questions & answers

:)
hi everyone-- its been a busy day & i am certainly beginning to lose all sense of time. we lose another hour tonight, so my 0800 will be a challenge. did some reading up by the pool but it is definitely getting cooler, we are heading north to spain, so it is predictable. enjoyed an open mic night last night and a lecture tonight-- they definitely fill the evenings. i'm headed to bed now, but hope all is well! for this entry, i decided to mix it up a little. here are some of the common questions that i have received from you all about my trip. i know i've responded to some, but i figured many of you had similar questions. so here they are:


1. any cute boys on the ship?

well the answer to this one is a yes. the odds are not in my favor, however, so i'm waiting it out. i've made some guy friends and seem to meet new ones everyday. not looking for mr. right, i'll settle for some friends. we'll see what happens.


2. how are classes going?

well. global studies will be better once we begin discussing ports. we have covered several strange topics and hopefully the spain lectures are interesting. we had a special "explorer seminar" on spain's foods tonight from the preport lecturer. he was so funny, has a passion for good food and spain. tomorrow through spain he will be lecturing in global studies, so we are all excited to see him speak. the drawback to classes: reading. there are so many readings and with all the sunshine, its hard to prioritize. there is also a lot going on in the evenings, so its hard to do homework then.

3. how's the food?

pretty good, though slowly getting worse. clearly, there is no way to maintain super-fresh veggies and foods for 1,000 people over the course of 9 days. the lettuce is beginning to look sad and the carbs are frustrating. pb& j is the way to go for both breakfast and dinner. lunch is whatever veggies or meats that look edible. snack time, 10p is the best time. little sandwhiches and snacks that seem much better to the ones served at meals. i am most definitely missing the dining hall at unh, but i'll live. i am more excited for the food in spain, which the lecture tonight got me very excited about. i'll be dreaming of paella and red wine tonight. :)

4. how many bars on the ship?

two. there is one outside on the 7th deck and one next to the "formal" dining hall on the 5th deck. the drinking age is 18 as we are in international waters. there is a strict limit as to 2 drinks at dinner and a maximum of 4 on pub nights. pub nights are every night at sea except for nights before port. All students who intend to drink must pick up a drink voucher and keep it safe. if you lose it, you have to pay the full price of the card, $63. each drink is $3.50 and so i am not partaking. i would much rather save that money for something else. many people here simply want to try and get drunk, which is the attitude of most kids under 21. i can’t rationalize spending $20+ a night to drink wine on a night before class. i’ll save it for the ports and the good wine. i can’t say that i will never have some, but i don’t see the point in trying to get drunk.

5. does the ship have a casino?

no, they take our money in so many ways that i don’t need to lose money in a casino. there are, however, signs that direct you to where a casino could be. i guess the ship came with the signs and they just have not been changed. most of the rooms have been adapted to suit semester at sea’s classroom needs. there are partitions that can be put up to block off class space and there seem to be whiteboards stuck everywhere.

6. does the ship rock you to sleep?

absolutely. sleeping is easy, naps are wonderful and staying awake in class is a struggle. especially in the afternoon.

7. how is the school store?

very nice. i bought two sweatshirts because i could not choose. i got grey with blue letters and bright pink with big polka-dot letters. both are super cute :) the store also sells cups, mugs, water bottles, toiletries and school supplies. i think i have enough but at least i know where i can get things if need be.

8. did i see the inauguration?

yes! it was the quietest hour on the ship. we took a break from our scheduled orientation to watch the broadcast all over the ship. it was truly an amazing moment in history and i am so glad i got to see it in such a unique way: the middle of the atlantic!

9. have i been "icky seasick"?

luckily, no. i had a seasickness patch on for the first three days so i was able to avoid feeling icky. there is no way to avoid the funny feeling in your tummy when the ship rocks. we were going much faster at the beginning (20-22 knots) but have slowed down, which makes the cruising smoother. i am very fortunate to have a room on the 2nd deck, i swear its much less rough down here. the student union, on the 6th deck and to the front is the bumpiest place to be, i think. i have been sleepy, which is also a symptom, but i deal with that in the form of naps :)


10. am i meeting lots of people?

yes! there are approximately 1,000 people on board and everyday i see & meet more people i didn't know!

11. what are lifelong learners?

lifelong learners are adults who are along for the journey. we have 14 on this trip. they range in age from mid-twenties to late 60's. anyone can apply to be a lifelong learner. (aunt nancy! :) ) they sit in on classes, attend the programs, eat in the dining halls and spend time with the students and faculty. so many of the lifelong learners are well traveled and interesting people and i look forward to getting to know them better.

12. are lifelong learners like dorm parents?

no, the lifelong learners do whatever they want. we do have living & learning coordinators, who are essentially resident directors. this means many have sailed on previous voyages and hold a master's degree. there is one LLC per floor and they facilitate floor meetings and are around to help.

13. how's the boat?

it's a ship! and i have definitely gotten the hang of the nautical terms. the front of the ship is the fore, the rear is the aft. the left (when facing the fore) is port and the right is starboard. each level is a deck. time is all military. and i think thats all my ship terminology.

14. do i use up online time to type my blog?

no! here on the ship we are lucky to have free email accounts. this means that i can sit and type emails for hours on end and it will not cost me anything. i chose blogspot because there is a nifty feature for me to simply email my blog to post! so i dont even have to sign onto internet to post. i have however, used the internet a couple of times to check that my posts are up ( i actually uploaded one 4 times and had to delete some) when my computer loses connection or i think i've lost the post. we only get two hours of internet for the entire trip. 108 days. thats like a minute a day. as a result, i have forgotten what facebook, perez hilton and msnbc look like.

15. do we have classes everyday?

while cruising, yes. this means i had class today, and will tomorrow. there is no such thing as a weekend. but that just means we will not have classes in port. we do have to cram a whole semester inbetween ports, working out to about 40 class days total. we have an alternating schedule of A and B days. A days i am in class 0800-1200 and B days 0920-1035 & 1455-1610. we will occasionally have a day off from class, and those days will be neptune day & sea olympics.




*as i get more questions, as i assume i will, i'll save them up until i have enough for another q & a :)