Paradise Is In Your Mind... Semester at Sea, FALL 2006 tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-09-16:/blog/?domain=katfish 2007-04-02T00:19:26Z katfish img/travel-blog-feed.png It's a country, not a war. tag:travellerspoint.com,2007-04-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=20&entryid=52847 2007-04-02T00:19:26Z 2007-04-02T00:19:26Z We only had two days on the ship and then we docked in Saigon, Vietnam. Vietnam was pretty much the best place on earth which is surprising because it too is quite a dump. At night when we'd walk the streets there were cockroaches and huge rats and garbage everywhere. The city itself wasn't anything special but what made me enjoy it was the people. Everyone there was so friendly. They would ALL yell hello to us as we'd pass ... We only had two days on the ship and then we docked in Saigon, Vietnam. Vietnam was pretty much the best place on earth which is surprising because it too is quite a dump. At night when we'd walk the streets there were cockroaches and huge rats and garbage everywhere. The city itself wasn't anything special but what made me enjoy it was the people. Everyone there was so friendly. They would ALL yell hello to us as we'd pass or offer a smile. No one here was really trying to rip you off either like we found in China (at the great wall some woman tried to get my friend James to pay $5USD for a bottle of water). It was just such a comfortable, fun environment that you couldn't help but love it.

The first day we arrived I didn't get up to see us dock which I should have! We docked early and I was exhausted. We got off the ship and immediately there were a couple stands where people were seling things, not surprisingly. After walking a little further there is a circle of men in purple shirts with motor bikes all trying to offer you a taxi! There was a big group of us and we werent sure where we were going so we decided to walk. (I wish we had taken those motorbikes earlier cuz those were fun!) We went to this place to get our dresses made. It was really expensive. I got one dress made there that I ended up being satisfied with. On the way to lunch I actually stopped at a smaller tailor and got a dress made for $30 which I ended up liking a lot better than the other one! But oh well, as was my justification for the rest of the money i spent, they need it more than I do really. That day we did a lot of shopping at the markets and I bought a ton of cool stuff. We also ate lunch at this small place and I tried my first coconut! It wasn't nearly as good as I expected. We also ate some kind of soup with unrecognizable objects in it.

We walked around a lot and just saw as much of the city as we could.

The middle three days I spent on the Mekong River Delta. Its this huge river that runs through Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and a few other places and the delta is in Southern Vietnam. It was about a 3 hours ride which was long but interesting. There were so many dogs here which we haven't seen in the last 3 ports. Everyone has them as pets but most of them look like a combination of two dogs that shouldn't breed. When we got to the delta we spent a lot of time on boats in the rivers. The Delta is one big river and all its tributaries. It was straight out of national geographic how these people live. They all have boats because that's the only way to get from island to island or across the "Street" which is all river. They have houses on stilts on the edge of the water. I wouldn't really call them houses. They are more like huts made of any type of scrap material they could find. They have makeshift fishing nets to catch dinner. They wash their laundry in the river and hang it up to dry. Their huts don't have doors on the front and they have minimal furniture. They are usually just one big room and when you drive by, people are just lying on the tile floors. Many people here don't wear shoes either. It is all so primitive. I really did not imagine that people live this way. But it was also very bizarre because there are internet café's even on the delta and there were a couple houses we walked by that had televisions.

The first night in the delta we stayed at this Inn on the water and we laid around in hammocks listening to traditional Vietnamese music. We ate fabulous food and slept under mosquito nets and showered in freezing cold showers. It was so humbling to see all of the things that these people didn't have and yet they were so happy. People here have such terrible living conditions but nobody starves. Vietnam has so many resources that their problems are not hunger which is a beautiful thing. They don't have much else but they are truly so happy. It is amazing to think how many things I have at home that I don't NEED.

While we were at the delta some of the other things we saw were how coconut candy is made, how they make bricks, we drank snake wine (snake bodies and a dead crow that is marinated in alcohol—terrible tasting), saw them making rice paper and went to an orphanage. We also woke up early and saw the floating markets. These big boats fill up on produce and then ride down and dock in the river. The little boats come and float up next to the big boats and buy their supplies. Some farmers send someone down for days until all their produce is sold. It was so neat to see because it was so different than us getting in our cars an going to the grocery store.

I had such an incredible time in Vietnam. I only got to share here some of the experiences I had. I wish I could tell you everything! Maybe when I get home, haha.

It's a country, not a war. remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Japan vs China...some thoughts tag:travellerspoint.com,2007-04-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=19&entryid=52844 2007-04-02T00:13:04Z 2007-04-02T00:13:04Z The thing that will stick in my mind about China is not really something a country would want to be known for: the horrible smell. Now given that China has one of the biggest economies in the world I expected it to be modern, clean and very happy. That isn’t even close to what I saw. The people are so poor there. There are amputees sitting in the sidewalk everywhere, there are people doing whatever they can for money and ... The thing that will stick in my mind about China is not really something a country would want to be known for: the horrible smell. Now given that China has one of the biggest economies in the world I expected it to be modern, clean and very happy. That isn’t even close to what I saw. The people are so poor there. There are amputees sitting in the sidewalk everywhere, there are people doing whatever they can for money and it smells so terrible from the pollution. It actually resembles Mexico somewhat in that it is brown, dusty and pretty run down. The difference is the people. Chinese people seem so depressed. They aren’t friendly and the general undertone of society there is just sad. Its like the people go through the motions of their day without a single moment of happiness. Its so sad. It was SO different than what we saw in Japan. Also another difference is Japanese people don’t stare at people for fear of embarrassing you while that rule doesn’t apply whatsoever in China. They stare and point and whatever else they feel like doing. Also, in my opinion, Japanese people are much smaller and in better health than Chinese. Both countries people have very bad teeth…I don’t know that they have good dental care anywhere I’ve visited but I noticed it far less in Japan than I did in China.

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]]> Going back... tag:travellerspoint.com,2007-03-31:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=18&entryid=52693 2007-04-01T23:43:32Z 2007-04-01T00:57:57Z [b][b]I've recently been reading through a lot of old journals and post cards and such from the trip. I can't even begin to put into words how meaningul those 3.5 months of my life were. I made some friends who will undoubtedly be in my life forever. I saw countries that other people will only ever dream of visiting. I saw extremes of poverty and suffering beyond anything I had ever imagined. I know all of this. But the people ... [b]I've recently been reading through a lot of old journals and post cards and such from the trip. I can't even begin to put into words how meaningul those 3.5 months of my life were. I made some friends who will undoubtedly be in my life forever. I saw countries that other people will only ever dream of visiting. I saw extremes of poverty and suffering beyond anything I had ever imagined. I know all of this. But the people I care about don't. I came home with a head and a heart full of knowledge and experience. It has been difficult to put these experiences into words. And as usual, pictures never do it justice.

I feel selfish for having kept all of these things to myself. As much as I want them to be mine and mine only, that wouldn't be fair to the people who gave me both money and support to do this. I owe them something. I owe them this. I want to share my experiences with you. I don't claim to be an amazing writer. Frankly, I don't even claim to be a GOOD writer. Please forgive me for that.

In sharing these stories, I'm not looking for anything in return. I do thank you all who take the time to read from the bottom of my heart. These stories you read are my life. I hope they mean something to you because for me, it meant the world.

With love,
Kathryn

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]]> more ındıa tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-11-09:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=15&entryid=30817 2006-11-09T17:26:26Z 2006-11-09T17:26:26Z Sorry I have been so horrible with updating you on my adventures lately. Internet minutes are starting to get very expensive. Not only that, but there has been so much to see and talk about that I couldn't possibly put it all in an email. Burma has been my favorite port so far. Everything about that place was beautiful, well, except for the government situation. India was the next port that I've yet to talk about. It was one ... Sorry I have been so horrible with updating you on my adventures lately. Internet minutes are starting to get very expensive. Not only that, but there has been so much to see and talk about that I couldn't possibly put it all in an email.

Burma has been my favorite port so far. Everything about that place was beautiful, well, except for the government situation. India was the next port that I've yet to talk about. It was one of my least favorite. It was SO dirty and by that I mean literally garbage in piles on every street, in every alley and in every yard. There were hundreds of people lying on the streets because they had no where else to go. They were friendly when you met someone other than a rickshaw driver but they were horrible. Every single one of them is trying to rip you off. Unlike all the other countries, there was a specific market almost set up for tourists to pay the "American price" which is something so exaggerated. A friend of mine went to a shop with an Indian woman who asked the price for the scarf. He said 70 rupees. When she asked the real price, he said 10. So clearly, we were overcharged for eveyrthing. The rickshaw drivers were horrible. Theyd take you all over town before taking you where you asked. There were crowds everywhere because India is so overpopulated. I dont think it helped that I only got to see Chennai and a few surrounding cities. I would never like to go back to Chennai but I would like to see other parts of India. The last night we went to a Dalit village which is for the untouchables and that was absolutely amazing! For the first time in India the people didn't want anything from us...except for us to take their pictures! And we sure did! I also got Henna in India which I was very excited about. No nose piercing even though everyone in India has them done!

Right now I am in Egypt which is a pretty cool place. We went on a SAS trip to Cairo and got to see the Sphinx and the Pyramids. It was pretty amazing. We got to ride around the desert on a camel too! We ate dinner on a boat on the nile and stayed in an amazing hotel! We then got on the ship to cross the Suez canal and the staff served us steak for the first time on the ship! Today we are in Alexandria doing some sightseeing. This is a very nice city-- right on the MediterraneanSea! Tomorrow is our last day in Egypt. Then we will have 2 days on the ship until we reach Turkey. I bought my head scarf today in preparation for that!

more ındıa remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> tıııny bıt of Indıa and Egypt tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-11-09:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=14&entryid=30816 2006-11-09T17:31:58Z 2006-11-09T17:25:47Z India was um, different. It was really dirty and the people were all trying to take advantage of us and there wasn't much to do in Chennai. It wasn't my favorite place by any means but im glad I got to see it. Actually, I went to an orphanage in Chennai which was amazing. The last 2 days I was in a Dalit Village which was the best experience ibe had on this entire trip. We got off the ship ... India was um, different. It was really dirty and the people were all trying to take advantage of us and there wasn't much to do in Chennai. It wasn't my favorite place by any means but im glad I got to see it. Actually, I went to an orphanage in Chennai which was amazing. The last 2 days I was in a Dalit Village which was the best experience ibe had on this entire trip. We got off the ship in this tiny little village. Everyone that lived there was on the main street absolutely screaming for us, cheering and dancing and shaking our hands. They were awesome and SO excited. All they wanted from us the entire time we were there was to shake our hands and to take pictures of them. It was so fun—we played games with the kids and they put on a big show for us. We slept on a cement roof on horrible thin mats but it was amazing. We got to tour their huts and see how they live and meet a bunch of people. They were so excited—I guess sas tries to go to a different village every year so they've never had this in their village before. It was absolutely amazing—we taught the little kids hokey pokey and they sang songs for us. It was really awesome. That was the only saving grace for India bc the rest of the country wasn't great.

In Egypt, we wont get there for awhile, but when we do I have a 3 days trip with sas in Cairo and then after that we are looking to fo a little indy travel. I don't think im gonna get back on the ship to go through the canal…im not sure that it would be worth giving up a day in Egypt? People are either doing luxor or mt Sinai so we'll see. Either way, I plan on being very very safe.

For now we have 10 long days on the ship but we had sealympics which is like sports day, we had our sea social, we have a Halloween dance and a crew talent show. So theres a lot going on to keep us from being bored.

tıııny bıt of Indıa and Egypt remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> TURKEY tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-11-09:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=12&entryid=30813 2006-11-09T17:30:57Z 2006-11-09T17:24:06Z Ok so ım gonna apologıze rıght off the bat because there ıs no letter ı as ın ıcıcle that ıs convenıent to use on turkısh keyboards so ı thınk they wıll all show up as a number...sorry! We had to leave Egypt late because there were 12 ft swells ın the Medıterranean and the port was actually closed. We waıted a full day almost and then fınally left and ıt was super rocky for a that fırst nıght. The captaın ... Ok so ım gonna apologıze rıght off the bat because there ıs no letter ı as ın ıcıcle that ıs convenıent to use on turkısh keyboards so ı thınk they wıll all show up as a number...sorry!

We had to leave Egypt late because there were 12 ft swells ın the Medıterranean and the port was actually closed. We waıted a full day almost and then fınally left and ıt was super rocky for a that fırst nıght. The captaın kıcked ıt ınto gear and we got here on tıme. We docked ın Istanbul and spent the fırst day vısıtıng the Hagıa Sophıa- Blue Mosque- Cısten and eatıng awesome turkısh food and talkıng to locals. We walked around a bıt as well. The cıty ıs amazıng! Comıng ınto port ıs the most ıncredıble thıng. The cıty ıs on 2 contınents Europe and Asıa and we came ın through the Bosporus early ın the mornıng. We got up for sunrıse and saw the entıre cıty. There are so many mosques that are just enormous. They call to prayer 5 tımes a day from the mosques and ıt ıs so loud! In Egypt they had carpets on the sıdewalks wıth people prayıng-kında bızarre. Anyways- Istanbul was a lot of fun. Exactly what ı pıctured but a lıttle more expensıve and not many people ın the cıty speak Englısh. I feel lıke I am ın Japan agaın wıth the language barrıer.

I left that evenıng for Cappadocıa wıth 3 gırls- one of whom lıves across the hall- and my frıend Samantha. We left for the 10pm bus after a huge ıssue wıth our passports (they werent stamped so we couldnt leave ıstanbul and ıt was supposed to take 24 hours to stamp them- crazy!). We spent about 20usd for a 12 hour bus rıde. You go past Ankara- the capıtal- to Kayserı. From there we took another bus to Goreme whıch ıs my best experıence yet hands down. The story ıs that Cappadocıa ıs an area that was covered ın lava from the massıve Volcano that ıs just outsıde Goreme. It covered everythıng and created a type of soft rock that ıs easıly worn away or carved. The wınd and raın wore away the rock formatıons to create these beautıful valleys and peaks. The people carved out houses and churches and all kınds of stuff from ınsıde the caves. People stıll lıve ınsıde of them and actually our hotel ıs ınsıde one! Goreme ıs a TINy town where everyone knows everyone. The people are ıncredıble- theyre always askıng us ıf we want tea and just talkıng to us.

Yesterday was our fırst full day here. We rented ATVs for 2 hours and rode all over the area. It was amazıng!! Thıs town ıs honestly gorgeous-- ıve never seen anythıng lıke ıt! I cant even descrıbe how beautıful ıt ıs. Ive compared ıt to somethıng out of a Dr Suess book - ıts lıke a faırytale! We met a lot of locals yesterday as well and dıd a lıttle shoppıng. We had tradıtıonal turkısh food whıch ıs VERY good surprısıngly. That nıght we went to a tradıtıonal Turkısh bath whıch was well ınterestıng. There were all men operatıng ıt so ıt was a lıttle bızarre for 5 gırls but our hotel owner was there so we were safe! Thıs mornıng we got up at 5am and went for a hot aır balloon rıde! Of anyplace- ım confıdent that thıs would be the most beautıful place nı the world to go! It was expensıve but thıs ıs the trıp of a lıfetıme so we couldnt pass ıt up. We were ın the balloon for about an hour and half and they gave us champagne after. We got to see the entıre area and wed go up really hıgh and then just skım the surface of the rock formatıons. It was amazıng- very happy ı went! Today we also went wıne tastıng ın Urgup a nearby vıllage. Our new frıend also took us to see how they make handmade pottery here-- ıt was expensıve but we found some cheaper pots to buy! I had to buy thıck socks and scarves and wınter stuff because ıt ıs FREEZING here! There ıs some snow on the ground ın places but the sun ıs stıll warm. It was strange to adjust because we laıd out ın the sun on the day of the Suez ın Egypt and three days later we are wearıng all our warm clothes. Plus ı realızed today how much of a dumb packer ı am. I dıdnt even thınk that ıt would get cold so I have to look ınto buyıng more sweaters and maybe even some boots!

Tonıght we have plans to go to a Turkısh Nıght-- they have whırlıng dervıshes and belly dancıng and other kınds of turkısh cultural thıgns! Our local frıends ınvıted us and they plan on takıng us to the pubs afterwards. The people here are so genuıne and very frıendly! We came at a very good tıme as well. November ıs the end of the tourıst season so we practıcally have the town to ourselves. Its fantastıc- I cant ımagıne beıng here wıth hundreds of other travelers. Tomorrow we are goıng on a tour of the underground cıtıes and the valleys. Its a full day but we are very excıted. Tomorrow nıght we wıll get back on a bus to head back to Istanbul. We have one day there untıl we leave and then ıts 2 more days on the shıp and we arrıve ın Croatıa.

I am gettıng anxıous to come home and see everyone! I have so many pıctures and so much to tell everyone. Ive seen some of the most beautıful places ın the world and ım excıted for you all to see them as well! Im sorry I havent been able to send postcards recently theyre on theır way ı promıse! Some of thse countrıes requıre 2 stamps a postcard whıch can be very expensıve.

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]]> Life lessons, japanese style tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-10-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=11&entryid=25992 2007-04-01T23:48:10Z 2006-10-01T16:00:37Z After seeing Japan through Kobe, Tokyo, Kyoto and Hiroshima I felt able to make an assessment on just how different we Americans are from the Japanese people. We were told before we left the ship that Japan is by far the safest country we will travel too and also one of the safest places in the world to travel in general. No where else can you fall asleep on a train without a single worry crossing your mind that someone ... After seeing Japan through Kobe, Tokyo, Kyoto and Hiroshima I felt able to make an assessment on just how different we Americans are from the Japanese people. We were told before we left the ship that Japan is by far the safest country we will travel too and also one of the safest places in the world to travel in general. No where else can you fall asleep on a train without a single worry crossing your mind that someone will steal your belongings. If you drop something, you can be sure a little Japanese person will immediately chase you down and give you whatever it is—even money! And I didn’t say “little Japanese person” as an insult. It’s simply the truth- they are tiny! The biggest shoe size I could find was a size 8. Finding a fast food place was a disaster because a meal to them is not to be eaten on the run. It’s actually insulting to them to see someone eating or drinking in public. This means, when we Americans did, it was a production to find an outdoor garbage can. There were so many subtle differences in culture in Japan as compared to the US. They drive like the English do. It’s basically impossible to see someone outside their home in anything other than proper attire. All the women wear high heels all day long, especially the young girls. They don’t have bars or churches on every corner. In fact, the woman at our home stay told us that most people in Japan aren’t religious! Also, you have to be 20 years old to drink in Japan. You have to be 18, if I remember correctly, to drive a car. The most important difference between our cultures was without a doubt, the kindness of Japanese people. On three occasions, when we were lost, we had people physically walk with us to show us where to go- regardless of how out of the way it was for them. When you ask for directions, they don’t point to a map and tell you, they say “I show you” and they take you there. They ask for nothing in return. At one point, a young kid told us Americans helped me so now I will help you. In no other country would people do that. Being the foreigner in another country, lost and needing just one person’s kindness has definitely made me feel that going home I will be a lot more sensitive to those in that situation.
Overall, I loved Japan, mostly for its people. It was a lot different than I imagined it to be but then again, I have these ridiculously primitive ideas of what other countries should look like. I hope with everything I’ve learned, I will be able to show my friends and family what an amazing experience it is to be submerged in a culture so different from your own. Being in a world that I could not communicate with most people (English isn’t all that prominent there) forced me to break through to people in ways other than simply language. You really connect with people when you work on trying to find ways to communicate other than speaking. It is a beautiful thing.
I think it’s going to be strange to go home and to explain why I feel so connected to other countries and other people. The other thing I realized today is that traveling humanizes the world. Before, you just think oh a country is a country full of just bodies. But when you go there, you meet the people, you learn the culture, that now when I hear Japan in the news I will stop and think about the couple who invited me into their home, the children on the bus, the strangers who took me under their wing and showed me directions. It’s an amazing feeling, feeling connected to something other than America.

Life lessons, japanese style remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Sightseeing, the Right Way: tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-10-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=10&entryid=25989 2007-04-01T23:48:39Z 2006-10-01T15:46:52Z Kyoto was the 2nd capital of Japan before it was moved to Tokyo. It is an older city with way too many shrines, temples and monuments. The day we went was incredibly rainy which made the sightseeing a little difficult. We hopped a bus and went to start the sightseeing. We went to Nishi-Huganji and watched this really bizarre Buddhist ceremony. We also got to see Kinkakuji (Golden Pavillion), the Gion District where all the Geisha houses are, and Nijo ... Kyoto was the 2nd capital of Japan before it was moved to Tokyo. It is an older city with way too many shrines, temples and monuments. The day we went was incredibly rainy which made the sightseeing a little difficult. We hopped a bus and went to start the sightseeing. We went to Nishi-Huganji and watched this really bizarre Buddhist ceremony. We also got to see Kinkakuji (Golden Pavillion), the Gion District where all the Geisha houses are, and Nijo Castle which offered a beautiful view of an entire piece of property that was once the castle of the shogun. (Rumor is parts of the Last Samurai were filmed there) Now just sightseeing can start to resemble family vacations when your father made you walk the perimeter of Gettysburg battle field in the scorching heat when all you wanted to do was shop. I admit, it wasn’t the most stimulating thing although it was pretty amazing to see some of the architecture. Just when I was starting to lose enthusiasm, Kate Sam and I boarded a city bus and soon after were in the company of four 15year old Japanese school students. This was a long bus ride and we noticed the one girl would rest her head in her hands and just stare at the three of us. When we would look over at her, she would giggle and look away. After 15 minutes of this I looked her in the eyes and said hello. They all got so worked up! We spent the next 20 minutes talking about everything from school to Britney Spears’ new baby. At the same instant, the little girl and I both took out our cameras and took a group picture. They were so excited, she dug through her bag and pulled out three little paper cranes she had made. Kate had a few American $1 bills in her bag so she gave each of them one. Then we gave them some American gum and they gave us some Japanese candies. The best part was that we knew we would leave the bus to tell everyone we encountered about the amazing Japanese children we met. We knew at the same time, all the children would go home and tell their parents and spend the whole next day talking about their new American friends.

Sightseeing, the Right Way: remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Hiroshima tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-10-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=9&entryid=25987 2007-04-01T23:49:10Z 2006-10-01T15:41:33Z On the 12th we docked in Kobe, Japan. Before we could leave the ship they sent on ambassadors to share with us a welcome and some features of their culture. The most touching aspect of the presentation was when a gentleman asked us to accept his apologies for what happened on September 11th. Hearing this, I was quite stunned. As an American I know I was affected by the tragedy, however, as a non-new Yorker, its almost as if I ... On the 12th we docked in Kobe, Japan. Before we could leave the ship they sent on ambassadors to share with us a welcome and some features of their culture. The most touching aspect of the presentation was when a gentleman asked us to accept his apologies for what happened on September 11th. Hearing this, I was quite stunned. As an American I know I was affected by the tragedy, however, as a non-new Yorker, its almost as if I wasn’t given the right to feel anything. On the way to skydiving in Hawaii I heard a girl behind me say “It may have been an attack on America, but it was an attack on my home!” This immediately made me feel like as simply an American, I didn’t have the right to be changed by the experience. Hearing those words out of the man from Kobe’s mouth, I felt what other countries feel: the American side of the tragedy. It wasn’t just NYC after all, it was DC and PA too. It was an attack on an American monument that was so essential in not only the NY skyline, but in the American society. With all of these thoughts in the back of my mind, I got off the ship and was immersed in Japanese culture. The train system was scary at first because the language difference. Thankfully most street names and ticket stations are written in English as well as Japanese. After a few hours on the bullet train we got to Hiroshima. I traveled with Jenn, Jess, Sam, Emily, Kate, James, Bobby, Jen and Jane. We got to Hiroshima only a half hour before the museum closed so our visit was rather rushed. The weather was also not very conducive to outdoor activities as it was raining all day long. So Hiroshima is different than anything I expected. Im reading a book called “Hiroshima” by John Hersey for my Psychology class so I was prepared to see the museum. Between the book and the museum I was shocked to see how much of the bombing Americans did not know about. As a kid I learned only that they bombed Pearl Harbor and we bombed them twice which ended the war. In the book, I read about true stories of the people who were involved. The things that happened as a result of the bomb were nauseating. One story in particular was of a woman badly burned who reached up to take the hand of a pastor trying to help. Upon grabbing her hand, the womans skin completely pulled off “like a glove.” People who didn’t die immediately died after as a result of extreme burns, radiation or leukemia in the months and years after. For those who survived unharmed, they spent the rest of their lives fearing having children because they were told their genes were ruined. After reading all of this, I wasn’t surprised by what I saw in the museum. What I was surprised by was how much Americans don’t know about the effects of the bombs. One display showed a model of the city before the bomb and then what it looked like after. Miles of the city were obliterated. We also saw the A-bomb dome which was the only building left after the bomb was dropped that still survives today. In the museum they also had on display outfits, a lunchbox, a tricycle and the worst one, a fingertip with the nail still attached. All of this was so hard to see knowing that my country caused it. I know that we were thinking strategically when it happened. But I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed as I walked around the museum being constantly exposed to images and words that were withheld from me until that point. I left the museum feeling ashamed at my education. I felt weak for being part of a nation that is so set on not appearing weak that we cannot admit our mistakes. It’s sad that we teach our children the facts about the war and glorify the American response yet never once are we exposed to the Japanese story. It made me very angry. All these feelings brought me back to the issue surrounding September 11th. Hiroshima was not only a tradegy for Japan, it was a tragedy for humankind.
On my last day in Japan, I returned to Kobe for a homevisit. The husband and wife sat Jenn and I down at their table to talk. They gave us Japanese desserts which weren’t particularly good (anything with the word bean in it should not be a dessert). We talked about many things but the words that will remain with me were those that were said about Hiroshima. Jenn and I asked how Japanese people feel about Bush and Americans. The husband said they respect America and love Americans. They know that most of their protection comes from America (we wrote their constitution—they aren’t allowed to have an army and their location makes them very vulnerable) so he said even if they didn’t like Bush, they wouldn’t say it. He said he knew we were American students because we ask a lot of questions which is apparently something Japanese students don’t do. He then asked how we felt about Hiroshima. We told him much of what I said above and he was very pleased. He said that Japanese people feel very strongly about it and make sure all of their children visit the monument. It seems to be such an important part of their history. He also said they are not angry anymore, rather, they wish to be the example for why war is a bad thing. He also said that the Japanese wish nuclear bombs were not a threat (especially since they are so close to Korea which has bombs that will reach Japan in 10 minutes). It was sad to see how much of Japanese life is shaped by the events around Hiroshima. Speaking with the man and going to the museum helped me form some new thoughts about America, 9/11 and Hiroshima itself. These experiences, the museum and the homestay, were undoubtedly two experiences that will change my life.

Hiroshima remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Classes tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-10-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=7&entryid=25985 2007-04-01T23:50:35Z 2006-10-01T15:39:33Z Before I left home I heard a lot of comments like “booze-cruise” in regards to the Semester at Sea trip. I’ve been anxious to dispel all the rumors for some time. Going to school on a ship is absolutely incredible. I wake up every morning in the middle of a deep blue ocean. I sit outside on the deck for meals and I watch the sunset every night. It is the most incredible location to be in. The fact that ... Before I left home I heard a lot of comments like “booze-cruise” in regards to the Semester at Sea trip. I’ve been anxious to dispel all the rumors for some time. Going to school on a ship is absolutely incredible. I wake up every morning in the middle of a deep blue ocean. I sit outside on the deck for meals and I watch the sunset every night. It is the most incredible location to be in. The fact that this is my campus is still hard to grasp. While I can lay out on deck between classes, I do have to actually go to classes. I take 4 courses, 1 of which the entire ship takes. My other three classes take attendance every single day so skipping isnt easy. I have less class days and therefore much less work than I would have at home however, on top of the work we have, we are also traveling the world. In addition, we don’t get weekends off to catch up. Every day on the ship is a weekday and even after 5 days of endless, tiring travel, we come back without a day to catch up. We get back on the ship on Saturday and Sunday morning there is already readings and papers due. So as far as the rumors go about this being a semester off from school, I can assure you that it isn’t. While it isn't as challenging academically as Syracuse is, I'm still going to school.

The beauty of it is that while I’m enrolled in courses and doing plenty of reading, the lessons that I am learning in country far exceed anything I could ever learn from a textbook.

Classes remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Spoil Me tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-10-01:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=6&entryid=25982 2007-04-01T23:47:02Z 2006-10-01T15:37:03Z By far the most unexpected thing about SAS is the service we get. It is a lot like being on a cruise! Each “sea” (like a floor in college apt’s) has a steward who tends to your rooms. My roommate Jihane and I are taken care of by Ruel. Most of the staff is from the Phillipines and they all speak English. Ruel comes into our room every single day to make our beds, sweep the floor and change our ... By far the most unexpected thing about SAS is the service we get. It is a lot like being on a cruise! Each “sea” (like a floor in college apt’s) has a steward who tends to your rooms. My roommate Jihane and I are taken care of by Ruel. Most of the staff is from the Phillipines and they all speak English. Ruel comes into our room every single day to make our beds, sweep the floor and change our towels. If we’ve left out clothes or books he always stacks or folds them. It’s like living in a palace. Not only that but at meals, there are workers who take our trays, bring us drinks and remove our dishes when we are done. Our laundry is simply stuffed in bags and set outside our doors to be returned, washed and folded, the next day. We are starting to wonder what it’s going to be like to go home and have to do things for ourselves.

Spoil Me remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Hong Kong! tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-09-29:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=5&entryid=25666 2007-04-01T23:57:46Z 2006-09-29T10:36:31Z We had to reroute after Japan due to a typhoon so we got to China a few days late. Actually we docked in Hong Kong first. Now THAT is a beautiful city. I never thought I would think a skyline was beautiful but nothing beats the Hong Kong skyline at night. HK is like NYC but on all different little islands and much cleaner. The people are so friendly, there are markets just about everywhere and it is busy all ... We had to reroute after Japan due to a typhoon so we got to China a few days late. Actually we docked in Hong Kong first. Now THAT is a beautiful city. I never thought I would think a skyline was beautiful but nothing beats the Hong Kong skyline at night. HK is like NYC but on all different little islands and much cleaner. The people are so friendly, there are markets just about everywhere and it is busy all day and all night long. It was nothing like I expected from a big city however. We rode about a half an hour to Stanley Markets and the ride was amazing. We were in the front on the 2 nd level of a double decker bus riding up this huge, windy road and climbing up the side of a mountain. HK has so much greenery and there are even beaches there! When you look out over the edge there were mountains and islands and it was just beautiful. I definitely would like to return to HK one day.

Hong Kong is nutssssssss. Pulling into port you just see miles and miles of ridiculously tall buildings. Its like new york city but all crammed onto these islands. Oh and the people are a lot nicer too. One of the cool things was they use bamboo scaffolding still to work on buildings! Also, we went to Stanley Market which is this really popular market here and the ride up-- so gorgeous. There are beaches and so many mountains and hills everywhere and so much greenery. Its so beautiful youd never guess like 6 million people live there or something ridiculous like that. I had NO IDEA HK looked anything like that. We went to the markets and bought way too much stuff so get excited for xmas presents everybody.

Hong Kong! remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> China tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-09-29:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=4&entryid=25664 2007-04-02T00:05:34Z 2006-09-29T10:33:23Z Ok so James, Sam, Jenn and I flew Indy up to Beijing. We spent the day in Hong Kong and then flew up there. We got in late and didnt get to do too much. We got ripped off majorly for a cab ride tho..it was like $50 for 40minutes which i know all of you are like whaaaaaat thats excellent! But the next day we hired a woman to take us to the great wall and she drove us ... Ok so James, Sam, Jenn and I flew Indy up to Beijing. We spent the day in Hong Kong and then flew up there. We got in late and didnt get to do too much. We got ripped off majorly for a cab ride tho..it was like $50 for 40minutes which i know all of you are like whaaaaaat thats excellent! But the next day we hired a woman to take us to the great wall and she drove us 2 hrs, waited for us for 3.5 hrs while we climbed and then drove us back for only $50. Everything is SOOO cheap here. Its actually sad how low u can go when u ask for a price. At the markets, some woman tried to charge us $12 for 5 bananas because she knew we were American and would pay that. We said no and she wouldnt go lower so we started walking away. She immediately grabbed us and gave us however much we wanted because there were literally 15 other women around her selling the EXACT same things!

Funny story about our flight there. We bought alcohol because jenn saiddd she gets anxious and didnt bring anything so we thought hey get drunk! So we ended up hating the alcohol but before long we realized James and Sa were beligerent in the back seat. Sam ended up trying to steal his lap top and then asking him in a uncontrollable volume was his ethnicity was because he looked very western. haha. That was after she spilled her dinner all over their row. Haha.

So anyways we spent that next day climbing the Great Wall and it was amazing. You take these trams up and all of a sudden over the trees you just see this huge wall. It is in the middle of the mountains and the scenery is incredible! The wall itself is just a wall but the fact that it took SO LONG to build it is just baffling. People were buried in the wall that died while they were building and this thing is just enourmously long. Its so intelligently architectured too. It is surreal to be there because you grow up seeing this beautiful thing in magazines. You never think you'll actually get to see it. It was absolutely amazing. We spent almost 3.5 hrs climbing so we got to see a lot of the wall. The spot we climbed was in pretty good shape but I saw others' pictures where the wall was just crumbling. We got to a point on our spot where we weren't allowed to go any further as the wall was almost completely demolished beyond that point. We climbed absolutely vertically up 460 stairs (yes, we counted) and reached this landing where you could look all around you and see the wall winding along the tops of the mountains. The scenery was unbelievable. All you could see was green. Mountains and valleys surrounded us on the wall. It was such a breathtaking sight. It was so surreal to be climbing this thing Ive seen in magazines and on tv since I was little.

After taking it all in, we climbed back down and met our lady at the bottom to take us back. Before we left, James bargained for 6 bottles of water for $1 and a ridiculous amount of bananas (im pretty sure he ate like 6 of them that day!) for way cheap...unbelievable. The ride back was long and smelly and we were definately exhausted. I can now say I have seen the great wall of china! How surreal is that...

China was a dump. Haha, I hate to be brutal but it was seriously nothing like I had expected. Especially since they have such a great economy, I thought id see a much more put together country. I also talked to kids who went to Xi'an and Guilin and they all had the same impressions.

The next day we saw the Forbidden City which was really nice as well. It was HUGE! Unfortunately all the buildings pretty much look the same inside the walls but it was nice to see them. If you saw the Last Emporer the movie, not the disney one (Villa girls- we watched it in world cultures!) you know what it looks like. No one was allowed in there at one point except him and his people so it was bizarre to be in there. It all looks the same but the painting on the outsides of the buildings are so intricate. They must have taken them 30 years! It was all so elaborate and absolutely beautiful.

We walked through Tiananmen Square and saw the Peoples Monument and Chairmen Mao's Mausoleum. The weird thing about the Mao site: it was 7:30 am, the site didn't open until 8 and was only open for 3 hrs, all it is is a walkthrough where you see his body (even then, you don't even know if it's the wax double) and there were probably 3,000 people in this line that wrapped around the building waiting to go in. We couldn't figure it out- maybe EVERYONE in china is required to go every day (haha, wouldn't surprise me!). Oh I also learned that in China if you send an email with anything bad about the country in it, the recipient receives only a blank email. Isn't that strange? Oh and you aren't allowed to have bibles there which I'm sure is not the only banned object. That afternoon we walked to the Temple of Heaven which was beautiful as well. We had to walk 10 blocks to get to it. The city was a dump. There were amputees just sitting in the middle of the sidewalk on just about every corner. All the buildings for that 10 block stretch were pretty much hollowed out and had nothing inside them but rubble and rats. The strange thing, Beijing is hosting the Olympics in 2008 so apparently there's a huge renovation going on. Thank God because I don't know how they could bring all those people and cameras into that city with it looking like it does. Also, this could be really good for them because the Olympics tend to bring a great deal of money to the host city. Anyways, all those buildings had these expensive billboards lined up one next to another in front of them to block people from seeing them. They were brightly colored pictures of the city. It was very bizarre because I'm hoping they weren't simply going to block out the filth. We'll see I guess in 2008. Anyway, that night we flew black to HK and spent the next day doing a little bit more market shopping.

There was such a huge difference between what we saw in Japan and what we saw in China. Its funny cuz at home its just if ur asian, ur asian. We cant tell the difference. But the cultures are two completely different ones. In China people just walk around and the whole tone of the society is just depressed. Theyre not friendly, its so dumpy...it was just not a fun place to be. But seeing the sights was definately something. Im really glad I went.

China remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> US to San Diego to Mexico tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-09-16:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=2&entryid=24152 2007-04-01T23:46:33Z 2006-09-16T07:05:46Z As a Freshman I spent a lot of time trying to entertain myself at Baldwin Wallace. I remember knowing right away that I wanted more from college than BW could offer. So while looking up schools to transfer to, I also began looking at study abroad options. I remember vividly the day I stumbled upon the Semester At Sea website. I immediately knew this was something I couldn't live without doing. So I filled out the paperwork right away and ... As a Freshman I spent a lot of time trying to entertain myself at Baldwin Wallace. I remember knowing right away that I wanted more from college than BW could offer. So while looking up schools to transfer to, I also began looking at study abroad options. I remember vividly the day I stumbled upon the Semester At Sea website. I immediately knew this was something I couldn't live without doing. So I filled out the paperwork right away and waited for the letter that would determine my future. As soon as I got accepted I took it home to my parents. They were leery, naturally. In fact, they made me put it off until the Fall of 06. I had initially applied and got accepted to the Spring of 06 voyage.

Needless to say, Freshman year felt like forever ago as I sat in my room last August preparing for my journey. It had been a long process to get to this day. I had been waiting forever to go and I couldn't believe it was finally here. I remember trying to fit everything I could into 3 big rolling duffels...frantically calling Sam, who I had met on the message boards, to find out why my stuff weighed so much! We talked each other through a lot of the packing and preparing process and were both so excited to finally get to go.

On Friday, August 24th?, my mom and brother drove me down to Pittsburgh where I was to meet Sam for our flight to San Diego. I said a teary goodbye to my mom and watched them drive away. Sam and I, smiling uncontrollably, got situated and waiting for our plane to arrive. As we were waiting, a boy sat across from us with his passport in his breast pocket and I knew immediately he was coming with us. We talked briefly. Little did we know, he'd turn out to be one of our best friends on the ship.

I remember feeling sick on the way to SD. I was nervous but more excited than anything. It seemed so surreal that I was finally getting to do this amazing thing I had been waiting so long for. Even my plane was delayed haha.

When we got to San Diego it was dark and we got a cab to our hotel, the infamous Goodnight Inn! It was about 15 minutes from the airport and in Mission Valley. That night I had some issues and needed cranberry juice so we walked in the dark to a 711 that ended up being in the middle of the ghetto, not a good idea. (Mom and Dad- pretend you didnt read that!..the first of many things!) We should have known when we got to our room and the shower had no shower curtain haha.

On Saturday we woke up early, got a ride from a cop to the trolley station, took a trolley to ocean beach, laid out of a few hours, walked up the pier and then went to mission beach. I had been to San Diego the spring before for Spring Break with my boyfriend, Nick. We had the best day ever riding bikes up the shore so I was hoping Sam would want to do that. So we rented bikes which were really old and rickety and rode up the coast to La Jolla. Last time I was there there were tons of seals which I siked Sam up for but when we got there, there were only 2 swimming in the water. What was cool though was the coves were open so we got to go climb in them. Eventually we rode back up to MB, went to dinner at this incredibly californian beach restaurant and watched sunset. Actually, it was a hassle to get in because I wasn't 21 and the guy at the door didn't seem to understand we only wanted dinner!

On Sunday morning we got up early and got our 8am shuttle to Ensenada! It took about 2 hours to get there and everyone on the shuttle was from the PA/NY area. Whitney sat in front of Sam and I and none of us knew at the time that we'd all end up really close as well! I remember being so anxious on the bus that the 2 hours seemed like an entire 24. I wanted to get there so badly and finally see the ship. Finally, we turned this corner and behind this fence was the ship. The big, beautiful MV Explorer just waiting for us. We pulled up and waited in line to get our ID cards. When we did, Sam and I got excited because she was 4128 and I was 4028 so we figured we'd be right across the hall. Turns out she was alllll the way on the end. We swiped in and went up to turn in our passports and get some paperwork and then finally we met our RA's and saw our rooms. My RA was Nam and my roomie was Jihane Jeanty from Miami, FL! She wasn't there when I arrived and it actually took me all day to finally find her. So we spent the day unpacking and meeting people.

The first few days went pretty much the same way. I don't remember many details. I had a lot of trouble trying to figure out where to put stuff in my tiny room. We met the Dean and had our first meal and met our roommate and had a lot of meetings. I am in the Bering Sea which is like a floor in a residence hall.

I remember standing on the edge of the ship watching as we pulled away from shore. If I could only have known then how much I was about to see...

US to San Diego to Mexico remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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]]> Hawaii tag:travellerspoint.com,2006-09-16:/blog/?domain=katfish&thisblog_entryid=1&entryid=24150 2007-04-01T23:47:19Z 2006-09-16T07:05:16Z We all woke up early in the morning as we pulled into our first port, Honolulu Hawai'i! When we walked up to the deck, the first thing we saw was everyone on their cell phones. It was so nice to finally get to talk to someone and see land after I think 10 days at sea? We were up for sunrise which was beautiful. Its pretty much indescribable to pull into a port at sunrise. It took forever to get ... We all woke up early in the morning as we pulled into our first port, Honolulu Hawai'i! When we walked up to the deck, the first thing we saw was everyone on their cell phones. It was so nice to finally get to talk to someone and see land after I think 10 days at sea? We were up for sunrise which was beautiful. Its pretty much indescribable to pull into a port at sunrise.

It took forever to get off the ship. They didn't dismiss in any order so everyone just rushed the stairwell to try and get off. We only had the better part of a day to see Hawaii and it was clear that no one wanted to waste a single minute. We finally got off and had a few hours to kill before the van came to pick us up to go skydiving so Kate Sam and I walked ot the shore to see the beach. Honolulu is a lot like any american city. The beaches are unbelievable! The water is turquoise and the sand is white and there are mountains everywhere and it is just beautiful. The whole atmosphere is just relaxing. We sent some postcards home, bought some souveniers and then walked up and down the beach for a while. Then we caught a cab back with some old guy with a dent in his hair who sang us hawaiian songs..one particularly nice one about marijuana and how everyone should be able to smoke it freely because its God's gift. Thankfully Sam caught most of the trip on video.

We met up with a group of kids and caught a van to Pacific SKydiving on the North Shore. We ended up having to wait a good 5 hours to jump because they had booked almost 100 sas kids to jump that day with only 5 professionals on hand to jump us. So we ate hot dogs and watched other peoples videos and even played some asshole in the sun on the lawn. Finally, 3 planes to go Sam and I and this kid Dave got to go up. They put you in your harness and take you out to the plane on this golf cart. You get out and they run through real quickly what you should do and then you climb in this tiny plane with your videographer and your tandem guy. You sit on these 2 metal beams and they harness you up. You fly up and its beautiful and then terrifying when you realize your about to fling yourself out of this plane. Its even worse when you find you are sitting closest ot the door and therefore have to go first!! My guy, George, inches us up towards the door and grabs onto the doorway. As soon as I look out, I feel like I have my head out a car window going 120 miles per hour. I started to scream "Oh my GOooo..." and then he jumped!! We went falling outta this plane into the sky and you couldnt distinguish up from down and there was so much wind you couldnt even breathe let alone control your face when you realize the videographer is in front of you with a camera waiting for you to smile! You do your best and youre just falling and faling and spinning around and you cant see anything but clouds and sky...strangely enough thought you dont feel the rollercoaster drop or anything. Then he pulls the shoot and you get yanked up in the air so high so fast you definately feel like you are going to lose a leg to the harness! Then before you know it, the extreme loudness of the falling is gone and its silent. Absoutely SILENT. You look down and you are suspended above the ocean and the island and it is one of the most beautiful things. just kept saying "OMG" cuz it was literally the most beautiful place!

You float around up there for awhile...we got to see a rainbow and a breathtaking sunset! It's like I was hanging in the middle of a painting! Then you start to spin down and you land in a field next to the building we took off from and its just thrilling. I was so giddy and so happy! It was definately one of the best things I got to do and what better way to start out my trip than to fling myself out of an airplane at 14,000 feet!?

Hawaii remains copyright of the author katfish, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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