Shipboard Living

Well, in case you were wondering, life on the ship is amazing! It still hasn’t hit me yet that I will be doing this for the next four months. Already the experience is unbelievable! We started classes on Sunday, and I love all of mine. I am taking the two Global Studies courses, Religion, Politics, and Society, as well as the Rise of New Great Powers. Both of my teachers are UVa professors, which is cool. I feel right at home. My World Nutrition professor is also a UVa professor, so they add to the small contingent of UVa kids on the ship (there are only 6!). I can’t believe more UVa kids don’t look into this program. You get direct credit while going around the world to experience new and different cultures. Most of the kids, including my roommate, Christina, are from Colorado or California, which I love because it’s different from what I’m used to, and I am definitely branching out.
The rooms are a little smaller than I expected, but they’re pretty cozy. There is lots of storage space, so that’s not a problem, but it’s funny that the door to our room, the door to our bathroom, and the door to our closet cannot be open at the same time in any combination – there simply is no space!

We have a big window between our beds and it’s so neat to look out and just see miles and miles of ocean. The water is SO blue! Well, it was – until it starting mixing with the darker waters of the Amazon. Whenever we pass land, we can turn on the TV and it will tell us exactly where we are, and what islands we are passing. We’re passing northern Brazil as we speak…

Anywho, the rocking of the ship did take a little getting used to. We had to reroute in order to bypass Hurricane Hannah, but we still felt the repercussions. The second night I got really sick but ever since then it’s been great! I do still laugh though when people (including me) lose their balance and run into walls or stumble around classrooms hahaha…I guess it takes a while to get one’s “sea legs”. It’s nice at night though because the waves sort of rock me to sleep; it’s hard to wake myself up! We have sunny weather every day, and it’s getter hotter, which stands to reason since we will be passing the equator tomorrow! Which is also Neptune Day. Apparently when you cross the equator sailors have a tradition, Neptune Day, where they shave their heads for good luck and safe travels. Semester at Sea devotes a full day to this tradition, with all sorts of equator-centric activities. I highly doubt I will partake in the head-shaving tradition, but I hope some boys will! It was weird to have last night be the last time we could see the North Star until we arrive in India! In the southern hemisphere it’s too far below the hemisphere to see!

On Sunday we arrive in Salvador, Brazil, where I am taking a trip to Iguaçu Falls, on the boarder of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil. From what I’ve heard, they are the most beautiful and majestic falls in the world – I’ll be sure to take lots of pictures! I’m also doing a trip lead by a professor of mine into Cachoeira, a small rural village on the Paraguaçú River, to see how rural Brazilian farmers live. I am so excited! I’m trying to think if there’s anything else new going on, but it’s been pretty uneventful…it’s really hard to get good internet service out at sea, but I will try to post when I can!

More to come from Brazil!


Sarah