Semester at Sea- Croatia

Croatia July 7^th-July 10^th

Hello from aboard the MV explorer after an amazing time in Dubrovnik, Croatia and Athens, Greece. This was my second visit to Croatia; I was pleasantly surprised by how this city and its people opened their arms in hospitality and experience. In 1991 Croatia was at war with Serbia. Serbia was trying to expand their boarders and desired Croatia’s beautiful land, it was an unsuccessful attempt and now Croatia is a free, independent land. Croatia became a Christian nation after the war and in the Old City (a 500 year old area in Dubrovnik that is a major tourist attraction) there is a cross at the top of the hill that is illuminated at night to represent peace after the war and the decision to make this nation a Christian nation.

We docked in Dubrovnik and a few of us headed out to explore the city. We walked a few miles into the Old City, toured the walls and walked along the clean streets of the city. There were a few points that locals pointed out for us to go to, one of them was a bar that was built on the side of rocks with about a 40-50 foot cliff that some of us jumped off. (I did it the last day, my back still hurts!) My friend Nicole and I enjoyed the day walking around, getting a nice lunch, eating gelato and exploring the city. It was nice to have a break from the busy tourist placed of Spain and Italy where there was an overwhelming amount of sites to see. That night we ate dinner at a local sandwich shop (after that we went there everyday because it was amazing!) and went to a few bars where we enjoyed each other company and met a few locals who showed us around. We went to this place called “The Rocks” where the ocean met the land outside of the city walls, and watched the lightening strike in the sky and the moon rise above the hills as the ocean waves splashed against the rocks. It was calming and comforting and with the great company of the group of friends I have become very close with, it was the perfect place.

The next day we woke up and planned a day of water sports!

We took a taxi to a hotel where they offered banana boating accompanied by a beautiful view. Banana boating is one of my favorite things to do, and sharing it with friends who love to laugh makes it an unforgettable experience. We took it easy the rest of the day, enjoying the sun and doing a little shopping in Old City. That night one of my friends- Sami, turned 21 at midnight and wanted to celebrate it at our spot (The Rocks), we relaxed and counted down the minutes until her birthday! A few of us stayed and talked with the locals about how the war affected them, our friend Jacob explained his vivid memories of his house getting bombed when he was young and being scared for his life. It amazes me how much people around the world know of America’s history and political life, and we hardly know much about Croatia, or any county for that matter. Jacob became a very good friend to our group.

The third day we relaxed and prepared for Sami’s 21^st birthday dinner. Jacob worked at a local restaurant and set up a beautiful dinner on a private terrace with candles and flowers for 13 of our closest friends. It was a very memorable night as the moon lit the water by the terrace and the boats bounced back and fourth in movement with the currents.

It was a very memorable night as we enjoyed time with locals, good dancing and good friends. The last day I made the big jump off the 40-50 foot cliff and came back to the boat to rest before classes. This morning I woke up feeling very sick (sickness spreads like wildfire) because a lot of people are sick on the ship. With a hurt back from jumping off the cliff, and a sore throat I managed to get to my 8 am class but had to leave in the middle of it because of seasickness. It is difficult to have one day of classes after a few days at port. Tomorrow is the Sea Olympics, a day without classes and fun with games.

Semester at Sea- Italy

Rome and Naples,

Greetings! An update from two ports that were filled with adventures, stories, tours, pictures and laughs. I still feel I am in the midst of a dream that I will awaken from in a few months and wonder if all these incredible adventures really happened. I strive daily to take in the reality of this adventure and live in each moment of the day.

Semester at Sea added a port at the last moment in Italy called Civitaveccia, which is a 45-minute train ride from Rome. We spent 3 days and two nights at this port and then had the option to travel on the boat to Naples, or independently. Rome we incredible, as expected. I have been fortunate enough to make this my third visit back to Rome, and each time, possibly with a deeper understanding of its history through my education I have come to appreciate the city more and more. We stayed in Hotel Tritone- right by the Treve Fountain.

The first day (July 1^st) we arrived in Rome around noon, we gathered our group of 9 and met up at the hotel to travel over to the Coliseum. We were recommended this fantastic meal (Drink, Appetizer and Pizza for 8 Euros), and sat and enjoyed it in the cool air-conditioned restaurant. We paid for a tour in the Coliseum and had an older Italian man who was interesting but realized his crowd was 25 college students and as he lost some of the groups attention he proceeded to say “You Americans eat too many cheeseburgers, your attention is very bad. Italians eat vegetables and can pay attention for longer”. Though it was a true statement, it was surprisingly rude coming from a tour guide who was getting paid either way. We stayed in the Coliseum and watched dark storm clouds roll in as thunder begins to rumble the floor and lightening flashes in the sky. It was beautiful and uniting in that every tourist in the Coliseum gathered around the railing in the middle and watched in awe of this magnificent storm. Everyone was silent as the lightning and thunder dominated the sky and there were screams and vocal admiration of the wonder of this storm. The rain came a bit later but when it came it came hard.

We brought to life “when in Rome” and ran around in the rain in the Coliseum, taking pictures, videos and laughing contagiously as the child in all of us came to life splashing around in the puddles. All fun and games, until the rain stops and we realize we are soaking wet and freezing cold. We run back to the hotel, get locked out of the room and rush in to take showers and warm ourselves up. Don’t worry I have plenty of videos and pictures to entertain all these images. The first night, we went out after a wonderful nap and found a small restaurant in one of the quaint alleyways decorated with soft lights and wet streets in Rome.

We sat down for our family dinner, the waiter being our grandfather. He was a typical Italian Grandpa, loving and warm and who made us laugh throughout the entire dinner (yes, I have pictures with him as well). We enjoyed wonderful wine, pasta and company. This was the best meal in Rome because of the amazing group of people I shared this meal with. We proceeded to go out after dinner, it’s amazing to look around a completely unfamiliar place and see familiar faces of fellow Semester at Sea students. It’s a community in its greatest definition. We had a fabulous time that night which ended with delicious gelato!

The next day we went to the Vatican. We had tickets to the Museum at 12:00 and split up and spent as much time as each individual needed to stare in wonder and amazement the masterpieces of many artists who lived so many years ago. This visit to the Vatican was my second and it didn’t remain in my memory as I last remembered. I was 11 last time I went, and though I was tired from walking and touring, it was hard not to be amazed by the artistic interpretation of biblical stories and divine and human relationships. Staring at one picture for 5 hours wouldn’t be enough to fully understand each painting. After the museum was the much needed and appreciated nap which was interrupted by the 4:00 storm, the window in the hotel was open and the lightening was so close that it set off car alarms and hail dropped and danced on the roman cobble stone streets. We enjoyed another dinner by the Spanish steps, part of our group went out on the “Pub Crawl” but I was too tired and wanted to be ready to wake up for St. Peters Basilica the next day. I am so glad I didn’t go out, it sounded like a drunken mess and many people were dangerously wasted.

The next morning my friend Nicole and I woke up and traveled back to the Vatican to experience St. Peters Basilica in the early morning hours. The light shined through the windows in the top of the Basilica illuminating the gold outlining of the magnificent building. This building is indescribable by words. I was truly amazed of the art, sculptures and life of scriptures when Jesus told Peter that he would lay the foundation of the Church on Peter. Peter’s bones were literally made the foundation of this church as his remains lay in the center of the Basilica.

I hope that some of my pictures will be able to describe the beauty of this building. We met up with the rest of the group and traveled back to the same area of the city as the Coliseum and entered the Palatine remains. We walked around this area and had to use our imaginations to picture the buildings that lay in ruins at this time. This area was a hill that housed the palaces of the emperors of Rome. We then ate our last meal in Rome, shopped; enjoyed gelato and RAN to catch our train back to Civitaveccia to get on the ship to head to Naples.

Naples is a very dirty city. It is the second most populated city in Italy (Rome being the first) The first day I tagged onto a SAS trip to climb Mt. Vesuvius, the volcano that buried Pompeii. We took a bus up the volcano and then were dropped off to climb the rest. This was amazing because we hiked (very hard!) to the top of the crater and looked down into a huge drop off. The mountain was still active as steam rose from the rocks and was hot to touch. Our tour guide demonstrated how a newspaper would light on fire just by putting it by the hot rock; it was amazing because as the mountain sleeps in dormancy with the power to destroy as it did in Pompeii. Unfortunately I was not able to go to Pompeii, I saw it from on top of the crater but did not experience the actual ruins. I regret not going because I listened to some people who said it wasn’t worth going to. Maybe I will return again and see Pompeii.

We celebrated 4^th of July with a “family dinner” and fun out on the town in Naples. It is interesting how people do not know their alcoholic limits; I guess I am the one who is deemed to take care of others. The age difference between someone who is 19 to 22 is a reminder of how maturity comes in the midst of those few years. I still had an amazing time!

The next day we took an hour ride ferry to Capri, an Island that was the vacation spot to Emperors and royalty in Ancient Roman times. This place was indescribable beautiful as white houses decorated the hilltops and turquoise water slashed against the cliffs. We took a two-hour tour around the Island and stopped at the famous “Blue….”, we took a rowboat into this cave, which presented a dark cave with brilliantly blue water, which illuminated the cave. The rowboats were accompanied by the Italian voices of the men rowing which echoed in the cave. This moment of beauty is imprinted in my mind and will remain as my “happy place” which I will often visit in times of stress and anxiety. I also have pictures and videos to bring to life the reality of this beauty. We toured the small Island and did a bit of shopping, we caught our ferry which was only supposed to be 45 minutes that turned into an hour and 15 minutes leaving 15 minutes to get back to the ship before receiving “dock time” there was a group of 20 of us in a dead sprint while receiving cheering from Italians on the street who were getting free entertainment! After the run, we made it on the boat with 4 minutes to spare before receiving penalty for being late! Last night the ship celebrated a belated 4^th of July with a delicious BBQ and party. It may be my most common phrase but THIS FEELS LIKE A DREAM!

Thanks for staying with me if you have read all of this, I know it’s a lot but I hope to be able to bring to life my experiences on this trip!

Again, for my poetry class here is my entry for the trip:

Thunder rumbles as dark clouds gather above the ancient ruins of the Coliseum. Lightning clashes, powerfully breaking the silence of the fallen and persecuted.

Thousands of souls linger for two thousand years; their teardrops fall with the rain

Clouds spread their limbs and crawl over the tops of the volcano and pour themselves into the deep crater as the majestic mountain lays dormant and silent with the capability of darkness to destroy and kill. The ancient ghosts lay frozen in Pompeii.

Soft waves splash against the small boat as they carry the horizon up and down in the corner of my eye. The sun is strong and bright and warms my skin. The sky is decorated with puffy clouds as I rest, remember and lay content in the warmth. Quiet and peaceful thoughts consume my mind as they did in the minds of great emperors of Rome on vacations in the same place I rest.

-LB

This reminded me of Montale’s poem “Personae Separatae”

“ Speech is a little thing; in these raw and clouded new moons,

space is little too; whats missing,

what wrenches the heart and makes me linger here

among the trees, waiting for you, is a lost sense, or fire,

if you prefer, to print the ground with

parallel figures, reconciled shadows…”

Semester at Sea- Halifax Nova Scotia and Spain

June 19^th- 29^th, 2009

Greetings from onboard the MV Explorer! After a long awaited and procrastinated update, I will attempt to describe some of the experiences I have had. I am taking 4 classes, Global Studies (which everyone has to take) as well as, Religious Studies: God Has ManyNames, as well as a Political Science course; Ethics and Human Rights and World Affairs and a Poetry class. The seas were rocky for the last three days; it wasn’t uncommon to see people getting sick all around the ship, including myself. Its amazing looking out the windows or over the balcony of the ship and seeing pods of dolphins swimming in the wake of the ship, or a distant whale slowly traveling through the seas. The sunsets over the horizon createendless beautiful pictures and moments in the display of colors that invite the community aboard to gather on the decks to capture the last few moments of warmth from the day.

I flewinto Halifax, Nova Scotia, which was a beautiful, quaint little city. It was a place that was covered with trees and laid on the edge of the water. It was very clean, friendly and hospitable. I hope to return one day and spend more time there. We boarded the ship on the 16^th in the long process of checking bags, waiting in security lines. It was all worth it when we as strangers came together to share the excitement of stepping aboard the ship for the first time.

The first few days were filled with meetings and orientations, classes went for 6 straight days with no breaks as well as losing an hour of sleep every night because of the time change. We didn’t sea land for 3 days until we sailed through two beautiful islands in the middle of nowhere! We joked about how people probably shipwrecked and were there waiting for a rescue, little did we know those island are inhibited by 7,000 people. As we sailed by them there were birds decorating the sunset and dolphins swimming as if they were encouraging us on. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever experienced.

I have met some amazing people. There are definitely a variety of people on the ship, each one of them interesting with their own story. I am amazed daily at new people I meet and talk with. This is the first Semester at Sea to represent over 300 Universities so there are definitely a variety of people. I am 1 out of the 25 people on the ship of 721 students who is taking 12 credits. I am feeling extremely overwhelmed but I truly enjoy all my classes. Today I had a quiz in my 8:00 (poetry) class, a midterm in my global and I am currently procrastinating from writing two more 5-page papers due in a few hours. I appreciate the craziness simply because I know tomorrow I will be in Italy.

Our first stop was Cadiz, Spain. I was fortunate enough to take a field trip to the “churches of Cadiz”, as well as exploring the little city with a group of friends. The next day a group of 9 of us traveled from Cadiz to Granada, an enchanting city rich with history. With little sleep and lots to do, we woke up early, toured the Alhambra (MuslimPalace) and caught a bus to Seville. Most of the group went back to Cadiz because everyone was so tired and we only had a short amount of time before having to be back on the boat at 6:00pm the next day. Four of us stayed in Seville for 10 hours; with no plans for places to stay or what to do we walked down the streets of Seville with our huge backpacks in search of somewhere to stay (at this point is was 10:30pm.) We found a hostel, finally showered and went out to explore the city at night. We missed dinner and at a random local bar I ate Pringles out of a machine (when in Spain… ha) we met a group of locals who were clearly enjoying their time in Seville, one of them was dressed like a woman Flamenco dancer. It was his bachelor party; we stayed with the locals and enjoyed local bars and lots of laughs. After two hours of sleep we woke up to tour the third largest Cathedral in Spain (words cannot describe the beauty and majesty of the Cathedral) and toured the rest of Spain in a carriage. We saw gardens, palaces, museums, etc. It was the way to tour Seville (recommended by the locals). We caught a 11:00 bus back to Cadiz and made it in time to tour Cadiz a bit longer and make it back to rest. There are endless stories, pictures and memories that seem dream-like at this point. I am so thankful for this opportunity. For my poetry class we have to document our time in the ports in the form of a journal.

Here is my journal entry:

An old man strolls through the cobble stone streets of Cadiz, his image shrinks below the ages window sills of the buildings in the alley way. His shirt matches the color of the sky and his hands are united behind his back. His step is worn from the years of life and has slowed to appreciate the beauty of the day.

The seemingly same man strolls through the garden of Seville, same walk, stance and pose. There is something historic, different and similar, aged and new in these men. These men represent Spain to me, kind, friendly, mysterious, romantic, historic, beautiful, aged, slow, simple and extraordinary

.

That is all for now. I hope to hear from you all, I miss and love you all dearly and hope to hear of your adventures in the states. I am so blessed to be on this trip and each day I am seeing God in a new light with new eyes. It truly is a once in a lifetime experience.

All my love,

Laura Beale

Taking my own advice

I love my journal. I have written in it nearly every day while I've started this journal (I've already filled two)... I always love looking back from a year ago to the day... Here's my journal entry on June 22nd 2009, I'm aboard the MV Explorer on Semester at Sea, somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic, two days away from arriving in Spain.

"Sometimes the best thing you can do is be a tourist in life. Experiencing people, places and cultures for the first time. Breathing in the unfamiliar as you begin to identify yourself with familiar aspects to "those people" and "those places" as they become places you've been and people you've met. Develop a brand and unique taste in your mouth. Take pictures like you will only be there for one day and treasure every moment. Walk into a Cathedral, temple, mosque with awe, wonder and respect and close the gap between the distance of the unfamiliar and unknown without taking a single moment for granted."

What if I lived my life like this every day? What if we all did? Not getting caught up in the busyness and stress of every day life but experienced every day like we were visiting a new place for the first time. Maybe it's an impractical thought, but it's a thought... I remember feeling most alive when I was traveling last summer, constantly testing myself and my comfort levels and loving every moment of it.. I miss it, but am challenging myself to live today, tomorrow and the rest of my time here without taking a single moment for granted.