Hello All
Sorry, we haven't chatted in a few days. Our internet has been very slow to the point that we were unable to get onto our blog, but no worries we will catch you up on our past three days!!!! so let's start with Saturday...
Saturday
Saturday was a rough day at sea again, but a busy day on the ship, but I thought it would be good to share some funny things about our experience so far. The Living Learning Coordinators have designed a “You know you’re on a Ship Campus when…”
1) There are barf bags in every classroom
2) The students are all falling down and stumbling over each other when they walk…and it’s not because they are drunk
3) It is like the Worlds Strongest Man Competition trying to move chairs & tables b/c they are so heavy to prevent them from moving around with the waves
4) It’s cool to wear Sea Band motion sickness wristbands…everybody’s doing it!
5) People start to look hungover just from going to class
6) Taking a shower (without injuring yourself) becomes a daily achievement
7) Everyone yells “We’re on a SHIP” if you say the word “Boat” (you can put a boat on a ship, but you can’t put a ship on a boat…)
8) Don’t even mention the word “Cruise”…. It gets ugly. It’s a voyage…don’t forget that.
9) Your light switch looks exactly like the button that flushes the toilet – so for the first few days you’ll flush the toilet every time you try to turn on the light in the bathroom.
10) The faculty have a death grip on the podium that they are lecturing from trying desperately not to fall down during their class.
Sunday
I had my first Multifaith Service today. We had a great turn out and really good conversation with people from several different backgrounds. We also had our big event which was a dance party.. "Rock the Boat." It was great to see faculty, staff and students on the dance floor and enjoying some down time. We have been having "pizza nights" (code for pub night with alcohol) the past few nights. The students have been really great considering how crazy it could be. We have been trying hard to down play alcohol. Matt and I have also been trying to get into a schedule each day, but there is so much to do and we are losing an hour each day which makes it hard. I will say, that the Global Studies class has been amazing. For those who don't know what Global Studies is...it is basically a history and cultural class about all the places we are going to. The faculty member teaching this course is beyond amazing. He is visual, entertaining, informative, and interactive with over 800 people at one time. It is crazy to see students showing up to his class 45 minutes early so they can actually sit in the Student Union (the large lecture hall) verses in a classroom where the lecture is televised. Matt is good.. he only has two more days of working in the bookstore. It has been so crazy and he was not prepared for all the responsibility, but he is making it.. and happy things are calming down soon. Oh..yeah.. we saw land yesterday two islands Azores about 1,200 miles west of Portugal. YES!!!
Today
It was a beautiful day!!!! The sun was out and we eat all our meals outside. Another exciting moment was the French Fries and ice cream for lunch and the 25 minute thank you massages that all the faculty and staff received. I also recently started an American Sign Language Club on the ship. There are several students here that sign or want to learn, so it has been perfect for me to keep up my skills. We had our first meeting tonight to go over some basic skills during our Explorer Seminars (we have Explorer Seminars every day from 8-9pm. The seminars focus on what people need to know about the upcoming port, a workshop on one of the Living Learning Coordinator focus areas- Leadership, Spirituality, Recreation, Health and Wellness, etc., and/or other random sessions such as knitting, Sign Language classes, etc.). I had a great turn out and we will be having a few silent lunches throughout the voyage so people can practice which will be cool. Matt, on the other hand, went to an Explorer Seminar on what to eat and not to eat in Spain. From the lecture, he is really looking forward to checking out some of the bars. They are very family oriented and seem to be a great people to meet people and socialize with the locals. As the faculty member continued to stress there are no words in the Spanish language for "smashed, trashed or shitfaced." The purpose of these bars are to socialize with family and friends and to have long conversations. We are both really looking forward to Spain on two day to go before we can see the shore.
Well that is it for now…hopefully, we can get on tomorrow, but if not.. we’ll check out an internet cafe in Spain on Wednesday. Love and Smooches to all (special smooch for Peanut and Ms. Annie!!)
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