Journal #54 April 29, 2009
Today Meghan and I woke up around 6 and got ready for our volcano climbing trip. I was really excited because this is something that I have never done before. However I was very tired because we stayed up late watching One Tree Hill. I failed to tell you guys that we are addicted to One Tree Hill. We started watching the first season 4 days after Hawaii and now we are on season 4. You can guess what we have been doing on our free time.
When it was time to leave we went to the pier and waited for the bus. The bus was an hour late but it was ok because it was an SAS trip so they took care of it. Our tour guides name was Chickie and he was very cute :) It took us about an hour and half to get there. The last 20 min of the trip were up a mountain top, it was extremely curvy and it was a gravel road. So it was really hard to sleep, but it was an experience. When we got off the bus we were swarmed by 10 year old boys who wanted to sell us walking sticks and give us a taxi drive. The taxi drive was a ride on a mule up the volcano. I thought it would be a good idea for me to get some exercise so I decided to just get the walking stick.
As we walked up the volcano I knew it was going to be a tough hike. It was rocky and steep. I was very grateful that I had my walking stick :) We took several stops and Chickie told us about the Pacaya volcano and showed us some tequila plants and sugar plants. When we were half way up the volcano we go away from the trees and we were able to see the prettiest view. There were Volcanoes on every direction. The clouds were hovering over them so it even more beautiful. We kept walking up the volcano until we came to a place where we had to go down. All of the sudden without even saying anything Chickie ran down the mountain at full speed. It was insane, but it didn’t look like it was too hard. So off I went, I started running full speed. The ash from volcano was about 1 foot deep. So it felt like I was skiing!!! For about half a mile I was running full speed down a very steep volcano. It was awesome!!!!!!!! I got a great video of Meghan and I doing it. I even got Meghan falling, hahaha.
So when we got to the bottom we got to the part where the lava had hardened. It was very pretty looking and because it was so fresh it was very sharp. Chickie told us that we had to climb over it to get to the lava. So for about 2 miles we walked in very sharp hardened lava. A lot of people fell and scratched themselves but thankfully I did not. When lava was in sight I was really excited. It was soo cool looking. I thought that was the closest we were going to get, but no Chickie kept on going. We kept going until we were about 2 feet from the lava. It was super hot!! I could feel my hair sing off. We were able to roast marshmallows over the lava and eat them.
On the way down we noticed a huge river of lava. This river was moving very fast and on either side was surrounded by hardened rock. It was so pretty looking, like it was from National Geographic. When we walked to a free space we stopped to have lunch. The travel company provided us with chips, sandwich, and chips. It was surprisingly very good. There was a stray doggie that was following us so I gave him half of my sandwich. He was actually a very picky eating. He did not eat the cheese and lettuce. You would think that a dog who was very skinny and never got fed was not a picky eater.
When we were about to leave we saw people running down the volcano. The Volcano was erupting and lava was flowing down the mountain. It was then that Chickie told us it was time to head back. It took us about 2 hours to climb and about an hour to climb down. It was very steep climbing down and I fell a couple times :) But I did not hurt myself.
When we got to the bottom we hopped on the bus and headed back to the ship. It was around 3 when we returned so Meghan and I took showers and relaxed. We decided to go back to the restaurant that we had gone to last night. We brought our computers this time because they had free wifi. We stayed at the place for about 4 hours and ate dinner and had some drinks. I got shrimp this time and they were absolutely amazing. The owner was there again and he sat with us for about two hours. He was such an interesting guy and I really enjoyed his company. He told me about his wife and kids and how they always travel to the US. After being there for about three hours the wind picked up very quickly and it started pouring. After about 5 min the power to the restaurant went out and it was pitch black. It was very scary but very fun. On account of this happening the owner gave everyone free drinks!!! When it was time to pay the owner told us that our meal was on him. I was really surprised because we got a $100 tab paid for. When we left we took the shuttle back to the ship and got ready for bed. Of course we watched a couple episodes of One Tree Hill!!!
Love
Michelle
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Friday, May 1, 2009
P.S. Being drunk, climbing trees, and throwing coconuts at the po-po is not such a great idea
Journal #53 April 28, 2009
I woke up this morning by the alarm going off saying “welcome to Guatemala.” Its our first day here and I am very excited. Today I am going to hang out with Meghan and we are just going to stay around the port. Now at the port we are at there is one main dock that only holds on boat and an industrial port that holds 4 ships that is about a mile away. Our ship was supposed to be at the main port but we were bumped by a ship named “The World.” This ship is a timeshare on the water. People own rooms on the ship and get to choose whenever they want to travel on the ship. It seems so amazing but extremely expensive. The average age on the ship is 65 so I am sure its all the old folks who have the money :) The ship was supposed to be in Mexico during this time but it stayed in Guatemala for an extra week because of the swine flu outbreak. So because of this we had to take shuttles from the ship to the main entrance every single time we got off the ship. It was a little bit of a pain but it worked.
So when we got off the ship we found the first shuttle and hopped on. We had to sit on the bus for 30 min because the port gates were not open. That was a little bit of a pain. When we got to the port there were shops all over the place. We did not go shopping because we had to find an ATM to get money. Of course the nearest bank around was 8 miles, so we had to take a taxi. By the time we got our money and were situated it was lunch time, so we went back to the ship to get lunch. We had planned on going to the beach today but our plans got a little messed up because the beach was closed during the hours of 12-3. They love their siesta time.
So after lunch we rested for a little while and headed back to the main entrance to get a taxi to the beach. On the way another shuttle stopped us and asked if anyone wanted to go to San Jose. San Jose is the closest town to the port. Meghan and I decided to go because it was getting a little cloudy out. When we got to San Jose I was a little scared. It did not seem like a safe place and it was just Meghan and I. We walked along the streets and went to a couple markets. It was crazy because they sold machetes on almost every corner. I was extremely scared. At one point we stopped to look at some pirated DVD’s and this drunken man stared talking to us. You could smell the alcohol from a mile away. He told us how all his family is in the States and that he misses them and wants to come to the US with us. At that point the police came over and took control. We left and went to some more markets and after about 30 min we decided to leave. It was just to scary. When we were leaving we saw the same drunken man climbing a tree to run from the cops, hahha. When he go to safety he started picking coconuts and chucking them at the police, he was hiding the coconuts in his shirt. It was really funny.
When we got back to the port entrance we did a little shopping and after a while we headed to the restaurant that is right by the shops. There were not a lot of people there but it was right on the harbor and had a gorgeous view. We ordered a couple drinks and got some food. After sitting there for a while the owner of the place came over and talked to us. He was a very nice guy and I do not remember his name but I recall it sounding god like. He is Greek. He bought us a couple drinks including an apple beer. It was quite gross. The restaurant actually had free wifi and free international calling. So that got me really excited and I was able to call my family and my boyfriend :) At around 7 we left and headed back to the ship to get some rest. We had to wake up really early the next day to climb a volcano.
Love
Michelle
I woke up this morning by the alarm going off saying “welcome to Guatemala.” Its our first day here and I am very excited. Today I am going to hang out with Meghan and we are just going to stay around the port. Now at the port we are at there is one main dock that only holds on boat and an industrial port that holds 4 ships that is about a mile away. Our ship was supposed to be at the main port but we were bumped by a ship named “The World.” This ship is a timeshare on the water. People own rooms on the ship and get to choose whenever they want to travel on the ship. It seems so amazing but extremely expensive. The average age on the ship is 65 so I am sure its all the old folks who have the money :) The ship was supposed to be in Mexico during this time but it stayed in Guatemala for an extra week because of the swine flu outbreak. So because of this we had to take shuttles from the ship to the main entrance every single time we got off the ship. It was a little bit of a pain but it worked.
So when we got off the ship we found the first shuttle and hopped on. We had to sit on the bus for 30 min because the port gates were not open. That was a little bit of a pain. When we got to the port there were shops all over the place. We did not go shopping because we had to find an ATM to get money. Of course the nearest bank around was 8 miles, so we had to take a taxi. By the time we got our money and were situated it was lunch time, so we went back to the ship to get lunch. We had planned on going to the beach today but our plans got a little messed up because the beach was closed during the hours of 12-3. They love their siesta time.
So after lunch we rested for a little while and headed back to the main entrance to get a taxi to the beach. On the way another shuttle stopped us and asked if anyone wanted to go to San Jose. San Jose is the closest town to the port. Meghan and I decided to go because it was getting a little cloudy out. When we got to San Jose I was a little scared. It did not seem like a safe place and it was just Meghan and I. We walked along the streets and went to a couple markets. It was crazy because they sold machetes on almost every corner. I was extremely scared. At one point we stopped to look at some pirated DVD’s and this drunken man stared talking to us. You could smell the alcohol from a mile away. He told us how all his family is in the States and that he misses them and wants to come to the US with us. At that point the police came over and took control. We left and went to some more markets and after about 30 min we decided to leave. It was just to scary. When we were leaving we saw the same drunken man climbing a tree to run from the cops, hahha. When he go to safety he started picking coconuts and chucking them at the police, he was hiding the coconuts in his shirt. It was really funny.
When we got back to the port entrance we did a little shopping and after a while we headed to the restaurant that is right by the shops. There were not a lot of people there but it was right on the harbor and had a gorgeous view. We ordered a couple drinks and got some food. After sitting there for a while the owner of the place came over and talked to us. He was a very nice guy and I do not remember his name but I recall it sounding god like. He is Greek. He bought us a couple drinks including an apple beer. It was quite gross. The restaurant actually had free wifi and free international calling. So that got me really excited and I was able to call my family and my boyfriend :) At around 7 we left and headed back to the ship to get some rest. We had to wake up really early the next day to climb a volcano.
Love
Michelle
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Another Day at Sea
Journal #52 April 26, 2009
Today was the first day that I had absolutely nothing to do and was able to sleep in. Because I am so drained I slept in until 1pm and then went outside to lay out. It was really crowded out because the sun was shinning and it was hot out. Its about 80 degrees out and the wind was blowing. Today has been the most I have spent outside since Hawaii. Breathing in the fresh air made my mood a lot better.
I am starting to get sick :( A cold is going around on the ship which means of course I am going to get it. It hasn’t been bad but it just drains me. I think getting a lot of sleep last night really helped. The water is really smooth and royal blue today. Its very pretty. Ever since Hawaii the ship has been doing a drive to raise money for students who can not afford SAS. The first sea to get 100% is able to be 2nd off the ship in Ft. Lauderdale. I am happy to say the my sea, The Red Sea, is in first place and only needs 4 more people to donate. I really hope those 4 people hurry up because I would love to be 2nd off the ship!!! I think my family would love that to :)
Well I have realized in the past couple of days how fast this trip has come and gone. As of today we only have 10 days left. It feels like I just got on the ship a week ago and we were headed to Spain. This trip has changed my life in so many ways. I am grateful to my parents and my friends who have supported me through this time. It really does show who cares about you!! One more day and we are in Guatemala!! I am a little nervous because there have been travel advisories all over the country. I am not going to the really bad cities so I am sure I will be safe.
Love
Michelle
Today was the first day that I had absolutely nothing to do and was able to sleep in. Because I am so drained I slept in until 1pm and then went outside to lay out. It was really crowded out because the sun was shinning and it was hot out. Its about 80 degrees out and the wind was blowing. Today has been the most I have spent outside since Hawaii. Breathing in the fresh air made my mood a lot better.
I am starting to get sick :( A cold is going around on the ship which means of course I am going to get it. It hasn’t been bad but it just drains me. I think getting a lot of sleep last night really helped. The water is really smooth and royal blue today. Its very pretty. Ever since Hawaii the ship has been doing a drive to raise money for students who can not afford SAS. The first sea to get 100% is able to be 2nd off the ship in Ft. Lauderdale. I am happy to say the my sea, The Red Sea, is in first place and only needs 4 more people to donate. I really hope those 4 people hurry up because I would love to be 2nd off the ship!!! I think my family would love that to :)
Well I have realized in the past couple of days how fast this trip has come and gone. As of today we only have 10 days left. It feels like I just got on the ship a week ago and we were headed to Spain. This trip has changed my life in so many ways. I am grateful to my parents and my friends who have supported me through this time. It really does show who cares about you!! One more day and we are in Guatemala!! I am a little nervous because there have been travel advisories all over the country. I am not going to the really bad cities so I am sure I will be safe.
Love
Michelle
4 Hour Nap!
Journal #51 April 21, 2009
I have made it through the day with only taking one 4 hour nap!!! I am actually very proud of myself. :) hahaha It is still a little rough out and the sun has not come out yet, but it is warm out. Today I was on pre-school duty. I got to play with the younger kids on the ship. I played a lot with a boy named Barrett. We played soccer and he took most of my spider man stickers. We had a lot of fun together. I have a lot of class work due in the next five days and I am getting a little stressed about it, but I know I can get through it.
Love
Michelle
I have made it through the day with only taking one 4 hour nap!!! I am actually very proud of myself. :) hahaha It is still a little rough out and the sun has not come out yet, but it is warm out. Today I was on pre-school duty. I got to play with the younger kids on the ship. I played a lot with a boy named Barrett. We played soccer and he took most of my spider man stickers. We had a lot of fun together. I have a lot of class work due in the next five days and I am getting a little stressed about it, but I know I can get through it.
Love
Michelle
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Sick at Sea
Journal #50 April 20, 2009
Well the seas are pretty rough again and I have been pretty sick :( I have not been sea sick though. Sadly I have slept 19 hours in the past day. My body is aching really bad and it seems that I am unable to get out of bed. I do not know if it is over exhaustion or if I am really sick. I did notice that it is not pretty out so at least I am not missing out on the sun. Well I am tired so I am going to go to bed
Love
Michelle
Well the seas are pretty rough again and I have been pretty sick :( I have not been sea sick though. Sadly I have slept 19 hours in the past day. My body is aching really bad and it seems that I am unable to get out of bed. I do not know if it is over exhaustion or if I am really sick. I did notice that it is not pretty out so at least I am not missing out on the sun. Well I am tired so I am going to go to bed
Love
Michelle
Prime UV Ray Time
Journal #49 April 20, 2009
I was woken up by my phone again this morning. This time is was a text from my boyfriend. I was extremely tired and when I looked at the clock saying 7am I knew I need more sleep. I laid in bed for a while and could not fall back to sleep. So I got up and decided to make some phone calls and get some breakfast.
When I got to breakfast it wasn’t being served, weird. I looked at my phone and it said 11am. My goodness how many times is my alarm not going to go off :( I ran back to the room and woke Meghan up because we were missing out precious UV ray time. We got ready and headed to Waikiki beach with our friends Nicole and Heather. We first stopped and got some lunch at Cheesecake Factory, again. It was even better this time. We then walked to the beach and found a spot to sit and relax. I bought a floatie to lie on in the water, and everyone else just swam. Nicole got a surf lesson and Heather did some shopping.
After a while of laying out me and Meghan went to some markets across the street. I had been to the markets before but I got a couple shirts and hats. We also got some dinner. Meghan got Mexican and I got Greek. My gyro was very yummy. Then we back to the beach to meet the girls and go back to the ship. We took the bus and on the way I talked to two girls from Sweden and Norway. They had been backpacking for 4 months and were on their way to Guatemala. I was intrigued with them and asked them so many questions. Some day I want to do that with my friends.
When we got back to the ship I had mixed emotions, I really wanted to stay, but I also wanted to get to Guatemala. It seems like an awesome place. I got back on the ship and called some people to say goodbye because the next time I can call is in Ft. Lauderdale. I had a lot of fun in Hawaii I just wish I did not hold some of my friends back from doing more touristy stuff. Well we have 7 days at sea and some of those days we have exams so I am going to be a busy girl. I better get studying.
Love
Michelle
I was woken up by my phone again this morning. This time is was a text from my boyfriend. I was extremely tired and when I looked at the clock saying 7am I knew I need more sleep. I laid in bed for a while and could not fall back to sleep. So I got up and decided to make some phone calls and get some breakfast.
When I got to breakfast it wasn’t being served, weird. I looked at my phone and it said 11am. My goodness how many times is my alarm not going to go off :( I ran back to the room and woke Meghan up because we were missing out precious UV ray time. We got ready and headed to Waikiki beach with our friends Nicole and Heather. We first stopped and got some lunch at Cheesecake Factory, again. It was even better this time. We then walked to the beach and found a spot to sit and relax. I bought a floatie to lie on in the water, and everyone else just swam. Nicole got a surf lesson and Heather did some shopping.
After a while of laying out me and Meghan went to some markets across the street. I had been to the markets before but I got a couple shirts and hats. We also got some dinner. Meghan got Mexican and I got Greek. My gyro was very yummy. Then we back to the beach to meet the girls and go back to the ship. We took the bus and on the way I talked to two girls from Sweden and Norway. They had been backpacking for 4 months and were on their way to Guatemala. I was intrigued with them and asked them so many questions. Some day I want to do that with my friends.
When we got back to the ship I had mixed emotions, I really wanted to stay, but I also wanted to get to Guatemala. It seems like an awesome place. I got back on the ship and called some people to say goodbye because the next time I can call is in Ft. Lauderdale. I had a lot of fun in Hawaii I just wish I did not hold some of my friends back from doing more touristy stuff. Well we have 7 days at sea and some of those days we have exams so I am going to be a busy girl. I better get studying.
Love
Michelle
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Bonding with the Roommate in Hawaii
Journal #48 April 19, 2009
Today I was woken up at around 5:30am by LISA CALLING MY CELL PHONE!!!! I could not believe that my phone was actually working. You can not believe what it feels like to not use your phone for 3 months and then you can finally use it!!! It is an amazing feeling. Now I must tell you that at around 9pm last night I found out that I did have service in the middle of the ocean, I called Blake but did not have really good reception so I called Brian and talked to him for about 30 min. I talked to my mom and dad for about an hour too!!! It was great to talk to all my loved ones.
The immigrations process was a little tedious in Hawaii, I guess they did not want any illegal immigrants from the ship to escape in Hawaii, haha. But I finally got off the ship at around 10. All of my friends had decided to go to Pearl Harbor and since I have been there twice I decided not to go. So for the first three hours I walked around the port and did a little shopping. The port was definitely the nicest port we had been too. There was a big mall right beside it with some restaurants. Meghan got back first and we got lunch on the ship, it was grilled cheese day :) We did not feel like waiting for the other people so we took the bus to a mall near by to get some groceries. It was great to get some good food and we even looked around the gigantic mall. There was one stand where they sold tee shirts that light up when you talk. It was really cool, and I almost bought one. But I didn’t :(
when we left the mall we headed back to the ship to get ready for dinner. We were not quite sure where we were going but we wanted a good restaurant by the ocean. So we headed towards Waikiki. The first place we saw was Cheesecake Factory. YUMMY!!! I am not gonna lie I was craving my all time favorite salad there. But we walked around and found Dukes which is a popular dinning area. Unfortunately, there was an hour wait so we went back to cheesecake. We shared an appetizer and had some wine. This dinner was a lot of fun because Meghan and I really got to know each other. We had some serious conversations and some funny ones. We even did a little crying, we could not grasp the concept that in 3 weeks we would probably never see each other ever again.
After about 3 hours at Cheesecake we headed to Senor Frogs because a lot of our friends were going to be there. When we walked in the place it was completely dead. There were probably about 3 people in there, we turned right around and headed out. The bouncer stopped us and asked us if we were trying to have some fun. We told him yes and he said to go to Zanzabar. It was only about a block away so we headed there. Now this place was hoppin. It was a lot of fun to hang out with some Hawaiians and we even saw some of our friends there. It was my mission for the night to hook Meghan up with a guy that night. So right when we got there I started my mission. I started talking to the guy beside us and he seemed really nice. He told me he was from Houston and I knew it was fate, because Meghan is from Houston too. I introduced them and they talked for a while. When she asked him to dance he said “honey, I really want to, but my wife is sitting beside me, sorry” Woopsies, my bad. At around 2 we headed back to the ship and got ready for bed. It was a really fun night with Meghan and we were pooped. We had to be rested for our fun filled day on the beach tomorrow.
Love
Michelle
Today I was woken up at around 5:30am by LISA CALLING MY CELL PHONE!!!! I could not believe that my phone was actually working. You can not believe what it feels like to not use your phone for 3 months and then you can finally use it!!! It is an amazing feeling. Now I must tell you that at around 9pm last night I found out that I did have service in the middle of the ocean, I called Blake but did not have really good reception so I called Brian and talked to him for about 30 min. I talked to my mom and dad for about an hour too!!! It was great to talk to all my loved ones.
The immigrations process was a little tedious in Hawaii, I guess they did not want any illegal immigrants from the ship to escape in Hawaii, haha. But I finally got off the ship at around 10. All of my friends had decided to go to Pearl Harbor and since I have been there twice I decided not to go. So for the first three hours I walked around the port and did a little shopping. The port was definitely the nicest port we had been too. There was a big mall right beside it with some restaurants. Meghan got back first and we got lunch on the ship, it was grilled cheese day :) We did not feel like waiting for the other people so we took the bus to a mall near by to get some groceries. It was great to get some good food and we even looked around the gigantic mall. There was one stand where they sold tee shirts that light up when you talk. It was really cool, and I almost bought one. But I didn’t :(
when we left the mall we headed back to the ship to get ready for dinner. We were not quite sure where we were going but we wanted a good restaurant by the ocean. So we headed towards Waikiki. The first place we saw was Cheesecake Factory. YUMMY!!! I am not gonna lie I was craving my all time favorite salad there. But we walked around and found Dukes which is a popular dinning area. Unfortunately, there was an hour wait so we went back to cheesecake. We shared an appetizer and had some wine. This dinner was a lot of fun because Meghan and I really got to know each other. We had some serious conversations and some funny ones. We even did a little crying, we could not grasp the concept that in 3 weeks we would probably never see each other ever again.
After about 3 hours at Cheesecake we headed to Senor Frogs because a lot of our friends were going to be there. When we walked in the place it was completely dead. There were probably about 3 people in there, we turned right around and headed out. The bouncer stopped us and asked us if we were trying to have some fun. We told him yes and he said to go to Zanzabar. It was only about a block away so we headed there. Now this place was hoppin. It was a lot of fun to hang out with some Hawaiians and we even saw some of our friends there. It was my mission for the night to hook Meghan up with a guy that night. So right when we got there I started my mission. I started talking to the guy beside us and he seemed really nice. He told me he was from Houston and I knew it was fate, because Meghan is from Houston too. I introduced them and they talked for a while. When she asked him to dance he said “honey, I really want to, but my wife is sitting beside me, sorry” Woopsies, my bad. At around 2 we headed back to the ship and got ready for bed. It was a really fun night with Meghan and we were pooped. We had to be rested for our fun filled day on the beach tomorrow.
Love
Michelle
Sea Life
Journal #47 April 18, 2009
I can not believe how fast these 9 days have gone. I feel like I have only just been on the ship for 2 days. My exam went pretty well, as well as it could have gone, and my speech went great. I got a B on!! The water has calmed down a lot and the sun has been out the past couple of days. Tomorrow we get to Hawaii!!!! This is going to be my 3rd time to Oahu. The first time with my Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave and then the 2nd with my parents, brother and sisters. I knew that I did not want to do a lot of touristy stuff, but most of my friends had never been there before. So we were torn. I am just glad that the weather is looking great and that the sun is shinning!!!
Love
Michelle
I can not believe how fast these 9 days have gone. I feel like I have only just been on the ship for 2 days. My exam went pretty well, as well as it could have gone, and my speech went great. I got a B on!! The water has calmed down a lot and the sun has been out the past couple of days. Tomorrow we get to Hawaii!!!! This is going to be my 3rd time to Oahu. The first time with my Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave and then the 2nd with my parents, brother and sisters. I knew that I did not want to do a lot of touristy stuff, but most of my friends had never been there before. So we were torn. I am just glad that the weather is looking great and that the sun is shinning!!!
Love
Michelle
Jouney in the Sea
Journal #46 April 11, 2009
Well, today is our first full day of our 9 day journey from Japan to Hawaii. It is very rough out but thank goodness I am not sea sick. I can not wait until it gets sunny out so I can lay out and get some sun. I am a little tired of the cold weather. It also has been raining so I have not stepped outside all day, weird. These next nine days are going to go by really slow :( I am not looking forward to them. I do not really have a lot of stuff due for my classes so that is good. I have an exam in 3 days and a speech due on the 17th. I hope they both go well. I better get some rest. In the next 20 days we lose 11 hours. So that is going to be pretty rough. I hope I do not get sick.
Love
Michelle
Well, today is our first full day of our 9 day journey from Japan to Hawaii. It is very rough out but thank goodness I am not sea sick. I can not wait until it gets sunny out so I can lay out and get some sun. I am a little tired of the cold weather. It also has been raining so I have not stepped outside all day, weird. These next nine days are going to go by really slow :( I am not looking forward to them. I do not really have a lot of stuff due for my classes so that is good. I have an exam in 3 days and a speech due on the 17th. I hope they both go well. I better get some rest. In the next 20 days we lose 11 hours. So that is going to be pretty rough. I hope I do not get sick.
Love
Michelle
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Big Buddha's
Journal #45 April 10, 2009
Today is my last day in Japan :( I have had such an amazing time and can not believe how fast my time has come and gone. Chikae and her mom made me some breakfast and I got ready to explore around Yokohama. Chikae’s mom was going to take us around in her car. I said goodbye to her sisters, her dad and brother were already at work, and we headed out. Today we were going to do some site seeing in the oldest capital of Japan. It took about an hour drive and when we got there the city was absolutely adorable. The cherry blossoms were lined in the middle of the street and shops were on either side. The streets were filled with locals and tourists.
We first went to a temple which had an extremely big Buddha. You could actually go inside of the Buddha so that was really cool. There were small gardens around the Buddha which we walked around and got to see traditional Japanese plants. When we left there we went to another temple which was huge. I was really glad we went to this one because there was a traditional Japanese wedding going on. The bride, groom, and about 10 family members were in a covered building. It was interesting because the tourists were swarming the place taking pictures. It did not seem very romantic but the bride was gorgeous and they looked like they were enjoying themselves. The temple was very pretty too, there was a lake on the side that was covered in Cherry Blossom petals. It was the most gorgeous scene I had ever seen.
When we left the temple Chikae and her mom took me to lunch. They ordered for me and I got eel, with sashimi, rice, and soup. It was very good. My favorite was probably the eel. When we left we walked around for a while and went into a couple shops. It was getting closer to when my ship was leaving so we got in the car and headed to a bamboo forest. This place was awesome. The bamboo was hundred of feet high and very pretty. I had never seen anything like it in my life. I really wanted to see a panda in there :)
When we left we rushed to a 100 yen shop, its like the dollar tree, and got some last minute shopping in. I only had about 15 min in there because we were running late and I did not want to miss the boat. As we drove to the ship I started to get really sad. I did not want to leave Japan at all. I was really considering missing the boat and having spend a couple more days in Japan and fly to Hawaii, but my parents would kill me :) I have such an amazing time in Japan the people are amazingly nice, they try to help you out at much as possible. Next time you see a foreigner in the US try and help them, its really nice to have someone who knows the language and country to help you. I am so grateful that I got to see Chikae and her family. They made Japan my favorite port so far!!!!
Love
Michelle
Today is my last day in Japan :( I have had such an amazing time and can not believe how fast my time has come and gone. Chikae and her mom made me some breakfast and I got ready to explore around Yokohama. Chikae’s mom was going to take us around in her car. I said goodbye to her sisters, her dad and brother were already at work, and we headed out. Today we were going to do some site seeing in the oldest capital of Japan. It took about an hour drive and when we got there the city was absolutely adorable. The cherry blossoms were lined in the middle of the street and shops were on either side. The streets were filled with locals and tourists.
We first went to a temple which had an extremely big Buddha. You could actually go inside of the Buddha so that was really cool. There were small gardens around the Buddha which we walked around and got to see traditional Japanese plants. When we left there we went to another temple which was huge. I was really glad we went to this one because there was a traditional Japanese wedding going on. The bride, groom, and about 10 family members were in a covered building. It was interesting because the tourists were swarming the place taking pictures. It did not seem very romantic but the bride was gorgeous and they looked like they were enjoying themselves. The temple was very pretty too, there was a lake on the side that was covered in Cherry Blossom petals. It was the most gorgeous scene I had ever seen.
When we left the temple Chikae and her mom took me to lunch. They ordered for me and I got eel, with sashimi, rice, and soup. It was very good. My favorite was probably the eel. When we left we walked around for a while and went into a couple shops. It was getting closer to when my ship was leaving so we got in the car and headed to a bamboo forest. This place was awesome. The bamboo was hundred of feet high and very pretty. I had never seen anything like it in my life. I really wanted to see a panda in there :)
When we left we rushed to a 100 yen shop, its like the dollar tree, and got some last minute shopping in. I only had about 15 min in there because we were running late and I did not want to miss the boat. As we drove to the ship I started to get really sad. I did not want to leave Japan at all. I was really considering missing the boat and having spend a couple more days in Japan and fly to Hawaii, but my parents would kill me :) I have such an amazing time in Japan the people are amazingly nice, they try to help you out at much as possible. Next time you see a foreigner in the US try and help them, its really nice to have someone who knows the language and country to help you. I am so grateful that I got to see Chikae and her family. They made Japan my favorite port so far!!!!
Love
Michelle
"Let's go Giants!"
Journal #44 April 9, 2009
Today Chikae, Sarah, and I slept in till about 11 packed and got ready to check out of the hotel. We walked to this place that was like the boardwalk in Tokyo. It was very pretty and along the water there was a miniature statue of liberty. It was quite comical. We went to dinner at a restaurant that had a balcony. It was absolutely gorgeous out. We did not do much site seeing today because we were headed to Yokohama to go to a baseball game.
So after lunch we headed to the train station to get to Yokohama. The train ride took about an hour because we had to switch several trains. When we got to Yokohama it was not really what I expected. I expected a small little city right along the water. But it was a huge city. There were sky scrappers everywhere and the buildings were gorgeous. We walked around for a while and then it was time to meet Chikae’s boyfriend. He was going to be coming to the baseball game with us because his favorite team is the Giants and they were playing the Yokohama Baystars. Chikae and her boyfriend had been dating for two years and this was the first time that he was going to be meeting her best friend Sarah. I was really surprised that they had not met yet but she told me in Japan it is a big thing for your boyfriend to meet your family and friends. She was very excited to see him. When we first saw him she ran to him with a great big smile. It was really cute. He was very cute too. She has done very good!!
We walked around for a little while got some starbucks and headed to the game. We were sitting with the crazy fans cheering for the Giants. I was happy to be sitting there because it really got me into the spirit of cheering for them. Chikae’s boyfriend bought me a Giants tee shirt, and towel, and some noise makers. I really felt like a true Giants fan. Before the game even started the fans were already chanting. There were drill masters about over 3 sections of the stands telling which cheer the fans should sing. It was awesome. Everyone participated and we were soo loud. There was only one song in English and it was “Lets go Giants.” This was a highlight of my day. I love going to sports events and these people were so into the game it was exhilarating.
When the Giants won the game we left to go to Chikae’s parent’s house. Her mom was making us dinner. We got to the house around 9:30. She introduced me to her family and they were so nice. I met her dad, mom, sister, and brother. Her house was really big too and gorgeous. It was a lot different from American style homes but it was still pretty. Her dad reminded me of a Hawaiian surfer and her mom was so cute and nice. The food that she cooked us was amazing. There was a pot that was cooked in front of us with meat, mushrooms, lettuce, and much more in it. We cracked an egg in a bowl and then dipped the food into it. It was soooo good. When we were finished with dinner we did some karaoke, which Chikae was really good at, and then got ready for bed. They had a Japanese style room that we slept in. The beds were on the floor but it was the most comfortable bed I had ever slept in. The comforter was really big and soft. I slept really good that night.
Love
Michelle
Today Chikae, Sarah, and I slept in till about 11 packed and got ready to check out of the hotel. We walked to this place that was like the boardwalk in Tokyo. It was very pretty and along the water there was a miniature statue of liberty. It was quite comical. We went to dinner at a restaurant that had a balcony. It was absolutely gorgeous out. We did not do much site seeing today because we were headed to Yokohama to go to a baseball game.
So after lunch we headed to the train station to get to Yokohama. The train ride took about an hour because we had to switch several trains. When we got to Yokohama it was not really what I expected. I expected a small little city right along the water. But it was a huge city. There were sky scrappers everywhere and the buildings were gorgeous. We walked around for a while and then it was time to meet Chikae’s boyfriend. He was going to be coming to the baseball game with us because his favorite team is the Giants and they were playing the Yokohama Baystars. Chikae and her boyfriend had been dating for two years and this was the first time that he was going to be meeting her best friend Sarah. I was really surprised that they had not met yet but she told me in Japan it is a big thing for your boyfriend to meet your family and friends. She was very excited to see him. When we first saw him she ran to him with a great big smile. It was really cute. He was very cute too. She has done very good!!
We walked around for a little while got some starbucks and headed to the game. We were sitting with the crazy fans cheering for the Giants. I was happy to be sitting there because it really got me into the spirit of cheering for them. Chikae’s boyfriend bought me a Giants tee shirt, and towel, and some noise makers. I really felt like a true Giants fan. Before the game even started the fans were already chanting. There were drill masters about over 3 sections of the stands telling which cheer the fans should sing. It was awesome. Everyone participated and we were soo loud. There was only one song in English and it was “Lets go Giants.” This was a highlight of my day. I love going to sports events and these people were so into the game it was exhilarating.
When the Giants won the game we left to go to Chikae’s parent’s house. Her mom was making us dinner. We got to the house around 9:30. She introduced me to her family and they were so nice. I met her dad, mom, sister, and brother. Her house was really big too and gorgeous. It was a lot different from American style homes but it was still pretty. Her dad reminded me of a Hawaiian surfer and her mom was so cute and nice. The food that she cooked us was amazing. There was a pot that was cooked in front of us with meat, mushrooms, lettuce, and much more in it. We cracked an egg in a bowl and then dipped the food into it. It was soooo good. When we were finished with dinner we did some karaoke, which Chikae was really good at, and then got ready for bed. They had a Japanese style room that we slept in. The beds were on the floor but it was the most comfortable bed I had ever slept in. The comforter was really big and soft. I slept really good that night.
Love
Michelle
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Friends in Japan!
Journal #43 April 8, 2009
Today was the day that I had been waiting for the entire time in Japan. We were leaving Kyoto and heading to Tokyo. I was really excited because I was going to be meeting up with Chikae. Chikae was an exchange student from Japan who lived with my family when I was 9 years old. She came and visited us again about 5 years ago. So I had not seen her for a very long time.
We took the Bullet train to get to Tokyo and it took us about 3 hours. On the way we were able to see Mt. Fuji. The view was absolutely stunning and it looked so big. I had always seen the painting in pictures but seeing it in real life was fascinating. It was a little difficult trying to find Chikae in the train station. It took us about 20 min. and we had to find a guy that worked there to help us. It was funny because he kept using his cell phone to call her. When we finally saw each other it was amazing how different she looked. She looked soo pretty and spoke very good English. I said goodbye to my friends and Chikae and I met up with one of her friends to do some site seeing. We went to another temple and Chikae told me all the reasons as to why that religion does certain stuff. She told me why they cover themselves in the smell of incense, why they throw money in a box, clap three times, and say a prayer. It was really interesting.
When we left the temple we went to a café and got a Japanese snack. It was red bean ice cream with fruit and jello in it. It was actually pretty good. While we were there she taught me a lot of words that I would need to know in the next few days. When we left the café we went to a street that is called Scramble Street. If you saw the street you would know why. At this one intersection there are 5 streets that combine into one. At one point all of the cars are stopped and people come from every direction to cross the street. They make several x’s and I could not believe how people did not bump into each other. This corner reminded me a lot of Times Square. The buildings had TV’s on them and people were everywhere.
When we got to the other side safely we went to a shopping mall called 100. This shopping mall was 7 stories tall and only had shops for girls. I was in heaven. We stayed there for about 2 hours and I got a couple of cute clothes and shoes. After we were done shopping we were heading to dinner with some of Chikae’’s friends. The restaurant was right across the street from the mall so we did not have to travel very far. I was really surprised at how nice the restaurant was. We had to take off our shoes before entering and we had our own separate room for dinner. The seats were very low to the ground. When all of her friends got there I was happy to know that I knew one of them. Sarah had come with Chikae about 5 years ago when she came and visited us. It was exciting to see her again.
For dinner we ordered a bunch of appetizers, which were amazing, and just talked and enjoyed ourselves. Her friends were very nice and spoke very good English. One of the guys, Tay, owns is own internet company. The other guy, Go, works with Chikae at her dads office. Tay was very entertaining because he taught me some card tricks and tried to teach me how to b-box. It was very interesting. We stayed there for about 4 hours and just had fun. By the time we left it was 1am and we were all exhausted. They guys brought us to our hotel and we crashed.
Love
Michelle
Today was the day that I had been waiting for the entire time in Japan. We were leaving Kyoto and heading to Tokyo. I was really excited because I was going to be meeting up with Chikae. Chikae was an exchange student from Japan who lived with my family when I was 9 years old. She came and visited us again about 5 years ago. So I had not seen her for a very long time.
We took the Bullet train to get to Tokyo and it took us about 3 hours. On the way we were able to see Mt. Fuji. The view was absolutely stunning and it looked so big. I had always seen the painting in pictures but seeing it in real life was fascinating. It was a little difficult trying to find Chikae in the train station. It took us about 20 min. and we had to find a guy that worked there to help us. It was funny because he kept using his cell phone to call her. When we finally saw each other it was amazing how different she looked. She looked soo pretty and spoke very good English. I said goodbye to my friends and Chikae and I met up with one of her friends to do some site seeing. We went to another temple and Chikae told me all the reasons as to why that religion does certain stuff. She told me why they cover themselves in the smell of incense, why they throw money in a box, clap three times, and say a prayer. It was really interesting.
When we left the temple we went to a café and got a Japanese snack. It was red bean ice cream with fruit and jello in it. It was actually pretty good. While we were there she taught me a lot of words that I would need to know in the next few days. When we left the café we went to a street that is called Scramble Street. If you saw the street you would know why. At this one intersection there are 5 streets that combine into one. At one point all of the cars are stopped and people come from every direction to cross the street. They make several x’s and I could not believe how people did not bump into each other. This corner reminded me a lot of Times Square. The buildings had TV’s on them and people were everywhere.
When we got to the other side safely we went to a shopping mall called 100. This shopping mall was 7 stories tall and only had shops for girls. I was in heaven. We stayed there for about 2 hours and I got a couple of cute clothes and shoes. After we were done shopping we were heading to dinner with some of Chikae’’s friends. The restaurant was right across the street from the mall so we did not have to travel very far. I was really surprised at how nice the restaurant was. We had to take off our shoes before entering and we had our own separate room for dinner. The seats were very low to the ground. When all of her friends got there I was happy to know that I knew one of them. Sarah had come with Chikae about 5 years ago when she came and visited us. It was exciting to see her again.
For dinner we ordered a bunch of appetizers, which were amazing, and just talked and enjoyed ourselves. Her friends were very nice and spoke very good English. One of the guys, Tay, owns is own internet company. The other guy, Go, works with Chikae at her dads office. Tay was very entertaining because he taught me some card tricks and tried to teach me how to b-box. It was very interesting. We stayed there for about 4 hours and just had fun. By the time we left it was 1am and we were all exhausted. They guys brought us to our hotel and we crashed.
Love
Michelle
Monday, April 20, 2009
SUSHI
Journal # 42 April 7, 2009
I woke up early got ready, packed, went to breakfast, and headed to Kyoto with Kathleen and Cole. We were planning on meeting about 7 of our other friends later that day. We had no trouble finding our way to the train stations because Cole is very good at traveling and finding our way around places. We took a rapid train today so it was not as quick as a bullet train and we had to stand for a little while. It was hard because I had my book bag, purse, and rolling suitcase. I packed way to much stuff :)
The train ride only took about 45 min. and when we got there we headed to the hotel to drop our stuff off. We realized that our hotel was connected to the subway station so it was very convenient. The hotel we were staying at was absolutely gorgeous. It cost us about $600 for two rooms but we were splitting it between 12 people. Our group had 3 girls and 9 guys.
After changing into some cooler clothes, it was about 65, we headed to get some lunch. We went to a sushi bar that had a conveyer belt taking the sushi around!!! It was really cool. Each plate of sushi was only $1!!! It was the best sushi I had ever had.
When we left we went to some temples to see all the gorgeous cherry blossoms and learn some more about their culture. I was really surprised how many tourists were in the temples. The prettiest temple we went to was a Buddhist temple which was about a mile long. They have several different buildings that you could walk through. You could see where the monks taught other man how to become monks. I was able to see some of the monks do some of their rituals.
When we left the temple we walked around Kyoto for a while and just enjoyed the scenery. It was hard to go into some of the shops because Japan is so expensive and they sell some many cute things you just have to buy them. But I was very good and did not buy anything. When we went back to the hotel we checked in and relaxed and took naps. At around 7 we headed to dinner. We walked along the streets for a while and found a restaurant that served a variety of Japanese foods. The food again was awesome. I got soup, tempura, and sushi. As you can tell I LOVE SUSHI!!!
It was quite hard to communicate with the waiter so some of the stuff we got, we had no clue what it was. We were at dinner for about 3 hours so we headed back to the hotel to get some rest. I bet you are wondering how we worked out the sleeping arrangements. Well the three girls and one of the girl’s boyfriends shared a room and the other 8 boys all shared a room!!! It was funny because they pushed the beds together and all slept on one big bed, hahaha. I must tell you that they were not sober so it makes it sound a little better :)
Love
Michelle
I woke up early got ready, packed, went to breakfast, and headed to Kyoto with Kathleen and Cole. We were planning on meeting about 7 of our other friends later that day. We had no trouble finding our way to the train stations because Cole is very good at traveling and finding our way around places. We took a rapid train today so it was not as quick as a bullet train and we had to stand for a little while. It was hard because I had my book bag, purse, and rolling suitcase. I packed way to much stuff :)
The train ride only took about 45 min. and when we got there we headed to the hotel to drop our stuff off. We realized that our hotel was connected to the subway station so it was very convenient. The hotel we were staying at was absolutely gorgeous. It cost us about $600 for two rooms but we were splitting it between 12 people. Our group had 3 girls and 9 guys.
After changing into some cooler clothes, it was about 65, we headed to get some lunch. We went to a sushi bar that had a conveyer belt taking the sushi around!!! It was really cool. Each plate of sushi was only $1!!! It was the best sushi I had ever had.
When we left we went to some temples to see all the gorgeous cherry blossoms and learn some more about their culture. I was really surprised how many tourists were in the temples. The prettiest temple we went to was a Buddhist temple which was about a mile long. They have several different buildings that you could walk through. You could see where the monks taught other man how to become monks. I was able to see some of the monks do some of their rituals.
When we left the temple we walked around Kyoto for a while and just enjoyed the scenery. It was hard to go into some of the shops because Japan is so expensive and they sell some many cute things you just have to buy them. But I was very good and did not buy anything. When we went back to the hotel we checked in and relaxed and took naps. At around 7 we headed to dinner. We walked along the streets for a while and found a restaurant that served a variety of Japanese foods. The food again was awesome. I got soup, tempura, and sushi. As you can tell I LOVE SUSHI!!!
It was quite hard to communicate with the waiter so some of the stuff we got, we had no clue what it was. We were at dinner for about 3 hours so we headed back to the hotel to get some rest. I bet you are wondering how we worked out the sleeping arrangements. Well the three girls and one of the girl’s boyfriends shared a room and the other 8 boys all shared a room!!! It was funny because they pushed the beds together and all slept on one big bed, hahaha. I must tell you that they were not sober so it makes it sound a little better :)
Love
Michelle
A-bombs in Japan!
Journal #41 April 6, 2009
yeahhhH!!!! We have finally made it to Japan. This was the #1 port on my list. Well I only have 5 days in Japan so my schedule is extremely busy. Getting off the ship was pretty hard. The Japanese customs are very particular and demand a finger print and a picture of every single person on the ship. So I was prepared to be on the ship for a long time. We got to Japan around 8 and I did not get off the ship until around 11:30.
Me and my friends had planned to go to Hiroshima the first day. It was about a 2 hour train ride. But before we got on the train we had to turn in our rail pass receipt to get our rail pass tickets. The Japan Rail Pass is a pass that allows you to take at the trains from one company for free. It took us about another 2 hours to wait in line and get the pass. So finally my friends and I got the pass and headed to the train. We had to take 2 subways to get to the main train station. I can not believe how these train operated. They were right on time and when people got on and off the train they were so organized and moved so fast. Its like they practiced all the time to master getting on and off the trains.
When we got the main station we had time to grab some lunch to take on the train with us. I got some sushi which was amazing. So when we got on the train I realized that it was a bullet train. These trains run up to 180mph and are extremely smooth. I was amazed at how cool the bullet train was. I sat beside a Japanese man who talked English very well. We talked about things to do in Japan and he taught me some Japanese phrases. He was very nice.
When we got to Hiroshima we took a bus and got to the A-bomb museum in about 5 min. This area was where the first Atomic Bomb was dropped. The US dropped the bomb during WWII. I was a little nervous to go to this museum because I did not know how the Japanese people would react to Americans being there. I was quite surprised by the museum, I thought it would be very biased but it explained why the Americans did it, how we helped them, and many other explanations. We were able to see graphic photos of people who were affected by the bomb. I was very impressed with the museum. I did not know much about why we dropped the A-Bomb and now a lot of my questions are answered. When we left the museum we went to where the children’s museum was and the monument for the A-bomb. The monument was very pretty and well made.
We left Hiroshima and headed back the Kobe. We were planning on going to dinner to get some Kobe steak. We walked around the streets for a while but could not find a good restaurant. After about an hour of looking around we found a good place to eat on the 6th floor of a building. We looked at the menu and saw that it was a little overpriced but we were exhausted from walking around that we just decided to stay and eat there. We were the only ones in the place because it was about 10 at night. The restaurant was hibachi style. I chose the fillet. The cooks were so nice and they told us a lot about Japan. The food was amazing, the best so far on the trip. It was well worth the price. After stuffing our faces we left to get some sleep on the ship. We were headed to Kyoto tomorrow so we needed some sleep.
Love
Michelle
yeahhhH!!!! We have finally made it to Japan. This was the #1 port on my list. Well I only have 5 days in Japan so my schedule is extremely busy. Getting off the ship was pretty hard. The Japanese customs are very particular and demand a finger print and a picture of every single person on the ship. So I was prepared to be on the ship for a long time. We got to Japan around 8 and I did not get off the ship until around 11:30.
Me and my friends had planned to go to Hiroshima the first day. It was about a 2 hour train ride. But before we got on the train we had to turn in our rail pass receipt to get our rail pass tickets. The Japan Rail Pass is a pass that allows you to take at the trains from one company for free. It took us about another 2 hours to wait in line and get the pass. So finally my friends and I got the pass and headed to the train. We had to take 2 subways to get to the main train station. I can not believe how these train operated. They were right on time and when people got on and off the train they were so organized and moved so fast. Its like they practiced all the time to master getting on and off the trains.
When we got the main station we had time to grab some lunch to take on the train with us. I got some sushi which was amazing. So when we got on the train I realized that it was a bullet train. These trains run up to 180mph and are extremely smooth. I was amazed at how cool the bullet train was. I sat beside a Japanese man who talked English very well. We talked about things to do in Japan and he taught me some Japanese phrases. He was very nice.
When we got to Hiroshima we took a bus and got to the A-bomb museum in about 5 min. This area was where the first Atomic Bomb was dropped. The US dropped the bomb during WWII. I was a little nervous to go to this museum because I did not know how the Japanese people would react to Americans being there. I was quite surprised by the museum, I thought it would be very biased but it explained why the Americans did it, how we helped them, and many other explanations. We were able to see graphic photos of people who were affected by the bomb. I was very impressed with the museum. I did not know much about why we dropped the A-Bomb and now a lot of my questions are answered. When we left the museum we went to where the children’s museum was and the monument for the A-bomb. The monument was very pretty and well made.
We left Hiroshima and headed back the Kobe. We were planning on going to dinner to get some Kobe steak. We walked around the streets for a while but could not find a good restaurant. After about an hour of looking around we found a good place to eat on the 6th floor of a building. We looked at the menu and saw that it was a little overpriced but we were exhausted from walking around that we just decided to stay and eat there. We were the only ones in the place because it was about 10 at night. The restaurant was hibachi style. I chose the fillet. The cooks were so nice and they told us a lot about Japan. The food was amazing, the best so far on the trip. It was well worth the price. After stuffing our faces we left to get some sleep on the ship. We were headed to Kyoto tomorrow so we needed some sleep.
Love
Michelle
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Underground Markets
Journal # 40 April 3, 2009
Me and Meghan woke up early and headed out for our adventure in Shanghai. Neither of us had been here before so we were not really sure what we were going to do. We walked around for about an hour and she decided that she wanted to get a Japan Rail pass, I knew I did not want to wait for her while she got the pass cause it usually took about and hour, so we split up. I found some other SAS girls and we headed to the markets. The streets of Shanghai where just like any other city. Skyscrapers everywhere, convenient stores on every corner, and people walking on the sidewalks. The markets were underground and they were the coolest markets I had ever been to!! I would go into a shop that was about 6x6 and look at some purses and then they would open a secret door and I would go into a room that was usually 12x12 filled with all types of designer purses, wallets, best, sun glass, and so much more. I spent way too much money again, and bought a lot of cool stuff. When I left the markets I walked back to the ship. I had a speech to give the next day for one of my classes so I had to get working on it. Shanghai was a lot like I thought it would be like. Pretty much a big city filled with people :)
Love
Michelle
Me and Meghan woke up early and headed out for our adventure in Shanghai. Neither of us had been here before so we were not really sure what we were going to do. We walked around for about an hour and she decided that she wanted to get a Japan Rail pass, I knew I did not want to wait for her while she got the pass cause it usually took about and hour, so we split up. I found some other SAS girls and we headed to the markets. The streets of Shanghai where just like any other city. Skyscrapers everywhere, convenient stores on every corner, and people walking on the sidewalks. The markets were underground and they were the coolest markets I had ever been to!! I would go into a shop that was about 6x6 and look at some purses and then they would open a secret door and I would go into a room that was usually 12x12 filled with all types of designer purses, wallets, best, sun glass, and so much more. I spent way too much money again, and bought a lot of cool stuff. When I left the markets I walked back to the ship. I had a speech to give the next day for one of my classes so I had to get working on it. Shanghai was a lot like I thought it would be like. Pretty much a big city filled with people :)
Love
Michelle
Buddha's, Parks & More!
Journal #39 April 2, 2009
Well today was my last day in Beijing. We had our day packed with things to do. We were first heading to The Temple of Heaven. When we got there we had to walk through a park. This park was the coolest park I had even been to. The first thing I saw was a group of women all lined up twirling ribbon in the air. Right beside them were about 50 couple's ball room dancing to the music. Next to them were men doing Ti Chi. For about a mile we walked and got to see people enjoying their day. Most of these people were men and women who were around that age of 60. They were most likely retired and just enjoying their life. My favorite part was playing bad mitten with a Chinese man. Of course I did not do very well but it was still an experience.
When we got to the temple we only had about 10 min to walk around, which I did not really care about so I went back to the park and played around. I got a lot of good videos!!! After lunch we headed to another temple called The Lama Temple. I really enjoyed this temple because the biggest Buddha in the world was here. It was soooooooooooo big. I think our guide told us 28 meters high?? That was really fascinating.
After the temple we headed to a market and did some shopping. I again bought way too much, but got some really cute stuff. When we got to the air port I realized, 'how in the world am I going to get all this stuff home.' It took me about 20 min to stuff everything in my bags. The plane ride went well, it was the biggest air plane I had ever been on. I was row 74 and there was still a whole section behind me. When we arrived to the ship I saw the MV Explorer for the first time in Shanghai. The view was absolutely breath taking. The lights from the city were shining off the boat and our boat actually had lights on it too!!! I knew something was up because of this. And of course I was right, when we got the gang way we had to wait for an hour while over 100 high up Chinese people got off. They had a dinner for them on the ship trying to raise money. So we waited for an hour in the rain and cold with all of our luggage. Not very fun. I was so tired from the days events I crashed in my room. I had to get ready for my last day in China the next day.
Love
Michelle
Well today was my last day in Beijing. We had our day packed with things to do. We were first heading to The Temple of Heaven. When we got there we had to walk through a park. This park was the coolest park I had even been to. The first thing I saw was a group of women all lined up twirling ribbon in the air. Right beside them were about 50 couple's ball room dancing to the music. Next to them were men doing Ti Chi. For about a mile we walked and got to see people enjoying their day. Most of these people were men and women who were around that age of 60. They were most likely retired and just enjoying their life. My favorite part was playing bad mitten with a Chinese man. Of course I did not do very well but it was still an experience.
When we got to the temple we only had about 10 min to walk around, which I did not really care about so I went back to the park and played around. I got a lot of good videos!!! After lunch we headed to another temple called The Lama Temple. I really enjoyed this temple because the biggest Buddha in the world was here. It was soooooooooooo big. I think our guide told us 28 meters high?? That was really fascinating.
After the temple we headed to a market and did some shopping. I again bought way too much, but got some really cute stuff. When we got to the air port I realized, 'how in the world am I going to get all this stuff home.' It took me about 20 min to stuff everything in my bags. The plane ride went well, it was the biggest air plane I had ever been on. I was row 74 and there was still a whole section behind me. When we arrived to the ship I saw the MV Explorer for the first time in Shanghai. The view was absolutely breath taking. The lights from the city were shining off the boat and our boat actually had lights on it too!!! I knew something was up because of this. And of course I was right, when we got the gang way we had to wait for an hour while over 100 high up Chinese people got off. They had a dinner for them on the ship trying to raise money. So we waited for an hour in the rain and cold with all of our luggage. Not very fun. I was so tired from the days events I crashed in my room. I had to get ready for my last day in China the next day.
Love
Michelle
Sunday, April 12, 2009
China!
Journal #38 April 1, 2009
Today I woke up early and tried to find a phone card to call home. Unfortunately, I was not successful, it is very hard to communicate in Chinese because I know no Chinese and the Chinese don't know any English. I did go to a super market that was pretty cool though. People were lined up to get in at 8:30 in hopes of getting some fresh meat. There were probably well over 100 people in line.
When I headed back to the hotel I got on the bus and we headed to Tiananmen Square. This is where the entrance to the Forbidden City, many monuments, government buildings, and where the last ruler is persevered. The square was quite big and had a lot of tourists. After walking around for a while we headed to the entrance of the Forbidden City. They gave us headsets and we were on our own to tour the city. This is where the emperor lived during the summer. The palace was huge!!! I was not even close to going to each place because we only had an hour to get from one end to the other. When we all met at the end we realized that two girls were not with us. We waited for an hour for them and decided to leave. This made us late for lunch. But lunch was also very good, it was family style again with the lazy susan.
After lunch we went on a scenic cruise on the Beihai Lake. This lake was very pretty and our boat was shaped like a dragon. This boat took us to bar street. This street was so pretty and was surrounded by a lake. This is where all the partying goes on at night. There were probably around 100 bars. When we got to the end we were picked up by rickshaws and driven around the city. They took us in neighborhoods to see how people lived. We also were able to go into someone's house and got a tour of it. It was a huge square with around 5 different buildings in it. Each building served a different purpose, a kitchen, bedroom, eating room, and so on.
We then headed to the bell tower where we learned how to make Chinese tea and how to drink it. Sadly, we were not able to go to the top of the bell tower because waiting on the girls made us late :( We then headed to dinner which was family style again and then to an acrobatic show. The acrobatic show was amazing. I had never seen some of the stuff they did. Men jumping onto of each other around 15 women getting on one bike, and soooo much more. I have some great videos. After the acrobatic show I went to bed because I was exhausted.
Love
Michelle
Today I woke up early and tried to find a phone card to call home. Unfortunately, I was not successful, it is very hard to communicate in Chinese because I know no Chinese and the Chinese don't know any English. I did go to a super market that was pretty cool though. People were lined up to get in at 8:30 in hopes of getting some fresh meat. There were probably well over 100 people in line.
When I headed back to the hotel I got on the bus and we headed to Tiananmen Square. This is where the entrance to the Forbidden City, many monuments, government buildings, and where the last ruler is persevered. The square was quite big and had a lot of tourists. After walking around for a while we headed to the entrance of the Forbidden City. They gave us headsets and we were on our own to tour the city. This is where the emperor lived during the summer. The palace was huge!!! I was not even close to going to each place because we only had an hour to get from one end to the other. When we all met at the end we realized that two girls were not with us. We waited for an hour for them and decided to leave. This made us late for lunch. But lunch was also very good, it was family style again with the lazy susan.
After lunch we went on a scenic cruise on the Beihai Lake. This lake was very pretty and our boat was shaped like a dragon. This boat took us to bar street. This street was so pretty and was surrounded by a lake. This is where all the partying goes on at night. There were probably around 100 bars. When we got to the end we were picked up by rickshaws and driven around the city. They took us in neighborhoods to see how people lived. We also were able to go into someone's house and got a tour of it. It was a huge square with around 5 different buildings in it. Each building served a different purpose, a kitchen, bedroom, eating room, and so on.
We then headed to the bell tower where we learned how to make Chinese tea and how to drink it. Sadly, we were not able to go to the top of the bell tower because waiting on the girls made us late :( We then headed to dinner which was family style again and then to an acrobatic show. The acrobatic show was amazing. I had never seen some of the stuff they did. Men jumping onto of each other around 15 women getting on one bike, and soooo much more. I have some great videos. After the acrobatic show I went to bed because I was exhausted.
Love
Michelle
Missing a Flight in China!
Journal # 36 March 30, 2009
I was woken up by Meghan screaming "Michelle, its 7 o'clock you were supposed to leave at 5." I looked at my clock and said "not unh, I have 30 more min to sleep its only 4:00”" she looked at me again and said "no its 7." I jumped out of bed turned on the TV and saw that it really was 7 o'clock. My alarm clock had broken and I had missed my trip to Beijing.
I ran to the field office to explain what had happen they told me that I could leave with the group that was leaving at 7:15 and try to catch my flight that was leaving at 8:30 with my original group. I ran to my room packed, of course I had not packed yet, and got my passport. I ran to meet the group in the union. The airport was about 40 min away and I knew there was no way I was going to make my flight. I broke down at that moment and cried for about 2 hours straight. It was at that moment that I wanted my family and friends. This was the first time I had ever felt that way on this trip. I sat at the airport alone for about 2 hours waiting for the ticket counter to open. I wanted to call my family I wanted to be with them but I knew I couldn't.
When I started talking to the ticket people they told me that I might have to pay $500 to get a new ticket to Beijing. I was really upset. I could not stop crying. When it was time to buy my ticket I walked up to the counter and the guy handed me a ticket. They had traded my tickets and I did not have to pay any extra money. THANKGOODNES!!!!!
At that moment the day started to get so much better for me. I got on a flight with the other SAS group and when we got to Beijing a man from the travel agency met me and took me to meet up with my group. I really did not miss much of my trip that morning. All they had done was go to lunch after the airport. The man that picked me up was named Sam, he gave me his own personal tour of Beijing. I got to see the Birds Nest, where the opening ceremonies were for the Biejing Olympics. I got to see the place where the swimming competition were taken place, where Michael Phelps won all his medals. I got to see some temples and a lot of other stuff.
So at around 3 it was time to meet up with my group at the Forbidden City. This is where the king lived during the winter. When we got there Sam dropped me off at the place where the group would be ending their tour. He told me that they would be there in 20 min. So I walked around for a little while but not too far because I did not want to get lost. The city was absolutely gorgeous. The trees were so pretty and the buildings were amazing. There was a man sitting by the entrance playing a flute so I sat there for a while and just listened to him playing while taking in where I was and what had happened to me that day. I was so thankful that I was able to get to Beijing with not to many complications and was able to be in the same place as my group. It was at this moment where I realized how blessed I was to be here and how lucky I was. Its amazing how things work out for a reason.
So after sitting there for about an hour I was getting a little nervous. My group was supposed to meet me here 40 min ago. I thought maybe I was at the wrong entrance. Man what else could go wrong in one day. About 10 min later I saw my group, yeahhaa!!!. I was so happy to see them. We got on the bus and headed to the hotel. My roommate was a girl named Amy who I had never met before. She has actually already graduated from college but is taking organic chem. on the ship for med school. She was really nice.
For dinner we went to a restaurant that's specialty was pecking duck. It was a family styled restaurant that had a lazy susan in the middle and we all sheared the food. It was really good!!! After dinner we headed back to the hotel where I fell right to sleep because I was exhausted from all the events of the day. Tomorrow we are going to the Great Wall so I wanted to be well rested for that.
Love
Michelle
I was woken up by Meghan screaming "Michelle, its 7 o'clock you were supposed to leave at 5." I looked at my clock and said "not unh, I have 30 more min to sleep its only 4:00”" she looked at me again and said "no its 7." I jumped out of bed turned on the TV and saw that it really was 7 o'clock. My alarm clock had broken and I had missed my trip to Beijing.
I ran to the field office to explain what had happen they told me that I could leave with the group that was leaving at 7:15 and try to catch my flight that was leaving at 8:30 with my original group. I ran to my room packed, of course I had not packed yet, and got my passport. I ran to meet the group in the union. The airport was about 40 min away and I knew there was no way I was going to make my flight. I broke down at that moment and cried for about 2 hours straight. It was at that moment that I wanted my family and friends. This was the first time I had ever felt that way on this trip. I sat at the airport alone for about 2 hours waiting for the ticket counter to open. I wanted to call my family I wanted to be with them but I knew I couldn't.
When I started talking to the ticket people they told me that I might have to pay $500 to get a new ticket to Beijing. I was really upset. I could not stop crying. When it was time to buy my ticket I walked up to the counter and the guy handed me a ticket. They had traded my tickets and I did not have to pay any extra money. THANKGOODNES!!!!!
At that moment the day started to get so much better for me. I got on a flight with the other SAS group and when we got to Beijing a man from the travel agency met me and took me to meet up with my group. I really did not miss much of my trip that morning. All they had done was go to lunch after the airport. The man that picked me up was named Sam, he gave me his own personal tour of Beijing. I got to see the Birds Nest, where the opening ceremonies were for the Biejing Olympics. I got to see the place where the swimming competition were taken place, where Michael Phelps won all his medals. I got to see some temples and a lot of other stuff.
So at around 3 it was time to meet up with my group at the Forbidden City. This is where the king lived during the winter. When we got there Sam dropped me off at the place where the group would be ending their tour. He told me that they would be there in 20 min. So I walked around for a little while but not too far because I did not want to get lost. The city was absolutely gorgeous. The trees were so pretty and the buildings were amazing. There was a man sitting by the entrance playing a flute so I sat there for a while and just listened to him playing while taking in where I was and what had happened to me that day. I was so thankful that I was able to get to Beijing with not to many complications and was able to be in the same place as my group. It was at this moment where I realized how blessed I was to be here and how lucky I was. Its amazing how things work out for a reason.
So after sitting there for about an hour I was getting a little nervous. My group was supposed to meet me here 40 min ago. I thought maybe I was at the wrong entrance. Man what else could go wrong in one day. About 10 min later I saw my group, yeahhaa!!!. I was so happy to see them. We got on the bus and headed to the hotel. My roommate was a girl named Amy who I had never met before. She has actually already graduated from college but is taking organic chem. on the ship for med school. She was really nice.
For dinner we went to a restaurant that's specialty was pecking duck. It was a family styled restaurant that had a lazy susan in the middle and we all sheared the food. It was really good!!! After dinner we headed back to the hotel where I fell right to sleep because I was exhausted from all the events of the day. Tomorrow we are going to the Great Wall so I wanted to be well rested for that.
Love
Michelle
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
ITS ME!!!
Hey you guys,
So this is actually Michelle, not my sister posting my blog :) Right now I am in Kyoto Japan. Sorry I have not written in a while, it is really hard trying to keep up with my journal when I am constantly in port. But I am having the time of my life right now. Right now I am in my hotel room. Me and 10 other people are staying in 2 rooms. 3 girls and 7 boys. Most of you would be proud that me and the three girls are in one room and the 6 other boys are in the other room :) hahahha, most of them are on the floor. Cole is in our room because is girlfriend Kathleen is in our room. So tomorrow I am leaving for Tokyo where I am going to meet up with Chikae. I am very excited. Well I hope everyone is well and I will keep you posted with what I am going.
Love
Michelle
So this is actually Michelle, not my sister posting my blog :) Right now I am in Kyoto Japan. Sorry I have not written in a while, it is really hard trying to keep up with my journal when I am constantly in port. But I am having the time of my life right now. Right now I am in my hotel room. Me and 10 other people are staying in 2 rooms. 3 girls and 7 boys. Most of you would be proud that me and the three girls are in one room and the 6 other boys are in the other room :) hahahha, most of them are on the floor. Cole is in our room because is girlfriend Kathleen is in our room. So tomorrow I am leaving for Tokyo where I am going to meet up with Chikae. I am very excited. Well I hope everyone is well and I will keep you posted with what I am going.
Love
Michelle
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Victorias Peak
Journal #35 March, 29,2009
We have made it to CHINA!!! I can not even begin to tell you how fast this trip is going. I do not even have the time to sit down and think about my life. Me and Meghan planned to just walk around Hong Kong and do some shopping and site seeing. I had my trust map and we were off. Our goal was to go to Nathan Rd because there were some good markets there. It took us about 45 min to get there and we realized that they were not markets. But that was ok because we got to see what Hong Kong was all about. It is just like New York City. Almost every corner reminded me of Times Square. Sky scrappers were everywhere and most of the people around us spoke English.
So since Nathan street was a no go we went to a jade market. I bought myself some jade earrings and Meghan bought her brother a chess set. Now she did not realize how heavy this chess set was. So we made our way back to the ship. I was quite proud of ourselves for finding out way, we are becoming quite the travelers.
After we dropped off our stuff we headed to Hong Kong Island. We took the Star Ferry there. When we got there we could not figure out what we wanted to do. So finally we went to a temple a couple blocks away. The temple's ceiling was filled with spiral incenses. The smell of the incense was really strong. We got to see how people worship their gods in these temples and even got to light some of the incense candles ourselves.
When we left we walked around for a little while and found an antique market. The streets were lined with shops and stands that had the most random stuff. At that point we decided to head up to Victoria’s Peak. This peak is the highest point in Hong Kong and the view is absolutely amazing. The bus ride was about 30 min and when we made it to the top we had to make our way through a mall. Of course we did some shopping and got some dinner. We got to the top and I was amazed at the site. The lights of Hong Kong are absolutely amazing. The color and movement of the lights are something that one could watch for hours. But it was freezing outside so we made our way back inside.
When we left we got on the double decker bus and got back to the Star Ferry. For the rest of the night we had planned on going out with some SAS students. We got ready and headed to Lan Kwai Fong. Now I must remind you that during this time in China the rugby championships were going on. So people from all over the world had come to Hong Kong to cheer on their teams. So when we got to bar street I was overwhelmed by the amount of people. Meghan said it was just like Mardi Gras. People were all over the place drinking, singing, dancing, and much more. People were dressed up in costumes such as super heroes, men in bathrobes, and much more. We made it back to the boat and got ready for bed, set our clocks, because I had to wake up at 5am for my trip to Beijing.
Love
Michelle
We have made it to CHINA!!! I can not even begin to tell you how fast this trip is going. I do not even have the time to sit down and think about my life. Me and Meghan planned to just walk around Hong Kong and do some shopping and site seeing. I had my trust map and we were off. Our goal was to go to Nathan Rd because there were some good markets there. It took us about 45 min to get there and we realized that they were not markets. But that was ok because we got to see what Hong Kong was all about. It is just like New York City. Almost every corner reminded me of Times Square. Sky scrappers were everywhere and most of the people around us spoke English.
So since Nathan street was a no go we went to a jade market. I bought myself some jade earrings and Meghan bought her brother a chess set. Now she did not realize how heavy this chess set was. So we made our way back to the ship. I was quite proud of ourselves for finding out way, we are becoming quite the travelers.
After we dropped off our stuff we headed to Hong Kong Island. We took the Star Ferry there. When we got there we could not figure out what we wanted to do. So finally we went to a temple a couple blocks away. The temple's ceiling was filled with spiral incenses. The smell of the incense was really strong. We got to see how people worship their gods in these temples and even got to light some of the incense candles ourselves.
When we left we walked around for a little while and found an antique market. The streets were lined with shops and stands that had the most random stuff. At that point we decided to head up to Victoria’s Peak. This peak is the highest point in Hong Kong and the view is absolutely amazing. The bus ride was about 30 min and when we made it to the top we had to make our way through a mall. Of course we did some shopping and got some dinner. We got to the top and I was amazed at the site. The lights of Hong Kong are absolutely amazing. The color and movement of the lights are something that one could watch for hours. But it was freezing outside so we made our way back inside.
When we left we got on the double decker bus and got back to the Star Ferry. For the rest of the night we had planned on going out with some SAS students. We got ready and headed to Lan Kwai Fong. Now I must remind you that during this time in China the rugby championships were going on. So people from all over the world had come to Hong Kong to cheer on their teams. So when we got to bar street I was overwhelmed by the amount of people. Meghan said it was just like Mardi Gras. People were all over the place drinking, singing, dancing, and much more. People were dressed up in costumes such as super heroes, men in bathrobes, and much more. We made it back to the boat and got ready for bed, set our clocks, because I had to wake up at 5am for my trip to Beijing.
Love
Michelle
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Mekong Delta
Journal # 34 March 26, 2009
Well it was my last day in Viet Nam and my last day with my sisters. We had planned a trip with SAS to go to the Mekong Delta for the day. The bus ride was about 2 hours. I slept most of the way again. I have found that bus rides and plane rides are the places to catch up on your sleep on Semester at Sea.
So when we got there we had to take a big boat to smaller boats. The Delta was actually a lot bigger then I thought. There were cargo ships and fishing boats in the water. The first boat ride was about 10 min where about 50 of us were separated into smaller boats that help 8. These boats took us in small canals to a place where sugar candies were made. The trees along the canal were so pretty and the boats that we were on were really cool looking. The island was pretty big. We had some tea, I bought some candy and we headed back to the boats to go to another island to get lunch.
The lunch was awesome!! We had spring rolls, fish, salad, chicken, and much more. When we left this island we headed to another island that has a fruit farm on it. We were served lots of fruit and they sang some songs for us. We were then led to a pier where we got on smaller boats, 4 people each, and were rowed to the bigger boats. I was able to row some of the way which was pretty cool. I could not believe how fast the ladies were rowing us. They have a lot of arm strength.
We were then taken back to the bus, where we were dropped off at the hotel. I packed up and we headed to the ship to say our goodbyes. My sisters were able to come on the boat and have dinner with me. I was really excited because we were having a COOKOUT!!! Hamburgers and hotdogs :) yummy!! Wendy and Lisa met some of my friends and we talked for a while. At around 9 we said our goodbyes and parted ways. I am sooooo glad that my sisters came to Viet Nam. Now when I go home I can talk to them about my trip and they will understand. I had such a blast and would not change anything about this trip. Viet Nam was everything that I had hoped it would be.
Love
Michelle
Well it was my last day in Viet Nam and my last day with my sisters. We had planned a trip with SAS to go to the Mekong Delta for the day. The bus ride was about 2 hours. I slept most of the way again. I have found that bus rides and plane rides are the places to catch up on your sleep on Semester at Sea.
So when we got there we had to take a big boat to smaller boats. The Delta was actually a lot bigger then I thought. There were cargo ships and fishing boats in the water. The first boat ride was about 10 min where about 50 of us were separated into smaller boats that help 8. These boats took us in small canals to a place where sugar candies were made. The trees along the canal were so pretty and the boats that we were on were really cool looking. The island was pretty big. We had some tea, I bought some candy and we headed back to the boats to go to another island to get lunch.
The lunch was awesome!! We had spring rolls, fish, salad, chicken, and much more. When we left this island we headed to another island that has a fruit farm on it. We were served lots of fruit and they sang some songs for us. We were then led to a pier where we got on smaller boats, 4 people each, and were rowed to the bigger boats. I was able to row some of the way which was pretty cool. I could not believe how fast the ladies were rowing us. They have a lot of arm strength.
We were then taken back to the bus, where we were dropped off at the hotel. I packed up and we headed to the ship to say our goodbyes. My sisters were able to come on the boat and have dinner with me. I was really excited because we were having a COOKOUT!!! Hamburgers and hotdogs :) yummy!! Wendy and Lisa met some of my friends and we talked for a while. At around 9 we said our goodbyes and parted ways. I am sooooo glad that my sisters came to Viet Nam. Now when I go home I can talk to them about my trip and they will understand. I had such a blast and would not change anything about this trip. Viet Nam was everything that I had hoped it would be.
Love
Michelle
Vietnam
Journal #33 March 25, 2009
Today we woke up early got some breakfast and headed to the beach. We went swimming in the East China Sea. The water felt really good, it was not too cold but still refreshing. We were able to sit in some lounge chairs for awhile until a lady claimed that we were sitting in her seats. She was not very nice, so we headed to the pool. Again we laid there and had to go in the pool because it was so hot. Our driver was picking us up at 12 so we did not get to spend the whole day there but we had enough time to get some sun. The drive back to Ho Chi Minh City was a fast trip. That night we had dinner on the ship and packed up some of my stuff that I was going to be sending home with the girls. It was really good for my sisters to see where I had been living for the last couple of months. I think they enjoyed themselves. That night I was able to skype with my parents and Blake again so that was really good.
Today we woke up early got some breakfast and headed to the beach. We went swimming in the East China Sea. The water felt really good, it was not too cold but still refreshing. We were able to sit in some lounge chairs for awhile until a lady claimed that we were sitting in her seats. She was not very nice, so we headed to the pool. Again we laid there and had to go in the pool because it was so hot. Our driver was picking us up at 12 so we did not get to spend the whole day there but we had enough time to get some sun. The drive back to Ho Chi Minh City was a fast trip. That night we had dinner on the ship and packed up some of my stuff that I was going to be sending home with the girls. It was really good for my sisters to see where I had been living for the last couple of months. I think they enjoyed themselves. That night I was able to skype with my parents and Blake again so that was really good.
Relaxation at the Beach!
Journal # 32 March 24, 2009
At around 7 we woke up and got ready to head to Mui Ne. I was really excited about this because we were going to be getting out of the city to spend some time together. We had our own personal driver who did not speak any English. It was actually quite entertaining trying to communicate with him. The four hour drive went by really quickly and when we got to the resort I knew right away we had made the best decision ever to come here. We were welcomed by drinks and cold towels. When we got to our room I was speechless on how beautiful it was. It was a bungalow with an awesome view. We had an outside shower with a swing, awesome!!! Our view was of the ocean and the hotels infinity pool. Of course we threw on our bathing suits and headed to the pool. We got some lunch and laid out. But only for a little bit because it was so hot we could not stand to be out of the pool. We pretty much stayed by the pool the whole day and walked on the beach some. We played cards by the pool and then had a good buffet. The buffet had this really cool part where you would pick raw foods and they would cook it for you. They had from sweet potatoes to crab. The food was pretty good. We then headed back to the hotel to get some sleep, the sun had worn us out.
At around 7 we woke up and got ready to head to Mui Ne. I was really excited about this because we were going to be getting out of the city to spend some time together. We had our own personal driver who did not speak any English. It was actually quite entertaining trying to communicate with him. The four hour drive went by really quickly and when we got to the resort I knew right away we had made the best decision ever to come here. We were welcomed by drinks and cold towels. When we got to our room I was speechless on how beautiful it was. It was a bungalow with an awesome view. We had an outside shower with a swing, awesome!!! Our view was of the ocean and the hotels infinity pool. Of course we threw on our bathing suits and headed to the pool. We got some lunch and laid out. But only for a little bit because it was so hot we could not stand to be out of the pool. We pretty much stayed by the pool the whole day and walked on the beach some. We played cards by the pool and then had a good buffet. The buffet had this really cool part where you would pick raw foods and they would cook it for you. They had from sweet potatoes to crab. The food was pretty good. We then headed back to the hotel to get some sleep, the sun had worn us out.
Underground tunnels, guns, & more
Journal #31 March 23, 2009
Today me and my sisters woke up early and headed to the ship. We were on an SAS trip and were headed to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The Cu Chi Tunnels are historical because during the Viet Nam War some Vietnamese people built tunnels under ground to hide from the troops. The bus ride was about 2 hours, I slept for a lot of it, and when we got there we were first encountered with a hiding spot. It was literally a hole that was 1 foot by 1 foot for the people to slide into when US troops were coming. I can not even begin to tell you how small it was.
We then got to see some traps that were used to catch soldiers. They were pretty creative. We got to see the sleeping area, the dinning area, and the cooking and meeting areas. We also were able to shoot an AK 47!!! That was really cool but we were not given any ear plugs so most of us were deaf for the next couple of hours.
Then we made it to the tunnels. The tunnels were not as small as I expected, we were actually able to have our legs straight but still hunched over. I can not even imagine living in these though. The Viet Nam people really were smart when preparing for war.
When we left the Cu Chi tunnels we went to a place where handicapped people make souvenirs. I did not buy anything because it was expensive but it was still cool to see how stuff was made and how much work was put into it. After the tunnels we went to the hotel and decided to plan out our next couple of days. We had a couple of choices, we could stay in the Ho Chi Min City, we could go to Ha Noi, which would cost of $400 each, or we could go to a beach about 4 hours away in Mui Ne. We talked to our concierge for about an hour and made our decision. Tomorrow we were going to go to Mui Ne and spend the night at Victoria Beach Resort. We signed all the papers and got ready to go out. I had not been to any markets in Viet Nam yet so I was desperate to go. We went to the night markets which were really cool. I got some souvenirs and was able to show Lisa and Wendy how to bargain!! I love to bargain :) We then went back to the hotel to pack and get some rest for the next day.
Today me and my sisters woke up early and headed to the ship. We were on an SAS trip and were headed to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The Cu Chi Tunnels are historical because during the Viet Nam War some Vietnamese people built tunnels under ground to hide from the troops. The bus ride was about 2 hours, I slept for a lot of it, and when we got there we were first encountered with a hiding spot. It was literally a hole that was 1 foot by 1 foot for the people to slide into when US troops were coming. I can not even begin to tell you how small it was.
We then got to see some traps that were used to catch soldiers. They were pretty creative. We got to see the sleeping area, the dinning area, and the cooking and meeting areas. We also were able to shoot an AK 47!!! That was really cool but we were not given any ear plugs so most of us were deaf for the next couple of hours.
Then we made it to the tunnels. The tunnels were not as small as I expected, we were actually able to have our legs straight but still hunched over. I can not even imagine living in these though. The Viet Nam people really were smart when preparing for war.
When we left the Cu Chi tunnels we went to a place where handicapped people make souvenirs. I did not buy anything because it was expensive but it was still cool to see how stuff was made and how much work was put into it. After the tunnels we went to the hotel and decided to plan out our next couple of days. We had a couple of choices, we could stay in the Ho Chi Min City, we could go to Ha Noi, which would cost of $400 each, or we could go to a beach about 4 hours away in Mui Ne. We talked to our concierge for about an hour and made our decision. Tomorrow we were going to go to Mui Ne and spend the night at Victoria Beach Resort. We signed all the papers and got ready to go out. I had not been to any markets in Viet Nam yet so I was desperate to go. We went to the night markets which were really cool. I got some souvenirs and was able to show Lisa and Wendy how to bargain!! I love to bargain :) We then went back to the hotel to pack and get some rest for the next day.
Family in Vietnam!
Journal #30 March 22, 2009
Well today was great!!!! I got to Viet Nam and I had a some people waiting for me :) LISA AND WENDY CAME TO VISIT ME!!!!! I woke up around 5 and watched the ship come into the river. The water was a little dirty looking and there were leaves everywhere. But the view was still amazing. Fishing boats were everywhere heading out to the ocean in hopes of catching some fish.
When we got to the port I ran straight to the port side and looked for my sisters.
Sadly since we had gotten there a little early none of the parents were there. I waited for about 5 min and then I saw a taxi drive up and guess who got out, my sisters :)!!!!!!!!!! I was jumping up and down and so were they. Of course I started crying and screaming. They made signs for me so that made me really happy.
The only thing that I was worried about was are they going to be allowed on the ship?? The port gate for Viet Nam is very strict on who can get through the gate and who can not. When the parents group started going through I was getting a little nervous. Of course they did not let Lisa and Wendy though :( so that was upsetting.
I had about an hour until I could get off the ship so we talked from a distance for a while. I went to my diplomatic meeting and when it was over I ran to get my passport and I was the first person off the ship!!!! Finally touching my sisters was absolutely awesome, I was just so happy to have family with me all the way across the world.
We went to the hotel, which was awesome, and rested for a little bit, I was tired from waking up so early and the girls were still a little jet lagged.
For lunch we went to a restaurant called “13” and it was really good. We got some spring rolls and rice with pork. My favorite were the spring rolls. After lunch we got in a taxi and headed to the War Remnants Museum. This museum explains the Viet Nam war, has a bunch of pictures, and even has a mock prison. I was surprised at how the museum portrayed some stuff. It seamed very biased. It was a really good experience to go through and I learned a lot of the war that I did not already know. I really enjoyed learning about “agent orange.” This was a chemical that the US used that made people have defects. The pictures were pretty detailed.
Then we walked around for about an hour and we stopped at a park. The park was pretty cool because it was filled with Vietnamese people. They were practicing Ti Chi, playing bad mitten, and just enjoying the beautiful day. Then we left for the hotel to rest up before dinner. For dinner we went to a restaurant at the top of the Rex Hotel. This bar was a place where American soldiers came during the war to hang out and get some drinks. The food was really good and the atmosphere was amazing. It was just so cool sitting there thinking that this is where some of my fellow Americans hung out about 40 years ago. Pretty cool.
When we got to the hotel we decided to go for a swim in the pool in the top of the hotel, 21 stories high. It was great being able to look over the city and relax in the pool. At around 11 that night I was able to get on Wendy’s computer and skype with my parents and brothers family at home. This was great!!! I got to see Lily and Lyla and see how big they have gotten. It was quite an experience watching my dad try and figure out skype. It was also an experience seeing how goofy my family is. They had a little too much fun with skype.
After a long day of seeing my family and being able to talk to some of them I was pleased. They only thing that would of made the day 100 times better was if my parents had come to Viet Nam, but it was still great to see them on the computer.
Love
Michelle
Well today was great!!!! I got to Viet Nam and I had a some people waiting for me :) LISA AND WENDY CAME TO VISIT ME!!!!! I woke up around 5 and watched the ship come into the river. The water was a little dirty looking and there were leaves everywhere. But the view was still amazing. Fishing boats were everywhere heading out to the ocean in hopes of catching some fish.
When we got to the port I ran straight to the port side and looked for my sisters.
Sadly since we had gotten there a little early none of the parents were there. I waited for about 5 min and then I saw a taxi drive up and guess who got out, my sisters :)!!!!!!!!!! I was jumping up and down and so were they. Of course I started crying and screaming. They made signs for me so that made me really happy.
The only thing that I was worried about was are they going to be allowed on the ship?? The port gate for Viet Nam is very strict on who can get through the gate and who can not. When the parents group started going through I was getting a little nervous. Of course they did not let Lisa and Wendy though :( so that was upsetting.
I had about an hour until I could get off the ship so we talked from a distance for a while. I went to my diplomatic meeting and when it was over I ran to get my passport and I was the first person off the ship!!!! Finally touching my sisters was absolutely awesome, I was just so happy to have family with me all the way across the world.
We went to the hotel, which was awesome, and rested for a little bit, I was tired from waking up so early and the girls were still a little jet lagged.
For lunch we went to a restaurant called “13” and it was really good. We got some spring rolls and rice with pork. My favorite were the spring rolls. After lunch we got in a taxi and headed to the War Remnants Museum. This museum explains the Viet Nam war, has a bunch of pictures, and even has a mock prison. I was surprised at how the museum portrayed some stuff. It seamed very biased. It was a really good experience to go through and I learned a lot of the war that I did not already know. I really enjoyed learning about “agent orange.” This was a chemical that the US used that made people have defects. The pictures were pretty detailed.
Then we walked around for about an hour and we stopped at a park. The park was pretty cool because it was filled with Vietnamese people. They were practicing Ti Chi, playing bad mitten, and just enjoying the beautiful day. Then we left for the hotel to rest up before dinner. For dinner we went to a restaurant at the top of the Rex Hotel. This bar was a place where American soldiers came during the war to hang out and get some drinks. The food was really good and the atmosphere was amazing. It was just so cool sitting there thinking that this is where some of my fellow Americans hung out about 40 years ago. Pretty cool.
When we got to the hotel we decided to go for a swim in the pool in the top of the hotel, 21 stories high. It was great being able to look over the city and relax in the pool. At around 11 that night I was able to get on Wendy’s computer and skype with my parents and brothers family at home. This was great!!! I got to see Lily and Lyla and see how big they have gotten. It was quite an experience watching my dad try and figure out skype. It was also an experience seeing how goofy my family is. They had a little too much fun with skype.
After a long day of seeing my family and being able to talk to some of them I was pleased. They only thing that would of made the day 100 times better was if my parents had come to Viet Nam, but it was still great to see them on the computer.
Love
Michelle
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Concerts in Thailand
Journal #29 March 19, 2009
Well today is my last day in Thailand. Meghan and I woke up around 8 got ready, packed, made some phone calls home and headed off to the mall where we were going to be picked up by the bus. We had about 2 hours at the mall so we did some shopping!!! I was able to get some dresses. When we were about to leave we noticed that there was a concert going on. This was really cool, it was a Thailand rock/pop band. They were actually pretty good. We stayed there for about 3 songs and really enjoyed the cultural experience. There was about 50 people there that were about the same age as us. Most of them were boys. We left the mall and had about a 3 hour drive back to the ship. We had to get on the ship immediately because the ship was about to leave for Viet Nam. All in all Thailand was such an awesome place!! I really enjoyed my stay. I think my favorite part was being able to spend St. Patty’s day in Thailand with my friends. That was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed riding elephants and feeding them.
Love
Michelle
Well today is my last day in Thailand. Meghan and I woke up around 8 got ready, packed, made some phone calls home and headed off to the mall where we were going to be picked up by the bus. We had about 2 hours at the mall so we did some shopping!!! I was able to get some dresses. When we were about to leave we noticed that there was a concert going on. This was really cool, it was a Thailand rock/pop band. They were actually pretty good. We stayed there for about 3 songs and really enjoyed the cultural experience. There was about 50 people there that were about the same age as us. Most of them were boys. We left the mall and had about a 3 hour drive back to the ship. We had to get on the ship immediately because the ship was about to leave for Viet Nam. All in all Thailand was such an awesome place!! I really enjoyed my stay. I think my favorite part was being able to spend St. Patty’s day in Thailand with my friends. That was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed riding elephants and feeding them.
Love
Michelle
More Massages & Good Food in Bangkok!
Journal #28 March 18, 2009
So on our second day in Bangkok we decided to do some site seeing. We got up around 9 and headed to the Royal Palace. It was about a 15 min drive. When we got there we paid for out tickets and headed in. The Palace was enormous. The main thing that we wanted to see in the Palace was the Emerald Buddha. When we got to the place where it was, we had to take off our shoes and not allow our feet point towards Buddha. We were also not allowed to take pictures inside the building. Of course we wanted to remember this moment, so we secretively took pictures. But Doug was not so successful hahah, he got all his pictures deleted from his camera :(
When we left the palace we went to get some lunch. We went to a little hole in the wall restaurant which was pretty cool. We got some spring rolls and rice with pork. Very good food. After lunch me and Meghan headed back towards the hotel to get another massage. We got another 2 hour massage from the same lady. It was again another awesome massage but this time she really stretched my body.
We then went to dinner at the mall down the street. The restaurant was a type of place where you cook the food in front of you. You place the food in a pot and let it boil. We got beef, shrimp, and crab. DELICIOUS!!! Then we got a bottle of wine, and tub of ice cream and took it back to the hotel. Before we got ready for bed we went out to some of the markets on the streets. This was probably the coolest part because we were able to experience the culture of Thailand. There were tattoo parlors every so often and piercing parlors. It was kind of a thrilling thought to get a tattoo in Thailand but I would never do that. When we got back to the hotel we ate our ice cream, drank our wine, which by the way was disgusting, and watched a movie. We were exhausted from the days events.
Love
Michelle
So on our second day in Bangkok we decided to do some site seeing. We got up around 9 and headed to the Royal Palace. It was about a 15 min drive. When we got there we paid for out tickets and headed in. The Palace was enormous. The main thing that we wanted to see in the Palace was the Emerald Buddha. When we got to the place where it was, we had to take off our shoes and not allow our feet point towards Buddha. We were also not allowed to take pictures inside the building. Of course we wanted to remember this moment, so we secretively took pictures. But Doug was not so successful hahah, he got all his pictures deleted from his camera :(
When we left the palace we went to get some lunch. We went to a little hole in the wall restaurant which was pretty cool. We got some spring rolls and rice with pork. Very good food. After lunch me and Meghan headed back towards the hotel to get another massage. We got another 2 hour massage from the same lady. It was again another awesome massage but this time she really stretched my body.
We then went to dinner at the mall down the street. The restaurant was a type of place where you cook the food in front of you. You place the food in a pot and let it boil. We got beef, shrimp, and crab. DELICIOUS!!! Then we got a bottle of wine, and tub of ice cream and took it back to the hotel. Before we got ready for bed we went out to some of the markets on the streets. This was probably the coolest part because we were able to experience the culture of Thailand. There were tattoo parlors every so often and piercing parlors. It was kind of a thrilling thought to get a tattoo in Thailand but I would never do that. When we got back to the hotel we ate our ice cream, drank our wine, which by the way was disgusting, and watched a movie. We were exhausted from the days events.
Love
Michelle
St. Pattys Day in Bangkok!!
Journal #27 March 17, 2009
This morning I woke up at 7 and got ready for my bus ride to Bangkok. Meghan, Doug and I were headed there for the next 3 days. The bus ride was about a 2 hour drive. When we arrived we got to a mall that was huge!!! I have never been to a mall so big. We shopped for about an hour and then headed to our hotel. Our hotel was about 15 min away.
When we arrived at The Elegance Suites I saw how cool of a place it was. It was right in the middle of a little city. The streets were filled with shops and homes. We settled in and went to lunch. We went to a street vender that was right across the street from our hotel. It was really good, I got chicken and noodles. Let me tell you how much I love Thai food!!! And actually this is the first time in a while that I have not gotten sick from the food!!!!
After lunch all three of us went and got a Thai massage. We all were in the same room as we got massages. I absolutely loved it. It was 2 hours long and they stretched us and put our bodies in weird configurations to stretch us. I have never been so relaxed in my entire life, and the best thing about it was that it was only $12.
After the massage we walked to the mall and looked around for a little while. When we got back to the hotel we got ready for our night out on the town. It was St. Patty’s day so we decided to go to an Irish pub. We heard that a bunch of people were going to a place called Orilies. Getting to the pub was quite an experience. We first rode a train to the center area, then we walked for about 2 miles trying to find the spot. When we got tired we got in a taxi and he took us somewhere else, Orilies is supposedly not a very popular place because no one knew where it was. After about an hour of looking we gave up and went to Molly Malone’s which is also an Irish Pub. We sat at a table with two other couples. They were probably in their early thirties. We ordered our food and drinks and relaxed by listening to the music and watching rugby. When our food came I was overwhelmed by my huge hoagie!!! I was not able to eat half of it but it was still delicious.
The guy that was sitting next to me was Paul. I asked him if he knew where Orilies was and that started up our fun conversation. Come to find out he is Irish and lived in Northern Virginia for about 8 years. We even were able to show each other our drivers license to see the differences. He now owns a plumbing company in Thailand and actually works for the restaurant we were eating at. He was a really nice guy and bought us all about 3 drinks. He was funny because every time he would buy us a beer or mixed drink he would secretly tell the waiter to bring us a shot. The first shot was gross, it is an Irish tradition and we have to take the shot, that has coffee beans in it, and chew the beans at the end and “aaarrrgggg” at the same time, hahha quite comical. Paul talked to us for a long time about how men should be the head of the house. He had some good points but I did not agree with everything he said.
When we left Molly’s we walked around the corner and there was Orilies!! We were sooo close. So we decided to go in there for a little while. I was able to get my green beer, and meet some more cool people. When we left we got in a tuk tuk and headed for the Dome. This is place on the top of a hotel that overlooks all of Bangkok. The view was absolutely stunning!!! I could not take my eyes off of all the lights of the city. It truly was beautiful. My first day in Bangkok was fabulous. I really enjoyed everything about it and can not wait for the next days to come.
Love
Michelle
This morning I woke up at 7 and got ready for my bus ride to Bangkok. Meghan, Doug and I were headed there for the next 3 days. The bus ride was about a 2 hour drive. When we arrived we got to a mall that was huge!!! I have never been to a mall so big. We shopped for about an hour and then headed to our hotel. Our hotel was about 15 min away.
When we arrived at The Elegance Suites I saw how cool of a place it was. It was right in the middle of a little city. The streets were filled with shops and homes. We settled in and went to lunch. We went to a street vender that was right across the street from our hotel. It was really good, I got chicken and noodles. Let me tell you how much I love Thai food!!! And actually this is the first time in a while that I have not gotten sick from the food!!!!
After lunch all three of us went and got a Thai massage. We all were in the same room as we got massages. I absolutely loved it. It was 2 hours long and they stretched us and put our bodies in weird configurations to stretch us. I have never been so relaxed in my entire life, and the best thing about it was that it was only $12.
After the massage we walked to the mall and looked around for a little while. When we got back to the hotel we got ready for our night out on the town. It was St. Patty’s day so we decided to go to an Irish pub. We heard that a bunch of people were going to a place called Orilies. Getting to the pub was quite an experience. We first rode a train to the center area, then we walked for about 2 miles trying to find the spot. When we got tired we got in a taxi and he took us somewhere else, Orilies is supposedly not a very popular place because no one knew where it was. After about an hour of looking we gave up and went to Molly Malone’s which is also an Irish Pub. We sat at a table with two other couples. They were probably in their early thirties. We ordered our food and drinks and relaxed by listening to the music and watching rugby. When our food came I was overwhelmed by my huge hoagie!!! I was not able to eat half of it but it was still delicious.
The guy that was sitting next to me was Paul. I asked him if he knew where Orilies was and that started up our fun conversation. Come to find out he is Irish and lived in Northern Virginia for about 8 years. We even were able to show each other our drivers license to see the differences. He now owns a plumbing company in Thailand and actually works for the restaurant we were eating at. He was a really nice guy and bought us all about 3 drinks. He was funny because every time he would buy us a beer or mixed drink he would secretly tell the waiter to bring us a shot. The first shot was gross, it is an Irish tradition and we have to take the shot, that has coffee beans in it, and chew the beans at the end and “aaarrrgggg” at the same time, hahha quite comical. Paul talked to us for a long time about how men should be the head of the house. He had some good points but I did not agree with everything he said.
When we left Molly’s we walked around the corner and there was Orilies!! We were sooo close. So we decided to go in there for a little while. I was able to get my green beer, and meet some more cool people. When we left we got in a tuk tuk and headed for the Dome. This is place on the top of a hotel that overlooks all of Bangkok. The view was absolutely stunning!!! I could not take my eyes off of all the lights of the city. It truly was beautiful. My first day in Bangkok was fabulous. I really enjoyed everything about it and can not wait for the next days to come.
Love
Michelle
Zoo in Thailand
Journal #26 March 16, 2009
Today I was able to sleep in because I had a trip planned at 12 to go to a tiger zoo. I got lunch on the ship and got on the bus to go. Me and Meghan had decided to go on the trip together. There was a gigantic sign at the front of the entrance that was absolutely gorgeous. Big stone rocks and fake tigers.
The first thing that we saw was the tiger show. I was a little disappointed about this show. The tigers were sooo scared of the instructors and they flinched when they would get close. It was really close to animal cruelty. I thought the zoo was going to be more of an animal sanctuary but no it was more like a circus. I left the show early and decided to go feed baby tigers. They were so little and very cute. I got to hold the tiger and feed it milk. The tigers were very soft. That was probably my favorite part of the day. We then went to an elephant show that was very similar to the one that I went to the day before.
Next we went to a crocodile show. This was very different from the ones that are at home. They would stick their heads in the croc’s mouths and hold it there for a couple of seconds.
We then had about an hour to walk around on our own. Me and Meghan ate crocodile. It was sooo good!!!! It was very tough, but a really good meat. We then went to see the scorpion queen, chimpanzees, rabbits, camels, and many other animals.
After the zoo we headed to a place called “The Mini Siam.” This is a place that has miniature world wide monuments and structures. They only had two things from the US, the statue of liberty and mt. Rushmore.
Right before we left Meghan and I went to the markets that were right beside Siam. There was miles and miles of tables with food on them. I got the best piece of corn that I have ever tasted in my life. I also got some really good chicken and corn. The markets were really cool because there were so many people in there trying to sell their food. When we got back to the ship we got ready for our next couple of days in Bangkok.
Love
Michelle
Today I was able to sleep in because I had a trip planned at 12 to go to a tiger zoo. I got lunch on the ship and got on the bus to go. Me and Meghan had decided to go on the trip together. There was a gigantic sign at the front of the entrance that was absolutely gorgeous. Big stone rocks and fake tigers.
The first thing that we saw was the tiger show. I was a little disappointed about this show. The tigers were sooo scared of the instructors and they flinched when they would get close. It was really close to animal cruelty. I thought the zoo was going to be more of an animal sanctuary but no it was more like a circus. I left the show early and decided to go feed baby tigers. They were so little and very cute. I got to hold the tiger and feed it milk. The tigers were very soft. That was probably my favorite part of the day. We then went to an elephant show that was very similar to the one that I went to the day before.
Next we went to a crocodile show. This was very different from the ones that are at home. They would stick their heads in the croc’s mouths and hold it there for a couple of seconds.
We then had about an hour to walk around on our own. Me and Meghan ate crocodile. It was sooo good!!!! It was very tough, but a really good meat. We then went to see the scorpion queen, chimpanzees, rabbits, camels, and many other animals.
After the zoo we headed to a place called “The Mini Siam.” This is a place that has miniature world wide monuments and structures. They only had two things from the US, the statue of liberty and mt. Rushmore.
Right before we left Meghan and I went to the markets that were right beside Siam. There was miles and miles of tables with food on them. I got the best piece of corn that I have ever tasted in my life. I also got some really good chicken and corn. The markets were really cool because there were so many people in there trying to sell their food. When we got back to the ship we got ready for our next couple of days in Bangkok.
Love
Michelle
Elephants playing basketball?!
Journal #25 March 15, 2009
Sorry I have not written in a while, I have been writing my journals but have not even had the time to send them. I am just none stop right now but I am having the time of my life while doing it.
So today we arrived in Thailand. I was not quite sure of what to expect. As I looked out of the ship all I could see was miles and miles of industrial port. It was not very pretty. The ship was cleared around 10am. As I got off the ship I knew that I had a trip at 1pm. I was going to an elephant village in Pattaya. There were a couple shops right off the boat so I decided to go look at them. The shops were filled with souvenirs and clothing. The women that were working at the stores were so pretty and nice. I decided to not go out on the town because I did not want to be late for my trip. So I spent the morning on the ship.
The elephant village was so much fun!!! When we first got there we were able to buy bananas to feed to the elephants. I was really excited. The elephants were sooo big and there were probably about 15 all on a line. I was able to feed the elephants and they were gross :( they slobbered all over my hand. But it was still cool.
Then we all sat down and he talked to us for about 10 min. then he said that he needed 10 people to come to the front. Of course I ran up there. So I was picked to ride the elephant and take a bath with it. I climbed onto the elephant and the guy who was riding with me was named wii. We walked for about half a mile and then the elephant walked into the water, with me on top of him, and dunked me in the water!!! I got wet but I did not get soaked. That was really cool. It was hard sitting on the elephant. It felt like I was going to fall off every now and then, but wii kept me safe.
After that everyone had a chance to ride the elephants and feed them. We then were seated and listened to a guy talk to us about the elephants. He told us many facts about elephants; such as, if u take a rope and wrap it around the elephants foot that will give you the length from the ground to the elephants shoulder, that the guy elephants have 5 legs ;) and that elephants are pregnant for about 21-22 months.
Then we were introduced to an elephant that used to be in the Thailand circus and could do a number of tricks. She found coins on the ground, ate a certain number of bananas from the ground and also played basketball. The cool thing was that I was picked from the crowd to play defense against the elephant. I stood underneath the hoop and waited for the elephant to come. She charged me from about 200 ft away and then stopped right before me. She then got on her back two feet and made the basket!!! That was pretty cool and a little scary.
When we left the village we headed back to the ship and me and a group of students went to the mall near our ship. Me and Meghan did some shopping and got some ice cream. The mall was very similar to America’s malls. One thing that I did notice was how fashionable the people of Thailand are. The clothes are very stylish. My first day in Thailand was really good. I love the scenery and the people are so friendly.
Sorry I have not written in a while, I have been writing my journals but have not even had the time to send them. I am just none stop right now but I am having the time of my life while doing it.
So today we arrived in Thailand. I was not quite sure of what to expect. As I looked out of the ship all I could see was miles and miles of industrial port. It was not very pretty. The ship was cleared around 10am. As I got off the ship I knew that I had a trip at 1pm. I was going to an elephant village in Pattaya. There were a couple shops right off the boat so I decided to go look at them. The shops were filled with souvenirs and clothing. The women that were working at the stores were so pretty and nice. I decided to not go out on the town because I did not want to be late for my trip. So I spent the morning on the ship.
The elephant village was so much fun!!! When we first got there we were able to buy bananas to feed to the elephants. I was really excited. The elephants were sooo big and there were probably about 15 all on a line. I was able to feed the elephants and they were gross :( they slobbered all over my hand. But it was still cool.
Then we all sat down and he talked to us for about 10 min. then he said that he needed 10 people to come to the front. Of course I ran up there. So I was picked to ride the elephant and take a bath with it. I climbed onto the elephant and the guy who was riding with me was named wii. We walked for about half a mile and then the elephant walked into the water, with me on top of him, and dunked me in the water!!! I got wet but I did not get soaked. That was really cool. It was hard sitting on the elephant. It felt like I was going to fall off every now and then, but wii kept me safe.
After that everyone had a chance to ride the elephants and feed them. We then were seated and listened to a guy talk to us about the elephants. He told us many facts about elephants; such as, if u take a rope and wrap it around the elephants foot that will give you the length from the ground to the elephants shoulder, that the guy elephants have 5 legs ;) and that elephants are pregnant for about 21-22 months.
Then we were introduced to an elephant that used to be in the Thailand circus and could do a number of tricks. She found coins on the ground, ate a certain number of bananas from the ground and also played basketball. The cool thing was that I was picked from the crowd to play defense against the elephant. I stood underneath the hoop and waited for the elephant to come. She charged me from about 200 ft away and then stopped right before me. She then got on her back two feet and made the basket!!! That was pretty cool and a little scary.
When we left the village we headed back to the ship and me and a group of students went to the mall near our ship. Me and Meghan did some shopping and got some ice cream. The mall was very similar to America’s malls. One thing that I did notice was how fashionable the people of Thailand are. The clothes are very stylish. My first day in Thailand was really good. I love the scenery and the people are so friendly.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
"What makes a country so rich are the people"
Journal #24 March 9, 2009
Today was my last day in India. I have mixed emotions about leaving. I loved India so much I did not want to leave, but I did want to get back on the ship and head for Thailand. I woke up around 9, got ready and took a taxi to Spencers Plaza to meet up with Sayeed. Meghan, Elise, Alexandria, and I went together. We spent a while in his shop buying some stuff and then he took us to his house were we had cookies and tea. The tea was awesome. It was saffron, sugar, and cinnamon. SOOOOO GOOD!!!!
We then went to a fish market so see what that was like. It smelt pretty bad and there were bugs everywhere but it was still interesting to see. Then me and Meghan had to leave early and head back to the ship to go on an SAS trip. It was hard saying goodbye to Sayeed and his wife. They had taken care of me and been so nice and this was probably the last time I was going to be able to see them.
I got back to the ship on time and headed out for my next trip. I was going on a trip that showed the socioeconomic problems in India. We were headed to the poorest area in India. I knew this was going to be a hard trip but I was really excited. We took a bus for about 45 min and arrived at the town that was the most destroyed by the tsunami in 2004. It was right across from the beach and all the homes were built on sand. We walked through the town for about a mile and were able to see the smiling faces of all the residents.
Our fist destination was a school for disabled children. This was probably my favorite part. The kids were soo happy and cute. We were able to dance with the kids and play games with them. One of the girls went to the special Olympics in Italy and won the silver medal. She was my favorite. We were able to communicate with our hands and she told me all about her plane ride to Italy. We took lots of pictures. I was extremely humbled by the way the teachers help these children and love them unconditionally. The children made necklaces and baskets that were really cool.
After the school we went to a building of women who were in a self help group. There was about 30 women in the building and all of them were from the town and had been with the group for over a year, but no longer then 5 years. Each of these women joined this group so they could supply for their family and be able to send their kids to school. A lot of the women had raised over $10,000 and was able to give others loans to help their kids. These groups of women were just amazing in my eyes. They come from a culture where women do not take role in their supplying for their families, but they want their children to have a better education and to have clothes and a home to live in. I was amazed at their courage and determination for their families. As we were leaving, children and parents from the town came around the bus and just wanted to meet us. We got many pictures of the kids and every time I took one they made me show them on my digital camera. It was crazy how this is the first time that they have ever seen a camera like this.
When I got back onto the ship I went straight to my room and just cried. It was not a cry of feeling sad for these people or of my being homesick, but rather a cry of amazement. The people of India are some of the nicest people I have ever met. They are the happiest and have no worries. They have barely anything but act like they have the world. I wish every person in the US could come to India and see what I have seen. India is truly one of the greatest places on earth. Who cares if the air is so dirty every time you breath you inhale smoke, who cares if there is dirt on every inch of the ground, who cares if there are homeless people sleeping in the medians at night, because what makes a country so rich are the people in the country. And in my standards India is the richest country of all. I really do hope to come back one day, and bring my family and friends. Because I want them to see how great of a country India is.
Love
Michelle
Today was my last day in India. I have mixed emotions about leaving. I loved India so much I did not want to leave, but I did want to get back on the ship and head for Thailand. I woke up around 9, got ready and took a taxi to Spencers Plaza to meet up with Sayeed. Meghan, Elise, Alexandria, and I went together. We spent a while in his shop buying some stuff and then he took us to his house were we had cookies and tea. The tea was awesome. It was saffron, sugar, and cinnamon. SOOOOO GOOD!!!!
We then went to a fish market so see what that was like. It smelt pretty bad and there were bugs everywhere but it was still interesting to see. Then me and Meghan had to leave early and head back to the ship to go on an SAS trip. It was hard saying goodbye to Sayeed and his wife. They had taken care of me and been so nice and this was probably the last time I was going to be able to see them.
I got back to the ship on time and headed out for my next trip. I was going on a trip that showed the socioeconomic problems in India. We were headed to the poorest area in India. I knew this was going to be a hard trip but I was really excited. We took a bus for about 45 min and arrived at the town that was the most destroyed by the tsunami in 2004. It was right across from the beach and all the homes were built on sand. We walked through the town for about a mile and were able to see the smiling faces of all the residents.
Our fist destination was a school for disabled children. This was probably my favorite part. The kids were soo happy and cute. We were able to dance with the kids and play games with them. One of the girls went to the special Olympics in Italy and won the silver medal. She was my favorite. We were able to communicate with our hands and she told me all about her plane ride to Italy. We took lots of pictures. I was extremely humbled by the way the teachers help these children and love them unconditionally. The children made necklaces and baskets that were really cool.
After the school we went to a building of women who were in a self help group. There was about 30 women in the building and all of them were from the town and had been with the group for over a year, but no longer then 5 years. Each of these women joined this group so they could supply for their family and be able to send their kids to school. A lot of the women had raised over $10,000 and was able to give others loans to help their kids. These groups of women were just amazing in my eyes. They come from a culture where women do not take role in their supplying for their families, but they want their children to have a better education and to have clothes and a home to live in. I was amazed at their courage and determination for their families. As we were leaving, children and parents from the town came around the bus and just wanted to meet us. We got many pictures of the kids and every time I took one they made me show them on my digital camera. It was crazy how this is the first time that they have ever seen a camera like this.
When I got back onto the ship I went straight to my room and just cried. It was not a cry of feeling sad for these people or of my being homesick, but rather a cry of amazement. The people of India are some of the nicest people I have ever met. They are the happiest and have no worries. They have barely anything but act like they have the world. I wish every person in the US could come to India and see what I have seen. India is truly one of the greatest places on earth. Who cares if the air is so dirty every time you breath you inhale smoke, who cares if there is dirt on every inch of the ground, who cares if there are homeless people sleeping in the medians at night, because what makes a country so rich are the people in the country. And in my standards India is the richest country of all. I really do hope to come back one day, and bring my family and friends. Because I want them to see how great of a country India is.
Love
Michelle
Monday, March 9, 2009
Adventures in India
Journal #23 March 8, 2009
On Friday March 6th I woke up early to head to Agra to see the Taj Mahal!!! It took us about 40 min to get to the air port. The air ports were very similar to the ones in the US. High security, no liquids, and so on. The seats on the air planes recline so much further than other air planes though! We flew into New Dahli and had to take a train to Agra. The train station was just like the one in Slumdog Millionaire, lots of people and very busy. We had about a 2 and a half hour train ride, 5 hours later we arrived in Agra. I have never been so anxious to get off a train.
It was 11 at night and we had not eaten since breakfast. It was not a good day of traveling. Everyone was cranky and tired. It was also sad because a family was with us and they had a one year old daughter. She did so amazing during the trip, but I felt so bad cause she was soooo tired and could not sleep because the train would stop almost every 15 min.
So when we arrived we went straight to the hotel and ate dinner. We stayed at the “holiday inn.” The food was sooo good I think I ate 2 little children. Me and Elise were roommates, thank goodness. We had an early wake up call so we went to bed early, we were going to see the Taj Mahal!!!!
So on Saturday we left the hotel at 6 am. When we got to the Taj we had about a half mile walk and there were beggers and people selling stuff. It was a little overwhelming. We had to wait in line for about 20 min. In front of my group was a couple from India but now lived in Canada. They were really nice and told us how much we really needed to pay the sellers. The men and the women had to stand in separate lines to get through security. At one point we had about 8 Indian women try to cut through our group. They were pushing us shoving us into the people in front of us. The lady from Canada told the security guards and they came over with their guns and started yelling at the women. I was never really scared at this moment but a little startled at how mad the women got at us.
So when I got to security I walked through the metal detector and they searched my purse. They told me that I was not allowed to take my deck of cards in, I was a little startled by that. They said that I had to take it to the lockers and pay to keep them there. I said I would just throw them away but they got mad at me and said “No take to locker.” Thank goodness the lady from Canada had to put stuff in the lockers too because it was about a mile walk away from the Taj. The entire way she told me how to deal with the men at the lockers, to follow her lead because they will try to charge me more. She taught me several words that I would need to know. I was just a little frightened. So it worked out well, I got a locker for my deck of cards and headed back to the Taj. I was soooo thankful that lady was with me.
When we got back inside I realized that my group had left me. A little frightened because I was not with the lady anymore I started walking really fast. Then I got to an area where it split into three different parts, which way to go?? I was starting to get really scared. So I picked the left and I am super glad I did because about a miles walk and I was with my group. When we were able to see the Taj I was pretty much blown away. It is sooo gorgeous. I can not imagine that a king would build this to show his love for his wife. A year ago I never would have thought that I would be standing in the same place where one of the 7 wonders of the world is. After all the scariness, tiredness, and upsetness, I had no worries. I WAS AT THE TAJ MAHAL!!!
ME AND MY ROOMMATE MEGHAN AT THE Taj Mahal!
The gardens were immaculate, the marble was just gorgeous, and the architecture was magnificent. How could they have built this so well so long ago. We walked around for about and hour and just took a lot of pictures.
MONKEYS OUTSIDE THE TAJ MAHAL!
After going back to the hotel and getting dinner we headed to a palace. The palace was about an hour away from the hotel but we rode through cities that were fascinating to look at. I was able to see people in their everyday lives at work. The palace was pretty cool, but my favorite part was when some boys jumped into a pool about 50 feet high to show off and get some money from us. The pool was soooo gross and you could see the dirt spreading when they jumped in. I gave them some good money for doing that.
Then we headed back to the hotel for lunch and then we proceeded to a fort in Agra. The fort was really cool and pretty. At this point I was getting a little tired :) The fort was cool because our group was sitting waiting and a group of Indian College students were all in a line taking a picture about 50 feet from us, so we all go in a line behind them without them knowing and they took the picture, when they noticed they got really excited and had to take several pictures with us. Not a single word was exchanged during this encounter between any of us and I could tell that we all were enjoying the same experience and know how similar our lives were.
When we left the fort we were taken to a place where marble accessories were made. That was pretty cool and I was able to buy a marble Taj Mahal. We then proceeded to the Taj for the sun set. Elise, Thomas, and I went on an adventure and went into the Mosque, took a bunch of pictures, and Thomas got attacked by monkeys. That was really funny but scary :)
When we left we headed to the train station to head back to Dahli. The train station was extremely hard for me. This was the first time that I was actually impacted by the children begging for food. The children had several problems with their bodies, some had clef lips, some were missing limbs, and some could not even walk. It was heartbreaking. I sat there and tried to hold back the tears but I was unsuccessful. It was so hard not to give those kids some food, they were not even begging for money, just food. I knew that if I gave one of them food they all would come running.
The train ride was much better then the last. We were on the express train so we got there in one and a half hours. When we arrived at the hotel I was amazed at the gloriousness of it. It is called the Lalit and is probably one of the nicest hotels I have ever stayed in. The beds were sooo comfortable and the pillows were so soft. I fell asleep watching homeward bound. We were able to sleep in a little bit but I woke up early for breakfast. OMG, the breakfast was awesome. Probably best yet. They had every type of breakfast food possible. They had from doughnuts to smokes salmon, from omelets to Japanese stir fry. They had everything.
When we got ready everyone headed to the Red Fort. When we got there it was closed because the ex-President of Pakistan was there. I was a little sad but right as we were about to get on the bus they opened it. So that was perfect timing, oh yeah I forgot to tell you. We were running about 30 min late because a boy on our trip PJ got drunk the night before and passed out outside on the patio of the hotel, and was woken up 10 min before we left. So it was actually perfect that this incident happened because we would have missed the fort.
But anyway, the fort was pretty cool. We only were there for about an hour and then headed for lunch. We went to a local restaurant where they served us chicken nuggets and ice cream, haha, not very local.
Well, it was time for us to leave Dahli. The flight was pretty good, I slept most of the way. The plane was full of SAS students. When we were leaving the airport my group was the first to leave, we had 5 other busses behind I was so proud of ourselves because we knew the line would be soooo long to get on the ship if we were the last bus to get there. As we were driving a bus passed us and we all started screaming, it was a race, our bus driver kept trying to pass them but was not successful. Finally right before the port be cut them off and we were first!!!! But then we stopped a the gate, our bus driver did not have the paper work to get through the gate :( we sat there for probably 10 min watching every bus pass us in the time being. Ahhhhhhhh we were sooo close.
It took us about an hour to wait in line and get all our bags checked, not a very fun night. We were all so tired and crabby. When I got on I headed up to our private dinner on the ship and then headed to bed, it had been a long day and a long trip. I really enjoyed my trip! The people on it were really fun and the places I went were really cool. I would have to say my favorite part was the Taj Mahal though!! I mean how could you not love seeing one of the seven wonders of the world. I really enjoyed Dahli but Agra was not my favorite place. If I ever come back to India I would definitely stay in the Lalit in Dahil.
I hope everyone is doing well.
Love
Michelle
On Friday March 6th I woke up early to head to Agra to see the Taj Mahal!!! It took us about 40 min to get to the air port. The air ports were very similar to the ones in the US. High security, no liquids, and so on. The seats on the air planes recline so much further than other air planes though! We flew into New Dahli and had to take a train to Agra. The train station was just like the one in Slumdog Millionaire, lots of people and very busy. We had about a 2 and a half hour train ride, 5 hours later we arrived in Agra. I have never been so anxious to get off a train.
It was 11 at night and we had not eaten since breakfast. It was not a good day of traveling. Everyone was cranky and tired. It was also sad because a family was with us and they had a one year old daughter. She did so amazing during the trip, but I felt so bad cause she was soooo tired and could not sleep because the train would stop almost every 15 min.
So when we arrived we went straight to the hotel and ate dinner. We stayed at the “holiday inn.” The food was sooo good I think I ate 2 little children. Me and Elise were roommates, thank goodness. We had an early wake up call so we went to bed early, we were going to see the Taj Mahal!!!!
So on Saturday we left the hotel at 6 am. When we got to the Taj we had about a half mile walk and there were beggers and people selling stuff. It was a little overwhelming. We had to wait in line for about 20 min. In front of my group was a couple from India but now lived in Canada. They were really nice and told us how much we really needed to pay the sellers. The men and the women had to stand in separate lines to get through security. At one point we had about 8 Indian women try to cut through our group. They were pushing us shoving us into the people in front of us. The lady from Canada told the security guards and they came over with their guns and started yelling at the women. I was never really scared at this moment but a little startled at how mad the women got at us.
So when I got to security I walked through the metal detector and they searched my purse. They told me that I was not allowed to take my deck of cards in, I was a little startled by that. They said that I had to take it to the lockers and pay to keep them there. I said I would just throw them away but they got mad at me and said “No take to locker.” Thank goodness the lady from Canada had to put stuff in the lockers too because it was about a mile walk away from the Taj. The entire way she told me how to deal with the men at the lockers, to follow her lead because they will try to charge me more. She taught me several words that I would need to know. I was just a little frightened. So it worked out well, I got a locker for my deck of cards and headed back to the Taj. I was soooo thankful that lady was with me.
When we got back inside I realized that my group had left me. A little frightened because I was not with the lady anymore I started walking really fast. Then I got to an area where it split into three different parts, which way to go?? I was starting to get really scared. So I picked the left and I am super glad I did because about a miles walk and I was with my group. When we were able to see the Taj I was pretty much blown away. It is sooo gorgeous. I can not imagine that a king would build this to show his love for his wife. A year ago I never would have thought that I would be standing in the same place where one of the 7 wonders of the world is. After all the scariness, tiredness, and upsetness, I had no worries. I WAS AT THE TAJ MAHAL!!!
ME AND MY ROOMMATE MEGHAN AT THE Taj Mahal!
The gardens were immaculate, the marble was just gorgeous, and the architecture was magnificent. How could they have built this so well so long ago. We walked around for about and hour and just took a lot of pictures.
MONKEYS OUTSIDE THE TAJ MAHAL!
After going back to the hotel and getting dinner we headed to a palace. The palace was about an hour away from the hotel but we rode through cities that were fascinating to look at. I was able to see people in their everyday lives at work. The palace was pretty cool, but my favorite part was when some boys jumped into a pool about 50 feet high to show off and get some money from us. The pool was soooo gross and you could see the dirt spreading when they jumped in. I gave them some good money for doing that.
Then we headed back to the hotel for lunch and then we proceeded to a fort in Agra. The fort was really cool and pretty. At this point I was getting a little tired :) The fort was cool because our group was sitting waiting and a group of Indian College students were all in a line taking a picture about 50 feet from us, so we all go in a line behind them without them knowing and they took the picture, when they noticed they got really excited and had to take several pictures with us. Not a single word was exchanged during this encounter between any of us and I could tell that we all were enjoying the same experience and know how similar our lives were.
When we left the fort we were taken to a place where marble accessories were made. That was pretty cool and I was able to buy a marble Taj Mahal. We then proceeded to the Taj for the sun set. Elise, Thomas, and I went on an adventure and went into the Mosque, took a bunch of pictures, and Thomas got attacked by monkeys. That was really funny but scary :)
When we left we headed to the train station to head back to Dahli. The train station was extremely hard for me. This was the first time that I was actually impacted by the children begging for food. The children had several problems with their bodies, some had clef lips, some were missing limbs, and some could not even walk. It was heartbreaking. I sat there and tried to hold back the tears but I was unsuccessful. It was so hard not to give those kids some food, they were not even begging for money, just food. I knew that if I gave one of them food they all would come running.
The train ride was much better then the last. We were on the express train so we got there in one and a half hours. When we arrived at the hotel I was amazed at the gloriousness of it. It is called the Lalit and is probably one of the nicest hotels I have ever stayed in. The beds were sooo comfortable and the pillows were so soft. I fell asleep watching homeward bound. We were able to sleep in a little bit but I woke up early for breakfast. OMG, the breakfast was awesome. Probably best yet. They had every type of breakfast food possible. They had from doughnuts to smokes salmon, from omelets to Japanese stir fry. They had everything.
When we got ready everyone headed to the Red Fort. When we got there it was closed because the ex-President of Pakistan was there. I was a little sad but right as we were about to get on the bus they opened it. So that was perfect timing, oh yeah I forgot to tell you. We were running about 30 min late because a boy on our trip PJ got drunk the night before and passed out outside on the patio of the hotel, and was woken up 10 min before we left. So it was actually perfect that this incident happened because we would have missed the fort.
But anyway, the fort was pretty cool. We only were there for about an hour and then headed for lunch. We went to a local restaurant where they served us chicken nuggets and ice cream, haha, not very local.
Well, it was time for us to leave Dahli. The flight was pretty good, I slept most of the way. The plane was full of SAS students. When we were leaving the airport my group was the first to leave, we had 5 other busses behind I was so proud of ourselves because we knew the line would be soooo long to get on the ship if we were the last bus to get there. As we were driving a bus passed us and we all started screaming, it was a race, our bus driver kept trying to pass them but was not successful. Finally right before the port be cut them off and we were first!!!! But then we stopped a the gate, our bus driver did not have the paper work to get through the gate :( we sat there for probably 10 min watching every bus pass us in the time being. Ahhhhhhhh we were sooo close.
It took us about an hour to wait in line and get all our bags checked, not a very fun night. We were all so tired and crabby. When I got on I headed up to our private dinner on the ship and then headed to bed, it had been a long day and a long trip. I really enjoyed my trip! The people on it were really fun and the places I went were really cool. I would have to say my favorite part was the Taj Mahal though!! I mean how could you not love seeing one of the seven wonders of the world. I really enjoyed Dahli but Agra was not my favorite place. If I ever come back to India I would definitely stay in the Lalit in Dahil.
I hope everyone is doing well.
Love
Michelle
Thursday, March 5, 2009
The Best Day of My Entire Life!
Journal #22 March 5, 2009
I am sitting here in my bed completely speechless. I have had to most amazing day!!! As I got off the ship I knew I would be a completely different person when I got back on the boat later that day. I have been hearing all week how India is going to change my life. But I never thought I was going to feel like this.
As I left the port I was a little overwhelmed by the ambush of taxi drivers. Even if you did not need a taxi they would still pull at your arms asking where we wanted him to take us. I was a little scared. When we finally found a taxi we headed towards Spence’s Palace, we were gonna do a little shopping first. I was scared for my life while the taxi driver was driving, hahahha. There are no lines on the road so anyone could drive where ever they wanted. Americans would not be able to function if this was our driving system. I give the people of India credit for being such good drivers.
When we got to the mall we went into a store called “Indian Cottage.”I have never met such nice people in my entire life. The owner was Mohd Sayed and he treated us so well, and we got some great things. For about 2 hours we just did some more shopping and ate some lunch, then as we were leaving we ran into a guy that worked at the same shop. He asked us where we were going and he said that he would take us there for free. So Mohd took us to a place where they sold silk fabric. Mohd told us about his life and many stories about India. He then proceeded to invite us to his house and have dinner with his wife and kids. His two children are in college studying engineering so he wanted to get us together and talk about our schooling. I thought to myself what would my parents do? I knew that they would be cautious about going to a strangers house but I felt really safe with Mohd, and plus there was three of us going. Mohd kind of also reminded me of my dad and so I knew he would be an amazing hostess and treat us well. Hence, we decided to go have dinner at his house.
So when we got to the silk shop it was a huge building just full of fabric. There was only men working. My friends got some fabric and we headed back to the ship to freshen up and get ready for the nights festivities. When we headed out to the shops to meet up with Mohd we had some complications. We had 10 min to get to the shops and none of the taxi drivers wanted to give us a deal. So we rode in two person bike carriages, we knew it would take us about 30 min to get to the mall.
When we reached the port exit he told us to get out and get in an auto rickshaw. This is a very small looking boxlike thing, i'll post some pics, that I guess is kind of like a car but with no doors. I was quite scared for my life again. Thank goodness we got there in one piece!!! So we were about 20 min late but Mohd did not care. He is such a care free guy who just wants to meet people and get to know them. So as we arrived we met his son Thouseef. He is 20 years old and is studying mechanical engn. He just like his dad and is very nice. We stayed in their shop for a little while and just talked about life. Me and Thouseef had a lot in common so it was fun to talk about classes and such. I told him he should come to the US for grad school :)
It was about a 5 min drive from the mall to their house. They live in an apartment building on the 3rd floor. Right as I walked through the door I knew I was in for a great night. Mohd’s wife welcomed us in with loving arms. We sat and watched TV and I was able to meet their daughter. Her name is Maseeha who is 21 years old and is studying electrical engn. I also was able to talk to her about classes. Their house had pretty decorations and looked out on a type of court yard.
When dinner was ready I startled when none of them sat down to eat with us. Mohd told us that it is apart of the Indian culture to serve the guests and let them eat and then eat after they are done, this way the guest can eat as much as they want.
However, let me tell you how good the food was!!!!!!!! There was chicken, fish, curry dip, sheep, cucumbers, bread, rice, and more rice, and soooo much more. The food was the best food I have tried in a really long time.
At the dinner table we were able to talk about several different things. We talked about the government in India, and Obama, and how the schooling systems differ from the US, and arranged marriages, and so much more. I learned that the Universities in India are very similar to the Universities in the States except for the fact that they do not have weekends and they go to class from 8-5 every single day. The only days they get off are 2 Sundays every 2 months. No wonder people from India are so smart.
So after everyone was done with dinner, Maseeha offered to give us hena tattoos. She is so talented. I can not even explain how cool the designs she did on my arm and hand. During this time Thouseef got us some ice cream which was so good. I can not even tell you how honored I felt to be at the Sayeed house spending time with them. We talked for about another 30 min and then decided to head home. Maseeha and Thouseef were going to drive 2 on their motorcycles and Mohd was going to drive two in his car. I was one of the lucky ones to ride the motorcycle. I knew it was going to be safer then during the day because it was 11:30 at night and traffic would not be bad.
So, im sorry mom and dad but I had to not let this chance pass by me, I hopped on the back of Maseeha’s bike, with no helmet, again im sorry mom and dad, and headed back to the ship. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done!!!!!! The wind blowing my hair and me not thinking about a single thing. As we got back to our ship we said our sad goodbyes and parted ways.
I am truly thankful for my time that I have spent with the Sayeed family. It is because of them that I have had the best day of my entire life. I know that whenever I think of India I will think of my Indian family and how much fun we had together.
I still am in a little shock not realizing what really happened to me today. It only seems yesterday I was in Norfolk either going to work, spending time with friends and family, or going to school. And today I met the most amazing family in INDIA!! I hope to keep in touch with my “family ”and maybe we will soon see each other one day and I hope that who ever is reading this will one day find a family like I have found today and cherish them forever.
“I have found my seavus”– Les McCabe
Love
Michelle
I am sitting here in my bed completely speechless. I have had to most amazing day!!! As I got off the ship I knew I would be a completely different person when I got back on the boat later that day. I have been hearing all week how India is going to change my life. But I never thought I was going to feel like this.
As I left the port I was a little overwhelmed by the ambush of taxi drivers. Even if you did not need a taxi they would still pull at your arms asking where we wanted him to take us. I was a little scared. When we finally found a taxi we headed towards Spence’s Palace, we were gonna do a little shopping first. I was scared for my life while the taxi driver was driving, hahahha. There are no lines on the road so anyone could drive where ever they wanted. Americans would not be able to function if this was our driving system. I give the people of India credit for being such good drivers.
When we got to the mall we went into a store called “Indian Cottage.”I have never met such nice people in my entire life. The owner was Mohd Sayed and he treated us so well, and we got some great things. For about 2 hours we just did some more shopping and ate some lunch, then as we were leaving we ran into a guy that worked at the same shop. He asked us where we were going and he said that he would take us there for free. So Mohd took us to a place where they sold silk fabric. Mohd told us about his life and many stories about India. He then proceeded to invite us to his house and have dinner with his wife and kids. His two children are in college studying engineering so he wanted to get us together and talk about our schooling. I thought to myself what would my parents do? I knew that they would be cautious about going to a strangers house but I felt really safe with Mohd, and plus there was three of us going. Mohd kind of also reminded me of my dad and so I knew he would be an amazing hostess and treat us well. Hence, we decided to go have dinner at his house.
So when we got to the silk shop it was a huge building just full of fabric. There was only men working. My friends got some fabric and we headed back to the ship to freshen up and get ready for the nights festivities. When we headed out to the shops to meet up with Mohd we had some complications. We had 10 min to get to the shops and none of the taxi drivers wanted to give us a deal. So we rode in two person bike carriages, we knew it would take us about 30 min to get to the mall.
When we reached the port exit he told us to get out and get in an auto rickshaw. This is a very small looking boxlike thing, i'll post some pics, that I guess is kind of like a car but with no doors. I was quite scared for my life again. Thank goodness we got there in one piece!!! So we were about 20 min late but Mohd did not care. He is such a care free guy who just wants to meet people and get to know them. So as we arrived we met his son Thouseef. He is 20 years old and is studying mechanical engn. He just like his dad and is very nice. We stayed in their shop for a little while and just talked about life. Me and Thouseef had a lot in common so it was fun to talk about classes and such. I told him he should come to the US for grad school :)
It was about a 5 min drive from the mall to their house. They live in an apartment building on the 3rd floor. Right as I walked through the door I knew I was in for a great night. Mohd’s wife welcomed us in with loving arms. We sat and watched TV and I was able to meet their daughter. Her name is Maseeha who is 21 years old and is studying electrical engn. I also was able to talk to her about classes. Their house had pretty decorations and looked out on a type of court yard.
When dinner was ready I startled when none of them sat down to eat with us. Mohd told us that it is apart of the Indian culture to serve the guests and let them eat and then eat after they are done, this way the guest can eat as much as they want.
However, let me tell you how good the food was!!!!!!!! There was chicken, fish, curry dip, sheep, cucumbers, bread, rice, and more rice, and soooo much more. The food was the best food I have tried in a really long time.
At the dinner table we were able to talk about several different things. We talked about the government in India, and Obama, and how the schooling systems differ from the US, and arranged marriages, and so much more. I learned that the Universities in India are very similar to the Universities in the States except for the fact that they do not have weekends and they go to class from 8-5 every single day. The only days they get off are 2 Sundays every 2 months. No wonder people from India are so smart.
So after everyone was done with dinner, Maseeha offered to give us hena tattoos. She is so talented. I can not even explain how cool the designs she did on my arm and hand. During this time Thouseef got us some ice cream which was so good. I can not even tell you how honored I felt to be at the Sayeed house spending time with them. We talked for about another 30 min and then decided to head home. Maseeha and Thouseef were going to drive 2 on their motorcycles and Mohd was going to drive two in his car. I was one of the lucky ones to ride the motorcycle. I knew it was going to be safer then during the day because it was 11:30 at night and traffic would not be bad.
So, im sorry mom and dad but I had to not let this chance pass by me, I hopped on the back of Maseeha’s bike, with no helmet, again im sorry mom and dad, and headed back to the ship. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done!!!!!! The wind blowing my hair and me not thinking about a single thing. As we got back to our ship we said our sad goodbyes and parted ways.
I am truly thankful for my time that I have spent with the Sayeed family. It is because of them that I have had the best day of my entire life. I know that whenever I think of India I will think of my Indian family and how much fun we had together.
I still am in a little shock not realizing what really happened to me today. It only seems yesterday I was in Norfolk either going to work, spending time with friends and family, or going to school. And today I met the most amazing family in INDIA!! I hope to keep in touch with my “family ”and maybe we will soon see each other one day and I hope that who ever is reading this will one day find a family like I have found today and cherish them forever.
“I have found my seavus”– Les McCabe
Love
Michelle
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
The Beautiful Indian Ocean!
Journal #21 March 3, 2009
Well, I guess most of you guys have realized how busy I am. I have been doing a lot of school work and getting prepared for India. The day after Mauritius we had or sea Olympics, there were a total of 10 seas competing against each other and I was on the red sea. At the beginning of the day my sea was not doing so hot. There were many competitions; such as, pictionary, treasure hunts, tug of war, volleyball, dodge ball, sudoku, and many more. There was even a flip cup one, don’t worry it was with water, I watched this one and my sea won!! That was really exciting.
So during the middle of the day we started catching up. But the Pink team was doing really well. I made my roommate sign up for the M&M eating competition. This is where you had to put your face in a pile of whip cream and find 10 M&M’s hahahhahha, she got 2nd place!!!
So anyway, the day went great everyone had fun and it was pretty well organized. At the end of the day it was the closing ceremonies and they announced the winners. By the way the winners get to get off the ship first in Florida, I think I already told u that. Well, the red sea GOT 2ND!!!!!!!! The Pink team won, but we still got 2nd out of 10!!! So that was pretty exciting.
Other then that I have been going to classes and enjoying my free time. By the way, the water in the Indian Ocean is absolutely beautiful, it is like nothing I have ever seen. I did not even know that it could be soooo blue. I wish everyone could see what I was talking about but maybe one day yall will have the chance to see it. Also the sunsets are gorgeous, something about the Indian Ocean just makes everything more beautiful. A lot of times I just sit out there by myself watching the sun go down wondering how it is so immaculate. The colors are beautiful and they change so quickly, from yellow to orange the purple to black, its mind blowing. I have also seen a lot of animals, we see a lot of flying fish, and today I saw dolphins!!! They were so pretty.
Well after tomorrow we arrive in India. I can not wait to get there and see how awesome it is. We have been having a lot of speakers from India talk and they just rave about it. The first thing I am going to do when I get there is buy a kurta. I hope everyone is doing well at home!!
Love
Michelle
Also, If you guys go to www.semesteratsea.org click on spring 2009 you can watch some slide shows from our trip. If you watch the ones from Spain and Namibia I am in it a couple of times.
Well, I guess most of you guys have realized how busy I am. I have been doing a lot of school work and getting prepared for India. The day after Mauritius we had or sea Olympics, there were a total of 10 seas competing against each other and I was on the red sea. At the beginning of the day my sea was not doing so hot. There were many competitions; such as, pictionary, treasure hunts, tug of war, volleyball, dodge ball, sudoku, and many more. There was even a flip cup one, don’t worry it was with water, I watched this one and my sea won!! That was really exciting.
So during the middle of the day we started catching up. But the Pink team was doing really well. I made my roommate sign up for the M&M eating competition. This is where you had to put your face in a pile of whip cream and find 10 M&M’s hahahhahha, she got 2nd place!!!
So anyway, the day went great everyone had fun and it was pretty well organized. At the end of the day it was the closing ceremonies and they announced the winners. By the way the winners get to get off the ship first in Florida, I think I already told u that. Well, the red sea GOT 2ND!!!!!!!! The Pink team won, but we still got 2nd out of 10!!! So that was pretty exciting.
Other then that I have been going to classes and enjoying my free time. By the way, the water in the Indian Ocean is absolutely beautiful, it is like nothing I have ever seen. I did not even know that it could be soooo blue. I wish everyone could see what I was talking about but maybe one day yall will have the chance to see it. Also the sunsets are gorgeous, something about the Indian Ocean just makes everything more beautiful. A lot of times I just sit out there by myself watching the sun go down wondering how it is so immaculate. The colors are beautiful and they change so quickly, from yellow to orange the purple to black, its mind blowing. I have also seen a lot of animals, we see a lot of flying fish, and today I saw dolphins!!! They were so pretty.
Well after tomorrow we arrive in India. I can not wait to get there and see how awesome it is. We have been having a lot of speakers from India talk and they just rave about it. The first thing I am going to do when I get there is buy a kurta. I hope everyone is doing well at home!!
Love
Michelle
Also, If you guys go to www.semesteratsea.org click on spring 2009 you can watch some slide shows from our trip. If you watch the ones from Spain and Namibia I am in it a couple of times.
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