3.14.08
India: Chennai
My first day in India was absolutely amazing. Everyone had kept warning us about all of the staring that we would get, all of the sensory overloading, and everything in between. I was really terrified, I’m not going to lie. I spent the day with my roommate, and it was amazing, though! I felt safer walking around Chennai than I had in both Brazil and Africa.
We took a rickshaw to a local market, T. Nagar. Rickshaws are like taxis, except a bit scarier because they have open sides and a black tarp for a roof. Driving in India is definitely nuts. Between the crazy buses that stop for no man, woman or child (literally, there are apparently hundreds of deaths from bus drivers all the time here) and the people on motorcycles and the taxis and the regular cars—it was just plain crazy. Quite an adventure. The local market was awesome. It was filled with locals, so we were able to “stalk” out some and see what they were paying for items before trying our own bargaining skills out with sellers, which was really easy. We were able to cut prices by more than half right off the bat. After some good purchases, we decided to head over to Spencer’s Plaza, which we were told was more of a touristy place. I wanted to go because I figured they would have magnets and postcards, and we were pleasantly surprised when we went and found it to be pretty untouristy. It was like the local market: full of locals and maybe one or two small groups of foreigners. One of the shop owners we met was awesome. I had been looking at the beaded tapestries here and knew I wanted to go home with one. I figured I would spend the first day just looking around at all of the different ones, but after going into this shop I couldn’t resist. He shut down the store for us, and individually took out each tapestry to show it to me. I would say if it was in the ‘maybe’ or the ‘definite’ pile and he would lay them all out on the floor, and the ‘no’ pile he would throw out of the way. Well, of course, there were just too many beautiful ones. I couldn’t walk away with just one. I ended up with four, and he gave me such a great discount on all of it (especially in comparison to what the other shop owners had tried to badger me into). What originally he was going to sell me for 9000 rupees, he sold to me for about 7000 (which is only about $175)! He was a really nice guy, and we could tell he wasn’t just bullshitting us. You could tell how hard he worked for his money: he and his brother would take turns traveling to Kashmir to purchase all of their products. He did talk me into buying something else, but it was so cool that I couldn’t resist. I’m going to give it to Kevin, and I’m sure he’ll like it too. It’s a Tibetan Monk Singing Bowl. It’s a hollow brass bowl with designs on the side. When you hold it in the palm of your hand and swirl a padded-stick-thingy around it, it makes these really cool (and surprisingly very calming) sound. After a successful day of shopping, Christine and I headed back to the ship on a very good high. I went to bed early because my Taj Mahal trip left at 3:30 am! I know, tell me about it.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Sea Olympics
3/9/08
SEA OLYMPICS!
Well, at least we didn’t come in last place, just second to last. We do have one of the smaller seas and definitely one with the least active participation. We also don’t have very many guys in our group, so most of the sporting events we would have full teams of girls against some intensively competitive guys. I competed in Slippery Twister but the girl I was against literally pushed me off the board, so I was out for that. Lip Syncs went pretty well (even though I messed up quite a lot), but we still didn’t place. It didn’t help that we were up against boys in drag for a lot of the other numbers. I’m pretty sure I pulled a muscle in my butt though, which is not so much fun. During one of our last minute rehearsals for lip syncs, we were practicing in a classroom. We moved most of the desks, except for one in the back center. I, of course, slammed into it and managed not only to seriously bruise it but to pull a muscle as well. Ten minutes later I also hit my head and now have a slight bump. I’m kind of a mess. It’s ok, ibuprofen helps. Our Lip Sync was a montage of pop songs that told a story. We started out with “What a man” then went into “Be My Girlfriend” by N’Sync then a little “Before he cheats” by Underwood into “The Boy is Mine” by Brandi and Monica (complete with a full-on cat fight), next was “No Scrubs” by TLC, a little old school “Hit the Road Jack” and the finale of “I will love again!” My roomie taped it with my camera, and I watched it already. It’s not the greatest quality but you get the idea. Overall, between the competing and watching my friends compete and the never-ending lip sync rehearsals and consistently injuring myself, I was VERY ready for the day to end. If my butt didn’t keep waking me up at night from soreness and sleeping on it wrong, it would have been a wonderful night’s sleep from pure exhaustion.
Two days until India! We have our Cultural Pre-Port meeting tonight, so that’s always very exciting. I can’t wait to buy tons and tons of scarves and saris. I think we lose another hour of sleep tonight, unfortunately. Well actually, I think it’s an hour and a half. I know! Weird, but it’s because India wants its entire country to be in the same time zone, so we have to lose a half hour. I think after India we lose the other half hour. I think that will be pretty awkward.
In other news, we had the last trip lottery. I got into both day trips in Japan that I really wanted, so I will have the chance to go to Kyoto and Nara. I got most of the trips that I wanted, and I think the only one I didn’t get that I was looking forward to was going to a rainforest in Costa Rica. Today is alternate trip day, which means we can go to the field office and see what open trips they have left, so I will see if I can’t get something else fun to do while I’m in Costa Rica. I will figure something out. If not, we are only there for two days so I’m sure I can find enough stuff to keep me busy.
I think that’s about it from here, so I hope everyone has/had a great spring break! Get some sun! I probably won’t get another chance to update everyone until I get back from India, so until then…bye! I just hope my stomach can handle the dirtiness of eating in India, and I plan on bringing a full roll of toilet paper with me on my three day trip to the Taj Mahal.
SEA OLYMPICS!
Well, at least we didn’t come in last place, just second to last. We do have one of the smaller seas and definitely one with the least active participation. We also don’t have very many guys in our group, so most of the sporting events we would have full teams of girls against some intensively competitive guys. I competed in Slippery Twister but the girl I was against literally pushed me off the board, so I was out for that. Lip Syncs went pretty well (even though I messed up quite a lot), but we still didn’t place. It didn’t help that we were up against boys in drag for a lot of the other numbers. I’m pretty sure I pulled a muscle in my butt though, which is not so much fun. During one of our last minute rehearsals for lip syncs, we were practicing in a classroom. We moved most of the desks, except for one in the back center. I, of course, slammed into it and managed not only to seriously bruise it but to pull a muscle as well. Ten minutes later I also hit my head and now have a slight bump. I’m kind of a mess. It’s ok, ibuprofen helps. Our Lip Sync was a montage of pop songs that told a story. We started out with “What a man” then went into “Be My Girlfriend” by N’Sync then a little “Before he cheats” by Underwood into “The Boy is Mine” by Brandi and Monica (complete with a full-on cat fight), next was “No Scrubs” by TLC, a little old school “Hit the Road Jack” and the finale of “I will love again!” My roomie taped it with my camera, and I watched it already. It’s not the greatest quality but you get the idea. Overall, between the competing and watching my friends compete and the never-ending lip sync rehearsals and consistently injuring myself, I was VERY ready for the day to end. If my butt didn’t keep waking me up at night from soreness and sleeping on it wrong, it would have been a wonderful night’s sleep from pure exhaustion.
Two days until India! We have our Cultural Pre-Port meeting tonight, so that’s always very exciting. I can’t wait to buy tons and tons of scarves and saris. I think we lose another hour of sleep tonight, unfortunately. Well actually, I think it’s an hour and a half. I know! Weird, but it’s because India wants its entire country to be in the same time zone, so we have to lose a half hour. I think after India we lose the other half hour. I think that will be pretty awkward.
In other news, we had the last trip lottery. I got into both day trips in Japan that I really wanted, so I will have the chance to go to Kyoto and Nara. I got most of the trips that I wanted, and I think the only one I didn’t get that I was looking forward to was going to a rainforest in Costa Rica. Today is alternate trip day, which means we can go to the field office and see what open trips they have left, so I will see if I can’t get something else fun to do while I’m in Costa Rica. I will figure something out. If not, we are only there for two days so I’m sure I can find enough stuff to keep me busy.
I think that’s about it from here, so I hope everyone has/had a great spring break! Get some sun! I probably won’t get another chance to update everyone until I get back from India, so until then…bye! I just hope my stomach can handle the dirtiness of eating in India, and I plan on bringing a full roll of toilet paper with me on my three day trip to the Taj Mahal.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Sunny Days
3.6.08
Well, the day started out a little rocky, but it ended out being pretty kick ass overall. I had an Archaeology test in the morning, and I didn’t do so hot. Eh, not too concerned about it. Then I thought I had my poetry test later in the day, so I spent most of the rest of the afternoon studying for it. I found out that the test was next class (so it’s not till Monday), but it turned out ok because it was a review day and since I had actually studied I was prepared with legit questions to ask. I also got a study group together to study for the actual test, so not too bad. Then I ran into Daina, who was the director of Overruled. She gave me a script for another play she wants to do and basically handed me a part in it if I wanted. Of course I said yes, and I will have to go the auditions and read for it, but she pretty much gave me the role. I haven’t read it yet, but it’s about the different ladies of Shakespeare meeting up. Daina said she wants to do it Bollywood style (in honor of India) and include lip syncing pop songs, so it should be a lot of fun. She said I would be great for Ophelia, so I’m pretty excited. Then I had to rush to another “rehearsal.” So, in preparation for the Sea Olympics there have been Sea Captain’s challenges (the two kids who are elected from the sea) to determine who gets to come in last (which is the best) for the Opening Ceremonies on Saturday. We didn’t do so hot in the first one, and the second one we did average in. The third challenge they were allowed to have help from everyone in the sea, and we had 5:22 minutes to tell any stories in any way/shape/form about what had happened to people in any of the ports. I got sucked into doing it the other night when I was walking down the hall and ran into our sea captain Jason. He looked so stressed out and overwhelmed, I couldn’t say no when he asked. Now, I didn’t have any really good or funny stories, but my roommate did and I had permission to use hers. When she was in Mauritius and staying at a hostel/villa place, she went swimming in the ocean late at night with her guy friend, Alex. She got stung on her arm by a really poisonous, deadly jellyfish. Since no stores were open to buy anything to stop by the stinging, she made Alex pee on her arm. The only problem is he got a little stage fright and wouldn’t do it, so she was yelling at him on the beach, “Just pee on it already!” Finally he did, which helped for a little bit, but then she broke out into a cold sweat and her muscles seized up. They ended up rushing her over to a hospital, and of course, they only spoke French. They were sticking needles in her and rapidly discussing things in French without telling her what was going on. They even made her sign a contract but wouldn’t translate it for her. She spent the night there, and they gave her some sketchy medication to take home. She went to the Dr. here and got legit medicine though, and she survived—so that’s good. We decided to do our storytelling Real World style. We videotaped the “opening sequence” the night before, changing the usual words to something more appropriate for our situation. Then seven of us came onto the stage and told two stories, mine (well, my roommate’s really, but I reenacted it) and this other kid’s, Gabe, who had gone to a club in Rio (when we were in Brazil) and they told him he wasn’t allowed in without jeans (it was pretty upscale). He didn’t want to go all the way back to the hotel because it was so far away, and all he had were J Crew shorts, anyways. So he traded some random guy on the street and got his jeans for 50 reals. They were a little short, but apparently it worked. Then, Jason (sea captain) sung a song on his guitar and told a few more stories about stupid things kids had done. It was pretty damn funny, and after watching most of the other seas, we knew we had one of the best. (My friend recorded it, so I will be able to get it on my computer if anyone’s interested.) One sea did a Mad Libs style story. We had to give a bunch of different adjectives/adverbs etc and they were incorporated into the written story, and they had two kids act out whatever was written. They won 3rd place. Another sea did a spin of “Real Men of Genius” (the Budweiser commercials) and made fun of the head of our Field Office (all in good fun), Carl. They won 2nd place. None of the other seas were anything worth mentioning, which obviously means that WE WON the challenge! It was pretty damn exciting, because we were not doing too well before. This means we won’t have to be the first to walk in to the ceremonies, which is very good because the later you walk in the more people will see you. Overall, it was a pretty good day. I’m also doing lip syncs for the Olympics, however, so I had to start working on that with the others. I don’t really like what “we” came up with, but it’s not a big deal and I’m sure it will turn out fine. We have to work on it later today and probably all night to get it done. We’re doing a montage of songs that will tell a story. It’s a stupid storyline that we pretty much all fight over the same guy and then tell him to piss off. I know, I know, and it’s all lame pop songs. No one was up for oldies or the 80’s so my ideas (and enthusiasm) were debunked. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll make it fun anyway. Well that’s life on the ship for now. Off to class!
Well, the day started out a little rocky, but it ended out being pretty kick ass overall. I had an Archaeology test in the morning, and I didn’t do so hot. Eh, not too concerned about it. Then I thought I had my poetry test later in the day, so I spent most of the rest of the afternoon studying for it. I found out that the test was next class (so it’s not till Monday), but it turned out ok because it was a review day and since I had actually studied I was prepared with legit questions to ask. I also got a study group together to study for the actual test, so not too bad. Then I ran into Daina, who was the director of Overruled. She gave me a script for another play she wants to do and basically handed me a part in it if I wanted. Of course I said yes, and I will have to go the auditions and read for it, but she pretty much gave me the role. I haven’t read it yet, but it’s about the different ladies of Shakespeare meeting up. Daina said she wants to do it Bollywood style (in honor of India) and include lip syncing pop songs, so it should be a lot of fun. She said I would be great for Ophelia, so I’m pretty excited. Then I had to rush to another “rehearsal.” So, in preparation for the Sea Olympics there have been Sea Captain’s challenges (the two kids who are elected from the sea) to determine who gets to come in last (which is the best) for the Opening Ceremonies on Saturday. We didn’t do so hot in the first one, and the second one we did average in. The third challenge they were allowed to have help from everyone in the sea, and we had 5:22 minutes to tell any stories in any way/shape/form about what had happened to people in any of the ports. I got sucked into doing it the other night when I was walking down the hall and ran into our sea captain Jason. He looked so stressed out and overwhelmed, I couldn’t say no when he asked. Now, I didn’t have any really good or funny stories, but my roommate did and I had permission to use hers. When she was in Mauritius and staying at a hostel/villa place, she went swimming in the ocean late at night with her guy friend, Alex. She got stung on her arm by a really poisonous, deadly jellyfish. Since no stores were open to buy anything to stop by the stinging, she made Alex pee on her arm. The only problem is he got a little stage fright and wouldn’t do it, so she was yelling at him on the beach, “Just pee on it already!” Finally he did, which helped for a little bit, but then she broke out into a cold sweat and her muscles seized up. They ended up rushing her over to a hospital, and of course, they only spoke French. They were sticking needles in her and rapidly discussing things in French without telling her what was going on. They even made her sign a contract but wouldn’t translate it for her. She spent the night there, and they gave her some sketchy medication to take home. She went to the Dr. here and got legit medicine though, and she survived—so that’s good. We decided to do our storytelling Real World style. We videotaped the “opening sequence” the night before, changing the usual words to something more appropriate for our situation. Then seven of us came onto the stage and told two stories, mine (well, my roommate’s really, but I reenacted it) and this other kid’s, Gabe, who had gone to a club in Rio (when we were in Brazil) and they told him he wasn’t allowed in without jeans (it was pretty upscale). He didn’t want to go all the way back to the hotel because it was so far away, and all he had were J Crew shorts, anyways. So he traded some random guy on the street and got his jeans for 50 reals. They were a little short, but apparently it worked. Then, Jason (sea captain) sung a song on his guitar and told a few more stories about stupid things kids had done. It was pretty damn funny, and after watching most of the other seas, we knew we had one of the best. (My friend recorded it, so I will be able to get it on my computer if anyone’s interested.) One sea did a Mad Libs style story. We had to give a bunch of different adjectives/adverbs etc and they were incorporated into the written story, and they had two kids act out whatever was written. They won 3rd place. Another sea did a spin of “Real Men of Genius” (the Budweiser commercials) and made fun of the head of our Field Office (all in good fun), Carl. They won 2nd place. None of the other seas were anything worth mentioning, which obviously means that WE WON the challenge! It was pretty damn exciting, because we were not doing too well before. This means we won’t have to be the first to walk in to the ceremonies, which is very good because the later you walk in the more people will see you. Overall, it was a pretty good day. I’m also doing lip syncs for the Olympics, however, so I had to start working on that with the others. I don’t really like what “we” came up with, but it’s not a big deal and I’m sure it will turn out fine. We have to work on it later today and probably all night to get it done. We’re doing a montage of songs that will tell a story. It’s a stupid storyline that we pretty much all fight over the same guy and then tell him to piss off. I know, I know, and it’s all lame pop songs. No one was up for oldies or the 80’s so my ideas (and enthusiasm) were debunked. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll make it fun anyway. Well that’s life on the ship for now. Off to class!
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Mauritius
3-4-08
The second day in Mauritius, we hit up a beautiful beach. Our taxi driver told us it was the best beach around, and I could see why. There wasn’t much else around, however, and we had hoped to find somewhere to rent snorkeling equipment. After a few hours of laying out, we were ready for lunch. I was totally up for going to another, bigger beach at Grand Baie where there were tons of shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, Amanda wanted to get out of the sun and Kate was tired of walking. If it hadn’t been so difficult to just catch one taxi out of the remote beach area, I probably would have taken my own cab to the other beach. We headed back to the ship, but because I knew we were going out later that night (which was supposed to be only a few hours after we got back) I didn’t take the long walk into the Waterfront alone. Well, I did get my chance to go to Grand Baie. We went that evening (but not til 7ish, much later than anticipated) to hang out with some of Amanda’s friends at their villa (the beach houses everyone rents) and get some dinner. We went to a good Indian place for chicken curry and then a local bar called Stardust. Amanda, Kate and Meghan decided to stay the night at the Villa, but I wanted to head back since I had my service visit early the next morning. Luckily, there were two other girls who had come along (who I also knew from my Igaucu Falls trip) who also wanted to head back. We finally were able to get a taxi back to the ship MUCH later than I had hoped for, but we did meet some really nice guys from London at the bar, who were not sketchy, did not hit us, and were just genuinely friendly.
My service visit was ten times more amazing than I could have ever hoped it would be. I have to admit that it started out pretty shaky. We went to the Gayasing Ashram Senior Citizen’s home, and I felt like I was in a zoo. We didn’t get to interact with any of the residents; we just toured the place and our guide would point to some of the residents and say: ‘Look! There’s a bedridden person!’ or ‘See, she’s mentally retarded.’ It was pretty awful. After that, however, we went to a school for disabled children, and while we didn’t get to see any of the kids we were taken to a room filled with jewelry for sale [all made and with benefits to the disabled children]. As I’m collecting jewelry in every port, this was PERFECT. The stuff they had made was beautiful and you knew it was going to a great cause. We then proceeded to the DLD Teen Hope Center in Cite La Cure, a suburb of Port Louis. In the Mauritian educational system, you have to pass an exam after elementary school in order to receive any further secondary education. You only get two chances; if you fail both times, no more school ever. This center is a non-government funded organization that provides secondary education to these children. The kids were amazing. They were all sweet and genuine. We got to talk to them and ask them questions (with a teacher translating, because they spoke French and only knew a little bit of English…though this school does teach them French, English and Math). We watched them do crafts, such as basket weaving. One girl let me do a few of the braids on hers; I wasn’t bad, but she was definitely much better and quicker than I was. I made friends with another little girl who gave me a lanyard bracelet she had made. They put on a ‘talent’ show for us. The girls all got up and sang to us. The boys played the drums. They followed it with some traditional Sega dancing, of which they proceeded to drag all of us onto the floor to dance with them. We walked down the block from the school to a beautiful mountain view and took a picture with all of the children. [Of course, when the guy took a picture with my camera, he proceeded to get everyone except me and a few other kids in it, so I will have to see if I can steal someone else’s who hopefully got me in it with my new friends.] It was so absolutely amazing and unforgettable. It was definitely the highlight of my time in Mauritius. After I returned from the service visit, I went into the Waterfront with Amanda, Meghan, and Dave (a new friend who I’ve met via Amanda and crew) for dinner. Annoyingly, the Waterfront pretty much closes down at 6pm [even on a Monday night]. We had hoped to get sushi, but the place had closed. We settled instead for Shooters, a grill and pub. I got fajitas; I know, it was nowhere close to Tex mex, but I saw Mexican food and could not resist. It wasn’t bad, really. It definitely tasted more like an Indian take on fajitas, but it was still good.
After my experience the first two days in Mauritius, while they were enjoyable, I realized that I can NOT handle not having something to do. I can’t not do something (I know, that’s a horrible double-negative), but I really can’t sit around or relax when I know I could be doing something ten times more exciting. Luckily, I was able to get onto an SAS trip for the last day. It was called Volcanic Island, so I stupidly assumed we would get to see a volcano. Well, we didn’t (there’s no volcano to really see, only craters…I don’t get it either, but I know our guide explained it to us when I wasn’t listening). We spent most of the day on a bus. At one point, when it was pouring rain, we stopped at a temple for Shiva. As it was the religious holiday MahavratShivree (the holiday commemorating Shiva’s drinking of the poisonous lake to save everyone on Earth, which is why his neck is usually painted blue in pictures [it’s where he holds the poison]), almost every Hindu family takes a pilgrimage to the Sacred Lake. Because it was so crowded, we didn’t get near the lake, but we did get to see a huge statue of Shiva. It was impressive despite the rain and freezing winds. Afterwards, we had a long drive with a few short viewpoint stops of a crater, and then a good lunch of [more, but still yummy] chicken curry at Chamaral, a nice restaurant with a beautiful view of the country. We also got to check out the 7 Layered Earth. The volcanic activity on Mauritius created this awesome phenomenon where the soil is a gorgeous blending of 7 different colors. It looked very much like a watercolor or pastel drawing. Overall, it wasn’t the greatest trip, but it was better than not doing anything. I did get to see some cool stuff, eat some cool food, and see the small, but pretty Chamarin Waterfall. It was still a good trip, and I’m glad I did it…even though our guide was so obnoxious. For the 9 hours we were on the bus, he probably spent 6 of them talking about stupid trivial facts about Mauritius. It was more than I ever wanted to know about Mauritius.
So to sum it up, Mauritius was very pretty, and I got to meet some really amazing children. I enjoyed my time here, but I am SO ready for India and the Taj Mahal. I’ve got six days until then, one of which is the Sea Olympics. That should be a fun break halfway through the ‘school week’. I’ll be sure to update you on how that goes. [I better start stretching again, so I can win twister!]
What I’ve noticed is that I still haven’t found a really good traveling buddy[ies] yet. I enjoy walking around with my roommate and Tea, but while they both want to do and see the same things, I want to go, see and do different things. I enjoy being with Amanda, Kate and Meghan, but they’re still not the best to travel with. They only like to go out for a few hours at a time because they ALWAYS get too tired, too hungry, sick of walking, and/or don’t want to spend any more money. It’s kind of frustrating because I just want to go everywhere and see everything, and I just haven’t found someone to do it all with. I haven’t given up faith because the trip is not halfway through yet. I am sure to meet someone who will want to do the same things I do, and until then I will keep filling up my time with SAS trips. Some kids don’t like them because they’re a waste of money, you spend too much time in transportation, and you could ‘totally do it better indy,’ but that’s great because that means those types of people won’t be on them with me! I think they’re usually great, especially if you don’t have someone else to travel with, and it’s a great opportunity to meet new people. You also always get an English-speaking guide [though their annoyingness is a possible consequence], which is really helpful [especially in the next few countries, where English speakers are much more of a commodity]. We just got the sign up forms for the last set of trips. I’m a little upset because I found out my overnight Japan trip was cancelled because not enough people were interested. Luckily, there are day trips that go to both Nara and Kyoto, so I will hopefully get into those in this lottery. I won’t get to stay in a traditional Japanese hotel, though, and I was really looking forward to it. If I don’t get into either of those day trips, Kate, Amanda and Meghan are doing Hiroshima, Kyoto and Tokyo indy and plan to stay in a traditional hotel, so I can always tag along with them. I would prefer the SAS trips, though. I still like the three of them, but as I’ve already said I prefer not to travel too much with them. Well, I should get some sleep, and life is still pretty sweet. Ciao for now!
The second day in Mauritius, we hit up a beautiful beach. Our taxi driver told us it was the best beach around, and I could see why. There wasn’t much else around, however, and we had hoped to find somewhere to rent snorkeling equipment. After a few hours of laying out, we were ready for lunch. I was totally up for going to another, bigger beach at Grand Baie where there were tons of shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, Amanda wanted to get out of the sun and Kate was tired of walking. If it hadn’t been so difficult to just catch one taxi out of the remote beach area, I probably would have taken my own cab to the other beach. We headed back to the ship, but because I knew we were going out later that night (which was supposed to be only a few hours after we got back) I didn’t take the long walk into the Waterfront alone. Well, I did get my chance to go to Grand Baie. We went that evening (but not til 7ish, much later than anticipated) to hang out with some of Amanda’s friends at their villa (the beach houses everyone rents) and get some dinner. We went to a good Indian place for chicken curry and then a local bar called Stardust. Amanda, Kate and Meghan decided to stay the night at the Villa, but I wanted to head back since I had my service visit early the next morning. Luckily, there were two other girls who had come along (who I also knew from my Igaucu Falls trip) who also wanted to head back. We finally were able to get a taxi back to the ship MUCH later than I had hoped for, but we did meet some really nice guys from London at the bar, who were not sketchy, did not hit us, and were just genuinely friendly.
My service visit was ten times more amazing than I could have ever hoped it would be. I have to admit that it started out pretty shaky. We went to the Gayasing Ashram Senior Citizen’s home, and I felt like I was in a zoo. We didn’t get to interact with any of the residents; we just toured the place and our guide would point to some of the residents and say: ‘Look! There’s a bedridden person!’ or ‘See, she’s mentally retarded.’ It was pretty awful. After that, however, we went to a school for disabled children, and while we didn’t get to see any of the kids we were taken to a room filled with jewelry for sale [all made and with benefits to the disabled children]. As I’m collecting jewelry in every port, this was PERFECT. The stuff they had made was beautiful and you knew it was going to a great cause. We then proceeded to the DLD Teen Hope Center in Cite La Cure, a suburb of Port Louis. In the Mauritian educational system, you have to pass an exam after elementary school in order to receive any further secondary education. You only get two chances; if you fail both times, no more school ever. This center is a non-government funded organization that provides secondary education to these children. The kids were amazing. They were all sweet and genuine. We got to talk to them and ask them questions (with a teacher translating, because they spoke French and only knew a little bit of English…though this school does teach them French, English and Math). We watched them do crafts, such as basket weaving. One girl let me do a few of the braids on hers; I wasn’t bad, but she was definitely much better and quicker than I was. I made friends with another little girl who gave me a lanyard bracelet she had made. They put on a ‘talent’ show for us. The girls all got up and sang to us. The boys played the drums. They followed it with some traditional Sega dancing, of which they proceeded to drag all of us onto the floor to dance with them. We walked down the block from the school to a beautiful mountain view and took a picture with all of the children. [Of course, when the guy took a picture with my camera, he proceeded to get everyone except me and a few other kids in it, so I will have to see if I can steal someone else’s who hopefully got me in it with my new friends.] It was so absolutely amazing and unforgettable. It was definitely the highlight of my time in Mauritius. After I returned from the service visit, I went into the Waterfront with Amanda, Meghan, and Dave (a new friend who I’ve met via Amanda and crew) for dinner. Annoyingly, the Waterfront pretty much closes down at 6pm [even on a Monday night]. We had hoped to get sushi, but the place had closed. We settled instead for Shooters, a grill and pub. I got fajitas; I know, it was nowhere close to Tex mex, but I saw Mexican food and could not resist. It wasn’t bad, really. It definitely tasted more like an Indian take on fajitas, but it was still good.
After my experience the first two days in Mauritius, while they were enjoyable, I realized that I can NOT handle not having something to do. I can’t not do something (I know, that’s a horrible double-negative), but I really can’t sit around or relax when I know I could be doing something ten times more exciting. Luckily, I was able to get onto an SAS trip for the last day. It was called Volcanic Island, so I stupidly assumed we would get to see a volcano. Well, we didn’t (there’s no volcano to really see, only craters…I don’t get it either, but I know our guide explained it to us when I wasn’t listening). We spent most of the day on a bus. At one point, when it was pouring rain, we stopped at a temple for Shiva. As it was the religious holiday MahavratShivree (the holiday commemorating Shiva’s drinking of the poisonous lake to save everyone on Earth, which is why his neck is usually painted blue in pictures [it’s where he holds the poison]), almost every Hindu family takes a pilgrimage to the Sacred Lake. Because it was so crowded, we didn’t get near the lake, but we did get to see a huge statue of Shiva. It was impressive despite the rain and freezing winds. Afterwards, we had a long drive with a few short viewpoint stops of a crater, and then a good lunch of [more, but still yummy] chicken curry at Chamaral, a nice restaurant with a beautiful view of the country. We also got to check out the 7 Layered Earth. The volcanic activity on Mauritius created this awesome phenomenon where the soil is a gorgeous blending of 7 different colors. It looked very much like a watercolor or pastel drawing. Overall, it wasn’t the greatest trip, but it was better than not doing anything. I did get to see some cool stuff, eat some cool food, and see the small, but pretty Chamarin Waterfall. It was still a good trip, and I’m glad I did it…even though our guide was so obnoxious. For the 9 hours we were on the bus, he probably spent 6 of them talking about stupid trivial facts about Mauritius. It was more than I ever wanted to know about Mauritius.
So to sum it up, Mauritius was very pretty, and I got to meet some really amazing children. I enjoyed my time here, but I am SO ready for India and the Taj Mahal. I’ve got six days until then, one of which is the Sea Olympics. That should be a fun break halfway through the ‘school week’. I’ll be sure to update you on how that goes. [I better start stretching again, so I can win twister!]
What I’ve noticed is that I still haven’t found a really good traveling buddy[ies] yet. I enjoy walking around with my roommate and Tea, but while they both want to do and see the same things, I want to go, see and do different things. I enjoy being with Amanda, Kate and Meghan, but they’re still not the best to travel with. They only like to go out for a few hours at a time because they ALWAYS get too tired, too hungry, sick of walking, and/or don’t want to spend any more money. It’s kind of frustrating because I just want to go everywhere and see everything, and I just haven’t found someone to do it all with. I haven’t given up faith because the trip is not halfway through yet. I am sure to meet someone who will want to do the same things I do, and until then I will keep filling up my time with SAS trips. Some kids don’t like them because they’re a waste of money, you spend too much time in transportation, and you could ‘totally do it better indy,’ but that’s great because that means those types of people won’t be on them with me! I think they’re usually great, especially if you don’t have someone else to travel with, and it’s a great opportunity to meet new people. You also always get an English-speaking guide [though their annoyingness is a possible consequence], which is really helpful [especially in the next few countries, where English speakers are much more of a commodity]. We just got the sign up forms for the last set of trips. I’m a little upset because I found out my overnight Japan trip was cancelled because not enough people were interested. Luckily, there are day trips that go to both Nara and Kyoto, so I will hopefully get into those in this lottery. I won’t get to stay in a traditional Japanese hotel, though, and I was really looking forward to it. If I don’t get into either of those day trips, Kate, Amanda and Meghan are doing Hiroshima, Kyoto and Tokyo indy and plan to stay in a traditional hotel, so I can always tag along with them. I would prefer the SAS trips, though. I still like the three of them, but as I’ve already said I prefer not to travel too much with them. Well, I should get some sleep, and life is still pretty sweet. Ciao for now!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Relaxing in Mauritius
3/1/08
I am currently sitting on deck looking at the gorgeous mountains surrounding our ship here in Mauritius. We arrived this morning. I’m hoping to find someone who might want to hike up one of these awesome mountains with me.
In the span during Africa and Mauritius, I have done nothing but homework and tests and losing more hours of sleep because of time changes. (I’m now 9 hours ahead of Houston time). That’s a lot in one month. I also had my ‘performance.’ It was the play Overruled, and it was done Readers Theatre style. This means we stood with our scripts in front of the audience and ‘spoke expressively’. It went really well, and everyone enjoyed it. It was really nice getting an opportunity to do something artsy. I couldn’t stand the person I had to work with, unfortunately. In that sense, I’m relieved it’s over. I really think the kid had a mental retardation. He NEVER remembered when we had rehearsal, could not focus, couldn’t keep concentration, always broke character to ask the SAME questions over and OVER again, and of course was awesome on stage in front of everyone else [so everyone loved him and thought he was hilarious]. The other girl in the show, Melanie, taped it, so she’s going to make me a DVD of it. Anyone interested is more than welcome to check it out when I get back.
So Mauritius is like the “Spring Break” of SAS. I know, I know. You’re thinking this whole trip is my spring break right? Well, yes and no. Yes, I am traveling to amazing places and seeing amazing sights (with a little bit of obnoxious homework on the side), but it is pretty busy and exhausting. Trying to utilize every possible second that you’re in these countries, making sure you hit up every beautiful landmark or cute, cheap market gets to be exhaustive. We don’t sleep too much in port because there’s always time for that later. When we’re back on the ship, I usually have to play catch up with homework (though, I will admit it’s not very difficult, there’s not very much of it, and I really don’t give a damn about it) and while I do try to catch up on sleep I’m bound to lose at least another few hours from time changes. Mauritius has tons of beautiful beaches and is known as the vacation island of Africa. It takes an hour (with traffic) to get across the entire island, and we’re here for four days. SOOO, I’m going to take it easy. We’re going snorkeling tomorrow; that will be exciting! I’m doing a service visit (going to a senior citizen home and then a day care) on Monday, and probably not much of anything except relaxing and shopping on Tuesday. I am pretty excited for the service visit because it’s the first one I’ve been able to sign up for and get into! India is also the next place, so I’m trying to save up some energy (and lots of money) for that port!
I went out earlier this morning with Amanda and Kate, and we walked around the nearby area. (It’s about a 40-minute walk to civilization from where we docked.) We got freshly squeezed pineapple juice that was so good!!! That is definitely something I will miss when I return home—all of the wonderful, fresh fruit juice we’ve gotten almost everywhere. It was at another Waterfront type area like Cape Town had: a bit touristy but safe. Actually, we’re told that Mauritius is really safe and we can eat all of the food here without stomach problems, which is exciting in my book!
It’s pretty cool because Mauritius is such a mix of a country that we get a little taste of Africa and India. There are no indigenous people of Mauritius: the French were first to really settle here, so they’re the ‘elite’ of the Island and most everyone here speaks French [and English too!]. Then they brought over slaves from Africa, bringing in the African culture. When slavery was abolished, they brought in indentured slaves from India, who now make up more than half of the population. It pretty much sums up to an eclectic country. (Look at all the stuff I’m learning in global studies!!!) I will definitely have to try a bit of Indian cuisine out here, though I can’t wait to get the REAL thing in about a week.
I am doing the Mauritian Multi-Cultural Evening tonight, so it will be another great opportunity to learn about the culture here. We’re getting an authentic Creole dinner (next to India, the most popular as it’s a mix of French and African), which should be delicious. I think that’s about it from here for now.
My life is absolutely amazing, though I admit I miss a few things. I miss my family, friends, Pickles, and real Diet Coke. All they have in these countries is Coke Light. I know, you think it’s the same thing. IT IS NOT! Coke Light tastes like Coke Zero, not Diet coke [which, if you know anything about coke, you will know are two totally different tastes]! Well, other than my Diet Coke depravation, life is sweet. Bye for now!
I am currently sitting on deck looking at the gorgeous mountains surrounding our ship here in Mauritius. We arrived this morning. I’m hoping to find someone who might want to hike up one of these awesome mountains with me.
In the span during Africa and Mauritius, I have done nothing but homework and tests and losing more hours of sleep because of time changes. (I’m now 9 hours ahead of Houston time). That’s a lot in one month. I also had my ‘performance.’ It was the play Overruled, and it was done Readers Theatre style. This means we stood with our scripts in front of the audience and ‘spoke expressively’. It went really well, and everyone enjoyed it. It was really nice getting an opportunity to do something artsy. I couldn’t stand the person I had to work with, unfortunately. In that sense, I’m relieved it’s over. I really think the kid had a mental retardation. He NEVER remembered when we had rehearsal, could not focus, couldn’t keep concentration, always broke character to ask the SAME questions over and OVER again, and of course was awesome on stage in front of everyone else [so everyone loved him and thought he was hilarious]. The other girl in the show, Melanie, taped it, so she’s going to make me a DVD of it. Anyone interested is more than welcome to check it out when I get back.
So Mauritius is like the “Spring Break” of SAS. I know, I know. You’re thinking this whole trip is my spring break right? Well, yes and no. Yes, I am traveling to amazing places and seeing amazing sights (with a little bit of obnoxious homework on the side), but it is pretty busy and exhausting. Trying to utilize every possible second that you’re in these countries, making sure you hit up every beautiful landmark or cute, cheap market gets to be exhaustive. We don’t sleep too much in port because there’s always time for that later. When we’re back on the ship, I usually have to play catch up with homework (though, I will admit it’s not very difficult, there’s not very much of it, and I really don’t give a damn about it) and while I do try to catch up on sleep I’m bound to lose at least another few hours from time changes. Mauritius has tons of beautiful beaches and is known as the vacation island of Africa. It takes an hour (with traffic) to get across the entire island, and we’re here for four days. SOOO, I’m going to take it easy. We’re going snorkeling tomorrow; that will be exciting! I’m doing a service visit (going to a senior citizen home and then a day care) on Monday, and probably not much of anything except relaxing and shopping on Tuesday. I am pretty excited for the service visit because it’s the first one I’ve been able to sign up for and get into! India is also the next place, so I’m trying to save up some energy (and lots of money) for that port!
I went out earlier this morning with Amanda and Kate, and we walked around the nearby area. (It’s about a 40-minute walk to civilization from where we docked.) We got freshly squeezed pineapple juice that was so good!!! That is definitely something I will miss when I return home—all of the wonderful, fresh fruit juice we’ve gotten almost everywhere. It was at another Waterfront type area like Cape Town had: a bit touristy but safe. Actually, we’re told that Mauritius is really safe and we can eat all of the food here without stomach problems, which is exciting in my book!
It’s pretty cool because Mauritius is such a mix of a country that we get a little taste of Africa and India. There are no indigenous people of Mauritius: the French were first to really settle here, so they’re the ‘elite’ of the Island and most everyone here speaks French [and English too!]. Then they brought over slaves from Africa, bringing in the African culture. When slavery was abolished, they brought in indentured slaves from India, who now make up more than half of the population. It pretty much sums up to an eclectic country. (Look at all the stuff I’m learning in global studies!!!) I will definitely have to try a bit of Indian cuisine out here, though I can’t wait to get the REAL thing in about a week.
I am doing the Mauritian Multi-Cultural Evening tonight, so it will be another great opportunity to learn about the culture here. We’re getting an authentic Creole dinner (next to India, the most popular as it’s a mix of French and African), which should be delicious. I think that’s about it from here for now.
My life is absolutely amazing, though I admit I miss a few things. I miss my family, friends, Pickles, and real Diet Coke. All they have in these countries is Coke Light. I know, you think it’s the same thing. IT IS NOT! Coke Light tastes like Coke Zero, not Diet coke [which, if you know anything about coke, you will know are two totally different tastes]! Well, other than my Diet Coke depravation, life is sweet. Bye for now!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
SAFARI!!!
2/24/08
Safari: Kwazuli Natal, Durban
Unlike my ridiculous wait in airports for my Brazil trip to Iguacu, it was only a two-hour flight to Durban for my safari. We got to the Tree lodge in time for a delicious, cooked lunch. Africans know how to cook some yummy food, let me tell you. Because there were a lot of us (38) we were split between the tree lodge and the safari lodge. I was supposed to be in the Tree lodge with one girl, but at this point in the voyage everyone already has tons of friends and everyone wanted to switch around room assignments. Amanda was on my trip, and we could have roomed together; we both wanted to meet new people and didn’t care enough, however. By the time everyone had the roommate they wanted I ended up with a nice, but not all there (she almost missed the trip because she overslept from being hungover), roommate named Courtney. We were in the safari lodge, which was about a five-minute walk from the Tree lodge and main reception area. It was still nice, and I think even better than the tree lodgers. We had a bigger pool and a playground. We each got huts, complete with full bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen. My hut was huge, and the view from our porch was gorgeous. I also liked the kids who were in the Safari lodge much better than the other half of the kids. Unlike Iguacu, there were certain people on this trip that I would be happy if I never saw again. I know that sounds harsh, but I swear if I heard one more person complain that they didn’t get to see a lion or that ‘this was so lame’ I was going to kick someone’s ass. Amanda nearly did, and she is NOT an aggressive or mean person, so you can imagine. I feel very lucky that I didn’t live with them and that I got along well with the kids who were in the 4x4 land rover with me for the full day safari. Well, there was one girl I couldn’t stand in our car, named the Honey Badger (I know…it’s bad ass), but other than that it was amazing. We went on a late afternoon game drive the first day. We got to see giraffes, zebras, warthogs, an ostrich, wildebeest, and tons of antelopes (nyalas, empalas, and kutos). I got some good shots, but most of them are of animal butts. There were also tons of animals just roaming around the lodge. A monkey even got into Amanda’s room and ate their oreos and coffee creamers. Nyalas were scattered all over the place, and we had to shoo some away in order to get into our hut one night. After the afternoon game drive, we had a great dinner and all immediately went to bed afterwards from pure exhaustion.
The second day we headed out on an All Day game drive in 4x4 land rovers. My guide’s name was Sipo. The day happened to be the hottest yet, so we didn’t get to see as many animals. It was still amazing. The scenery was absolutely beautiful, you got a great breeze sitting in the car, and we got close to a lot of animals. There were giraffes, zebras, rhinos, and baboons, buffalos too. We got to see three of the Big 5 (no lions or leopards, but I wasn’t expecting to be able to see them, so it wasn’t really a disappointment). I thought three was a pretty good number anyway.
Our tracker, Sipo, practically proposed to me. It was quite awkward. We were making a bathroom stop, and I, not having to go, was taking pictures of the zebra a few feet in front of us. Sipo came up to me and first asked me how old I was; he then asked if I was married, since I wasn’t—did I have a boyfriend, and then had I ever thought about marrying a South African? I responded that I didn’t know, I hadn’t ever thought of it, but I guess anything is possible. He smiled and said, “Yes, anything is possible.” So I got my first marriage proposal in Africa, pretty cool I guess. I’m telling you it’s the blonde hair. He was really nice though, and he was soooo good at being able to spot out animals. He could see things miles away and know what they are. We were the only car that got to see a crocodile, so that was pretty cool since we didn’t get to see any lions. One car did get to see some lions though.
After a full day out, we went for a swim in the Safari lodge pool. I made friends with the most adorable four-year old girl. Her mom works at the lodge, and so she and her little sister came into the pool. She came into the pool and swam right over to me to hold my hand. She was precious. Some of the guys in the pool were a bit rowdy and wanted to pick her up and throw her, which absolutely terrified her, so she clung to me for a good fifteen minutes. After a swim, such a nice way to cool off, we had dinner outside by a bonfire. Oh my god, the food was so delicious. They had creamed spinach, and it was simply amazing. After staying up late to watch the stars, and getting to see my second shooting star in a week, we headed to bed.
The last day, we had a nice breakfast and then began the three-hour bus ride into Durban. We stopped at a touristy shop area and I was able to spend the last of my cash, which was nice. We flew back to Cape Town, arriving at around 5. We had to be back on the ship by 9 that night, but I was so exhausted I just stayed on the ship for the rest of the evening.
At nine, a local high school choir came on board the ship and gave a performance. They were wonderful. You would never have been able to guess that they were only in high school. They’ve won awards and have traveled around the country and internationally. I think the best part about it was that they didn’t just stand and sing. They danced, they moved around, their parents who had come sang along, whistled, danced around behind them, grabbed SAS kids and dragged them to the front to dance along as well. Everyone had a great time.
There was bad fog, however, that delayed our departure. We didn’t end up being able to leave Cape Town till 10 the next morning. It doesn’t affect our travel plans at all, because five days is more than we needed to get to Mauritius. It was nice though, because they planned for a lifeboat drill during global studies, so we didn’t have to have class. Unfortunately, I still had my other classes, but it’s never too bad the first day back from port. I have to admit six days off of the ship meant seasickness when we started going again. It doesn’t help that it’s been really rocky as well, so no one on the ship is doing too well right now. We get into Mauritius on Saturday, however, which is exciting. We’re actually having our first legit week of school. We go Monday through Friday and then have the weekend (until Tuesday, when we depart Mauritius). I thought that was pretty exciting. It’s weird when you have class on Saturday and Sunday. I’m also pretty excited because after Mauritius the fun really starts. We go from port to port with only one or two days of class in between. It’s fabulous. I think I have five or six days of class for the entire month of March. Well, I have tons of papers and exams to get working on, so I’ll end here. Africa was absolutely beautiful and amazing. My safari was awesome, and I wish it could have been a day or two longer so I could have gotten another day out to see some animals!
Safari: Kwazuli Natal, Durban
Unlike my ridiculous wait in airports for my Brazil trip to Iguacu, it was only a two-hour flight to Durban for my safari. We got to the Tree lodge in time for a delicious, cooked lunch. Africans know how to cook some yummy food, let me tell you. Because there were a lot of us (38) we were split between the tree lodge and the safari lodge. I was supposed to be in the Tree lodge with one girl, but at this point in the voyage everyone already has tons of friends and everyone wanted to switch around room assignments. Amanda was on my trip, and we could have roomed together; we both wanted to meet new people and didn’t care enough, however. By the time everyone had the roommate they wanted I ended up with a nice, but not all there (she almost missed the trip because she overslept from being hungover), roommate named Courtney. We were in the safari lodge, which was about a five-minute walk from the Tree lodge and main reception area. It was still nice, and I think even better than the tree lodgers. We had a bigger pool and a playground. We each got huts, complete with full bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen. My hut was huge, and the view from our porch was gorgeous. I also liked the kids who were in the Safari lodge much better than the other half of the kids. Unlike Iguacu, there were certain people on this trip that I would be happy if I never saw again. I know that sounds harsh, but I swear if I heard one more person complain that they didn’t get to see a lion or that ‘this was so lame’ I was going to kick someone’s ass. Amanda nearly did, and she is NOT an aggressive or mean person, so you can imagine. I feel very lucky that I didn’t live with them and that I got along well with the kids who were in the 4x4 land rover with me for the full day safari. Well, there was one girl I couldn’t stand in our car, named the Honey Badger (I know…it’s bad ass), but other than that it was amazing. We went on a late afternoon game drive the first day. We got to see giraffes, zebras, warthogs, an ostrich, wildebeest, and tons of antelopes (nyalas, empalas, and kutos). I got some good shots, but most of them are of animal butts. There were also tons of animals just roaming around the lodge. A monkey even got into Amanda’s room and ate their oreos and coffee creamers. Nyalas were scattered all over the place, and we had to shoo some away in order to get into our hut one night. After the afternoon game drive, we had a great dinner and all immediately went to bed afterwards from pure exhaustion.
The second day we headed out on an All Day game drive in 4x4 land rovers. My guide’s name was Sipo. The day happened to be the hottest yet, so we didn’t get to see as many animals. It was still amazing. The scenery was absolutely beautiful, you got a great breeze sitting in the car, and we got close to a lot of animals. There were giraffes, zebras, rhinos, and baboons, buffalos too. We got to see three of the Big 5 (no lions or leopards, but I wasn’t expecting to be able to see them, so it wasn’t really a disappointment). I thought three was a pretty good number anyway.
Our tracker, Sipo, practically proposed to me. It was quite awkward. We were making a bathroom stop, and I, not having to go, was taking pictures of the zebra a few feet in front of us. Sipo came up to me and first asked me how old I was; he then asked if I was married, since I wasn’t—did I have a boyfriend, and then had I ever thought about marrying a South African? I responded that I didn’t know, I hadn’t ever thought of it, but I guess anything is possible. He smiled and said, “Yes, anything is possible.” So I got my first marriage proposal in Africa, pretty cool I guess. I’m telling you it’s the blonde hair. He was really nice though, and he was soooo good at being able to spot out animals. He could see things miles away and know what they are. We were the only car that got to see a crocodile, so that was pretty cool since we didn’t get to see any lions. One car did get to see some lions though.
After a full day out, we went for a swim in the Safari lodge pool. I made friends with the most adorable four-year old girl. Her mom works at the lodge, and so she and her little sister came into the pool. She came into the pool and swam right over to me to hold my hand. She was precious. Some of the guys in the pool were a bit rowdy and wanted to pick her up and throw her, which absolutely terrified her, so she clung to me for a good fifteen minutes. After a swim, such a nice way to cool off, we had dinner outside by a bonfire. Oh my god, the food was so delicious. They had creamed spinach, and it was simply amazing. After staying up late to watch the stars, and getting to see my second shooting star in a week, we headed to bed.
The last day, we had a nice breakfast and then began the three-hour bus ride into Durban. We stopped at a touristy shop area and I was able to spend the last of my cash, which was nice. We flew back to Cape Town, arriving at around 5. We had to be back on the ship by 9 that night, but I was so exhausted I just stayed on the ship for the rest of the evening.
At nine, a local high school choir came on board the ship and gave a performance. They were wonderful. You would never have been able to guess that they were only in high school. They’ve won awards and have traveled around the country and internationally. I think the best part about it was that they didn’t just stand and sing. They danced, they moved around, their parents who had come sang along, whistled, danced around behind them, grabbed SAS kids and dragged them to the front to dance along as well. Everyone had a great time.
There was bad fog, however, that delayed our departure. We didn’t end up being able to leave Cape Town till 10 the next morning. It doesn’t affect our travel plans at all, because five days is more than we needed to get to Mauritius. It was nice though, because they planned for a lifeboat drill during global studies, so we didn’t have to have class. Unfortunately, I still had my other classes, but it’s never too bad the first day back from port. I have to admit six days off of the ship meant seasickness when we started going again. It doesn’t help that it’s been really rocky as well, so no one on the ship is doing too well right now. We get into Mauritius on Saturday, however, which is exciting. We’re actually having our first legit week of school. We go Monday through Friday and then have the weekend (until Tuesday, when we depart Mauritius). I thought that was pretty exciting. It’s weird when you have class on Saturday and Sunday. I’m also pretty excited because after Mauritius the fun really starts. We go from port to port with only one or two days of class in between. It’s fabulous. I think I have five or six days of class for the entire month of March. Well, I have tons of papers and exams to get working on, so I’ll end here. Africa was absolutely beautiful and amazing. My safari was awesome, and I wish it could have been a day or two longer so I could have gotten another day out to see some animals!
Cape Town, S. Africa: Day 1-3
2/21/08
First day: Up at 4:30 in the morning to catch the sunrise over Cape Town, South Africa. About half of the ship was already out on the deck watching as well. I knew this port was going to be wonderful when I saw a shooting star flash by as I looked off the deck at the lights of the city. It was amazing watching the sunrise over Table Mountain. We docked in a toursity area called the V & A Waterfront. It has tons of cute shops and restaurants and was a really nice place to dock because we all felt comfortable walking around there at any time of day.
I went to Robben Island, an island off the coast of the city where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were held from the 70’s through the early 90’s. Many were tortured, held there without trial, and detained indefinitely, often leading to many “suicides” (that is how they are documented, but it is much more likely that they were beaten to death). The island was absolutely beautiful and had spectacular views of Table Mountain and Lion’s Head, which starkly contrasted the terrible things that had happened at the prison. There were adorable penguins resting, antelopes prancing, and birds everywhere. The prison cells were tiny, the prisoners were forced to do hard, backbreaking labor in hot conditions, and we saw Nelson Mandela’s tiny prison cell. Our tour guide was a former prisoner, himself, and had served an eleven-year term. It was a very informative visit, though slightly depressing. After returning on a bumpy ferry ride (aboard the Sea Princess), I backed out of my second FDP. I was supposed to see a show at The Baxter Theatre Centre, however, after the depression of Robben Island and knowing the show would be equally depressing, I opted to go out to dinner with a few friends and hit up a few bars. I haven’t gotten to go out in any of the ports, so I figured I could check out the bar scene in Cape Town. Guess what? It’s exactly like every bar scene anywhere you go, just different setting and different accents. It was still fun, and it was a nice way to relax and enjoy the evening: to end it on a high note instead of a sad one. We had excellent pizzas at a place on the Waterfront called St. Elmo’s. We went to a few bars, which of course were crawling with SAS kids who were completely wasted. It was quite embarrassing, actually; we made sure to avoid them. We did not want to be associated with them, and as a result met a few really nice locals.
Second Day: I was supposed to hike Table Mountain in the morning; I was going to meet Christine and Tea, who had spent the night at a local hostel, and the three of us were going to backpack it. When they came back to the ship to pick me up, they said they had talked to some of the other guys who were at the hostel who had advised them to NO WAY, EVER hike that mountain with only three girls because the pick-pocketing and mugging was really bad. I was disappointed, but we spent the rest of the day walking around Long Street. It’s a trendy street with lots of great markets and shops, so I was able to pick up TONS of cute souvenirs for all of you! I met up with Amanda later in the day to have dinner on the Waterfront. The meat situation on the ship is pathetic, so I thought I deserved a nice steak. We went to a delicious grill that was SO cheap. We went all out: shrimp appetizer, steak dinner, and brownie dessert all for about 20 American dollars. Everything is so cheap here; it just seems like it’s really expensive because the exchange rate is 7.6 rands per dollar. I must admit that I’m getting quite good at my basic math skills, though. After dinner, we were both exhausted. We walked around the nearby mall and then went right to bed.
Day Three: Amanda and I had a full day! We got up in the morning to try and find a shuttle to take us to Table Mountain. We weren’t going to hike it, but they have cable cars that go up to the top and there are tons of walking trails on top to look around. We went to the Tourist Information Centre and were told about a really great deal. For 100 rand, there was a red, double-decker Cape Town Sight-Seeing Bus that stopped at about 12 different spots throughout the city. It was an all-day ticket; buses frequented each of the stops around every 20 minutes, so you could just hop on and off as you pleased. It worked out perfectly; instead of having to pay for a bunch of different taxis for the places we wanted to go, we got to sit on top of a bus! We stopped back at Long Street to do a little more shopping (we have to get all of our shopping done by today because we leave for our safari tomorrow at 4:45 am! We don’t return till late Sunday, which is the day we leave Cape Town. There would be no more time for shopping!), and then we went up to Table Mountain. It was gorgeous! The views were amazing, and I couldn’t stop taking picture after picture. We got back to the ship around four, and after having a break and time to pack we headed out to one last dinner on the Waterfront. Our field guide book says that all of our meals should be covered on the trip, so we figured we might as well enjoy real food while we can. No need to save money eating on the ship, when my meals for the next three days were prepaid! I can’t wait till I leave for my safari! It is going to be so freaking amazing!
First day: Up at 4:30 in the morning to catch the sunrise over Cape Town, South Africa. About half of the ship was already out on the deck watching as well. I knew this port was going to be wonderful when I saw a shooting star flash by as I looked off the deck at the lights of the city. It was amazing watching the sunrise over Table Mountain. We docked in a toursity area called the V & A Waterfront. It has tons of cute shops and restaurants and was a really nice place to dock because we all felt comfortable walking around there at any time of day.
I went to Robben Island, an island off the coast of the city where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were held from the 70’s through the early 90’s. Many were tortured, held there without trial, and detained indefinitely, often leading to many “suicides” (that is how they are documented, but it is much more likely that they were beaten to death). The island was absolutely beautiful and had spectacular views of Table Mountain and Lion’s Head, which starkly contrasted the terrible things that had happened at the prison. There were adorable penguins resting, antelopes prancing, and birds everywhere. The prison cells were tiny, the prisoners were forced to do hard, backbreaking labor in hot conditions, and we saw Nelson Mandela’s tiny prison cell. Our tour guide was a former prisoner, himself, and had served an eleven-year term. It was a very informative visit, though slightly depressing. After returning on a bumpy ferry ride (aboard the Sea Princess), I backed out of my second FDP. I was supposed to see a show at The Baxter Theatre Centre, however, after the depression of Robben Island and knowing the show would be equally depressing, I opted to go out to dinner with a few friends and hit up a few bars. I haven’t gotten to go out in any of the ports, so I figured I could check out the bar scene in Cape Town. Guess what? It’s exactly like every bar scene anywhere you go, just different setting and different accents. It was still fun, and it was a nice way to relax and enjoy the evening: to end it on a high note instead of a sad one. We had excellent pizzas at a place on the Waterfront called St. Elmo’s. We went to a few bars, which of course were crawling with SAS kids who were completely wasted. It was quite embarrassing, actually; we made sure to avoid them. We did not want to be associated with them, and as a result met a few really nice locals.
Second Day: I was supposed to hike Table Mountain in the morning; I was going to meet Christine and Tea, who had spent the night at a local hostel, and the three of us were going to backpack it. When they came back to the ship to pick me up, they said they had talked to some of the other guys who were at the hostel who had advised them to NO WAY, EVER hike that mountain with only three girls because the pick-pocketing and mugging was really bad. I was disappointed, but we spent the rest of the day walking around Long Street. It’s a trendy street with lots of great markets and shops, so I was able to pick up TONS of cute souvenirs for all of you! I met up with Amanda later in the day to have dinner on the Waterfront. The meat situation on the ship is pathetic, so I thought I deserved a nice steak. We went to a delicious grill that was SO cheap. We went all out: shrimp appetizer, steak dinner, and brownie dessert all for about 20 American dollars. Everything is so cheap here; it just seems like it’s really expensive because the exchange rate is 7.6 rands per dollar. I must admit that I’m getting quite good at my basic math skills, though. After dinner, we were both exhausted. We walked around the nearby mall and then went right to bed.
Day Three: Amanda and I had a full day! We got up in the morning to try and find a shuttle to take us to Table Mountain. We weren’t going to hike it, but they have cable cars that go up to the top and there are tons of walking trails on top to look around. We went to the Tourist Information Centre and were told about a really great deal. For 100 rand, there was a red, double-decker Cape Town Sight-Seeing Bus that stopped at about 12 different spots throughout the city. It was an all-day ticket; buses frequented each of the stops around every 20 minutes, so you could just hop on and off as you pleased. It worked out perfectly; instead of having to pay for a bunch of different taxis for the places we wanted to go, we got to sit on top of a bus! We stopped back at Long Street to do a little more shopping (we have to get all of our shopping done by today because we leave for our safari tomorrow at 4:45 am! We don’t return till late Sunday, which is the day we leave Cape Town. There would be no more time for shopping!), and then we went up to Table Mountain. It was gorgeous! The views were amazing, and I couldn’t stop taking picture after picture. We got back to the ship around four, and after having a break and time to pack we headed out to one last dinner on the Waterfront. Our field guide book says that all of our meals should be covered on the trip, so we figured we might as well enjoy real food while we can. No need to save money eating on the ship, when my meals for the next three days were prepaid! I can’t wait till I leave for my safari! It is going to be so freaking amazing!
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