Lu'Au in Hilo

In the evening of the 25th my friends and I had the opportunity to go to a Lu'Au hosted by the University of Hilo. We boarded a bus and traveled to the University as Hilo students told us about the history of Hilo and the University. After a nice little tour of the Hilo campus, we went to the University of Hilo's agricultural farm where the Lu'Au was being held.

Entering the Lu'Au area was great. There was this little path lined with tiki torches, that we walked down as the sun set. Then we arrived at a large open air pavilion with tables and chairs all set up. Each table had a bamboo vase with beautiful flower arrangements.

As we reached the pavilion, each person was given a ti leaf. These leaves were twisted into rope to hold canoes on the shore in Hilo's earliest days. In Hawaiian the word "hilo" means "to twist" and that is how Hilo was named.

Our task with the ti leaves was to twist the leaf into our own wrist or ankle lei. This was a fun activity. The leaves have a sticky sort of juice in them that, as you twist them, gets all over your hands. In the end everyone was lined up to wash their hands because we were all sticky. My lei turned out pretty well and I wore it on my arm because it was a little too big for my wrist.

After the lei making, our night continued. The Hawaiian club at the University of Hilo welcomed us and told us a few stories. Then different groups got up and provided classic Hawaiian entertainment as we ate an appetizer salad. For the life of me I could not tell you what was in this salad other than onions, but it was very good.

Then we were welcomed to dinner where there was Hawaiian pig, chicken rice, macoroni salad, poi, salmon salsa, and squid-something. Most of the dishes were very salty to my taste but the squid thing was delicious! It was like a steamed spinach with little squid tentacles in it, but the greens weren't bitter like spinach. Poi was interesting. It was pasty, but there really was no flavor; not good, not bad, just poi.   

As we ate entertainment continued. Two guys came up and sang Hawaiian songs while playing a ukulele and a bass. Another club from an island that I remember being called "pei" but I am really not sure (not Samoa, that comes later). Anyway, the club from "pei" was very cool. The were energetic and fun. They came out in grass skirts and large sticks. For each song/chant/dance there was only a couple callers and the other 15 or so students would move fluidly to the chant, smacking the sticks together creating a powerful rhythm. Through the sound of smacking sticks, the voice of the caller was loud and clear, that was especially impressive.

The Hawaiian club came out and performed multiple hula dances. What I loved about it was everyone was having a good time and enjoying the dance. A few people may have forgotten the next sequence, but they would just laugh and get right back in. It made the experience more personal and much more fun and joyful.

At the end of the evening the Samoan club came out. The "happy people" as they are known are very happy, joyful, fun, and full of energy. They had backward C's painted on their cheeks so that when they smiled, it was a large and wonderful smile. Their speaker was awesome and picked up our energy with:
"Are you excited?! I am excited because we are in an area where we cannot get in trouble for making too much noise!!! Isn't that exciting?!"

They taught us how to yell with a "chi-oo," to show appreciation for their dances. We interacted by rubbing our hands together, clapping, and yelling. Their dances were fun and told stories of their island. The dance was similar to hula, but seemed to have a different vocabulary of moves. On their last dance, palm leaves were slapped down in front of a main dancer, who kept smiling and moving to the music. A few of the University of Hilo students began approaching this dancer with $1 bills and putting them in her blouse. Eventually some SAS students began to participate and show their appreciation. Everyone was having fun, the dancer smiled and gracefully took these compliments. Some of the more elderly individuals starred in shock, and others smiled and laughed along. It was a wonderful end to a good evening.  

Hilo Day 1 (Minus the Lu'Au)

Aloha! We finally arrived in Hilo on the 25th of January. After rocking and rolling on the open sea, I woke up with the ship docked on the port side. Out side my window was land… and a bright light.

An interesting thing about being docked is that you have to remember to close the curtains when you are changing. On the ocean, this is not an issue. There is no possibility of another person looking into the window when you are the only ship in view on the Pacific Ocean. At port it is a different story. Luckily, I have not had a lapse in memory regarding the ships location, and therefore have always remembered to shut the curtains. One of my friends however, (who will remain nameless) was less fortunate and forgot that there was land and people outside her window. At least three dockworkers were gifted with a lovely, and topless, dance performance before she became aware of the situation.

The morning of our arrival in Hilo, we went through a basic customs check where we presented our IDs to local officials. Then we (myself and some friends) went to an early breakfast. Eventually, I went to a hula dance workshop where I learned about the origins of hula and mele’s (hula songs/poems). At the end of the workshop I learned a few hula moves and discovered the incredible difficulty of coordinating the smooth controlled movement of the hands, hips, and feet. I had the opportunity to eat lunch with some students from the University of Hilo who were also our hula instructors. It was great to be able to talk with them and learn different things.

I learned that there are lots sexual connotations in hula. The Hawaiian tends embrace sexuality rather be embarrassed by it. This is evident everywhere, where people walk the beaches being proud of themselves and their sexual appeal. I also learned that the flower in the hair can symbolize ones marital status or availability. Just as the wedding ring is on the left hand, if your flower is on the left then one is communicating they are unavailable. If the flower is on your right you are “single and ready to mingle.” This tradition began when military personnel began to arrive in large quantities to the islands. Many people on the islands could not afford wedding bands, so the flowers became the social indicator of a woman’s availability.  

The middle of the day was spent wondering the streets of Hilo. My friends and I went downtown and found an ice cream shop to commemorate one of my friends Grandfathers, who has died, but was a great lover of ice cream. There was a new flavor among the ice cream called “ube” or “ude” (this is where my memory fails). But what I do remember is that this ice cream was bright purple and was described as “purple sweet potato”. Of course I had to try such a unique flavor. It reminded me of what taro bubble tea tastes like (my favorite bubble tea), so I loved it!

I found a cute summer Hawaiian dress for the Lu’Au later in the evening, got some postcards, and then returned to the ship to change for the party!

The little things

As the voyage continues I am beginning to get into a pattern. I get up, get breakfast and go to class. Then I read (I have lots of readings for each class and estimate about an average of 60 pages a day of required readings). After a little reading I try to get a spot on either the treadmill or an elliptical machine in the gym. More reading follows, then lunch with friends and a nap (the nap can also be before lunch, it still varies). At the end of the day are explorer seminars, clubs, and pre-port lectures (these are mandatory). Dinner is somewhere in there between 5:30pm and 7pm. The group of friends I have been eating with recently tries to set a record of how long we can spend at dinner. We talk about the ports, what we're doing/planning in country, how our classes are going, and other random stuff. Then I get on my e-mail, see if anyone loves me and write an entry for all my peeps and other interested persons. So far, that is a typical day at see.

Today was the first day I used a treadmill on the ship and it was a new experience. In front of the treadmill is a mirror. When I looked at the mirror I could see myself leaning one way, straightening out, then leaning the other way as the ship sways back and forth. However, when looking at the display on the treadmill I would get off the rhythm of the ship and lean in the wrong direction or, forget to lean. In these instances you have to quickly regain balance, or grab the hand grips while you reset yourself with the ships movement. It was just fascinating to look in the mirror and see me going from one side to the other, creating a 65 degree angle or so at some points.

Sun. When traveling on a ship, surrounded by water and in the tropics, be careful of the sun. I am coming from a north west winter climate (non sun) so I thought I should slowly and carefully get my skin ready for Hawaii. I went out on the deck to read for an hour yesterday. The place I chose had no direct sunlight. I got to read my books and all was well. I even saw a flying fish. It was small and far away but it could fly for a long time. Today, I thought I would increase my sun exposure by going outside for half an hour in a unprotected area. After about twenty minutes i could feel that I was already getting too much sun and went in to put on my heavy duty sunscreen. Too late. I was already burned. Not a bad burn, i didn't know it had happened until dinner time. But burned nonetheless. The lesson here: Always use sunscreen, no exceptions! (Usually I know this but sometimes I need reminding) 

First Days of Class

Tuesday the 19th was the first day of classes on the MV Explorer for Spring 2010. I woke up bright and early at 7am. Well maybe it was more like 7:15am, I had slept very well and did not want to wake up. I got ready and went to breakfast.

My first class was global studies at 9:30am. I had heard Don Gogniat speak the previous day as an intro to this global studies class, and I can tell you I was excited to hear him lecture and not disappointed. Gogniat gives energy and enthusiasm to these lectures with over a hundred students in attendance. He uses metaphors, similes, paints pictures of abstract concepts, and humor is one of his favorite teaching tools. The class was wonderful and I feel it can only get better.

My next class was going to be consumer behavior. I took this class because it is a wonderful mix of business, psychology, and communications. I am very interested in business and how we mix business with the individual. Therefore my interests and the class of consumer behavior seemed perfect and I was very eager to be a participant in this area of study. Unfortunately what happened in that class was the first large disappointment I have experienced on this trip. More are on their way, that is the nature of travel, but you have to feel it before you can deal with it. What happened was this:   

I went to class expecting to be welcomed and to begin filling my brain with knowledge about consumers and their behavior patterns. When I got to class I took a seat. At 11am the professor came in and started class. The professor is a read head with an English accent, who seems very sweet. I liked her instantly.

Sadly, her first order of business was to inform the class that there was a pre-requisite for the course, which had not been disclosed earlier. Then she asked all those who had not taken principles of marketing to raise their hands, give her their name, and leave the class. I asked the purpose of the pre-requisite. Her response was that you could not go back and get credit for the principles of marketing class once one had taken consumer behavior. Since I am a senior, and about to graduate, that reason didn’t matter to me and I said as much. Her response was that the pre-requisite was required for the course and the school to have accreditation. I can’t argue with that without alienating myself, so I got my things and left feeling a bit betrayed by the program. My thoughts were “if they knew there was a pre-requisite, couldn’t they have made students aware of it by putting it in the course syllabus that the teacher creates?”*

I had checked the syllabus of each course I registered for specifically for pre-requisites that had a possibility of creating this complication, and there were none when I registered. I was angry, and upset because this course would have been fun and I had been looking forward to it.

Next, I went to the registrar and she said the best thing for me to do would be to participate in add/drop and find a new class. I sighed and left feeling like a mountain of had been just dropped on me.

Some of my friends cheered me up at lunch by allowing me to vent a little and reminding me that this trip is going to be lots of fun, and my classes are going to be good no matter what, because we have a star studded faculty aboard. I agreed, but the emotional roller coaster of travel and meeting over 600 peers, had taken its toll and I was ready to feel some lower emotions. Cheered, but still unhappy, my day continued and the ship continued to sway back and forth. 

That night I did not get the best amount of sleep. The rocking of the ship was so severe that drawers were opening and closing all night and little things kept falling. I finally woke up at four in the morning with the realization the chairs weren’t moving. I put one of our chairs in front of our three large drawers and suddenly I could sleep because the repeated banging of those drawers had stopped. On my way back to bed I found my alarm clock on the floor and in the morning the remote to our cabin TV was also on the floor with the batteries out of it.

Today I woke up bright and early again, at 7am, because I had an 8am class. I went to breakfast then entered my class of liberty and law. It is a small group of students (about 12) and I can already tell we are going to have a fun time trying to verbalize the concept of liberty and its relationship to law. The instructor seems very knowledgeable and engaging. It seems like we are going to do a lot of open discussion, which can be good fun.

Later I went to another stimulating global studies class followed by my first class in global perspectives on work and family. My instructor for this class, Toni Zimmerman is absolutely wonderful. The boat was rocking to the point that my chair almost fell over and she was up in the front of class, just full of energy and enthusiasm for the course. There will be a lot of reading and writing in the class (no exam). But to have a professor with such enthusiasms is just awesome!

This evening I participated in Add/Drop to get my new class. I was thinking of doing a class about the history of the nuclear age because a friend recommended it. Unfortunately the Faculty Developed Practica (FDP) for that class was mostly in Hawaii and it is very difficult, if not impossible to switch from the activities I am already signed up for. I still needed a class to add. Another friend told me of a class called sociology of global travel. It had some heavy readings, but she was very excited about the instructor. This class was full, but another class, by the same instructor, called sociology of the sea was available. I signed up for this class, after reading the syllabus it looked pretty interesting.

Later at dinner friends of mine were talking about International Management.  They seemed to be excited about the class. It was a business so my interest was peaked. I asked if the instructor had said anything about pre-requisites and they said “no”. They even said that some students talked about how it was their first business class or first management class. My interest suddenly grew. I asked about the FDPs. They said that four were recommended but the professor would work with you if conflicted with something already planned. Yes! I had found it! The class that would give me more business experience and compliment this amazing trip was International Management. After dinner I went online and signed up.

Here is a list of the classes I am taking this term:
Global Studies
Issues of Law and Liberty
Global Perspectives on Work and Family
International Management

*Although I may have been unhappy that I wasn’t notified of the pre-requisite, the error was small. SAS is still an amazing program and all the teachers on board this voyage are the cream of the crop from wherever they’re from.

First Day At Sea

On the night of the 17th at about 6:30 the MV Explorer pulled out of the port of Ensenada and began a seven and a half day voyage to Hilo, Hawaii. As my roommate and I were unpacking one of the crew knocked on our door. We were told to secure our items because the night was going to be rocky. The ship moved back and forth and, as we began orientation, the number of students slowly diminished. One by one students were going to the desk on the fifth floor to get seasickness meds. More than a few people got sick that night, and my roommate even fell victim to the motion the next morning.

I found that my reaction to the movement was at most a headache. It never really traveled down to my stomach. The first night was the worst, because a lot of my time was spent on deck 6 at the top of the ship.  However, as soon as I went down to my cabin on deck 2, the rocking was a lot less and I felt fine. Mostly I have been having fun trying to see how straight I can walk as the boat tips from one side to the other.

The motion of the ship is nice when going to sleep. It feels like a cradle. When going to bed, the hum of the engine and the motion of the ship lull me to sleep. The first night I didn’t sleep as well because my feet were cold (I think some silk sheets from India will solve this issue).  The next night I slept long and deep; it was wonderful.

Our first full day at sea was orientation, we had lectures on sustainability, an introduction to our global studies class, and a lecture on the University of Virginia honor code that all the students and faculty are now participants in. We learned about our Living Life Coordinator’s (LLC’s) who are on the ship to help integrate a healthy shipboard life with our academic life. Each LLC has a specialty like career development, service projects, health and wellness, spirituality, sports and recreation …etc. We learned about the health facilities on the ship, we had another lecture about standards of conduct expected on this voyage, we also learned about the process of leaving and boarding the ship. It is imperative that one is not late for boarding time when leaving a port. If I were late 1-15 minutes onto the boat there would be a three-hour dock penalty for me at the next port. I would have to stay on the ship three hours after everyone else could leave the ship. This day was fast and full of information.

At the end of the 18th we had an activities symposium where everyone could sign up for the different extra-curricular activities we are interested in. I signed up for an extended family, yoga, career development help, dance, and cardio kickboxing. The extended family program is one that facilitates connections between the life long learners (older people who can afford to travel with us in this floating campus) and the students. The career development interest I signed up for is going to be very helpful in finding a job when this amazing experience is over. I will get help in writing my resume, cover letters, and knowing where to look for jobs, who to contact, how to contact them, and when/ how often to contact an organization.  

Room and Roommate

I took all my things to my cabin, #2054, and found both of my large luggage bags waiting for me in front of the door. My name and my roommates name were posted on the wall outside the cabin too. On entering the cabin I felt that this would be a cramped semester because the room felt small, especially when I brought in all of my luggage. Then I began to put things away. My red duffel fit under the bed even when it was full. My black bag fit under the bed once I got the carry-on out. For I now I have left that suitcase out at the foot of my bed (It has all the yummy snacks!).  Once my bags were shoved under the bed I ran into a fun and friendly person in the hall who joined me for lunch. After lunch we went around together and toured the ship. As we went along, we slowly gathered more and more people. After a few hours our expedition of two had become two large groups of about ten people each.

At four the whole ship was to perform an emergency drill. At this time everyone would go to their cabins and grab their life jackets, then follow the instructions given over the loudspeaker. I had still not met my roommate. I figured I would meet her when we performed this drill, so I went to my room about ten minutes early. Sure enough, when I entered the room, there was my new roommate for the next three and a half months.

We introduced ourselves, and right off the bat I knew this was going to be a good match. Her name is Elena and she is originally from Bulgaria. Now she lives in Chicago with her family as she attends Harper College to get her associates in Art. She takes showers at night and I take showers in the morning. She has a somewhat spacey disposition, where some things come a little slowly, but she can think of things in ways that would never occur to me. She is a true artist who has the ability to look at the world with a fresh perspective.

We talked for a while and then heard a very loud and annoying alarm. This was it. We put on our life jackets and filed into the hall with everyone else. Up on an outside deck the staff organized us by our letters and numbers on our life jackets. Basically, once lined up, the drill was for everyone to be quite so a roll of about 600 students could be called and confirmed. If anyone were missing, we would wait on the deck until they were found. In total we did very well and this whole process took only about half an hour. I learned the term “muster” while doing this drill to. From the context, “to muster” is the equivalent of “to gather” or “assemble”. The captain and crew used this term a lot while the drill was going on. I had not heard “muster” used in conversation before.  

The rest of the evening was spent getting to know my wonderful roommate and unpacking our things into the closet and drawers provided in the room. While unpacking I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of space available in the room.
We have a large closet with shoe racks, a refrigerator, five shelves and a little safe, three large drawers, two rolling baskets in the shelf closet, and six little drawers in the nightstands. Each of us has split the space evenly. Both of us are relatively clean too. This is a good thing because we also get spoiled and have a crewmember that makes our beds, vacuums the room, and provides us with fresh towels every day (unless we leave out towels hung up as a signal that they are to be reused – we are trying to be sustainable). But it is good if we keep the place clean and make the work as light as possible for the crew who have been nothing but amazing so far. 

Embarkation!!!

On the morning of the 17th I woke up. It was another beautiful San Diego morning and I had some time before my bus to Ensenada at 10 am. I decided to go for a jog and work out some of the stiffness that occurs when flying and stressing out. My run was about half an hour long. I went from the Sheraton Hotel to the west end of the island and back. It was absolutely beautiful. On the way out I ran by the marina and saw all the pretty boats. Coming back, I was running next to the bay with a view of the downtown skyline. At exactly eight o’clock I heard something and took off my headphones. A bugle was playing reveille across the bay.

At the hotel I got ready, packed everything up, and went out to the bus. I checked in at a table staffed by Semester at Sea, got tags for my bags with my room number on them, and joined a plethora of SAS students, family, and friends. I got onto bus 12 after handing off the checkable luggage. Thus began my journey into Mexico.

It was a pleasant journey. We stopped multiple times for Mexican officials and armed soldiers to come aboard and count how many people were on the bus. Then, near Ensenada, we encountered a dinosaur.

In the middle of the highway was a road-repairing device. It seemed to have the ability to pull up asphalt and also lay down the crushed rock to create new road. This machine was large and had a cab low to the ground above the tank-like locomotion units. Then it had a neck that was about twenty feet long. It extended at a forty-five degree angle and the flattened, much like the head of a dinosaur. Our bus stopped and waited for this mechanic wonder to slowly swing around and pull over to the side of the road. That was my encounter with a dinosaur.  

Driving into Ensenada, the bus went around a turn and suddenly we could see the MV Explorer, one of the fastest passenger ships in the world, sitting in the harbor. As we completed the turn a Carnival Cruise ship dwarfed our beautiful Explorer. In the port, I got off the bus and went through a series of checkpoints. I confirmed that I was not ill with the swine flu, then I turned in my passport, received my SAS I.D.,  and boarded the ship.

San Diego

The plane and I arrived in San Diego a little before 2pm on the 16^th. I got my bags, asked where to find the Sheraton Hotel shuttle, and began walking. One person carrying all that luggage is a little precarious. I created a system that worked though. I put the black duffle on the top of the black roller. The backpack went on my back (of course) and I had one roller in each hand. It worked the best if the two black bags were being pushed in front of me and the red duffle rolled behind.

At the shuttle terminal I saw a man and his daughter who were also waiting. I noticed that their luggage consisted of three carry-on bags and two, large rolling duffels. After a little bit of waiting I had to ask: “what shuttle are you waiting for”

“The Sheraton” replied the father.

“Me too. Are you doing Semester at Sea?”

“I’m not, but my daughter is,” came the reply.

And that was how I met my first semester at sea peer. I learned her name was Monica and she went to a private university near San Francisco.

Once at the hotel I put my bags in the closet and went in search of food. It was already 3:30pm and I hadn’t eaten since 8am that morning. Out side was a beautiful blue sky reflecting in the harbor and a very comfortable temperature of 68 degrees. I found a nice little deli and had a BLT sandwich as I gazed across San Diego Bay.

With food in my belly I was beginning to crash a little. I went back to the hotel and took a nap.

At 6:30 my door opened and my “hotel roomie” entered. She is very fun and friendly. We got along wonderfully. She is from the east coast, so she was jet-lagged and hungry. We met up with a friend she’d made on the plane and went out to dinner. The place we went to (c-level lounge on Harbor Island) was wonderful! I had lobster macaroni and cheese with a glass of Riesling. The wine was a perfect end for the day as I finally began to relax a little.

Take Off!

On Saturday, January 16th I woke up at 6am (half an hour before my alarm went off). I then proceeded to frantically make sure I was completely packed, I had everything, and that my checked bags were under 50lbs. My mom also woke and, being the sweetheart that she is, set out a bagel, cream cheese, and deliciously smoked salmon. Finally, I felt that I was as ready as I was going to get. I sat down to this wonderful breakfast and ate half a bagel with all the toppings. I could barely eat because my stomach was all tight and full of butterflies. I had been extremely nervous for the last 24hrs and that morning was no exception. My dad woke up and I gave him a big hug as I went to the car. My mom got in and she drove me out to the Medford Airport.

At the airport I was very nervous about the bags. I just wanted to see them checked through. The black roller ended up being 1.5lbs over, so I took my notebooks out and put them in the black duffel. Now the black roller was 2lbs under! And my black duffel was pretty heavy for a carry on. It was lucky for me that they didn’t check the weight of my carry on.

As the bags got checked I felt a wave of relief, but I was still very, very nervous. Those of you who have not seen me very nervous, excited, and tired, should be warned that I can get snappy. On the way over toward security, where I was going to hug my mom and say good-bye, I realized that a pocket in my backpack was open and did not have my external hard drive in it. I freaked out a bit, and went through almost my whole backpack. My mom had something to tell me, but I was just freaking out. Then I just sank a little and realized I had left it at home. Finally I could hear my mom, who calmly asked what it was that I forgot. She said that, if she found it at home, she could mail it to me. I was very relieved, and sorry I had snapped at my mom while freaking out.

I got up and gave my mom a big hug. I thanked her for this semester at sea trip, and we said goodbye. I went through security and boarded the plane for San Diego.

Packing and all its wonders

For the last four days I have been through the arduous task of packing for a four month cruise around the world, where I will also be attending a full load of college classes. This calls for tropical sun, rain, and even cold weather clothing. Formal wear, as well as lounge clothes are needed too, not to mention the conservative travel wear for sacred areas. Plus I have to pack notebooks, pens and pencils and four months of toiletries!!! It has been a challenge, but tonight I prevailed and won the battle. I have four bags packed and am ready to go.

Luckily enough, Semester at Sea (SAS) has this very neat service where you can buy your textbooks online at the University of Virginia bookstore, and they will take your books to your cabin on the boat!! This service is wonderful because, due to airline restrictions, I can only take two checked bags of 50 lbs each. I barely made this work as it is. Adding four classes of textbooks would not do.

The Rules:
So here are the rules, guidelines and circumstances I had to consider while packing:

- All snack food and late night snack-type stuff costs mucho dinero on the boat. It is not part of the meals and therefor, not part of my tuition and not part of my plan.
- Out at sea, nights can get cold. I will also be visiting places like Hawaii, Ghana, and Brazil which are warm. And I will be visiting South Africa and China in places that have the possibility of being chili.
- Life on the boat is very casual, much like a very friendly college campus. However, I want to be presentable and respectful of other countries while visiting.
- I found out through a previous SAS traveler that 3 bags of 70 lbs are allowed on the ship. I am unsure of the accuracy of this information but it doesn't really matter because airlines have another restriction. The airline I will be using only allows two checked bags (each for a fee totaling $50). Both of the bags must weigh under 50lbs (otherwise additional fees will be incurred).
- Carry-on items are one personal bag and one carry-on suitcase.
-I plan on shopping and bringing back a lot of items including silk bed sheets (they will feel so nice!). On return I have the same restrictions of two checked bags, each weighing less than 50lbs.
- I am a girl; I over-pack easily, and I like variety and comfort.

The Process:
I first went online (of course) and found a few older packing lists from SAS 2006 and so forth. I read comments about laundry frequency, and how you can slide stuff under the bed if its small enough. Next, I did laundry (I have no intention of packing smelly socks before the trip even begins).

I laid out all the clothes I thought I could possibly desire on the trip. I think I ended up with about 35 tops originally. I also laid out more pants and skirts than were necessary too. I went through and put away many tops. The point here is that I pulled a lot out, and I put a lot back (my parents aren't sure if they believe me on this). Surprisingly enough the clothing part was the easiest and does not take up too much room. It's the toiletry items and food that take up the most space and weight.

Yes, I did say food. As I mentioned before snacks are sold on the ship. When you are the only store, in the middle of the ocean with no competitors at all, prices get jacked way up. From talking to my friend who has done SAS before, I learned that bringing food with you is a great idea.

I did a COSTCO run and ended up with near to 45lbs of food. All of the food is individually packaged and therefor, it is permitted on the ship. I have easy mac, fruit leather, candy bars, fruit chews, pepridge farm cookies and goldfish, beef jerky and more. How did I pack all of this? As I said the clothing was the easiest of the items. My clothes did not even fill one suitcase. I had a full check-able suitcase all ready to be filled with snacks. But first, I had another thing to think about.
I know I am going to buy stuff on the voyage, so i need an extra suitcase. I ended up putting a carry-on suitcase into my large suitcase. I filled the carry-on with the food and stuffed the edges (between the two suitcases) with toiletry items. The ingenious part of my plan is that as the voyage continues I will use my shampoo and conditioner, and I will share and eat these snacks. At the end of the voyage I should have a completely empty large suitcase plus a carry-on to put all my purchased items into! It is a perfect plan... and hopefully I don't prove myself wrong later down the road.

Side Note:
When shopping with my mom, I began picking up little and trying on beanies because nothing else at that store looked appealing. My mom turns to me and smiles. Then she says I should get something that really stands out. She says, "One of my friends would always wear a hot pick baseball cap with flowers on it. Wherever she traveled her group could always find her." My response was quick, "I will be a taller-than-average red-head in Asia; I won't have a problem standing out". I grinned, we both began to crack up, and I was saved from wearing a garish hot pink hat.

Back to packing:
Then I had the toiletries to pack. This is where I get picky. The information from the Semester at Sea program even suggests bringing your preferred hair products and such because there is a good chance it won't be available elsewhere. I am generally not picky about products, but I have had bad experiences so I don't like taking chances, especially when I can't even understand the labels. The trip is four months long! That's a lot of product and I know I am going to have to do some international shopping even with the large bottles I have. I am also going to be in the sun a lot, so for me (red hair, blue eyes, and pale skin) I need lots of sun screen. I also have dry skin and adore good lotions, so there are items I think are really important, that not everyone needs. I am also accustomed to using a small amount of make-up daily. My long hair requires hair ties. All of these things beefed up the amount of toiletries I am taking. And since many of the items are like face wash and shampoo, they are liquid and heavy.

I went through and put away things that are more for comfort than necessity. Finally when clothes, food, and toiletries, (and some pens/pencils and notebooks) were put away or packed I had to weigh each item. My two checked bags and a backpack my wonderful boyfriend, Adam, is letting me borrow. The backpack is my carry-on and it was to hold my important papers, my laptop, my hard-drive, my kindle (which is amazing by the way) and a change of clothes.
On the first weigh-in, the huge red duffel (see picture above) only weighed two pounds over. But the big black suit-case (with all the food) was 17lbs over! My decision to solve this was to make the backpack my personal item, and get a collapsible duffel for the main carry-on.
I took clothes and shoes from the red bag and the back pack, plus one toiletry kit and put it all in the little duffel. Then I moved the heavier toiletry items to the red bag. I also had to make little bags of the snacks and put two in the little duffel, and one in the back pack. Now both large suitcases are 50lbs!!!!
I did it. And I probably disclosed too much information, but if you were bored and had the time, I hope you were entertained with this struggle.

Itinerary

It hasn't been long but I promised an itinerary. Click "itinerary" anywhere in this post and you will see where I am going and how long I will be there. It all starts when I leave Ashland on the morning of January 16th. I fly to San Diego, spend the day soaking up the sun, and hopefully meeting other Semester at Sea (SAS) students who will be my constant companions. On the morning of the 17th I get on a shuttle to the ship, which is docked in Ensenada, Mexico. Next, I board the ship, and once everything is ready, we take off to travel the world (see itinerary).

What I am doing in these countries is another story. I have already scheduled the larger trips for each country but more day trips are certain to come up.

For our first two main destinations of Hawaii and Japan I have outlined what I should be doing (don't worry, more detail for the other countries will follow).

Hawaii:
In Hilo I will be taking a hula class, attending a Lu'Au and hiking through Volcanoes National Park. Then in Honolulu I will visit the Polynesian Cultural Center and go on a snorkeling adventure.

Japan:
In Yokohama I will travel to Kamkura where I will experience and participate in a zen meditation.
Arriving in Kobe, Japan I will have the opportunity to visit Kyoto. Here I will visit Myoshin-ji, one of Kyoto's temples, and I will experience a traditional Japanese tea ceremony.

Itinerary

In The Beginning

In a little less than a week I start my voyage on the MV Explorer to travel around the world! Right now is a time of excitement for what is coming and a time of sadness for what I leave behind. I am definitely more stressed out than usual and, as a result, am just getting over a cold. My goal now is to pack everything, make sure I have all necessary paperwork completed, and to continue breathing (this last part is particularly important). Laundry is in the works and I have suitcases at the ready.

Wish me luck and continue reading this blog as it is where the main story of my fantastic voyage will be recorded.

To come: voyage itinerary