Semester at Sea has changed my entire outlook on life, my future, the world. How could it not? And being home is very bittersweet. But what I have learned will always stay with me. It has been a fantastic start to the summer, and I know much of that is due to the absolute exuberance I have for life thanks to SAS.
I thought I would share with you some of my post-SAS reflections, written in my handwritten journal. They really express what the journey has done for me, and these are just the things that I recognize now. Imagine how I will discover how I have been changed later on down the line.
“108 days of suns rising and falling and hearts rising and falling. What have I learned? What will I take with me always?
-Things work out the way they are supposed to. They always do.
-If someone or something makes you sad, get rid of it. No one, no thing, is worth it.
-There is something better out there. Don’t settle until you find it.
-You can do anything. Anything. And all on your own too.
-You really can get through anything. You already knew this, but now it will be engrained in your mind forever.
-Be proud of yourself, but never too proud. You too have many flaws and should constantly strive to be better. Isn’t that what you expect from everyone else?
-Love is out there. Real love. Keep giving it, and it will continue to find you and wrap you up.
-Don’t discount anyone. You have a tendency to close yourself off from some people for really no reason at all. Instead, open yourself up for no reason at all.”
I have always been a self-confident person. But the amount of confidence I have now is positively overflowing. I can do anything I want to, and I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to do. And I can be exactly who I want, and I will not settle in any area of my life, and I will choose my own happiness.
And I will never, ever stop traveling.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Hawaii and Guatemala
Hawaii and Guatemala were pretty much considered afterthoughts for most everybody aboard the ship, as if they were not real ports. And yet, both are right up there with some of my favorite experiences on the entire voyage. And now I can officially say that I have boarded the ship for last time… watched land fade away for the last time… stepped into an unknown country on this voyage for the very last time. I have been to twelve ports. I have five days left on this ship that has become my home. It is done. Now all I can do is look back and be thankful for the amazing journey I have almost completed. Hey, remember that time I circumnavigated the globe?
So, as I listen to the reggaeton CD I bought for two dollars in Guatemala, I will try and finally finish sharing my experiences in Hawaii, Guatemala, and FINALLY India.
I woke up before dawn to watch the island grow larger and larger as we inched towards it. The weather was perfect and the sky changed from black to purple to pink to a riveting blue as the sun rose. I’ve been to Hawaii many times with my family, but never Honolulu. The view of the city was gorgeous. I watched them raise the American flag as the sun came up and got just a little bit emotional.
We were all ecstatic to have phone service that didn’t cost an arm and a leg per minute. I called my parents and talked to them for an hour and a half while the ship was being cleared. It was so nice to be able to have an actual conversation with them and tell them how much fun I was having and how thankful I was that they let me do this program, and how much I already know it has changed me. I made a bunch of other calls to friend over the couple of days and sent out a few mass texts, just to holla. I’m not going to lie, I am very much looking forward to being able to use my phone and go on the internet again.
We finally got off the boat and set out for our day on foot. We decided to walk the couple of miles over to Waikiki Beach. Our group today consisted of Hannah, Caroline, Alicia, Greg, Alex, Disha, Doug and I. It was perfect. I love them all. The weather was sweltering and we were drenched in sweat, so we finally caught a bus the last stretch of the way. My feet were rubbed raw from walking in flip flops so much over these two days.
We finally got to the beach and it was absolutely gorgeous. I have seen so much beauty all over the world. Crowded too. We all laid out our towels and ran into the perfectly refreshing water then laid out for awhile. By this time we were getting pretty hungry and couldn’t WAIT to have a huge heap of American food. Being in the U.S. again was completely surreal. Being able to speak the language, feeling at home, knowing your taxi driver understands you and is actually going to take you where you ask, being able to read street signs, asking for directions and understanding where the hell the person is telling you to go, all of it felt GREAT!
We decided on a 50’s diner for lunch. We all had varying types of good ol’ American cuisine. I had a delicious meatball sandwich, some fries, and finished it up with the most satisfying banana split ever, which I split with Hannah. I want one right now. And I had sips of everyone else’s desserts/milkshakes/smoothies and bites of burgers/chips/sandwiches. Sooooooo good. Being familiar with the songs playing in the restaurant or the shows playing on TV was all so great, and these are things you completely take for granted at home. But one thing we didn’t like… American prices.
After eating our fill and rejoicing in America, we headed back to the beach. Greg, Doug and I took off to head back to the boat because we had signed up to do a Q&A and tour guide for people from the Hawaii area. We were running really late because the bus took a lot longer than we thought it would, but we made it. There were about fifteen people there, some prospective students and parents, mostly from U of Hawaii, and a couple of representatives from the HI area. We watched a twenty minute long video, and it was so strange to see these other kids on MY ship, living MY life, talking about things I had done, sitting places I sit every day, then watching them talk about the end of the trip, and realizing we were almost there. It was strange for all six of us students representing the current voyage. The question and answer session was great and we all tried to give as honest answers as possible. It seemed as though we all have had the same genuine experience of being altered forever by what we have seen and experienced, and we all felt especially attached to the shipboard community that has formed. After we collected our free T-shirt and chocolate macadamia nuts, Greg, Doug, and I opted out of the tour part because we had to meet back up with our friends for a BOOZE CRUISE!
Earlier we had noticed a sign for a catamaran sunset cruise, a.k.a. booze cruise. SDRN. So down right now. We all paid thirty bucks and hopped on. Now our group consisted of Greg, Caroline, Hannah, Doug, Nancy, Skyler, Brendan, creepy Mike, and me.
This booze cruise was an absolute blast. I alternated between mai tais and rum and cokes and we all laughed for an hour and a half straight as the sun set over a few clouds and a crisp blue ocean. It couldn’t have been more perfect. I was surrounded by people I love, people I have grown so close to, people I am so blessed to have in my life. This one Australian guy started talking to all of us, and he was a really fun guy so he ended up hanging out with us for the night. I told him I was going to live in Sydney and we talked all about traveling and Australia and all of the cool things I am going to do when I go there. He was super cute, but also super short, and he may have been gay, we’re not sure. He was traveling around all by himself at the moment, and I can’t wait to do that same thing, just bum around the world, meet people, learn lessons, have adventures, love life.
After the booze cruise, we went over to Duke’s where we had a dinner reservation. We had more delicious American food. I split ribs with Doug, and they were riblicious. I also bought… my first legal Americam drink! WOOHOO!!!! TWENTY ONE!!! Pretty much the entirety of SAS was at this restaurant and bar, including our sexy dean Les McCabe, and it was a great time. Braxton and Riley both bought me birthday drinks, and we all just hung out drinking and dancing the night away. Unfortunately, it was a Sunday, so not too much was open, so Doug and I left around midnight.
The next morning we slept in a little bit then caught a bus into town. We stopped by a place to rent bikes for the day. I love bike riding. I can’t wait to do a lot of it when I get home. We wanted to try to ride all the way to Hanuama Bay, about fourteen miles, but we didn’t quite reach that mark. Actually, we only got about two miles. Lexi, Caroline, Hannah, Doug and I rode along the beautiful coast in perfect weather, gazing at the ocean to our right. When we were hot, we stopped at a little beach that was sparsely populated and took a dip and tanned for awhile. Then we were getting really hungry and we didn’t see any food around, and we REALLY wanted Mexican food. So we rode back towards Waikiki and kind of haphazardly looked for a place to eat. We finally decided to stop and park our bikes, and lo and behold, exactly to our left is a Mexican place! Called La Cucaracha. This hit the spot like nothing else on earth could have at that moment in time. Nobody does Mexican food quite like the United States, haha. We all shared a huge plate of nachos and I shared a quesadilla with Lexi. Mmmmmmm. And we got to take pictures of all of us in sombreros! So touristy right now.
After we ate we hit up the beach for a couple more hours. When we saw the catamaran from the night before, we seriously pondered doing another booze cruise to finish out the two days, but we unfortunately wouldn’t have made it back to the ship in time if we had done it. Darn. So we just enjoyed the water, sand and air before hopping in a taxi to head back towards the boat. What a perfect couple of days with so many people I love.
Back on the boat, I enjoyed one last sunset while making many phone calls, mostly to Jessica, Becca and Melissa. It felt great to hear everyone’s voices, but in a way it’s not as big a deal now for either side because we will be seeing each other SO SOON!!! I called Jon and talked with him about SAS memories for a good half hour. I can’t wait to see everybody…
The next eight days on the ship went by in a flash, just like I knew they would. We had so much fun, staying up late playing games, talking, and very seldomly studying. I had my last four days of class, then global studies exam, then my Islam final. Global kicked my butt and I got a C+ in the class, but I’m taking it pass/fail so no biggie. Islam was fine and I’m sure I did well. I don’t think I went to bed before three a single time on this stretch. This ship has really become home and the people here have really become family. We have been ticking down the days, and as every single day slips through our fingers, we are in more and more disbelief.
The morning we got into Guatemala I made sure to get up in time to see the sunrise. I did at 5:15 a.m., and Doug came with me, and the sunrise was perfectly shrouded in clouds, which was still pretty but less than fantastic. So I went back to bed for a few hours. I had no concrete plans in Guatemala, and I was happy about that. All I planned on doing was spending as much time with Hannah as humanly possible.
A lot of people were really freaked out to go to Guatemala, including Caroline, because of the high crime rate, and the addition of the swine flu epidemic was no help either. I could care less. I love Central and Latin America and I couldn’t wait to be in the heat speaking the language. SAS has taught me that I can do anything, as long as I’m smart about it.
We met up around ten and got off the boat to head to Iztapa, a beach area with a sandbar that supposedly had restaurants. A lot of people went to Monterrico, a black sand beach, and Antigua. Our group included Alicia, Caroline, Hannah, Greg, Lia, Brendan and creepy Mike. Most of my favorite people all with me for an entire day. Perfect.
We catch the free shuttle over to the port entrance where there are a ton of taxis waiting around for us. However, they are ridiculously overcharging for their services. They are trying to get somewhere in the neighborhood of $200 for a ride to Antigua, which is about an hour away. And they want us to pay $25 each to get to Iztapan, which is no more than twenty minutes away. Hell to the no. So Greg and I, the only ones that speak any of the language, begin searching out people to negotiate with. One guy offers me $5 per person and I quickly agree. We hop in the van and drive away. Our driver’s name is Jorge, though he told us he prefers to be called George. He is a really nice guy and ends up hanging out with us for most of the day and part of the night.
He drops us off in Iztapan, which it turns out is the middle of nowhere. We walk to the “dock,” which is basically just a few tug boats hanging out. The boys wanted to try and go ocean fishing, so they looked around for a boat to hire, but no such luck. Us girls in the meantime hung out with a couple of locals and their puppy and chickens. Next we all decided to head over to the sandbar. We hire a “water taxi,” just a rickety old boat driven by an old man, and putt-putt over to the other side. We get off and look around. The place is deserted. There is one guy hanging out there, a surfer from Israel. We talk to him for awhile and he tells us the places to eat and everything else are only open on weekends. We’re on our own. There are literally three locals on the whole beach, and they are fishing. It was the most unique beach experience I have had on the voyage so far, that’s for sure. Lining the beach are several large huts covered in thatched roofs. There are many stray dogs, all looking very sickly and disease infested, except for one dog who had a beautiful golden coat and liked to show off by jumping around and running around the other dogs who could barely walk. We played with a little puppy for a really long time, though we were careful not to touch him as his ears were basically falling off and we didn’t want to end up itching ourselves the way this dog was constantly itching.
We decided to make the best of it, and it was kind of fun to have our very own beach, so we laid out our towels on the blazing hot black sand, stripped down and plunged into the ocean. Bathwater. The waves were fun and the beach was semi-clean. Except for that syringe I saw nestled in the sand. There was a pretty quality rip tide going so we stayed pretty close to shore. Alicia got bit by something and ran out of the water. She also wiped away a squid that had made its way onto her head. Alicia can’t help it, the wildlife is just drawn to her. We laid out for awhile and I took a little nap I desperately needed. The san was so hot it was literally burning our feet. We had asked our water taxi to pick us up again at three, but we were ready to go by 1:30, so the boys tried to whistle and wave across the riverbank to attract his attention, but no luck. We finally got ahold of him on the phone and he came over and got us.
Once back on the other side we looked around for somewhere to eat. We sat down at a little place that looked like it had some quality options, like Guatemalan food for me and hamburguesas for the less adventurous. The meal was actually really, really good, and the people were nice. We enjoyed a soccer game while we ate our meal, with Jorge by our side the whole time.
We headed back to the ship and rested for a couple of hours before meeting up at 7 to go into the nearest town, San Jose. Greg and Brendan decided to stay in, so it was just Caroline, Alicia, Hannah, Lia, Doug and I. Thank goodness Doug tagged along because otherwise we probably wouldn’t have gone out just the gals. This night was random but ended up being a lot of fun. We got a taxi for $5 each, each way, with our boy Jorge and his friend. His friend spoke pretty good English, so I spent most of the night talking to Jorge and reminding my tongue how to speak Spanish.
They took us first to this really fun bar all lit up with flashing neon lights, really loud music, and a guy on a loudspeaker randomly enticing people to come into the club, which really reminded me of Cabo. We sat down at a table and were the only ones in there. We ordered some rum and chasers, as all Guatemalans claim that Guatemalan rum is the best in the world. They brought out some meat that was basically all fat, but it tasted pretty good, until I spit it out that is. The music videos playing on the televisions were pretty hilarious. They were all old 80’s songs, and we were loving it. I went up to the DJ and requested “Dimelo” by my boy Enrique, but he didn’t have it, so I requested a great reggaeton song I know from Guadalajara called “Perdoname.” He put it on and kept the reggaeton bumping, and we all got up and danced for awhile. And by all of us I mean us five girls, while Doug watched, because we were the only ones in the whole place. After we were all a little buzzed we headed off to explore the town.
All of the shops were shutting down around this time, but we walked around checking out the street food and the little shops. I bought a reggaeton hits CD for two dollars. I bought one similar to it in El Salvador and ended up loving it, and this one is pretty good. I gave the kid my money and he put the case in my bag, then I asked him, is there a CD in there? I opened it up and there wasn’t, and he just laughed innocently. Haha little jerk. So I had him play the CD for me to make sure it worked, then he put it in the case and we went on our way. Lia and I split some delicious street tacos topped with cebollas and salsa. We all went and sat in the plaza and watched all of the skateboarding teenagers. There were of course the couples making out all over the place, but I noticed more than anything all of the kids running around. I went over to a group of kids and started talking to them about their lives, where they lived, if their older siblings were there in the park. We took a bunch of pictures with them and then showed them. Then we headed back to the ship as there was not too much else to do.
Little did we know, there was a great bar with live music right at our free shuttle pick up! We stopped in there and partied with maybe twenty other SASers and some people from the other cruise ship docked at the port called “The World.” A few girls from the ship were behind the bar handing out drinks, I’m not sure how they swung that gig. The music was great and we danced for an hour or so. Doug actually knows how to dance, so he tried to teach me a couple, but I’m no good at following haha. Riley was crazy drunk and so was Alicia. We got a few free shots and drinks from the girls working the bar, then we headed home after the music was done. We put on our bathing suits and went swimming for awhile, as it was still, as Grandma would say, hotter than blue blazes out. Then we sat around talking for a long time. Apparently Alicia ended up getting really sick and Hannah and Caroline took care of her till late at night, but I was hanging out with Doug so I didn’t know. The funniest thing that happened that Hannah told me about was when Alicia said, “Canalay… I mean… Hannah.” Hahahahaha.
The next morning Hannah and I were up bright and early to get down to the gangway at 7 a.m. to leave for our volcano hike! Pacaya Volcano. We were both pretty excited for this trip, and I was especially excited to be with Hannah. Our bus was about 45 minutes late, but that gave me time to run upstairs and grab some pastries, so it was cool. We tried to sleep for the hour or so ride there, but it was kind of difficult with how windy the trail was. I would wake up on every curve in a slight panic that our bus was tumbling down the hillside. When we got there I maybe had four or so hours of sleep under my belt, so I was ready to go!
We all bought water and marshmallows to roast over lava and then started heading up the trail. Some people bought walking sticks for five quetzales from the little boys selling them. 8 quetzales = 1 dollar. They were charred on the bottom from being stuck into the lava.
The hike was moderate, not too bad, especially when I got into a nice rhythm. It took us maybe an hour and a half to get to the top. The weather was amazing as always, slightly overcast and a little breezy so we felt refreshed whenever we stopped to take a break. There were about 20 of us, and Hannah and I were definitely the loudest. We joked and talked the whole way up and we saw a dead snake and some vibrant red and yellow pacaya fruit.
Soon we were out of the foresty area and standing before a giant mountain of ash and hardened lava… or pahoehoe. You could see the top of the volcano above us, and quite often it would start spewing smoke. The area around it was constantly steaming. Across the way, on the other side of the town below, you could see Fuego Volcano. The view was astounding.
Our guide’s name was Chicki, and he was a pretty entertaining guy, as well as cute. But, as most Latin men go, he was short too.
To get to the area where all the hot lava action was occurring, we had to trek down a steep hill of crumbly ash/pahoehoe. This was the most fun part of the day, and maybe one of the most exhilarating activities of the entire voyage. It was like skiing downhill in tennishoes. We were flying down this lava hill! Hannah and I had huge smiles on our faces the entire way down. And it just kept going! We really wanted to do it again but the climb back up would have taken hundreds of years, as every step we would take, we would fall back three.
Once at the bottom, we looked across a field of jagged pahoehoe, dried lava as far as the eye can see, in all sorts of beautiful shapes and formations and even colors. Sometimes it had almost an opal coloring effect, and most of it glimmered like sparkling obsidian. And then, across the way several hundred yards, was hellfire red magma spewing out of the earth.
We hiked over to the magma area, very cautiously. There were quite a few spills, and trust me, pahoehoe is a funny word but it can really cut you up. Hannah took a mini spill and bled quite a bit from just a little scratch. Something about dried lava that makes you bleed profusely. The ground was constantly shifting or falling apart underneath our feet.
Finally we ascended the hill where magma was flowing in a solid, molasses-like stream. It was HOT. The closer you got the scarier it was. Magma was flowing to our right and left and below us. We were literally standing five feet from it. We busted out marshmallows and popped them on sticks and went to roast them. When I went to roast mine it felt like the skin in my face was going to melt off and I just couldn’t hack it.
Down below there was a very fast flowing tunnel of magma flowing. A magma river. We could really close to it too because the ridges on the side acted somewhat like heat buffers. The river went all the way down to the bottom of the hill. Someone stuck a walking stick into the magma and we all oohed and ahhed when the stick emerged on fire, which quickly died down as the magma cooled.
After our heated experience, we trekked back across the perilous pahoehoe field then sat down to have a quality lunch of sandwiches, cookies and chips and enjoy the gorgeous view of Mount Fuego in front of us. There were these stray dogs that followed us all the way up and down the mountain and we fed them food. They are pretty experienced hikers and they weren’t afraid to cut us off at any time, often almost tripping us. We hiked back down the mountain, another pleasant experience. We passed by some cows chilling and lots of little boys riding horses up the trail. Much of our hike was spent avoiding road apples actually. (That’s horse poop, guys.)
Once we were back at base, Hannah and I tried to figure out how to get a ride to Antigua, since we were only an hour away. Chicki tried to set us up to no avail. We finally gave up and just got back on the bus, hoping to find something once we got back to the ship. Hannah and I listened to music together the whole ride back and anything we do together makes me pretty happy.
When we got back to the ship we again asked Chicki if he could possibly help us find a ride. First, he invited us back to his beach house in Puerto Quetzal instead. And we definitely actually considered it. But no, we need to get to Antigua. He helps us talk to a van driver who is driving other cab drivers back to Antigua. He tells us to meet back in about 30 minutes. We rush onto the ship and change and gather some stuff, then awkwardly wait outside for the guy. Everyone thought we were really confused and finally one of the Guatemalan guides who was on another trip came up to us and said, with a very quizzical look, “Excuse me, but, can I help you with something?” We explained what we were waiting for then he took us on the bus to talk to the van driver. We agreed we would pay fifteen dollars each, I believe. Except now we would be leaving more around seven. So we go back on the ship, grab food, relax a little.
We finally hop in the van along with two other tour guides that both speak great English. The weather starts kicking up and all of the sudden dust clouds are flying everywhere and then the sky blackened and we were in the midst of a huge thunderstorm. I love storms, and it was definitely amazing to see, but it was frightening at the same time. Here Hannah and I are in a car headed to Antigua, which is an hour and a half ride or so, just hoping they are legit, all the while lightning is practically striking our car. The rain was beautiful though and the car ride was great expect for those couple of times when Hannah and I wondered whether or not we were on a ride to our deaths.
Finally we did get to Antigua and they dropped us off at El Gato Negro hostel. They were such nice people and really did us a favor by giving us a ride and dropping us off wherever we wanted. Now onto our next goal: finding a place to sleep. Hannah and I stopped by several hostels, all of which were full, then gave up and went to meet our friends Riley and Braxton at a restaurant.
The restaurant was delicious, we had chile con rellenos and chips and guac. There was also an amazing guitarist playing Spanish guitar and singing while we were there. I requested “Besame Mucho,” my parents’ love song. I got a little teary-eyed listening to it. He was amazing.
After dinner Hannah and I continued the quest to find a place to sleep, along with Riley. We finally found a great place for $35 a night for two. It was perfect. Very safe, a nice and clean room, and breakfast included in the morning, though we didn’t know that until the morning. We each paid about seven dollars more than our friends did at their hostels and I feel like we got a lot more.
After we situated all our stuff we changed into going out clothes and went to meet our friends. First stop was this hookah bar where there were about ten SASers, a really fun group. Everyone was dancing. Our friend Diana was carrying over a dessert tray of ice cream while dancing and it dropped first on her head and then on her floor. It was HILARIOUS. What was even funnier was when a guy walked by and stepped in the ice cream, immediately after looking back very surprised and perplexed. You just don’t expect to step in a scoop of ice cream.
After this we headed to a bar down the street. Many many SASers were in Antigua and as always we all gravitated to the same place. The bar was called Frida and featured much of her art and pictures of her. As soon as I walked in I saw a teacher on board, Dr. John Serio, and his wife Faye. Dr. Serio and I have been on several trips together and he rather enjoys my company, and I his, and he greeted me with a huge and happy drunken hello. Then we took a shot together. Only on SAS.
I headed upstairs and there was salsa dancing going on. Then all of a sudden I am pulled onto the floor by this gorgeous Guatemalan who is basically a professional dancer. I dance with him off and on for the next two hours. This experience was amazing for me. I love to dance, and though I stumbled and it took me awhile to get the hang of it, I picked it up and it was so exhilarating to be dancing like that. He flipped me and dipped me and twirled me all over, and he was patient as I learned the steps. I can’t really explain how great it made me feel and I think taking some dance classes would be really fun.
We all had a great night of dancing and talking and drinking with teachers and Hannah and I headed home and PTFO’d. (Passed the eff out.)
The next morning we slept in till about ten, which really is sleeping in for us, and when I woke up I jumped in bed with Hannah and we cuddled and listened to music on my iphone for a good half hour. What a beautiful morning. When we looked outside the weather was cool and, surprise! Breakfast is included! Hannah ate pancakes and I had a delicious egg sandwich of sorts. DELICIOUS. We ate in the sunny little courtyard of our hotel with a fountain in the middle. We let the morning linger because it was just so pleasant. By the way, our hotel was called Posada Asjemenou, and I recommend it.
Next we set out to explore Antigua. It is a beautiful town, colonial style. The buildings are very beautiful and many of the people are indigenously dressed. We didn’t really know where to go but we had the names of a couple of places. We wandered around, looking at the historical sites. We stumbled upon this gorgeous yellow church and hauntingly beautiful and muffled music seeped out of it and reached our ears. We walked inside and slowly wandered towards the front. We sat down and listened to a couple of songs. There were three singers and their voices were immaculate. I had tears in my eyes. My chest felt heavy. I have been to so many places of worship all over the world, and there is always something beautiful and calming and haunting and humbling about sitting in a place of worship, hearing the music, seeing the people praying. We left the church and immediately told each other how spiritual of an experience that had been for both of us.
Next we went to the market. Every market seems to have the same general items, and yet they are all unique. I bought a mango with chile powder and lime and it was delicious. There were electronics, tons of clothing, household items, lots of toys. We walked through the art area as well. We wanted to try to get to a lookout over the city, “something da la cruz,” but we didn’t have time to get there and find a ride back to the ship.
We got a little worried once we got separated from our friends to get a ride back, but once again life is on our side and everything works out. We got offered about three rides and we took the cheapest one, a van back with about 12 SASers. We each paid about six bucks. The ride was a little squeezed, but not bad. It was sad to leave Antigua, I wish we had more time there. It was also sad to be on our way back to the ship for the last time… leaving our last port.
We had a little time before on ship time so we went to the port shopping area and I bought a couple of sweet shirts, a hat repping Gallo cerveza, my favorite beer from around the world, with a bottle opener on the brim, and a SWEET rainbow headband. We rode on the roof of the shuttle on the way back, along with the luggage.
And finally, we got in line for the last time ever to board the MV Explorer… at least for now.
Guatemala completely surprised me with how much I enjoyed the experiences I had there. I always love being in Spanish speaking countries and I especially love the flavor and feel of Latin American countries. Guatemala, the port no one really counted as a port, ended up being one of my favorite experiences.
So, as I listen to the reggaeton CD I bought for two dollars in Guatemala, I will try and finally finish sharing my experiences in Hawaii, Guatemala, and FINALLY India.
I woke up before dawn to watch the island grow larger and larger as we inched towards it. The weather was perfect and the sky changed from black to purple to pink to a riveting blue as the sun rose. I’ve been to Hawaii many times with my family, but never Honolulu. The view of the city was gorgeous. I watched them raise the American flag as the sun came up and got just a little bit emotional.
We were all ecstatic to have phone service that didn’t cost an arm and a leg per minute. I called my parents and talked to them for an hour and a half while the ship was being cleared. It was so nice to be able to have an actual conversation with them and tell them how much fun I was having and how thankful I was that they let me do this program, and how much I already know it has changed me. I made a bunch of other calls to friend over the couple of days and sent out a few mass texts, just to holla. I’m not going to lie, I am very much looking forward to being able to use my phone and go on the internet again.
We finally got off the boat and set out for our day on foot. We decided to walk the couple of miles over to Waikiki Beach. Our group today consisted of Hannah, Caroline, Alicia, Greg, Alex, Disha, Doug and I. It was perfect. I love them all. The weather was sweltering and we were drenched in sweat, so we finally caught a bus the last stretch of the way. My feet were rubbed raw from walking in flip flops so much over these two days.
We finally got to the beach and it was absolutely gorgeous. I have seen so much beauty all over the world. Crowded too. We all laid out our towels and ran into the perfectly refreshing water then laid out for awhile. By this time we were getting pretty hungry and couldn’t WAIT to have a huge heap of American food. Being in the U.S. again was completely surreal. Being able to speak the language, feeling at home, knowing your taxi driver understands you and is actually going to take you where you ask, being able to read street signs, asking for directions and understanding where the hell the person is telling you to go, all of it felt GREAT!
We decided on a 50’s diner for lunch. We all had varying types of good ol’ American cuisine. I had a delicious meatball sandwich, some fries, and finished it up with the most satisfying banana split ever, which I split with Hannah. I want one right now. And I had sips of everyone else’s desserts/milkshakes/smoothies and bites of burgers/chips/sandwiches. Sooooooo good. Being familiar with the songs playing in the restaurant or the shows playing on TV was all so great, and these are things you completely take for granted at home. But one thing we didn’t like… American prices.
After eating our fill and rejoicing in America, we headed back to the beach. Greg, Doug and I took off to head back to the boat because we had signed up to do a Q&A and tour guide for people from the Hawaii area. We were running really late because the bus took a lot longer than we thought it would, but we made it. There were about fifteen people there, some prospective students and parents, mostly from U of Hawaii, and a couple of representatives from the HI area. We watched a twenty minute long video, and it was so strange to see these other kids on MY ship, living MY life, talking about things I had done, sitting places I sit every day, then watching them talk about the end of the trip, and realizing we were almost there. It was strange for all six of us students representing the current voyage. The question and answer session was great and we all tried to give as honest answers as possible. It seemed as though we all have had the same genuine experience of being altered forever by what we have seen and experienced, and we all felt especially attached to the shipboard community that has formed. After we collected our free T-shirt and chocolate macadamia nuts, Greg, Doug, and I opted out of the tour part because we had to meet back up with our friends for a BOOZE CRUISE!
Earlier we had noticed a sign for a catamaran sunset cruise, a.k.a. booze cruise. SDRN. So down right now. We all paid thirty bucks and hopped on. Now our group consisted of Greg, Caroline, Hannah, Doug, Nancy, Skyler, Brendan, creepy Mike, and me.
This booze cruise was an absolute blast. I alternated between mai tais and rum and cokes and we all laughed for an hour and a half straight as the sun set over a few clouds and a crisp blue ocean. It couldn’t have been more perfect. I was surrounded by people I love, people I have grown so close to, people I am so blessed to have in my life. This one Australian guy started talking to all of us, and he was a really fun guy so he ended up hanging out with us for the night. I told him I was going to live in Sydney and we talked all about traveling and Australia and all of the cool things I am going to do when I go there. He was super cute, but also super short, and he may have been gay, we’re not sure. He was traveling around all by himself at the moment, and I can’t wait to do that same thing, just bum around the world, meet people, learn lessons, have adventures, love life.
After the booze cruise, we went over to Duke’s where we had a dinner reservation. We had more delicious American food. I split ribs with Doug, and they were riblicious. I also bought… my first legal Americam drink! WOOHOO!!!! TWENTY ONE!!! Pretty much the entirety of SAS was at this restaurant and bar, including our sexy dean Les McCabe, and it was a great time. Braxton and Riley both bought me birthday drinks, and we all just hung out drinking and dancing the night away. Unfortunately, it was a Sunday, so not too much was open, so Doug and I left around midnight.
The next morning we slept in a little bit then caught a bus into town. We stopped by a place to rent bikes for the day. I love bike riding. I can’t wait to do a lot of it when I get home. We wanted to try to ride all the way to Hanuama Bay, about fourteen miles, but we didn’t quite reach that mark. Actually, we only got about two miles. Lexi, Caroline, Hannah, Doug and I rode along the beautiful coast in perfect weather, gazing at the ocean to our right. When we were hot, we stopped at a little beach that was sparsely populated and took a dip and tanned for awhile. Then we were getting really hungry and we didn’t see any food around, and we REALLY wanted Mexican food. So we rode back towards Waikiki and kind of haphazardly looked for a place to eat. We finally decided to stop and park our bikes, and lo and behold, exactly to our left is a Mexican place! Called La Cucaracha. This hit the spot like nothing else on earth could have at that moment in time. Nobody does Mexican food quite like the United States, haha. We all shared a huge plate of nachos and I shared a quesadilla with Lexi. Mmmmmmm. And we got to take pictures of all of us in sombreros! So touristy right now.
After we ate we hit up the beach for a couple more hours. When we saw the catamaran from the night before, we seriously pondered doing another booze cruise to finish out the two days, but we unfortunately wouldn’t have made it back to the ship in time if we had done it. Darn. So we just enjoyed the water, sand and air before hopping in a taxi to head back towards the boat. What a perfect couple of days with so many people I love.
Back on the boat, I enjoyed one last sunset while making many phone calls, mostly to Jessica, Becca and Melissa. It felt great to hear everyone’s voices, but in a way it’s not as big a deal now for either side because we will be seeing each other SO SOON!!! I called Jon and talked with him about SAS memories for a good half hour. I can’t wait to see everybody…
The next eight days on the ship went by in a flash, just like I knew they would. We had so much fun, staying up late playing games, talking, and very seldomly studying. I had my last four days of class, then global studies exam, then my Islam final. Global kicked my butt and I got a C+ in the class, but I’m taking it pass/fail so no biggie. Islam was fine and I’m sure I did well. I don’t think I went to bed before three a single time on this stretch. This ship has really become home and the people here have really become family. We have been ticking down the days, and as every single day slips through our fingers, we are in more and more disbelief.
The morning we got into Guatemala I made sure to get up in time to see the sunrise. I did at 5:15 a.m., and Doug came with me, and the sunrise was perfectly shrouded in clouds, which was still pretty but less than fantastic. So I went back to bed for a few hours. I had no concrete plans in Guatemala, and I was happy about that. All I planned on doing was spending as much time with Hannah as humanly possible.
A lot of people were really freaked out to go to Guatemala, including Caroline, because of the high crime rate, and the addition of the swine flu epidemic was no help either. I could care less. I love Central and Latin America and I couldn’t wait to be in the heat speaking the language. SAS has taught me that I can do anything, as long as I’m smart about it.
We met up around ten and got off the boat to head to Iztapa, a beach area with a sandbar that supposedly had restaurants. A lot of people went to Monterrico, a black sand beach, and Antigua. Our group included Alicia, Caroline, Hannah, Greg, Lia, Brendan and creepy Mike. Most of my favorite people all with me for an entire day. Perfect.
We catch the free shuttle over to the port entrance where there are a ton of taxis waiting around for us. However, they are ridiculously overcharging for their services. They are trying to get somewhere in the neighborhood of $200 for a ride to Antigua, which is about an hour away. And they want us to pay $25 each to get to Iztapan, which is no more than twenty minutes away. Hell to the no. So Greg and I, the only ones that speak any of the language, begin searching out people to negotiate with. One guy offers me $5 per person and I quickly agree. We hop in the van and drive away. Our driver’s name is Jorge, though he told us he prefers to be called George. He is a really nice guy and ends up hanging out with us for most of the day and part of the night.
He drops us off in Iztapan, which it turns out is the middle of nowhere. We walk to the “dock,” which is basically just a few tug boats hanging out. The boys wanted to try and go ocean fishing, so they looked around for a boat to hire, but no such luck. Us girls in the meantime hung out with a couple of locals and their puppy and chickens. Next we all decided to head over to the sandbar. We hire a “water taxi,” just a rickety old boat driven by an old man, and putt-putt over to the other side. We get off and look around. The place is deserted. There is one guy hanging out there, a surfer from Israel. We talk to him for awhile and he tells us the places to eat and everything else are only open on weekends. We’re on our own. There are literally three locals on the whole beach, and they are fishing. It was the most unique beach experience I have had on the voyage so far, that’s for sure. Lining the beach are several large huts covered in thatched roofs. There are many stray dogs, all looking very sickly and disease infested, except for one dog who had a beautiful golden coat and liked to show off by jumping around and running around the other dogs who could barely walk. We played with a little puppy for a really long time, though we were careful not to touch him as his ears were basically falling off and we didn’t want to end up itching ourselves the way this dog was constantly itching.
We decided to make the best of it, and it was kind of fun to have our very own beach, so we laid out our towels on the blazing hot black sand, stripped down and plunged into the ocean. Bathwater. The waves were fun and the beach was semi-clean. Except for that syringe I saw nestled in the sand. There was a pretty quality rip tide going so we stayed pretty close to shore. Alicia got bit by something and ran out of the water. She also wiped away a squid that had made its way onto her head. Alicia can’t help it, the wildlife is just drawn to her. We laid out for awhile and I took a little nap I desperately needed. The san was so hot it was literally burning our feet. We had asked our water taxi to pick us up again at three, but we were ready to go by 1:30, so the boys tried to whistle and wave across the riverbank to attract his attention, but no luck. We finally got ahold of him on the phone and he came over and got us.
Once back on the other side we looked around for somewhere to eat. We sat down at a little place that looked like it had some quality options, like Guatemalan food for me and hamburguesas for the less adventurous. The meal was actually really, really good, and the people were nice. We enjoyed a soccer game while we ate our meal, with Jorge by our side the whole time.
We headed back to the ship and rested for a couple of hours before meeting up at 7 to go into the nearest town, San Jose. Greg and Brendan decided to stay in, so it was just Caroline, Alicia, Hannah, Lia, Doug and I. Thank goodness Doug tagged along because otherwise we probably wouldn’t have gone out just the gals. This night was random but ended up being a lot of fun. We got a taxi for $5 each, each way, with our boy Jorge and his friend. His friend spoke pretty good English, so I spent most of the night talking to Jorge and reminding my tongue how to speak Spanish.
They took us first to this really fun bar all lit up with flashing neon lights, really loud music, and a guy on a loudspeaker randomly enticing people to come into the club, which really reminded me of Cabo. We sat down at a table and were the only ones in there. We ordered some rum and chasers, as all Guatemalans claim that Guatemalan rum is the best in the world. They brought out some meat that was basically all fat, but it tasted pretty good, until I spit it out that is. The music videos playing on the televisions were pretty hilarious. They were all old 80’s songs, and we were loving it. I went up to the DJ and requested “Dimelo” by my boy Enrique, but he didn’t have it, so I requested a great reggaeton song I know from Guadalajara called “Perdoname.” He put it on and kept the reggaeton bumping, and we all got up and danced for awhile. And by all of us I mean us five girls, while Doug watched, because we were the only ones in the whole place. After we were all a little buzzed we headed off to explore the town.
All of the shops were shutting down around this time, but we walked around checking out the street food and the little shops. I bought a reggaeton hits CD for two dollars. I bought one similar to it in El Salvador and ended up loving it, and this one is pretty good. I gave the kid my money and he put the case in my bag, then I asked him, is there a CD in there? I opened it up and there wasn’t, and he just laughed innocently. Haha little jerk. So I had him play the CD for me to make sure it worked, then he put it in the case and we went on our way. Lia and I split some delicious street tacos topped with cebollas and salsa. We all went and sat in the plaza and watched all of the skateboarding teenagers. There were of course the couples making out all over the place, but I noticed more than anything all of the kids running around. I went over to a group of kids and started talking to them about their lives, where they lived, if their older siblings were there in the park. We took a bunch of pictures with them and then showed them. Then we headed back to the ship as there was not too much else to do.
Little did we know, there was a great bar with live music right at our free shuttle pick up! We stopped in there and partied with maybe twenty other SASers and some people from the other cruise ship docked at the port called “The World.” A few girls from the ship were behind the bar handing out drinks, I’m not sure how they swung that gig. The music was great and we danced for an hour or so. Doug actually knows how to dance, so he tried to teach me a couple, but I’m no good at following haha. Riley was crazy drunk and so was Alicia. We got a few free shots and drinks from the girls working the bar, then we headed home after the music was done. We put on our bathing suits and went swimming for awhile, as it was still, as Grandma would say, hotter than blue blazes out. Then we sat around talking for a long time. Apparently Alicia ended up getting really sick and Hannah and Caroline took care of her till late at night, but I was hanging out with Doug so I didn’t know. The funniest thing that happened that Hannah told me about was when Alicia said, “Canalay… I mean… Hannah.” Hahahahaha.
The next morning Hannah and I were up bright and early to get down to the gangway at 7 a.m. to leave for our volcano hike! Pacaya Volcano. We were both pretty excited for this trip, and I was especially excited to be with Hannah. Our bus was about 45 minutes late, but that gave me time to run upstairs and grab some pastries, so it was cool. We tried to sleep for the hour or so ride there, but it was kind of difficult with how windy the trail was. I would wake up on every curve in a slight panic that our bus was tumbling down the hillside. When we got there I maybe had four or so hours of sleep under my belt, so I was ready to go!
We all bought water and marshmallows to roast over lava and then started heading up the trail. Some people bought walking sticks for five quetzales from the little boys selling them. 8 quetzales = 1 dollar. They were charred on the bottom from being stuck into the lava.
The hike was moderate, not too bad, especially when I got into a nice rhythm. It took us maybe an hour and a half to get to the top. The weather was amazing as always, slightly overcast and a little breezy so we felt refreshed whenever we stopped to take a break. There were about 20 of us, and Hannah and I were definitely the loudest. We joked and talked the whole way up and we saw a dead snake and some vibrant red and yellow pacaya fruit.
Soon we were out of the foresty area and standing before a giant mountain of ash and hardened lava… or pahoehoe. You could see the top of the volcano above us, and quite often it would start spewing smoke. The area around it was constantly steaming. Across the way, on the other side of the town below, you could see Fuego Volcano. The view was astounding.
Our guide’s name was Chicki, and he was a pretty entertaining guy, as well as cute. But, as most Latin men go, he was short too.
To get to the area where all the hot lava action was occurring, we had to trek down a steep hill of crumbly ash/pahoehoe. This was the most fun part of the day, and maybe one of the most exhilarating activities of the entire voyage. It was like skiing downhill in tennishoes. We were flying down this lava hill! Hannah and I had huge smiles on our faces the entire way down. And it just kept going! We really wanted to do it again but the climb back up would have taken hundreds of years, as every step we would take, we would fall back three.
Once at the bottom, we looked across a field of jagged pahoehoe, dried lava as far as the eye can see, in all sorts of beautiful shapes and formations and even colors. Sometimes it had almost an opal coloring effect, and most of it glimmered like sparkling obsidian. And then, across the way several hundred yards, was hellfire red magma spewing out of the earth.
We hiked over to the magma area, very cautiously. There were quite a few spills, and trust me, pahoehoe is a funny word but it can really cut you up. Hannah took a mini spill and bled quite a bit from just a little scratch. Something about dried lava that makes you bleed profusely. The ground was constantly shifting or falling apart underneath our feet.
Finally we ascended the hill where magma was flowing in a solid, molasses-like stream. It was HOT. The closer you got the scarier it was. Magma was flowing to our right and left and below us. We were literally standing five feet from it. We busted out marshmallows and popped them on sticks and went to roast them. When I went to roast mine it felt like the skin in my face was going to melt off and I just couldn’t hack it.
Down below there was a very fast flowing tunnel of magma flowing. A magma river. We could really close to it too because the ridges on the side acted somewhat like heat buffers. The river went all the way down to the bottom of the hill. Someone stuck a walking stick into the magma and we all oohed and ahhed when the stick emerged on fire, which quickly died down as the magma cooled.
After our heated experience, we trekked back across the perilous pahoehoe field then sat down to have a quality lunch of sandwiches, cookies and chips and enjoy the gorgeous view of Mount Fuego in front of us. There were these stray dogs that followed us all the way up and down the mountain and we fed them food. They are pretty experienced hikers and they weren’t afraid to cut us off at any time, often almost tripping us. We hiked back down the mountain, another pleasant experience. We passed by some cows chilling and lots of little boys riding horses up the trail. Much of our hike was spent avoiding road apples actually. (That’s horse poop, guys.)
Once we were back at base, Hannah and I tried to figure out how to get a ride to Antigua, since we were only an hour away. Chicki tried to set us up to no avail. We finally gave up and just got back on the bus, hoping to find something once we got back to the ship. Hannah and I listened to music together the whole ride back and anything we do together makes me pretty happy.
When we got back to the ship we again asked Chicki if he could possibly help us find a ride. First, he invited us back to his beach house in Puerto Quetzal instead. And we definitely actually considered it. But no, we need to get to Antigua. He helps us talk to a van driver who is driving other cab drivers back to Antigua. He tells us to meet back in about 30 minutes. We rush onto the ship and change and gather some stuff, then awkwardly wait outside for the guy. Everyone thought we were really confused and finally one of the Guatemalan guides who was on another trip came up to us and said, with a very quizzical look, “Excuse me, but, can I help you with something?” We explained what we were waiting for then he took us on the bus to talk to the van driver. We agreed we would pay fifteen dollars each, I believe. Except now we would be leaving more around seven. So we go back on the ship, grab food, relax a little.
We finally hop in the van along with two other tour guides that both speak great English. The weather starts kicking up and all of the sudden dust clouds are flying everywhere and then the sky blackened and we were in the midst of a huge thunderstorm. I love storms, and it was definitely amazing to see, but it was frightening at the same time. Here Hannah and I are in a car headed to Antigua, which is an hour and a half ride or so, just hoping they are legit, all the while lightning is practically striking our car. The rain was beautiful though and the car ride was great expect for those couple of times when Hannah and I wondered whether or not we were on a ride to our deaths.
Finally we did get to Antigua and they dropped us off at El Gato Negro hostel. They were such nice people and really did us a favor by giving us a ride and dropping us off wherever we wanted. Now onto our next goal: finding a place to sleep. Hannah and I stopped by several hostels, all of which were full, then gave up and went to meet our friends Riley and Braxton at a restaurant.
The restaurant was delicious, we had chile con rellenos and chips and guac. There was also an amazing guitarist playing Spanish guitar and singing while we were there. I requested “Besame Mucho,” my parents’ love song. I got a little teary-eyed listening to it. He was amazing.
After dinner Hannah and I continued the quest to find a place to sleep, along with Riley. We finally found a great place for $35 a night for two. It was perfect. Very safe, a nice and clean room, and breakfast included in the morning, though we didn’t know that until the morning. We each paid about seven dollars more than our friends did at their hostels and I feel like we got a lot more.
After we situated all our stuff we changed into going out clothes and went to meet our friends. First stop was this hookah bar where there were about ten SASers, a really fun group. Everyone was dancing. Our friend Diana was carrying over a dessert tray of ice cream while dancing and it dropped first on her head and then on her floor. It was HILARIOUS. What was even funnier was when a guy walked by and stepped in the ice cream, immediately after looking back very surprised and perplexed. You just don’t expect to step in a scoop of ice cream.
After this we headed to a bar down the street. Many many SASers were in Antigua and as always we all gravitated to the same place. The bar was called Frida and featured much of her art and pictures of her. As soon as I walked in I saw a teacher on board, Dr. John Serio, and his wife Faye. Dr. Serio and I have been on several trips together and he rather enjoys my company, and I his, and he greeted me with a huge and happy drunken hello. Then we took a shot together. Only on SAS.
I headed upstairs and there was salsa dancing going on. Then all of a sudden I am pulled onto the floor by this gorgeous Guatemalan who is basically a professional dancer. I dance with him off and on for the next two hours. This experience was amazing for me. I love to dance, and though I stumbled and it took me awhile to get the hang of it, I picked it up and it was so exhilarating to be dancing like that. He flipped me and dipped me and twirled me all over, and he was patient as I learned the steps. I can’t really explain how great it made me feel and I think taking some dance classes would be really fun.
We all had a great night of dancing and talking and drinking with teachers and Hannah and I headed home and PTFO’d. (Passed the eff out.)
The next morning we slept in till about ten, which really is sleeping in for us, and when I woke up I jumped in bed with Hannah and we cuddled and listened to music on my iphone for a good half hour. What a beautiful morning. When we looked outside the weather was cool and, surprise! Breakfast is included! Hannah ate pancakes and I had a delicious egg sandwich of sorts. DELICIOUS. We ate in the sunny little courtyard of our hotel with a fountain in the middle. We let the morning linger because it was just so pleasant. By the way, our hotel was called Posada Asjemenou, and I recommend it.
Next we set out to explore Antigua. It is a beautiful town, colonial style. The buildings are very beautiful and many of the people are indigenously dressed. We didn’t really know where to go but we had the names of a couple of places. We wandered around, looking at the historical sites. We stumbled upon this gorgeous yellow church and hauntingly beautiful and muffled music seeped out of it and reached our ears. We walked inside and slowly wandered towards the front. We sat down and listened to a couple of songs. There were three singers and their voices were immaculate. I had tears in my eyes. My chest felt heavy. I have been to so many places of worship all over the world, and there is always something beautiful and calming and haunting and humbling about sitting in a place of worship, hearing the music, seeing the people praying. We left the church and immediately told each other how spiritual of an experience that had been for both of us.
Next we went to the market. Every market seems to have the same general items, and yet they are all unique. I bought a mango with chile powder and lime and it was delicious. There were electronics, tons of clothing, household items, lots of toys. We walked through the art area as well. We wanted to try to get to a lookout over the city, “something da la cruz,” but we didn’t have time to get there and find a ride back to the ship.
We got a little worried once we got separated from our friends to get a ride back, but once again life is on our side and everything works out. We got offered about three rides and we took the cheapest one, a van back with about 12 SASers. We each paid about six bucks. The ride was a little squeezed, but not bad. It was sad to leave Antigua, I wish we had more time there. It was also sad to be on our way back to the ship for the last time… leaving our last port.
We had a little time before on ship time so we went to the port shopping area and I bought a couple of sweet shirts, a hat repping Gallo cerveza, my favorite beer from around the world, with a bottle opener on the brim, and a SWEET rainbow headband. We rode on the roof of the shuttle on the way back, along with the luggage.
And finally, we got in line for the last time ever to board the MV Explorer… at least for now.
Guatemala completely surprised me with how much I enjoyed the experiences I had there. I always love being in Spanish speaking countries and I especially love the flavor and feel of Latin American countries. Guatemala, the port no one really counted as a port, ended up being one of my favorite experiences.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
bittersweet...
I've been back in the US a week now already. I've spent the last several days in San Diego, very pleasant and the reunions were wonderful. And it is amazing to hug my family.
....but I am missing the ship, the community, the friends I made, the connections I felt. The adventures I took. The travels I embarked upon. Will I ever be that supremely happy again?
....but I am missing the ship, the community, the friends I made, the connections I felt. The adventures I took. The travels I embarked upon. Will I ever be that supremely happy again?
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
ship of wonders
God, life is so so good.
Day seven on this eight day stretch. WHAT??? I just freaked out as I typed that. How is that possible?
It’s 9:15 a.m. I woke up for breakfast. But I stayed up until 4:30 a.m. talking about life with Doug, so I am about to go back to bed. Which is fine, because today is a study day, and let’s face it, I won’t start studying until at least 3.
We had our final global studies test yesterday, THANK GOD. It was hard and made me angry but all I need is a B so I’m hoping to get that.
This last week has been absolutely fantastic. My heart is aching with the fact that this coming to an end so absurdly fast.
I’ll write about Hawaii soon, and then FINALLY finish up with India, perhaps after my final tomorrow, but for now I want to write about the talent show Greg and I performed in, like, a week and a half ago.
So we did a rendition of “No Land” and called it “On Land.” It was a compilation of three songs, “Somewhere Out There” from Fieffel Goes West, “Disturbia” by Rihanna, and of course, “No Air” by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown. Here it is!
(Somewhere Out There)
Somewhere out here, in Pacific moonlight
We’re all reminiscing, from Cadiz to pub night
Somewhere out here, we’re all saying a prayer
The ship will do a 180, some more preports we’ll all share
But even though the end is near, the voyage is almost done
from ping pong shows to communism its been a lot of fun
And when we’ve had four drinks at night, and our inhibitions low
It’s insane to think how far that we have come since Moroccoooooo
(Disturbia)
Off the ship in Morocco, things were getting started
The port was dirty as hell, it smelled like someone farted
Bought my mint tea for a buck, that’s how I do my barter
But don’t look him in the eye.. yea….
Headed south down the coast to Namibski
SAS Swakopmund party police get angry
Wild Dog-er’s trapped in bus, man that was crazy
Rented 4x4’s… just kidding!
Partied in Cape Town
Met our very own Mavis
ate some kudu
kept our eyes open for rapists
Table Mountain
No one said it was this hard
That’s what she said
Cuz in South Africa
You can drink the water
unlike in India
Where you could end up with some
Cholera
But washing in the Ganges equals
Diarrhea… diarrhea…
Made a turn toward the east, headed towards Asia
Ladyboys in tuk-tuks creep in Pattaya
Got a six dollar massage with happy ending
Was Mauritius even a port?
Floated to Vietnam
Got a suit made in some tunnels
And rode a cyclo
to Apocalypse Now
Then to Hong Kong
Took the tram to the peak
Gotta get rid of this dong… what she said!
And then in China
saw a really big wall
But couldn’t talk about it
Or you might get arrested
But not in Japan
Where free speech is accepted
Domo arigoto
Mr. Roboto…
(No Air)
Laaaaaand!
Tell me how I’m sposed to live on land… whoooaaaa
Luke Jones don’t you understand
No laaaaand
Got us out here heading towards the US
Reacclimating’s gonna be a test
Coming towards the end of SAS
I’ll miss Les, miss Les
Explorer, spring 09!
Went around the world 108 days man it blows my mind
Tell me how I’m sposed to breathe on land
Where there’s not more women than I can stand
How will I function with more men at hand
on land on land
Got us out here in the waters so deep
without waves rockin me I won’t sleep
Saying goodbyes will make me weep
On land on land
I’ll miss you…
Les McCabe….
HAHAHHAHHAHAH. We got another standing ovation. We had TWO costume changes. First we were in sweats, then we stripped, and underneath that I was wearing the full body panda suit I bought in Japan, and he was wearing traditional Muslim garb, just picture old men in Aladdin. The next change, we stripped out of that stuff into evening wear. It was great. I love Greg, he is really one of my favorite people on this ship, and we make a really good team.
Alright that has been enough energy expended for this morning. Goodnight.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
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