It seems like every country I step foot in I like even more than the last.  Maybe it’s because as my trip passes by, each country I visit teaches me more about the world.  I am simply decorating my passport by traveling the world, but becoming a real global citizen.  If someone were to ask me at the beginning of this trip to order the countries on my itinerary based on how excited I am to see them or which ones I will like most to least, Vietnam would most likely been sitting at the bottom.  I had no real thoughts on Vietnam.  I wasn’t really ready for it.  I did not know what to expect; therefore I expected nothing.  In reality, Vietnam is so cool.

I stepped off the ship and into Ho Chi Minh City on Saturday morning with no clue, no plan, no map, and no idea what I was getting myself in to.  So I walked.  First things first, we were told that when you walk across the street in Vietnam you are to look down, walk slow, and don’t stop.  It’s different than India, where auto rickshaws were the means of transportation. In Vietnam, it’s mopeds.  They are everywhere.  Millions of them.  But Vietnam is different than India again because crossing the street isn’t scary.  Here, they go around you.  If they were to hit you it is only slowing them down.  So I walked away from the ship with my handy compass around my neck and no idea what was in store.  Adding to my lack of preparation: almost no one spoke English.  Don’t get me wrong, being ill prepared and without a plan is probably the best way to travel.  When you expect nothing you get everything. 

We walked straight through Vietnamese culture, stumbled upon the Art Museum, and found our way to the center of the city: Ben Thanh Market.  This place was by far the most overwhelming place I have been in my life.  My stress levels went up about seventeen points as I stepped into the square.  It was packed.  Thousands of tiny vendors, each with their own six-foot area, trying to sell you knock-offs.  I mean don’t get me wrong I did by a few cool things, but only after I had a couple beers and the nerve to walk in that place again.  The coolest thing is that is Vietnam, boys can go to one of these little shops, pick out a fabric, be measured, and have a custom suit made for them by the next day! For like sixty dollars!  Well I did my share of market shopping and had lunch at a local café.  That night, me and a few kids went to a local bar for a couple drinks that night.

The next day I went took a trop to the Cu Chi Tunnels.  During the war, the Vietnamese people hid underground seeking safety from the Americans.  It was very interesting seeing the side of the war from Vietnamese.  When we got back we had lunch on the ship-which I have to talk about…… sometime when we’re in port the cooks get really nice and make really awesome food.  We had pulled pork sandwiches, FRENCH FRIES, grilled cheese, amazing pasta, and ice cream! It was pretty cool. I then ventured out into the streets of Ho Chi Minh City once again... got a little lost, but all was well.  I saw the Cathedral of Notre Dame and finally made it to the Ben Thanh Market again, where we stopped for dinner and some jazz at The Jazz Club. 

The last three days of my time in Viet Nam I went to Cat Tien National Park.  Our small group of one faculty, two life long learners, and four students ventured almost five hours by bus to the 71,350 hectare Biosphere Reserve.  We each stayed in our own private room, located in one of ten guesthouses.  Every meal was included—Vietnamese style.  The first day we took a boat ride down the Dong Nai River, spotting birds, monkeys, and trees.  Shortly after the beginning of our ride it started to storm.  And I’m not talking just any little thunderstorm…. This was literally the worst storm I have ever experienced, and there we were in the middle of a river, in a 14 foot boat with a 60 Yamaha on the back of it… Ron, our life long learner along with us, used to study lightning, and told us that the lightning was striking the ground nearly 500 feet from where we were.  So we found the nearest village and the people kindly opened a common building for us to camp out in for a couple of hours until the weather settled down.  We made it back to camp, where we ate dinner in a swarm full of winged termites that had just hatched due to the rain…

I am making this sound awful but it was actually quite awesome… My own room, tons of time to relax, lots of hammocks everywhere to lay in, and trails beyond trails to hike!  After dinner we took a night drive to spot nocturnal animals.  The rest of the time we hiked to Crocodile Lake, saw a 500 year old tree (20 people cannot fit around its base), visited a bear and leopard restoration center, and learned incredible amounts about the rainforest in Vietnam.  I had an amazing time, and it was nice to be in the middle of nothing for a while, seeing as tomorrow I will be in China.

So Vietnam was more than I ever thought it would be.  I loved it.  The food was good, the people were nice, the scenery was beautiful, and the atmosphere was chill. 

China… Here I come!

Tragedy in Japan:  As you know, due to the horribly tsunami and earthquake in Japan, we will not be porting in Kobe or Yokohama on our voyage.  The US Department of State has declared Japan an unsafe travel destination due to radiation and aftermath of the 8.9 point earthquake.  In Japan, there is a series of six nuclear reactors.  One was automatically shut down, but the other five are active and releasing radiation.  To get an idea of the risk in Japan right now…. I will have you know that on Tuesday, reactor number 3 released more radiation than an average area can be safely exposed to in a lifetime.

Announced at a community-wide speech made by Dean Dan last night, we will be traveling to Taiwan!  If you have any cool ideas for things to do in Taiwan, please email me! hmnoel@semesteratsea.net.

I hope everyone is enjoying Wisconsin (or wherever you are reading this from) right now! It’s gotta be starting to get warmer! For college students, it’s probably around Spring Break time, so many of you traveled to somewhere tropic!  I’m thinking Spring for all of you! You deserve it, after what I have been told was a long winter. LOVE YOU ALL!

Good Things,
Hannah

Reverse Culture Shock:

India and Singapore can be exactly compared to black and white; exact opposites.  A dusty, poverty stricken, and chaotic life-style straight to the cleanliest, wealthiest, and organized place I have ever seen.  We ported in the Singapore Cruise Center around 8am.  Getting off the ship was very organized.  We had to walk though a series of security checks, which ended in a very nice terminal/mall.  I could almost add a /mall to every single place I describe in Singapore.  We hitched a ride down town on the nicest shuttle bus I have ever stepped foot of.  The down town/mall is exactly what it sounds like.  If you think the Mall of America is big, you’d be in for an enormous surprise.  Image miles of mall of both sides of a beautifully landscaped street.  Four stories tall, filled with high-end shops.  The basements of all of these malls are food courts, but like everything else is Singapore, these are not your average food courts.  High class Singaporean cuisine: Everywhere!

So after we got a bite to eat I bought a Metro Tourist Pass.  Singapore has an incredibly efficient metro system.  You can by a tourist day-pass for 18 dollars, travel all day long on trains and buses, then return the card for a 10 dollar refund.  So you get basically a whole day of traveling anywhere you want in and around Singapore for around 8 US dollars. 

I volunteered with Semester at Sea’s Global Ambassador Program from 1-3:30.  As part of the program, we were asked to give University of Singapore student tours of the MV Explorer.  I actually had a lot of fun showing off our awesome ship, and it only took up a couple hours of my time.  Plus:  we got all of the extra cookies and pop to take to our room!

We hopped on the train and bus to the Singapore Botanic Gardens.  It was absolutely gorgeous! Home of the largest orchid garden in the world.  It was a nice, relaxing stroll. 

Then we bused and trained back to Clarke Quey, where we found Hooters: Singapore! We had a Tiger Beer (famous beer of Singapore) and a Singapore Sling (super fruity drink but I was told I had to try it) before we hurried back to the ship before On-Ship Time.

Singapore is beautiful.  You could spend an entire month there and probably not get everything done you want to….. but if you spend more than a couple days, you wouldn’t have any money left to spend.

And we’re off to Vietnam!

As all of you have obviously heard, we were merely three weeks short of being directly affected by the tsunami and earthquake off the shores of Japan.  It was the seventh worst earthquake in world history, measuring at an 8.9.  The shipboard community was not directly impacted by the disaster, although there are many participants who have family and friends in Japan.  Here are a series of emails we have received from our Dean, of which he received from the Institute of Shipboard Education in Charlottesville, Virginia: 

_____________________________________
Dear Shipmates,

The following is a message I just received from our Semester at Sea Headquarters in Charlottesville.

As you may know, a devastating earthquake has hit the northeastern coast of Japan.  We are closely monitoring the situation as it relates to the current voyage. The program is currently unaffected by this incident and we do not expect any future impact. Today the MV Explorer will depart Chennai, India, several thousand miles west of Kobe, Japan, where we are scheduled to call on April 4. We will continue to assess conditions in Japan in consultation with our senior shipboard administrators and risk assessment agencies and will share any updates or changes to the itinerary on our website.

As part of our crisis communication plan, a statement has been posted on our website and all emergency contacts and study abroad representatives will be contacted as well.

It is likely that this unfortunate incident will spark calls and inquiries both in the Charlottesville office and on the ship.  Please be guided by the statement above and assure everyone that the shipboard community will be kept safe and informed of any changes to the program.


We will  be working with the Captain and keep you informed with all relevant information.  In the meantime our thoughts should be with those immediately effected by this tragedy.

Warmest regards,

Dean Dan
_____________________________________

_____________________________________
Dear Shipmates,

Here is another communication from ISE / Semester at Sea in Charlottesville.  Know that ISE and we are following the tragic news from Japan and will continue to update you periodically.

We continue to monitor the situation in Japan, including recent reports of the nuclear reactor explosion in Fukushima, for possible impact on the current voyage.   Fukushima is about 200 miles north of Yokohama, which is one of our ports of call.  As of now, we have no reports of any damage to the port facilities in either Kobe or Yokohama, which are our scheduled ports of call.  At this point, we do not expect any changes to the itinerary. As the situation develops in the coming days, we will keep the shipboard community and parents apprised of any changes.  The ship sailed from India on March 11th and is on the way to Vietnam.  Our scheduled call to Japan is on April 4th, more than three weeks away. As always, the health and safety of our students and everyone involved in our program, is paramount.

Dean Dan
_____________________________________

_____________________________________
Dear Shipmates,

As some of you may have already seen, below is the official notice that ISE has posted.  This decision follows a conversation we had at about 1:00 a.m. our time. This is a good decision and although we will need to work hard to determine an alternative port, I know this community of  seasoned travels will take advantages of the opportunities provided in our new country stop.


March 14, 2011: The Institute for Shipboard Education (ISE), in consultation with our shipboard administration, has resolved to cancel the Spring 2011 Semester at Sea voyage's call to Kobe and Yokohama, Japan on April 4 and April 7 respectively. This decision follows our careful assessment of the conditions in Japan which raise serious concerns about health and safety as well as concerns that our visit would impede relief efforts currently underway. Our assessment also takes into consideration a recent travel warning for Japan issued by the U.S. State Department.  Currently, ISE and senior voyage officials are evaluating alternative ports in consideration of safety, logistics, and maximum value to the academic and field programs. Thank you for your patience during this complex process. A revised voyage itinerary will be announced on the SAS website in the next 48-72 hours. Participants who have signed up for ISE-sponsored field trips in Japan will be reimbursed.

Please know that the choice of alternative port is very complex.  The Captain will be very involved in helping us determine our next safe harbor and the route we take.  Faculty will be meeting to examine various academic options that will supplement and compliment our current itinerary. In the end we will do the best we can to take advantage of this opportunity and make our revised stop a remarkable educational experience. As you have come to expect, Marti will keep us informed through announcements and the Dean's Memo.

My personal approach is to nod in recognition that things have changed and then lift my eye toward the horizon of possibility. Let's make a great decision and fully commit to our next port.

Warmest regards,

Dan
_____________________________________

As you read, they are adjusting our itinerary at this very moment.  In our Global Studies class this morning, Dean Dan stated we are swaying between a few ports of interest:
1. South Korea
2. The Philippians
3. Taiwan
4. Stay in Hawaii for longer

I believe that all of these ideas have benefits of their own.  I would personally love to see South Korea, but I will be excited all the same at whatever the decision ends up being.
I will post as soon as I find out!
Or check out Semesteratsea.org and you'll probably know before me:)

I’m going to try to base my blog around the menu of a local café/hookah bar I went to called Elementz Café, Chennai, India. I will first write exactly as the menu reads, and follow by describing some things about my time in India as they relate to each element, or because I just really want to share them.

THE FAMOUS FIVE:

The Menu Reads:
Space-
-----The omnipresent source of all energy, it is the domain of promise, potentials to be realized and paths to be traveled.  The source that creates and nourishes the elements.-----

Gandhi: Mahatma Gandhi is known as the Father of India.  It is very apparent how much of an impact on the nation he had, through countless monuments, gardens, parks, and tomb named in his honor

We met a lot of locals during our time in India.  We seemed to grow a quick friendship with two in particular.  They rent out a space in Pahrganj Bizarre, selling homemade goods by their friends and family.  Their main business, though, comes from tourism.  They rent out their houseboat in Northern India, taking groups trekking, horseback riding, and snowboarding through the Himalayas.  We spent most of our free time in Delhi hanging out with them, drinking Chai (tea), and playing pool with these guys.  If at all possible I would love to go back to India to experience the Himalayas and to see them again.

The Menu Reads:

Air-

-----This power of movement.  Nothing stops it.  It twists and turns on its own will and is the master of its own destiny.  A free spirit.  It symbolizes travel, freedom and thought.-----

First I’ll talk about the air in India in general… It’s bad.  I knew it was going to be dirty before we even arrived in Chennai, when our crewmembers were covering the floors, stairs, tables, and chairs with cardboard and plastic wrapping.  The seventh deck was closed down and the doors to the fifth and sixth decks were locked.  Immediately upon arrival, Hannah’s allergies act up in full force (Go Figure).  Luckily, I was very prepared for this situation and allergy meds saved my life throughout my stay in India.  I don’t want to bash the atmosphere in general… It just reminds me of when I lived in Minneapolis and we had “bad air days”.  Minnesota’s air quality scale wouldn’t know what to do with India.

Now for the symbolic meaning of air: Meaning travel. Travel we did. On Sunday we hung out in Chennai, shopping and getting to the area.  On Tuesday morning (about 4am) my friend Eric and I got a taxi to the airport and flew to Delhi.  The Chennai airport was very unorganized but we got through it pretty quickly and surprisingly pretty efficiently.  We arrived in Delhi around 10am where a driver was waiting for us.  We drove to our hotel as he explained briefly the many historical sites we passed on the way.  We stayed in the Rak International hotel in the Pahrganj Bizarre area for about 6 dollars a night.  The Pahrganj Bizarre is on the border of what they call New Delhi and Old Delhi.  It is a common area for back packers to stay, and was filled with beggars, small street shops, tiny restaurants, and cows (yes, cows).  We spent the entire day on Monday exploring Delhi.  We saw temples, monuments, forts, mosques, the India Gate, and more.  That night we ate at a local restaurant and played pool with Massy and some other guys. Monday night three other guys (Steve, Jim, and Chris) met us at our hotel and stayed with us the rest of the time.  Tuesday we went to Lodi Gardens.  It was absolutely beautiful.  We relaxed and played hacky sack in between some gorgeous flower gardens and I climbed some trees.  On Thursday we went to see a wonder of the world, The Taj Mahal.  It really is just as beautiful as people make it out to be, and how ever amazing you think it is… multiply that by about seven hundred.  We hung around Delhi, saw South Extension Two and Deference Colony before we flew back to Chennai on Thursday evening at 11pm.  On Friday we tried to have a little “soak in India” day and went to Elementz Café.

The main means of transportation in India: Rickshaws.  There are two kinds: Regular Rickshaws and Auto Rickshaws; three wheeled bikes or automobiles.  The Indians who drive them around are nuts.  I will admit, though, as chaotic, unorganized, and crazy the streets of India are, the people do it pretty damn well.

When I think of India and I think of thought, I am reminded of the numerous “Reality Checks” we had to give ourselves while we were in India.  Randomly and spontaneously during our trip, one of our “five” would call out ‘Reality Check, Where are we?’  It was a friendly reminder to remember how lucky we are.  Instead of sitting in a classroom in America, we are learning across the entire globe.  Our answer to the reality check question was always a deep breath, and then, “We’re in India.”

The Menu Reads:

Water-

-----Without any attributes to be proud of, it is still the lifeline to all the species.  Cleansing, purifying, loving, shapeless, it cuts through mountains with persistence.  Symbolizes humility, flexibility and determination.-----

The water in India… We were told that it takes the average person five to six weeks to become adapted to the water.  Seeing as we only had five days, we were not advised to go anywhere near anything but bottled water.  Lucky for us, a liter of purified, bottled water was about ten Indian rupees, which is equivalent to about twenty American cents. 

In India you have to be flexible with plans and timing.  It’s a little like Africa time, nothing ever goes as planned.  But I have found, as I have said before, that if you expect nothing, and go with whatever life throws at you, you will have fun, and you will come out with more than you could have imagined.

Yes/No Head Shake. This doesn’t have anything to do with water or the things water symbolizes, but it was a pretty interesting cultural behavior.  So, in America when we want to say “yes” we not our head.  If we want to say “no” we shake our head.  Well, in India, they do this head wobbling thing… it’s hard to even explain.  Hold your head straight and tilt it to the right then to the left, really fast.  A lot like a bobble head doll.  Well this motion literally means both “yes” and “no”, which makes it very confusing when trying to ask an Indian person any sort of question.  Their answer is always the head bobbling yes/no.  So unless they speak English, you never really get an answer that you are sure of.

The Menu Reads:

Earth-

-----The ever-giving mother, who sustains life.  Bears the weight of every living form on her shoulders.  A symbol of fertility, grounding, stabilizing and nurturing.-----

The people of India: They live their own, simple, yet unorganized lives.  A life I’m not sure I will ever understand.  But they do work hard.  The first day in Delhi, we met a man name Massy, who took us around to some monuments and temples.  He was very nice. The thing I will remember most distinctly about Massy is how much he loved and talked about his girlfriend.  I remember this because she is from Japan, and was supposed to be flying to Delhi yesterday… I’m not sure how the earthquake in Japan had affect on that, but please keep Massy and his girlfriend in your thoughts and prayers.

As Earth symbolizes marriage, we were invited to a traditional Indian wedding.  Unlike American weddings, Indian wedding do not have a set time.  The wedding was set to happen that night, but at no certain time in specific.  The males were arriving much too late for us to stay for the actual wedding, but we were lucky enough to meet the bride and the entire bride’s family.  She looked amazing, with henna, piercings, and Indian silk covering her body.

The Menu Reads:

Fire-

-----The creator and the destroyer.  Responsible for the metamorphous of all that exists; it has led the human race through the darkness of the ages.-----

Fire reminds me of the human race; more specifically the relationships built by the Semester at Sea Community and the people of the countries we visit.  We are building bridges between cultures.  We have the opportunity to either create greatness, or destroy it. 

“Be the Change you wish to See in the World” –Mahatma Gandhi

As you can imagine, with over 600 students, 100 faculty and staff, and 50 life long learners… a voyage like this cannot go uninterrupted.  Two days ago, we were made aware that a number of participants were experiencing health problems that required more care than the medical staff aboard the MV Explorer could give.  In spite of this, we would be making an unexpected, but absolutely necessary stop.

Diego Garcia is a small island in the Indian Ocean owned by the British. Its territorial waters, going out to 3 nautical miles (6 km) have been restricted from public access without permission of the BIOT Government and is exclusively used as a military base, primarily by the United States.  As you can imagine it was not an easy task just “dropping by” Diego Garcia.  As we approached the island, a tub boat and six small boats, all filled with armed British and American military men, surrounded our ship.  Six armed individuals boarded the MV Explorer to perform some sort of “sweep” before anything else could happen.  We were strictly forbidden to take any pictures of the island, even from afar.  Once all mandatory actions were performed, two students and one crew member were safely evacuated from the ship to a small medic boat, where they would be brought onto the US naval base, and then emergency med-flighted to Singapore, where necessary actions could be taken.  Although it was quite an eventful morning, we must remember that the reason we stopped at this usually forbidden place was not a good one.  Luckily, though, none of the participants were in life or death situations, and they will be okay. 

We spent one day (twelve hours to be exact) in Port Louis, Mauritius.  It was fun, relaxing, and beautiful to say the least.

Yesterday, March 1st marked the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps Organization.  In celebration and recognition, a dinner was held on the ship, in which alumni and intuitive participants had the opportunity to converse.

It is dinners like this, and conversations with the countless incredible people on this ship that truly (I don’t know how to put it in any better words) make my brain hurt, in a good way.  I spent the first half hour of my dinner talking with Dean Dan, who spent two years with the Vista program, working in at-risk city areas in the United States.  I asked Dan why he chose to work in the United States instead of taking the Peace Core path; he replied by telling me that at that time he had the “why help outside countries when the same problems are found in your own” viewpoint.  Then I was intrigued by how he got to this point: the Dean of Semester at Sea, a program that takes students around the world. It was reassuring and moving when he said, “I learned that it doesn’t really matter what you’re doing, as long as you’re doing something.”  Along with Vista, Dan worked with Upward Bound and countless other programs I cannot even begin to list now.  He really has accomplished some amazing things in his life.

Then I spent almost two hours with Bill Cuff. Bill is simply wonderful.  He has the most interesting and heartfelt viewpoints of anyone I have ever met.  Bill always gets my head spinning.  We started, of course, talking about his experience with the Peace core in Africa, why he chose to do what he did, and how it became one of these most meaningful things he has ever done.  He described the Peace Corps as the toughest job you’ll ever love.  The conversation quickly turned to other things, though.  We always end up on the subject of “Why we’re here” and how it’s not really about what happens in these four months, in his words: “take your shots while you can” but it’s what you do for the rest of your life that matters.  And even though you may feel that you are not making any impact in the countries you visit for small amounts of time, you are doing something.  Everyone waits for the opportunity to be a hero or heroin.  Bottom line, that time wont come for most of us…. We cannot all do one huge extraordinary thing, but we can all do little things extraordinarily. 

SOOO… I have big plans. I want to get my BSN, then take it to the Peace Core for two years.

Other big plans: Beginning in April (I will join in May after school is finished) of 2012, at least four students and I are planning to hike the Appalachian Trail (from Georgia to Maine), raising money for an organization called Freedom In Creation, which is based on issues surrounding the lack of clean water and its impacts on people around the world.  MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TO COME

We spent one day (twelve hours to be exact) in Port Louis, Mauritius.  It was fun, relaxing, and beautiful to say the least.

Yesterday, March 1st marked the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps Organization.  In celebration and recognition, a dinner was held on the ship, in which alumni and intuitive participants had the opportunity to converse.

It is dinners like this, and conversations with the countless incredible people on this ship that truly (I don’t know how to put it in any better words) make my brain hurt, in a good way.  I spent the first half hour of my dinner talking with Dean Dan, who spent two years with the Vista program, working in at-risk city areas in the United States.  I asked Dan why he chose to work in the United States instead of taking the Peace Core path; he replied by telling me that at that time he had the “why help outside countries when the same problems are found in your own” viewpoint.  Then I was intrigued by how he got to this point: the Dean of Semester at Sea, a program that takes students around the world. It was reassuring and moving when he said, “I learned that it doesn’t really matter what you’re doing, as long as you’re doing something.”  Along with Vista, Dan worked with Upward Bound and countless other programs I cannot even begin to list now.  He really has accomplished some amazing things in his life.

Then I spent almost two hours with Bill Cuff. Bill is simply wonderful.  He has the most interesting and heartfelt viewpoints of anyone I have ever met.  Bill always gets my head spinning.  We started, of course, talking about his experience with the Peace core in Africa, why he chose to do what he did, and how it became one of these most meaningful things he has ever done.  He described the Peace Corps as the toughest job you’ll ever love.  The conversation quickly turned to other things, though.  We always end up on the subject of “Why we’re here” and how it’s not really about what happens in these four months, in his words: “take your shots while you can” but it’s what you do for the rest of your life that matters.  And even though you may feel that you are not making any impact in the countries you visit for small amounts of time, you are doing something.  Everyone waits for the opportunity to be a hero or heroin.  Bottom line, that time wont come for most of us…. We cannot all do one huge extraordinary thing, but we can all do little things extraordinarily. 

SOOO… I have big plans. I want to get my BSN, then take it to the Peace Core for.

Other big plans: Beginning in April (I will join in May after school is finished) of 2012, at least four students and I are planning to hike the Appalachian Trail (from Georgia to Maine), raising money for an organization called Freedom In Creation, which is based on issues surrounding the lack of clean water and its impacts on people around the world.  MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TO COME