Field Programs!

Three weeks from today I will be on an adventure of a lifetime. In order to ensure that I will enjoy every second of it, I have tried to plan something for each port-of-call on my itinerary. Unlike some of the voyagers, I am not planning every single day out. However, I want to make sure that I am familiar with each country, and have at least one thing planned for each so that my time is not wasted there. Many of the countries that I am traveling to, I may not ever get the opportunity to travel to again. I want to ensure that I do not miss out on anything! I have looked at travel books, as well as googled great trips to do in certain countries. This is what I have signed up for so far:

London, England

• I'm planning on buying an express ticket for the London Eye upon arrival 8/22 or 8/23
• Stonehenge morning tour (Premium Tours) 8/23

St. Petersburg, Russia

• Walking tour of St. Petersburg and Hermitage Museum (SAS) 8/29
• Whites Night Canal Cruise (SAS) 8/29 
• I'm planning on taking a night train to Moscow 8/30-8/31

Hamburg, Germany

Antwerp, Belgium

• I'm planning on buying a train ticket for Amsterdam 9/13 and then a train ticket to Brussels 9/14

Le Havre, France

Dublin, Ireland

• Galway Day: Land and Sea (SAS) 9/22
• I'm planning on taking a trip to Blarney Castle 9/23

Lisbon, Portugal

• Alfama Alley Team Scavenger Hunt (SAS) 9/28

Cadiz, Spain

• Gibraltar: A Day on the Rock (SAS) 10/1

Casablanca, Morocco

• Evening with a Moroccan Family (SAS) 10/5

Accra, Ghana

• Service: Morning Star School (SAS) 10/17

Cape Town, South Africa

• Township Homestay--Group A (SAS) 10/26
• I'm also planning on doing an overnight elephant safari 10/28 and shark cage diving 10/29

Buenos Aires, Argentina

• Fiesta Guacha (SAS) 11/14

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

• Prainha Beach (w/ snorkel) (SAS) 11/21
• Amazon Riverboat Express (SAS) 11/22-11/25

Havana, Cuba

• SAS is not posting the field programs for this port until we embark. I have found several excursions outside of SAS if they do not post anything I like. 

Tick Tock...The Countdown...

It is starting to really sink in. I leave for London in 37 days. I keep talking about how excited I am to everyone I come across, but the low number of 37 days, slightly more than a month, is really starting to sink in to my loved ones. It has not occurred to me until now that i will be gone for four months...that is a third of a year, sixteen weeks, one hundred nineteen days...That is an incredibly long duration to be away from those who care for you most. Not only will I not see them, but our correspondences are limited to emails; a few lines here and there saying that I am okay and all is well. I was simple ignorant to the fact that people are generally very concerned about me being gone.

How is everyone coping? --differently.
My mom is the most distressed. She is scared that I will be away for so long and so far away. Being away at college in America is extremely different than being away at college at the sea, around the world. I will have limited communication, no weekends off, as well as no holidays off. But fear not, I'll have my Turkey Day at sea! I am not sure how to comfort her, and I feel guilty for being so excited.

My boyfriend is coping by trying to stay focused on staying busy and working while I am gone. Him and my mom have it tough, especially worrying about me with many independent trips I want to do. I am a thrill seeker, the last thing they want is for me to die while away...

My best friends are thrilled for me. They are so excited, but so sad I cannot see them. They cannot be happier for me, so they want to see me as much as they can before I leave--perfect support that I need!

So 37 days... it may seem like a lifetime, but with all that I still have to do, it is not enough time!!!

My General Education Courses That Are Anything But General!

I planned to study abroad since I graduated from high school. I met with my study abroad adviser my first semester of college, which is when I mapped out what semesters I would take certain courses. I found Semester at Sea, and I looked through the upcoming voyages. I fell in love with the itinerary, and decided to map out my courses so that I could travel on the Fall 2013 voyage, and transfer my credits for courses that I needed to fulfill. I looked at the potential courses for my voyage, and noticed that many sciences and philosophies were offered (http://www.semesteratsea.org/voyages/fall-2013/courses/) I decided that I would take my 2 sciences and 2 philosophies during my Fall 2013 voyage. These are the courses that I chose:

1. BIOL 1559-502 Marine Biology
--Field Lab: Whale watching in Cape Town, South Africa.
--Course Description: http://www.semesteratsea.org/courses/marine-biology-field-lab-in-cape-town/
--This is the course that I am most excited for!! I love animals, and I love the water. In addition, the field lab allows me to whale watch when whales are migrating past the tip of Africa-perfect timing!

2. EVSC 4559 Earth's Changing Climate
--Field Lab: Observe how areas in Morocco are adapting to the climate changes that are occurring.
--Course Description: http://www.semesteratsea.org/courses/climate-change/

3. PHIL 1510 Philosophy of Human Nature
--Field Lab: Two choices! 1:Tour around Dublin, Ireland with places linked to many philosophical thinkers. 2. Go to a museum and a cathedral in Antwerp, Belgium, and link it to the Christian view of afterlife. 
--Course Description: http://www.semesteratsea.org/courses/philosophy-of-human-nature/

4. PHIL 2510 Global Ethics
--Field Lab: Two choices! 1. Experience being toured around by the blind and visit an art museum in Hamburg, Germany. 2. Spend the day at the White Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco.
--Course Description: http://www.semesteratsea.org/courses/global-ethics/