus tour of the city of Marrakech, seeing palaces, mosques, cathedrals, and the market place. Our tour guide took us (39 SAS students, 3 Life long learners, and a Faculty Trip leader) into the deepest parts of the market place. Within 30 minutes of walking, we were shown all phases of the products sold in the market place. If you’ve never seen leather being made from the beginning, you’re really missing out :). Every step of the leather making process is done by hand. Pounding the leather is done with a smooth stone and it probably took hours if not longer to do pound the leather into a smooth finish. The other most notable trades were welding and rug making. The welders made everything medal a person could make. One person was working a full sized barbeque grill with tremendous detail. I would guess the grill was being made for a well off French landowner. Morocco is the main destination for the French who are looking for warmer weather during the winter months.
After our trip back to Casablanca a good rainstorm had come in and we toured Casablanca while staying on the bus. I had originally planned on spending an hour or two in the Casablanca Souks, with a couple of other people, but decided that we were already too wet after waiting in line for an hour to get back on the ship. It doesn’t usually take that long to get back on the ship but 300 people returned from their Marrakech trip at the same time and we go through an airport type security every time we get on.
Our next stop is in Dakar, Senegal. Unfortunately, it is a fueling only stop although we will be seeing land we will stay on the ship. It will be the last fueling stop that we are unable to get off. Our next real port of call will be Walvis Bay, Namibia. We then do a one-day hopper to Cape Town, South Africa.
Morocco, Morocco, Morocco!! What an amazing country! Although, I would not choose morocco as a vacation spot for the future, this trip was absolutely amazing. The main language of Morocco is Arabic and this was my first experience of the language other than CNN :). The language is actually very beautiful sounding and the people all speak with very soft tones. “Hello” in Arabic (only in Morocco) is actually translated into “peace” and the people of Casablanca and Marrakech were all very polite and welcoming!
We arrived into Casablanca around 8pm (14 hours late) and the custom official were very accommodating allow the ship to be cleared that night. My SAS trip to Marrakech left at 7:30 the next morning and they were practically passing out passports as we were running out the gangway (exit) to make up for missed time (we are only given our passports when we must have them). In Morocco, all foreigners are required to carry passports and “police passes” on them at all times.
Our first stop was at a gas station half way to our destination, Marrakech. Inside, rather than finding typical snacks and drinks, there was a full bakery and coffee shop. I had a “crepe” for $1USD that was nothing like the European crepes most are used to. Instead it was a square of croissant type bread about a half inch think and covered a whole plate when doubled over. It was delicious!
We arrived in Marrakech around 11 and after a traditional Moroccan lunch of chicken and couscous we went to the camel stables to begin our camel trek. The things that we saw on our trek were amazing. We went right through the middle of a small village that was little more than palm trees, mud, and the occasional concrete slab. There ability to make a roof out of palm trees was very impressive as it was a tightly woven pattern of branches around a half-inch thick. The children in the village would come out of their huts when they heard us coming and were all smiles as they waved at the unknown strangers on camels. They seemed very happy to see new people coming through the village; they stared at us until we left their sight. We rode until the late sunset, which was an amazing sight across the oasis palm trees of Marrakech.
The next day we did a combo walking/bus tour of the city of Marrakech, seeing palaces, mosques, cathedrals, and the market place. Our tour guide took us (39 SAS students, 3 Life long learners, and a Faculty Trip leader) into the deepest parts of the market place. Within 30 minutes of walking, we were shown all phases of the products sold in the market place. If you’ve never seen leather being made from the beginning, you’re really missing out :). Every step of the leather making process is done by hand. Pounding the leather is done with a smooth stone and it probably took hours if not longer to do pound the leather into a smooth finish. The other most notable trades were welding and rug making. The welders made everything medal a person could make. One person was working a full sized barbeque grill with tremendous detail. I would guess the grill was being made for a well off French landowner. Morocco is the main destination for the French who are looking for warmer weather during the winter months.
After our trip back to Casablanca a good rainstorm had come in and we toured Casablanca while staying on the bus. I had originally planned on spending an hour or two in the Casablanca Souks, with a couple of other people, but decided that we were already too wet after waiting in line for an hour to get back on the ship. It doesn’t usually take that long to get back on the ship but 300 people returned from their Marrakech trip at the same time and we go through an airport type security every time we get on.
Our next stop is in Dakar, Senegal. Unfortunately, it is a fueling only stop although we will be seeing land we will stay on the ship. It will be the last fueling stop that we are unable to get off. Our next real port of call will be Walvis Bay, Namibia. We then do a one-day hopper to Cape Town, South Africa.
On To Morocco!
Post 3
Morocco, here we come! We have around 150 miles left until we arrive in Casablanca. We were schedule to arrive at 800 hrs this morning; however, we had not yet left Gibraltar where the schedule indicated an 8 hour bunkering stop. Rough seas made it impossible for the bunkering crew to hook-up the fuel line despite trying for around 3 hours. We spent the night at anchor surrounded by probably 50 other boats within seeing distance. We were told that the straight of Gibraltar is approximately 9 miles wide and from our anchor point we could see both the European and African coasts. Right now however, we now are well on our way and enjoying the roller coaster of the stormy seas at 22 knots.
The first day’s field trips are of course, unfortunately cancelled, so no Coca-Cola plant visit. We will start with day two trips tomorrow as soon as the ship clears customs (takes about 2 hours) in the morning. I am attending a 3-day trip to the city of Marrakech, which is considered the gateway city to the Sahara. Marrakech’s history dates back to when the early caravans took refuge around the plentiful oasis. The Saharan nomad Almoravids were the first to settle the area and the vast palm groves supplied the people with a healthy supply of dates for food. Today, Marrakech is the top tourist destination in North Africa. During our trip, we will be exploring the city’s history as well as life in Marrakech as it is today. On the second day, we will have the opportunity to take a day trip through the palm groves on Africa’s oldest form of non-biped transportation: camels. During our trek we will also experience smaller villages and traditional Moroccan food as well as their famous mint tea.
I must now report to the Union (the auditorium) for our Global Studies class. Today’s topic is about understanding ways of people in Islamic countries since we are traveling to our first Muslim country. Thanks for reading,
-Kate
Morocco, here we come! We have around 150 miles left until we arrive in Casablanca. We were schedule to arrive at 800 hrs this morning; however, we had not yet left Gibraltar where the schedule indicated an 8 hour bunkering stop. Rough seas made it impossible for the bunkering crew to hook-up the fuel line despite trying for around 3 hours. We spent the night at anchor surrounded by probably 50 other boats within seeing distance. We were told that the straight of Gibraltar is approximately 9 miles wide and from our anchor point we could see both the European and African coasts. Right now however, we now are well on our way and enjoying the roller coaster of the stormy seas at 22 knots.
The first day’s field trips are of course, unfortunately cancelled, so no Coca-Cola plant visit. We will start with day two trips tomorrow as soon as the ship clears customs (takes about 2 hours) in the morning. I am attending a 3-day trip to the city of Marrakech, which is considered the gateway city to the Sahara. Marrakech’s history dates back to when the early caravans took refuge around the plentiful oasis. The Saharan nomad Almoravids were the first to settle the area and the vast palm groves supplied the people with a healthy supply of dates for food. Today, Marrakech is the top tourist destination in North Africa. During our trip, we will be exploring the city’s history as well as life in Marrakech as it is today. On the second day, we will have the opportunity to take a day trip through the palm groves on Africa’s oldest form of non-biped transportation: camels. During our trek we will also experience smaller villages and traditional Moroccan food as well as their famous mint tea.
I must now report to the Union (the auditorium) for our Global Studies class. Today’s topic is about understanding ways of people in Islamic countries since we are traveling to our first Muslim country. Thanks for reading,
-Kate
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
3,700 Miles Down and onto Spain!
Spain Today!! Well, tomorrow sort of since it is almost 2 am “here” time. So after 8 straight days of classes we now have 9 days off; 4 in Spain, 1 traveling, and 4 in Morocco! I have an awesome set of professors. My classes are International Entrepreneurship, International Organizational Leadership, World Studies and Geography (all students take this course), and Discrete Math (fills general ed requirement). Today, during entrepreneurship, we spotting two whales jumping and blowing water! They were about 200 yards off the boat and it looked like a sea world show! After about 5 minutes they swam away and we went back to discussing good/bad market types for new companies or new products.
The time zone transition has been pretty easy. We have had 23 hour days for the last six days to loose 6 hours off of Eastern time and it entertains me to think when I am eating breakfast at 7 before my first class, people at home have just recently gone to bed (11pm). Spain chooses to be on the same time zone as the central European countries, so the sun doesn’t come up until after 9 and will set after 7 (I only know this, because everyday during “the noon report” we are told the next day’s sunrise/set.)
There is a definite split between the people that are having bad cabin fever and those that are really enjoying the ship life part of the experience. I am very much in the second camp. The oceans are beautiful as are the sunrises and sunsets. The food is eatable and there are lots of activities on the boat. However, we do find out how much time was previously taken up with other activities and now there is a lot more pleasure reading, card/board games, movies, socializing, relaxing, and so on. I’m enjoying the slower side of life, and am getting my homework done earlier than usual :)!
Other than last night, the seas have been relatively calm for a trans-Atlantic crossing. The regular pitching and rolling of course, but only one short storm in which everything moveable in the room moved. This also included me! Have you every tried sleeping when you are sliding between the head board and the foot of the bed, back and forth, back and forth?? Yaa, but like I said it was a short storm, so I still got half a night of zzz’s. When in Cadiz, I am making a point to get some of that rubber like counter top gripping mats. I’m mean, there’s nothing better than all off the stuff on the night stand falling to the floor in the middle of the night when rocked by an unexpected swell. J However, the good news is, I have heard that we should have relatively calm seas except for around the tip of Africa and our trans-Pacific crossing. I have heard that this ship, the MV Explorer, is rockier (is that the technical term?? Oh, less stable) that the programs previous ship, because this is a very light (yeah like 20 max weight semi-trucks light, lol!) ship. Anyways, what we lost in stability we gained in speed since we are in the top three for passenger ship speed! They have almost 6,000 horses packed down in the bottom of the ship somewhere! But, mom, not to worry in ’05 the ship when through a major Typhoon outside of Asia, and well, obviously it’s still floating! Despite the fact the all the computers and the library on the top deck (floor) were a complete loss due to all the upper windows breaking, all students were dry and safe in the cabins. It is rumored the replacement windows are the same grade as the lower windows, to prevent further need for remodeling!
Now after about 8 hours of safety meetings, we are finally about to be set free in Spain. We arrive at 800 into Cadiz, Spain. Cadiz is a moderate size port town in the southern portion of Spain known as Andalusia (Andalusian horses!!) On the first day I am joining a group of around 100 SAS students on a 4 hour guided Cadiz city orientation. The following morning I will travel to Jerez (45 minutes by train) the home of the ’02 World Equestrian Games and the “Real Escuela Andaluza de Arte Ecuestre” roughly translated to The Andalusian School of Equestrian Arts. This active breeding and training farm is credited for the start of the famous white Andalusian horses. I will have the opportunity to watch an exhibition of the highly trained horses as well as tour the rest of the training and breeding facility. They also demonstrate making harnesses for the cart horses and have a museum dedicated to the history of the horse in Andalusia. Afterwards I hope to have time to go the Jerez Zoo, which houses around 1300 animals. For the remaining two days that I will have left in Spain, I will be in Seville (be like going to Portland). There, I will share a room with 2 other SASers for $12 and it included wi-fi! There we will do some shopping (I have already located an English bookstore), eating, and seeing! The city of Seville will probably be hosting half of the SAS students as it is the main destination for those not flying to Barcelona or Madrid.
I’ll report again on Sunday as we have a one day hopper over to Morocco.
I’d love to hear from anyone! My email on the ship is kjshoemaker@semesteratsea.net and on land is kshoemaker@wps-inc.com.
This months Schedule:
Arrivals at 0800 and Departures at 2000 (8pm)
Country Arrive Depart
Spain 28 January 27, 2009 31 January 27, 2009 (Sat)
Morocco 02 February (Mon) 05 February (Thurs)
Namibia 14 February (Sat) 16 February (Mon)
South Africa 18 February (Wed) 22 February (Sun)
Mauritius 27 February (Fri) 27 February (Fri 2200 hrs)
Captain’s list of “must know” terms:
Ship- We are not on a “boat”… shrug
Voyage- We are not on a “cruise”… I like Voyage better too.
Port- Left, my side of the ship! My cabin is amid ship-port on deck 3
Starboard- opposite of port…right
Forward/Bow- front
Aft/Stern- back
Deck- “Ships do not have floors” but I’m telling you when I look down in my cabin it sure looks like a floor!
Keel- lowest point on the ship
Knot- 1 knt= 1.15mph
Master- this is the Captain’s formal position, I have no idea why, but he is still called “Captain”
Bunkering- Fueling
Circumnavigating- going around the world
Next time I will include an “about the ship” section, if anyone is still reading this far :)
The time zone transition has been pretty easy. We have had 23 hour days for the last six days to loose 6 hours off of Eastern time and it entertains me to think when I am eating breakfast at 7 before my first class, people at home have just recently gone to bed (11pm). Spain chooses to be on the same time zone as the central European countries, so the sun doesn’t come up until after 9 and will set after 7 (I only know this, because everyday during “the noon report” we are told the next day’s sunrise/set.)
There is a definite split between the people that are having bad cabin fever and those that are really enjoying the ship life part of the experience. I am very much in the second camp. The oceans are beautiful as are the sunrises and sunsets. The food is eatable and there are lots of activities on the boat. However, we do find out how much time was previously taken up with other activities and now there is a lot more pleasure reading, card/board games, movies, socializing, relaxing, and so on. I’m enjoying the slower side of life, and am getting my homework done earlier than usual :)!
Other than last night, the seas have been relatively calm for a trans-Atlantic crossing. The regular pitching and rolling of course, but only one short storm in which everything moveable in the room moved. This also included me! Have you every tried sleeping when you are sliding between the head board and the foot of the bed, back and forth, back and forth?? Yaa, but like I said it was a short storm, so I still got half a night of zzz’s. When in Cadiz, I am making a point to get some of that rubber like counter top gripping mats. I’m mean, there’s nothing better than all off the stuff on the night stand falling to the floor in the middle of the night when rocked by an unexpected swell. J However, the good news is, I have heard that we should have relatively calm seas except for around the tip of Africa and our trans-Pacific crossing. I have heard that this ship, the MV Explorer, is rockier (is that the technical term?? Oh, less stable) that the programs previous ship, because this is a very light (yeah like 20 max weight semi-trucks light, lol!) ship. Anyways, what we lost in stability we gained in speed since we are in the top three for passenger ship speed! They have almost 6,000 horses packed down in the bottom of the ship somewhere! But, mom, not to worry in ’05 the ship when through a major Typhoon outside of Asia, and well, obviously it’s still floating! Despite the fact the all the computers and the library on the top deck (floor) were a complete loss due to all the upper windows breaking, all students were dry and safe in the cabins. It is rumored the replacement windows are the same grade as the lower windows, to prevent further need for remodeling!
Now after about 8 hours of safety meetings, we are finally about to be set free in Spain. We arrive at 800 into Cadiz, Spain. Cadiz is a moderate size port town in the southern portion of Spain known as Andalusia (Andalusian horses!!) On the first day I am joining a group of around 100 SAS students on a 4 hour guided Cadiz city orientation. The following morning I will travel to Jerez (45 minutes by train) the home of the ’02 World Equestrian Games and the “Real Escuela Andaluza de Arte Ecuestre” roughly translated to The Andalusian School of Equestrian Arts. This active breeding and training farm is credited for the start of the famous white Andalusian horses. I will have the opportunity to watch an exhibition of the highly trained horses as well as tour the rest of the training and breeding facility. They also demonstrate making harnesses for the cart horses and have a museum dedicated to the history of the horse in Andalusia. Afterwards I hope to have time to go the Jerez Zoo, which houses around 1300 animals. For the remaining two days that I will have left in Spain, I will be in Seville (be like going to Portland). There, I will share a room with 2 other SASers for $12 and it included wi-fi! There we will do some shopping (I have already located an English bookstore), eating, and seeing! The city of Seville will probably be hosting half of the SAS students as it is the main destination for those not flying to Barcelona or Madrid.
I’ll report again on Sunday as we have a one day hopper over to Morocco.
I’d love to hear from anyone! My email on the ship is kjshoemaker@semesteratsea.net and on land is kshoemaker@wps-inc.com.
This months Schedule:
Arrivals at 0800 and Departures at 2000 (8pm)
Country Arrive Depart
Spain 28 January 27, 2009 31 January 27, 2009 (Sat)
Morocco 02 February (Mon) 05 February (Thurs)
Namibia 14 February (Sat) 16 February (Mon)
South Africa 18 February (Wed) 22 February (Sun)
Mauritius 27 February (Fri) 27 February (Fri 2200 hrs)
Captain’s list of “must know” terms:
Ship- We are not on a “boat”… shrug
Voyage- We are not on a “cruise”… I like Voyage better too.
Port- Left, my side of the ship! My cabin is amid ship-port on deck 3
Starboard- opposite of port…right
Forward/Bow- front
Aft/Stern- back
Deck- “Ships do not have floors” but I’m telling you when I look down in my cabin it sure looks like a floor!
Keel- lowest point on the ship
Knot- 1 knt= 1.15mph
Master- this is the Captain’s formal position, I have no idea why, but he is still called “Captain”
Bunkering- Fueling
Circumnavigating- going around the world
Next time I will include an “about the ship” section, if anyone is still reading this far :)
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Finish of Day 2!
Welcome to my first blog! I am passenger number 685 out of 724 students that are around 350 miles into our 3,700 mile Atlantic crossing to Cadiz, Spain. Spain will be our first stop of thirteen taking us to a total of ten countries. You can follow the ships progress around the world and find much more information at sesemsteratsea.org > current voyage.
Twenty hours after arriving in Nassau, I stepped out of the taxi at the port. Apparently, there are a lot more S and T last names than A-C since the “20 minute check-in” took 3.5 hours! Nonetheless, my new found line buddy, Amber from Edmond, OK and I still had enough time to disembark the ship and make a stop at the local grocery store for some snacks and hangers. Later and after of conclusion of our lifeboat drill, just a few minutes after 1700, we were officially on our way!
I am only going into my second night on the ship, but already it feels as if we have been here a week. We had orientation from 1900 to 2300 last night and again from 700 to 2100 today. We just finished with an inauguration party and I have never seen so many fancy deserts made at one time!
I am very lucky to not have experienced any seasickness so far without the help of Dramamine. Many of my shipmates are not so luck as the hard headwind is making for a lot of rocking and rolling (no pun intended :) ). At dinner tonight we, literally had to hold onto the table settings to keep from having everything spill on the floor! It is quite entertaining to walk down the narrow hallways bouncing from one side of the hall to the next!
I have a great window cabin midship. The ship’s pitching is really evened out in the middle and very good for sleeping. I how know why we rock babies to sleep. We were even told during orientation that a moderately rocking day makes very difficult to stay awake in class, but that we will get used to sooner or later.
My roommate Jackie from Long Island, NY has been very easy to get along with. She was not one of the 6 semester at sea participants that were on the Hudson plane crash. Those six students were coming down to spend the week in Nassau and despite loosing all of their clothing, text books, laptops, etcetera all were able to join us yesterday for an on time departure.
We will be starting classes tomorrow morning and have seven class days before we arrive in Cadiz. We are traveling at 21 knots average on a course of 79 degrees. The ship has a maximum speed of 28 knots, but head wind and rough sea require a lower speed for the engines to run efficiently.
Hope to hear from you all soon!
Kate
kjshoemaker@semesteratsea.net
Welcome to my first blog! I am passenger number 685 out of 724 students that are around 350 miles into our 3,700 mile Atlantic crossing to Cadiz, Spain. Spain will be our first stop of thirteen taking us to a total of ten countries. You can follow the ships progress around the world and find much more information at sesemsteratsea.org > current voyage.
Twenty hours after arriving in Nassau, I stepped out of the taxi at the port. Apparently, there are a lot more S and T last names than A-C since the “20 minute check-in” took 3.5 hours! Nonetheless, my new found line buddy, Amber from Edmond, OK and I still had enough time to disembark the ship and make a stop at the local grocery store for some snacks and hangers. Later and after of conclusion of our lifeboat drill, just a few minutes after 1700, we were officially on our way!
I am only going into my second night on the ship, but already it feels as if we have been here a week. We had orientation from 1900 to 2300 last night and again from 700 to 2100 today. We just finished with an inauguration party and I have never seen so many fancy deserts made at one time!
I am very lucky to not have experienced any seasickness so far without the help of Dramamine. Many of my shipmates are not so luck as the hard headwind is making for a lot of rocking and rolling (no pun intended :) ). At dinner tonight we, literally had to hold onto the table settings to keep from having everything spill on the floor! It is quite entertaining to walk down the narrow hallways bouncing from one side of the hall to the next!
I have a great window cabin midship. The ship’s pitching is really evened out in the middle and very good for sleeping. I how know why we rock babies to sleep. We were even told during orientation that a moderately rocking day makes very difficult to stay awake in class, but that we will get used to sooner or later.
My roommate Jackie from Long Island, NY has been very easy to get along with. She was not one of the 6 semester at sea participants that were on the Hudson plane crash. Those six students were coming down to spend the week in Nassau and despite loosing all of their clothing, text books, laptops, etcetera all were able to join us yesterday for an on time departure.
We will be starting classes tomorrow morning and have seven class days before we arrive in Cadiz. We are traveling at 21 knots average on a course of 79 degrees. The ship has a maximum speed of 28 knots, but head wind and rough sea require a lower speed for the engines to run efficiently.
Hope to hear from you all soon!
Kate
kjshoemaker@semesteratsea.net
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