The Crane Files

2011-03-21T03:38:00.001-07:00

http://estshop-lkve-op4rice.ca.pn/e7p5f7

Brahms Clarinet Quintet Op. 115

2010-10-23T08:57:00.000-07:00

Semester at Sea: A Reflection

2010-08-24T23:09:00.000-07:00

When the reality sunk in that I would actually be sailing on Semester at Sea, I made the effort to talk to some SAS alumni. When we first started talking, the reaction was always the same. "It was an amazing experience," they would start. "It absolutely changed my life."

I always get a little frustrated at people who make vague or overly dramatic comments like those in any situation. However, I learned over the past two and a half months that those statements were not overly dramatic. There is a reason everybody describes it the same way-- there's no other way to describe the dozens and dozens of incredible experiences that occur during a voyage.

Neither my words nor my pictures can do any justice to the story that has unfolded this Summer. In this blog, I've used words like "amazing," "incredible," or "beautiful" countless times but they don't really have the effect I'm looking for. I can talk at you for hours but It is impossible to truly convey the impact and influences of this voyage. This is why SASers (including students, faculty, and staff) become so close; we bond through the ups and downs of the journey.

While there were some "downs," they were significantly outnumbered by the "ups." I laughed, I cried, and I grew tremendously. Academically, there is no experience that parallels walking the grounds of a Moroccan Psychiatric Institution with your professor or applying that abstract Global Studies lecture on the fall of the Byzantine Empire by looking out at Istanbul's Golden Horn. Socially, I blew away boundaries of my "comfort zone." It paid off; I made some amazing friends and we shared some incredibly fun times like watching World Cup matches in Spain, dealing with the "experience" of a 9.5 hour sketchy overnight train ride, aimlessly exploring Bosnia, competing in the Sea Olympics, or simply feeling the silent power of others' presence while stargazing or admiring the beauty of a sunset at sea.

SAS prides itself on offering a truly "global perspective." My knowledge of world culture and current events is no longer limited to what I've read. It is now supplemented by the unique understanding that can only result from experiential learning--the study of politics, arts, conflicts, identity, and memory in (note "in" not "of") some of the world's most special places. I feel truly blessed to have had these profound opportunities. Despite the differences of the diverse cultures we were "injected" into, I gained a better understanding of how we are all human with the same basic nature and needs. It sounds like a load of mush, but it's true. I can tell you this because I've been there; I can now say that I have walked the "rough" streets of Barcelona, interacted with troubled kids in an Italian orphanage, observed the physical and emotional damage a war-torn nation, admired the homes and worshipers of the Islamic faith, seen a primitive Nubian village, and walked among the people of the impoverished outskirts of Casablanca.

One of the big lessons this summer was that of open-mindedness and flexibility. We were told countless times during the initial days at sea that flexibility is key on any SAS voyage. This was certainly the case; not everything went as planned and last minute changes changes requiring a little improvisation were common. This mostly applied to trips in port but played a big role in the "shipboard community" as well. Due dates for assignments were flexible, sea-sickness was an excuse to miss class, we had to conserve water, and peanut butter had to be rationed (oh no!). It was a great lesson when things didn't go as planned; everybody learned to work together and make the best of the situation because that's all you really can do. This adaptability is a great lesson and tool to take back into "real life."

The end of this voyage marks a return to reality. While I'm physically exhausted from this Summer, I'm more ready than ever to face the challenges of the future. My experiences the past 68 days have only increased my motivation and drive to work with and understand people in deeper ways, express the human condition through music, increase my knowledge of the scientific world, and continue my work as an "aspiring physician." These things I can accomplish at home but my travels are far from over as the infectious travel bug has inspired me to make sharing and learning abroad a priority in the future.

The end of this adventurous voyage is bittersweet. I have bid farewell to close friends and the MV Explorer, but it's time. I'm in California being greeted by my incredibly loving family and friends. It's fun abroad, but there's no place like home. Soon it will be back to school and I must now must face the intense transition and challenges that lie ahead. The voyage of a lifetime: Semester at Sea, Summer 2010.

Day 68: Norfolk & Disembarkation

2010-08-22T16:58:00.000-07:00

There's nothing like a 24 hour travel day to conclude an epic journey. The day started at about 5:00am as I met Daniel, Lacey, and Mindy to stake out a spot on deck 6 for the sunrise and entrance into port. We had good intentions with the sunrise thing but unfortunately the muggy skies of Virginia didn't let us see much. The ride though some of the rivers into the port terminal was pretty exciting. Apparently SAS is one of the higher profile ship arrivals that Norfolk gets. Customs actually brought people in and did a decent amount of prep for our arrival. We also had a 3 boat escort into port which was kind of cool. As we got closer, the decks filled with people eager to see family and the sights of our final stop. A lot of my friends had family come out so it was fun to see the excitement on both sides as family eventually had visuals on students and vice versa (I still think I got a better deal by meeting my parents in Egypt...). We pulled alongside and sounded the horn as the excitement died down and we got to start the fun customs clearance waiting game.

We were released from the ship in groups by our sea/color and around noon I officially disembarked the MV Explorer. We went into a large storeroom where our bags (loaded the day before) were available for pickup. I had my main large duffle and a smaller black duffle filled with a few clothes and all my souvenirs. I found the large bag easily but wasn't so lucky with the smaller one. After an hour of combing every corner of the warehouse, it was officially declared missing. SInce it was a very generic looking bag, the most likely scenario was that somebody mistakenly took it. The ISE reps said this is fairly common; I got the name and number of a likely suspect because a similar looking bag was left behind. It was a little frustrating and made the day a bit more hectic than it needed to be (I was hoping to distribute weight between both but since the larger one was overweight for flying I had to layer on some clothes and toss the mouthwash at the airport). I got a message from my dad during my 30 second "layover" in Dallas that somebody had called having picked up the bag by mistake and would UPS it tomorrow. That's a nice thing to know.

Following the bag incident, I got the chance to meet the parents of Lacey, Mindy, and Kyle. Along with Daniel, we all decided to do a group lunch at the CPK within walking distance. We checked bags into a nearby hotel and had a really nice lunch. It was really cool meeting the families, they're friendly and great people. The time for goodbyes came as I had to cut out a little early to get to the airport. It's sad to say goodbye but I'm confident that the relationships established are strong and will remain so into the future. I got my bags and snagged a taxi. It was nice having a driver that spoke fluent English and even though the guy was a bit insane we had a great conversation en route. As I mentioned before, everybody in Norfolk knows about SAS because 800 traveling college kids invade the city twice a year. My flight to Dallas was about 90% SAS people (the TSA hates us) and was a pretty dreadfully boring 3 hours (although there were some great views from above the thunderstorms). The flight ran a bit late so a few of us made a fun little mad dash board the connecting flight. Dallas to LAX was rather slow as well, at least I got to enjoy a lovely dinner of diet coke, almonds, crackers, cheese, and a box of raisins. We finally arrived about 11:00pm (felt like 2:00am...) and it was great to see my parents excited and waiting.

Bittersweet is a great word to describe the past few days. Saying goodbyes and walking down the gangway for the last time was tougher than I thought it would be. The journey from fantasy to reality was aided upon arrival home by the waiting coleslaw and applesauce. Sleeping in my own bed (and one that wasn't moving with the roll of a ship) offered a great rest. I'm now among my family, friends and the familiar California landscape. I'm home, and it feels great.

Day 67: Convocation

2010-08-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

67 days ago as we first boarded the ship, I never imagined how fast the time would fly. I simply can't believe that tomorrow morning I will be back in the US. People will speak English, the floor won't move, I'll have a cell phone again, and I'll be forced to settle back into reality. Virginia is only a few hours away.

Today was the infamous cargo loading day. We had to be packed by 10:00am and each of the seas was called over the PA to take luggage to a designated location where it would be transfered to the cargo hold. Even though only about a hundred people were called at a time, it was complete mayhem in the halls. They're narrow as it is; take 100 people with luggage the size of a small vehicle and it's rather crowded. After the luggage fiasco, the shipboard community convened for the closing Convocation. There were a lot of speeches, most with the same general themes of reflection on the dozens of incredible experiences this Summer, and quite a bit of faculty/staff/admin team recognition. The ceremony closed with a really awesome video by our voyage videographer. He did an great job and I was able to snag a copy, so I'll let you borrow if there's any interest.

After picking up our passports, we had our final logistical pre-port. There was some good information about customs and whatnot but the majority of the meeting was a parody of our typical past pre-ports (culture and crime/saftey concerns, etc). At every pre-port it was always heavily stressed that we must go to any means to guard, protect and not lose our passport. The quote of the evening came from the Executive Dean who matter-of-factly stated that after we get though customs, the admin team "doesn't really give a s**t" about what we do with our passports. Overall, it was a really funny event and also served as a good way to bid farewell to the staff that makes this all happen. After pre-port we went out to admire the stars and moonlit ocean one last time before grabbing our final late-night snack and calling it an evening. The goal for tomorrow is to get a very early start (hopefully after at least a few hours of sleep) and see the sunrise before our entrance into Norfolk.

While I'm really going to miss the environment and community here, it's time to head home. I can't wait to see my parents, sisters, nephews, and friends. It's been such a long yet quick 2.5 months. That's all for now; USA, here we come.

Day 66: Re-entry & Reflections

2010-08-20T04:23:00.000-07:00

I awoke this morning to the interesting sound of water seeping and dripping from the ceiling of our cabin onto the floor. Leaks on board are pretty common; there's a lot of flood damage around and they always tell you to not store electronics on the ground. Even though there was some splashage onto the desk, nothing was damaged. I called it in and the plumbers took care of the leak.

Other than the excitement of a leaking ship, today has been pretty uneventful. I've had lots of time to work on organizing pictures and made the final trip to the gym this morning (good riddance...I can't wait to run on actual land that doesn't move) . We have to be packed by tomorrow morning so I've made some good progress and it's actually been a lot easier than I thought it would be. There were a number of sessions regarding "re-entry and reflection" throughout the day. I went to one entitled "Caught the travel bug?" and it had some good info and tips on future travel and how to do it cheaply, for free, or get paid (basically, the answer was to stay in school or go into academia). I'll state the obvious: I'm hooked now. The travel bug is a full blown infection. Anyone want to go to Vietnam with me next Summer?

I need to make good on my promise to offer some specs and info about our ship, the famous (or infamous?) MV Explorer. Enjoy.

Built in 2002 by the well respected Blohm & Voss shipbuilders of Germany
Described by Maritime Telecommunications Network "as one of the safest ships afloat"
U.S. and international health and safety ratings in the 99th percentile
One of the fastest passenger ships of its kind in the world (haha...right, too bad we run at less than quarter speed to make time for classes)

Tonnage: 25,000 tons
Length: 590 ft. (180 m)
Beam: 84 ft. (26 m)
Draft: 24 ft. (7 m)
Outside Deck Space: 30,000 sq. ft. (2.800 m^2)
Passenger Decks: 6
Pool Area: 7,500 sq. ft. (700 m^2)
Swimming Pool: 1
The Union: 380 seats
Dining Hall Deck 5: 470 seats
Dining Hall Deck 6: 210 seats
Outside Dining (Deck 6): 110 seats
Faculty and Staff Lounge: 138 seats
Classrooms: 9
Piano Bar: 104 seats
Passenger Capacity (double basis): 836

That's all for now, I have to go figure out the US Customs paperwork.

Day 65: Finals & The Alumni Ball

2010-08-19T06:49:00.000-07:00

The morning started early with a final in Infectious Disease. Since there's essentially no time for profs to grade, the test was nearly all multiple choice and wasn't too bad. The Abnormal Psych exam also went well. A little before noon, I was officially done with the summer semester. After lunch I began the process of packing. I didn't accumulate a lot of "stuff" compared to most people but it's still a daunting task to fit everything that I originally took (when I had the time/space to figure out how to squeeze every free inch) and some of the new acquisitions. I made some decent progress so hopefully I can just look at the rest and it will pack itself.

The Alumni Ball was the big activity for the evening. At the conclusion of every SAS voyage, the ball is a formal program, dinner, and dance to celebrate the conclusion of the voyage and our declaration as SAS alumni. It was fun to walk around about an hour before the program/dinner started because there were only guys out and about (a rare sight when the ship is over 75% female) because all the girls were going through the normal pre-event freak-out routine downstairs. The program was comprised of a long slideshow, entertainment and a very strange roommate version of the newly-weds game. Since everybody was all fancied-up we took pictures with the captain and made our way to dinner. It was actually like a real cruise for once; the food and service was really quite impressive (not to say the crew doesn't normally a nice job). Dessert was a huge and well stocked buffet which provided a great way to conclude the "psh...this is sort of like vacation, I can eat horribly" mentality that most have used throughout the voyage. After desert, the dance was held up on the pool deck. Those of you who know me well would be very impressed; I lasted quite a while and actually attempted involvement. Overall, I have to admit that the evening was kind of fun.

We gained another hour last night putting us on Eastern Standard Time. Yet another reminder that we're getting closer. Thursday is designated as a day for re-entry prep and reflection with a few sessions that focus on the whole reflection bit. That's all for now, I should probably get back to thinking about packing.

Day 64: Study Day

2010-08-17T04:26:00.000-07:00

I had originally planned to postpone this post until tomorrow morning but the current situation of a rocking ship, loud creaking stabilizer outside, and a snoring roommate led me to reconsider. Today was a productive and relaxing study day. There was nothing overly exciting; I mainly used the time to brush up on info for tomorrow's Infectious Disease exam and the final Abnormal Psych test. There was also a trip to the gym and a nice nap. I spent a decent chunk of the day helping out some others with some research for final papers that are due tomorrow. Looking up political and economic stuff can be kind of fun (yes I know I'm weird) and makes for a good study break.

There was yet another beautiful sunset this evening. While we're 0 for 3 on seeing the green flash, it's still a very cool view. Since it was a lot less windy today, there were quite a few students and faculty out to enjoy the sunset which made for some good final photo-ops. I've begun the process of picture exchange with some people. It's a bit more difficult than it sounds due to the vast amount of pictures people have and the general lack of storage mediums to transfer them with. My computer now has over 30GB of pictures on it from this trip (most not mine) and tomorrow after finals I'll start the wonderful task of sorting through them all.

I'm looking forward to getting the two tests out of the way tomorrow. It will be a relief to be done with the classes but also a little hectic as the process of packing starts. Tomorrow evening is also the Ambassador's Ball, the formal dinner and dance. It's not my first choice on the list of things to do, but I'll attempt to keep a positive outlook. That's all for now, I'm going to reattempt the whole sleeping thing.

Day 63: Global Studies Final

2010-08-16T18:09:00.000-07:00

This afternoon we took the Global Studies final. It was a little rough but not too bad. The class presented a lot of information but, unlike many social science or history courses, you can't do essay tests with that many students. For this reason the final was comprised of multiple choice questions asking details about names and terms (and there were roughly 300 to choose from). Fun stuff. I have two more exams the day after tomorrow and them I'm done with school for the Summer (only to start again a week later...).

Other than the exam, most of the day was spent resting and reading. Every time there's been a Global test the seas seem to get rougher so that's always fun. I'm waiting for the day I lose my balance on the treadmill and totally eat it. There was an absolutely beautiful sunset this evening. We were outside awaiting the green flash (missed it due to cloud cover for the second day in a row) and it was cool to admire the beautiful sky surrounded by ocean and insane wind. While awaiting tonight's meeting on disembarkation procedure, Daniel, Lacey, Mindy, and I somehow got into a rather intense discussion about Croatian and post-Yougoslavian "war image" politics. Even though we still really have no idea what we're talking about it feels so cool and intellectual to try. Our disembarkation meeting this evening covered some of the basics for arrival in Norfolk in a few days. If all goes according to plan I'll be off by noonish and will have a few hours to kill in Norfolk before catching the shuttle to the airport. Depending on what's around the port I might be spending a good 5 hours at the airport so if you're bored the afternoon of the 21st give me a call (wow...cell phones will work again; what an amazing technology!).

I have a relatively fee evening (and an extra gained hour to kill) so I think I'm going to go borrow a movie from somebody. How exciting. That's all for now, g'night from middle of the Atlantic.

Day 62: Last Day of Classes

2010-08-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

Today marked the last official day of classes. It seems like we started so long ago but there has only been 22 days of actual class. Tomorrow is the dreaded Global final which has many people pulling a pretty late night tonight. The day after is a "study day" followed by our finals in other classes. It's a relief to be almost done with school for the Summer but it plays into the overall bitter-sweet feeling as we near the end of the voyage.

Classes today focused on conclusions in terms of a "global perspective." It sounds like a bunch of academic mush but it really makes all the difference when you get to apply a lot of this cultural reading and lecture to the actual ports (as we did the past 60 days). I know I complained a lot about the many FDP papers and "reflections" but they are such an integral part of the program as it really gets you thinking. Especially in the Summer where everything moves at warp speed, it's good to reflect on some the really profound things we've seen and done. The afternoon was pretty typical; I hit the gym and did some studying. I've been experimenting with group studying a bit more here; some of the history stuff is good to talk out a bit. The evening was spent working thought the Global Studies curriculum with Mindy and a few others. As time progressed and study burnout kicked in it was rather entertaining to see what strange tangential discussions arose, especially with the addition of caffeine. My "sea" had a milk and cookie social tonight. It's amazing how hard it was to find a decent cookie the past few months.

One of the things that has been a bit difficult through the voyage is keeping up musically. I have my old marching clarinet here and have been getting it out occasionally to keep with with some technique, but I really miss the R-13. I never realized how therapeutic regular practice was. There's a bit of a void without the fun of chamber music and just being around a good music scene in general. There's a few musicians on board I've talked with but it's so hard to find the time, resources, or location to put anything decent together.

I received my shuttle bus ticket from the port to the Norfolk Airport today and it was a surprising reminder of how we only have 5 days left. It's going way too quick. That's all for now, I should probably be well rested for a final tomorrow.

Day 61: The Simpsons and Religion

2010-08-14T18:25:00.000-07:00

"C21," a typical class day, has drawn to a close. Before we left in June I thought it would be really strange to have class on Saturdays and Sundays. I don't really notice at all; to be honest I had no idea it was a weekend until I looked at my watch five minutes ago. Time does strange things when there's no reference. All went smoothly with classes today and I'm very happy to finally be done with papers. Now the focus is memorizing 200+ names and terms for a Global Studies final in two days. For a class with 750 students it's impossible to do anything besides a multiple choice final which is actually a bit harder when you're dealing with a history/social science class due to the details. There has been quite a bit of dissatisfaction among students and faculty with the way Global Studies has been taught and tested this voyage. I've heard a few snippets about the folks at UVa not being particularly fond of the situation either. It will be interesting to see what, if anything, plays out regarding final grades and whatnot.

The ship sailed at full speed today (all four engines running full as opposed to one normally) for about 20 minutes. The official purpose was to do some calibrations with the engines but I also think there was an urge to show off how fast this sucker can go. We were going between 30 and 40 knots (right now we're cruising at 14) so it was fun to head outside and watch for a bit. It wasn't anything overly dramatic but cool nonetheless. This evening I went to a session about "The Simpsons and Religion." It was a presentation by our Global Studies professor about a paper he published a few years ago. His basic argument was that the show is essentially the only example on television that portrays religion and religious issues on a regular basis. There was quite a bit of character analysis and the idea that parody is really only successful when you present a topic that society has a decent amount of familiarity and comfort with (i.e. religion) was presented. I've often see The Simpsons used in classes as examples of satire. When you look at the writing it is packed with some great intellectual wit. He had an interesting argument and commentary on popular culture that probably does have some merit if you really look into it.

A late night snack/study session has again pushed my blog composition into the the early morning hours (hence the grammatical errors that are likely present on a lot of these posts), so I'm pretty beat. Luckily we get an extra hour again tonight. It's quite nice having 25 hour days, I could get used to it. That's all for now, it's time to hit the sack.

Day 60: A Final Family Dinner

2010-08-13T15:53:00.000-07:00

Most of the dense fog that surrounded us the past few days has lifted so we now have a nice view of wide open ocean. Day three at sea went well and was pretty uneventful. Our water consumption has decreased dramatically compared to the past two days. The night of departure from Morocco and first day at sea saw us using about 101 gallons of water per person; an absurdly high number (average at sea is about 50-60 gallons per person). I think that's a good indicator of how dirty Morocco was. There were some longer showers just to get the grime off (it was probably our hottest and most sweat producing port also) and some people were coming back from the 4 day showerless trek around the rural Berber villages. It's interesting to see that the water use correlates.

Classes are going smoothly and professors are trying to cram everything into the last few days. Students are busy now and will be the next few days with papers and finals but the real challenge is for teachers who have to get everything graded before disembarking. This evening we had our final official "extended family" dinner. It was again good to talk and there was a lot of heavy reflection on the voyage; we were in the dinning room for over two hours. Jim and Leslie treated us to an ice cream cake, which was very nice (I think that's the largest slice of cake I've ever eaten...). I really hope I'm able to keep in touch with my "parents" and "sisters" after we disembark. This voyage has been the first time that I've had so many meals in the "European style" where we just sit, eat, and talk for hours. It's very refreshing and a shame that it won't work very well with the time constraints of reality (i.e. on land).

Last night's meteor shower was very cool but a little anemic. We were out there for a little over 2 hours and saw about 3 "fireballs." With all the ship's exterior lights off the night sky is absolutely stunning and the meteors we did see were pretty awesome. Apparently the tail end of the shower is tonight so I might venture out a little later on. RA training officially started back at Cal Lu today. It's weird not being there with the staff but I'm going try to keep via email. The transition home and back to school is going to be rather quick but given what I've accomplished this Summer it's a small price to pay. That's all for now, I have to take advantage of late night snack while it's still around.

Day 59: Classes & Prop. 8

2010-08-12T14:28:00.000-07:00

It's back to the normal routine of a typical class day. All went went well today; we're behind schedule in all three classes but that's to be expected when you try to cram a semester into 23 days. The morning was spent discussing Malaria and our little blood sucking friends in Infectious Diseases, sitting through an extremely exciting talk about Colonial North Africa in Global Studies, and listening to a wonderfully uplifting lecture on suicide in Abnormal Psych. The afternoon was spent working on papers with Mindy and a visit to the gym. Once all this reflective essay nonsense is finished it'll be time to start thinking about finals.

This evening Daniel and I attended a very interesting lecture/discussion about CA's Prop. 8. It was lead by our Executive Dean who is a law professor and great source because he's actually read all the opinions and whatnot that have come out. I really enjoyed his presentation because it's the first time I've had the chance to hear the saga from a completely legal (NOT political) perspective. The entire process is hideously complicated; I'm glad I have a decent Civics/Poli Sci background or there would be absolutely no chance of following. He went through the recent decision by a federal judge and the timing couldn't have been better as we got word that it was stayed until next week during the talk. I don't want to get too into it, but it's fascinating from a legal perspective and interesting how significantly different this is from the arguments we often hear. The guess among legal academics is that the 9th Circuit will probably affirm the constitutionality of same sex marriage (the most recent opinion) and it will eventually make its way to the US Supreme Court. So, we're looking at 4-5 years. Of course, this being our wonderful legal system, there's about 100 other little exceptions or techniques that makes essentially anything possible. What I found even more interesting was how many of the people present (half students, half professors) were not from CA (including the dean) but had very thorough knowledge of the situation. I guess this is one of the more heated and significant legal battles brewing now so most of the country is watching.

Other than that excitement, the evening is going well as I organize my laundry and try to find something to do. We have a lovely 25 hour day today so the extra rest will be nice. That's all for now, I'm off in a bit to watch a meteor shower; it's clear outside and with all the ships lights turned off is supposed to be pretty awesome.

Day 58: Study Day

2010-08-11T15:33:00.000-07:00

Today was officially designated as a "study day" and it was very nice to have the day off. There is, of course, always the opportunity to study and write some papers which is probably what the free day was actually intended for. I got a decent amount of work done and, after a few revisions, will be done with the mess of reflective papers that are due.

As I was walking into the dinning room for lunch today, the head waiter stopped me and asked it I would like to have lunch with the captain. I figured my usual lunch group could do without me for one day and took him up on the offer. On occasion, the captain will come down to his reserved table and four or five students will be asked to join him, so the opportunity was pretty cool. Everything here is usually buffet style but I discovered you get served well when dining among the ship's leadership. There was the expected usual conversation and he shared a few stories from the years at sea. It wasn't anything spectacular but was a fun experience nonetheless.

Today was the start of our "shipboard drive" which is basically a large fundraising effort. SAS is a nonprofit and I can see how our tuition probably doesn't cover a lot so there's a large push for donation. The big events today were a silent and live auction. I was planning on making some type of small donation (under $50) so a great opportunity arose when a little bidding war broke out between Daniel and I over two packets of those floss-toothpic tools that somebody donated. We went back and forth for a while which seemed to provide a decent amount of entertainment to those passing by (it was fun to play along and make comments like "what idiot would spend $25 on toothpicks?"). The clock winded down and I eventually was victorious and bought myself some "Pic-n-floss" packets for $32. Hey, it's a donation. The live auction was much more entertaining. There were actually some decent items available and a lot of money being thrown around. Girl Scout Cookies went for $150, a chance to steer the ship for $400, a bubble bath in the Executive Dean's bathtub for $200, field passes for the Stealers for $650, 3 day trip to Italy for $800, a professor's sweatband for $120, etc. It was fun to watch, but that's a lot of money. I guess it goes to a good cause.

Classes start up again tomorrow and start our final four class days before exams begin. We're back in the fog and feeling the familiar roll of the Atlantic. It's weird with course evaluations and things already starting to wrap up. That's all for now, I'm off to do some reading for tomorrow.

Day 57: Ibn Rushd Univ. Psychiatric Center

2010-08-10T16:41:00.000-07:00

As I write we are pulling out of our final port on the way home. I have to say, today was a pretty typical SAS day and a good way to spend the final hours in port. The "typical SAS" part comes in as we departed for the Psych Hospital an hour early so the whole "flexibility is key" motto came into play as we made a quick detour to the Hassan II Mosque for a visit. There was no reason other than to kill time. It was actually kind of nice because I got a chance to see a bit more of the interior since a different door was open.

After arriving at the Hospital we were led through some rather daunting looking gates onto the campus and eventually to a conference room with mint tea waiting (a sign of Moroccan hospitality). The professor/psychiatrist, Driss Moussaoui, gave a short talk on the history of mental healthcare in Morocco and there was active discussion for a good two hours. It was an incredibly interesting visit. Upon his arrival in 1979, there were only 2 psychiatrists in Morocco and he essentially built the "public" mental healthcare system from nothing. The reason "public" is in quotes is because there has been such little financial support from the Moroccan government and the facilities are almost all built with private donations. His story is very intriguing and one that is still continuing. Under his lead the system has come a long way but is still far from sufficient (there are only 1000 psych beds for a population of 32 million). Despite a bit of arrogance (which is probably deserved considering what he's accomplished), Moussaoui is definitely one that has devoted his life to "fighting the good fight."

The institutionalized patients themselves are usually very severe and since there is really no support staff (the nurse to patient ration is 1:40) there's a heavy dependance on family. Many times the family cooks meals and buys medication to bring into the hospital. I could go on and on about the discussion; it was a great experience. Afterwards we had a chance to do a quick walk around the facilities which were in surprisingly good condition. There was so much information presented it's hard to soak it all in (even with my 8 pages of notes). We left the hospital in the early afternoon and my extended family mother, who was also on the trip, offered to treat me and a few others to lunch. We walked to a cafe close by and had a fun little lunch with some pretty heavy discussion about healthcare policy and the role religion should play. Yes, this day has been very philosophical.

After lunch I realized I had over 40 Dirham in coins left (coins are unexchangeable) so I swung by a shop on the way to the ship. The past few days I had been comparing prices for a Guenbri; an Arabic string instrument. I handed the storekeeper all my coins trying to indicate that this was my last day and I needed to get rid of them and he smiled and let have the Guenbri, so that was pretty cool. It's probably not the most authentic but still has rather decent tonality. I got back to the ship in time to beat the final port rush.

It's hard to believe we're departing our last port. Morocco was a lot of fun and an interesting place; I don't think I would describe it as that tourist friendly and it definitely presented the most difficult language situation of any port we visited (my pathetic French has improved a bit). As I look around the ship I think most people feel the same: we're tired and ready for home. It might just be the insane heat here or the "last port" mentality but the ubiquitous exhaustion is pretty evident. Thankfully tomorrow is a "study day" which will offer some opportunity for rest. That's all for now, I'm off to the the post-port reflection.

Day 56: Casablanca Souks & Rick's

2010-08-09T15:42:00.000-07:00

The original plan for today was to do Rabat on our own. While working on the game plan last night Daniel, Lacey, Heather, and I talked with a few other SASers who made the journey that day. The general consensus was that the trip was not really worth it due to the similarity of Rabat to Casablanca and Marrakech. Had I known other people willing to go I probably still would have gone just to get out a little more but we had a good day here also. After two really long days we were in need of some rest so we took it pretty easy in the morning. I was still up early but hit the gym and did a bit of tweaking to some papers before we met up to go out.

Most of the late morning/early afternoon was another Casablanca walking adventure. We got a chance to spend some more time in the Medina and Souks (basically a bazaar) where I perfected my people watching and bargaining skills. I don't know if I'd actually call it bargaining "skills" but I have devised a pretty effective method the past few countries. They give me a price, I laugh and say exactly what a want to pay, they retort with a higher price, I laugh again and walk away. I'd guess about 75% of the time they call me back and take the original price. It works especially well since I don't buy anything big and what I do get I could usually do without and have no regrets walking away from. I'm sure there are much more effective methods out there but it works for me. Other than the souks and some of the commercial area outside the port there's really nothing else to do in Casablanca (at least within walking distance for us) that we didn't already hit on the city orientation. An interesting random observation: there seems to be more Mcdonald's here than in any other country we've been to. The locals pronounce it "Macdonald's" with a heavy French accent, it's rather entertaining.

We went back to the ship for a little while and then ventured out again for dinner. We decided to splurge a little bit and do a nicer dinner since it was our last evening in port. Of all the recommended places the only practical/walkable/safe one was Rick's Cafe again. SAS people have taken over the place every night here so I'm sure they appreciate the business. The food was good, not overly impressive, but the atmosphere was a lot of fun. We ended up sitting near a Canadian professor on vacation and had a good time talking American politics for about 45 minutes before moving on to more appropriate travel swapping stories. The evening concluded with the necessary Moroccan mint tea (way too sweet me for) and our journey back to the ship. Tomorrow I have my FDP to the local psychiatric hospital so I've been trying to read up on the state of mental healthcare here. It should be a really interesting experience. That's all for now, I'm about ready to call it a night.

Day 55: Marrakech

2010-08-09T01:34:00.000-07:00

"Didja know we're riding on the Marrakech Express..."

Well, we didn't get to take the Marrakech Express (probably a good thing, I've already heard about some interesting times on the Moroccan railway system), but did get to enjoy a 3.5 hour bus ride from Casablanca to Morocco. I think it's safe to say that we hit the climax of insane traffic in Egypt, but it's still pretty wild here. During the trip we got some standard Morocco info from the guide and made the obligatory gas station pit stop. I often wonder how the owners of these little shops in the middle of nowhere feel about being bombarded with rabid tourists every few hours. Despite how annoying we can be, I'm sure we provide some good income.

Upon arrival in Marrakech (among the impoverished desert villages and groves of palm trees) we stopped at the Majorelle Gardens for a little while. I don't think it was originally part of the trip but I'm glad we made the stop. Marrakech as a whole can be described as kind of hot, dirty and crowded but the gardens were the exact opposite. There was quite a bit of really beautiful desert landscaping in a very tranquil atmosphere. It was another view or Morocco and very nice to visit. After departing we drove by the original adobe city walls (with their famous 7 gates) we stopped for a visit at the Bahia Palace. The palace used to be home to top ranking appointed leader for Morocco when Marrakech was the capitol (the historical name escapes me at the moment and I can't decipher my notes...it'll be nice to get real internet back in a little over a week). The building is a great example of Moorish architecture with some gorgeous plaster work and fine mosaics. Each room has a unique ceiling design and mosaic floor. We walked through the gardens and each of the four wings before continuing to the Dar Si Said Palace. The palace is not in great condition and was converted into a museum. A quick walk though revealed quite a few Berber and Arab antiquities.

Following the museum, we walked to a restaurant close by for lunch. As usual for these trips, it was a set menu so I was really excited to try some authentic cous-cous. It came on a giant platter for our table (thankfully we had silverware and didn't have to "authentically" eat by hand) and was unlike any other cous-cous I've had before with lots of whole veggies, tender beef, and an interesting sweet sauce. It was excellent, quite delicious. After lunch we had a few hours of free time in the Medina. The hundreds of shops give it a very Turkey/Egypt bazaar feel but the salespeople weren't nearly as aggressive. It's been hard to find decent pens in the last few countries but I think I came up with a few. Other than that, the shopping wasn't too useful for me since I have no need for fake leather or a tarjine. We ended the day by winding up at the Jemaa el Fna Square. When you think Morocco, this is the image that probably come to mind. There were all kinds of people with monkeys, snake charmers, acrobats, storytellers, and so on. It was pretty crazy. It was fun, but I have to admit that the experience would have been a lot better had it not been so "stressful." We didn't stay in the square too long because every time you turn around somebody is handing you an anesthetized snake or a monkey is jumping onto your shoulders. These would both be fine with me if there weren't 4 Moroccan men surrounding you asking for photos and money at the same time. We got out relatively unscathed; Daniel had to pay a little over a dollar for a decent monkey picture. The game plan then turned to taking covert pictures of the activity from a distance (thank you 10x zoom), some of which turned out surprisingly well.

After our excitement in the square we boarded the bus for the trip back to the ship. As always, the three hours seems to go much longer when it's dark and you're tired/hungry. We got some dinner back on the ship, did a little planning for the next day and called it a night.

Day 54: Casablanca

2010-08-07T15:49:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure whether I'm disappointed or relieved to say that our journey though the storm last night wasn't nearly as rough as expected. We hit some strong waves but nothing like we were told to brace for. We arrived to an overcast industrial port in Casablanca this morning. There's not too much cruise traffic here so the port authorities seem a tad confused about how to handle 750 college kids. We had a really interesting Diplomatic Briefing this morning before the ship cleared. It was probably the most straight forward and politically informative one we've had so far; it was actually quite enjoyable. After clearance, Daniel and I decided to go explore Casablanca on foot for a few hours before our city orientation departed in the early afternoon. We actually ended up being the first two SASers off the ship and into port so that proved to be a little adventure. After the 20 minute walk out of the Casablanca's enormous commercial port we found ourselves in town.

I think the best way to describe the streets of Morocco would be very dirty but interesting. Daniel and I walked around the Mechouar Bazaar, through a local "market," and eventually ended up at the Hassan II Mosque. We then followed the coastline back to the port. Jumping right into the streets of Casablanca was a great cultural experience. We saw a lot of local interaction, live chickens for sale on the street, huge slabs of meat hanging from stores (most covered in flies), feces in the middle of the road (unknown whether human or animal), eel and fish layed out for sale on the sidewalk, and multiple folks urinating on the sidewalk on which we were walking. The most memorable part was the intense and strong odors. It wasn't just one small of "nasty" but alternated between rotting fish, diesel, urine, cooking spices and incense among many others. The way I'm describing this it probably comes off as a really gross experience but I didn't really think of it that way. Yes, it was rather filthy but seeing the people made it really fascinating. Their dress, mannerisms, interaction, and reaction to us was really great to see. I guess that's one way to get a good feel for the culture.

After grabbing a quick lunch on the ship, the city orientation departed for the Hassan II Mosque. While we didn't get a chance to view the world's third largest mosque from the inside, just seeing the exterior was amazing. It's considered a "modern" mosque having been completed in the 90's and the Moorish architecture is quite intriguing. The mosaic fountains are beautiful and the square is enormous; it can hold over 100,000 people (and will be filled to capacity in a few days as Ramadan begins). After admiring the "Great Mosque" we departed for a drive around some of Casablanca's neighborhoods. Later we stopped at the Lady of the Lord Cathedral, the largest of 7 Christian churches in the 99% Muslim city. It was a unique design that had a ton of really intricate stained glass. Next, we took a walk around the many shops and Central Market of the "New Medina" area before spending some time at the Palace Mechouar. The palace is very pretty and still in active use by the king but serves a more symbolic role used primarily for diplomatic summits. We had another stop in the Mohammed V square for a quick photo-op before our final walking tour though the UN Square and some of the bazaars closer to the port. There wasn't a ton of time for shopping but this is probably a good thing as the merchants are pretty aggressive (we've learned that large groups and pretending to be mute usually fends off the many "guides" offering assistance). We eventually arrived back at the ship.

I found an observation that Mindy made to be really interesting. We didn't see anything on our city tour that was constructed before the 20th Century. There are definitely older sites out there, but after inquiring a bit we learned that the Moroccan Government doesn't really promote tourism to these sites because they are trying to cast a more modern view of the country by encouraging tourism to more contemporary areas. It's an interesting tactic. After dinner on the ship a few of us went out for a little walk to Rick's Cafe (Casablanca the movie, anyone?) for desert. The cafe was opened by a retired US diplomat to replicate the one in the movie. It was actually a really fun experience, especially since I recognized many of the subtle nuances having seen the movie a few days ago. After the walk back to the ship and a quick ping-pong match it's time to get some rest. That's all for now, I have to prepare for tomorrow's journey to Marrakech.

Day 53: Morocco Pre-Port

2010-08-06T15:16:00.000-07:00

As I write we're currently passing back through the Strait of Gibraltar making our way around the northwestern tip of Africa. Today we anchored near the port of Gibraltar and "bunkered" (aka refueled). It's good to know that, 7000 tons of fuel later, we're ready to make the trek back across the Atlantic.

My test in Infectious Disease today went well. It's weird to think we only have four class days left. Its hard cramming a semester into 23 days, but it's been a fun ride so far. I went to the inter-port student presentation this evening and got some good info (mostly food recommendations). After that was our final logistical pre-port. I might actually miss sipping a chamomile tea and listening to those hour long sessions filled with sarcasm that pound the dangers and specifics of each country into our heads. After the ship clears tomorrow I have a city orientation of Casablanca. Sunday I'll be on a day trip to Marrakesh that was originally supposed to be on Monday. Due to the last minute change, I had to give up my trip to Rabat (Morocco's capitol) and now have a free day Monday. There's been some talk of doing an independent trip to Rabat for part of the day on Monday but we'll see where that goes. Tuesday, our final day in port, I have an FDP (faculty directed practicum) to a psychiatric hospital in Casablanca. That should be a really unique visit and is probably one of the things I'm most looking forward to (besides the food of course).

We were given a warning earlier in the evening that we'll soon be entering a heavy storm off the coast of Morocco. There's really no way to avoid it and get to port tomorrow morning so we're in for a rough night. The recommendations included securing any lose items in the cabin or they'll start flying. I'll be sure to let you know how all that goes. That's all for now, I have to go figure our the dollar to dirham exchange rate.

Day 52: Crew Appreciation Day

2010-08-05T16:39:00.000-07:00

Since the day was devoted to appreciating all the work the crew does for us, one of the suggestions was making our bed this morning (usually the stewards do it when the clean the room). I know it doesn't sound like it should be that complex, but it's a rather complicated bed and took me about 20 minutes to actually get it looking relatively decent. The other suggestion was that we bus our own tables. This was a good idea but with everybody putting stuff in the wrong places it probably ended up making more work for the crew. Otherwise it was a normal day of classes. We have one more class day tomorrow before arriving in Morocco on Saturday.

The afternoon was comprised of finalizing the Global Studies paper due tomorrow and a trip to the gym. The treadmill is getting a bit tedious (I did five miles today, you can only stare at the annoying red-dot display for so long) and it doesn't help that you're in a tiny room filled with mirrors. To occupy some time the other day I tired having a staring contest with myself but it didn't work out too well. This evening we had to signup and request seating for the upcoming Ambassador's Ball (supposed to be a rather big deal, don't tell anybody but I'm already dreading it) so it was pretty chaotic as I joined about 400 other students descending upon a few table setup in one of the more inconvenient locations on the ship. At least I have a table with people I know.

I just got back from the special event tonight, the crew talent show. The crew is from over 30 different countries and there was some really clever and interesting acts, mostly music and dance. Of course we had to close by singing "We are the World." Tomorrow we arrive in Gibraltar and bunker (refuel) for most of the day. I'll keep an eye out for some Gibraltar monkeys. That's all for now, I should probably think about that Infectious Disease exam I have tomorrow morning.

Day 51: Midterm

2010-08-04T17:27:00.000-07:00

We had our second Global Studies Midterm this evening. The first one was a rather interesting experience and it resulted in a bunch of committees eventually deciding heavily scale the scores. Today's test was much better written and organized so I felt pretty good after finishing it. Otherwise it was another day of classes. The saga of TB and eating disorders continue.

The seas were a big rougher today. For folk like me who don't really have motion-sickness issues it's kind of nice because there's no line at meals. This evening there was a screening of the film Casablanca in the Union. I've always been told it was a classic and must-see. It wasn't really what I expected but interesting and probably good to finally see. It was also a nice little break after the midterm. Sorry there's not much else exciting happening here on the MV Explorer. That's all for now, tomorrow is crew appreciation day so I should probably go buy a gift for our cabin steward.

Day 50: Talent Show

2010-08-03T16:13:00.000-07:00

Since we're at sea for multiple days, there's really nothing exciting occurring so I'm going to bore you with the mundane details of my life. So, consider this an advance apology. We're working though TB in Infectious Disease right now and learning how a third of the world's population is infected made me remember the statistic that nine out of ten medical students at USC-LAC Hospital will test positive for TB by the time they finish their third year. The joys of what I have to look forward to. It's also very comforting to know that our professor spotted a "likely case of progressive TB" on our TurkishAir flight from Izmir (yes, the same one that blew a tire, seems to be one doozy of a flight). I think I'll get another skin test when I get home. In Global Studies we listened to a lecture about honor killings. I was hoping it would be a bit more optimistic than yesterday's lecture on the contemporary slave trade in the Mediterranean, but this wasn't the case. We have a midterm tomorrow night so just about everybody has gone into study mode. In Abnormal today we watched an episode of Oprah from the 70's (an interesting experience itself) on eating disorders. Interesting but again slightly depressing.

The afternoon was filled with paper writing and a trip to the gym. This evening we had the voyage student/staff/faculty talent show. It was actually really entertaining. I think the highlights included the two deans acting out "We're on a Boat" (youtube it if you need to, it's worth it) and some of the faculty dancing to MJ's Thriller. The harmonica playing and "rapping magician" acts were pretty good also. I got an email from my parents a few hours ago and they successfully scaled Mt. Sinai this morning. It's good to hear they're doing well and after a few more days in Cairo they should be back in the US. Since we're now sailing westbound, today is our first official 25 hour day. After losing a bunch of hours earlier in the voyage, it'll be nice to get a little extra sleep now. That's all for now, I should probably join my peers in that whole midterm "study mode" thing.

Day 49: Laundry & Ice Cream

2010-08-02T16:38:00.000-07:00

Well, after a day of Olympic excitement it's back to classes. We're at sea for another four days and all of them will be busy trying to fit in papers and study for exams. Since teachers have to turn in grades before departing the ship, many assignments are due soon to leave time for grading. I have three pretty significant papers that it would be nice to churn out before Morocco so a decent amount of the afternoon went into those. We also have an upcoming Global Studies midterm in two days so I just spent the majority of my evening among the tales of Mehmed "the conqueror" and Suleiman "the magnificent."

In celebration of our pathetic 8th place finish yesterday, my Baltic Sea had an ice cream social this evening. It's nice to get some decent ice cream since we really haven't had gelato since Croatia. Today was also a much needed laundry day so hopefully a bag of nice clean cloths will appear soon so I actually have something to wear tomorrow. Other than that, the day was pretty uneventful. I hear the fires are pretty bad back in CA so I hope all gets better there. That's all for now, I should probably get some rest.

Day 48: Sea Olympics

2010-08-01T14:02:00.000-07:00

The Sea Olympics is an event that has occurred on every single SAS voyage and today marked 102nd SAS Olympiad. Each floor of cabins on the ship is divided into a "sea" community, sort of like a residence hall. For example, I'm a member of the Baltic Sea and down the hall is the Caribbean Sea. Each voyage there is one day at sea without classes where members of each sea unite and compete in a number of strange events. It's actually a rather big day with the entire shipboard community participating (including the faculty and staff as members of the "Diploma Sea"). The opening ceremonies were pretty wild. Each sea has it's own chants and practically everybody stuffed into the Union screaming, dancing, etc. I was told I actually looked enthusiastic and I don't think they were sarcastic so apparently I'm getting better at this acting thing.

I was a sub for the Global Studies Jeopardy but wasn't needed too much. Later in the day I competed in the relay race and had to spin around, do hopscotch, run up some stairs to my teammates. Other big events I went to go watch included dodgeball, "extreme" musical chairs, synchronized swimming, and the infamous lip sync. People got really enthusiastic and creative about the whole thing. It's amazing what a bunch of college students cooped on a ship can come up with. There was a lot of very spirited people and noise throughout the day and it was a fun way to take a break from the normal routine.

The final overall ranking of seas determines who will get to leave the ship first in Norfolk. I just came back from watching the closing ceremonies and my dear Baltic Sea placed 8 out of 10 (hey, we put in a decent effort) so we won't be off too early but it's not a huge deal since there's nothing overly exciting to see in Norfolk anyway. As I mentioned, today was solely devoted to the Sea Olympics so that's where everybody's attention has been. Tomorrow we're back to classes and reality for a few days until Morocco. That's all for now, I have some papers that should probably be written.

Day 47: Cairo Museum & Farewell to Egypt

2010-07-31T14:14:00.001-07:00

Our trip to the Aswan airport was once again preceded by an early morning wake-up call. This time, EgyptAir took us to Cairo. For the most part, the morning and flight were uneventful (probably a good thing). Upon arrival in Cairo we went straight to Egypt's most well known museum, the National Archeological Museum. The facility houses the majority of Egypt's famous finds, some as old as 50 centuries. We only had a few hours so the guided portion of the tour hit the major highlight, the King Tutankhamun exhibit. We visited the tomb in Luxor so it was cool to actually see the stuff that belonged there (yes, we paid to see a mostly empty tomb). Tutankhamun is the only tomb discovered in recent history (1922) so it is really the only example of actual contents of a Pharaonic tomb. The actual body was contained in a beautiful pure gold coffin surrounded by 2 others, a sarcophagus, and 4 other outer "shells" (all plated in gold). The layers intended to protect the body along with giant statues of Tutankhamun in the actual burial room. Also found were countless gold treasures (including mini-coffins for his organs and, yep you guessed it, a lock of his grandmother's hair), lots of food and wine, chariots, weapons, and some really beautiful and intricately decorated gold and silver thrones. Other than the Tut exhibit, the museum has a number of sarcophaguses, examples of Ancient Egyptian art, and actual mummies.

The visit was short but well worth it. It's amazing how well all of this is preserved after over 3000 years. Apparently there are even more items in the basement of the museum that have yet to be catalogued and displayed. The museum itself isn't in the greatest condition. Like many public facilities (although not airports for some reason), the general condition of the building is poor and, without air conditioning, I can't imagine the lack of climate and humidity control is good for the exhibits. This is probably the reason why a lot of the other amazing Egypt finds are displayed at other museums around the world. After departing the museum we drove over the to the Giza region to grab some lunch before the journey back to Alexandria. The 2.5 hour bus ride was a bit tedious but necessary and upon arrival at the ship my parents had the opportunity to come onboard and see the ship in a little more detail. I think they got a great feel for the "shipboard community" after dinner with my friends and meeting with a few of the faculty I've gotten to know well. We had a good tour and eventually the time came to say goodbyes as we go on to continue separate adventures.

This port went incredibly fast. We traveled at lightening speed to see Egypt and I'm happy to report it was an amazing experience. This place has so much rich history; it's really interesting and profound to see that aspect against the backdrop of a nation with so many political and social problems. It's very dirty and there's a lot of poverty here. Everywhere you look there's an armed guard or member of the "Tourist Police" with a semi-automatic weapon. The significant division in the distribution of wealth is very apparent as you drive or walk through any part of the country. Our visit to Egypt was an incredible experience, both captivating and powerful. I'm so glad my parents were here to enjoy it with me. To be perfectly honest the true highlight of this port was having the opportunity to share this time with them. As the ship departs tonight, my mom and dad will continue their adventure to the Sinai region. I'm sure they'll have a great time and I can't wait to swap adventure stories in now less than 20 days. That's all for now, I must bid farewell to the land of the most ancient ancient civilization.

Day 46: Abu Simbel

2010-07-31T14:14:00.000-07:00

Another 5:00am wake-up call started off the day. After a quick breakfast we boarded the bus for a ride over to the Aswan airport. Our total group is about 100 people (3 buses) but due to the limits on plane tickets we had to split in half for today (an early and and a late group). We were lucky to be in the early group as I can't imagine walking around in the afternoon heat. The flight from Aswan to Abu Simbel was only 40 minutes and is a very routine route. If you don't fly the only other way to get to Abu Simbel is a 4 hour bus ride through a pretty harsh desert with convoy of 30 other buses (not fun). The flight itself offered some really interesting views of Egypt. We were at a fairly low altitude so you could clearly see the expansive desert and enormity of Lake Nasser. It's really quite a sight to see the hundreds of miles of miles of uninhabited desert. The small airport in Abu Simbel is geared completely toward tourists and upon arrival we hopped on a shuttle to the actual temple.

The temples dedicated to Ramses II and his (favorite) wife Nefertari are considered to be one of the most famed sights in Egypt. I now understand why. The enormous exterior sculptures and intricately beautiful interior carvings are simply awesome. The condition of everything is surprising very good. It's a lot of fun to hear about many of the stories behind the images inside the temples from our guide and then actually see and understand them. One of the coolest things about the tempe is its construction to allow sunlight into specific faces in back chamber only on two certain days a year. This was determined by the ancient Egyptians through the application of astronomy to the construction. Like the Temple of Philae yesterday, the temples at Abu Simbel were actually moved and reconstructed to avoid damage of the rising Lake Nasser. The reconstruction was completed in only four years and you cannot tell at all (we spent a good amount of time looking for where the "blocks" meet and didn't come up with much). We only had a couple of hours to explore the temples and enjoy the surrounding views before our return flight to Aswan. On paper, dealing with flights and whatnot just for a short visit to a temple doesn't seem that logical, but it was absolutely worth it and probably one of my Egypt highlights. The return flight saw a bit of turbulence and on arrival to Aswan we returned to our island hotel for lunch and a bit of afternoon rest.

In the evening we met up again for an optional excursion to spend the evening in an actual Nubian home. We departed by motor boat from the hotel and the half hour ride was worth making the trip itself. We passed through some really beautiful areas of the Nile and saw a good deal of local wildlife and culture. It's so cool to glance up at a sandy mountain and see a lone camel resting near a tree. The further we got, we saw more Nubian people and many kids paddled in their makeshift boats right up to ours. Many Nubians will open their home to tourists during the day to make some extra money. Although it's a bit touristy, there was still a very authentic feel to the experience. In the words of Global Studies' Dr. Bowler, we were essentially "injected" into their culture for a bit. We explored the very interesting house (hard to describe, you'll need to see pics), got the opportunity to hold crocodiles (my mom was all for it but my dad had a few reservations), and interact with the locals a bit (mostly avoidance from overpriced souvenirs). Overall it was a really great experience. After taking a boat back to the hotel we got some dinner before officially calling an end to a busy day. This trip has just flown by; I can't believe that after our flight and visit to Cairo tomorrow I'll already have to be back on the ship.

Day 45: Aswan

2010-07-30T05:28:00.001-07:00

We got a chance to sleep in a bit (yes, I now consider 6:15am sleeping in) before grabbing some breakfast at the hotel and embarking on our bus journey to Aswan. Due to the rather harsh conditions of the desert, longer bus rides always go nonstop and with an empty bus following as a backup if there's any trouble. Apparently we're traveling Egypt in style (including our personal armed guard...). The ride from Luxor to Aswan is a straight shot South following the Nile. It's a bit eye-opening to pass through some of the many rural farming communities that are very primitive and somewhat impoverished. We passed many crops of sugarcane, corn, and cotton. It was really interesting to see the contrast of semi-green farmland and desert within a few feet of each other.

Upon arrival in Aswan we visited the Temple of Philae. The Greco-Roman temple has a lot of features that make it look very Pharaonic. The temple does not stand in its original location; it was moved from it's original "island" to the current island of Agilika. Since the construction of the famed Aswan High Dam, water levels in Lake Nasser rose continuously and eventually covered the majority of the temple. To preserve the incredible shrine to the goddess Isis, it was transported and painstakingly reconstructed piece by piece over a period of ten years. As with the temples we saw yesterday, it's breathtaking just to be around a building with such rich history and art. The carvings (including a good deal of Greek graffiti) and hieroglyphics are well preserved and it's fascinating to hear some of the stories behind them. After ferrying back to the mainland we drove over the small, original Aswan Dam on our way to visit the Aswan High Dam. Since the engineering and debt producing masterpiece is a military site, you have to be careful with any dam pictures you take (you knew I'd have to fit it in somehow). The view of the Nile was very nice and I didn't realize how expansive Lake Nasser is. After departing we made a quick stop by the original ancient granite quarry to see the "unfinished" obelisk before arriving at the hotel to check in and get a late buffet lunch (with some awesome apple cake).

We'll be at the hotel for two days, and I'm glad because it's situated on an island in the middle of the Nile with a gorgeous 360 view. We left the hotel in the early evening for our Nile cruise on a felucca (canvas sail boat). The feluccas and other river transit are run by the Nubians (a displaced group of people from central Africa) and we got the chance to sail around a bit down the Nile. With practically no wind, the ride was rather slow (backwards on a few occasions) but it was still a pretty fun experience. We even got to clap and sing along to some Nubian songs (my inner musicologist sensed a strong African influence; pretty logical since we actually are in Africa). Upon the conclusion of our little cruise we bussed over to a local papyrus shop. There was a short demo on how papyrus is actually made and we got a while to browse the selection. The prices were really good; I actually ended up with a nice 8x10 papyrus painted with ancient Egyptian musicians for about $5. After getting back to the hotel we braved the buffet dinner again, attended a short little lecture on tomorrow's adventure to Abu Simbel, and called it a night (after catching up with the blog of course). I'm again happy to report that any left over GI issues have subsided and we're getting good rest (i.e. everybody's in a good mood). Tomorrow is another early start to catch our flight to Abu Simbel and see some of the most famed temples of Egypt.

Day 44: Luxor

2010-07-30T05:27:00.001-07:00

Although there was a rough start in the morning, it ended up being an amazing day. I previously mentioned our absurdly early morning so let me be more specific: a 3:15am wake-up call. My internal clock is pretty screwed up from the past 40 days of time weirdness but 3 hours of sleep is always kinda tough. I was a lucky one; my parents unfortunately got no sleep. In India it's known as Montezuma's Revenge and in Egypt as the "mummy's tummy." As careful as they both were, my mom and dad had a bout with extreme nausea and some GI issues all night and into the morning (they weren't alone; a few other parents had a similar problem). I felt horrible for them; it's not only hard to see loved ones not feeling well but trying to encourage them to keep moving for our 6:00am flight was difficult. We immediately started the Bismuth (Peto-Bismul, a miracle preventative/treatment drug for SASers) and luckily one of the staff nurses was also on our trip. She happened to have a med kit on her and was graciously able to spare some Zofran and offer advice. Both were miserable though the flight (probably a lot due to anxiety and lack of sleep also) but by the time we landed and got moving there was much improvement. They got through most the day progressively feeling better but neither felt 100%. I'm very happy to report here on the morning of day 3 that after a good night's rest, plenty of Bismuth and lots of hydration, both are feeling great and ready to conquer the rest of the trip.

Following an uneventful flight on EgyptAir and arrival at the Luxor Airport we made our way to the famed Valley of the Kings. This desert valley contains over 60 amazing tombs from the Pharaonic period. We visited four: Tutankhamun, Ramses I, Ramses III, and Ramses IX. Tutankhamun's tomb was small but cool because of the famous story of Howard Carter's discovery and it still contains the actual mummy. The other three tombs had a great deal of original hieroglyphics, carvings and paintings on the walls (it's worth repeating: 3000 years old!). The colors are clear but faded and you can easily image how vibrant and amazing the tombs were originally. It's also quite interesting to follow the common themes (images) present in all the tombs. The hot and stuffy treks under the valley floor were well worth it. We then traveled a short distance to the temple of Queen Hatshepsut (hat-cheap-suit, or "chicken soup" as our guide claims the locals say), Ancient Egypt's only female pharaoh. There are a number of cool paintings on the inner temple walls. The top level some interesting statues of "her." It kind of seemed a little counterproductive to represent her as male, but whatever works. From the top there was a great view of the West Bank. After a quick stop to see the Colossi of Memnon (two giant "singing statues") built during Alexander's occupation, we made our way to the hotel for lunch and much needed rest.

After a nice afternoon nap at the hotel we set out again for the Temples. The Karnak Temple is simply breathtaking and worth the flight to Luxor itself. The largest temple in the world, it was built over a period of 1600 years. Obviously the building process was under the direction of hundreds of kings and therefore you can see an electric mix of statues all dedicated to the god of Thebes, Amun-Ra. The majority are from Ramses Ii who plastered his name over most of the temple. Two of the more famous obelisks are found inside and the Hypostyle Hall contains a bunch of enormous columns that once supported an immense roof. The entire place was colored at one time (there is still faded color present on some areas) and would have been a magnificent sight in it's day. The Karnak was actually connected to our next stop, the Luxor Temple, by a sting of over 1000 small Sphinx statues in ancient times. The Luxor Temple was also an amazing place to walk around. After moving past the exterior obelisk we saw some of the really intense and beautiful statues in the temple. Many are damaged from years of being built on top of and it's an interesting site to still find a mosque layered on top of a portion of the temple. After seeing some of the vivid carvings inside we bussed back to the hotel for dinner.

Everybody retired early in the evening for much needed rest. I attempted to start showing some pictures of the early part of the voyage to my parents but all of us were too tired to get very far. We got a great night's sleep for the next day's journey to Aswan.

Day 43: Cairo

2010-07-30T05:23:00.000-07:00

Egypt! We pulled into our first North African port early in the morning. There was a buzz of anticipation throughout the ship as this was probably the port people were most looking forward to. Usually overnight trips do not depart until the morning of the second day at port but this wasn't the case in Egypt. This fact in conjunction with the large number of people on some trips (up to 300 in one overnight) led to quite a bit of chaos on the ship. The parents arrived in the midst of all this and I met my parents in the Union before our trip's departure. It was really great getting to see them, I was so excited it was tough getting decent sleep the night before. It's so hard to catch up effectively because there's so much to share on both sides but we're doing pretty well.

After the ship was cleared we departed by bus for a quick drive around Alexandria then through the Sahara Desert to Cairo. We have a really good guide that will be with us through the whole Egypt trip. As promised the traffic situation in Egypt is absolutely insane. There are no rules. Although I've had a lot of crazy traffic expose in previous ports, it's only been two days here as I write (on a bus in the middle of the Sahara again, this time from Luxor to Aswan) and nobody even flinches anymore as we pass on a two lane road with opposing traffic head on a few hundred feet away with no hint of breaking. The desert drive was very interesting. The most obvious feature is all the unfinished buildings. Practically everything is "under constriction" because as long as the building is unfinished there's no property tax. For this reason, most people live in apartments that have unpainted exteriors or half completed top floors with rebar still poking out. It's also cool to note all the unique "pidgin" houses on the side of the desert roads. A commodity here, pidgins are eaten by a lot of men as a demo of superiority.

On arrival in Cairo we had a buffet lunch at the Meridien Pyramids hotel. Offering typical Egyptian food, there was a lot of meat and bread. Outside the hotel there was a beautiful view of the Giza Pyramids, our next stop. Upon arrival we got a little of the basic history and info on how to avoid the hounding locals trying to sell things. The souvenir sales people here are notoriously some of the worst in the world, it's legitimately very difficult to walk by without being ambushed (we're getting good with "no" and "go away" in Arabic). The pyramids were stunning. After the initial shock at such magnificent structures (3000 years old!) it's a little anticlimactic because there's really not much to do except walk around in the 100 degree heat and take pictures. I'm told you can always bribe the guards and try climbing them but we saved that for another day. The mighty Sphinx was also incredible to see (albeit a bit smaller than imagined). You see images of the Great Pyramids of Giza so often it's weird and awesome to actually be there. We then drove to a spot with a nice panoramic view of the pyramids and did the obligatory camel ride. It's a bit wild trying to hang on as they stand and knell at the beginning and end but once you "feel the motion of the camel" the ride itself wasn't too rough. My parents and I each had our own camel and the three were tethered together. Don't worry, we have plenty of pictures.

Following the camel adventure we checked in at the hotel and had an hour or so to rest up. In the evening we attended an interesting little Son et Lumiere (sound and light) show at the pyramids. As one member of our group observed, its kind of like Disney meets Egypt. They basically go through a historical narrative while shining different lights and lasers on the pyramids. It was a little corny but also kind of cool. I felt kind of bad for my mom and dad because they were still adjusting to the time changes and slept through most of the show. After arriving back at the hotel we grabbed some dinner and hit the sack for an absurdly early start the next day.

Day 42: Egypt Pre-Port

2010-07-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

The wonderful cycle of two class days followed by a port continues. Overall today was a pretty typical pre-port day. We had a great lecture in Global Studies about the current state of economic and political affairs in Egypt. I know that probably sounds incredibly exciting but it really is interesting when presented from the perspective of "you're actually gonna be there tomorrow!" My test in Abnormal Psych went well. I don't want to get too confident but I feel like studying for psychology isn't that bad compared to the mass amounts of memorization required for something like biology that I'm used to.

This is pretty random but I forgot to include it the other day and it's definitely blog worthy. I mentioned a few posts ago about how our Turkish Air flight from Izmir to Istanbul had one of the rougher/just plain disturbingly scary landings I've been through. Talking with my Infectious Disease professor the other day I leaned that we actually blew a tire upon landing. That would probably explain the strange skid and swerve thing. Overall only one tire in a group of four isn't that big of a deal but it was exciting nonetheless.

We've been a little spoiled the last few weeks in the Mediterranean with really calm seas but the wind and swells picked up today and we started rocking a bit more. It's always fun to be taking a test (on a meal tray, mind you; we don't have desks) with the scantron or test form sliding sliding away every few questions. I went to the seminar by our inter-port Egypt lecturers this evening followed by the logistical pre-port session. Egypt, along with Morocco, will be one of the shadier ports so there's a lot to think about (and I'm glad I'm on an organized SAS trip) but I'm still really looking forward it. My parents should be in Cairo for the evening tonight and will arrive on board the ship tomorrow morning. Tomorrow at this time we should be together in Cairo. That's all for now, I have to figure out how to pack five days worth of stuff in my backpack.

Day 41: Back Through the Dardanelles

2010-07-25T16:06:00.000-07:00

I think I say this every time we return to classes after a stretch at port, but it's such a weird sensation to go from galavanting around Istanbul one day to sitting in Global Studies the next. I was talking with a few people last night and we came the conclusion that the ship has definitely taken on a "home" sort of feel. We're all getting used to the food, accommodations, and people around. I don't know whether that's good or bad.

Classes today went well. Everybody (both profs and students) are pretty scattered but that's to be expected. We spent 45 minutes talking about vomit in Infections Disease. I think it's part of his master plan to keep us eating appropriately in Egypt. Global Studies today started with an interesting pirate impression and I don't know if I've ever attended a lecture titled "Knights and Pirates" (complete with acting) before. We have a test in Abnormal Psych tomorrow so I've been devoting a bit of study time there. I also have three pretty big papers due right before Morocco so I began some brainstorming there as well. After hitting the gym this afternoon I went to a session on travel photography by our staff photographer which was actually really interesting. Apparently I need to work on keeping better cohesion among the photos I take.

Other than classes and significant anticipation for arrival in Egypt, today was fairly unexciting. My parents should be arriving in Cairo tomorrow (or today/tonight however it works with the time changes) and I can't wait to see them the day after tomorrow. I've probably read over the Egypt itinerary 4 or 5 times now; it's going to be an awesome trip. That's all for now, I have some Somatoform disorders to memorize.

Day 40: Mosquing, Walking, and Climbing

2010-07-24T14:25:00.000-07:00

I followed up last night's Sufi experience today with a trip focusing on Islamic art and practices in Turkey. The trip left mid-morning and after a drive around the Golden Horn we stopped at the Eyup Mosque and Cemetery located in the northern area of the city. The first thing that makes this mosque unique is the attached cemetery. According to our guide, conservative Muslims don't burry their dead in an elaborate fashion with a tombstone and whatnot but "Turks are different." The mosque itself was fairly small but had some really interesting and elaborate tile work that, in my humble opinion, rivals that of the Blue Mosque because you can actually get up close and see it inside the Eyup. There was also a nicely decorated attached tomb. I think the highlight of the day was the "scene" our guide created in the mosque. He told the girls that hair coverage was optional so a few didn't use a scarf. A security guard quickly approached him and a rather heated exchange (in Turkish) ensued. The next 10 minutes were spent listening to our guide rant about how the Quran says nothing about women covering their hair and how all religious rituals should "be up to the individual." It made things a bit awkward but was interesting to see perspectives and watch it play out.

Following our excitement at the Eyup Mosque we drive back down the old city and got a more thorough tour of the Blue Mosque. It was a little less busy today than when I was there on Wednesday so that was nice. We then made our way to the Ibrahim Pasha Palace, which now hoses the Turkish Islamic Arts Museum. There wasn't tons of time to look around but we did see some cool gold pieces, ceramics and an absurd amount of rugs from the sixteenth and seventeenth century (a few of which were rather enormous). The tour was scheduled to return to the ship early afternoon but I signed out with a few others to do lunch at a place close by. I needed one more decent Turkish meal and got a good one of meatballs and spices with an interesting couscous/rice side. We walked around some shops a little more before embarking on an epic journey to climb the Galata Tower. The tower was on the other side of the Golden Horn so the walk was rather intense (why take public transit when you walk?). It took a couple hours moving at a brisk pace but we meandered through the large public park and some other new sites on the way. I think the climb to the base of the tower was more intense than the actual tower climb itself but once at the observation deck it was well worth it. Istanbul is a beautiful city and the panorama from the top was a great experience. After making the journey back the the ship my time in Istanbul was officially complete (for the time being...).

Istanbul is definitely the most unique port we've visited so far. I really enjoyed the time here but it's amazing how fast it flies by. We pulled out of port a few hours ago and are on our way to Egypt. As I type my parents are in New York awaiting their flight to Cairo tonight/tomorrow (gotta love time changes). We have a longer and really neat trip planned for Egypt so I'm looking forward to seeing them and starting that journey. On the ship we have two days of classes before arriving so it's time to get back into study mode. That's all for now, I should probably attempt to start that whole homework thing.

Day 39: The Bazaars & Sufi Dervish

2010-07-23T16:24:00.000-07:00

Today was a dedicated Bazaar day. The first order of business was getting to the Grand Bazaar. I walked with Daniel and a few others to the Metro station close by and we took the tram to the entrance of the world's largest covered shopping center. I don't like to brag but we're getting pretty good at figuring out these large foreign city metro systems. After arrival Daniel and I split off from the others since we have similar shopping interests (or lack of is probably a better way to put it) and we walked around for a while. The place is exactly as described: enormous and overwhelming. Most of what I've heard always stresses the variety of over 4000 different shops. After walking around for a few hours and picking up a couple things for people I've come to the conclusion that there are really only four types of shops: leather, rugs, jewelry, and trinkets. It was a must to see but I don't know how people could spend days there (even though many did...and spent quite a bit in the process).

After the Grand Bazaar we grabbed a quick lunch at a place close by. I got a beef "doner" which is apparently a pretty typical (and cheap) lunch option. I also finally got a cup of real Turkish Coffee (you'd be amazed how difficult it was to find) and definitely approve. Following lunch we re-entered the Bazaar for the sake of walking directly through it since walking around the outside would take us way out of the way. The next hour or so was spent roaming around the streets of the old city in the general direction of the Spice Bazaar. We eventually reached the Spice Bazaar and browsed for a little while. I wanted to pick up some tea but was a little disappointed that it was all labeled in only English (surely not for the tourists...). I eventually got some Turkish Apple Tea that looked a little more legit at a market close by. Somehow we later found ourselves walking through the lesser known Livestock Bazaar and I have to admit I'm a little disappointed I couldn't bring a goat back to the ship. We walked around for a few more hours seeing quite a bit of Istanbul and eventually got back to the ship.

Back at the ship I hit the gym and grabbed a quick dinner. This evening I was signed up to attend a Sufi Dervish Ceremony. The music is played on typical Ottoman instruments including the flute-like "ney" and is a great example of non-western ritualistic music. The Dervish dancers went through a ritualistic routine of whirling as a representation of a union with God. The ceremony is still preformed in a religious setting in some parts of central Turkey but what we saw was a (hopefully) authentic performance. It was a really interesting and quite an "entrancing" local cultural experience, I'm glad I got the chance to go. Tomorrow I have a short trip focusing on Islamic practices in Turkey that visits a few more mosques and palaces. That's all for now, I need to work out tomorrow's schedule so I can fit in a climb of the Galata Tower before we depart for Egypt.

Day 38: Ephesus

2010-07-22T17:03:00.000-07:00

The original trip itinerary described most of the day as an opportunity to "discover Ephesus." I didn't really understand how this could take all day until we arrived at the ancient city in the morning. The city in its entirety is very large and in 95 degree heat can be a rather challenging area to tour and explore. We walked through the Agora and town hall before seeing the ancient Roman baths (hmm, seems like I've seen something like that before...). There were also some interesting fountains and a huge restored portion of the Celcus Library. We saw the Grand Theatre and Gymnasium before eventually making it all the say to the Stadium (still in use for concerts today) at the end of the city.

It probably sounds like just another ancient archeological site but understanding some of the related history is what made the experience a real highlight. If the book of "Ephesians" sounds familiar it was because St. Paul was a visitor to the town and synagogue/church. St. John also spent a significant portion of his life around Ephesus. He did quite a bit of preaching and likely composed his Gospel in the area. One of the cooler things to physically see was the actual hospital ruins where St. Luke, also an Ephesus resident for a short time, treated patients. There was a lot of staff on this trip (including one of the nurses, the psychologist, and a psychiatrist) so I was in line right behind them for the geeky photo-op at Luke's clinic. The roads we walked on around Ephesus are original; it's pretty awesome to think that I've possibly walked on the same routes as some of the more influential names in history.

After spending quite a bit of time around Ephesus we made the drive up into the mountains (beautiful scenery once again) to visit the officially recognized House of the Virgin Mary. There are quite a few alleged Mary residences around but this is only recognized by the Catholic Church. It was a pretty big tourist area and a small little house (mostly reconstructed) with a nice little chapel nearby. When finished here we traveled to the Basilica of St. John. John spent the majority of his later years (before the exile) in and around the region. The remains of the really large
church we visited also contain John's original tomb (no remains anymore). There were some more awesome views around the area which included a few stork sightings.

We made a late lunch stop at a restaurant near the previous night's hotel. The lamb kabobs and rice were a pretty good first actual Turkish meal. After lunch we visited the Ephesus Museum that houses a lot of the original sculptures from the ancient town. Once again I have to thank HumTut and this darn liberal arts education for the ability to recognize a lot of the names and faces. In the museum I had fun talking with some other folks who appeared to be American and learned that they were also on a study abroad program based in Athens where they visit a lot of early religious sites. After the museum we stopped by the famed Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The only thing part of the enormous and elaborate temple left is a single pillar. It was kind of anti-climatic but still interesting and good to see. After a stupid tourist visit to a leather fashion show and store (funny how our guide just "coincidentally" led us so we'd be close by "if" there was extra time) we made the way to the airport for our flight back to Istanbul. After arriving on the ship I joined most of the other members of the tour by running upstairs to grab a much needed salad and fruit smoothie.

Overall the trip was really great. The only other student I knew well was Lacey and it is always good meeting others on these sort of things. Besides the food issues (and Lacey leaving her cell phone at the hotel...) there were no real kinks, all moved very efficiently. There was a decent group of students but also a lot of faculty and staff. It turned out that my Abnormal Psych teacher was the trip leader and my Infectious Disease prof was also tagging along. It was fun getting to know them a bit better and talk with some of the others. We had a good time and I can't wait to explore some more of Turkey. That's all for now, we're off the the Grand Bazaar tomorrow (any souvenir requests email soon!).

Day 37: Izmir (Symrna)

2010-07-22T16:19:00.000-07:00

Just as I was just starting to settle into this whole idea of "European" Turkey I had to jump on a plane over to the "Asian" side. We had an early start from the ship to make our one hour flight to Izmir. Turkish Airlines isn't all that bad. It was a bit of a rough ride but we actually got a meal (since food offerings are far more important than passenger safety). It figures that the only place they still serve meals on all the flights is a place where you can't actually eat everything without the risk of getting sick.

Upon arrival we met our bus and guide before taking a short drive thorough modern Izmir, the third largest city in Turkey. Back in the day Izmir was known as "Symrna" so for the sake of our ruin exploring this was a much more practical label. We started off by visiting the Agora of ancient Symrna. It was a pretty typical archeological site and neat to see some of the regional adaptations like using lead to connect blocks for earthquake preparedness, the use of original piping, and built-in "air conditioning" via water ducts. After this mini trek we went to the Izmir Archeology Museum where a lot of local ceramics and statues from the late Hellenistic and early Roman periods are displayed. I was pleased with our guide and his style. He was definitely an interesting local fellow but presented a lot of info in a concise yet intriguing way. Sometimes museum tours can be overwhelmingly too detailed but he did a nice job.

My only real complaint about the trip was the food (or lack thereof). We were supposed to have a boxed lunch included but for some reason that fell through. We ended up being responsible for our own lunch and stopped at some strange roadside grill thing that was more grease than anything. This and the whole water avoidance thing has led to a diet of carbs the last few days. Yay for multi-vitamin tabs. After "lunch" we continued the drive to Sardis. The first stop was the Artemis Temple (not to be confused with the Temple of Artemis) which was set in a really beautiful little valley area. The enormous stone pillars seemed small compared to the surrounding mountains and were used to support one of the largest temples that ever existed. A short drive later we found ourselves in the old Synagogue of Sardis. We walked over some very pretty and intricate original mosaic floors to reach a huge restored building. Apparently Saint Paul visited and preached at the synagogue numerous times. Also nearby the synagogue is the famed Royal Persian Road that still exists in original form. It is only partially excavated but stretches from Sardis all the way to Sousa, Persia.

The synagogue visit was followed by a rather lengthy drive to the town of Selcuk (outside of Ephesus) and our hotel. The accommodations were actually pretty nice for being in a rather remote part of Turkey. Our tap water was brown and the buffet dinner rather gross but no complaints otherwise. There wasn't much to do in the evening so it consisted of a few card games, reading, and some much needed rest in preparation for the next day's journey to Ephesus.

Day 36: Istanbul

2010-07-20T16:27:00.000-07:00

Istanbul is everything I expected and so much more. I got up early to watch us come in across the Marmara Sea and start up the Bosphorus to our port right next to the center of the city. It was well worth it; the view was incredible. We could see the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, thousands of buildings, and hundreds of minerets off in the distance. It was really a great start to the day. After breakfast and a mediocre diplomatic briefing we had to wait some time for the ship to be cleared. Since I had to get a special visa for traveling outside Istanbul it took a little longer that normal but the staff was able to negotiate our release if we had scheduled trip like I did. This meant I was able to get off the ship without my passport (normally a necessity in Istanbul) to meet my city orientation.

The orientation was very thorough and a lot of fun. We had a really good bus and the group dynamics worked out well (these are usually hit or miss). We started off with a drive around the major areas of the city including Taksim Square and the newer city followed by a drive around the "Golden Horn." We crossed this stretch of water to the "old city" region and saw remains of the 20 mile long city walls. Istanbul has over 2000 mosques so there was ample opportunity for "mosquing" today. We first stopped by the Sehzade Mosque. It is beautiful and fairly well known but not as touristy as some of the larger ones. Following this we had lunch and it started to pour rain (which, according to our guide, "never happens in the Summer..."). That made for an interesting walking tour around the old city. We walked to the Blue Mosque which was absolutely spectacular. The six towering minerets are a great site and the intricate blue tile interior is everything it's made out to be. It was very crowded but also had many active worshipers visiting so it was interesting to watch their actions. After spending some time admiring the world's most famous mosque we walked to the Hippodrome to see stolen Greek "Serpent Column" (a popular topic in Global Studies). We then walked over to the Haiga Sophia which is a Byzantine church converted to a mosque that is now a museum. It is the world's fourth largest place of worship and another amazing site. Seeing aspects of both Greek Orthodox and Islamic tradition in one place was fascinating. We spent quite a bit of time here before concluding the tour with the Byzantine Cistern, an interesting underground cave used for water storage that contains some interesting sculptures.

We later returned to the ship for dinner before a group of us set out again for the city. On a recommendation we decided to walk to Taksim Square. Seeing this square and mile long street in the evening was quite an intense site. I like to describe it as Barcelona's La Rambla on steroids. There were easily thousands of people (locals, tourists, conservative Muslims, etc) and many great cafes and shops. We walked around for a while before stopping for the necessary Turkish Delight and making the trek back to the ship.

I can now see why Istanbul is considered one of the "cultural capitols" of the world. It's so interesting to be around such diverse religious aspects (including the five calls to prayer over loud speakers every day) while being in a modern city setting. A common theme of Turkey is how it is where "East meets West." Today we stayed on the 3% of the nation that is officially on the European continent and I'm looking forward to discovering some of the 97% found on Asia tomorrow. I wish I had time to describe more but I'm exhausted and we have a very early start to Izmir. I'm really looking forward to the trip but will probably not get a chance to update for a few days. That's all for now, I have an overnight bag to pack.

Day 35: Turkey Day

2010-07-19T16:07:00.000-07:00

Today was devoted to preparation for our arrival in Istanbul tomorrow morning. Sessions didn't start until late morning to give people a chance to sleep in and recover from Greece. I have trouble sleeping past sunrise here so instead decided to hit the gym early. Our first session was the only mandatory one and it was by our inter-port lecturer, an American diplomat currently assigned to Turkey. She had a lot of great info and suggestions. I later went to hear the inter-port student's presentation which had also had some useable info. Later in the afternoon I attended a talk about the current state of political and economic affairs in Turkey. It's interesting to look into some of the debate about why Turkey's EU admission has been continually delayed (likely because it's 98% Muslim). Other than these sessions it was a pretty relaxed day.

I scheduled a much needed haircut for the afternoon. I have to admit, it was a little weird for me because I haven't been anywhere besides a barber shop for the past 14 years or so. They did a decent job and it was really thorough (I'm not used to the whole shampoo and head massage thing). The timing worked out perfectly because as soon as I was done we got word that we were passing by Gallipoli into the Dardanelles. Gallipoli is a city and site from a famous battle in WWI where the Turks defeated the Allies. There's a pretty intense monument on the hill that was clearly visible as we sailed by. The Dardanelles is the strait that begins the connection of the Mediterranean to the Black Sea. In other words, it's the strip of water that separates Europe from Asia and we were able to clearly see both continents today. That little entrance was definitely the highlight of the day at sea. Not many people came out to see us enter the strait due to the extremely intense wind. Coming from a guy who grew up in the Antelope Valley, today offered the most extreme wind experience I've ever had. It was difficult to stand up and somewhat entertaining as people and objects flew by (there was more than one incident of glasses blowing off faces and shoes off feet) but it offered some good photo ops.

We had our logistical pre-port meeting tonight and I can't wait for arrival tomorrow. Some of the cultural considerations are going to make it very different from anywhere I've previously been but I'm looking forward to the challenge. After our diplomatic briefing and issuing of visas tomorrow I have a city orientation that hits most of the major mosques and other sites. If we can work it out I'd love to do a night cruise up the Bosphorus. Wednesday I depart early for a two day trip down to Izmir and Ephesus which should be really cool. On Friday I'm planning on making my way to the Grand Bazaar and some other Istanbul exploration. I have a session on Islamic art on Saturday followed by some open time to hopefully fit in whatever else needs to be seen. That's all for now, I up early tomorrow to watch us come in; I hear Turkey from afar is a beautiful sight.

Day 34: Athens & Piraeus

2010-07-18T12:32:00.000-07:00

I didn't have any official plans for the day so after breakfast Daniel, Lacey, Heather and I decided to go out to explore Athens a little more. The original goal was to take the metro all the way from the port to the northern district of Kifissia. It is supposedly an "elite" district that is fun to walk around. The metro was taking quite a long time (it's an older line) so we abandoned the original plan and got off sooner at Monastiraki. We walked around the Psiri region a bit seeing the Ancient Agora, Hadrian's Arch, Avissinias Square, the Thesseion, and stopping in a few side shops. After we got our fix of one of the more sketchier regions of Athens we took the metro back to Pireaus and walked to a restaurant that some other SASers had recommended. The food was very good; I got a dish with lamb wrapped in pita and also tried a bit of ouzo (I'm a sucker for anything black licorice). After lunch we walked to a recommended pastry shop and loaded up on some baklava before returning to the ship.

Today wasn't the most exciting day but it was a good end to our stay in Greece. From all the people I've talked to recently, the reactions to Greece are very similar. I'm not necessarily disappointed but this port was definitely not what I expected. When you think of Greece, you often imagine a very pristine and beautiful setting. Hollywood is probably to blame. Athens is a pretty rough city; I probably wouldn't use "pristine" or "beautiful" to describe it. After you've seen the Acropolis and a few other sites, there's not much to do. The islands are very pretty but there's really not much to do there either (this could just be my dislike of beaches and shopping or our limited time at the islands...many people really enjoyed themselves). Delphi was a definite highlight. If (when) I come again I think I'd try to get out of the city a bit more to check out Corinth and Olympia. Overall, we had an amazing time but it was just a little different than I had imagined.

With the conclusion of Day 33 yesterday we are officially halfway done with the voyage. I remember sitting around a meal the night before Barcelona talking about how after our first day at port time would just fly by. It has. I can't believe it's already been a month; it's so fast paced here it's hard to keep up. There are no classes tomorrow as is "Turkey day" where we have a bunch of little seminars and activities offering info about Turkey. I think Istanbul was one of my most anticipated ports; I can't wait to go check it out a bit. That's all for now, I have a batch of 450 Greek pictures to edit and organize.

Day 33: Delphi and Dora Stratou

2010-07-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

The day started early with a 3 hour bus ride to Delphi. Delphi is the home of Apollo, the Delphic Oracle and the Pythian Games. As we got closer, the drive up to the actual site was really beautiful. The roads we had to take were on the edge of huge mountains and some of the views were pretty awesome. En route, we passed through a neat little ski town. I didn't get a chance to write down the name but it was one of those quaint little mountain towns that would be really fun to visit. Modern science has shown that there is quite a bit of geologic activity around the Temple of Apollo where the Greek oracles used to prophesy. There is a good deal of evidence showing the release of methane, ethylene, and other wonderful gasses from ground during ancient times. An interesting side effect of some of these gasses would be a hallucinogenic effect providing some very interesting and entertaining insight how some of the oracles functioned.

In it's time, Delphi was known as the "navel" of the world. After arriving in the umbilicus we had a short guided tour through the archaeological site. There are some good ruins and reconstructions but it was really neat to see a lot of the original inscriptions on stone that were used as a means of communication. After visiting the Temple we had free time to explore a little more. There is a fairly intense hike further up the mountain where you can see an older theatre and eventually the stadium used for the Pythian Games (similar to the Olympic Games). True to my nature as a Crane, I of course made this journey and it was well worth it. The tour reconvened later for a short tour of the Delphi Museum. As far as museums go, it was a good one. There were lots of original sculptures from the site including the first classical bronze statue ever discovered. After finish up with the museum we hit lunch at a restaurant overlooking one of the mountains.

I've gotten a fair amount of comments about my rather detailed food descriptions but this truly deserves some words as it was probably the best meal I've had on this voyage so far. It was fun knowing what some of the food was after yesterday's little cooking adventure. We started off with an awesome array of tapas including a spinach pie, fried zucchini ball, fried cheese stick, veal in a cabbage wrap, and some great Tzatziki with bread. I could have made a meal out of just those. The later portion included a greek salad, a really good meat dish, rice, and potatoes. The highlight: amazing baclava for dessert. I don't think I've eaten that much food in a long time (if ever). After lunch we stopped by the Hosios Loukas monastery. There are some elaborate Byzantine mosaics in the church which is nestled on a beautifully picturesque mountainside. If I ever decide to be a Greek Orthodox monk, this is where it would be. Overall we had a really great trip. In a recent email my dad mentioned how the description sounded like it would make the entire time in Greece worthwhile by itself. Having now actually done the trip, I must agree.

I didn't really have anything to do this evening so I decided to see if there was any possibility for me to tag along with the World Music class FDP (faculty directed practicum) to the Dora Stratou Dance and Music Theatre. It's designed as a unique and super authentic show to demonstrate traditional rural Greek music and dance. I was able to get on and the show was really incredible. The venue is an outdoor theater nestled next to the Acropolis. It was a performance showcasing over two hours of music and dance. FDPs like this are what makes Semester at Sea unique. It's so cool to be on a first name basis with a published ethnomusicologist and music professor and, following a great lecture, casually have a conversation about some of the history and technicalities of the performance. I enjoyed the music quite a bit; it was fun to try and pick out some of the modes (musical jargon) and compare the very loose Alberti clarinet playing to what we typically consider western style. Those attending were invited to go out to a Tavern with the professor after the show and, while I would liked to have gone, I was so exhausted from the long day at Delphi I figured it would be a good idea to head back for the ship and call it an night.

Day 32: Greek Cooking

2010-07-16T14:57:00.000-07:00

This is usually the part where I talk about getting an "early start" for the day but our meeting time for the cooking class wasn't until late morning. It was nice to get a little more rest than usual. After eventually meeting, the bus ride into Athens that was supposed to take 15 minutes ended up being over an hour due to traffic. Luckily the place we were going to was understanding and still gave us the full time we paid for.

The cooking lesson itself was a little different than I expected. We were spit into groups of 5 or 6, designated a leader, and were given a list of dishes and ingrediets. It was setup as a competition between groups and each of the 6 dishes we had to make had to be done within a time limit. There wasn't a great deal of instruction but there were people roaming around offering answers to questions. We were shown an example of the dish and people from each group rotated making them. It was fast paced but fun. We made Dakos, a traditional Greek Salad (I'm a master at cutting tomatoes now), Tzatziki, Taramosalata, Fakes, and Prassaia Salad. I have recipes so I'll make you all some good Greek food one of these days. After the official "class" we got some free time to hang out and eat our wonderful creations (some turned out better than others...). To answer the question I've already gotten multiple times: No, I was not the only male on the trip. I think there was enough of us for one in each group (hence my tomato slicing specialty).

Since we were right in the heart of Athens, a lot of people signed out of the transportation back to the ship. On the recommendation of the ship's massage therapist (who was also present at the cooking class) I went with my friend Mindy to check out the Athens Central Market. I was in need of another USB drive for some photo backup and picked one up for a good price (and yes, it actually works). If you ever need shoes, this is the place to come. It seemed like every other store was a shoestore. It was fun walking around and seeing more of Athens, it really is quite a large city. Since we were out of the major tourist areas it was neat to see a lot more locals and observe some of that interaction. We stopped for a quick bite where I got a good Monastiraki Salad and later explored the city center some more. Despite our best efforts and an extended search we weren't able to find any ice cream. It looks as if the days of gelato and ice cream might be nearing their end. I did finally get some Greek olive oil before we took the Metro back to Piraeus.

This evening has been pretty uneventful. Daniel and Lacey returned from an overnight trip to Delphi so after a quick dinner I made a visit to the gym and find myself composing yet another blog. Delphi tomorrow, I've heard good things. That's all for now, I have to figure out what is appropriate as a sacrifice to Apollo.

Day 31: Saronic Islands

2010-07-15T12:35:00.001-07:00

I'm currently sitting in a port terminal in Piraeus surrounded by about a hundred other American college students spread out among chairs and the floor in search of one of the most desired objects of the 21st Century: free wifi internet. The quest has been a success and Piraeus is the only port that offers free wifi at the actual port terminal. I bet they're starting to regret that now.

Today's island hoping adventure had an early start. I knew couple others that were on the trip (Heather and Mindy) so we hung around together most of the day. There was a quick bus ride across Piraeus to the ferry port where we boarded our ship for the day. The whole ferry thing was a little different than I was expecting. It was essentially a "day cruise" that provided entertainment and a meal as we sailed to three of the Saronic Islands (in the region closer to the mainland). The first part of the cruise was a 3 hour ride to Hydra. Thankfully MCAT study cards, an iPod and a deck of playing cards made the ride bearable. We were only on Hydra for about an hour and a half. It's really pretty and fun to walk around but there's not much to do. I'm not really a shopper and didn't feel the need to take a donkey ride so I guess that rather limited time on the island was probably a good thing. After re-boarding the ship we were served a lunch of ground beef, zucchini, and feta. The food wasn't the greatest (made in mass on a cheap day cruise) but did the job. The lemon cake dessert made up for any shortcomings.

We next arrived in Poros and had a little under an hour to look around. It's the smallest of the three islands and was again mostly tourism and shopping. There was about an hour ride to Aegina where we had about two hours. Aegina was a little more exciting to walk around and there was a more to do. It's supposedly famous for pistachios. I'm not a huge pistachio fan but was told they were unique in a good way. After a little hike around town we made an ice cream run and went back the ship. During the hour-long trip back to Piraeus we had a "traditional Greek dancing show." It was a little cheesy but the music was enjoyable. We eventually got back to the ship about two hours later than originally expected and I now find myself among my peers scrounging for free internet.

I don't want to be negative but I was not overly impressed by the whole island experience. The limited time was a bit frustrating. I know there are things to do and see on the islands (I would have loved some good hikes) but the only practical thing to do with our timeframe was walk around the tourist infested port area. Don't get me wrong; I had a good time today and the scenery is absolutely beautiful (little white houses and all). I guess the "relaxed" feel didn't really fit into my style as a "do everything humanly possible" traveler. I can now check Greek Island hopping off my list. A lot of people are going out to Mykonos and Santorini but I think I'll stick around the mainland for the next few days. Tomorrow I'm sighed up to take a cooking class (should be a new and interesting experience...) and will probably head back out to Athens afterward. That's all for now, it's time for a bit of rest.

Day 30: Athens and the Acropolis

2010-07-14T13:37:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Greece early this morning and immigration was on board by 0630. Greece will be the first county (besides Canada) where we actually get get a passport stamp. This was a highlight for many people but also meant it took customs longer than usual to clear the ship. We had the usual diplomatic briefing which repeated a lot of the economic and political issues that were discussed in the pre-port. After we cleared I went with a few people to walk around Piraeus a little bit. Besides obviously being a port city, Piraeus is a district of Athens. As we discovered, there's really not much to do or see in Piraeus. It is somewhat interesting to walk around but is one of those port areas that might not be a good idea to hang around in after dark. Supposedly the iced coffee here is really good (among other foods) so I got some when we ran across a coffee house in Piraeus. The guy didn't speak English very well so I have no idea whether I ended up with what I intended to get but it was pretty good nonetheless. Eventually we made the way back to the ship to meet the tour going to the Acropolis.

The tour hit some major Athens sites before dropping us off near the Acropolis. We saw the Panathinaikon Stadium which was used for the 1887 and 2004 Olympics. There are quite a few newer sports complexes and renovated buildings left over from Athens 2004. We saw many of the smaller stadiums but didn't get a chance to see the main one. That'll hopefully be another day. We stopped by the Greek Parliament building across from the National Garden which is near the city center and also saw an interesting Tomb for the Unknown Solider. Close by is the University of Athens which has a lot of neat neoclassicist buildings from the mid 1800s. The parts we saw were really beautiful, it would be fun to walk around a bit if classes were in session. We later walked by Hadrian's Arch which leads to the Temple of Olympian Zeus.

The latter half of the afternoon was spent walking around the Acropolis region. It's quite a hike (especially in 100+ temps) which made me glad I'm used to dryer heat from growing up in the desert. We had a guided tour up to the actual Acropolis including the Parthenon, Temple of Athena Nike, Erectheion, and Propylea. Much of the Acropolis has been (or is in the process of being) reconstructed but it's still very interesting to see a lot of the original Greek work. A small group of us "signed out" of the tour when it was done and decided to do a little more on our own. We hiked down the hill an alternate way that went through the Theatre of Dionysus. The theatre is where original premieres of Greek classics by Euripides, Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Aristophanes actually took place. As much as I hate to admit it, HumTut sure helped "culture" me a bit so it was really neat to understand a lot of the history. We made our way to the new (only open a year) Acropolis Museum which houses most of the original sculptures and works found on the Acropolis. There's actually a larger political reason for the new museum that has to do with getting some stuff back from Britain, but we won't go into that now. After spending a few hours and grabbing a quick bite in the museum (great little casserole thing with spinach, feta, and herbs) we ventured out into the Plaka region of Athens to walk around a bit. We eventually made it to the Metro station and back to Piraeus for the trek to the ship.

After a bit of rest I went out with Daniel to walk around Piraeus again and find some dinner. We found a place and I had a bake thing with zucchini and feta. Good and an interesting texture. That's all for now, off the the Saronic Islands tomorrow.

Day 29: It's all Greek to Me

2010-07-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

Despite the heavy workload, I like the idea of two class days followed by 14 days off. We arrive in Greece tomorrow and will be there for 5 days. The day after departure will be "Turkey Day" followed by our stint in Turkey. Classes and whatnot all went well today, nothing new and exciting to report. In Infectious Disease we had to make sure and start with Cholera before arriving in Turkey, should be fun. I think I'll load up on more Bismuth at port in Greece. We had a "family dinner" tonight and it was good to catch up. It's nice to hear from faculty and staff that students aren't the only ones lacking sleep and a bit overwhelmed in the whirlwind of classes and wacky schedules.

We're scheduled to port in Piraeus early tomorrow morning and will go through the normal rituals of a diplomatic briefing and customs. I went to the inter-port student presentation tonight and got some good tips. The logistical pre-port was mostly focused on some of the rather shaky issues in Greece due to the economy. There's a chance we might have to deal with strikes, there was a major one last Thursday. We'll see what happens. Around mid-morning today we had a military drone do a sweep right down to the ship and circle a few times. The guess is that it was an Israeli drone looking for a ship that departed Greece a few days ago (you probably have more updates as far as world news goes than I do at this point). That could probably be considered the excitement for the day.

Tomorrow I'm scheduled for a tour of Athens and the Acropolis that departs in the afternoon. Assuming there's not a ferry strike, I have a full day trip to three of the Saronic Islands (Hydra, Aegina, and Poros) on day two. Some Greek cooking lessons will take up a chunk of day four followed by some time independently exploring Athens. I'm on a day trip to Delphi the fourth day. No plans yet for day five but it will probably be spent around Athens. Greece is shaping up to be a fun time. That's all for now, I'm going to go attempt to crash an ice cream social.

Day 28: Laundry Day

2010-07-12T11:48:00.000-07:00

I know it doesn't sound like an occasion worthy of making a blog title but when laundry day rolls around to your floor, it's a rather joyous occasion. Only one side of each floor can be done per day at sea. Factoring in the days we're at port into this rotation, it comes out to about once every twenty days or so. We got the schedule at the beginning of the voyage so I was able to sit down and do the math to make sure I had just enough to get through and luckily everything worked out (I'm on my last pair of clothes...hopefully the laundry fairies didn't lose my bag and it will appear outside the door tomorrow).

Other than the excitement of getting clean clothes, today was pretty uneventful. It was a normal day of classes. Since we just finished the first round of exams there's nothing too stressful going on. In the middle of Abnormal Psych today the ship started listing starboard (to the right for my non-nautically inclined friends...they grind the lingo into your head here, it's actually kind of fun to use) and eventually got to the point where people, chairs and anything else unsecured started sliding. We got an announcement a few seconds later that there was a man overboard "for exercise purposes only." While difficult to stand, it was pretty cool to watch the ship to a donut and see the little rescue boat lowered to the water, sail around for a bit, and be hoisted back up.

I occasionally run into my extended family "parents" so it's fun to keep up with them and exchange stories. I sat down with Leslie today and she did a quick interview about our Bosnia experience for the official voyage blog. There's a chance a picture might make it also, so be sure to keep an eye on the blog (http://www.semesteratsea.org/voyage-blog/summer-2010/). Tomorrow we have classes again before going through the normal ritual of logistical pre-port and prepare for arrival in Greece. That's all for now, I need to fold some laundry.

Day 27: Farewell Croatia

2010-07-11T13:56:00.000-07:00

After three really busy days in Croatia we decided to take it a little easier today. Most people slept in and I was able to get a little more sleep that normal but used most of the morning to catch up with some reading and papers for classes. We have class tomorrow and the next day before arriving in Greece. In the afternoon a I walked with a few people across Dubrovnik to the Old Town. We split up and some went shopping while others went to the War Photos Museum (any guesses which group I was in?). The museum is pretty well known and has hundreds of photos from various wars in recent history. The large prints were really artistic and it was another one of those powerful experiences that was also a bit of a downer. After the museum we went on a journey to find some legitimate Croatian ties and did find a few but, as much as I love you Po, the equivalent of $300 for a tie is a little steep.

We slowly made our way back to the ship but first stopped at a local market in an attempt to get snacks and finish off the Croatian currency. Back on the ship, we had a beautiful departure. We sailed away slowly as the sun set over the amazing scenery. I think I've mentioned it in every Croatian post but this place is so gorgeous, you have to visit. Our ship horn sounded as we pulled away and a few seconds later the cruise ship we were passing answered in an equally loud tone. Within a few minutes, every boat in the harbor was sounding off, it was really funny to see/hear. After sailing off I hit the gym and now find myself watching the World Cup Finals. I probably won't be able to post this tonight because the entire ship's bandwidth is dedicated to getting us the the game. It's still 0-0, we'll see what happens. That's all for now, this looks like it's going to be a pretty long game.

Day 26: Bosnia

2010-07-11T01:10:00.000-07:00

After deciding on a whim to go to Bosnia, a small group of us walked over to bus station next to the port and purchased the tickets after the day on Korcula. The purchasing process wasn't as bad as I thought it would be; the prices were good and despite the name on my ticket being "Calrck" all turned out well. We arrived in the morning to a very crowded bus. Croatians obviously don't care what seat it says on your ticket. The three hour ride wasn't too bad. There were three border crossings since you have to drive through the Bosnian coastline region to get to inland Croatia so you can pass into inland Bosnia. I know it's confusing, check out a map.

We had a bit of a rough start on arrival to Mostar. This was probably due to the lack of information since the only info I got was googled in the five minutes prior to meeting that morning. After finding a helpful hotel we got a city map and were in much better shape. The different feel of the city/country was very obvious from the time stepping of the bus. As soon as we got off three or four people people came up aggressively begging for money. With map in hand we walked over to the "old town" and (in)famous "old bridge." The bridge isn't that old since it was destroyed in the war 15 years ago but was rebuilt and is still interesting. The views are really neat and many local members of the "Mostar Diving Club" will dive off for a tip. Around the bridge, there were a lot of people in a small space with tons of little shops. Yes, I had to buy the pen made from AK47 shells. There's such a mix of culture that the currently gets really confusing. At one point I payed for something in euros and ended up getting change in Croatian Kuna and the local Bosnian Markas. It was probably funny to see us stand there after each purchase and try to do mental math hoping the change was correct. After eating an awesome lunch of "Cevapcici" (essentially Bosnian/Turkish meatballs) at a place nearby we decided to go "mosquing."

"Mosquing" is a new activity we invented where you visit as many mosques as possible in a given time. They could be found everywhere but we only actually went into two. I've never been in a mosque before and it was really quite a neat experience. Daniel, a religion and psych major, offered some good insight to a lot of the different places inside the mosques. In one of the we paid to climb the minaret and it was worth it. It was probably the most narrow and dangerous staircase I've ever climbed but the view from the top was awesome. After we tired of mosquing, a few of us headed out of the old town to look at some other parts of Mostar. We passed along the Bulevar Revolucjie which was the former front line dividing the Croats and Muslims. Practically all of the buildings are bombed out, heavily damaged, or barely standing. It was quite a powerful and sobering experience. Throughout Mostar (and much of this entire region) there is a lot of war damage. It's not uncommon to see bullet/missile damage in functional buildings and kind of surreal to see a brand new building standing next to a destroyed one. Walking around we also passed many cemeteries and a number of memorials from the war.

After a quick snack we made our way back to the bus terminal. The ride back felt a tad longer but we eventually made it back to Dubrovnik and the ship. This is a really big weekend (a large festival and some political meetings) for Dubrovnik so we battled the crowds last night and saw a few fireworks before calling it a night. Overall it was a really interesting and fun day. I'm glad we decided to venture out and give Bosnia a try. One last day in Croatia; I have a feeling it's going to be a little slower paced than the previous three.

Day 25: Island of Korcula

2010-07-09T14:21:00.000-07:00

I was originally signed up for a trip to the Island of Korcula on our last day in Croatia. After looking at the details of the tips and talking with a few people I decided to try and trade the trip I had with a similar (a few differences) one that occurred today. I was able to find somebody to swap and I think it was probably worth it. We had a very early start and drove about an hour to the town of Trsteno. It's a smaller Croatian village on the coast and home to some botanical gardens. We toured the gardens which were filled with all kinds of different plants and citrus fruits, some more common than others. After leaving Trsteno we stopped in the small (essentially deserted) town of Ston. Ston was home to some lucrative salt mines back in the day. We saw a few puddles where you get salt and had the opportunity to buy a 30kn ($6) bag of salt before walking around the town consisting of a restaurant, market, and post office. We eventually left and arrived at Orebic.

Orebic has a small port that is primarily used for ferries to and from Korcula. We ferried over to Korcula and had a short walking tour of the island. We went thorough a few museums of stolen Venetian "icons" (they are past rivals) and a cool little cathedral. After stopping by the house that Marco Polo was allegedly born in we had lunch at the Hotel Korcula. The entire meal was comprised of seafood and it was really good. I mentioned it in Spain also but I find myself venturing further into eating some of these sea critters I really haven't seen much in the past (no problems yet...). After lunch we had some free time to roam Korcula and some of the shops. I've come across a few really clever Croatian pens but am still trying to find some of the famous Croatian ties. We ferried back to Orebic and boarded the bus for the return trip. There was a stop on the way back to Dubrovnik at a small harbor town with some old defensive walls and a little chapel on top of a hill. I climbed the hill and got some more great pics of Croatian coastline and countryside. It was a long ride back the ship and most of us were pretty tired.

It's interesting to hear the stories of many of the small towns on the ocean because there is so much conflict about the lack of coastline for Bosnia and Montenegro. There is a continuing debate that has the potential to flare in the near future. I forgot to mention it in yesterday's post but it's also interesting walking around Dubrovnik and see so much obvious damage and restoration from the war in the early 90's. Tomorrow a few of us have a small day-trip planned to Mostar, Bosnia. Even though it's only a few hours away it's supposed to be a completely different feel, I'll let you know. That's all for now, I need to get some rest for yet another early start tomorrow.

Day 24: Dubrovnik

2010-07-09T13:46:00.000-07:00

Since we had actually ported the previous evening, we had a pretty early start with the Diplomatic Briefing. As usual, the consulate went over some political issues and took questions. Working as a diplomat would be a very interesting job. During the presentation, he got three or four calls, all ignored, from the Croatian Ministry of Justice and brushed them off because it was probably "just some American getting arrested again."

After the ship was cleared I went out with a couple of others to walk around Old Town Dubrovnik for a little while. As far as things to do here, it's all pretty much centered in that area which is good few miles from our port. Thankfully the bus system is really easy and pretty cheap. We walked around for a bit and got a quick lunch of Croatian pizza. It's supposed to be pretty good and was since there's a lot of Italian influence here. I then made the trek back to the ship to meet for my city orientation that was scheduled in the afternoon.

The orientation started off by bus up to a really neat spot with a panoramic view of Dubrovnik. The entire area is extremely picturesque and beautiful. The hills are green and spotted with white houses all with red roofs. The islands and deep blue shades of the ocean are really incredible, I can't wait to share some pics. The tour continued on foot down in the old town. We hit a number of small museums and five of the 37 churches within the famous city walls. There's really nothing spectacular about the museums and churches we visited but they were all pretty quaint and and a unique touch to them. My tour ended with some free time so I met with Daniel, Kyle and Danielle to walk the city walls. The city walls surround the old town and were used as a defensive barrier back in the 17th Century. I had to keep true to my duties as a Crane and made the climb to the tallest point (dragging the others along with me). It was definitely worth it; the views were absolutely spectacular. It was a pretty intense walk but a lot of fun.

After the City Walls we went for dinner at a place recommended by the inter-port student. Croatia is known for seafood and meat so I decided for the latter. I figured there was enough Hungarian influence around to merit getting the beef goulash. It was quite good. We walked around the city a bit more before making the journey back to the ship.

So far, I've found Croatia to be a really tourist-friendly country. It probably helps that tourism is really the only industry in Dubrovnik so everybody speaks English and is helpful. It's a very "clean" atmosphere compared to some of the areas in Spain or Italy. I'm looking forward to seeing more, stay tuned.

Day 23: Croatia Pre-Port

2010-07-07T13:52:00.000-07:00

Today was the second day of class in a two day "week." I had an Infectious Disease test today and it went went well as I expected. I was pretty pleased with the results of my Abnormal exam we took before Spain that was handed back today and we got word that the Global Studies midterm was "reviewed by a student-faculty advisory group" and it was decided that the grades will be significantly curved up. Good news.

Other than that today was pretty relaxed. At the beginning of the voyage it was recommended that everybody try to fit in a nap every afternoon at sea to better adjust to some of the strange schedules and weird time issues that are typically dealt with on a voyage like this. I'm not complaining too much; it's nice to have an hour or so set every afternoon for nap-time. I've been pretty successful at accomplishing this so far.

We're set to arrive in Croatia a bit early. We should actually be porting within a few hours (by midnight this time). I went to a talk by our Croatian inter-port student this evening which was really helpful. We had our usual logistical pre-port as well. Despite the occasional land mine leftover from the 90's (a pretty rough time for this part of the world) Dubrovnik looks to be a pretty safe and neat city. We have a diplomatic briefing from the US Embassy in Zagreb tomorrow morning and after the ship clears I'll probably head off to check out the town for a few hours. In the afternoon I'm signed up for a city orientation including a bunch of churches and museums. In the evening I'll hopefully meet up with a few people to do the walk around the famous city walls. On Friday the plan is to check out some of the local islands and explore the old harbor district of Dubrovnik a little more. On Saturday we're going to try to do a little day trip to Mostar, the capitol of Bosnia, to check that out. Under normal circumstances we're not allowed to leave the country we're currently ported in. Croatia is the one exception where we can travel to Bosnia and Montenegro so it makes sense to take advantage of that. Saturday I'm signed up for an all day excursion to the Island of Korcula before departing in the evening.

Global Studies this morning focused on recent Croatian history which is a really interesting topic. I think I say the same thing for every port but I'm really looking forward to our next few days here. That's all for now, I'm off to watch us come into port.

Day 22: Global Studies Midterm

2010-07-06T12:52:00.000-07:00

It's tough going back for two days of class after 13 days of travel but I guess that's how Semester at Sea works. For the most part I really am enjoying the classes. I've mentioned it before but it's such a unique setting here with a "floating university." I like the professor for Infectious Diseases a lot but the class isn't quite what I thought it would be. There's some really interesting info but it is a lower division so it's presented at a fairly basic level and wasn't really designed for bio majors (even though I'm not alone). On the other hand it's nice to have a pretty stress-free class. The class I'm probably enjoying the most so far is Abnormal Psych. She moves really fast but presents some interesting ideas about global mental health that augment the curriculum in the text. There's a lot of opportunity to explore some different topics in papers and much of what we're going over is really interesting to apply to many of the experiences I've had over the past few years in the hospital working around psych patents in the ER.

Global studies is going well, the professor has a great sense of humor. Since the class is designed around the voyage it's very eclectic and hard to find concrete study material. We had our first midterm this evening and it was a little more difficult than everybody was expecting. Since there are 750 students in the class it's all multiple choice and very detail oriented. With the exception of a few questions that were pretty far out I think I did well.

During the Global Studies class time this morning we had Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (a Democrat from CA) speak as an inter-port lecturer. I have a lot of respect for her position but was not at all impressed by the topic and delivery of her talk today. I don't have time to go into detail but Americans are often seen abroad as being arrogant, self-centered, etc and it doesn't help when our nation's leadership presents themselves and our policy in this manner. It was interesting to hear her perspectives I can't help being a little disappointed.

It's exciting and weird to already have to think about Croatia. I think this might be the first country to put me a little further out of the comfort zone as far as language, previous travel, currency, etc goes. I've heard it's beautiful and am really excited for arrival the day after tomorrow. I have a few things planned but will save those for tomorrow's post. That's all for now, it's about time for the ever necessary late-night snack.

Day 21: EasyJet and Neapolitan Pizza

2010-07-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

We departed Venice early to catch our flight back to Naples. I was a little concerned because our airline was "EasyJet," a European budget airline that doesn't have the greatest track record for customer service. I heard a few horror stories from SASers about delays and cancellations and at the airport there was a large group of people with giant signs proclaiming "never fly easyJet!" Our flight was only delayed an hour and we landed safely so I guess that's what really matters. It's open seating and three of us were able to fight our way into the exit row with some nice leg room. Daniel got crammed next to a screaming baby but he's a good sport. After eventually decoding the Naples bus system we got back to the ship around noon.

As a final farewell to Naples, a few of us headed out to get a final Italian pizza and gelato. The famous "pizza margarita" was actually invented in Naples and I wanted to try to get to the place it was first served but it was a little too far of a walk. We stumbled upon a local place filled with Italians where nobody spoke English so it was probably a good non-tourist representation of food. I'll miss the Italian pizza and gelato but I'm sure there's much more adventurous food on the way.

We arrived back to the ship before the required "on ship" time (always a good thing) and spent the rest of the day recovering from the previous long days of travel. There was an all ship BBQ for the 4th of July and Canada Day (apparently it's July 1st, you get the celebrate that when your Global Studies professor is from Winnipeg). The food was really good and probably an incentive to get everybody out on deck for a picture. The evening was spent bidding farewell to Italy and studying for a Global Studies midterm.

Day 20: Venice

2010-07-05T14:06:00.000-07:00

The goal was to do Venice for under $200. This was accomplished and it catalyzed a lot of great stories along the way. The most practical transit from Naples to Venice was an overnight train. Upon embarking the train we made the discovery that the air conditioning wasn't working/didn't exist. It was very hot and very humid. Luckily this improved a bit with an open window when the train was moving. The four seats I previously booked were in a compartment of six. We were kind of hoping that the other two wouldn't be occupied and for the first few hours this was the case. I took as many Benadryl as was probably safe and settled in for the ride. Despite the four of us essentially sleeping on top of each other, it wasn't that horrible. I was able to get an hour or so at a time but people coming in and out between random stops for the two remaining seats got a little unpleasant. We tried to have at least one us awake at all times for security issues but our fellow riders weren't as sketchy as I expected and most were pretty friendly. We eventually arrived about 5:30am and took a bus into town. This whole overnight train deal was one of those experiences I'm definitely glad I did (it's pretty funny looking back, I would love to get a picture of us sprawled out among each other and the disgusting train compartment) but will probably try to avoid in the future.

Venice is such a unique city, I glad I got a chance to see it again. We arrived in town about 6:00am and it was essentially dead. All my previous images of Venice have been filled with people and activity so it was a little weird walking around the empty corridors and seeing only a handful of boats out. We dropped off our bags at hotel (another stellar deal) walked to St. Mark's Square and the surrounding area while it was still early. We stopped in a neat little cafe to get a breakfast of croissants and coffee before finding gondolier willing to take four cheap college kids. We talked down the price a bit and did the necessary ride throughout the Grand Canal and some smaller back canals. After this we walked around the Rialto Bridge and the girls did some shopping in the nearby shops while Daniel and I took pictures of other strange looking tourists. After lunch we did the inside of St. Marks (love the gold mosaics) and took another good long walk.

We then checked into the hotel for a much needed nap before heading out to dinner. After dinner a pretty strong thunderstorm hit which forced us to stay close to hotel. We did, however, brave the rain for some gelato before turning in. We got a pretty amazing deal with the hotel. I don't know how it happened but it was right in town (next to St. Mark's) and we actually had four separate beds in a relatively decent sized room for under $100. Now the beds weren't the most comfortable but they beat the train seats. We turned in a bit early because the next morning required a 4:30am start to catch our plane. That's all for now, I have a midterm tomorrow and should probably study a bit.

Day 19: Naples

2010-07-05T13:01:00.000-07:00

We were given a quote from a mysterious German author that sums up the time in Naples: "Naples is paradise, Neapolitans are devils." Naples is an interesting city. It's not the cleanest nor the safest but has some interesting sites. I spent most of the day on a full length city orientation that included a tour of the famous Teatro San Carlo as part of an FDP for the musical theatre class (I'm not in the class but tagged along). We started off with a walking tour of the "downtown" region of Naples including a large public square built by Napoleon that is bordered by the Royal Palace. There are a bunch of neat little cafes around and we got a chance to stop in for some good Neapolitan coffee/espresso/cappuccino/whatever they call it.

After this we had our tour the the opera house. The Teatro San Carlo is absolutely magnificent. It is the largest and oldest opera house in Europe and seats over 2000 people in the unique "horseshoe" style auditorium. The theatre was recently renovated and was really neat to be around a place where so much musical history has been made.

Following the San Carlo we boarded a bus for the "panoramic" portion of the orientation. There were some great views of the semicircular Bay of Naples and on the way down we made a gelato stop near the beach. After returning to the center of town we continued the walking tour by visiting a few of the better known churches, the gothic Cathedral of Santa Chiara and renaissance Gesu Nuovo Church. After this we made our way back to the ship.

I had a few minutes to shower and recover before grabbing a quick dinner. After rounding up Daniel, Lacey, and Heather we made the sketchy walk to the Naples train station and embarked on our 9.5 hour overnight train adventure. I have to run for now but there's much more to come...

Day 18: Rome

2010-07-02T13:28:00.000-07:00

I was signed up for the "Rome on your own" excursion today which basically offered transportation and a map. A few of us who were by ourselves formed a group of 3 guys and 1 girl to successfully reverse the gender SAS demographic. It was a good group to be in, we moved quick and saw a lot.

The bus dropped us off in front of St. Peter's Square. We took a short walk over to the Castel San Angelo, a good photo-op, and continued across a bridge over the Tiber. We walked down to Piazza Navona (fountains and people selling art) before checking out the Pantheon. I forgot how large the dome is and that it's always open; it would be interesting to visit in the rain. After leaving, the first gelato of the day was consumed and we made the trek to Piazza Veneiza and the Emmanuel Monument. A little while later we found ourselves outside the Colosseum and, because a few people had never done it before, decided to go into the Forum. There's a reason most guide books say to avoid the Forum midday. It was hot and it was sunny, but with much sunscreen and water we did fine. After spending a few hours in the Forum, we got completely lost on our way to the Bocca Bella Verita (the mouth of truth...if you're a lier the giant face will bite your hand off. You'll be happy to know I'm apparently a truthful person). We walked back up to the area around the Pantheon to grab a quick bite to eat and take a small break in the shade. It was nearing our meet-up time so we went back across the river to the street leading to the Vatican, consumed more gelato, and boarded the bus back to the ship.

Despite having seem most of the sites before it was a really good day. We accomplished quite a bit in a short amount of time. It was also good to just get that "Rome" feel of tons of people and dodging traffic every-which way. Tomorrow we'll arrive in Naples and I have an orientation of the city followed by a tour of the Teatro San Carlo. I'm looking forward to seeing the infamous town allegedly run by the mafia. Tomorrow evening four of us will board a train for a little overnight excursion to Venice. The computer probably won't come along so I'll update when we get back.

We just got back from a lifeboat drill. I guess they are done every few weeks and every attempt is made to pick the most inconvenient times. They make a rather big deal about dressing warmly so everybody comes out with sweatshirt, etc and since the cooking excursions had unlimited wine this afternoon we had all sorts of fun with people passing out. Ah, the fun times at sea. That's all for now, I need to think about packing and some Italian healthcare policy.

Day 17: A Hike in Vulci

2010-07-01T12:42:00.000-07:00

I went down the field office this morning to see if anybody had donated a ticket for an excursion they weren't attending. As I'd mentioned before I was kind of hoping to snag one to Orvieto (there's some neat underground fresco things) but, alas, there was no Orvieto to be found. There was, however, a single ticket to go "Trekking the Vulci Archaeological Nature Park" that was departing as I was standing there, so I grabbed the ticket and jumped on the bus. $100 trip for free, not bad.

Vulci is basically the remains of a once important Etruscan city. It's about an hour away from Civitavecchia by bus and surrounded by some beautiful Tuscan-like landscape. As our guide put it, you really can't tell your in Tuscany until somebody tells you; most of the surrounding areas look just was nice. The hike among the ruins was very interesting and extremely hot. I hate to start sounding like my uncle, but after a few days of these Etruscan/Roman archaeological visits all of the little piles of square rocks are starting to look the same. The long and sunny walk ended at a nice little lake area with a bunch of locals swimming and fishing. We had lunch at a nearby restaurant (great, hardy Italian food once again) and made the trek over to the medieval Castle of the Badia which had some great views and a small museum of miscellaneous Etruscan objects. On the drive home we made a quick gelato stop in a small little beach town. It was the guide's favorite gelato place and definitely the best I've had on this trip so far. It was a really exhausting day. We got back around five and I passed out until eight.

The actual excursion was good but what made it really fun was the guide and group dynamic. The guide was an incredibly intelligent and friendly guy who referred to himself as "el diablo." He spoke amazing English (one of 4 or 5 languages) and loved learning more. At every spare moment he'd be talking about a book he just read, asking people the difference between things like "steer and ox" or "crow and raven," and throwing out vocabulary that even stumped our trip leader, the ship librarian. He had some great stories and was one of the better guides I've ever had. I'm starting to recognize a lot of the faces on trips the past few days because most of the others who are doing some of the more obscure excursions are in the same situation as me (been to Rome recently and not excited to battle the crowds again). Tomorrow I will be heading to Rome with a group so we'll see how much comes back. Tomorrow night we make the sail to Naples. That's all for now, I need to figure out something to do tonight since I slept half the evening away.

Day 16: Repubblica Del Ragazzi

2010-06-30T14:13:00.000-07:00

I originally got signed up for the Repubblica Del Ragazzi visit because it was an alternate. After spending a few hours there today, I'm really glad I went. The facility is an orphanage/transition home for kids ages 6-17. There are currently 32 residents an most are the result of unstable or nonexistent families. We had a tour of the facility (it's quite pretty being right on the coast) and got a chance to interact with a few of the residents. It was a little difficult because they didn't speak English but we were able to make it work. Many of them have pretty significant psychological problems and I was able to talk with two of the administrators/psychologists (both spoke English thankfully) and they provided lot of great info that will come in handy for an Abnormal Psych Field Report. As a thank you, SAS provided a pretty significant donation to the home.

This afternoon proved to be an adventure of a different kind. I've been attempting to buy the train tickets for our trip to Venice in a few days but was running into trouble online. Today I walked down to the Civitavecchia Train Station and attempted to buy tickets from Naples to Venice for later this week. I was really hoping somebody spoke English but that wasn't the case. Somehow through very rudimentary Italian and hand motions I was actually able to get the tickets. I know it's not that great of a story but you have no idea how proud of myself I was.

I don't have anything officially planned for tomorrow. There's a day trip to Orvieto (halfway between Rome and Florence) and if somebody doesn't show up I'll be able to hop on for free. Hopefully that will work out. That's all for now, I'm enjoying the quiet of a nearly empty ship.

Day 15: Civitavecchia

2010-06-29T11:07:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note: "Day 12: Toledo" does exist, it just didn't get posted for some reason. It should be available now.

Sometime in the night we arrived in Civitavecchia, also known as the Port of Rome. Rome is actually about an hour away by train or bus, but Civ is the closest major port and cruise terminal. Since it's a holiday here (some Saint's day) the Embassy didn't feel like coming out and giving a Diplomatic Briefing so we went off the info provided in our logistical pre-port last night. This is a unique port because most of the action is in Rome and there's not constant transportation. In addition, most people want to see as much of Italy as possible so there's a lot of optional travel around the country occurring. To make things even more complicated the ship will sail to Naples in a few days to change ports (and create a customs nightmare for the staff). I'm keeping it pretty low-key (and hopefully inexpensive) since I did the major sites in Italy two years ago.

For that reason I tried to find the most obscure trips to take and started off this morning with a tour of the Taurine Baths and a Civitavecchia walking tour. It was a great tour; I can honestly not think of a better way to enter Italy. Instead of battling the sweat and crowds of Rome, I was in a group of about 25 that visited the ruins of the Roman Taurine Baths just outside of town here in Civ. It is a very small operation and I think we were the only tour that day. The Baths were typical ruins and neat to look but the guides and people were incredibly friendly. After walking around for a while, they set up a tent and had samples of all kinds of typical Italian drinks and different foods. It was really relaxing to sit around, sample, and chat for a few hours with a nice ocean breeze.

We later took a bus back into Civ for a walking tour. The town is small and gets a lot of criticism for there being "nothing to do," but I really like its overall feel (it's also one of the safest cities in Italy). It's so much less touristy and does have some interesting sites like buildings designed by Michelangelo and a cool little (free) museum of Etruscan artifacts. We had a great and hardy Italian lunch (most people thought the antipasto was the actual meal...they were a little surprised three courses later) and we let free to roam. Since most of the people I typically hang out with are off on longer Italy trips I was proud of myself and actually socialized with other people and found a good group to get lost in Civ with. We walked for a few hours, got the necessary gelato, and made the trek back to the ship.

Tomorrow I'm scheduled for a service visit of a youth transition home outside of Rome. It should be an interesting experience, I'll let you know how that goes. Thursday I'm hoping somebody cancels a trip to Orvieto so I can pick up a free ticket and tag along. If that doesn't work out I'll probably find some people to explore Rome with. Friday I'll also be in Rome with a group and Saturday the ship will arrive in Naples. I have a tour of the city and the Teatro San Carlo (famous opera house) lined up there. We're still fleshing out details on the Venice excursion but that should happen Sunday and Monday. That's all I have for now, I definitely could use some rest.

Day 14: Italy Day

2010-06-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

The day at sea between Spain and Italy is known as "Italy Day" because Italy is all we talk about. There are no classes but a bunch of sessions on all things Italian: history, culture, tourist stuff, etc. They even serve Italian food which isn't real popular because nobody wants fake Italian food when we get to have the real stuff the next day.

I got up early and hit the gym before attending a mandatory session on "intercultural misunderstandings." It was basically a presentation of how ignorant and pompous Americans are. They might have well just had us look around the room for a few minutes and it would have been equally effective. The next one was a session on Italian folk music. It was pretty interesting how much difference there is between Northern and Southern Italy. Finally I went to a session by an inter-port Italian student with some general info about the culture, lifestyle, where to eat, best gelato, and so on. Overall there was some good information.

The rest of the day I was starting to contemplate some of the papers for FDPs I'll have to produce as well as an upcoming Global Studies midterm that most people are pretending doesn't exist because life is happier that way. I guess I'll allow a little homework between ports. I'm also working with a few others to figure out the logistics for an independent trip to Venice. We have some inside info and are hopefully able to snag a pretty good deal. Even though I was there two years ago it was one of my highlights and would love to do it again. That's all for now, we're off to Civitavecchia, the Port of Rome.

Day 13: Barcelona and Healthcare Policy

2010-06-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

The last morning in Barcelona didn't offer too much time but we made the best of it. While many people had most of the day, I had two FDPs (Faculty Directed Practica) to attend in the afternoon so I had to be back on board the ship by noon. In the morning we decided to take the Metro back Sagrada Familia to tour the inside. The interior is slated to be finished within a few months and it's really looking nice. It is very unlike any other cathedral I've seen and has a distinctly modern touch. It's probably because it's new, but the stained glass was incredibly vibrant and lit up the whole place. The construction of the building is solely funded by tourist entrance fees, and it was well worth it to contribute. There is also a mini Gaudi museum downstairs and it was interesting seeing some of his actual drawings. After departing we grabbed a quick lunch, picked up some pens, and made the way back to the ship.

My first FDP was a lecture by a public health official from the Spanish Government. He had some really interesting information on how infectious disease is handled and some of the protocol in Spain/Europe versus the US. The H1N1 situation last year really injured the image of many public health agencies and this effect is especially bad in Europe. It's also interesting to see how the universal healthcare system present in many European countries arguably makes them more prepared to successfully handle a major pandemic if it should occur. Let me know if you want more details, we'll chat.

The second FDP was a presentation and discussion about the mental health response in a humanitarian crisis by a representative from Doctors Without Borders. There were a lot of really powerful stories and pictures. Some of the policy relating to global mental health was also good to hear.

We departed later in the evening to calm Mediterranean waters. I officially declare Barcelona a success. I believe there were about 60 incidents in total (theft, assault, drugs, medical, etc) which is about average for the first port. Luckily I wasn't (a) drunk or (b) stupid so we didn't really run into any problems. Spain was great...on to Italy!

Day 12: Toledo

2010-06-27T23:25:00.000-07:00

Toledo has a very different feel than the other large Spanish cities we visited. Part of it may be that it's not that physically large, but it does have a lot of rich history. There's a whole bunch of detail I could probably go into but we'll just say it is a former capitol and has influences from many different religions. We departed the hotel in Madrid for a 70km drive through the Spanish countryside. It reminded me a little bit of Tuscany but was distinctly different (good in its own way). Toledo was founded by the Romans and many of the structures are still standing including one of the major bridges we drove over. I actually felt more confident driving over a 2000 year old Roman bridge than one made 20 years ago in the US. It's something about the whole Roman thing.

We were told that the view from an adjacent mountain was one of the three best in Europe. I haven't been around much, but I'd probably believe it. There was a gorgeous panoramic view of the city and the eclectic mix of older architecture. From here we started the actual city walking tour. The cathedral is very nice and in it we discovered yet another shrine to Greco. Outside in the a city square we ran into an interesting protest. Apparently it's Pride Week in Spain. The rally we walked into was pretty mild but I heard from people back in Barcelona there some rather interesting tactics, such as the lack of clothing, used to gather attention. Anyways, I really enjoyed walking around the small streets, dodging rouge taxis, and looking into all the different stores. We visited a local synagog that actually used to be a mosque. Like I said, there were many different religious influences and they tended to reuse buildings. Next door was a very peaceful monastery which was also nice to walk around a bit. I think the reason I liked Toledo was the "older" feeling and even though there probably was, it seemed like there wasn't as much tourist stuff going on.

Lunch was served at a really nice restaurant inside a local hotel. Although it didn't apply to me, they were a bit more understanding of the two vegetarians in our group. The previous day our waiter decided to create a rather dramatic scene by yelling at our group for making him throw together two extra salads. The Toldeo lunch included about half a chicken for each person. I'm actually not exaggerating this; there was more chicken on my plate than I've ever seen before. It was good but the group could have probably done with about a third the amount. After lunch was the drive back the the Madrid airport and our flight back to Barcelona. Apparently the Madrid-Barcelona route is known to have some turbulence and we were really bouncing around up there. I've decided this is not a good voyage for anybody with motion sickness issues.

After arriving in Barcelona we battled the crowds and finally got to dinner. I say "finally" in an American sense, we actually arrived about 10:30pm, right on time for our Spaniard friends. The meat paella didn't disappoint and we took a nice little evening walk around Barcelona before calling it a night.

Day 11: Madrid

2010-06-27T11:43:00.000-07:00

Daniel, Lacey and I had an early morning start for our trip to Madrid. We were supposed to take the high speed train (which I was actually looking forward to) but there was a last minute strike so we somehow managed to get plane tickets that morning for the 25 people going. The 40 minute flight went well and, in typical European fashion, was delayed. On arrival we were picked up by our guide and bus before immediately starting a city tour. I'll be honest; I don't think anybody was overly impressed by the guide. She had a lot of great information but the delivery style wasn't very effective. Besides this, all went pretty well. The first stop was the famous Prado Museum. We got a guided tour and spent a good amount of time looking around. It's filled with the work of Spaniards and has a lot of space devoted to Greco, Valasquez, and Goya. We went to a "typical Spanish restaurant" for lunch near a plaza with a cool Neptune statue. The food was good, and it was all fish (not really a bad thing but seems to be a common theme for Spain). I wish I remembered the name of the tapas but it was essentially pureed fish stuffed inside peppers. After lunch, there was still plenty to see.

Madrid is filled with really interesting plazas, each with some sort of statue or fountain in the center. We drove through a number of the well known plazas and one thing I noticed in Madrid as well as Barcelona is the lack of corners at intersections. We were told it's to conserve space and it does make for an interesting variation in traffic flow. We passed through the Modern District including the Picasso Tower and some really interesting buildings surrounding Castillo Square. The main soccer (futbol) stadium in Madrid is enormous; it rivals many major US stadiums. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to walk inside due to preparations of the screening of the big Spain match that evening (more on that later). We continued to the Arena for a photo-op. Bullfighting still happens on a weekly basis in Madrid but, as I mentioned earlier, it's quickly dying. The Gran Via was buzzing with activity as it contains some of the major buildings and stores. A stop was also made at the Royal Palace and the adjacent cathedral before proceeding to Sol, the city center of Madrid. The "old Madrid" section of town has a distinctly Spanish look to it and as we were driving through there were already preparations for the big game later that evening.

After arriving and settling into the hotel we didn't waste anytime before heading out into the city. The bus ride was nice but I wanted to get a better feel of everything by walking around a bit. We walked down to the Gran Via for a little while and back to the hotel to meet up with some other SASers. One girl who has family in Spain and is fluent in Spanish organized a group to take the Metro (underground) to Sol (the geographic and cultural center of Madrid) to watch the game in a restaurant/bar. I was expecting the whole atmosphere of the city to be really insane. It wasn't quite as bad as it could have been but was still pretty wild. We were in a minority not dressed in Spain jerseys and when Spain scored you could hear cheering down the whole street. We had a lot of fun, it was a pretty cool cultural experience. After the game we made the trek back to the hotel to watch a Tonight Show episode from the 90s on the only English channel and get some much needed rest.

Day 10: Barcelona

2010-06-27T10:17:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the delay. I was hoping to catch up in Madrid but we weren't able to get internet. The morning we sailed into Barcelona a few of us got up early to see the sunrise and distant land. It was well worth it; there are few things that beat the beauty of a sunrise at sea and the far off view of land. About an hour after the sunrise, the port authorities from Barcelona pulled up next to our ship and a "port guide" jumped over from their small boat onto ours. His purpose was to assist in piloting the ship into the rather large port. We eventually ported successfully and were met by Spanish customs and diplomats. There was a "diplomatic briefing" about some current events and concerns in Spain before the ship was cleared and we were free to go.

I had a few hours before the start of the "City Orientation" I was signed up for and met with a few others to go out and explore a bit. There's a 24 hour shuttle from the ship to the Placa de Colom near the base of town, it's very helpful. For a while we looked around "La Rambla," the major tourist street that was extremely busy. We stumbled upon a restaurant and got some tapas, croquettes in my case. They were pretty good, but I had much better later on. After that, Lacey (CLU) and Heather (from Cal Baptist), who were also going on the orientation, made our way back to the ship to meet the tour.

Barcelona is a very interesting city. It's the Catalonian region of Spain which has historically been very independent from the rest of the nation. This is evident in the use of the Catalonian language instead of Spanish the majority of the time. Despite this, Spanish and English are still common. The orientation started off by driving up Monjuic, home of the '92 Olympic Stadium and the National Palace. We saw these and got a great panoramic view of the city. From here we proceeded down to a popular tourist site known as the "Spanish Village." It's basically a large patch of land divided into the different regions of Spain with little bits of architecture and culture from each. The tour continued by passing the Arena which was previously home to bullfights. In recent years many Spanish regions have outlawed bullfights and there is a large movement to eradicate them altogether. Some more conservative areas still perform them weekly. We drove through the Modern District and saw some really great impressive buildings. During the time of their construction it was the law that they be designed to look "beautiful." We saw some famous Gaudi houses and while we didn't get a chance to go into any, the exterior views are amazing.

The highlight of the day (and probably Barcelona) was Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, a cathedral that began construction in the late 1800s and is not expected to be finished until around 2030. The eclectic design is absolutely incredible as it is one of the most unique pieces of architecture in the world. We then took a small break at a cool little chocolate shop. I got an interesting iced coffee drink and had to try the fresh churros dipped in chocolate. Approval granted. St. James Square was the next stop followed by the Barcelona Cathedral. The latter stops were in Barri Gothic which sported a good collection of Gothic architecture (big surprise) and was probably one of my favorite areas in the city.

After returning to the ship for a little while, a group of us headed out to find dinner. We went to a place that was recommend by an inter-port lecturer and it did not disappoint. While I'm usually not overly experimental when it comes to seafood, I had to the Seafood Paella and was amazing. I also tried out a bit of a friend's Octopus and some other tapas. It was one of the better meals I've had. After dinner we set out for quite a walk; we had a late Flamenco Show reserved and I wanted to see a few other sights like the Arc de Triomf and famous Modern Palau de Musica Catalana (didn't get to see a concert, maybe a future trip). Even though it was a bit touristy, The Flamenco was pretty neat. It's amazing how athletic (aka spastic feet) some of the dancers are. They go on and on and aren't even out of breath at the end. After the show we made are way back to the ship to conclude a very long yet productive and fun first day in Spain.

Day 9: Pre-Port and Cartwheels

2010-06-23T14:11:00.000-07:00

As I write I'm sitting on one of the outer decks watching Daniel (former fellow RA from CLU) and a few others attempt cartwheels. I realize that anybody reading this probably could care less but the image is so entertaining I have to share. Just imagine me attempting to complete a cartwheel and I think you'll get an idea of what this is like. This whole situation is a prime example of the madness that 9 days at sea can instill in people. I've said it in the last few posts, but I can't wait to get on land.

We had our official "logistical pre-port" session tonight. It was pretty long and literally filled with a hundred questions (yet there always seems to be more). We will dock at 8:00am, go through customs, attend a diplomatic session, and hopefully be able to get off the ship by 10:00am. I spent most of today researching sites in Barcelona and actually had lunch with a professor of Spanish culture and history (knighted by the Spanish king) at UVA who is one of our inter-port lecturers. We got a lot of good advice and tips. It will be especially interesting to be in Madrid on Friday night when Spain has a World Cup match.

The Abnormal test I had to day went well, it was about what I was expecting. It's pretty obvious that profs and students alike are anxious for tomorrow. Given all the upcoming ports and activities, I have a feeling that the next few weeks are going to fly by. I'll try to update as possible and hopefully get some pictures up with land-based internet. There's a group of us tomorrow morning that are waking up early (no more 23 hour days for a while!) to see the sunrise and watch the process of being guided into port. That's all for now, the adventures are just beginning.

Day 8: Gibraltar

2010-06-22T15:05:00.000-07:00

Land! We're not walking on it yet but at least it's in sight. This afternoon we sailed through the busy passage of water separating Africa and Europe that leads into the Mediterranean. I knew it would happen sometime in the afternoon but had a precious (and very difficult to get) time slot at the gym around the expected arrival time. So I proceeded to work out with ears open and the the camera ready to go. Sure enough the announcement came and I was able to run off to check out the sights. It was pretty overcast and hideously windy so the visibility wasn't great but you could see the two continents as we passed through the 8 mile wide straight. Even with some of the fog, the famous Rock of Gibraltar was clear as we sailed by. We're currently in the Mediterranean a few miles off the Spanish coastline and slated to arrive in Barcelona tomorrow night.

We had some really good pre-port sessions tonight including a talk by a Spanish college student and some safety tips by a ex-LAPD detective who works for UVA and has been around the world a few times. Both had some interesting and helpful information. Tomorrow is actually the last day of class for almost two weeks. There's obviously no class in port and the one travel day to Italy is a "study day." It's going to be pretty tough to focus again after we leave Naples.

That's all for now, I have an exam in Abnormal Psych tomorrow so I should probably put in some study time.

Day 7: Extended Family

2010-06-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Today again proved to be another pretty typical day. The ocean in the morning was very smooth, it had a nice glassy touch to it. This evening has been another story. There's a storm behind us so the winds have picked up considerably and we're staring to rock & roll again (thankfully just rock for now). Tomorrow or tomorrow night we should be entering the Straight of Gibraltar so we'll be very close to land and doing a semi-circle around Spain until reaching Barcelona.

I signed up for an "extended family" program that pairs a few undergrads with life-long learners or faculty to create a social group you can occasionally meet with and get to know. We had our first dinner together tonight and I met my "parents," Jim and Lesley. They are from Irvine and he is a professor of comparative politics while she is the communications coordinator for the voyage (the one writing the voyage blog). They're really friendly, great people and a valuable resource as they've sailed before both as faculty/staff and as parents. There's also a few other students who are my "siblings" and I'm looking forward to meeting with them for a little debrief after each of the ports.

We got the list of confirmed side trips today and since it's kind of long I'll post it in chunks starting with Barcelona:

On arrival Thursday, June 24 I'm doing a city tour/orientation of Barcelona. A few of the other Cal Lu people were going to try to find a cheap Flamenco that evening to go see. June 25 and 26 I'll be doing a trip to Madrid and Toledo. On Sunday the 27th we'll have the morning to check out Barcelona some more and I have two seminars for classes that evening, one on infectious disease and the other by Doctors Without Borders. It's shaping up to be a pretty good time. I'll post the other cities as we get closer but if you really must know I can email a tentative itinerary for each port.

That's all for now, we have another full day at sea tomorrow.

Day 6: Happy Fathers Day!

2010-06-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

Besides celebrating fathers on and off the ship, today was a pretty typical day. We had our first "map exam" in Global Studies. Essentially it was a blank map of the Mediterranean and we had to fill in the major cities and seas. It went pretty well, nothing too challenging. Other tests are fast approaching. While the ship appears to be moving pretty slow the classes go at warp speed.

There have been numerous dolphin and whale sightings the past few days as we are now passing through some of the warmer more shallow waters found along the mid-oceanic ridge of the Atlantic. I actually had a brief whale sighting this afternoon and saw three or four puffs of white water/air in the distance indicating more whales. It was pretty quick for pictures but cool nonetheless. I also came to the realization today that potatoes are served at every single meal here. Breakfast, lunch and dinner...there's always some variation of roasted potatoes. The food is good but I'm starting to get a bit tired of our starchy friends.

Since there wasn't anything else really exciting today I'll leave you with some of the demographics of our voyage that we got a few days ago.

Undergraduate Students—708
Undergraduate Female Students—531 (75%)
Graduate Students—28
Graduate Female Students—92%

Day 5: Bridge Tour

2010-06-19T15:19:00.000-07:00

On the first day we were told that dates and days of the week don't really matter since we'll completely forget them by the third or fourth day at sea. While I didn't think this would be the case at the time, it's true. Even though it's Saturday (I had to look it up), we had class because every day at sea is a class day. For that reason, days at sea are numbered C1, C2, C3, etc. It's a little weird having class on weekends but since there's no real week-like structure I guess it really doesn't matter that much. All the classes went well today, I'm still enjoying the unique yet really informative professors.

A few of us sighed up for a tour of the bridge this afternoon, it was quite cool. The 2nd Officer showed us around and pointed out what all the equipment does. All of the navigation stuff (GPS and paper) is really interesting. I got a picture in the captain's seat, it was rather entertaining. We're told that the most important item on the bridge was not the compass, radar, radios, etc but the pot of coffee brewing toward the back. Nice to know the folks at the controls require caffeine to keep us on course.

The Academic Dean for the voyage is a circus historian/scholar and brought one of his friends, a world renown professional clown, on the voyage to preform. He did a show tonight with a Q&A afterward. It was a good show (his specialty is shooting water from his mouth) and I never knew you could actually make a successful living as a clown, but apparently it's possible. That's all for now, tonight is one of the few without a time change so I think I'll take advantage of all the sleep I can get.

Day 4: At Sea

2010-06-18T17:11:00.000-07:00

Today was what can likely be described as an "average" day on the ship. It started early with Infectious Disease (still a bit on the basic side), continued with Global Studies (is the Mediterranean considered a unified body or a collection of numerous cultures?), and the academic part of my day was finished by noon with Abnormal Psych. Classes move very fast since there are only about 20 meetings with some field components. Getting up early is tough (especially with the time changing almost every night) but it's nice to be done early. Signing up for a spot at the gym takes quite a a process since there's so little room and high demand. I had a treadmill this afternoon for a half hour and it proved to be quite the balance exercise. Many of you know my balance follies just standing on land, let alone the difficulties of a treadmill. Today I got to experience running in place in a small room filled with mirrors while rocking back and forth. When I wasn't flailing for the arm rail it was actually quite fun.

I had the opportunity to have breakfast today with one of the life-long learners who sailed on a previous voyage as a Physician Assistant. He was a lot of fun to talk to and had some great stories from his time on board with the medical team during the infamous Spring 05 voyage. If you're curious, google "semester at sea storm stories." Or don't until I get back, it's understandable. There was a really great seminar this evening on the food of Spain including the proper eating schedule, what to definitely get and what to avoid. It looks like there should be some pretty great meals to look forward to.

It's odd how we've only been here for 4 days, it seems like so much longer. The Spanish food talk tonight really got me excited for the upcoming ports. We also had to turn in our field program requests for the later ports today so hopefully I got some good trips. They'll be confirmed in a few days. The bookstore opened yesterday but I didn't bother going in because the line was out the door but stopped by today and rummaged through what was left. I came up with a pretty neat shirt with the flags of all the countries we're visiting across the front. Any SAS apparel requests? That's all for now, I hope all is well on land.

Day 3: The Start of Classes

2010-06-17T18:24:00.000-07:00

I awoke this morning to the sounds of unsecured items tumbling across the room and the sensation of slipping down my bed. The timing was actually pretty good since I had to get up anyway. We hit some moderately rough waters but it has since been a bit smoother.

I started off the day with my Infectious Disease class. It is pretty slow right now because we're going through some basic intro bio review but I'm sure it'll pick up when we get into the content. I like the professor a lot; he's an older Scottish guy who always has a Nike sweat band around his head and does nightly star gazing sessions. The global studies class will be interesting but likely a bit on the boring side. The largest room on the ship holds about 400 people leaving the other 350 to be in designated satellite locations (classrooms, lounges, etc) where the lecture is broadcast. Most of the orientation stuff was also done this way so I'm getting used to the different setup. I'm also really looking forward to Abnormal Psych. It's a very good professor and a lot of the course is going to cover comparative mental healthcare policy which will be really great because we'll get to see it in action among the different ports. As part of the "normal vs. abnormal" lecture today a professional clown who happens to be an inter-port lecturer on the ship (your guess is as good as mine) stopped by to do a little demo.

The past few days it has been stressed that the main theme of Semester at Sea is flexibility. Apparently a lot of things come up (international conflicts causing a change in port, etc) and it plays quite a bit into the classroom. It's a very unique situation in class as the students run in and out to be sick and the teacher occasionally grasps on to the podium for balance as we hit a decent wave.

All is going well, this is a great experience so far. I went to a session on Spain tonight and followed it up with a trip to the observation deck for the Astronomy class lab (aka star gazing session) which is open to anyone. Only 6 more days of seeing nothing but water until we get to Spain!

Day 2: Orientation

2010-06-16T18:44:00.001-07:00

We've been at sea for over 30 hours now and it's quite fun watching people struggle to earn their "sea legs." I think my favorite moment was walking down one of the narrow hallways in a line of people and watching the line unintentionally curve and snake with the roll of the ship. Today was all orientation. Like any good orientation, it was long and hideously boring. I learned not to set the room on fire, keep fingers out of a doorway to avoid amputation, and how it's not a good idea hop over the deck railing. Apparently all these intelligent moves have been done on past voyages. I also got to listen to the infamous alcohol horror stories directed at the 21% of my peers that can be medically classified as alcoholics. A fun day indeed.

Not having the ability to use a cell phone has revealed how dependent we are on these little bits of technology. I didn't think I would have that big of a problem (and really don't) but have never before thought twice about planning something like a dinner time and place with others well in advance...it's always been done via text. Another good experience to add to the list.

There was an "involvement symposium" tonight and I signed up for a few interesting programs. In addition to the medicine interest group there were some neat looking faculty-student social opportunities and an "extended family" program that pairs students up with the life-long learners. I'll let you know how those go. It doesn't look like there's too much music going on here but I ask around occasionally. Maybe something will come up. Classes start tomorrow so I better be off to bed as we lose yet another hour to a time change tonight.

Day 1: Embarkation & Departure

2010-06-15T19:24:00.002-07:00

The day began with Canadian Starbucks and ended with an crepes over choppy Atlantic waters. We're lucky we got a very early start. The walk from the hotel to the port wasn't very long but transporting three pieces of heavy luggage proved rather taxing. We arrived to the port and entered the seemingly endless check-in line. I surrendered my passport, got my SAS ID, had my luggage throughly searched, and was frisked before finally getting to board. As I said, we were lucky to start early and got on board by 10:00am. To give you an idea of how long this all took, the last people finally got on a few minutes before 4:00pm. The cabin is cozy but nice and my roommate is a pretty cool international student from Dubai. I think we'll get along well (except he's a Celtics fan...).

Following a lifeboat drill (which was handled by most with surprising maturity) we departed around 5:00pm. After the initial excitement of getting out to sea died down there was dinner followed by orientation meetings. Since I know the maternal side of my family will be wondering, the food is pretty good so far. There are four meals a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late night) and all are buffet style. Each day of the week has a food theme so I'm guessing we'll see some repeats in the future. The orientation meetings included a lot of introductions of administration, faculty, and various staff members. Besides the intros, they stressed two distinctions: (1) We're on a ship, a boat and (2) this is not a cruise but a voyage. We start early tomorrow with more orientation info before the start of classes on Thursday.

With 738 students on board, there are all types here. It's going to definitely be an interesting and good experience learning to live in such close quarters on this unique "shipboard community." I't's neat meeting a lot of new people and funny how the other CLU students and I tend to relate much better with people from smaller universities. I'm currently in my cabin experiencing the gentle rolls of the somewhat choppy Atlantic. As expected, the seas are getting a little worse as the evening progresses and we get further out. Some people are already having problems but I'm doing fine so far. That's all for now...I'm ready to call it a night.

Day 0: Halifax

2010-06-14T17:28:00.000-07:00

There's really not much to do in Canada. Other than that, I really like it here. The 15% sales tax is a bit of a downer but it's very pretty and comfortable in the "pre-Summer" days. Apparently this north there are only about 2 months of recognized Summer. It's interesting to see/hear everything in English and French. In general the people live up to their Canadian stereotypes and are pretty friendly.

I got in late last night after a long day of flying and met with friends Daniel and Lacey from Cal Lu who are also going on SAS. There were quite a few fellow SASers on my flight here from Detroit and in the airport. The hotel we're in was recommended so the place is pretty much swarming with SAS people by now. I got lucky with all my luggage coming in appropriately because I've heard of quite a few problems already.

Today was spent exploring Halifax. The most "famous" site here is the Citadel. Halifax was a heavily defended British fort in the late 1800s. We took a tour and it was pretty interesting to hear how the geography was integrated into the defenses of the city. From there we walked over to the Museum of Natural History but a few people leaving mentioned it wasn't worth the money so we decided to head over to the Public Gardens. They were nicely done and had an interesting Titanic memorial. For some reason there are quite a few cemeteries around. A walk down to the port offered a quick gander at the ship which pulled in this morning. Our Halifax adventure concluded with a quite delicious plate of Nova Scotia Haddock before the rain began. Hopefully it'll clear up for tomorrow's departure.

Tomorrow I'll board at 8:20am and have the rest of the day to check out the ship, meet my fellow travelers and try to think of what I might need to run and buy before the trek across the Atlantic. That's all for now, I need to review some embarkation info for tomorrow.

Itinerary

2010-06-12T21:01:00.000-07:00

I officially depart at 7:00am tomorrow morning from LAX and should arrive at the hotel in Halifax around 11:00pm. I’m anticipating a rather long and tedious travel day complete with thunderstorms during my layover in Detroit. Hopefully we won’t run into any delays.

As you can see on the itinerary below, we’re departing Halifax on Tuesday. At that point an interactive voyage map should be available on the Semester at Sea website complete with a ship position report icon and port info. Another great resource is the official voyage blog which can also be found on the website.

The itinerary:

Destination

Arrive
Depart

Day

Date

Time

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Depart

Tuesday

June 15

1700

Barcelona, Spain

Arrive

Depart

Thursday

Sunday

June 24

June 27

0800

2000

Civitavecchia / Naples, Italy

Arrive

Depart

Tuesday

Monday

June 29

July 05

0800

2000

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Arrive

Depart

Thursday

Sunday

July 08

July 11

0800

2000

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

Arrive

Depart

Wednesday

Sunday

July 14

July 18

0800

2000

Istanbul, Turkey

Arrive

Depart

Tuesday

Saturday

July 20

July 24

0800

2000

Alexandria , Egypt

Arrive

Depart

Tuesday

Saturday

July 27

July 31

0800

2000

Casablanca, Morocco

Arrive

Depart

Saturday

Tuesday

August 07

August 10

0800

2000

Norfolk, VA USA

Arrive

Saturday

August 21

0800

Thanks to everybody for their kind words encouraging a fun and safe time. It’s going to be pretty awesome, I can’t wait. I’ll try to keep this updated as much as possible. As for now, I’m off to bed as there’s quite a big day tomorrow.

Summer (Part 2)

2010-06-08T11:30:00.000-07:00

Four days. Bright and early Sunday morning I'll depart LAX for Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ship will take off on Tuesday and the journey begins. I'm at the "pile of stuff versus suitcase" packing stage and the next challenge is getting the pile into the luggage. My sisters and the boys all came over on Sunday for a "bon voyage" dinner the other night. It was cool to see everybody before I head off and enjoy the amazing chicken.

I've often described my time since finishing the semester as a "few weeks off" but it's been pretty busy. My EMT license is set to expire this summer so I've been working through the recertification process. I've always wanted to take a PreHosptial Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) class and finally got the opportunity. It was quite an interesting class and definitely a good thing to have done. The curriculum is heavily based on research which presents some really interesting contradictions to the "accepted" scope of practice in many EMS systems. The highlight was my first successful mannequin intubation. I do my skills refresher tomorrow and then deal with the paperwork nightmare.

Casey, Julian, Jamie and I had the chance to visit Tani a few weeks ago for our second annual NorCal Adventure. We had quite a bit of fun eating (I was once again exposed to numerous exotic Asian foods) and visiting the surrounding area. A few other folks joined us last Thursday for the first annual LA Adventure. We took the Metrolink downtown and did a pretty intense walk hitting Union Station, the cathedral, LA Music Center (with a tour of all 4 halls), Angel's Flight, Central Market, LA Times Building, City Hall, Chinatown, and Philippe's.

I don't watch much TV during the semester so this could be really old but I recently saw a commercial by the Corn Refiners Association declaring a "sweet surprise" that High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is all natural and just fine for you. They way they make HFCS out to be a wonderfully natural treat is just plain disturbing. Too bad there is significant clinical research linking HFCS consumption to obesity, Type II diabetes, hypertension, and coronary artery disease. But don't worry, it's all natural so that makes okay. For good reason, you can find quite a few parodies of the commercial: Parody 1, Parody 2, Parody 3.

A few weeks ago I came across the video of a UK public service commercial encouraging seat-belt use. It is not only an incredibly beautiful commercial but one of the most amazing and artful short videos I've ever seen. Check it out, I guarantee you'll get the chills.

That's all for now, I have to start thinking about packing. Stay tuned for the travel journal, coming soon.

Summer (Part 1)

2010-05-31T10:43:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month marked the official halfway point in my undergraduate career. It truly feels like a few weeks ago I was stressed about starting at Cal Lu. Now I see friends like Josh and Sheena graduating (I remember calling their house for band before their freshman year of high school!) and moving on to USC and UCLA respectively (hopefully a little rivalry won't put too much of a strain on their friendship). Overall I have two years down and about 10 to go before I start actually making money.

The end of the year at CLU was stressful and bittersweet as usual. Finals went well and Res Hall closeouts were very interesting (took home quite a few fun souvenirs residents left behind). I bid farewell to many great seniors and bon voyage to a lot of friends who are studying abroad. Overall it was a pretty good year and now it's time to prep for next year as I again tackle music and RA while adding Organic Chem and the MCAT. Fun times ahead.

Speaking of study abroad, I depart for Semester at Sea on June 13. I'm starting to get really excited and the realities of packing, money, communication, etc are starting to set in. I fly to Canada, meet the ship and depart for a trans-Atlantic cross. We'll be stopping in Spain, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Turkey, Egypt, and Morocco before crossing back over to Virginia. This blog will soon transform into a travel journal and I'm making it my goal to update as much as possible so stay tuned.

The whole oil spill fiasco in the Gulf of Mexico is really a shame. In my Evolutionary Bio class we talked quite a bit about how humans effect natural life and processes in such detrimental ways without even realizing it. Seeing such a blatant example really brings attention to a lot of these human effects, big and small. I don't think there's really a clear-cut solution to any of these problems; we'll just have to see what happens. On a lighter note, at least BP has decided to take action by putting a new logo out.

Having a friend work for Apple makes poking fun at the company even more fun. I came across a pretty sad/funny but true graphic that pretty much serves as the basis for Apple's sales model.

I know a lot of people were excited for the Lost season finale last week. The show made quite a stir and, while I never actually saw any episodes, I did watch a short youtube synopsis. Quite a few people have said that the three minute video explains the plot better than the six seasons. I think it's just the sticky note usage that helps.

That's all for now...stay tuned for part 2 after the QHHS alumni band concert this afternoon.

Spring Break

2010-04-04T21:12:00.000-07:00

A happy and blessed Easter to all.

One of my goals for my week off was to update this blog, hopefully multiple times. Well, here we are on my last evening off. At least I'll get one post in.

It's been nice having a break from the chaos that has defined my schedule this semester. The classes are tough but keeping me busy. At the beginning of the semester I was hesitant about how well I'd do in my Evolutionary Bio class but it has turned out to be really interesting. I like learning about the subject matter a lot, but being tested on a lot of memorization isn't quite as fun. We recently finished up the hallmark project of my Postmodernism class: a surrealist film. While it was quite fun to make I think the most entertaining part was devising the plot and script. If I get a chance, I'll post it here but it's on Facebook and I was tagged so check it out. Just be advised, it is surrealist so it's supposed to be somewhat disturbing and make no sense.

Back on the 14th I had a chance to solo with the University Symphony playing the Weber Concertino. It was a lot of fun to prepare but I'm a bit relieved now that it's done. Memorizing and soloing a piece like that took an incredible amount of time and focus. You really have to be "in the zone" during the performance for it to work. It was awesome just to have the opportunity. I also have a video that I'll try to get up soon.

The hospital is going well. I'm currently on my last rotation, again in ER. Being in the OR was a really cool experience (saw a total knee replacement on my last day) but I just like the feeling that I'm actually doing something more than observation. Even though it's a small role, I actually feel like a part of the patient care team in ER. I'll miss it after May but hopefully it will be on to bigger and better things.

Life otherwise is great. We did the big birthday rush in Feb and March including a half marathon with my dad and sisters. In late March my sisters and grandma planned a surprise birthday party for my parents. It was a big success and great to see family/friends and play with the quartet. I reapplied for and RA position next year and will be in the same complex. We'll have a pretty new staff with only two returners including myself, but I'm looking forward to it.

Semester at Sea is approaching. I'm currently in the paperwork process and pretty stoked...it's going to be pretty amazing.

The infamous iPad was released this weekend. Despite huge initial sales I'm predicting a bit of a disappointment later on. It's and interesting idea but I don't see it catching on for the long term simply from a practicality standpoint. Just a thought, time will tell.

The new Photoshop is looking pretty intense. Check it out.

That's it for now, have a Happy Easter.

Mozart Quintet K581 Mvmt 1

2010-02-25T12:51:00.000-08:00

Pasadena Half Marathon

2010-02-23T15:19:00.000-08:00

In celebration of my dad's recent birthday, my sisters and I ran the Pasadena Half with him last Sunday. We had a really good time over the weekend, and a great run. The weather was perfect and we finished together in 2:07:10. It was a really cool way to celebrate, some of the pics are below (I look way too excited in the last one...). Happy Birthday Po!

The Pirates of South

2010-01-18T12:33:00.000-08:00

I've been back at CLU for a few days now. The Res Life staff has been somewhat frantically trying to put everything together for the start of the Spring Semester. The theme for our complex was "Disneyland" (so original) and our hall, South, happened to take on a Pirates of the Caribbean persona hence the "Pirates of South" door tags. Classes start up in a few days.
The classes:

Biology: Ecology & Evolution
General Chemistry II with Lab
Postmodernism: The Politics & Philosophy of Art (my Sci Fi film class got dropped)
Music Theory II
Musicianship Skills II
Keyboard Harmony II
Band/Orchestra/Applied Lessons

Alas...20 units again.

Our trip to Colorado was great. It was nice seeing that Grandma is doing so well. We didn't get much fresh snow while we were there but what was on the mountain was pretty good. I took a half day ski lesson the first afternoon just to get a few pointers to work on for the rest of the trip and it really helped out. Ski trip in the future anyone?

The only positive aspect of a devastating tragedy like the recent Haiti earthquake is how it brings humanity together. When describing the aid given it's been said numerous times in the media how people pitching in to help as they can really demonstrates a sense of common humanity. However, it truly disturbs me when certain prominent individuals (i.e. Limbaugh, Robertson , Glover, etc) abuse their public forum and make some type of politically charged commentary or accusation with regard to the catastrophe. Simply pathetic.

Recent studies have shown that Choline, a micronutrient found abundantly in a good old fashioned bacon and eggs breakfast, can help boost the intelligence of an unborn child when eaten during pregnancy. There you go...bacon and eggs will make your kid smarter.

Pigeon: Impossible. A rookie secret agent is faced with a problem seldom covered in basic training: what to do when a curious pigeon gets trapped inside your multi-million dollar, government-issued nuclear briefcase. A problem I run into occasionally.

That's all for now...I need to spend some quality time admiring the intense rainfall.

A New Decade

2010-01-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

Happy 2010!

A little poll: Will the year 2010 will be pronounced "twenty-ten" or "two-thousand ten?"

It's somewhat bothersome how quickly winter break seems to be moving along. It's nice having the time off and I'm getting used to the wake-up, go for a run, do a little reading, practice some clarinet, mess with the Wii, go to bed routine. I've been up in Thousand Oaks two days each week for winter RA duty during the nights and the hospital during the days. Despite the lack of sleep inherent in accepting a schedule like that, it's been kinda fun. I've only been in the OR for a month and have already seen some amazing cases. There's been lots of orthopedics but a fair amount of general and emergency surgery procedures also. Some of the doctors are really great at explaining things and letting me get up close to see. It's definitely one of cooler experiences I've had.

I met Casey, Julian, and Sheena in Pasadena last week at one of the annual Rose Parade Bandfest shows. PCC with it's 9 QH members looked and sounded great as usual. Even though it was pouring rain it was good getting out there and hearing the unique sounds of beefy marching bands. The parade looked great today also...I couldn't imagine the weather would be more perfect. My parents and I are off to Colorado the first part of January. I can't wait to get up to the cabin and fit in a few days of skiing. The Fitch family was up there this week and apparently the powder is amazing.

I've never been a huge fan of New Year Resolutions. Not only do they fail the vast majority of the time but the concept doesn't make a lot of sense. If you really have a burning desire to change an attitude, habit, vice, etc then why wait for a new year? To make a "permanent" lifestyle change it would seem to be much more effective if a single concept or behavior was implemented voluntarily at the time of motivation rather than making a list in late December that you'll talk about for a week and forget next month. Just a thought, if yours work out then more power to you. This little rant was brought to you by Calvin and Hobbes (dripping with Aristotle).

The news of security issues leading to the Flight 253 Christmas Day episode has been all over but there's also been a twist to the story circulating online with a growing presence in the past few days. Passenger Kurt Haskell has come forward essentially accusing multiple US Government agencies of altering events and "lying" to the American people. I'll let you read the details yourself. I heard an hour long radio interview with him on the way back from TO the other day. There's a lot of people out there ready to believe but I have a really tough time buying it. Mr. Haskell seems to certainly be enjoying the press and interviews. I don't quite understand why none of the other passengers have come forward corroborating his unique eyewitness accounts. Certainly someone else must have seen something suspicious if there was anything to see. And even if the "sharp dressed man" or "man in orange" theories are true, for the sake of national security I would hope that a thorough investigation is taking place. This generally means that a video tape isn't going isn't going public anytime soon. I can gladly accept lack of information if it means there's less of a chance others can use it against us.

2009 in review, complements of JibJab.

That's all for now, I've got a rough evening of Wii Fitness ahead.

Semester 3: A Review

2009-12-26T15:34:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe that another semester has already flown by. A 90 minute lecture usually feels like three days but I can't get over how quickly entire months can rush into the past. The previous semester was a busy one (as I'm sure can be inferred by my lack of presence here), but was definitely filled with many good times.

The rather daunting task of completing 20 units did not disappoint. Despite the many late night study sessions, it was really neat to settle in on subjects I really enjoy. There was a pretty even split of science (Bio & Chem) and music classes. You know you're in for fun times when the class average on the first test in Genes and Development is a 62%. Luckily a little hard work is all it takes and all turned out well. I recently bought an MCAT study book and have begun to try and devote an hour a week to it. Key word is "try."

Things in the music world are also going pretty well. Our new Honors Quartet is sounding quite nice and is available for your high profile event...just let me know. For a solo, I've been working on the Weber Concertino for a while. I have it down pretty good but the challenge is getting it all in my head. In addition to trying a few local young artist competitions, I'll be soloing with the University Symphony on March 14. Check it out if you're around. I began teaching clarinet regularly to a middle school student early in the semester which was a really goo experience for both of us. There's a whole new level patience and way of explaining things to master. I've come to agree with other teachers I've had that the single best piece of advice when teaching music is "lets try it again..." Unfortunately I don't think I'll have the time to continue next semester but I'm glad I had the experience.

A big change to my routine this year came with the job as an RA. In general, there's a lot of perks and good times countered by a good deal of challenges. I've met a lot of great people and am really enjoy my coworkers and residents. The responsibilities have been beneficial in getting me out there more and much falls into the category of "it was a good experience." It's a very interesting and unique leadership position to be in and overall I'm pretty happy with the way things have gone. The random events and duty nights are getting easier which is probably a good thing if I continue on the path to medicine. I've definitely "gotten more involved on campus" (my reason for applying during the interview) but the single room and money don't hurt either.

I'm still interning at the hospital on a pretty regular basis. I started working ER in September trying to hit the crazy Friday or Saturday nights. I saw many difficult and sad things as well as many amazing procedures that are routine in modern medicine. I find myself fulfilling the weird paranoid uncle role as the boys got bikes for Christmas telling them each to always wear a helmet. As in any ER, there was quite a bit of excitement and always something to do. I have plenty of stories, let me know sometime. I just recently started in OR and have already seem some amazingly cool procedures. More on that later.

I feel like I've exceeded the word count limit here but if you're still reading I'll throw out a few of the famous links:

The bad economy isn't effecting just us humans.
One of the better Christmas decorations I've seen in a while.
20 things that happen in 1 minute (another one of those factoid graphics that throw out miraculous facts, this one actually cites sources).

Hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas. That's all for now, I need to work on my golf swing.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T20:58:00.000-08:00

O magnum mysterium,
et admirabile sacramentum,
ut animalia viderent Dominum natum,
jacentem in praesepio!
Beata Virgo, cujus viscera
meruerunt portare
Dominum Christum.
Alleluia.

Pretty Snazzy Marketing...

2009-10-22T13:30:00.000-07:00

Click image for higher resolution.

Labor Day

2009-09-07T15:41:00.000-07:00

A three day weekend after only three days of classes...I could get used to this.

Classes started last Wednesday. I've had most by now and so far they seem to be pretty good. The science classes will pose a challenge but I like my schedule for the most part. It's nice to be settling down with just science and music, none of those pesky humanities courses (not that there's anything wrong with those...). I'm at the point were I'm somewhat enjoying reading the text. Let's hope that stays that way for a while. Here's the 20 units:

Biology: Genes and Development
Bio Lab
General Chemistry
Chem Lab
Music Theory
Musicianship Skills
Keyboard Harmony
Fundamentals of Conducting
Lessons
Wind Ensemble
Orchestra

RAing is going well so far also. If you have any program ideas, let me know. I was able to get home this weekend. It was pretty nice to get back after a while and see everybody.

This whole thing with people freaking out about Obama's proposed "Back to School" speech is teetering on the line of absurdity. A number of school districts are continuing to refuse to show the speech even after the text has been released and it contains absolutely no reference to any political agenda. Many seem to be ignoring the fact that almost every former president in recent history has given a similar address. I think NBC's John Harwood puts it pretty well.

Brownie, a 4-year-old cat who has drifted away from his home, returned to the delight but then horror of his owners. Glad to have him back, they were in turn horrified that he had a 13-inch arrow stuck through his head. Luckily the arrow had only skimmed the skull and the little guy is expected to make a full recovery. 1 down, 8 to go.

Youtube of the week: A random guy is seen reading a novel while doing 75mph on the freeway. That better be a good book.

That's it for now...have a nice day off.

That Crazy Thousand Oaks...

2009-09-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

Man's Fingertip Bitten Off at Healthcare Rally
By Garance Franke Ruta and Sarah Lovenheim of the Washington Post

One of a national series of rallies for health-care reform took a violent turn Wednesday night when, according to authorities in Thousand Oaks, Calif., an unidentified man bit off another man's pinky finger at the top joint.

The Thousand Oaks event attracted only about 100 people -- a small group compared to the turnout at congressional town halls, which have drawn up to 1,500 people. But their passions were running high, and when a supporter of health-care reform wound up among a group of about 25 counter-protesters, an argument and fistfight broke out, Ventura County Sheriff's Capt. Frank O'Hanlon told the Associated Press.

Reports differ on whether the supporter went to confront the opponents intentionally or was just walking among them while trying to cross the street to the pro-reform rally.

Southern California's KTLA-TV, which first reported on the fracas, wrote, "The 65-year-old was apparently aggressive and hit the other man, who then retaliated by biting off his attacker's pinky."

The AP reported that the injured man "retrieved the finger and went to a hospital." The man, identified by ABC News as William Rice, received care from Los Robles Hospital and on Thursday told the Weekly Standard that the hospital was unable to reattach his fingertip. Also on Thursday, Rice appeared on Fox News, where he was interviewed by Neil Cavuto (see video clip, below).

O'Hanlon told the AP that authorities have a good description of the alleged biter, who fled the scene. "It's considered a mayhem which is the removal of an appendage from a human," Capt. Bruce Norris of the Ventura County Sheriff's Department told ABC News. "The crime is punishable by imprisonment for 2, 4, or 8 years."

Attendees at the Thousand Oaks rally took to their blogs Thursday to describe the clash. Reform opponent Eric Ingemunson recounts his story on RedCounty.com, and reform supporter Karoli Kuns tells her tale at DrumsnWhistles.com.

MoveOn.org sponsored the rally, along with others Wednesday night around the country, and Ilyse Hogue, a spokeswoman for the liberal advocacy group, called the incident "a regrettable act of violence."

"While we do not have any more facts about what happened then what we saw in press accounts, MoveOn condemns violence in all forms," she said in a statement to The Post.

"While we don't know if either party involved was a MoveOn member, we regret any violence that may have occurred yesterday, and we support the Ventura County Sheriff's investigation into the situation. It is our firm hope that this event does not detract from the tens of thousands who were out peacefully making their voices heard for health-care reform and a public option," Hogue said.

RA Training

2009-08-22T15:41:00.000-07:00

We're midway through August which means Summer is coming to a close. This time always has that weird combination feel of disappointment that the break is over yet excitement for the new school year.

Our trip to Colorado and New Mexico was great. We had a few days of hiking and relaxation at the cabin before making the trek to Santa Fe. We had a nice little condo within walking distance of downtown. Santa Fe is a pretty interesting place. It's very artsy and a lot of fun to visit but I don't think I could stand living there--a tad too artsy for me. The big reason for going was the Santa Fe Opera; my dad and I saw three operas in three days while my grandma joined us for two of them and my mom went to one. We saw Gluck's Alceste (good opera but a bit "drab"), Donizet ti's Elixir of Love and the world premiere of Moravec's The Letter (probably my favorite). After opera madness we ventured to Boulder City to visit my uncle and hit a production of the musical Jersey Boys in Vegas before coming home. Overall it was a really fun time.

I've been back at Cal Lu for a little over a week now in RA training. The training is going well and I've met a lot of good people. The job will be interesting; there's a bit of responsibility but I'm looking forward to it. It's a new experience and I think I've already gotten a lot out of it. Hopefully I'll maintain the positive outlook well into the year. My room setup this year is very nice. It's pretty spacious and actually has a view. Should be a fun time. Classes start up September 2.

It seems impossible to go a few hours without hearing somebody's (misinformed) opinion about the whole healthcare debate these days. With all this going on it's nice to see that there is at least one person out there that has it right.

I know there's a few slip-n-slide fans out there so this video is a must watch. The legitimacy has been debated quite a bit but whether an actual jump or edit job it's a pretty cool feat either way.

The odds of catching a foul ball in a major league game are 1 in 333. The odds of catching two major league foul balls in the same game are 1 in 3,333,333. This 12 year old kid beat the odds. Pretty awesome.

That's it for now, I think I'll take advantage of my afternoon off and treat myself to a quick nap.

NIB

2009-07-26T17:41:00.001-07:00

I recently returned from Phoenix and the National Intercollegiate Band. I'm glad to say I didn't die from the heat (worst was about 115°) and we got some monsoonal weather. The whole experience went really well. The director, John R . B ourgeois, is the director emeritus of "The President's Own" Ma rine Band . He was a really down to earth and great guy who had some amazing stories from his 40 years of service. The composer was Mark Camphouse and his piece was pretty heavy (in a good way). It was really neat meeting some new people from around the country and running into some old All Southern/State folks. It was a great experience and really fun time. I'll post some audio when I get it.

The day after I returned, Casey, Andrew, Josh, Julia, Julia, and I made a last minute journey down to the Hollywood Bowl to see Philip Glass and his ensemble play with the LA Phil. Many people aren't fans of minimalism so it was really neat to see the Bowl packed with people who really appreciate it. The music was incredible (Einstein on the Beach!) and the musicality amazing, as expected.

After enjoying a few days of laziness I'm off to Colorado and New Mexico later this week. We'll be spending a few days up at the cabin then make our way to Santa Fe for the Santa Fe Opera. Should be a good time. When we return I have a few days before heading back to Cal Lu for RA training.

I know many of my peers are having difficulty in the summer months with waking up early. ThinkGeek has a solution: for every minute you sleep past the alarm on this clock, your bank account automatically donate money to an organization you hate. Genius.

Many of you may have seen youtube's top hit for this week, the awesome wedding entrance dance. For those who haven't, you must check it out. Cool little tidbit: apparently Karl's sister, Erin, was actually at the wedding. Pretty funny stuff.

That's all for now, I need to go post an ad to sell my Public Speaking and Spanish books. If anybody is interested, let me know.

Off to Phoenix

2009-07-18T20:32:00.000-07:00

It's only 112° right now...

For the next few days I'll be participating in the National Intercollegiate Band at the Arizona Biltmore. I auditioned on a whim a few months ago and was pretty surprised when I actually made it. It looks to be a really good experience (complete with the director of the President's Own and Mark Camphouse) and I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully I'll get some pics and audio to share.

The past few weeks of summer have been pretty busy. To quickly sum, I've:

Made the annual Kling/Crane Dodger game excursion
Made the annual Stutelberg/Crane Dodger excursion
Witnessed 5 births including a C-section with twins (absolutely incredible!)
Moved my sister from Canyon Country to Acton with the help of Casey and Josh
Persuaded four other people to donate blood with me (you should too)
Completed a 5 week summer school term of Public Speaking and Spanish 102 (thankfully it's over)
Written letters and had petitions signed to the Governor and Mayor.
Seen the Monty Python musical Spamalot (very funny...definitely recommend)
Discovered an unknown function of the MacBook.
Hosted a surprise birthday party for Andrew LORDKEMPER.

I'm probably forgetting a few things, but you can tell it's been an action packed summer so far. I wish I had time to go more in depth on some things but maybe when I have some free time in the next couple of weeks I'll be inspired to share my wacky attempts at political involvement or innermost philosophical feelings on witnessing the miracle of life. Or something like that.

I should probably start packing so that's about all for now. I leave you with Obama and the "Mom Jeans" controversy.

Karl Runs 30 at 30

2009-07-06T21:44:00.000-07:00

A fun and awesome day...more details.

Summer

2009-05-31T17:40:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it's been a while--there's been quite a bit going on recently. Whoever came up with the idea that Summer was supposed to be boring is quite wrong.

School finished up nicely. It was a tad stressful for a while but finals all went pretty well and the year wrapped up as quick as it began. I've been saying this all year but it is really amazing to me how fast it all happened. Hard to believe that the first year of college is already complete.

The week before finals was our marathon Into the Woods week. The midnight rehearsals gave way to four really good performances. It was the first musical I've had the chance to play and, while very tedious at some points, was quite a bit of fun. It was really cool to see a lot of friends/family come down and see it.

This summer has already proved to be busy (thankfully without the stress of school...yet). I'm still doing my weekly internship in Oxnard and just finished up a really fun trip to San Jose and San Francisco with Casey and Jamie to visit Tani and work on a wedding gig (I think there's some pics on Facebook). I'm off to Sacramento in a few days and the week after I start Spanish and Public Speaking at College of the Canyons. Fun days ahead.

If anybody is feeling like a runner on July 5, we are celebrating Karl's 30th birthday by helping him run 30 miles. Us mortals have the choice of different millage loops (1, 3, 5, or 15) to join him on. It should be a lot of fun so if you're feeling spunky enough to give it a go let me know and I'll pass along more info.

In a move that somehow will crack down on ID fraud, it is now illegal to smile in your Virginia DMV driver's license picture. Now that's somewhat depressing.

Compliments of Karl, we can go back to the basics with Nike Running by running supernatural at the Bear Butte Running Camp. Just be advised...you've never seen this commercial on TV for a reason.

That's all for now...time for a nice summer nap. We might see a fairly significant format change for this blog in the future. Still thinking about it so stay tuned.

The Clam Before the Storm

2009-04-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

I have a bit of free time this weekend (doesn't happen too often), so I thought I'd do a little update. With only three weeks of classes remaining until finals I'm beginning to feel the "pre-stress" of the approaching storm.

One of the things that will make the coming weeks a tad constrained as far as time goes is my participation in CLU's production of Into the Woods. Despite being a large time commitment, it's really quite a bit of fun. It's nice to be able to play in a small ensemble where your part really counts. I'm the only clarinet so that's a new challenge in itself. If you're interested in coming down for the show, it runs April 30-May 3. I'm not sure yet what I can get as far as tickets, but if you're interested let me know. More info here.

We got a nice little Easter break last week. It was fun to head home and see everybody. As you can probably tell by the previous post, the boys were pretty excited about the Easter Bunny. That was a nice weekend. One of the highlights had to be the acquisition of my NEW A clarinet. It's a buffet R-13 and it's awesome. She's a real beauty. I'll be breaking it in this week with a performance of Stravinsky's Three Pieces for Clarinet Solo on a student recital.

Other than those exciting items, I'm basically keeping busy as usual. Josh and Sheena came up to Cal Lu this weekend for a tour and to get a feel of the campus during the annual Scandinavian Festival. We were able to hit some fun stuff and I think all had a good time. My hospital CCE Internship is going well. I recently got word my rotation this summer will be in Labor and Delivery...should be pretty interesting.

We've covered a bit of really basic neurophysiology in my Bio class recently so I was excited the other day when I happened upon a site known as the "mouse party" where you can drag a number of stoned mice on a variety of different drugs into a chamber that reveals the science behind the drug. Pretty interesting stuff.

In case you didn't get the memo, don't eat Domino's Pizza. Both employees in the video were fired.

Keeping in the theme of gross restaurants, it's pretty well known that you're not getting food that looks like what the fast food restaurants actually advertise. It's about time time somebody actually setup advertisement vs reality side by side.

That's it for now...I have a bathroom to clean.

Happy Easter

2009-04-14T16:09:00.001-07:00

Did You Know?

2009-03-29T10:23:00.001-07:00

A Crazy Week

2009-03-20T14:31:00.000-07:00

I must admit...the past few days have been pretty insane. It's not so much stressful, but keeping track of everything going on can be a challenge.

Thursday, today, and Saturday is the Presidential Scholar Program for next year's class. I offered to help out and ended up being a host to to scholars. They're both great guys and it seems like all of the scholars are having a good time, successful interviews, and good meetings. It's so strange that only a year ago I was in that same place. Time is just flying by.

We had our Spring Break last week. While it was a bit early, it was still nice to have some time off. Most of it was spent hanging with the nephews who are doing well. Saturday was Matt's birthday party...the big 3. That little dude is pretty smart and growing up quick. I met up with some folks in Long Beach on Thursday for Julian's concert and that turned out to be a nice little trip.

I began my internship as a Clinical Care Extender last week. I've done three shifts so far and while it's not the most glorious work in the world, it's definitely a really good experience. I'm sure I'll be able to stockpile some pretty good stories. Also, next week is the Regan Library event and I'm really looking forward to that.

It's been concluded that regular watermelons take up to much room in the refrigerator. The solution? Make them square. Not a bad idea...

Even with the advent of many wireless computer components, many still complain of all the stupid wires getting in the way. Just be thankful its probably not this bad.

While flying isn't typically the most pleasant experience these days, it's nice to see a little bit of wit and humor from the crew. I think airlines should start mandating stuff like this to keep people somewhat attentive.

That's all for now...I'm off to try and enjoy my relaxing Friday afternoon.

Time is Flying...

2009-02-27T14:55:00.000-08:00

It seems like the past few weeks (well, years for that matter) have flown by exceptionally fast. I can't believe I'm already 19...it seems like such a strange and unbalanced number. Guess it fits me pretty well. Thanks to all for the birthday wishes and such.

School is going pretty well. For the most part, I'm enjoying most of my classes this semester. It's nice to get some decent science stuff going and I'm definitely keeping busy. It seems that the "stress" this semester is somewhat cyclical. Last weekend I was insanely busy and but now it's pretty chill. Spring break is coming up soon so that will be nice.

I recently got an internship at St. John's Hospital in Oxnard through the "Clinical Care Extender" program. It's basically a glorified volunteer position where we do rotations in different departments. Sounds like we get to do/see some pretty cool stuff after putting in some time in the not-so-glorious areas. I went through the training and should be starting next week so I'm pretty excited.

There's a couple of good CLU concerts coming up. The University Symphony will be doing the Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 the "organ symphony" this Sunday. It should come together quite nicely and be pretty cool, especially with the Chapel organ here. On March 26 the Wind Ensemble will be doing an Americana concert at the Regan Library. It's $20 but comes with a library tour and exhibits. Should be pretty fun.

If you've ever had the urge to ID a fruit by the little sticker that comes on it, this site will prove useful. It's the largest known fruit label database. And I'm sure it's very useful too.

It's always fun to look for the McDonalds when traveling overseas. I knew they made some menu adaptations, but some of them, like the Canadian McLobster Roll, are pretty entertaining.

A few years ago, Ameriquest ran some pretty good "don't judge too quickly" commercials. Here's a nice compilation of the five they ran (never get old), and I'd have to say the last one is probably my favorite.

That's it for now...I'm going to go take a nice Happy Friday nap.

Busy Days...

2009-02-08T20:35:00.000-08:00

My apologies for the lack of updates recently. I hoped I would get into a nice Sunday evening routine with the Blog but it's proving to be somewhat of a challenge.

Classes are going well. It looks like the most challenging will be HumTut (ugh) again. The Bio Lab won't be a piece of cake either but I'm sorta looking forward to learning about research and such. Golf is definitely going to be a lot of fun. I thought I'd have more time this semester but I'm definitely keeping busy. I applied to an internship at a hospital in Oxnard. It's basically a weekly shift in different departments. I had the interview today so that's nice to have done with. I should know whether I'll get it in a few days. By the way, happy belated Groundhog Day.

The AV District Honor band had their concert a few weeks ago. I came down and meet quite a few alum. The concert sounded really great, I was especially impressed with the balance. The director was John Carnahan from CSULB and I'm very jealous that I missed him by only a year.

The CLU Wind Ensemble will be playing a concert at the Ronald Regan Library on March 24. It will be a program of Americana featuring Copland's A Lincoln Portrait with the pretty good potential of a semi-well known Hollywood personality narrating. It's $20 but is probably worth it. Also, the Orchestra will be doing a nice concert on March 1 for free.

Remember digging that hold in your backyard trying to get all the way to China? Good thing it probably didn't work because chances are you wouldn't end up in China. If you were ever curious where exactly you would end up, this site is very helpful.

Despite the law, cell phone use while driving still appears to be a large problem. I think this is a reasonable solution.

Bill Gates, speaking at a gathering of professionals in technology, entertainment, and design (TED), decided to make a point about the dangers of Malaria by releasing a swarm of mosquitoes into the crowd. Interesting and slightly scary tactic, but it's getting attention.

That's it for now, I have a bathroom to clean.

Back to School

2009-01-20T09:46:00.000-08:00

After a very nice month long winter break I'm sitting back in my dorm fuming over excessively priced textbooks. As nice as the break was, I am sort of anticipating the start of classes tomorrow with a bit of excitement. My schedule is somewhat similar to last semester since Physics, Humtut, Orchestra, band, and lessons carried over. I'm also taking Biology, its lab, and golf (for fun and PE credit). 17 units...should be a good semester.

Our trip to Colorado was great (as expected). When Matt and Micah weren't screaming at 3am, all had an awesome time. The boys got to play in the snow and Matt got on some skis. I was able to get three days of downhill in which was pretty cool. Add that to Gmo's cooking, the view, and the cabin atmosphere and it was a really nice trip.

President Obama was sworn into office a few minutes ago. The little quartet they had play was pretty cool. It was an interesting read how Bush was moved out of the Whitehouse and Obama moved in-- all within a matter of hours this morning.

We had the Wii in Colorado but nobody has really messed with the Yoga too much. It adds a whole new level of excitement when you get Yoga Kitty involved. I keep wondering how long it would be before my cat ended up killing somebody if she were the infamous Yoga Kitty.

Back in the school mood, if you ever want to test some of the laws of mechanical physics, check out the Bouncy Ball game. Be careful though, it is a great time waster.

That's it for now...I need to start searching the internet for used textbooks.

Hats off to Entertainment

2009-01-03T15:12:00.000-08:00

Happy 2009!

Christmas and New Years were both pretty swell. Got to hang out with family, swap strange gifts and enjoy an almost semi-white Christmas. Winter break is also going pretty well in general. It's amazing how busy you can feel while basking in laziness. We leave for Colorado, Gmo, the cabin, and Powerhorn later this week so I'm really looking forward to that.

The Rose Parade proved to be a success for all the of the TofR folks. I have to admit that it was a little weird and not as fun without participating but many of the TofR alum from the past couple years got together and went down for Bandfest on the 30th. We saw both shows and there were some pretty amazing groups out there. It was really nice catching up with everybody and getting to see the QHers do their thing.

Other than that, my winter break life has pretty much consisted of sleeping, practicing, volunteering at AVH, catching up with folks, and refining my Wii Fit and Sport skills. My mom's Christmas present to the family was a Wii (the first game system we've ever owned) and I am suffering from somewhat of an addiction. Good thing it won't be at school.

One of my presents from the Stutelbergs was a daily calender with weird and wacky websites, so more than a few of those will be making an appearance here.

Since we've reached a new year, new calenders will be needed. Why not step away from the tradition Gregorian system we're all so obsessed with and take a look at the Julian, Hebrew, Muslim, and Mayan calenders. A good time waster.

In the spirit of Illinois corruption, a Chicago newspaper ran an ad for a furniture store that, in a stroke of marketing genius, claims that they sell more seats than the Governor. I bet they're cheaper and probably last a tad longer, too.

While many of those annoying Hollywood celebrities may be under the impression that they're glamor will last forever, one photoshoper decided to have a little fun and see what they'd look like in 2034.

That's it for now, I must get back to the Wii.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T13:38:00.001-08:00

Finals Week

2008-12-17T11:26:00.000-08:00

Three down, two to go. Monday's three final marathon made for a pretty brutal day. Thankfully I'm done with what I think are probably the two most difficult: Physics and Humtut. I have my music jury in a few hours and a religion final on Friday. After that, the semester is done! It's amazing how fast it has gone.

The annual CLU Christmas concerts were a few weekends ago. Usually it's just choir and strings but there was a choir piece that was accompanied by two clarinets so I got the opportunity to play. It was a really nice program with a lot of very strong music and the nice "warm and fuzzy" Christmas feel. Julian, Tani, and Casey came down for the Friday show and my parents for Sunday so it was fun to see them. Apparently you could see me pretty well in a picture from the concert that made the front page of the campus paper, The Echo. The next day, the picture at right appeared on my door.

As I type I believe it is snowing in the AV. It's pretty cool to get snow this early but too bad it couldn't have waited a week. All we get here is cold rain and wind.

There's a few TofR alum that are planning on heading to Bandfest next Tuesday the 30th to see the many QH folks in it this year. If anybody is interested let me know soon so we can get tickets and such.

Bush's shoe dodging video has made the rounds, but there was actually a photo from another angle that not many have seen. Have to give that guy some credit.

A New Jersey ShopRite store refused print three year old "Adolf Hitler Campbell's" name on a birthday cake this week. I think the bigger question in this whole controversy is why a parent would name their child Adolf Hitler. Yes it's unique, but is that really necessary?

Made in "52 hours on 2 dozen redbulls," this trailer for the action-packed-epic-romantic-war-thriller-drama-saga starring office supplies is pretty dang cool. I think I'd actually pay money to see the film if it were real.

That's it for now...I must go mentally prepare myself for my upcoming jury.