PrePort Meeting

Last night we had our first cultural PrePort meeting, which revolved around St. Petersburg. The cultural preports occur two days before we arrive in port, and the logistics meetings occur the night before. Last night, Professor Dmitry Strovsky ran the meeting to tell us more about his country (a person from our next destination gets on our ship the port before to tell us about their country).

Professor Strovsky was very well informing as well as entertaining. For some, his accent was very tough, but it was pretty good! He exhibited that traditional Russians have a very strong voice, and they are not afraid to talk. This helped us learn a lot more about their culture. In addition to his general actions, he showed us a PowerPoint on his history and points of interest for Russia.

Throughout his presentation, he made a lot of jokes:
"Everybody should be cut off" rather than every "beard" should be cut off, as ordered by Peter.
"This is a very big BUTTTTT" in reference to something of great importance.
He kept calling on a SAS professor to explain architecture, so he would remind him, "okay Michael, it is your turn now!" While Michael was explaining, Professor Strovsky said, "Michael, you look like a czar, get out of the picture!"
He concluded his presentation by saying, "I don't know how wise we are, but at least we are not boring!"

All in all, it was an excellent cultural PrePort meeting. I recommend to go to yours because they really show you not only the history and aspects of the country, but also how the natives interact.

Room Change

So to top of my birthday of chaos, I got a call from Dean Eddie, Dean of Students. He wanted Alaine and myself to come to his office, immediately. So we ventured to his office and told us that we had to move our room from today to September 1st because there was a problem with our pipes...awesome. Our cabin number now is 3155, and we are pretty close to the engine. We were moved to 3165. We tried to find out dorm, and turns out that our new room is the room next to the engine, super. Later on we found out that we had to move EVERYTHING, just in case the pipes were worse than anticipated, that way our possessions didn't get ruined.

When you move your room, have a friend help you...it's crazy how much it speeds the process!!! Believe it or not, being next to the engine is not different from our previous room; I am very thankful for this!! Hopefully our room gets better and we can move back soon!

SAS Packing List

This is a compiled list of things that I packed for my Fall 2013 voyage:

SCHOOL:
(3) pads of lined paper
(1) 5 pack pocket tabs
(2) white outs
(1) pencil case
(1) pack post-it tabs mobile
(2) binder hole punches
(2) packs pencil erasers [12 each pack]
(1) magnetic locker organizer
(1) pair of scissors
(1) black sharpie marker
(6) stacks of post-its
(2) binders
(1) 18 pack black pens
(1) 24 pack colored pens
(1) 5 pack neon sharpies
(2) packs 400 sheet college ruled paper
(1) pack 8 binder label tabs
(16) large binder clips
(1) 315 piece assorted pack of push pins, small binder clips, paper clips, and rubber bands
(3) medium binder clips
(34) small binder clips
(1) planner
(1) student desk calendar

ROOM DECOR:
(3) heavy duty magnets
(1) Rubik's cube
(1) world map --- there is one in your cabin, however everyone signs a map for you at the end of the voyage
(1) 4 pack dry erase markers
(1) door dry erase magnetic board with marker --- to make friends with your cabin neighbors!
(1) closet organizer [6 shelves] --- to organize four months of rolled clothing. You can find a super cheap one at Target
(6) magnetic cork boards
(1) 30 pack of colored magnets
(7) clip magnets
(5) pictures of home and friends
(1) travel room spray
**Notice all of the magnets I packed. Your room walls are magnetic, therefore tape is not allowed. You'll find TONS of things to hang on your wall throughout your voyage.

BATHROOM/MEDS:
(3) hand sanitizers [midnight pomegranate]
(2) packs of tissues [8 each pack]
(1) 12 pack Off Deep Woods [25% deet with West Nile Virus protection]
(1) 15 pack Repel insect wipes [30% deet]
(1) wash cloth
(2) Neosporin tubes
(2) 18 pack tampons
(1) tube Goldbond anti-itch cream
(2) small loofas
(2) 24 pack DayQuil
(1) 8 pack cleansing face towelettes
(1) 18 count Imodium
(1) 100 count band aids [various sizes]
(2) Clean and Clear Morning Burst Face Wash travel size bottles
(1) travel mouth wash
(1) travel aloe vera
(1) travel nail polish remover
(1) 2 pack Colgate wisps
(2) Neutrogena oil free face wash travel bottles
(1) travel Tresemme humidity resistance spray
(1) Banana Boat quick dry sunscreen spray
(1) travel garnier fructise shampoo
(1) travel herbal essences shampoo
(1) 700ml Herbal Essences shampoo
(1) 700ml Herbal Essences conditioner
(125) cotton swabs
(1) Vera Bradley manicure set
(4) packs Dramamine [8 each pack]
(1) malaria prescriptions
(1) travel lotion
(1) travel shower gel
(2) travel conditioners
(4) nail polishes
(3) deodorants
**notice that I packed a lot of travel sized bathroom supplies. You can try to trade these in some of your third world country ports!

LAUNDRY:
(2) Tide to Go pens
(9) Tide hand washing detergent [3 each pack]
(2) 4 foot bungee cords --- for landing my laundry because I could not locate a suction cup clothed line at the time
(1) Bounce lint roller
(1) 4 pack Shout wipe and go stain remover
(1) 120 pack Gain dryer sheets --- put some in your luggage so your clothes smell fresh!
(1) 100 pack clothes pins
(1) travel sewing kit
(1) travel febreeze to go bottle
(1) Downy wrinkle-release spray bottle

GIFTS FOR HOMESTAYS:
(2) 10 packs blank cards
(2) packs of stickers
(3) photo albums [with pictures of my life and where I live]
(6) packs of silly bandz

ELECTRONICS:
(2) iPhone/iPad chargers
(1) portable speakers
(1) iPhone 5
(1) iPad 3
(1) mini flashlight
(1) outlet converter
(1) underwater camera and charger
(1) Sony camera and charger [i didn't bring my other lenses due to flight weight restrictions]
(3) memory cards [32gb memory]
(1) laptop and charger
(2) flash drives

FOOD:
(3) Starbucks Valencia Orange Refreshers mix [5 each pack]
(2) Britta water bottles
(1) 150 count Flintstones vitamins
(2) packages 5 gum [3 packs each package]
(3) Nutrigrain fruit crunch bars [10 each pack]
(3) packs of crasins
**it is a good idea to bring quite a few snacks with you. You may get hungry between dining services or in port. Bringing your own food can save you A TON of unnecessary money in port. Save your money for souvenirs!

CLOTHES:
(2) pairs of jeans
(1) pair of capris
(1) pair of soccer pants
(2) maxi skirts
(3) skirts
(17) pairs of shorts [athletic and everyday]
(1) German soccer team jersey
(42) shirts
(1) long sleeve shirt
(1) sweatshirt --- I planned on buying some SAS ones once I got on board
(10) tank tops
(3) belts
(6) dresses
(1) gown for the Ambassador's Ball
(9) sweaters/cardigans
(2) rompers
(3) pairs of sandals
(1) pair of sneakers
(1) pair of closed shoes
(1) pair of boots
(1) light jacket
(5) scarves
(2) bathing suits
(2) pairs of flannel pjs
(1) pair of folding Ray Bans
(3) sports bras
(19) pairs of underwear
(10) pairs of socks
(1) bandeau top
**I know that I packed a lot of clothes, but I don't like to wear the same thing. You will acquire a bunch of new clothes on your voyage, but if you want to save some money, pack some more. Also, bring a lot of cold clothes. You will be told this a lot: the ship is VERY COLD! Pack sweats and sweatshirts unless you plan on dumping a lot at the school store. The ocean breeze is cold, although you're in countries during their summers.

MISCELLANEOUS:
(1) sleeping bag --- to sleep on deck or in port
(1) umbrella
(1) backpacking backpack --- for overnights because you can't bring checked luggage
(1) Eyewitness Travel London Guide book
(1) waterproof wallet
(1) 15 pack black hair ties
(2) Clorox disinfectant wipes [9 each pack]
(1) pack playing cards
(1) beach towel
(1) Vera Bradley weekender tote --- I packed this bag for souvenir purposes
(1) GCU lion stuffed animal for pictures for Vicarious Voyage
(1) Germany at a Glance book
(5) plastic bags
(1) satchel
(1) small coinbag
(1) small coin purse
(1) knee brace
(1) ankle brace
(10) ziplock bags
(1) pair show back liners [to prevent blisters]
(1) small pillow

I packed all of this in two rolling duffles, one rolling carry on, and a laptop bag. Rolling your clothes helps a lot, so I highly suggest it. Also, try to put your liquids into baggies. I always do, and I am thankful I do. The pressure of the plane cabin sometimes has your liquids leak. For instance, one of my sprays leaked, but it was in a ziplock so nothing was damaged. In addition, you cannot have aerosol containers, so try to look for alternates when dealing with sunscreen, hairspray, and bug spray. Your bug spray is recommended to have 25-30% deet as well.

I would be happy to answer any questions regarding what to pack, what not to pack, etc!

SAS Quotes:Part One

On the MV Explorer, everyone is friendly and has a great sense of humor. I am making a collections of quotes throughout the semester of things many people found hilarious:

1. "Alcohol predisposes sea sickness."
2. "The ship is an incubator for germs." - Caribbean Sea RD. There are many hand sanitizer stations around the ship to prevent colds.
3. "Do it in the aft." - Bering Sea RD. the aft is the back of the ship. If anyone wants to drink or be obnoxious, this is where we were advised to go.
4. "Alcohol, my favorite subject." - Professor
5. "Hey Sarah, you're on a stripper pole and it looks really bad..." - Our Dean when telling us to look out for our friends.
6. "Who let this guy on the ship?" - Alaine in reference to a guy who consistently asked about smoking pot.
7. "There was so many hands in my pockets that's was smiling." - our Academic Dean in reference to being pick-pocketed in Salvador, Brazil.
8. "I'm British, so I'm not the one with the accent." - our captain
9. "He's got 51,000 horses hidden away, which is why the plants look so good." - our captain, in reference to one of his staff and the ships horsepower.
10. "Wedge yourself with someone else while you're soaping yourself in the shower." - many of our advisors and deans suggested this to conserve water...

I'm sure there will be MANY more to come!

Dock Time

So a term that you will hear about often is "dock time". It is such a real thing, so be prepared!! You will learn all about it during orientation, like I did, but I will give you the general gist of it:

Dock time (def): the amount of time you must remain on the ship when you arrive at a port.
You can acquire dock time for many things; it is a very common punishment. To list a few:
1. If you are late getting back on the ship on departure day
2. If you return to the ship intoxicated
3. Many other offenses if the ship staff deems it a fit consequence...

The amount of dock time you receive all depends on what your offense was. There are two types of dock time: regular and medical. Suppose you return to the ship intoxicated. You will receive a medical dock time from the medical team for the amount of time they think it will take you to recover. In addition, you will receive dock time from the deans for being intoxicated for the amount of time they deem fit as well. Both times are cumulative, and they do NOT cancel one another out.

One thing to brighten up the subject is that ANYONE can receive dock time, including teachers and deans (many teachers and deans have received it before!!). Try to be in line to return to the ship an hour and a half early and you will be fathered onto the ship (called: Eddie Time). This means that you proved you were in line rather early to the ship time of departure and if the line is long and you are late getting on the ship, you will not be penalized for it! Also, if you're on a SAS trip and you return late, you will not be penalized as well.

Just avoid getting dock time because it will stink to see everyone leave the ship while you remain in maritime time-out. Be early!!

Life Boat Drills

During your first day (see Embarkation) you have a life boat drill. The whole thing takes about forty minutes to complete. You have to wear long sleeves, pants, closed toe shoes, and something to cover your head (hoodie, hat, scarf, whatever...). You must put your life jacket on you and go to your designated evacuation area (marked on the back of your cabin door). There is a roll call. Once everyone is there, you move to your life boat and get inspected by the captain to make sure that everything is how it should be. This completes the drill.

This drill happens once a month, for a total of three or four times on your voyage. You may not talk during the drill; it's only forty minutes, you can survive.

Embarkation

Embarkation is the day that you go on the MV Explorer for the first time and start your voyage; for me, that was today! Today began a whole new world for me, a world that would last a third of a year.

London and Stonehenge Excursion

Our voyage was to begin in London, and then to transfer to Southampton via a bus from the Hilton London Heathrow. My roommate, Alaine, and I made our way to London two days prior to the embarkation to the MV Explorer on Saturday 24th. I flew from Philadelphia International Airport on the evening if Wednesday the 21st. I arrived in London the morning of the 22nd, around 6:15am. Alaine flew in around noon, so for the time being I caught up on some sleep and found the hotel. By the afternoon of the 22nd, many people from SAS had checked into the hotel. In addition, the students who had just completed the summer voyage had just checked in as well, because many had flights out the next morning. Needless to say, the hotel was filled with SAS enthusiasts.

Alaine, Amy, and I traveled to central London in the mid afternoon. We bought a Tube day pass, because that is truly the most effective way to travel London, and the most cost effective. We took the Tube to Picadilly Circle. We ventured towards Trafalagar Square, then to Buckingham Palace, through St. James Park, towards Westminster Abbey and the Parliament building (Big Ben). Let me just say that I absolutely love the sound of Big Ben's chime. You can hear it quite a bit away too! Many people actually do not know this, but Big Ben is actually leaning. Quite like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, just not as drastically.

We continued on towards the Thames riverside past the Eye towards Millennium Bridge and Shakespeare's Globe Theater. We crossed the bridge and went to St. Paul's cathedral, which is one of the largest churches in the world. At this point we were quite hungry,so we ate at a pub close by. I had a handsome helping of fish and chips, because I felt quite obligated to do so (as I did both times I have been in London). After dinner we made our way back to the hotel. A word of caution to people who are not familiar with the tube, traveling from zone 1 to zone 6 takes give or take an hour, so plan accordingly! Once we returned to the hotel, we checked with the concierge to see if they had relocated one of Alaine's duffles, because they had lost it earlier in the afternoon. Of course, luck be our lady, it was still not found. Therefore, the concierge staff reassured Alaine it would be found by tomorrow.

Like everyday, tomorrow came. They could still not find her duffle, so for the time being, we went along with the plans we had made. Alaine, Amy, and I took the tube to find an Alexander Hotel, where we arranged to be picked up to take a tour of Stonehenge. Unfortunately, our tube had made us late, and we received poor directions twice (among many people saying that they had never heard of such a hotel). None the less, we found the hotel at 8:30, forty minutes after we were supposed to be picked up. I noticed on my iPhone that I had a missed call, however I could not call the number due to the fact that I do not have an international phone plan. So the lovely task of finding a phone booth became our mission. Of course in London phone booths are everywhere, as the stereotypes informed us. However, the stereotypes did not tell us that some phone booths only do direct calls to other phone booths, quite strange, I know. In addition, any stores or hotels of go into will not let you or are unable to let you to use their phones to call someone. Nonetheless, I found a pay phone where I called the tour company and explained our situation they allowed us to take the afternoon tour at 1:45.

In the meantime, it being only 9am, we ventured to King's Cross Station to pay a visit to Platform 9 3/4 (like in Harry Potter). We stood in line and got our pictures taken with our chosen House scarf on, running into the wall; needless to say, I was thoroughly amused! We then trekked to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, which is so stunning, no matter how many times you see it. We then went to the meeting location for our afternoon tour to Stonehenge. It took us nearly three hours to get there due to traffic. Apparently, England is doing a bit of construction in order to create a new visitors building at Stonehenge, and therefore they have to shut down one road to do so.

Stonehenge is quite a spectacle. It really is a wonder of the world that everyone needs to see once in their lifetime. It was so amazing to see something that was made at least four thousand years ago. Here's a fun fact for ya: the post stones (vertical stones) have little semicircles on top so that the lintel stones (horizontal stacked stones) can fit onto them like Legos so that they stay together!

Once we left Stonehenge, it was a little less than a two hour commute back to London, and then the hour Tube ride back to our hotel. The concierge still had not found Alaine's luggage. Eventually, after looking at security footage and talking to several managers, Alaine and Amy were able to go shopping in London at 2am to buy Alaine new clothes. The hotel had given her money in place of her luggage and lost goods. A word of advice, do not leave your luggage unattended, especially if you're staying in the hotel! Also, don't trust a hotel who keeps luggage for people who aren't even checked in! (The Hilton had stored luggage for many SASers who were staying in hostels until embarkation). Try to stay smart with your luggage and keep it with you until otherwise incapable. I know it may be inconvenient to remain at your hotel until you have your belongings in your room; you're in a new city and you want to explore, I get that. Just keep in mind what may happen to you, and consider if it is worth it.

In summation, the first two days of over 100 we quite eventful! I can only imagine what is yet to come!!!

Packages Arriving

Today was very productive when referring to receiving things that I have been oh so patiently waiting on! 

I have had this anxiety attack feeling for the past two weeks over my visas. I had submitted my visas a week before the suggested application date of July 1st and I asked to receive my passport back by August 10th, fair enough. I watched my visas as they were being processed, and they were estimated to be done August 8th once my last visa was being processed. However, it got pushed back to August 13th and then the 14th. May I say that I freaked out quite a bit over this?? Thankfully, I got a text and an emailing notifying me that my visas are complete and have been shipped! I am expecting them home safely tomorrow!

Another package that I have been awaiting is my backpacking backpack. I was undecided between a new Vera Bradley backpack (to replace my current one) or to purchase a legitimate backpack. I decided, because both were the same price, to go with a backpacking backpack. I could fit more in it (like my sleeping bag), it was lightweight, it had two water bottle holders, it was durable, and I could use it for future travel experiences without damaging it. I am very happy with my investment and thrilled to have it arrive today!

Last Minute Details

I only have ten days left, 10. That is less than two weeks! I simply cannot wrap my head around the fact that this is actually happening. I have been planning my Semester at Sea voyage for a year and a half now, and the whole time I was told that it could never happen. Because of this, I simply cannot believe that it is happening! I have spent the last two months nonstop planning for this voyage, and now it is less than two weeks away! It still has not hit me that in less than two weeks, I will not see my friends and family for four months....FOUR MONTHS! That is crazy! The longest I have ever been away from home is 16 days when I went to Europe, but that does not even compare to what I am about to experience.

 I do not think that the reality of the experience I am about to take will hit me until I go through security at the airport. Although I have planned without resting for this trip, it has not hit me that it will actually happen. But for the time being, I have to complete last minute details.

• Inform my banks of my travels -- done
• Buy all necessities for my trip -- done
• Inform all friends and family members of my email account and port addresses -- incomplete
• Receive my passport from Travisa -- incomplete
• Make copies of all important documents -- incomplete
• Make a list of all important phone numbers (bank, credit/debit cards, etc..) -- incomplete
• Packing -- incomplete