Hawaii

05/09/07

ALOHA!!! We spent our day (yes, only a day…a little less than 14 hours actually) in Honolulu yesterday. The first and most surprising thing I saw was a woman holding a sign about free shuttles to Walmart. The most shocking thing was that she was speaking English. Strange right? I know, we’re back in the States where English is the most prevalent (though not the official might I add) language but it really was strange hearing someone outside of my social bubble speak to us in English.

We went to Burger in Paradise and had the biggest cheeseburgers ever! The best thing was the tap water though!!! We haven’t had tap water in three months and they have been scaring us the entire time so we have even ran from ice cubes and washed vegetables. The beach was right across the street so after lunch, we headed over and stayed there for the rest of the day. It was a relaxing break from studying for our upcoming finals. They begin tomorrow. The water was perfect and clear as could be. It rained about once an hour but it was my favorite kind of rain, the sunny kind. I have the goofiest tan line ever.

The most difficult thing was the conversion rate. Back to the U.S. dollar. It’s about 100 pennies to the U.S. dollar, crazy I know! It was ridiculously expensive. I can’t believe I’m home in a week. I can’t wait to see your smiling faces.
In contrast to the rest of the ports, there was no poverty, no deformities, no begging, no hungry children playing in the streets. Instead, I saw beautiful beaches, surfers, obesity, tap water so clean we could drink it, gorgeously tanned bodies, palm trees, ABC stores – about two per street block – and American cars equipped with steering wheels on the left.

For dinner we went to a Mexican Restaurant. We wanted to go to a Luau but it was going to cost nearly fifty dollars so we passed. The food was great! Closest thing we’ve had to Mexican food in three months.

I found myself fighting the urge to bow with a thank you, a Japanese custom, or give a thumbs up to a car that allows us to cross. I think the ‘thumbs up’ is the most universal sign of approval; at least it has been for the ports we’ve visited. So when I come home and bow to you all instead of saying thank you or give you kisses on both cheeks as a greeting to signify my “singleness” or try to bargain a cab ride from $50 to $5 or eat with my hands food I should be eating with a fork, just bare with me…I’ll come around and be “Americanized” with time…but hopefully not too soon ;)

I’m very sad to leave the people I’ve met on the ship. They are hilarious and crack me up on a daily basis. I don’t know what I’m going to do now that I won’t see them every single day, morning and night. I wish I could bring them all home so you could meet them all but I have plenty of video for you to watch. Granted it probably won’t be as entertaining as I find it but it will give you a face and person to the names I’ll say.

I hope everything is well and I will see you all sooooo soon I can’t even believe it! Love you guys!

Japan!

JAPAN!!!! I love Japan, it was absolutely AMAZING! I think this would be the port that I would choose to come back to…or South Africa, or Vietnam, or Malaysia…no, actually Hong Kong…hopefully I can start making my millions as soon as I graduate because I plan to go back to all these places!


We woke up early to welcome the land of the rising sun to only welcome fog and cold weather. I guess health regulations are really strict in Japan so everyone on the ship had to take their temperatures several times before disembarking. We had the opportunity to see a few Japanese people play the drums. It was great! They played the drums like crazy for like 10 minutes straight while incorporating their entire bodies to make the sounds and rhythms but hardly broke a sweat.
We followed our usual routine and just explored the city on the first day. I had to buy shoes for the Ambassador’s Ball (a ship formal) so we went to the mall. Luckily I found some that were on sale. Japan is extremely expensive. But I guess only in comparison to everywhere we’ve been. Prices are actually comparable to U.S. prices. For lunch we went to a 350 restaurant. We didn’t know what that meant at the time but it meant that everything on the menu cost 350 Yen which is about 3 or 4 dollars. The conversion is 116 Yen to 1 dollar. Val and I ordered sushi to share and for the first time, I actually enjoyed sushi! I’ve had it a few times but basically forced myself to eat it. I really liked it this time, hopefully it doesn’t become an expensive habit of mine.

The fashion in Japan is ridiculous (in a good way…kinda like bad not bad but bad meaning good…hehe). The women wear lots of shorts and heels with knee highs. I’ll try to bring it back to Colorado but I have a feeling I’ll be looked at like I’m crazy, especially since I’m not a very fashionable person to begin with. I felt like a slob in jeans, flip flops, and a hoodie. Everyone was dressed for the day like they would be for the club. They had full makeup and hair. And by hair, I mean HAIR! It was huge, curled, teased, crimped, “extensioned”, everything possible. They were gorgeous. The guys went for the fashionable grunge look.

The hip hop scene in Japan is just as huge as the hair. American hip hop was played in a majority of the stores we went in, which got me in a dancin kinda mood. We went back to the ship and got ready to go out. We had to take the subway/train everywhere we went in Japan which costs at least 200 yen each way so we spent quite a bit on travel alone. Taxis were much more expensive.

After wandering the streets for a little while (partly because we were lost), we went to a club named 2nd Chance. It was pretty tiny and filled with SAS students. There were a few crew members there as well but per SAS regulations, we are not able to associate with them too much. So other than hello, we had to both keep our distance. I understand the necessity to maintain a professional atmosphere especially while on board but I hate that we can’t talk to the crew outside of the ship. It makes it feel like their only there for our convenience which I guess in some aspects is the truth. I just feel like it takes their humanity and leaves them only as services when we aren’t able to associate with them. It’s hard to not form bonds with people that you see nearly everyday for 3 months, whether it’s in a classroom with another student or in the cafeteria with a crew member.

The rest of the night was fun. We went to another club that was just down the street and danced there for a little bit. A few people were hungry so we decided to leave the club and head to McDonalds. Even though I was craving Chubby’s – hahah!

I had a Japanese homestay the next day. My host mother met me on the ship at 11:00 am. There were many families there to meet students who they welcomed to their home to learn about Japanese culture. They are from the program HIPPO which emphasizes the importance of foreign language acquisition. They did their greetings in several languages including German, English, Korean, and Spanish. Children as young as four were learning at least two other languages. It’s strange to see how much other countries stress foreign languages so much when in the States it’s only a couple years in high school that is the minimum, and most likely the maximum, that one will take. One of the host mothers that was in my group spoke 6 languages and another man spoke 11. Embarrassingly, I am hardly proficient in English ;)

That afternoon, the two host mothers, another student, a professor and I went to a Saki museum and learned the traditional methods of making rice wine. The atmosphere was very relaxing with traditional Japanese architecture and a garden. We had to take our shoes off at every door entrance.

After the museum we went to a Japanese restaurant. I had pork and fried rice with some soup with extra slippery noodles. It was really good! I wasn’t able to finish it though, as hard as I tried. Even though my chopstick skills are on point (compared to where they were before), they still aren’t very good. The women finished every grain of rice in their bowl before I even finished half of mine. We were taking the same number of bites but I had a quarter of the food in each bite. It’s considered polite to slurp noodles here. To serve food, we are supposed to use the opposite side of the chopsticks (the one not in our mouths).

I stayed with the Nagata family. The mother’s name was Tami and she was a stay at home mother of two: Komiko a 13 year old daughter and Mark, 15 and very into professional baseball. Her husband traveled very frequently for work. The family dynamic was very interesting to observe. They had an arranged marriage and he seemed to be learning just as much about her past as I was when I asked questions. She studied abroad in England for a year and a half and worked at the airport until she was married and began raising a family. It was interesting to compare our first port, Puerto Rico, with this one. At the welcome reception in Puerto Rico, students were dancing with professors, greeting each other with kisses, and hugging. Here, it was much different. I felt like a hand shake was even forced in some instances. In pictures with the family, I’m the only one smiling with teeth. The others have a half smile with hands at their sides. The mother seemed more traditional in family lifestyle than the father. We took our shoes off at every door entrance and basically only wore shoes in the hallways. There were a different pair of shoes at nearly every door. Some at the back door, some at the bathroom door, kitchen and bedrooms. My room was beautiful. It had a tatami (not sure on the spelling) bed, which is mats on the floor with a comforter. The walls were like what I would expect with the sliding panes of wood and screen and I had a little garden just outside my room. The bed was VERY comfortable. She made a wonderful dinner for me and her family. It was broccoli and shrimp tempura with some sort of dumplings and other fried foods. I had some sort of cold soup, I’m not sure what it’s called. We went to a bakery earlier that day and had the desserts that I chose. I took a bath that night for the first time in ages! Showers aren’t very common in Japan and the entire family shares the same bath water. Since I was a guest, I was able to bathe first. I was relieved to go first as I’m not used to this custom. I don’t even like sharing a bathroom with my brothers ;) ha, just kidding. I miss them like crazy. Everyone is getting sick of me saying “I miss my bruders!”. I can’t wait to get home and fight with them. I wonder how long it will take for Tommy to intentionally get on my nerves. I bet about 15 minutes. I really look forward to one of their half hugs/ pat on the back.

The next morning we had a potluck with several other HIPPO members. At first my host mother told me we were having a potpourri with her friends. She confused the two words. I was able to try on a kimono. It was really tight and made me have perfect posture! I can’t wait to show everyone pictures! My camera is acting up and taking really blurry pictures for some reason. I was also able to learn a few chords on a Japanese harp. It was a great experience. We went to a Buddhist temple and rang the prayer bell and got fortunes. I had one of the only bad fortunes :( I guess not too bad, it just said that I’m experiencing bad fortune at the moment but it would get better with time and was better for the future, which could be relevant in some aspects of my life I guess. I guess the future is the best thing to look forward to so it is a good fortune after all!

We went to the train station and bid our host mothers farewell and headed back toward Kobe.

The next morning Greg, Michael, Celina, Val, Sam, Dan, my roommate Kristin and I went to Osaka to meet our friend Bob from CU who is doing an English teaching program. We got off at the OCAT stop. I could have spent all day at that subway. There were a couple young hip hop dancers who were amazing. I stood no chance at all. Even that little Missy Elliot dancer would be embarrassed dancing next to these girls. I have video of course. Later that night, the whole plaza was filled with dancers. Each style had their own corner. The break dancers could spin on their head for minutes on end and do things I never would have imagined possible. One of the young girls was still there several hours after we had initially saw her still dancing as hard as ever. She was dancing with some dudes about twice her age and was holdin her own! Like I said, Hip Hop was HUGE here, even more than in Kobe.

We went to a baseball game that afternoon. It was the Buffaloes (how ironic) vs. the Hawks. Val and I bought jerseys to be extra supportive of the Buffs :). They ended up losing but it was a great time. The subway stopped running at 11:00 and started again at 5 am so we decided to just stay the night in Osaka at our friend’s house. We went to a 280 restaurant (similar to the 350) then to a bar/club/pool hall. After dancing to a few songs, we headed toward Bob’s apartment. They sang karaoke for a while but I passed out on the couch. Next thing I knew, the sun was up and we were on our way to catch the first train. We were all a little out of it since it was so early and we hadn’t gotten much sleep, some of us none. It took us about an hour and 3 transfers to get home…or to the ship…which I have been calling home. Strange.

After napping for a few hours, we were up and on our way again. We basically did the same thing as the first day. We had a little bit of confusions and were lost in translation while trying to eat but everything worked out perfectly. We bought these delicious ice cream snacks. I’ve been dreaming about them ever since. We left Japan that night :( our last real port!!! I really can’t believe it. I am truly on the home stretch now and it has flown by. I can’t wait to see you all. I feel like I’ve missed so much. I bet Ari is walking all over the place, probably even running. Sarai has started taking steps I’m sure, I saw her lil pony tail the other day. Joey is probably speaking. Haha, just kidding but I’m sure he’s army crawling. Everyone should have received post cards by now…hopefully at least. If not, maybe your neighbor has it ;).

CRAVINGS:
Posole
Green chili
CHOCOLATE MILK
Chic fil a
Tamales
Nana’s beans
Steak
Family
Friends

I’ve missed some birthdays: Randy, happy birthday handsome! You’re getting old! I hope school is going well for you, I miss you! Auntie Boita! Daniela – super belated I know. I’m pretty sure I already told my Nina happy birthday but in case not, HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Grandpa Martinez. David and Julian. Auntie Jobobadeetendoten. Brianne’s is soon, unless I’ve missed it also. I’m not sure of today’s date. Randi, my babe. I’m sure I’m missing some. Boo hiss. Miss you all but I’ll see you soon.

China!!! (Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Beijing)

04/23/07

Hello!!! I’ll start by saying if I have ever in my life said I was tired, I didn’t mean it in the least bit. Traveling through China has left me absolutely exhausted! Like I said before, we decided to travel independently. In comparison to the trips planned through Semester at Sea, doing it independently is a quarter of the cost, zero percent of the convenience, and a thousand times the adventure! The group I traveled with was Michael, Celina, Greg, Sam from Denver, Dan from…can’t remember…, Nick from Pittsburgh, and Jay from LA – hey that rhymes ;).

I woke up bright and early to welcome the Hong Kong port and I’m glad I did. The skyline of skyscrapers seemed never-ending. The air seemed extra salty for some reason. Maybe it’s because I’m sick again. To be honest, I think I have only been “healthy” for about a once consecutive week and that was right after and during Malaysia. The rest of the time I’ve been congested and had a sore throat but I do my best to not complain because that’s one of my pet peeves I’ve noticed. Especially while we’re encountering so many people that actually have reasons to complain. But again, I digress. Anyways, the sight was amazing and I couldn’t wait to get off the ship. The ship was only docked in Hong Kong for a little over 24 hours, which is a main reason why I decided to travel independently and meet the ship in Qingdao. If we would have stayed on the ship, we would have had to leave the following evening, sail for two days, dock in Qingdao for a little more than a day, then leave for Japan. Since we’re already well aware of the experience of traveling by sea, we decided to do it by land which consisted of a one hour train to Shenzhen, a 24 hour sleeper train to Beijing, 2 nights in Beijing, then a 9 hour sleeper train to Qingdao (at least that was planned…you’ll see what happened in a few paragraphs).

The first thing we heard the morning we docked in Hong Kong was the tragedy at Virginia Tech. Our Dean addressed the news during what would normally be our diplomatic briefing. Archbishop Desmund Tutu also spoke about it. The overall atmosphere was very depressed. It was all over the news in Hong Kong as well but the number of deaths seemed to changed according to the source. Additionally, CNN was playing on a local station but it was in Cantonese and the headings along the bottom of the screen were blurred out. I’m not sure if that had to do with the censorship in China or not.

Celina and Val went their separate ways so they could finish up their souvenir shopping and Michael, Greg and I caught the ferry to another island to walk around. We ended up meeting up with our friends Zeke, Jared, Shaan from Brooklyn, Pittsburgh, and Brooklyn respectively. Greg and I were in foul moods at the beginning of the day and even more so after we went to the internet café but our moods turned around soon thereafter. We went to a Chinese restaurant and I was, admittedly, a little apprehensive and scared to try “real” Chinese food because I have heard stories that it is not what we are used to or what is available as Chinese food in the States. Zeke and I decided to share something that was called ribs and an order of fried rice. Thank goodness we both didn’t order the ribs which was what we were going to do because the picture looked pretty good. I don’t really know how to describe what was served to us. They were about the size of cheetos and had the same crunch but didn’t have a bone or anything that resembled meat. I think they had something similar to barbecue sauce them. The rice was really good though. My chopstick skills have suddenly and drastically improved. I’m not sure why, maybe just because of the environment. Michael had some sort of cashew and spicy chicken dish; it was really good. Shaan had sweet and sour chicken which was very different from the States but still really good.

The rest of the day we just explored the city and went to the women’s market. I’m not sure why it was called that, maybe we weren’t even in the right place because the communication between us and our taxi driver was very limited. It was an outdoor market with a lot of cool clothes for guys. For the first time, they (the guys) had more of an option than I did. Usually there are a lot of clothes and items geared toward females and not so much for guys but this time it was the opposite. We started heading back toward the ship around 7:30 because there is a light show every night at 8:00. We took the subway back just in time for the show. It was really cool, the entire city lit up with music playing in the background.

Even though we had to wake up early the next morning to catch our 10:00 train to Shenzhen, we HAD to go out for our only night in Hong Kong ;). So we went back to the ship and got ready to leave at 9:00. Celina and Val got back a little later than us so they got ready and planned on meeting us at Dragon Eye. I didn’t bring many going out clothes so I ended up making a shirt out of a scarf I bought in India. I thought it was cute and an innovative idea that night but now that I look back at pictures, I wish I would have just worn a t-shirt or something. Haha. We went to 7-11 first to have a couple drinks because there was a rumor that the drinks were ridiculously expensive (like 13 US dollars each). After spending about 30 minutes there, we (Michael, Greg, Sam, Zeke, Shaan, Nick, Chingy, Jared and I) caught the ferry over to the city. Zeke, Shaan and Greg thought it would be a great idea to put on an impromptu concert for the city goers so they sang Usher acapella accompanied by great dance moves. Michael took great video of it! We got to Dragon Eye and met Val and Celina but for some reason, they wouldn’t allow our party in even though a huge group of semester at sea students went in just seconds before us. This is the third time this has happened to us and I find it hard to leave it to coincidence that the blondies get in without question but we’re left outside wondering why we can’t get it…The same thing happened in Malaysia. We were dressed according to the dress code and were willing to pay the cover charge but weren’t allowed in for some reason. Then Greg was told “No bargaining” when he was trying to order a drink and basically refused service. Coincidence? Hmm…I wonder. Despite that, I still had a WONDERFUL time even though we basically just hung out at 7-11 and in the streets of Hong Kong. We ended up getting home at 3 or 4 am and had to wake up and leave by 8:00 to leave for the train station.

We got to the train station without too much difficulty and were able to buy our tickets to Shenzhen with minimal confusion. Once in the train station in Shenzhen the confusion began. We had to go through about three security checks and were in a little bit of a rush to make the 1:00 train to Beijing but if we missed that one, there was another one at 3:00 that we could get on. It took us about an hour to find the place we were supposed to buy tickets. We waited in a line for about 15 to find out that it was the wrong line and we had to find the other ticket booth that was upstairs. We finally found the booth but both tickets were sold out. We had to get tickets for the next day at 11:00 am and it was an extra 6 hours being 30 hours long! And a hard sleeper!

After buying those tickets we had to find a place to stay in Shenzhen so we wandered around and found a guy who said he would take us to a hotel that would cost around 5 US dollars each. We followed him for a pretty long walk into an ally next to what looked like an elementary school. We went up to the room which had three medium sized beds and a couch. We figured that we could share beds and make do with it but the cost suddenly tripled. We were able to bargain him down a little but we decided to go find another place for a little bit cheaper. We walked around for a few more minutes and the same guy told us he would take us to a different hotel that was the original price he told us so we followed him again. The lobby of this hotel was really fancy but the room only had two beds and wooden floors so we would have had to get at least two rooms. So, again, the price doubled. We were getting tired of walking back and forth between hotels so we decided to get lunch then continue our search. Half of us went to McDonalds and the other half went to a Chinese restaurant. Greg and I shared fried rice, Celina had a moodle dish (it may have just been noodle spelled incorrectly), and I can’t remember what Nick had. All of it was really good though and there was no duck cartilage surprise like Jazmin had warned us about. The second we stepped outside of this restaurant, the same man was there telling us to follow him to different hotels for cheap prices but by that time we had lost faith in his low costs. Sam and Dan had ventured while we were eating and found a hotel in a really good area (near lots of city life) for a cheap price, I think it was around six US dollars. We ended up getting two rooms with three beds each. We took a quick nap and walked around the city to look for an internet café but could only find a Starbuck’s so we used their free wifi. There were a lot of people with physical deformities on the streets. It looked like muscular dystrophy but I’m not sure what exactly it is. Some even looked like what Agent Orange victims looked like.

Later that night we went to a Mexican restaurant that served Indian food. I order chicken enchiladas that was definitely not chicken enchiladas but it still tasted alright. I don’t even know why we decided to eat there but it was an interesting experience although kind of pricy in comparison to our other meals. After dinner, we went to a bar where we were the only customers but we got VIP service. Ladies had free drinks so Celina, Jay and I enjoyed a couple drinks that were well covered and paid for after all the guys ordered their beer. The owner brought us a fruit tray that was really fancy. We didn’t stay too late because we had to wake up for our 30 hour train ride – bleh! But after returning to the hotel we decided to play cards so we didn’t end up going to sleep until about 3:00 am anyways.

We woke up at 7:00 (without much sleep again) and went to the train station. We saw our friends Roberto and Mary (from Puerto Rico and Texas) and tried to get some breakfast for everyone. Sam, Greg, Nick, and I walked around to look for food while the rest of the group stayed with our bags. We were gone for about 10 minutes and when we finally found a place, I went back to tell them what was on the menu but everyone was boarding except our group. Apparently they were about to close the gate so I ran to get the other guys. We had to run through the train station and barely made it on the train.

The second we stepped onto the train, we all started sweating. There was no air circulation whatsoever and our rooms were a quarter of the size of our cabins on the ship but with six beds. It was hard to imagine being in such a small place for 30 hours but it actually went by really quickly. We played lots of card games and had good conversations. The most entertaining was a card game called camps. Good times! They turned the lights off on us at 10 pm so we laid down soon after but didn’t go to sleep for a while. I woke up the next morning to the stench of cigarette smoke and the sound of slurping noodles. Not a pleasant awakening. We taught one of the train workers how to play a card game. She caught on surprisingly fast. It was hard to believe that she caught on so quickly because we didn’t even speak the same language but were able to teach her through hand gestures. She even won a game!

The 30 hours passed quicker than we all expected. The moment we stepped off the train, we immediately tried to book our tickets from Beijing to Qingdao; we were afraid that those would be sold out also and we would be stranded in Beijing. NOBODY spoke English in this train station. We went to just about every counter possible. At one point we thought they were sold out again. A couple of us went upstairs to try to find the right ticket booth and finally found one that said “English Speaking” so we stood in line. The rest of the signs were in Chinese characters so there were no words that we could even attempt to translate. I anticipated it being difficult to communicate but this was no joke! Even the English speaking counter had VERY little English. Basically, all of China was a game of charades. We were going through this train station with about 20-30 extra pounds on our backs, which were all twisted from the lack of space in our hard sleepers. The tickets we were trying to buy were sold out and the only ones available were for seats rather than beds. The tickets only cost $12 US but I would have gladly paid the extra money to be able to lie down.

After buying the tickets, we caught the number 2 bus to our hostel: Jade Youth Hostel. It was much nicer than I imagined a hostel to be. They were set up in rooms with eight beds each but they didn’t have a complete room available so we had to split up four in one room and four in the other. Celina, Jay, Michael, and Greg were in one room and the other room was me, Nick, Sam, and Dan. They kind of reminded me of the dorms. There was a communal bathroom and shower with five stalls. We got ready and headed to dinner at a Chinese restaurant that was about a block away. Again, the food was really good. I had spicy sautéed chicken and fried rice and was very satisfied. I guess we just luckily picked good restaurants. After dinner we went to a street lined with bars. One of our roommates in the hostel was from England and had been traveling for nearly a year. He went to dinner and out with us that night. He was very interesting to talk to and to see his perceptions of Americans. He was so surprised that we could walk into a bar and dance without drinking. He said that he wasn’t used to that; where he comes from, people don’t usually dance and if they do, it’s only after several drinks. We ended up going home around 3 or 4 am (i know, irresponsible since we had to wake up at 6:30 to leave by 7 for the Great Wall but when’s the next time we can go out in Beijing?). I decided to use the internet café at the hostel instead of going to sleep right away. I ended up being on the internet for way longer than I expected and didn’t go to my room until it was time to wake everyone up. Everyone was rushing around trying to pack and get ready in the short amount of time. So I left to see the Great Wall of China without a wink of sleep. Luckily, it was two hours away so I was able to get a little bit of a nap time before. It was pretty cold when we got there. This was the first time we had been cold since the day we left. All the other ports have been extremely hot.

The wall was amazing! We took a cable car up instead of hiking since we were limited on time. We only had our driver for six hours including commute time. After we walked around for a while, we took an alpine slide down (I think that’s what they’re called). We accidentally kept rear ending each other. Jay didn’t pull up her break in time and gave Michael whiplash! I think Greg ran into Nick so hard that he actually fell off his cart and into the slide. I’m a responsible driver and didn’t hit anyone ;)

After the Great Wall, we went to Tiananmen Square and to the Forbidden City which wasn’t too far from our hostel. Our train left at 11:00 pm that night so we didn’t book a room for the next night since we were going to leave. We didn’t have a bed to take a nap in so we just hung out in the hotel lobby until we had to leave for a train. I took a short nap in a wicker chair and think I woke up more tired than I was before. We got to the train station in plenty of time to have run-around-confusion time. It turns out that a lot of SAS students were on our same train. One couple actually bought tickets to Mongolia by accident and didn’t realize till just a few minutes before they boarded.

I was sooo exhausted and not looking forward to this 9 hour train ride with no bed. Our seats didn’t even recline a little bit. Fortunately, we were all sitting together. Jay, Nick, and I sat next to a man from Qingdao that had been studying English for 10 years. He was very interesting to talk to and welcomed all sorts of questions. For Jay’s HIV class, she asked him if he thought AIDS was a problem in China. He replied that he didn’t think it was a problem at all and if anyone had a problem it was Chinese women and they got it from American women. I wasn’t too sure how to interpret this answer but I think he meant that they are influenced by our promiscuous behavior as depicted through television. He said that he had never met any American women and that the only thing he knew about them was what he saw on TV. He also said that he thought that American women were beautiful because they had big eyes and his girlfriend likewise. He emphasized big eyes when describing beauty and said that skin color played no part in physical beauty. He was able to communicate pretty well but sometimes we would have difficulty understanding each other. He taught us how to say happy birthday since it was Nick’s 21st at midnight. I’ve already forgotten :(.

After talking for a little while longer, we decided to try and get some sleep since we hadn’t had very much the past few nights. We all tried just about every position possible. At one point, all of us had our heads on the tiny table we shared. Another time, I was sleeping on Jay’s shoulder. Once, Jay had her had on my back which was bent because my head was on the table. Another time, I had my forehead on Nick’s knee who was across from me. None of which were very comfortable and we didn’t get much sleep again.

We got into Qingdao at 6:45 am and went straight to the port. It took us about an hour to find the ship though, nobody spoke English so we were just walking around. I doubted that we were even near the ocean because it was very industrial all around us. The only reason we stayed there is because there was a sign that said “Welcome to Qingdao Port”. We walked past train tracks, construction, iron rods, and huge tractors to finally see the ship in the distance. We had breakfast on the ship and took a nap until noon. Michael, Celina, Val, Jay and I went to the market which ended up being an indoor mall complete with a Wal Mart. We had Pizza Hut for lunch which was like a fancy restaurant. There was what looked like a Wedding exhibition going on with photographers and cakes and decorations but then there was Mickey and Minnie mouse there so I’m not quite sure what it was.

I’m getting really sad that the voyage is nearing the end. I’m excited to see everyone back at home but I don’t want it to end just quite yet.

geez, my roommate!

gosh, my roommate is such a lush! and she never cleans the room!!!

haha, just kidding!!! she told me that her family found my blog so i just wanted to say hello and nice to *meet* you. she:s a great girl and a wonderful roommate! you raised her well.

p.s. i:m still having difficulty with this keyboard.

hello family and friends and all those who care! i just wanted to apologize for the lack of communication. i tried to post a blog but i guess it didn:t show up. i:m now trying to figure out the japanese keyboard. it:s a little difficult.

i ran out of internet minutes but once i:m able to, i will catch up on all the blogs. hope all is　ウェklfdfdfいsｓほぺ　ほぺI messed it upaa again…sorry. I have to type I Microsoft word. Talk to you soon!

Vietnam part II

04/15/07

Hello! I ran out of internet minutes so the only time I’m able to get online is while we are in port at an internet café so I apologize for the delayed/limited responses and postings.

Some LOGISTICS:
Currency: Vietnamese Dong
Conversion: 16.455 per US dollar
Port: Ho Chi Minh City
Religion: Predominately Buddhism
Clothing: It’s rare to see a Vietnamese person in shorts. Pants is the norm for both men and women. Our taxi driver busted into laughter when he saw an American student without a shirt and in swim trunks walking along side the road.
Random fact: Speaking loudly in any situation, especially by women, is considered rude.
Transportation:Walking, motorbike, or taxi. It costs 32,000 Vietnamese Dong (about $2) to get anywhere. Although the taxi drivers would always try to charge us A LOT more. One time they even tried to charge us $25 for a less than 10 minute driver. He explained to us that it was very far and he had to charge more. Little did he know, we had been there the day before and knew the short distance.
Where the heck is Val in all my stories???: Her sister met her in Vietnam so she traveled all over the place and according to her stories, she had a GREAT time!
We missed her :(


The rest of the time spent in Vietnam was just as great as the first couple days. We went to the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City. It was emotionally trying to go through and made me feel shameful many times. The pictures were gruesome and very difficult to look at and imagine the lifestyle during and following the Vietnam War. I think the most difficult aspect was seeing those affected by Agent Orange and land mines because they both remain a pervasive problem today. Statistically, there are four deaths/injuries per day caused by land mines (according to my Global Public Health class). Many babies, born generations after the war, are forced to live with detrimental deformities caused by Agent Orange. I think it should be a requirement for all SAS students to visit this museum while in port. Unfortunately, it is not. Learning more and more about the Vietnam War, especially from the “other side of the coin”, makes me sad and ashamed about how little I knew, and know, about our history. And even the stuff I do know is very one-sided. I could also see many parallels between the Vietnam War and our current war with a shift from communism to terrorism. A few SAS students complained that the museum was too one-sided and unfairly represented both Americans and Vietnamese people with a bias. I guess they haven’t been to too many heroic American museums…or maybe they’ve been to too many.

We also went to the Cu Chi Tunnels on the last day. They are an underground system used to hide from U.S. soldiers. They are sooo small and difficult to maneuver through even though they were enlarged by a foot all around. Celina, Michael and I crept our way through the first tunnel. It wasn’t too complicated; we just had to crouch down and slowly walk our way through. It was almost impossible to see and the stuffy air suffocated us. Celina backed out half way through and took the “emergency” exit but Michael and I finished the entire tunnel. After that, we had some hot green tea (which wasn’t too refreshing in the stifling air) and something they called tapioca. I’m not too sure how closely related it is to the pudding but it tasted nothing like that and we dipped it in something that looked and tasted like crushed peanuts with salt and sugar. After a few minutes, our guide asked if we would like to go through a tunnel that hasn’t been enlarged. I was a little reluctant but we decided to do it. It was tough! We had to crawl through by hands and knees almost the entire way and it was 10x as hot as the first. At the last 20 feet of the tunnel, a bat came flying toward my head so I screamed a little and made Michael go first. Luckily, we had just passed a drop which allowed me to back up or else it would have been impossible to move around each other. Michael didn’t believe me and thought it was a leaf. He went first and scared it away, thank goodness. I was terrified going through the rest of the tunnel; i kept imagining hundreds of bats flying out from one of the side tunnels and surrounding us and laying eggs in my hair or whatever the rumor is…But we got out safe and sound, drenched in sweat, brown from dirt, and lookin an overall hot mess!

We also went to the Cao Dai Temple which is an indigenous religion that attempts to create an ideal religion through the fusion of the secular and religious philosophies of the East and West. We went during one of their daily practices which was very interesting but a little awkward because we were in there watching them pray and sing and chant, a time which I would imagine would be sacred.

After the temple, we went to a Vietnamese soldier cemetery. It was really sad. Not nearly as nicely kept as Ft. Logan. Actually, not even comparable but it was still beautiful. Especially the large tombs. I feel like I can’t really explain anything and I keep deleting sentences because I don’t really know how to describe everything I’m seeing and experiencing. But I’ll continue to try my best.

Next stop: China! I’m planning to travel independently (meaning not through Semester at Sea, NOT meaning alone) from Hong Kong to Beijing to Qingdao.

Vietnam

04/10/07

First, Happy Easter!!! Or belated Easter I guess. I went to church on board with Archbishop Desmund Tutu. This time the whole student body was invited for a large service. The dinner was better than usual. We had turkey and ham and the usual pasta and potatoes. I’ve been trying to eat as much as possible because I’m losing weight for some reason. I bought a ceramic painted egg in India and Celina and I were going to hide it from each other and have a hunt but we never got around to it. I felt more homesick than usual because I knew you all were together eating great food and visiting. I missed the Quiche this year :(

GOOOOOD MORNING VIETNAM!!! Geez, this voyage is really flying by quickly! I can’t believe that I only have a few more ports left. Anywhooooo…I guess I’ll just start by saying I love Vietnam. Surprising right? I betcha woulda never guessed…haha ;)

First, Happy Easter!!! Or belated Easter I guess. I went to church on board with Archbishop Desmund Tutu. This time the whole student body was invited for a large service. The dinner was better than usual. We had turkey and ham and the usual pasta and potatoes. I’ve been trying to eat as much as possible because I’m losing weight for some reason. I bought a ceramic painted egg in India and Celina and I were going to hide it from each other and have a hunt but we never got around to it. I felt more homesick than usual because I knew you all were together eating great food and visiting. I missed the Quiche this year :(

We got in a couple days ago and just moments after stepping into port, we found a taxi driver who ended up taking us around town all day. The first stop we made was to a tailor to make custom-made suits for Michael and Greg. Celina and I ended up getting dresses as well. I’m not sure why but I guess a custom-made dress will always come in handy and plus it was cheap. We have to go pick them up tomorrow so we’ll see how they turn out.

While Michael and Greg were measured for their suits, Celina and I walked around and looked at different shops. We met a guy from England who seemed really excited to meet some American females. He was interesting to talk to. Everyone is very friendly here and I think I’ve been smiled at more here than any other port. The traffic is INSANE! It’s a close race between India and Vietnam on which is crazier. There are a lot of motorcycles and in order to cross we’re supposed to slowly walk across the street even when 50 are speeding in our direction. They swerve around us. I took video of it and if I can figure out how to post it, I will. I sound look a goof ball but the fear and shaking voice are not staged whatsoever. We had pho for lunch and it was amazing! It costs about a dollar for a large portion so that makes it even better. We went to an indoor market and the people there were just as aggressive as they were in India. A woman had me and Celina trapped in her shop and wouldn’t let us out until we bought something. We didn’t even have to bargain, she did all the work. I really didn’t want what she was trying to sell me so I kept saying “No thank you” and trying to leaving but she kept going down lower and lower until eventually she made it from $40 US dollars to $10 so I had to take her up on her offer.

Penang and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

04/08/07

I loooove Malaysia!!! We arrived in Penang on the 2^nd of April and we’re actually docked in the middle of the ocean. We had to take our lifeboats to shore. Needless to say, the disembarkation process took a pretty long time. The SAS warned us that we would be in a Muslim nation so we should pay extra attention to what we wore so we wouldn’t offend anyone. As in the past few ports, I made sure to cover my knees and shoulders. Michael, Sam, Greg and I decided to go to Kuala Lumpur for the 4 days we were there; our flight left that same night. The first day, we went to the mall which was about six levels high and a few blocks wide. Celina and Val were in HEAVEN. I honestly can’t remember the last time I saw two happier girls. There were a lot of shoes stores, all of them seemed to have clearance sales. All the stores in the mall were geared to a younger crowd. I can’t remember seeing anything that anyone over the age of 30 (I hope I don’t offend anyone…) should wear. It was like a whole mall of Forever 21. We ate at a restaurant in the mall. I had broccoli soup, chicken teriyaki, and some sort of dessert. It was like a coke gelatin – not one of my favorites. There were about three ladies at the top of each elevator who would throw paper advertisements and brochures of their salons so by the time we got to the top, I had a whole notebook of these flyers. Somehow I got separated from Michael, Sam, and Greg. We had to leave the mall around 6:00 to make sure we got back to the ship and packed in time to make it to our 10:30 flight. I couldn’t find them so made my way back to the ship alone in hopes that they were already at the ship packed and ready to go. It took me about an hour and a half to get on board because of the little boat, which only ran every half hour, we had to use to get on board. They weren’t on board so I just packed and hope they’d make the next boat or the following. Eight o’clock came and went and once 9:00 approached with no signs of any of the fellas, I was sure that we missed our flight and starting to get worried about them. Luckily, the guys made it there just barely before 9. We left as soon as possible but had to account for the 30 – 40 minute taxi ride to the airport and that the check-in counter closes 40 minutes prior to departure so we were literally pushing it to the minute. We had the taxi driver speed as fast as he could (about 40 mph on the highway) to the airport and made it there just seconds before they left the check-in counter. The flight only lasted about 40 minutes. It felt like the captain came on, told us to buckle our seatbelts, and no later than the belt sign turned off it was turned right back on for landing. The walls of the airplane started smoking which really scared me but I guess it was just some sort of humidifier for the plane. After the plane ride, we had to catch an hour long bus to Kuala Lumpur, then a short taxi ride to our hotel, Hotel Equatorial.

The next morning we woke up relatively early and walked around the city with Dan and Maria, who met us at our hotel. Kuala Lumpur is basically the New York City of Malaysia. It’s very busy and there are a lot of sky scrapers. The first thing I noticed was how clean it is, but that may have to do with the fact that we just left India. We were starving so we searched for Malaysian food. For some reason, we found the most sketch restaurant in the whole city to eat at. It was in the basement of some building and was buffet style in a tiny kitchen. The selection was fried fish heads, fried piranhas, eel, some sort of beef that looked like paste in a brown sauce, pasta salad, white rice, and an assortment of sauces. It was interesting…I’m not sure if it was typical Malaysian food or not but trying it the first day kind of scared me away. Everyone at that restaurant and in the streets was staring at me for some reason. Initially I thought I was showing too much skin because the religion is predominately Muslim but I had a lot more clothes on than the majority of the female population. I’m not sure why they were staring but even Greg noticed. I felt really awkward and uncomfortable. After lunch we went to the mall which was even bigger than the one in Penang and a lot fancier. Most of the stores I didn’t even dare go into (Prada, Gucci, Versace), actually most of them but it was still fun to walk around. As the night fell, the entire city lit up. Greg said it looked like a fruit snack…whatever that means. Weirdo. We went to a couple that were all either next door or within a few blocks of our hotel. The drinks were ridiculously priced and there were a lot of crazy SAS kids but it was still a great time.

The next day we did pretty much the same thing – walked around the city. It felt like it was 100 degrees out! The Grandprix was coming to Malaysia so there were a lot of promotional events and billboards all over the city. We missed it by just one day and missed Kanye West in concert by a few days.

I loved Malaysia! Probably one of my favorite ports, although I saw that about each one and mean it wholeheartedly. I’d like to go back one day and according to the experiences we had in Penang, Kuala Lumpur, and the stories from Cameron Highlands, where Celina and Val went, there is still much to see in Malaysia, as in the rest of the countries we have visited. But our experiences in the different cities were so different from each other that I would like to go visit other places to see how different, or similar, they are.

Pictures!!!

India

http://colorado.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2142606&l=6adca&id=10205694

Mauritius:

http://colorado.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2141030&l=a97b1&id=10205694

South Africa:

http://colorado.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2136848&l=e22a7&id=10205694

Bahamas/Puerto Rico/"Brazil":

http://colorado.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2135276&l=8d865&id=10205694

India

03/22

Hello! The Sunday service with Archbishop Desmund Tutu was amazing! It was a very informal gathering in the room of our academic dean. Only three students were invited to attend: Michael, Greg, and I. Desmund’s wife was able to join us after South Africa so she has been on board ever since. It’s really refreshing to see a couple that has been married for so long who genuinely appreciates each other’s company. In one of his lectures, he talked about how no standing ovation can compare to the approval and appreciation of his wife after he gives a speech. According to him, not until the ride home when his wife says “good job”, does he get a sense of relief and pride. Anyhoooo…The service began at 7:30 am so we woke up bright and early, in comparison to the 9:15 rising for my 9:20 Global Studies class, to get ready for the service. Unfortunately, I didn’t bring anything nice to wear. In fact, I didn’t bring much to wear period. I have lots of sweats and pajamas and a limited amount of ‘daytime clothes’. But that’s besides the point. So Michael, Greg and I went upstairs in our Sunday’s finest for the services and met with the Academic Dean and his family as well as the family of the Student Affairs Dean. Archbishop Tutu xeroxed a couple copies of the passages and readings so we could follow along. We were given an opportunity to share what we are thankful for and to ask for prayers. Archbishop Tutu’s wife prayed for their cousin’s family who had just died two days prior from AIDS. I was sad to see her mourning her cousin’s death especially because just a week or two ago, Archbishop Tutu shared with us during a lecture that he had a cousin who is (was) currently suffering from AIDS. We received the body and blood of Christ from Archbishop Tutu and gave each other peace. After the services had ended Archbishop Tutu noticed his wife’s shoes were untied. As he bent to tie them, he said “Greg, when you find a wife…this is what you have to look forward to”. He has a very funny sense of humor. We were returning the chairs we had borrowed to the different rooms and when Archbishop Tutu lifted his chair to take next door, the Academic Dean assured him that he would take it. To which he jokingly replied, “But then I won’t be able to show off my humility”.

03/30

I don’t really know how to start this time…I guess I’ll just start by saying that India is indescribable in many ways. For the first time since I’ve been gone, I found myself completely out of my comfort zone. Everything I experienced was brand new and the only thing I found that reminded me of home was a pizza hut was VERY different in many ways. All the other ports had several things that I could relate to whether it be the language, the style, the food, or whatever else. However, despite all the differences I saw, I still could find relation in the people. As different as our lifestyles may be, I could still see humanity in the faces of every person I encountered, which is probably the reason why I found it so difficult to see so many people begging and to turn down children who were selling anything they could find. India is demanding. I definitely don’t think everyone should go there or would be able to handle everything that there is to be seen on every corner. It demands emotional strength, physical strength, courage, a strong stomach, an open mind, and so much more. To be honest, I never thought I had all of those and still don’t think I do, but I did surprise myself. Celina and Val have surprised me the most though. They both have been wearing their brave shoes this whole trip and I am so proud of them! I have felt about every emotion possible while in India. I felt guilty, ignorant, appreciative, shameful, selfish, generous, cheated, joyful, and uncomfortable beyond belief. I know this will be kind of hard to understand for many, probably most, because I don’t think I will articulate it well but, as always, I will do my best. I don’t think I’ll be able to describe it well because I’m still unsure how I currently feel and don’t really know how to sort everything that I saw properly. With that said, here is my trip in India:

INDIA
Currency = Rupee; conversion = 44:1
Cities visited: Chennai, Delhi, Agra
By means of: Plane, train, bus, walking, and RICKSHAW
Important facts: India is the most populous country in the world, A LOT of pollution, Hindu and Muslim are the two most common religions, the number 9 cause of death worldwide is traffic accidents. I understand why that number is so high after leaving India.

When we first arrived in Chennai, India, it took us about 3 or 4 hours to disembark because we had to go through customs and passport checks and the alike. We had to carry our custom forms with us everywhere we went because they check tourists often. The females had to wear pants or capris that were well below the knees and tops that covered at least our shoulders. But, of course, there were some idiot females leaving in shorts and tight tank tops. Actually now that I think about it, it was the same female that got robbed in Brazil. Figures. The second I stepped off the ship I could feel the change in the air. It was thick, humid and pungent. The port was very different from the rest we have visited. There was nothing really around besides some train tracks and a couple shops that charged quadruple the price of outside shops. We had to walk for about 5 minutes to catch a rickshaw, which is a tiny cart-like automobile with three wheels and a thin tin roof. The driver sits centered in the front and all the passengers pile into a small seat in the back. There was a gate where about 50 drivers were waiting. Michael, Celina, Val and I were each attacked by 5 drivers who were all trying to take us different directions. It was disorienting but we all got in one rickshaw with a driver who agreed to take us to the market for 60 Rupees (the equivalent to $1.50ish. We pulled up to the big fancy building and the only thing the driver says is “You don’t like, don’t buy”. We were all a little confused but assuming that we were at the market, Michael pays the driver. So we go inside to find beautiful merchandise but the cheapest item was about $40, clearly out of our price range. Realizing this is definitely not the market, we leave the store to find that all the rickshaw drivers outside are waiting for their customers who are inside. It took us about 10 minutes to find a new driver who agreed to take us to the market. Or so we thought. I guess the drivers make some sort of commission for the customers they bring to the store in addition to a new uniform per every 3 visits they make. He kept saying “ok last one, don’t like don’t buy”. We would go in for a few minutes, come out empty handed, and be promised that we were going to the market next. Then we’d pull up to a similar shop and go through the same exact thing. “Ok, last one. Promise, next market”. This happened about 6 times. Eventually he we finally got to an outdoor market with reasonable prices. Actually they were exceptional prices. We bought a few things that would normally go for $30 in the States for $2. After walking around and shopping for a little bit we went to a restaurant called the Taj. The food was absolutely delicious. I never knew I liked Indian food having never had it before but I’d have to say it’s one of my favorites. Usually it’s eaten with hands but we used utensils since they were on our table. I guess we should have eaten with our hands instead though. We paid the driver about 150x what he expected and anticipated so he left a happy man. After we ate, we had to find a new driver who tried to do the same “last shop last shop” game with us but I had to get stern and tell him to take us directly to the ship because we had to leave for a welcome reception at the University in an hour. They all made fun of me because I was so stern…All I said was “if we get out and look at this shop, we’re going straight to the ship after. Not after two stops, not after three. STRAIGHT TO THE SHIP!” haha. So we went into the shop that we had already been in 3 times that day and looked around at the same stuff AGAIN. The store owner was even like “what the hell…why are these kids back again”.

Later that evening we went to the University for a Welcome Reception. There were several ladies doing henna so I got one. Some of them were really beautiful but mine just looked like a bunch of varicose veins on my arm and hand. She also did a tulip-looking thing on my hand that looked like I got it done in North Denver. I think she must have been tired of doing so many because she finished mine in like 3 seconds flat. Some other girls on the ship have really intricate designs. There was also a woman dancing traditional Indian dances. She said that it was the only dance that incorporates facial expressions, hand movements, and feet movements to depict a story. She was really good. She danced for like 2 hours without even looking tired. After the reception, we went back to the ship and packed for our trip to Deli and Agra.

The flight left at 7 am so we had to wake up at 4 am to leave for the airport. There were about 100 students going on the trip so we definitely caused a ruckus in the airport. Actually, our interport lecturers told us that it was all over the news that we were getting into town that day so everyone was expecting us. I slept the entire flight of course. The flight attendants had the most beautiful saris. A sari is the typical dress of Indian women. It kind of looks like a long piece of material that is wrapped around their bodies and hangs on their shoulders. We arrived in Delhi and had an early lunch at a hotel. Food was great! After lunch we went to the train station and waited for our train that was almost 2 hours late. We saw two young boys, about 9 or 10 years old, get in a fist fight because they were both trying to haggle the same person. The train ride was interesting. My friend Ivan and I were the only one in our group (Michael, Celina, and Val were in a separate group) and we had to sit far from all the other students. The train was kind of like being in jail for 4 hours, the amount of time it takes to get to Agra. The seats were hard and uncomfortable and we had seats that were against the wall so we had no cushioning on our backs. Rather, we had barred windows. The people sitting near us were somewhat friendly. We didn’t have a conversation with them or anything but at least they smiled at us. There were a lot of people begging making their rounds on the train. There were a lot of physically disabled people also. One man who looked like he had either Polio or muscular dystrophy pulled himself across the train with his hand out in hopes for donations. Another man begging for money had some sort of skin disorder. It looked like it was falling off. There were some men dressed in Saris and lots of make up who came on asking for money. One of them started yelling at Ivan for some reason. Both of us were unsure why. The friendly people got off about an hour before we got there and a group of men took their spot. It was clear that they did not like us. They talked about us a lot in their language and stared at me pretty much the entire time. They could have just been curious about us but that’s not the vibe I got from them. We finally got to Agra and headed for our bus. On the way there, we were bombarded by beggers. There were a lot of people with some sort of physical disability.

We finally got to the hotel and went to bed as early as possible because we had to wake up at 5 am to head to the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal is a tomb built by Mughal Experor Shah Jahan in memory of his queen Mumtaz Mahal. He must have really loved her! We met up with Michael, Celina and Val but only for a few minutes because our trip was leaving to Fatehpur Sikri, a deserted city. It was really pretty but kind of ironic that it was deserted because of water scarcity but the lawns were green and there were lots of flowers. After this city, we went to Agra Fort, which had beautiful architecture but the most interesting thing was the way people tried to take advantage of tourists and foreigners, as in every country. People would come up to Ivan and me and just start telling us information. Then they wouldn’t leave us alone and would follow us everywhere telling us information about everything we looked at. If we looked at a building, they would say “oh yes, that building is where the Muslim women stayed”. If we looked at a wall, he would say “oh yes, the design is very complex and used to have precious stones in it”. If we looked at the sky, he would say “oh yes, it is blue”. He wasn’t nearly as bad as the others we encountered on our way to the Mosque which was separate from the Fort. We were surrounded by about 5 kids yelling information at us about the Mosque and telling us we were going the wrong way. They would say “I am not a guide, it is my duty to tell you, I am a student, no money, don’t pay me Rupees”. Then at the end they would ask for American dollars. We went back to the Taj Mahal for sunset. I wrote a sign to take a picture with and send home but it got confiscated after a few shots. I guess it’s against the rules to have signs or something but they let me through security with it. The rest of them were taken at the entrance. We stayed in Agra this night in a FANCY hotel that was REALLY expensive. We went out that night to a club that was in our hotel lobby to celebrate Michael’s birthday and accidentally spent waaay to much on drinks. We didn’t drink much; the drinks were just very expensive. For instance, one long island cost $11. Ridiculous, I know. It was a really fun night though.

The next morning we went on a tour of the city and to the Ghandi museum. It was really cool. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time there. That’s one thing that I got pretty annoyed with; we spent about an hour or more driving around the city and when we got to the museum, the guide was like “ok, meet you at the bus in 20 minutes”. We spent a little more time than that but I felt like we needed an hour or more just to see everything.

The train to the next hotel was much nicer than the first. We had our own seats, similar to an airplane. It was also an express train so took about 2.5 hours instead of 4.5 but it seemed like even less because Ivan and I had really good conversations the entire way. I thought only 45 minutes had passed when we arrived.

We went to a textile store that sold really expensive rugs. A couple students bought some for $800 - $1200. Must be nice. The tour guides that took us there get a cut of the money the store makes so I’m sure they were happy they had some rich students on board.

We made our way back to Chennai. We went to Spencer’s Mall the next morning. All the stores had hand-made signs displayed on their windows saying “VERY VERY special price for MV Explorer”. I had a conversation with a shop owner who said that the business is not worth the hype and that he wishes that the ship just went somewhere else instead of Chennai. He said that everyone expects this big economy boosts but a lot of the students leave to go to other cities or they expect to get nice stuff for a dime. He said that India is generally a cheap country but it’s offending to have people saying they won’t spend more than a dollar on certain items. Also, the guides and rickshaw drivers are taking the students to other way more expensive stores because they get commission on sales so few people ever make it to his shop.

I have never been more scared than I was when we tried to cross the street. Like I said, traffic accidents is a huge problem. There are no lanes and bikes, rickshaws, people, buses all share the street. We had to time it perfectly to cross the street and just when it seemed like there was a clear spot, 15 motorcycles would speed by. One time we were able to cross to the median but when we got there it the lanes going the opposite direction were speeding by. We were stuck there for a good 10 minutes. I haven’t prayed that much in a long time. We were definitely a few Americans looking pretty foolish stuck in the middle of the street with cars, and rickshaws speeding by in opposite directions. The median was about a foot and a half wide so we didn’t have much leeway and had to balance with shaking knees. Everyone honks ALL THE TIME. There isn’t 5 seconds that pass of ‘clear air’. It’s always filled with commotion, honks, yelling, back fires, breaks squealing. I take all the saints I was given, a rosary, and a scapular everywhere I go and I was praying to all of them. God willing, we finally made it across in one piece!

We went to a market where there were no tourists or students. I’m not sure what it was called or how we even got there or why the rickshaw driver took us there but I’m glad we went. There were a lot of vegetable and fruit stands. A lot of babies and toddlers wandering the streets that were probably more capable of living on their own than I am. There were also a lot of women with babies begging for food. I heard a horror story that many women who give birth to stillborns keep the baby to carry around and beg with. I think we saw one.

Something I did like was the affection shared between men. Homosexuality is illegal in India but the affection between men and women separately was admirable. It was refreshing to see people interact with each other without fear of being accused of being gay. Men would hold hands or would affectionately rest their arms on their friends should while walking. In the States, I think men can barely hug their fathers without being afraid of acting gay. Women also did the same.

I guess that’s all for now…We get to Malaysia in a couple days. I hope all is well. Miss you tons!

Port Louis, Mauritius

03/13

Hello! So I caught the bug that has been making its rounds :( I’m basically quarantined to my room in an attempt to stop the spread. Ironically, I avoided it when it was passing through Greg, Michael, Celina, and Val. They’re all healthy as horses now and I feel like poop! At first it was just cold symptoms: lost my voice, stuffy nose/head. But now it feels like the flu – aches, fever, freezing then stifling. I hope I get better by the time we get to Mauritius which gives me 2 days. I also got a bunch of bites while we were on the Safari so hopefully I don’t have malaria! Haha, just kidding. Our guide said the altitude was too high for anopheles mosquitoes and I’ve been taking my meds regularly. The bites look pretty gross though, not like mosquito bites. I’ll let you know how it goes…

03/17

We’re leaving Mauritius in a few minutes and will be on our way to India! I had never heard of Mauritius before as I’m sure is the case for many of you unless you’re a world geography wiz. It’s a tiny island right off the eastern coast of Madagascar. The Dutch first “claimed” the land but later abandoned then it was colonized by the British but not till after French settlers brought Indians over as indentured servants. After slavery was abolished in1835, a wave of South Asians immigrated to the island. The language is French and Creole and the most common religion is Hindu. Needless to say, the culture is very unique to the island, or so it seems but who knows…I’ve come to learn that I don’t know much. The currency is the Rupee and conversion is 33 Rupees per $1 so it’s getting a little bit more tricky but still not too difficult.

So the days leading to Mauritius were not so fun. I was sick. The boat was ROCKY! The worst it has been yet. In fact, I just learned that we barely escaped a cyclone. They didn’t tell us that till later probably so we wouldn’t freak out. They bolted our port hole closed again so we couldn’t see much out of our windows. Eating dinner was pretty fun. Trying to balance our plates and walk to our tables was our amusement of the day. Going up and down the stairs is even more fun! I would feel weightless the first few steps like I defied gravity then the next few steps I felt like I was 500 pounds! Walking through the halls was pretty crazy too; we would be running for a few feet then completely stuck in our footsteps once the ship’s weight shifted. It’s kind of hard to explain…I hope I’m doing it well. I don’t understand why students go to the pub nights to drink. I stagger enough and have difficulty focusing when I’m as sober as Desmund. Speaking of my homie Desmund, I have been invited to a service that he is holding tomorrow morning so I’m really excited for that! I’m not sure how appropriate picture taking will be…I’m assuming it won’t be so I’ll just write about it ;)

The first day of Mauritius was too short but still great. Because of the rocky waters our arrival was delayed by six hours so we didn’t get off the ship till about 1:00 in the afternoon. It is VERY hot here. We went to the Market and just walked around. Again, not what I expected. I say that every time I write – “not what I expected”. It reminded me of what I would expect for India. The fabric here is beautiful! I didn’t buy much though because I anticipate buying stuff like in India so hopefully it’ll be like what I expect this time or else I missed out on a lot of really cool stuff! After the market Celina, Michael, and I went to China Town for lunch. We went to a fairly big restaurant but we were the only customers which was kind of strange. Since we couldn’t understand the menu we just pointed at stuff in hopes for the best. Michael got pork, Celina had beef, and I luckily chose chicken. We ate for about $2 each! And good portions too! Later that night we met up with Valerie and Greg, who had been on a service project that day, to go to dinner and a couple bars. Val said that she was wearing tennis shoes because there were a lot of roaches out but I paid her no mind, sprayed on some deet, and was on my way. I should have taken her advice! There were cockroaches everywhere and they were nuts! It was ridiculous and probably really entertaining for the Taxi drivers to watch the American students jump and run from the bugs.

The next morning I went with Greg and our friend Jamie from Philadelphia to Grand Baei Beach. It took about 45 minutes to get there. It was beautiful and very hot and sunny.

Today was another beach day since Michael, Val and Celina missed out on the first day. I went with Greg, Val, Celina, Michael, our friend Jay from L.A. and Jennifer from Georgia. It wasn’t as sunny today but still just as much fun. We took the 21 Rupee bus instead of the 700 Rupee (about 30 bucks) taxi ride.

We’ve only been here for 3 days and we’re already leaving. It’ll be 7 days till we’re in Chennai, India, our next port. I’m getting more homesick now I hate to admit and I can’t tell if my “home sick wall”, the wall I keep my pictures on, makes it better or worse. I think a little bit of both. I’ll be home sooner than I know it and we’ll have a big shindig!!!! Michael and I want to have our graduation parties together so maybe it could be a “happy graduation/welcome home” party. I hope all is well with everyone.

Birthdays that I’ve missed:

Happy Birthday to my cousin Lawrence (you’re a teenager now woo hoo!), Bianca Prieto (I miss you vieja), my Nina Iris, Auntie Berta (soon to miss your bday), and Ricky even though I’m pretty sure he doesn’t even read this…If I forgot your birthday, I apologize! I can’t even keep track of the days of the week on this ship!

South Africa!

03/09

This is going to be a looooong one so be ready! South Africa is absolutely amazing!!! I have to admit that this port was not one that I was not especially excited for but not for any particular reason. It just has never been a destination that I had a desire to visit but at the end of 6 days I was wishing I could spend 6 more and planning to come back in 3 years. I made the mistake of not writing the entire time I was in port so I’m going to do my best to remember every detail and try to describe it as vividly as I experienced it though I make no promises. I doubt that I’ll be able to convey my emotions/experience/thought process appropriately but I promise my best efforts.

I’ll start with the days leading to our arrival in South Africa. As many of you know, Archbishop Desmund Tutu is traveling with us throughout the voyage as a guest lecturer. I had the privilege of having him lecture for 3 of my classes and it was remarkable. I always see him roaming the halls and eating in the cafeteria so the star struck feeling has diminished quite a bit but hearing him speak in such a small venue really was an astounding experience. I’m not sure if he ever has anything prepared but he just enters the rooms and speaks from the heart without a paper in hand and with no notes to refer but he never skips a beat and stays on topic. Just his presence lightens the room. I wish I could somehow attach a sound bite of his laugh! It’s the most contagious thing I’ve ever heard!!! He is always smiling and laughing about what seems like an inside joke but can very easily transition into serious topics. He is a very knowledgeable and wise man. He spoke about gender roles, love, relationships, Apartheid, the search for success, racism, inequality and much more.

Ship life other than that is ok…the food is getting worse and worse as the days go by but it’s tolerable. The classes are going ok also…I’m not doing as well as I anticipated but, admittedly, I’m not too worried about it. I know that sounds bad but everything I’m learning inside and outside of the classroom cannot be measured with grades. Don’t get me wrong, I’m taking care of business but I’m not beating myself up like I have in the past. I’m getting just barely better than average (Bs and one 78) which would have made me nuts at CU but I refuse to let anything bother me too much. I do stay on task a lot more than other students though! I get kinda frustrated when all I do is read to stay on top of my work and see all these foolios on deck 7 working on their tans from sunup to sundown. But then I don’t feel too bad because I’ll be enjoying my fresh, wrinkle-free skin in 30 years and they’ll be sad they spent 100 days baking in the sun! haha ;)

LOGISITICS:
- South Africa has 11 official languages (including English) with sign language being the most recently added
- Currency = the Rand, exchange rate is 7:1
- Population = diverse but not integrated (yes, there are white South Africans)
- Apartheid ended in ‘94
- We were docked in Cape Town, my Safari was in Mthothlmusa near Mozembique

Ok…now on to the port time!

At the advise of many we woke up bright and early (actually so early it wasn’t even bright yet) to see Table Mountain as we pulled into port. It was definitely worth the sleep to see such a sight. The sun was just peaking over Table Mountain as we pulled up and it was beautiful! We docked at Victoria Wharf which is definitely not was I expected South Africa to be like. I’m not sure what I expected really but it wasn’t a grand mall with expensive retail stores and gourmet dining. I felt like I was some place in California or something. There were a lot of fancy restaurants and shops that I definitely couldn’t afford.

The first day in South Africa we went to Robben Island, an island which housed the prison where political prisoners were sent during apartheid. It was really interesting and I wish we had another hour or two for the museum. Our tour guide was an ex- political prisoner and had spent 8 years of his life there. It was strange to think that this jail wasn’t used too long ago and the events that took place there are rather recent, apartheid just ended in April of ’94. We saw Nelson Mandela’s cell. As we were leaving the museum, our guide made sure to let us know that he did not want us to remember “Robben Island as a place of suffering and pain but rather of triumph of the human spirit”. It’s interesting to imagine someone who had spent 8 years confined to such a small place to not have feelings of anger and remorse but rather hopeful for future progress.

The second day we met up with Jazmin and Mando’s friend, Gerald. It was a GREAT day! We went to visit the “other” side of South Africa aside from the glamorous mall and luxurious Waterfront Resort that was literally right dockside the ship. We visited several townships which definitely weren’t as diverse as had been described to us by the interport student from University of Cape Town in South Africa. She told us that everyone on the ship could pass as South African and the population was very similar to The States in that there are people of every shade and ethnicity. She said that everyone got along and that there were no divisions. It was very disheartening that she was sponsored through SAS to come speak to us when I later realized that everything she said was untrue. Superficially I think she is right. At the mall I saw a very diverse community that seemed to have mutual respect for one another and I couldn’t tell who was South African and who was a tourist. I guess we just had to travel half an hour north to see such distinct division and immense disparity. Another thing that I don’t like about the ship is they keep us very scared but I guess it’s for our own good. They tell us to not go anywhere at night and be extremely cautious of our surroundings and basically don’t trust anyone which is good advise – essentially to have common sense as anyone should when traveling internationally. But they do it to an extent where students protect their pockets and go into defense mode every time anyone glances at them. But I digress. Anyways, the community in these townships were 100% different than the one surrounding our ship. It’s hard to believe that some of the shacks composed of tin and wood were home to many. And I guess I’ve had the luxury of never having to imagine living in those conditions. The only white people that could be found for miles were Val, Celina and I. We were considered white and Michael was considered colored according to Gerald. Greg was considered black or possibly colored because of his hair. In South Africa, colored refers to a multi racial person or someone with lighter skin tone and is completely acceptable terminology. Colored Africans are generally treated better than Black Africans. It definitely was not the diverse community working together as was described by the interport student as there were even divisions between black and colored Africans. We visited the gas station where Amy Biehl, an American student that was stoned to death, was killed and placed rocks at her memorial. It’s custom here to place rocks out of respect and memoriam as we do with flowers in the States. There were a lot of advertisements promoting AIDS awareness and prevention. We probably saw dozens within a couple miles. Gerald found it strange that sex education is such a taboo in the states and that people prefer abstinence only education. He didn’t understand why anyone would teach that model. We had some amazing traditional food, I wish I knew how to spell it but it was a feat to attempt just to say it. It had a click sound in it…Mn(click)osha…We went to a local bar in one of the townships and shared a few beers with a few of Gerald’s friends. They were very friendly and willing to share their opinions on several topics and interested in hearing our stories as well. We met the best pop/locker ever! He could lock every joint in his body including all his fingers! We then went to a butchery named Maphindi’s and it was heaven! Remember the best steak I ever had in Puerto Rico? Well, that did not even compare to this! We chose the meat we wanted (steak, lamb, sausage, pork) and they cooked it in a fire oven and brought it out to us on a big cookie sheet and nothing else. No plates or silverware. We tore it up! Then we went to Gerlad’s house and saw all his advertisements. I had no idea he was a model and basically a super star! He is in Smirnoff ads and Shell Oil cut outs and even on the box of Frosted Flakes. After that we went to another township bar. It was pretty full but people were quick to offer us some seats at their table. We had great conversations with them. We were the first Americans that many of them had met. Overall the experience was priceless and we all felt so blessed in many ways. Blessed to have the opportunity through networks (thanks sooo much Jaz and Mando!), blessed to have met the friends we did (we exchanged emails), blessed to have our lives and a warm bed to go home to, just blessed in many many aspects! At the end of the day we were sad that we had to leave for four days for our Safari, we wished we could stay in Cape Town longer.

The next day we woke up at 5 am to leave for our Safari. We had to take an airplane to Johannesburg, then another flight to Mthlothomusa, then a bus to Bongani, then a safari truck to get to our lodge. It was a mission. Our lodge was gorgeous! I was expecting a tiny room with 2 beds and a bathroom but it was an entire villa or perhaps bungalow would be a little bit better of a description. It had one room with two beds, two bathrooms, a living room and bar. We would wake up every morning at 5 am, have tea and biscuits (biscuits are cookies here), then go on a game drive to find some animals, come back for breakfast at 9, eat lunch at 1, then meet up again for another game drive at 4, and dinner around 8. We saw lots of animals! Again, not something I was expecting. I really don’t know what I’m expecting but everything is the opposite…I thought I would be driving in terrain straight off the Lion King. Open space, some trees, lots of sand and tall grass. It was mountainous was a lot of dense trees and bushes. We drove around in land rovers that could get over ANYTHING. I loooooved it! We saw giraffes, rhinos, elephants, water buffalo, impalas, ngalas, lions, hippos, and a crocodile. They were really close too and we didn’t have a roof on our car! There were a lot of thorn bushes so we had to duck and dodge them. It was kinda scary but I had so much fun. I never realized how much I loved elephants, they’re my favorite now! We ate a fruit called Amarula right off the ground. It was really good! It’s about the size of a golf ball and a yellowish peach color. They have an alcohol made of it that I wish I could bring back so you guys could try it but alcohol is not allowed on the ship :(.

We ate at a restaurant Ocean Basket that had all sorts of sea food for really cheap. Fish and chips was 25 Rand which about $3. We made a lot of friends in South Africa and exchanged email addresses on many accounts. Everyone is so friendly!

We’re on our way to Mauritius now and should be there in 6 days. It’s VERY VERY VERY rocky right now! They even bolted our windows shut for some reason. My room is on the lowest floor possible so maybe it’s rocking under water or something. My floor is kinda like a dungeon, I feel like the lower class on Titanic! Hhaha, but I don’t mind it because it’s a lot quieter down here and a lot less rocking. Celina and Val are on the highest possible floor and all of their stuff crashes to the floor all the time and it sounds like the boat engine is kept in their closet!

I miss you guys a lot! I enjoy reading your emails! I’ll be back in about 2 months! LOVE YAS!

Salvador, Brazil

02/19

We’re in Salvador, Brazil! It’s a really cool city, I didn’t really know what to expect other than a favelas like in the movie City of God. Our Global Studies class teaches us about each country we’re about to visit during the days that we’re on our way there so it’s interesting to see the course work in person. Salvador has the highest African population in all of Brazil. There is also this elevator that takes us from the lower city to the upper city. We were told not to ride it in small groups so I haven’t been on it yet. Unfortunately, I won’t have many pictures because we were also warned that it will be likely that we will be pick pocketed or robbed if we have much on us so we’ve been leaving our cameras at home :(. Three girls were actually robbed at knife-point the first day we got here. They took everything! I’ll make sure to post this AFTER we leave so you guys won’t be too worried. Those chicas were doing everything we were told not to do (flaunting) and we’re very cautious of our surrounding and, believe it or not, we blend in a little bit better than the other SAS students. At least our hair is brown…Greg has been blending in everywhere we go! Everyone thought he was Puerto Rican and now he can pass as Brazilian.

We went to the Mercado and got some good deals and ate at a restaurant right out side. There was a capoiera group there so we were able to watch them while we ate. Capoiera is a type of martial arts that slaves used to disguise as dance and uses mainly legs. They do kicks and flips and cartwheels, it kind of looks like break dancing. Even the boys about 7 years old were doing it. We couldn’t understand the menu so Celina and I just pointed at something and hoped for the best. We ended up getting some sort of fish with beans and rice. It was pretty good.

We went to Carnaval last night. It was amazing. It kind of reminded me of the taste of Colorado but much much much crazier! There were street vendors lining the streets selling all sorts of food and drinks. The currency here is the Rael and the exchange rate is about 2:1 so conversion isn’t too difficult yet. There are these huge floats that blare music, some have bands on the top but all of them are surrounded by and entourage of people dancing and in costume. There are all sorts of people of all ages. Carnaval is like Mardi Gras in that everyone is getting all of their sinning out before lent. It ends on Tuesday, the day before we leave. We’re planning on going to church for Ash Wednesday. We have tickets to Afro Bloco tonight so we’ll actually be in the Carnaval as part of the entourage following the floats.

02/20

OH MY GOOOOODNESSS!!!! We went to Carnaval again tonight and it was soooo much fun! We were in the parade with the Trio Electrico - Areketu float. It was a Samba/Reggae band and the crowd was a lot more intense than Afro Bloco - Cortejo (the one we were in two nights ago).

The Afro Bloco seemed more cultural, we had entire outfits instead of the plain T-shirts that the others had. The colors were light blue and white and the girls wore wrap skirts and white and blue tops and a hat with a red feather. The men’s were similar but with pants. This was the only Afro Bloco that allowed non-Africans to participate (the Afro groups celebrate African heritage and roots). Needless to say, we stood out like…well like Americans in an African parade. It was strange though, I didn’t feel uncomfortable or unwelcome once. I feel more uncomfortable at the Cherry Creek mall. There was a marching band that followed behind our float, it was like Drumline x 1,000! This parade started at 9 pm and we wussed out at 3 but it lasted till 6 in the morning. We had the best burger in the entire world!!! They warned us about the street food and said we shouldn’t eat it but rest assured that all the intestinal wrath that I may feel within the next few days will be all worth this burger that probably surpassed my entire caloric intake for the rest of the time in Brazil. It was fried egg, ham, cheese, sausage, a hamburger patty, lettuce, potatoe shoe strings, cucumber, tomato, and corn on a hamburger bun. It may not sound too appetizing but it was heaven on earth and clogs in my arteries. I’ve been hearing horror stories about the portal potties but luckily I haven’t had to use them (which is a great benefit of not drinking alcohol – aren’t you proud dad?). The taxi ride home is half the fun. The lanes on the roads don’t mean much and the speed limit is merely a suggestion. We’ve had a lot of interesting taxi drivers that are more than willing to talk, or at least try to communicate and tell us about Brazil. We’ve been getting by with Spanish.

Tonight was much more hectic and crazy than last night. If you like personal space and cleanliness I would suggest staying as far away from carnaval as possible as there is none of either! I didn’t even have my own air to breathe, it was madness! We tried selling our tickets because we were kind of tired from the night before but thankfully nobody bought them because we would have really missed out. It’s basically like a moving concert and club. Everyone was dancing and jumping, I loved it! I met a guy at the beginning who asked me to dance, I’m not sure what kind of dance it was but I picked it up pretty quick. He became our friend and made sure I was bumped too hard and our group was always close together. He didn’t speak a lick of English nor I of Portuguese but we had an interesting conversation. He tried to teach me how to dance Samba to no avail :( but nonetheless had a great time looking foolish trying to do it! His name was Andre, he asked for my email address so I guess I’ll have to learn Portuguese if I ever want to respond (Jazmin, Mando…lessons?).

There are a lot of poor children here, it’s really sad. It makes me even more sad to be apprehensive to wear flip flops because the streets are dirty and wet (people are peeing everywhere) then later in the day see kids as young as 5 walking bare foot and people sleeping in the same street I wouldn’t even want to touch. I also get sad when I see all the students on the boat being so wasteful at dinner time and throwing away platefuls of food while people right out side our ship are starving and would do anything for those leftovers. Guilt. It’s been a struggle and I’m sure it will only get worse with each port but it helps to talk about it with my group of friends on the ship.

I feel like all the adjectives and exclamation points in the world don’t really express what I feel…neither remorse nor excitement. I’m having a lot of fun and learning a lot outside of the classroom. Still missin you guys! Ari’s birthday is in 2 days and I’m sad I have to miss it :( Tell her I said happy birthday and give her a kiss! Jake, Happy Belated!!!!! I suck…I missed it :( Sorry. You are an old man!

p.s. I’m not proof reading these so I probably have many mistakes – deal with it :) haha

Valentines Day in the Atlantic

02/14/07

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!! First and foremost, thank you to all those who sent me with Valentines Day cards. It was a very thoughtful gesture and I appreciate it more than you know. I waited to open them till this morning and it was nice to have words from home to cheer me up on this lonely hearts day ;). We have a stop light dance tonight (single people wear green, taken people wear red and complicated situations wear yellow). The only red thing I’ll be wearing is my eye! I got pink eye, the first time I’ve had it. I got some antibacterial drops from the doc and it should go away in a couple days.

I have A LOT of reading for all of my classes and they seem like they’ll be a lot of work but hopefully the professors will lighten up a little bit. I finally got my schedule figured out. I had to change it up a little to make sure I have enough upper division credits to graduate so my classes are: Global Studies, Psych of Women, Global Public Health, African-American Lit, and a Theatre class. The most challenging is the theatre class even though it has the lightest work load but because we have to do all of these crazy exercises. I’m very very far out of my comfort zone in that class but I just have to make weird noises and faces along with the rest of the theatre kids…yep, I’m in that class that I used to laugh at when I walked by.

We crossed the equator today at 12:15. I never knew there was a big red line separating the northern hemisphere from the southern. Haha. I feel really sick today and can’t seem to wake up. If I could, I would sleep all day. I think it’s the rocking that makes me so sleepy. We keep losing hours and having to set our clocks back and will do so 22 more times. We are 5 hours ahead of Denver now. I’m getting a little homesick I have to admit. Maybe because it’s Valentines day and I’m in the middle of the Atlantic with no valentine and I don’t have the red velvet heart filled with chocolate that my Dad always gets me. Greg did bring me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich though because I was too tired to go to the cafeteria, nice guy huh? Not quite a heart filled with chocolate but nonetheless still considerate and nice – made my day.

Have a nice day! Thank you for the Valentines Day emails also! I miss you guys. Will someone please tell grandma and grandpa and nana that I say hello and I miss them as I know they’re not internet savvy ;) Also, thank you for the emails! I haven’t been able to respond individually too much but I read them all the time and they make me smile :) Give the babies a kiss for me!