April 23, 2009
It’s about time to go home and I don’t know if I’m necessarily ready. I love being here on the ship with all of my friends. I feel welcome and at home here. I feel like I fit in. It’s been such a wonderful experience to be with all these amazing people and travel the world with them. We have seen some really incredible things that moved us tremendously….
The “Real” World
I’m sick of people back home sending messages about the real world. That I should enjoy my trip now because when I get back home I’ll have to come back to the “real world”. NO!
I’ve been in the real world, I’ve seen the REAL world. Back home people live in bubbles and boxes, never getting out and seeing what the world is really like. Life in the U.S. is easy. You don’t have to worry about famine, constant sickness, live in fear all the time and worry about war. The U.S. is clean and full of everything we need. We have good food, clean water and shelter and transportation. Most of these places struggle just to have those things and we have so much of it that we take it for granted. It’s a luxury for us to go out to eat but for people in India or somewhere like that, they are just trying to get by with whatever they find on the streets.
People there are starving and dying because they have no food and contaminated water among many other things. People say the real world is getting a job and paying bills. That’s a luxury after what I’ve seen where people are living on the streets begging for money. Having a job is not the real world. We are lucky in the U.S. and we shouldn’t take it for granted. Back home, people don’t pay attention to the famine and struggle in the middle east, they watch it on their t.v. for a minute and turn the channel because they don’t feel like dealing with it, they ignore it and shut it out because they don’t want to feel depressed by it. Atleast, they can turn it off, atleast its not happening where you are. And you think you live in the real world?
I will no longer tolerate someone telling me about the real world as being in the U.S. back home. Back where our lives consist of big houses, expensive cars and electronics, laptops, ipods, cell phones, schedules, designer purses and items, a disgusting number of fancy clothes that we don’t need, dinners out, money wasted on buying drinks on the weekend or trivial toys and things we don’t need. Everything is based on money back home. We have everything we need there for us. Even the countries that I’ve been to, I found out their domestic products they send the U.S. are their best ones, they don’t even keep the better quality items they give it to us because we will spend the money. Its disgusting. Life in the U.S. is a luxury. That is not the real world, that is not the hard life. We don’t live in constant fear, we don’t watch our whole families get killed in front of us because of fighting and war. We don’t have to beg for our food and drink water contaminated by feces, germs, chemicals and other things. 
We don’t have to worry about not having water at all. We don’t have to worry about anything that the rest of the world does, yet we think our lives are rough when certain things don’t work out. We complain about cancelled appointments, a sports team losing, not having everything they want, as much money as they want, when food at a restaurant comes to them incorrectly, when a movie they want to go see is sold out and so many other things. And also, its not so much that we complain as much as it is that we take so much for granted, such as food, water, transportation, shelter. Luxuries that we have such as electronics, t.v, internet at our fingertips, cell phones, music, movies, dinners out, desserts, having a job, making money, being able to have all these things, not having to worry about anything that isn’t trivial.
Coming back home is bittersweet, I’m so excited to be back home but sad to leave here also. But this trip has opened up my eyes to so many things. I wanted to learn more about the world, get out of my box of living in the U.S. and burst my bubble of what made me comfortable and what didn’t. I’ve seen and experienced things out here that I could have never imagined. All good and bad. All comfortable and uncomfortable. I pushed myself to go places and do things I normally wouldn’t because I was scared or because it was easier to shut it out like we do back home. Well I have done that. I was scared at times and very uncomfortable but I’ve broken out of my box, bubble and shell. I’ve pushed myself to the limits and yet and so much more room to let go. I’ve been in the war zones, the famine, I’ve been tugged at constantly by the smallest, filthiest, skinniest children in the world begging for a small coin or a crumb of food because they haven’t eaten all week.
I’ve walked through and stayed in the worst conditions I’ve ever been in or even seen in the third world countries. I’ve smelt the most beautiful things and the worst, combination of moldy food, contaminated water, sickness, urine, rot, animals, filth and death. I won’t be able to ignore articles in the paper and magazines, or to turn off the t.v. when something comes on the news about the places I’ve been to or those like it. It is no longer far away, but with me now forever. I won’t be able to stand next to people who waste their food and joke about the “starving kids in Africa or India” because I’ve seen it. I will never be able to go back to the world I lived in, because I have seen and been in the real world for these past four months. And that’s the REAL world!
April 22, 2009
Throughout history there has always been things that have gone wrong, things that people have done that others don’t like and this leads to conflict. Conflict leads to war. Out of the itinerary that we were participating in, we were traveling to multiple countries in which war had taken place with their people and ours. I went on multiple trips in which I visited different locations from past wars and memorial sites. Of these they included, Vietnam, Hiroshima and Pearl Harbor
In Vietnam I found it interesting how I was treated there. I was treated nicely, and I expected to get some stares from some of the locals there. After all I was in a place where the U.S. attacked them and I was a U.S. citizen. We were not allowed to talk about the war or were atleast strongly advised against it because it was still alive to an extent and still is hurting people.
I encountered some of the same feelings in Japan when I visited Hiroshima. The first thing I noticed was how it was a beautiful place and so peaceful. In talking to some of the Japanese people who worked there they said that history is behind us, the U.S. did bombs here but all is forgiven now. They just want to educate the people on what happened. Especially the younger generation, they for the most part weren’t alive during this time but they want them to know the story so they can appreciate it and try and prevent things from coming to this end again. It was one of the most peaceful cities; they really act on what they say there. The museum was very interesting and incredibly moving.
It was interesting to be an American in the museum. The museum wasn’t necessarily one-sided or condemning the U.S. in any way. I felt awkward at times. It was similar to walking into the war museum in Vietnam. We we’re all treated as equals and sometimes you wonder to yourself “why?” After all, I thought towards them, “don’t you know who I am, I’m American, and doesn’t that bother you here?” But it didn’t at all. We we’re all mixed together in the place where such tragedy occurred, in a war between our countries.
It was a surreal feeling walking through the museum and so sad to read all the stories. They had pictures and videos playing. They showed the actually footage of the nuclear bomb attack from the cameras on the U.S. planes and others who were able to film bits of what it looked like. It was something to see for sure. We basically walked through a timeline of what had happened, and we’re accompanied with artifacts and things that were still left such as someone’s watch that was stopped at 8:15, when the bomb dropped. They we’re killed on site. The beginning was about the war and the events leading up to it. I learned a lot about Hiroshima and how it was picked to be the place where the bomb was to be dropped. The end of the tour is what was the saddest because it went into detail of what happened during the blast and its aftermath. There was a model of the city built to show what it looked like before and then a second one for afterwards. Hanging above each model was a red ball to symbolize the bomb dropping and where it was to hit.
Their was an exhibit built showing a part that was hit by the bomb, and there we’re people models in the exhibit that we’re showed burned extremely, so bad that their skin was shown melting off of them so the point that you couldn’t recognize them. That put things in perspective for me, I could not even imagine that, the pain and what happened. Where the bomb went off, there were a lot of children’s schools nearby. They were affected greatly by this disaster and so many of them died.
There were a lot of stories about particular children. There would be shown a torn burned dress from a girl who was there and under it they had her story, how she ran home after the blast to her parents and ended up dying when she got home because of her wounds. The picture said that she sewed that dress for herself the summer before. They had so many detailed stories that really helped to put things in perspective. That it wasn’t just that a lot of people died. So many were affected, they all had lives, have stories. Sharing those stories really brought it home; it made it easier to make a personal connection. This really helped me to understand more about the war and what happened there. I was no longer viewing things from one side anymore, from the American side just because that’s who I was. I was taking in all sides and understanding and accepting others, ideas, views, hatred, confusion and sorrow. I could understand it all now.
I was lucky enough to get to go to Hiroshima and also Pearl Harbor. It was interesting to see both sides of things from each of the countries on these related disasters. Interesting again was that the majority of people at Pearl Harbor and visiting the Arizona Memorial in my group were Americans and Japanese as this is a popular vacation destination for them. Once again I found myself in a place that was attacked in the past by ancestors of those who were standing with me right there. It was surreal to imagine that long ago this was a place of tragedy where our two countries fought yet here we were again together, learning together, mourning together, understanding, forgiving, remembering and honoring together what had happened here and the lives that were lost in a war between us. I understood now.
It was such a surreal and great feeling to be there with them and to know that I was not being judged and nor were they. We were there for the same reasons they were. We had overcome the past and were no longer enemies, but friends honoring the past and looking ahead to the future to help make sure such tragedy did not happen again. And we were doing it together now.
HAWAII April 19-20th
We arrived in Hawaii at 6am and it was soo beautiful outside!! Everyone was all really excited!! Also, EVERYONE was on their cell phones! We could finally get U.S. phone service and so the majority of the people had there phones turned back on again and we’re calling friends and family back home. I wasn’t one of those people. Everyone was attached to a phone, and honestly I really didn’t like it. What once used to be a place where only a few we’re on their phones, now everyone was talking on a phone. It was an interesting look at things, we we’re back in America, back to the U.S. life of being attached to a cell phone. I understand though this is the first time people could use their phones and call home and such. For some others and I, we weren’t ready for all that yet, we wanted to remain detached from the phone and experience this trip for real. What really bugged me about it I will say is that when we we’re out touring, people we’re on their cell phones. We toured Pearl Harbor and people we’re on their phone talking to their friends. I’m like seriously We’re at Pearl Harbor!! Get off the cell phone and take it in!
It was really nice to be back in the U.S. however, it was still a culture shock like the rest of the places but this one seemed the most foreign of them all now. I was in the biggest culture shock so far. And it was only the beginning…getting to that later… Anyways….I loved Hawaii!!! Everyone was so excited to get off!! I couldn’t wait! It was beautiful out! Most we’re heading to the beach. It was a long process of getting of the ship. The U.S. security is tight, we each had to do a face-to-face inspection and go through security. After I went through, I waited on the stairs until my sea was called and I could get off the ship. My friend Dave stopped and talked with me for awhile, we exchanged phone numbers and sat with each other for awhile. We both agreed that we weren’t ready for the whole cell phone thing to start again, to come back home. We even had a hard time trying to remember just how to work our phones, we were so slow at it. Once our seas were called we got off the ship, I met up with Courtney to go walk around the city for awhile. It was so pretty out and so quiet because it was a Sunday. We walked down the main road off of where our ship was docked and we looked out into the harbor and were excited to see tropical fish in the water!! I was really excited! We can only see that stuff in aquariums, but here they were so close, right in front of us in their natural waters! The water was so clear and such a pretty blue-turquoise color. I loved it! I had a lot of time to myself really to reflect on things because Courtney had been on her cell phone since she got off the ship talking to her friends. I wasn’t ready to do that yet. I wouldn’t know what to say and I didn’t want to be attached to my cell phone. I really got a reality check on this voyage. Cell phones aren’t a part of what really matters and how people should spend there time. There is so much to see and do; you don’t have to be attached to a phone. Especially when you’re out doing and seeing great things, like at Pearl Harbor for instance as I mentioned earlier. Anyway, I understand everyone missed everyone back home and were calling. But still, take some time and think about what we’ve learned on this trip. Don’t fall back into the same habits of being attached to the phone and materialistic things and the drama back home…I just didn’t care, it didn’t matter. It was not that big of deal, there are worse things going on in this world, people need to realize that. I know, I’ve seen it. And even if they haven’t, they need to open up their eyes and look around as well.
Anyways, tangent…we took a lot of pictures and watched the fish for awhile before walking around some more. After awhile of walking around we had to head back to the ship where we we’re going to be picked up, we were scheduled to go skydiving today. We waited for awhile with some others but noone was showing up. We knew they were coming because we had talked to them that morning when they picked up the first group and they said they’d be back. One girl had the company’s number so she called them, they said the driver was on the way to talk to us about what was going on. Apparently it was too windy to go and they had cancelled everything for that day. The driver arrived and we talked to him and he explained what was going on. We were so incredibly bummed!! We had been looking forward to this for such a long time, since we saw people’s skydiving videos from when they did it in Namibia. Well this is where flexibility comes into play. It really sucked but there was nothing we could do about it, obviously it just wasn’t meant to be today. We ended up calling the place back on the phone and rescheduled our jumps for the next day. They weren’t sure if it would work out but they really hoped so, it would all just depend on the direction of the winds. I guess out of all the ways the wind can blow, there is only one that they can’t let you skydive in and that was today. Perfect. Oh well, we signed up for tomorrow and hopefully it all works out. Que sera sera I say…
Because we couldn’t go skydiving today we headed back inside to the ship to get some lunch and change into our suits and get things together for going to the beach. Courtney and Nora skipped the ship lunch, but I went upstairs to get it so I could save cash. It was spaghetti for lunch so I was excited. We all got our stuff and headed down to the gangway to go through security and then catch a bus to the beach. There was a bunch of us waiting for the bus. We got to the main drag in front of the beach and there was a ton of little shops and restaurants there. We went to the international market and walked around in there for awhile and bought some things. Courtney and Nora got something to eat while I sat at the table with them and fed some birds some crumbs. One of the birds only had one leg he could use, the other one was badly hurt and look cut off. I felt really bad for it, and I just wanted to take it home and care for it. It made me really sad to watch it continue to limp around, but I couldn’t take my eyes from it.
After lunch we walked out of the market and across the street to the beachfront. It was so cramped and crowded, there was hardly any beach. The hotels came right up to the shore basically. It was nothing like Destin. We found a spot in the middle of a bunch of people and set our things down and set up our towels. The water was so pretty! What a perfect day to go to the beach! It was so nice to just be able to sit and relax for awhile and go swimming at the beach. We needed a break from all of our schoolwork, studying, papers and projects that get crammed into the days we are at sea when we are not on constant foot traveling non-stop. We stayed out on the beach for awhile and layed out. There were some other SAS-ers there to that we said Hi to but it was mainly hotel goers since we were in front of all the beachfront hotels. Around 6 we decided to head back to the ship because we each had dinner plans.
It didn’t take too long to get back. I hurried back to my cabin. Courtney and I were going to go out to dinner with a family from Hawaii that was sort of family friends with her Aunt back home. They picked us up pretty soon after we got back to the ship. I took the quickest shower ever, put a dress on, mousse in my hair and ran out with it still wet. They were really nice and had two kids, a boy about 11 and a younger daughter who was 2 and she was so cute. They took us to a local seafood restaurant. Courtney and I aren’t big seafood eaters so we got steak and chicken with patatoes. It was really good! It was so nice to have real food again, good food. We were stuffed pretty quickly though, and couldn’t finish. The portion sizes in Hawaii are so big! Or atleast they were at this restaurant. They ordered off the kids menu for Kyra (pronounced like Kiera) (2 year old) and the size of her meal is what we consider to be an adult me. I couldn’t believe that was from the kid’s menu. I never could have even finished that. Wow. The food was great though. We had a really nice conversation at dinner and they were really easy to talk to. They wondered a lot about Courtney’s family and we asked what things were like in Hawaii, such as things to do, weather, school and about Semester at Sea and what we’ve done and seen. It was the first time that we had to try and explain something to someone back home, and like SAS told us before, it really was impossible to convey in words.
After dinner they took us to Walmart so Courtney and I could look at external harddrives, I have so many pictures and videos on my computer that I have no more space left on it and I need to transfer my things elsewhere so I can upload the rest of my stuff to take home and have room on my computer so that I can use it. Walmart was interesting. What a culture shock that was too. Back to the U.S. prices and I thought they were ridiculous. We walked by racks of clothes that were made in Thailand, China, Vietnam and India and it was surreal to know that we were in those places, that we had seen the people that helped to make these. That they put so much work into making materials for us to wear and use and we still take it all for granted back home. That we would spend twenty dollars on a shirt they hand made and they wouldn’t get near that much in their conversion back.
We walked by people buying a bunch of food, CD’s, pop, magazines etc. Filling up their carts with things that they need or not. I don’t know what I thought. It was just really different. A totally different environment than what I was now used to. And it was weird because this is where I came from, I should feel comfortable here. But I wasn’t anymore; it seemed so trivial, so materialistic. We have all this “stuff”. And so many people I met have nothing. Why do we need “stuff”? I just didn’t get it anymore. After the Wal-Mart experience they dropped us back off at the ship, we thanked them for taking us out for a nice meal and to Wal-Mart and they wished us a good rest of our journey. That night Courtney came over to my room and we watched Pride and Prejudice because it was playing on the t.v.’s and finished exchanging music, project that we started after South Africa and hadn’t gotten the time to finish yet. After that, Courtney left and I headed to bed leaving on Pride and Prejudice to fall asleep to. Val wasn’t there, she had gone out as she always does and wouldn’t be back till about 4am or so. So I had the cabin to myself until I’d be woken up when she got back. I had a busy day tomorrow with skydiving and visiting Pearl Harbor. I was so excited to do both, I couldn’t wait!
SKYDIVING:
Getting high on 4/20: Above the clouds, Hawaii from the sky…
The next morning we got up early and headed down to where the skydiving vans were waiting. They were here, and the winds were good so skydiving was a Go! WOOT!!! We were so excited we got in the van with a bunch of others and were on our way. On the way there I was getting kinda nervous. I really wanted to do it but the nerves still set in and the “what ifs” start coming. I knew I’d be okay hopefully, but still I was going to jump out of a plane on a whim just for the heck of it. It’s not really something you just get up in the morning and decide to do. But then again this whole life journey called Semester at Sea is something extra-ordinary in itself. You just go with it. Skydiving wasn’t something I originally planned to do on this trip or do ever in my life. To be honest, it didn’t interest me initially and I was afraid to do it. But being on SAS has really taught me to not be afraid of things any more, to take chances even if you’re scared, to just go out and do something, something you normally wouldn’t do, maybe you’ll like it. Semester at Sea is either all or nothing. If you’re gonna come all this way and do this then you just go all the way. It’s about facing your fears, challenging yourself, pushing yourself, coming out of your bubble, leaving your world behind and growing up out of the life that we live in, were here to see the world, the REAL world and experience it, learn from it and live it to the fullest and savor every moment of it.
We got to the place, Skydive Hawaii and there were people coming down in parachutes. I ran into my friends Candance and Megan and they had already gone and said it was amazing. They came left at 6am with that group. Eeek!! Here we go!! We headed inside and sat down infront of a t.v. that was playing an informational video that basically scares you because it tells you all the risks involved such as death which they said over and over again and showed people in ambulances and such. Hmmm…should I really do this? Ha, the place was pretty crowded with SAS-ers who were there that had already gone and they were so happy and said it was the best time the’ve had. They obviously made it through okay so I had more assurance that I would too. Then I started reading this contract we had to sign, it was more like a packet that gave us all the risks. We had to circle yes to all of them saying we accept the risks of serious injury and death page after page it was all in caps and bold type. It was serious, as it should be. I brought a copy home to show people. Basically I was signing my life away and saying they are not responsible if anything happens. I’ve never had to do that before. That was something new and interesting. I handed in my forms, told them I wanted pictures and video with it as well and they wrote me down for it. I headed out front with Courtney to take pictures in front of the building and van and stuff. It was quick and then she was back on her phone again. Everyone was on there phone, I found it really annoying actually and rude to an extent. Everyone was back in the U.S. bubble. I popped my bubble, and it wasn’t coming back.
Everything happened so quickly, all of a sudden soon after, they called my name. It was my tandem, he introduced himself, his name was Brendan. He seemed like a really fun guy. He came over and started strapping a harness and gear on me and told me what he was doing and how it all worked. He made small talk with me to get to know me better, we talked about where I was from and SAS and stuff and he explained to me what was going to happen and taught me how everything was going to work and we practiced how we had to hold our bodies while jumping out and then while in the air, the particular positions. I paid close attention, but my mind was still scattered and it was all happening so fast. While all of this was going on my camera man was circling around me filming all of this and the building and signs and filmed us practicing our skydiving moves, once I was done being taught, Mikey my camera guy started talking to me and asking me questions about myself, what I was doing, about SAS, just getting me to warm up to the camera and then we started talking about this being my first jump and how I was nervous and scared, we didn’t even have time to finish before Brendan called me over and said we gotta go, I ran to him and ran with him to the field where the plane was just pulling up to and Mikey followed us taking pictures and filming the whole thing. 
I didn’t even have time to think all of a sudden it was Go time and we were in front of the plane, Brendan turned me around to take some quick pictures and then he helped me into the plane with the rest of the group. I was jumping with Megan, Sylvie, Nora and Courtney so we were all in the plane together. I went in second to last, Courtney was last which meant she was jumping first. They were quick about this stuff, once the plane landed the next group got in and they were off. We were all squeezed in the plane with our tandems who immediately started strapping us to themselves and their harnesses and attached us to the parachutes along with them. They adjusted our goggles for us and went through the drill again of what was to happen. Mikey was filming me and taking pictures the whole time. I had really good guys who were joking around and made it a lot of fun for me, which was great!
The view from the plane was incredible We could see the entire island and it was gorgeous! The water sparkled the blue green color in the sunlight! It was beautiful; once again I couldn’t believe what I was doing. I looked down at the island as we started flying above the clouds and could see everything on it, the beaches, the mountains, the sea life, it was unbelievable I forgot what I was doing for a second and then I started to get a little nervous. Then all of a sudden it was time! Brendan secured my goggles for me and then the door opened right in front of me. Courtney’s camera man got on the outside and jumped out! I COULD NOT believe it, this was INSANE! Was I really doing this!?!? AHH!! Then Courtney’s tandem and her got up, he pulled her head back and they jumped and disappeared!! If Courtney could do this and go first than I knew I could too! Right after they jumped, Mikey got in the door and filmed Brendan and I get in the door too. Right when Brendan tilted my head back Mikey jumped and then before I knew it we were jumping too! AHHHH!!! I was in complete shock! I don’t think I even screamed, I just remember my jaw dropping and staring out at the sky as I jumped from this plane. 
IT WAS INCREDIBLE!! I felt the falling feeling for a second until Brendan pulled the first little chute, that basically keeps you upright while falling. I COULD NOT BELIEVE WHAT I WAS DOING!! THIS WAS THE COOLEST THING THAT I HAVE EVER DONE!!! I was on the clouds literally! I don’t remember ever being so happy and excited all at once that I can’t even speak, and my jaw is literally dropped open permanently. This was unbelievable And it all happened so fast. Once we assumed the skydiving position, I saw Mikey!! I was so excited that I tried waving at him to come towards me, but it was hard to move my arms a certain way because of the pressure of the wind!! I was simply in AMAZEMENT the whole time!!!
My video and pictures capture everything I was feeling in those short moments. I don’t know the last time I was so excited to see someone Haha, but I was so excited to see Mikey with my camera. I felt like a little kid again! Like when they are so happy about something they did like ride a bike for the first time and are waving there arms to their mom and dad with the biggest smile on their face saying “look at me, look at me!, look what I did!” and they are so excited and the happiest they’ve ever been! That was me in these moments and I will never forget it!!! I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing and waving. Brendan was talking in my ear telling me to do different things like wave my arms, do thumbs up, peace sign, hang loose etc. I think their favorite was to stick your tongue out which I thought was funny but I did it!! I did everything!! 
The views from the sky were breathtaking There was no other way to see Hawaii than this! This was the best thing I’ve done!!! I can’t even put it into words! You’ll just have to see the pictures and watch the video! They capture it all!!! AHHHH!!!! I FELT AMAZING!!! I had so much fun!! I had the most fun I’ve ever had in my life doing this!! It was unbelievable! Seconds later Mikey waved goodbye and Brendan checked his pressure watch and then all of a sudden we flew upright into a seated position. I looked up and it was the parachute. Oh yea!! I totally forgot about that whole part, I was having so much fun. I was having the best time of my life that I didn’t even notice I was still falling to the ground and the parachute wasn’t up yet, but he pulled it and it worked. Thank God! Haha.
All of a sudden the whole world stopped, my ears were popped so bad that I could barely hear anything. After hearing the wind soaring by, when it stops, it’s a big contrast. All of a sudden things got incredibly peaceful and we floated down slowly to the ground. We were still insanely high up and I couldn’t stop smiling still and just gaping out at the views I was seeing. How beautiful!!!! That was AMAZING!!! Brendan let me help him steer the parachute too!! How cool is that!! I kept wanting to look down but we were doing kinda like figure eights in the sky so that we could narrow our way down to a specific place on the landing field, but I kept getting dizzy Ha so I had to keep looking up and the horizon so I wouldn’t get motion sick, everything was moving so fast. I took everything in during my last moments and I felt so good!!!
What an accomplishment!!!! Something I thought I’d never do and I did it!! I just wanted to jump up and down! I was elated! I was on an incredible high right now! The time came for landing and I saw Mikey down there with the camera following us filming and taking pictures of the whole thing. I was so excited!!! I put my legs up parallel to the ground like Brendan said, we didn’t really go over the whole landing part so when he said run, I was confused and I put my feet down and tried but we definatley started sliding into home plate and fell and rolled over. HAHA!! I totally biffed that one up! It was a rough landing haha, but Brendan unclipped me and Mikey was right there to film the whole thing, and was laughing it was great!!! Mikey started talking to me afterwards asking me what it was like and if I had fun and I was literally speechless!! My mouth was just wide open with the biggest smile on my face I think I’ve ever had!! What a true state of happiness I was in!!!! I ran over to Brendan and gave him a big hug and thanked him so much for everything!! That I just had the time of my life doing that and they made it so great for me!!!
I got my last pictures with Brendan and then we headed in!! Courtney had already landed before me and I ran upto her screaming!! How great to experience our first time together. Nora was just landing and she was just as excited!! We didn’t even have to say anything, we all felt exactly the same way and it was great!! That’s whats so great about this trip and the people here! You know them so well you don’t even have to say anything! We just had the best time of our lives doing that and it was so great to experience it all together!!
AHHH!!! That was SO MUCH FUN!!!! We ran off the field and were got our gear taken off of us and the new people who had just arrived started asking us all the same questions that we asked those before us!! We just said that it was amazing and so much fun, you’ll have the time of your life. It happens SO FAST so just take it all in and make it the best. You’ll LOVE IT!!! We told them, to get the video and pictures because it is way worth it and the views of Hawaii here are breathtaking!!! We waited around for awhile afterwards and our tandems gave us each our own certificate that says we completed our first jump!! How exciting! Of course I got my picture with it!! We waited for awhile for others to jump and in the meantime our pictures and videos were being edited and uploaded to CD’s and DVD’s for us to take home. We each picked out a t-shirt and paid. And by noon we were off to Pearl Harbor!
I HAD THE MOST FUN I’VE EVER HAD SKYDIVING!!! I can’t even explain it! It was the best time of my life right there. I’ve never smiled so much and was so excited and happy!!! IT WAS INCREDIBLE!!!! I can’t wait to do it again!!!!! AHHHHHH!!!!! So excited, so happy!!! ☺ I can’t wait to show everyone the pictures and video!! Can’t wait!! ☺ I captured every moment having the time of my life!!! ☺
PEARL HARBOR
After skydiving a group of us SAS-ers got in the van that was taking us back to the ship. Courtney, Nora and I convinced him to drop six of us off at Pearl Harbor because it was on the way. Originally we we’re signed up for the SAS trip that was in the morning but because skydiving got moved we weren’t able to go in the morning with SAS so our only chance to go was this afternoon. I was so glad we were able to fit it in. Things were pretty stressful when the skydiving didn’t work out yesterday and the only time to go was this morning, which meant we’d miss the trip, and have to try and get there on our own, but everything worked out and I was so relieved. I really was looking forward to Pearl Harbor and knew it would be really good to go see.
We got there and checked our bags at the front. Because it was a military base we weren’t allowed to bring any sort of bag on the property or anything that could conceal something. The security was really tight there. We walked around and looked at all the monuments, the old planes, and submarine. We saw the battleship but didn’t go inside. We didn’t have too much time here because we had to get back for on ship time. I had already been in the battleship U.S.S. Alabama and it was really cool, I figured they were similar. It would have been neat to see and tour one again but I also knew it takes a long time to get through, atleast it did for my family when we visited one. We grabbed some lunch and looked around the bookstore and then headed over to the Arizona Memorial site.
The anchor from the ship was displayed right outside. It was so big. A lady at the desk called us over and handed us some tickets, she said the next show and Arizona tour was starting soon and that we should get in line so we did. We all walked into a giant movie theater and a woman came and spoke to us a little bit about the history and the memorial and how it came about. She also mentioned something which stood out to me which I really hadn’t taken in to heart yet, but that we must be very quiet, we can take pictures and everything but to remember that this place is more than just a monument and a memorial but first and foremost it is a grave and to remember that and respect that. The movie began and it was very interesting. It told the story of Pearl Harbor and the history of all of it using real footage from the base and home videos that people took that day. It was unreal. It was intense and very moving; I’m glad I was able to see it because now I have a better sense of what happened and understand more.
Again, it was interesting because just as in Hiroshima, here I was surrounded by Americans and Japanese people. It was just interesting to know that so many years ago we were at war and yet here we were together again learning from our history and could be here together in peace. After the film, we were quietly escorted out to the ferry that we were taking over to the location of the Arizona Memorial and the sunken battleship. We got there and everyone was so quiet. It was such a sad place yet it was so beautiful and peaceful at the same time. We got off the ferry and walked in to the memorial and I had this strange feeling come over me. Everything was just hitting me at once, I didn’t speak to anyone or look at anyone, I wasn’t even sure what to think about. I just walked over to the railing and looked at the battleship under water. I couldn’t believe where I was or what I was seeing, I couldn’t believe what had happened here. 
As I looked over the railing at the fish swimming in the water in the Arizona, I said a prayer for all those who we’re lost, it was so sad to know that so many people died right where I was standing, that their life was taken from them by surprise in minutes. People who had visited here before told me it was very moving and that you could still see the oil in the water from the ships that sunk here 80 some years ago. I believed them, I had no reason to doubt them but actually being there and seeing it for myself overwhelmed me and my thoughts and feelings. I took some videos to bring back home and show people who haven’t gone or might now be able to go and pictures as well. I was sure not to smile in my pictures, it just didn’t feel right to smile at a gravesite.
For the rest of my time there I just walked around and stared in awe looking out at the water and reflected on the whole thing. I wanted to spend more time there at the memorial, but the guards were pretty persistent about getting us out of there and the next group in. I felt rushed a little bit, but I got my time in and I decided that I would love to come back someday. I think its important for Americans especially to learn about it and see it first hand. It moves you in ways a book cannot, to actually be there and feel it. After we got back to the mainland we headed back to the front gate to pick up our bags, taking our last pictures on our way.
We headed back to the bus pick up and waited about an hour for the bus. There were other SAS-ers there that we talked to and they asked about our skydiving experience and we were really excited to talk about it. The bus ride was long, and I’ve never been on a bus with SO many people. We picked up people at every bus stop. We were so crammed in the bus, some people got off just to get off even if it wasn’t their intended stop just because it was so crowded.
When we finally got back to the port we had some extra time, about an hour and a half or so before we needed to head back to the ship and get in line to be on time for the “on-ship time”. We walked around the shops outside of the port and got some ice cream from a small ice cream store and wrote our postcards. Courtney and I talked about going home and how that process was going to work out on the last day with getting off the ship and all. I’m supposed to meet up with her parents when I get off with my bags and then were gonna wait for Courtney, go back the the hotel. I have to get to a store at some point because its imperative that I get another suitcase. I can bring off my things from the ship in bookbags and trashbags, but I have no room in my suitcases for all of my stuff, and I need atleast one more big one or something. Right now I’m not really sure what I’m going to do still. I can’t believe we only have about two weeks left, it seems like we just got here
THE BEGINNING OF THE END
April 18th
We’ve been on the ship for almost 9 days straight. It’s been a long time and pretty stressful. This is the crunch time, the end of the semester when all the papers and projects are due, the tests and quizzes are being crammed in and preparations for finals begin.
Being on the ship again for a long time has given us a chance to hang out with all our friends again all together. I’ve been hanging out with my friends more and more late into the night having deep conversations, watching movies, wandering the ship, talking about countries, going up to the pool bar and piano bar to get snacks and such. We only have about three weeks left on the ship and not even that. This thing is coming to an end very shortly and its so sad to think about. I’m not ready for all this to end. It just can’t end. I’ve had the best times of my life hear and met the most incredible people on this trip and I don’t want to leave. I don’t want to leave them and I don’t want them to leave me. We need each other. Were going to realize that more when we go home, were going to have to keep in touch otherwise were going to be lost and really lonely because noone at home knows where we’ve been, what we’ve done, knows anything really about it and its impossible to try and explain to them and have them really care or really get it. We have to be here for each other while we are here, and have to be there when we can’t be together.
“THE PERSIANS” and THE TALENT SHOW
April 15-17th
The play opened this past week and it was a success. I can’t believe it was over. We had been doing that since the very beginning and now it was over.
The talent show was the night after as well and that was such a great night. There are so many talented people on this ship who can dance and sing and write music, they amaze me and I love what they do. I downloaded my friends music to my computer, they are so good. I sang with the A Capella group that I helped to form with some other friends. We sang a song that we had been working on since the very beginning and performed it for the first time at the talent show and everybody loved it! It was so nice to be in a real A Capella group, not just where a choir sings a song a capella but they actually do it the right way, where the singers take the place of the instruments sounds and parts. We were awesome and it was so much fun!
WELCOME BACK THE CELL PHONE…or don’t…
April 18th, 2009
My phone got turned back on today and I have been getting calls and texts from people but I am unable to respond just yet because I’m still roaming until I get to Hawaii. I tried to remember how to text and stuff and I’m really bad at it. I couldn’t remember how to get to my phone settings and take pictures. I forgot how to use a cell phone. I thought about this, as I lay in bed this morning unable to fall back asleep after it rang for the first time. At first, I didn’t know what it was; I forgot what my ringtones were ha. Anyways, I thought about it and I realized that I have really enjoyed not having my phone with me these past three months and how nice it has been. Yes there have been times that were inconvenient but for the most part it has been great to be cut off. It’s nice here too because no one has there phone. Some people do, and they’d be on field trips with their little blackberries texting friends back home and it was ridiculous and they would get stared at. I feel awkward carrying it around in front of people here because its like you’re looked down upon to have your cell phone here because you honestly don’t need it. Now though, coming into Hawaii a lot of our phones are getting turned back on. But I’ve really enjoyed hanging out with my friends here and not texting them or calling them but just talking to them in person. Of course I’ll text them when I’m back home but it has been nice here, were forced to go out and talk to people because we don’t have or electronics, and we are the electronic generation. I’ve realized something, which I have always known, but I have really cherished spending time with my friends and eating meals with them and not have them text other people while we are hanging out. My friends back at home do that and it really bothers me and I find it very rude. But here when you’re with someone and hanging out, you have everyone’s full attention and they are just as happy to spend time with you and be with you.
This experience will NEVER be replaced.
THE GREEN LIGHT and THE DOUBLE RAINBOW
The other night we went through a storm, and it broke just as the sun was setting and we were able to view the most beautiful sunset. Because the sun came out while there was still water droplets in the clouds there shone this HUGE double rainbow that curved right over the ship! It was gorgeous! Everybody was outside taking pictures and sitting out on the deck just staring into the sunset. It was really cool too because we all got to see the green light!! That was SWEET!! The green light that shines when the sun sets on the ocean’s horizon! It was beautiful, I’d never seen it before, I’d only heard of it. But now I’ve seen it.
It was really special to be out there with everyone, with all my friends and just stand there at the back of the ship staring into the sunset with one another. It was something really special that I will never forget. So many nights I have experienced like that, and I know I’ll be sitting at home when the sun is setting or on any day and wonder where the M.V. Explorer is now and what everyone is doing, what the sky looks like etc. It will always be in my thoughts as well as everyone I met, and I’ll always miss them, and I’ll always miss being with them on this ship. I hope to do it again someday. I miss it already.
JAPAN
(April 6th -10th)
Today we arrived in Japan!!! Yay!! It was really cool! What an industrious place!! So many buildings, cars, traffic and highways. Lots of ships and signs. The country is so busy!! Our first port was Kobe. In Japan I just had day trips planned for the most part. We had to get up really early to go through Japanese customs and security. Before we could go out and do things, we we’re all called by seas to wait in a really long line for “face-to-face” inspection for entering the country. We brought down our passports, ID’s and customs forms that we filled out earlier and gave it to the Japanese representatives. We had to get another picture taken and our temperature and fingerprints. It was intense, some ports are pretty serious about their stuff and this was one of them. Once that was all finished and all 900 some of us had gone through, they “cleared” the ship. Yay, we could finally go out and explore Japan!!
HIROSHIMA
Today I was going to go visit Hiroshima, the site of the atomic bomb dropped by the U.S. at 8:15am on August 6, 1945 after the Japanese surprise attack at Pearl Harbor. We took the bullet train to get there. It’s pretty far away, but this train goes so incredibly fast, like 300 miles per hour so we got there pretty quick considering how far away it was. While waiting in the train station beforehand, a bunch of us went to the convenient store. I got some apple juice and Courtney and I saw Pocky and made plans to stock up on it before leaving Japan.
We finally arrived at Hiroshima and headed to the museum. It was a beautiful place and so peaceful. In talking to some of the Japanese people who worked there they said that history is behind us, the U.S. did bombs here but all is forgiven now. They just want to educate the people on what happened. Especially the younger generation, they for the most part weren’t alive during this time but they want them to know the story so they can appreciate it and try and prevent things from coming to this end again. It was one of the most peaceful cities, they really act on what they say here. The museum was very interesting and incredibly moving. I took a lot of pictures so I can share with my family and friends the story of what happened. And bring home the museum for those that haven’t been there and might not be able to go.
Everyone was pretty quiet in the museum reading and such. All but me, who had to blow my nose every 5 min, but I tried very hard to be quiet about it. Apparently, its rude to blow your nose in public in Japan, its looked down upon? Val told me that later. Interesting, I thought. It was interesting to be an American in the museum. The museum wasn’t necessarily one-sided or condemning the U.S. in any way. I felt awkward at times. It was similar to walking into the war museum in Vietnam. We we’re all treated as equals and sometimes you wonder to yourself “why?” After all, I thought towards them, “don’t you know who I am, I’m American, and doesn’t that bother you here?” But it didn’t at all. We we’re all mixed together in the place where such tragedy occurred, in a war between our countries. It was a surreal feeling walking through the museum and so sad to read all the stories. They had pictures and videos playing. They showed the actually footage of the nuclear bomb attack from the cameras on the U.S. planes and others who were able to film bits of what it looked like. It was something to see for sure. We basically walked through a timeline of what had happened, and we’re accompanied with artifacts and things that were still left such as someone’s watch that was stopped at 8:15, when the bomb dropped. They we’re killed on site. The beginning was about the war and the events leading up to it. I learned a lot about Hiroshima and how it was picked to be the place where the bomb was to be dropped. Apparently it was “good weather sealed Hiroshima’s fate”. The end of the tour is what was the saddest because it went into detail of what happened during the blast and its aftermath. There was a model of the city built to show what it looked like before and then a second one for afterwards. Hanging above each model was a red ball to symbolize the bomb dropping and where it was to hit.
Their was an exhibit built showing a part that was hit by the bomb, and there we’re people models in the exhibit that we’re showed burned extremely, so bad that their skin was shown melting off of them so the point that you couldn’t recognize them. That put things in perspective for me, I could not even imagine that, the pain and what happened. Where the bomb went off, there were a lot of children’s schools nearby. They were affected greatly by this disaster and so many of them died. There were a lot of stories about particular children. There would be shown a torn burned dress from a girl who was there and under it they had her story, how she ran home after the blast to her parents and ended up dying when she got home because of her wounds. The picture said that she sewed that dress for herself the summer before. They had so many detailed stories that really helped to put things in perspective. That it wasn’t just that a lot of people died. So many were affected, they all had lives, have stories. Sharing those stories really brought it home, it made it easier to make a personal connection.
There was next a part of the museum that talked a lot about the aftermath of the destruction physically and also, what the bombs did to the people and how they affected them with the radiation and everything. Even today, people are still showing side effects from the blast and are still sick and passing down genes to their children. Even unborn children were affected even. “Many children exposed to radiation in their mother’s womb were born with what became known as “A-bomb microcephaly.” “Suffering from retarded mental development or physical disabilities.” (from a plaque description, Hiroshima Memorial museum). It was a very moving experience. I took lots of pictures, especially ones of the plaques with the personal stories on them so I can remember them looking back.
Once I was finished walking through the museum and its exhibits I turned in my audio tour device and headed outside to walk through the park area. 
It was a beautiful day out and the sun was just beginning to set. I had lost track of Courtney somewhere in the museum so I waited for awhile, but thought she might have been ahead of me so maybe she already went outside to tour. I walked around outside on my own, which was a good thing because that way I was able to reflect more and take everything in. The park was large and beautiful. There we’re many monuments and statues dedicated to the remembrance of what happened. There is one original building that still stands although destroyed. Its remains mark the spot that was the center of the disaster. Right outside there was a monument, a long pool that reminded me of the one in the “Washington Monument” in the U.S. a little bit, just because of the pool part and having a structure in front of it. It was an arch. It had flowers laid in front of it and people were there also leaving their own flowers and origami cranes in remembrance of the children, and praying. I took a picture of two Japanese women praying in front of the arch. Right under the arch in the distance you can see the building with the dome that was left. The park was so beautiful and had such interesting sculptures.
We were really lucky and arrived in Japan at the perfect time to see Cherry Blossoms. Apparently there is only a 2 week window or so in which they bloom and fall and we were there just at the right time. They were beautiful! They were all over the park and along the calm river that ran through it. It was really nice and peaceful. The sun was setting just when we were leaving. It was a beautiful time of day and the sunlight setting really added to the peaceful feeling there.
We headed back to the ship and as the bus drove back, I reflected on everything that I had just experienced.
KYOTO
The next morning we got up. I had a trip to Kyoto, which I was excited about. Courtney and Holly were on my trip also so that was fun to have them around to hang out with. We saw so many things, so many temples and gardens. We visited the old emperor’s residence and toured inside and got great information and history from the tour guide. Something interesting about it was the floor. They squeaked when you walked on them slightly, it sounded kind of like little bells chiming. They are called nightingale floors, they were designed like that so that the owners could tell when someone was entering into the house, for instance if someone was sneaking home late or someone was breaking in.
The temple was really neat and the gardens on the property we’re beautiful. I took so many pictures of cherry blossoms. They were so pretty and when the wind blew it looked like snow was falling. We even saw some Geishas out which was really rare because they usually only come out at night but there were some walking around.
We went to show many gardens that day I can’t even remember how many. They were all so beautiful. By the time we got to the last temple at the end of the day my knees were hurting me so bad that I could barely walk. I had to leave early from the last temple because there were so many stairs that we had to climb and I knew I’d have a hard time doing it and fall behind. Holly who was with me was actually feeling sick and didn’t want to go up the hill and the stairs. We decided to stay behind at the bottom of the hill and visit the shops. It wasn’t long before the rest of the group came back down the hill to go to the shops. I’m going to get pictures from Courtney of what the view looked like from the top. Holly and I went to the bathroom. Unfortunately it was another squat hole, these things are so disgusting, but that’s just how they do it here. They think its easier. I don’t agree personally, I think its really unsanitary. And I found that I really appreciated the western tradition of toilets and really missed them. An odd thing to miss, something that I wasn’t expecting, but I will never complain about going to the bathroom in a gas station again. It’s a good thing that I had a cold because I had a roll of toilet paper with me that I had been carrying around since China to use to blow my nose, and it also came in handy for the bathrooms, because people in Asia don’t use toilet paper for the most part, they just use their left hand to take care of things.
Some people found it funny that I was carrying around toilet paper out in the open. They had never heard of someone with a cold carrying around a role of toilet paper with them. Maybe its just an Iowa thing, but that’s what we do at school. It’s cheaper than Kleenex and a lot easier. I got some funny looks from the Asians. But I made friends with people, Americans and European tourists especially because of it, because when it came time to go to the bathroom they really appreciated that I had some with me
A NIGHT IN
When we got back to the ship I got dinner with some friends at the grill and ended up hanging out there for awhile with Courtney, Nora, Adam and Ben. We had a good conversation on music and movies. Not all of us saw eye-to-eye on what we thought were good and bad movies, it was fun bickering back and forth about things. We ended up getting on the movie “Role Models” – one that I have never seen but would consider to be what I call a “stupid funny movie”. I wasn’t interested in it at all, because I thought it was silly humor. That night we decided to have a movie and music party. We decided to bring all our movies to Bens room and decide on a movie, but it ended up being that we were going to watch Role Models anyway. I didn’t think I would like it but I actually really enjoyed it haha, probably because I really identified with the main characters and another one was really into role playing and renaissance festivals which I’m also really into, so I actually did find the movie to be very enjoyable and funny ha.
After the movie we exchanged some music with each other and tried to guess which songs were popular in the U.S. We talked about how us being gone, were missing out on all the pop culture news. Like whats going on with people, what movies are big and what the hit songs are. We went through some new artists and tried to figure out which songs would be the hits on the radio. We all were really into Akon, especially the new song “Right Now, na na na….” or something like that. Haha, I found out later from a friend back home that it was actually a really old song back home haha. It’s so interesting how that works out. We are all going to really be out of the loop when we get back.
We took the picture down in Ben’s room and read the back of it. It too like ours, was filled with comments left from previous SAS-ers, their experiences, tips, advice and things. It was really neat to read and remember what an incredible thing we were all doing. It rekindled the love we all had for this ship and passion for this trip and the experiences we were getting from it. It was amazing.
DAY ON THE SHIP
Wednesday was our day on the ship. To save money I decided to come back to the ship and sail with it to Yokohama rather than stay in a hotel and find my own way to Yokohama to meet up with the ship. Courtney, Nora, Holly, Adam, Chris and Ben and I were all on the ship together as well as some other students and faculty who decided to sail with the ship. After staying up late talking to friends, I slept in till 10 or so. I got up and got ready and went to work on a paper that was due after Japan. I got lunch with Courtney and we decided to meet back up at 2 after getting some work done to get some food and take a break. We met on deck 7 and ran into Nora, Chris and Adam and stayed and hung out with them for awhile. We called Ben to come up who was still sleeping, he came up to make an appearance and then went to go do some work. It was so nice outside! We couldn’t believe it. Courtney, Nora and Chris and I decided to lay outside today. There wasn’t many on the ship, so we were able to lay out on the 7th deck in a lawn chair and not have it be crowded. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the breeze was perfect to just cool you off if you got hot laying out in the sun. We stayed out there for awhile. It was really peaceful and so nice to just relax and enjoy ourselves in the sun on the ship, spending time with each other. What a great day.
That night Holly, Courtney and I made plans to get dinner together and then walk around the ship to take pictures of the ship and its facilities and us hanging out on the ship. Things took a slight turn when Holly realized that she couldn’t find her doll. We spent a good part of the evening looking for it but had no luck. We put a note into the ship and they were on the lookout for it. After that we didn’t really hang out, Holly was pretty upset and just wanted time to herself. Courtney and I wandered around the ship for awhile to take pictures of the ship and then we headed back to our cabins to get some work done and head to bed. We had a busy day tomorrow because we were arriving in port.
HARAJUKU/SHINJUKU
I got up early the next morning because the ship had arrived in Yokohama and we could get off. Courtney, Stephanie and I were going to Shinjuku to meet up with Val, Candace and Janelle. It took a long time to get there, we had to take so many different metros. It was really complicated, luckily though Stephanie knew some Japanese and had been there before. Shinjuku is like a fashion capital of Japan. Apparently, the music artist Gwen Stephanie is really into the “Shinjuku” style and her dancers take after that style. Basically its crazy clothes. Mainly the girls, wearing large oversized doll dresses with lots of different colors, leggings with skirts and huge heels or platform shoes. They were something you couldn’t miss on the street. We visited a temple that was close by before heading into the downtown area. It was a really neat temple and we got there just in time to watch a ceremony take place, it looked like an initiation or welcoming ceremony.
After our time in the garden temples we walked back past the train station to downtown to meet up with Val and them. There were so many people on this street where all the crazy stores were. There were some interesting designs and fashions but it was really cool to see. We found Val, Candace and Janelle and continued to walk around with them. They ended up running into a guy that they didn’t know but they were affiliated with the same sorority/fraternity name, his name is CJ. So that was cool to run into him and hang out, he was really nice. He was here with his family, as a graduation present.
The Japanese seemed to be very much into the retro American style, they had a lot of retro fashions and memorabilia from way back in the day. The things here are SO incredibly expensive! It was ridiculous. I bought nothing pretty much.
After walking around for awhile we decided to get lunch in the city before heading back to the ship. We found this cute little noodle place and had a nice meal there. After lunch we headed back to Yokohama. Val, Janelle and Candace headed back to the ship because they had a trip leaving to go to the baseball game. Courtney, Steph and I spent the rest of the evening walking around the city. We headed to the post office to buy some stamps and ended up running into a film crew around the corner, it looked like they we’re filming a t.v. show or commercial. It looked too small to be a movie but it could have been. We got some stamps and headed out to the city mall that had some little shops and stopped by a convenient store to get some Japanese snacks and so Courtney could print pictures off. That was an adventure, they didn’t speak any English and we had a difficult time trying to explain what we needed. In Spain it was easier because the languages were atleast similar and used letters but this was totally different. After a long game of charades we finally got what we needed. By this time the sun was setting and we headed back to the ship. We could see the moon glowing over the city and once the sun went down completely we could see the entire moon and it was huge! I’ve never seen a moon so big! It was big and yellow like a Harvest Moon. It was so pretty! Also, now we could see all the city lights from our ship, they we’re so pretty. Unlike the U.S. but just like China, they were all different colors and they changed colors and shimmered on some buildings. The ferris wheel was the prettiest, changing neon colors constantly. We stopped for awhile to watch and just look out at the city to take it in. It was so peaceful.
Once we got back to the ship we we’re exhausted. My knees were hurting so so bad from walking around all day, all I wanted to do was sit but they still hurt even doing that. I tried massaging them to try and make it better, but nothing helped. I finished up some emails and did my postcards and got some dinner with friends, I thought about skipping but I was glad I went because it was spaghetti night. Courtney and I got huge plates of spaghetti, it was so good! I just took it easy for the rest of night, hanging out with friends.
TOKYO – MODERN CITY
The next morning Courtney and I got up early to get breakfast before our trip today. Nora met up with us for breakfast. It was French toast day! Which is very exciting for me! I always come to breakfast on French toast day cause its really good. We were heading on an SAS trip to Tokyo today. My knees were still hurting me, especially standing for long periods of time and going up and down stairs, especially downstairs. It took about an hour to get to Tokyo but we made good time. Our first stop was visiting Tokyo Tower. It basically looked just like the Eiffel tower but a little smaller, red and white and in Tokyo. You could see the whole city from the top of the tower. It was really neat!! They even had parts of the floor that were cut out and replaced with thick glass to that you could look straight down and see all the way to the bottom. It made me nervous to look down but I knew it was safe. But still being really high up, such as that high, still makes me a little nervous.
After visiting the Tokyo tower and having some time to shop in the stores downstairs we we’re off to visit downtown Tokyo to “Akihabara Electirc Town”, known for being a world renowned shopping district. It is true to its name in that it has tons of electronic stores, and has the latest top hits in “anime” and video games. We had freetime on the main street to walk around and shop and do whatever. There were so many people. It was really cool, there were electronic things everywhere, huge t.v’s on the side of buildings playing commercials and things and music was playing. There was anime everywhere and we saw a bunch of girls that were dressed up like characters from different animes. It was really cool to see! What a culture! So busy and vibrant!
After our time in the downtown area we headed to the Hamarikyu Garden, a former feudal lord’s residence during the Edo period. It was such a peaceful place. There were a lot of people there. We had some lunch there and had some free-time to just lay out and relax in the park talking to friends and taking a break.
After the gardens and getting a city tour of Tokyo we visited the Toyota showroom, the Mega Web that houses atleast one of every Toyota passenger vehicle on the market and numerous Toyota racecars. This is a place that actually didn’t interest me to much to be honest. I’m not one for being big into cars and after being on this trip the whole materialistic thing really bugs me now. I did make use of my time after looking at all the cars we had the option of riding in one. We didn’t drive, it was all electronic and run by a computer but Courtney and I and Nora decided to sign up to ride in one. It was fun. The first time I had been in a car in a long time. We talked about how were gonna have to take a practice drive around the neighborhood before we get on the real roads again back home Ha. After the tour of the Toyota shop it was time to head back to the ship and it took forever to get home. The traffic was ridiculous; it took twice the amount of time to get back. I finished up writing y postcards on the way home and reflected on my time in Japan. I really enjoyed it a lot. It was such a buzzing place and there is always something new right around the corner. It’s such an advanced city and so many electronic things. It was very exciting! Now back to the ship. The Global studies test is coming up in a few days and this is the time when everyone is stressing out and all you see anyone doing is studying. Then nine days on the ship. It’s gonna be really busy, with all the final tests, papers and projects due. And the play is opening next week which is really exciting, I can’t wait. I’m excited to do it and ready for it to be over, we’ve spent so much time working on it. Also the talent show is right after. The A Capella group I am in “Sounds Waves” is singing for it. We rock!! We put the whole thing together ourselves and it sounds really good. Its also not just a group singing a song a capella but we as the singers take place of the instruments’ individual parts. It’s a lot of fun, I’m really enjoying it! I can’t wait to perform for everyone, I love it!! Well I am going to get to studying! I’ll write again soon!
April 23, 2009
