more ship life before cape town

It’s been about week on the ship and only two more days until Cape Town. I had a really busy week with three exams, a paper, and other little assignments. Saturday was celebration for Neptune Day and I was woken with pounding on my door and people screaming and chanting through the hallways at 7:30 am. The deep sleeper I am, I ignored the sounds and took this opportunity to finally sleep in. Along with half the other students on the ship, I missed the beginning of Neptune Day because I didn’t get out of bed until around 11:30. All I missed was more shaving of heads (pic of girl getting head shaved) and the captain dressed up as King Neptune. They also filled the pool with fish guts and other nasty things and made everyone who didn’t shave their heads jump in. I missed the opportunity to kiss a fish and I am definitely not too disappointed. Fortunately, I did not miss the best part of Neptune Day, the amazing barbeque out by the pool. This was the only meal I had this day, but I filled up quickly with a burger, hot dog, chicken, ribs, corn, potato salad, cakes, and even ice cream. You all know what kind of eater I am =)! It was also beautiful eating dinner while watching the sunset.

My days are still consisted with the usual: classes, working out, teaching aerobics, working in the library, and studying. At nights, just like a regular cruise, there is an abundant amount of activity to keep me entertained. One night there was a comedy show in the Union and it was hilarious. A few students performed and I was very impressed; there are some funny kids on this ship. Also one night there was the Faculty Staff Talent Show and that was also impressive. A few of my professors were singing, dancing, and playing instruments. I finally got to go on a bridge tour and it was cool to see the view from the front of the ship. They offer them a few times a week, but they are always full. Captain Jeremy is really funny and he let me take a picture with his captain’s hat. One night a group of us played my favorite game of all time….Taboo! It was a lot of fun, but a few of us (including me) got a little too competitive. We played outside under the stars for about three hours one night. If you really know me, you know how addicted I am to that game, but tonight I think I will give Cranium or Scattergories a chance. I’ve also been watching Lost with Angela and Shelly and we are almost done with the first season. Justin gave me the first season of Hereos and everyone has been raving about how good that show is so Im eager to jump into that soon.

Yesterday in Global Studies, the subject of the lecture was Apartheid in South Africa. So as an exercise the entire ship practiced Apartheid for the entire day. Instead of segregation by skin color, we were segregated by our heads; those who shaved their heads were the elite. When they made the announcement over the intercom that we were doing this I was taking my daily nap. At the time, I just brushed it off like it wasn’t going to be too serious, but when I woke up and left my cabin, it was definitely a serious thing. Those with hair were not allowed to use the public restrooms, we were not allowed to eat in one of the dining halls, and we had to give up our workout machine if a shaved head wanted to use it. There were signs all over the ship saying, “Only Shaved Heads.” What really annoyed me was at 10pm when I went up to the 7th Deck (which we were actually not allowed to enter) snack bar and they wouldn’t serve me. Even the crew took this exercise seriously. All I wanted was a cup of Ramen noodles!! Fortunately, I found one of my friends who did shave his head to go up there and buy it for me. Although I was annoyed for a little bit about this situation, I will admit that it was a good technique to teach us more about Apartheid. Not only did we learn about it in class, but we actually were able to have some emotions involved. Good thing it was only for a day though.

Today in Global Studies, Archbishop Desmond Tutu was the lecturer and he will be tomorrow as well. Before this morning, my experiences with him were just saying hello as we passed him by or just seeing him as he ate his meals in the dining halls. His lecture was about South Africa Apartheid, his experiences, and just about his life in general. He’s full of energy and is a funny little man. I didn’t wake up in time to get a seat in the Union where he was speaking so I had to watch in one of the satellite rooms, but tomorrow I plan to wake up extra early, actually grab some breakfast, and then get a seat in the Union to watch this man speak in live.

Overall, my week has gone by extremely fast and I am not complaining about that. A week on the ship is tiring and I cannot wait to get into Cape Town. It’ll be nice to get off the ship and to take a break from school, plus I’m excited to see my mom. I’ve been looking forward to this part of the trip. By the way, everyone on the ship is very surprised at how hard the classes are! All my classes are kicking me in the butt. It’s so hard to get into the mode of class when I could be laying out in the sun just a few steps away. Anyways, Cape Town, my mom, and the packages some of you sent me in two days!! Yayyy!

this is what i want for my birthday...please!

Hey all! Im about leave Brazil (in 2 hours) and I know what I want for my birthday...a global cell phone. my friend has one and she got it at www.gosim.com. The phone is $100 and the global sim card is $50 then it would be possible for you guys to call me for only 10 cents a minute and for me to call u for about 50 cents a minute. Its all prepaid. I think this would be very convenient because its kinda annoying when i use a pay phone (which is more expensive to use) and try to call you guys and you aren´t there. So you would be able to call me whenever i am on land. If someone wants to get it for me soon it could get shipped to my mom before Sunday and she can deliver it to me when she meets me in South Africa on March 2! Thanks

brasilia has bomb food

Tonight is the last day of Carnaval and I plan on going to the Pelourinha tonight with some other people. Fatboy slim is going to be in the parade and I had the option of being on there with him but it was not worth $150 to me. Since today is the last day of Carnaval that means that it’s Fat Tuesday and tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and I still do not know what to give up for Lent. Anyways, about Brasil, as the Britains spell it. The first night of Brazil, Lauren, Angela, Peter, Paul, and I went to a spot called Baha Beach where Carnaval was supposed to be hot, but there were nothing but locals and it looked very sketchy. I was really scared and Angela was so scared, the first chance she got she hopped back into a cab with other scared sassers and went back. I decided to stay and I am so happy I did because I ended up having so much fun that night. We actually ended up bumping into about 6 other guy sassers and hung out with them so that made me feel a lot safer. I literally had 6 guys walking around me like bodyguards. The area was really crowded with people and there was a parade with huge busses full of people singing. The energy of the place was awesome, I don’t even know how to describe it. That night I also rolled down a hill where men were peeing on so I had mud full of pee all over my body. It was not fun, but I dealt with it and washed myself with beer. I wish I had pictures of me going out at night, but it’s so dangerous that I didn’t want to risk bringing my camera out. A bunch of girls got mugged the first day. They said it happened so fast they don’t remember it but they got pushed into an alley and all their cameras and money were stolen. But back to Carnaval the first night…..so even though I was crying after I had Brazilian pee and shit all over me, ten minutes later I was laughing and dancing among the locals, it was exhilarating.

Now onto Lencois (pronounced: Len-soise)…I mentioned that there were 15 people planning on going on this trip, however there were only 4 spots left on the bus so only 4 people got to go and luckily for me I was one of those 4 because that is just how I roll. Me and 3 other guys (Jared, Scott, & Justin) ended up taking the 11:30 pm bus to Lencois on Sunday night. We arrived into Lencois at 5am and walked through the empty town and slept on couches in a hotel lobby until we were kicked out at 8 am when it opened back up. One of the janitors in the hotel offered to take us on a hike for 15 Reals (Brazilian currency pronounced: Ree-Allas) each which is only $7. We ate this kick ass breakfast which was so amazing for the $3 we paid for it (view pic). Then afterwards we hiked for about 5 hours to three different waterfalls in this national park. I struggled a little bit and was lagging behind all the guys, but I was a trooper. We climbed up hills, rocks, and also hiked through rivers (view pic) and saw a cute little monkey jumpin from tree to tree. After the hike it was about 3pm and our bus wasn’t scheduled to leave Lencois to go back to Salvador until 10pm that night so we hung around the town. We ate more good food as you can see from the pictures. The food here in Lencois was definitely a lot better and more traditional than in Salvador. We also used the internet for about an hour, and for a small town with a population of only 9,000 people, I am surprised they had Windows Vista. Very impressing. For most of the evening we chilled at a local bar throwing back Skol (Brazilian beer) and playing cards. We also bumped into other Sassers and hung out with them for a bit. We ended the night with an Italian dinner and wine then took the bus back to Salvador where we arrived at 5am this morning. So we basically spent just one night in Lencois. Today I did a little more shopping and went to the beach for a few hours until we got rained on. The beaches in Brazil are not as nice as Puerto Rico, but I guess I should have known since the Atlantic Ocean is shitty and probably the worst ocean out of them all.

So now its the last night in Brazil and we leave Salvador tomorrow night at 11pm and ill be on the ship for another straight 8 days. Im not looking forward to it since I have 2 exams and a paper. However, I am looking forward to Neptune day (celebration of crossing the equator) where everyone will be shaving their heads. I am also looking forward to seeing my mom in a few days! ciao for now...

Arrival in Salvador, Brazil

We just got into port in Salvador and the first thing I wanted to do was use cheap internet so here I am using internet for less than 40 cents a minute. So many peopole have already run out of minutes on the ship they are buying more. My neighbor just spent $250 for 700 minutes. So ridiculous. So Angela and I are at this internet cafe outside our port and we have a city tour later from 130-430pm. Then tonight we´re going to the Pelhourinho which is the hott spot for Carnival. Back back in the day this used to be where they whipped the slaves, hence Pelhourinho means whipping post. I think im bout to pull an all niter tonight because we have an early bus to Lencois tomorrow morning. We have a group of about 15 ppl, more or less. And dont worry, half of them are guys, BIG guys. But Im not sure how many days we will be in Lencois, we dont even have a hotel/hostel booked yet. I looked in some travel guides and there are places we can stay at for as little as $6/nite, but if everything is all booked we´re thinking of renting tents and going old school. So this is my tentative plan for now, but in a few days ill let you all know how it goes! Oh and remember this guy from Moesha & Save the Last Dance? My roomies in the Bahamas chilled with him the night I didnt go out

out at sea

I ’ve been so busy on this ship, I finally have time to sit down and relax. Four more days til I’m in Salvador, Brazil and I am so psyched for it. Carnival is supposed to be the largest party in the world and I cannot even comprehend it. In Global Studies the prof said that the life expectancy for a young boy in Brazil is only 25 because it is so dangerous there. I’m pretty nervous, especially about going out at night. In the advice we’re given were told not to wear any bling bling, to be in groups with guys, to only carry $20 in cash and stuff it in your shoes, and to NOT wear skirts because the Brazilian guys reach in between! Isn’t that sick? Im scurred!!! We arrive on Saturday the 17th which is supposed to be the craziest day. Carnival ends on Fat Tuesday and then we leave on Wednesday so we’re there for a good 5 full days. I signed up for a walking tour of Salvador on the first day we’re there and then Im planning on going to a Condomble which is a spirit possession ritual. I’m scurred for that too!! Im not that disappointed about going to Rio anymore because Salvador is supposed to have a better Carnival anyways. Im also planning an indy trip with a few other ppl to Lencois which is an old mining town about 6 hours west of Salvador. There is a national park there that I want to check out. Ill probably spend one day hiking up to see the highest waterfall in Brazil. We haven’t decided if we’re going to sleep/camp in caves or if we’re going to stay at a cheap hostel.
So what have I been doing on the ship? Well we had our Activities meeting on Monday and I signed up for mad activities. I’m doing Vicarious Voyages which is keeping in contact with a classroom back in the states. This other girl from Minnesota and I have a 2nd grade class in Apple Valley, MN. We collect items from each country and send it to the class along with a letter and the students then write you letters while Im on the ship (so I know for sure ill be getting some hard copy mail J). From Puerto Rico I got some postcards, maps, magazines, and menus. Hopefully when we’re all done with the trip I can visit the students. There are a total of 19 of them. I also signed up for the Social Committee which is just planning out events. Our first event is tomorrow on Valentine’s Day, a Stoplight Dance. So if you’re taken you wear red, if you’re single you wear green, and if you’re confused you wear yellow. Other events we have are the Talent Show at the end of the trip, a Casino Night (which is on my birthday), Ambassadors Formal, movie nights, etc. On Sunday night we had our first pub night and I actually did not have as much fun as I thought I would. Alcohol is served on the 7th deck by the pool and you’re not allowed to bring it back into the ship, kinda lame, but I must say it was pretty hott just chillen outside under the stars. I should also mention that they changed the alcohol rules for this SAS trip. Instead of just specific days of drinking we’re actually allowed to drink every night now and instead of just 4 drinks, we can now have 6. The idea of being able to drink every night doesn’t appeal to me as much because it’s not that big of a deal, but 6 glasses of wine can def give you a good enough buzz.
My days have consisted of going to classes, working in the library, and working out. The RD (resident director) for health and wellness is still working on the aerobics schedule so I haven’t had a chance to teach classes, but Im excited & eager. There are about 4 other fitness instructors on the ship and we’ve talked about maybe doing joint classes later on in the semester. I’ve kept my celebrity status even here on the ship. Two girls from PSU came up to be a few days ago telling me they love my full body class. Those compliments always put a smile on my face J. I’ve also been waking up at the crack of dawn (730am) every day so I’ve been taking much needed power naps. Yesterday when I opened up the library for work, Archbishop Tutu came by looking for books. I didn’t have a chance to talk to him, but hopefully I can have a conversation when I get him to sign my journal. He has autograph times throughout the voyage. The captain also has bridge (like the cockpit of a plane, but for the boat) tours throughout the voyage. Lauren and I took a picture with him (view pic), he’s British and is the one who has hair. Hope everyone back in the US is doing well, I miss you . But laying out every day after class makes up for it! Loves u. PS: I am black!

This is our last day in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and I must say what a fun first port to start the trip. Lauren and I have been hangin out with these kids from our floor, Peter & Paul. Coincidently, they are both from Minnesota and they are also true wiggers. The first day with them (Wed) we walked around Old City San Juan and took a tour of the Bacardi Factory, where it was free admission with 2 complimentary drinks. Interesting fact: The reason why the bat is the Bacardi symbol is because when the original creators opened their first distillation factory they found a swarm of bats in the attic. That is what I learned. We then took a ferry back to the city for only $3 and had some dinner at a local pizza spot, so authentic I know. That night was fun because I went to the Welcome Reception at the University of PR with Lauren, Ang, Shelly, Kristi, Julie, Shana, & around 200 other SASers. It was hella fun mingling with the locals. We ate food with them, salsa’d, and got some cool souvenirs including a drinking cup & PR flag. Most of all I had the most embarrassing experience of my life. Here it goes….So the bathrooms consisted of 2 separate rooms with 1 toilet each so both guys & girls go in the same bathroom, but one at a time. It’s my turn to go so I do my thing & take a numero 2. Of course this would happen to me & the f’in toilet doesn’t flush and theres a long line of guys outside the door. Im freaking out wishing there was a window to crawl out of. I don’t know what to do but I hear the guys outside the door, “What is she doing in there?” So the only thing I could do is walk outside the door, shut it, and say, “You CANNOT go in there! I took a #2 & it will not flush.” After about 2 minutes of laughter & mere embarrassment, another Sasser, Dannie, goes into the bathroom and flushes the toilet for me by opening the back tank and putting her hand into the tank and pulling the string. An idea that Yes did pop into my head, but def was not about to put my hand into that dirty tank, but very thankful that Dannie did otherwise those guys would be peeing while watching my turd float around the bowl. Moving on….that night we went out to a local street, San Sebastion, with local bars rather than goin to the cliché spring break Senior Frogs. Since there are 702 of us Sassers we pretty much roll deep everywhere we go. Now comes day 2 of lounging on the beach with the immediate fam, Lauren, Petey, & Pauly (look @ pic). We chill here for around 3 hours then take a cab to Kmart where we get all the necessary things that we all forgot. Petey was so kind to spot me $70. We then walk across the street where the 4 of us made the purchase of a life ship time, our walkie talkies. Ever since this purchase it has been nonstop talking on this badboy and everyone on the ship is jealous. I will briefly also mention that I missed my trip to the bioluminescent bay and am still very upset about it. And that is all I will say about that because that ruined my entire night up until about 10 pm when the fam rolled out to San Sebastion street for another night of bonding. All I need to say is that the night started out with tequila shots and ended with Lauren and I on a mic singing ‘Hit me baby one more time’ at an empty local bar where the boys had to drag us out (view pic).

The ship has now disembarked and I am again feelin a little homesick with a combination of exhaustion. Being in port really does kill you. Overcap of today…I chilled with Roxy, Amy, & Condolia. We enjoyed the beach then went into Old San Juan City where Amy & Condolia got their nose pierced. Im very jealous because Ive always wanted to get it done, but am not trying to go for that Indian (dot) look, you all know what I mean. We then walked around got some last minute souvenirs, ate empanadas from street vendors, and then chilled at this hot spot alley bar where we got $1.50 beers. We pounded a few before heading back to the ship & we also met a Puerto Rican little girl who was at the bar with her mother. This “responsible” mother was watching her daughter jump rope while throwing a few brews back. The little girl’s name is Shaniqua (shan-ee-kwah) and she was very adorable so I decided to take a pic with her and as you can see, she loves me. To conclude, we are all on the ship with 7 consecutive days of classes. I am looking forward to #1. teaching aerobics for the first time on the ship #2. our first pub nite this Sunday and finally #3 Feb 17th where I am oh so excited to celebrate Carnival in Brazil!

ship life

I wrote this blog on Wednesday Feb 7th, but didn’t have a chance to post it til now.
We just arrived in San Juan, Puerto Rico. For those of you who do not know this, Puerto Rico is a US territory/colony so the people here are US citizens and better yet, I can use my cell phone (so call me before Friday)!!! So all 702 students have been on the ship for 3 days (since Sunday) and so far we had our orientation on Monday and our first day of class on Tuesday. On Monday I missed a lot of the meetings for orientation because the night before I woke up in the middle of the night with a fever! L I took some ibuprofen and took mucho naps during the day so by Tuesday I felt a lot better. They purposely want everyone up by 9am because Global Studies, which is mandatory for everyone starts at 920, but me so unlucky have an 8am class, Spirit Possession & Ethnography. I was going to drop it and add a later class, but it seems really interesting plus the professor is pretty cool. I guess by the end of this trip ill have seen a ritual where someone actually gets possessed by some sort of spirit. I’m def kinda freaked out by it, but we’ll see how it goes. After Global Studies on Tuesday I had to work in the library til 2 and it wasn’t so bad at all. I reshelved books and made labels for the books, it was pretty easy. After that, I then had Marine Biology which also seems pretty cool. Sadly, today I missed the whale during lunch, but Im sure Ill have more opportunities to see whales swim along our ship. I missed dinner because I took a much needed 3 hour nap and I am also proud to say that after my fever recovery I still made it to the gym today with Kristi & Angela. I hope to teach some aerobics classes soon, but we’re not planning all that til after PR. Last night before bed I hung out with Roxy and watched The Sweetest Thing ß absolutely love that movie. I haven’t seen it since freshman year in Katie & Kelly’s dorm room with Kasey & John. “Too big to fit in here!” Haha do you girls remember that? So now I’m about to leave the ship and take a tour with some people to the Bacardi Factory. I heard that the drinks are complimentary so that will be exciting. I then plan to layout on the beach, get some authentic Puerto Rican grub, and go to the Welcome Reception tonight where there will be Puerto Rican students. Angela and I hope to be successful in finding a hott club to go to tonight! Buenos Dias!!!! Enjoy the pics of my room!

My New Home: MV Explorer

I finally made it on the ship! I was so psyched cuz i got a porthole in my cabin and I def was not expecting it. Im one of the lucky ones! The first nite here we just went to meetings and I also met my roomate, Lauren Shea from NJ. She goes to PACE in nyc & she is also work study. Our room number is 4161, in case any of you want to call me. I work in the library with 4 other people and I think it'll be pretty easy. Cody, the coordinator said that we have the best deal cuz not only do we get on the ship early, but we're making about $31/hour :) Tomorrow will be crazy though because everyone is going to be boarding. There are 702 students, the largest SAS class ever. This is a pic of me on deck 7, the deck where the pool, spa, and gym are. The picture above that is me and Lauren with the crew, all filipinos! The food so far isnt so bad. They serve food accordingly to each country we visit, so I've been eating a lot of different Bahama fish. On Monday we have orientation all day and then our first day of class on Tuesday. Everyone on the ship has to take Global Studies and Im also taking Marine Bio, Health Promotion, and Spirit Posession and Enthnography. On Wednesday Ill be able to use my cell phone and make calls.....Puerto Rico here I come!

24/26.wat.wat.

Ahh i cant complain right now...nappin on the beach, sippin on cocktails...this is the life :) My roomates, from left to right are Julie from Ohio, Angela from cali, me, Michelle also from cali, and then Kristi from rhode island. They're all really cool & love to have fun just like me. We call ourselves 24-26 girls, hence our room number, lol. My drunk idea, of course! The first night we got here we went to Senior Frogs and met tons of other people who are also doing SAS. There are a lot of kids from Cali & Colorado!! Then we went to this local after party! It was kinda scary....but still fun. It was called Cocktails & Dreams. Now its Friday and I gotta be on the ship in an hour for work study orientation. I can't wait to see the ship...my new home.