Interesting things while at sea:
Due to high winds, our ship did not leave Jetty 2 until the following morning. We then waited at a bunkering station in Cape Town until about 3 pm, when our ship was full of fuel. The stretch from Cape Town to Mauritius was the roughest seas we have encountered thus far. We were forced to change paths to avoid the rough seas attributed to a cyclone about 400 miles off the coast of Madagascar. When we finally arrived in Port Louis, Mauritius we were 4 hours late.
Mauritius:
We spotted Mauritius on the horizon and it became clearer and clearer that this was going to be one of the more beautiful places that we would visit. The contrast of beautiful beaches with high green mountains was quite amazing. We arrived in Mauritius at about noon and we (Alex, Alissa, Jay, Casey, Chris, Joanne and Kevin) were able to roam around Port Louis for a couple hours before meeting Venkat and Meliga. They are the parents of Valma, one of Joanne’s co-workers from St. Jude. We sat with them for a while discussing everything about Mauritius from politics to energy policies. They are both so well informed about the island, have such interesting life stories (Venkat was a member of parliament and principal of a school) and made perfect guides. After our firing squad of questions, they took us on a walking tour of the city. We visited the garden and craft market, fish market, Chinatown, and walked up to the citadel (a fort overlooking the city). Mauritius is a great mixture of cultures; a blend of African, French, Indian, and Chinese that is unique to the world. It was a bit more Indian influenced than I was expecting and turned out to be a good prep for India. After seeing the Parliament building, Supreme Court, and City Hall of Port Louis, we separated from Venkat and Meliga and decided to crack and get some Pizza Hut. We were all at a point were we just needed some food that was familiar and greasy. After this we went to a local sports bar for drinks and brownies. It was just what the stomach had ordered.
The next morning a taxi driver that had been arranged by Venkat and Meliga met Joanne, Kevin and me. We traveled around the Northern side of the island. Every bend seemed to be more scenic. We passed beautiful beaches and beach towns, sugar cane fields and small fishing villages and could not help stopping every few miles to take pictures. We even came across a water ski course that had me wishing I had a boat, a rope, and my ski with me. We then stopped at a small tourist village that sold trips to Ile de Cerf, a nearby island known for its snorkeling, waterfalls, and water sports. We took a powerboat out to the island and then made arrangements to get a personal boat for some snorkeling. The water was a clear, beautiful blue-green that made seeing an assortment of corals, fishes and other marine species quite easy. We stayed out for about an hour watching all the various colorful fishes and corals. After we were exhausted, we headed back to the island for a delicious lunch. We met up again with our taxi driver after our return voyage on a small rickety boat powered by a 5 hp engine. Our return voyage was quite amusing because it was raining quite a bit and because of this the driver decided to go the shorter route but ended up getting us beached on some shallow waters. Luckily we could be freed by a combination of men jumping out of the boat and pushing and a bit of luck. We then headed to through the interior of Mauritius to the Venkatasomy’s house for some drinks and “snacks”. Meliga was so kind, providing us with a full meal of traditional Mauritian snacks. We returned to the ship and amazingly the taxi was only $40 for the entire day; imagine that in Los Angeles.
The following day the Venkatasomys met us with a van to tour the city. We had a whole van as Gary and Diana, Jay, Alissa, Joanne and Kevin, Gloria Rudolf (my Anthropology Professor), and I all decided that this would be a great adventure. We went through the middle of the island to the water reservoir where we noticed a flat tire. I guess my weight just was too much for the tire to handle. The flat tire was replaced by an even more flat spare tire. We decided to wait for the van to fill up the spare tire at a nearby Hindu temple. There is a hundred foot bronze statue of Shiva, the Hindu god of creation and destruction. The temple was above a lake with stairs down to statues of the three main gods and space to pray. It is one of the holiest Hindu sites outside of India and was quite beautiful. Our hour-long wait was a great opportunity for me to discuss religion and physics with Venkat (a physicist by training). After getting a scenic, albeit indirect, drive we stopped at a fancy restaurant that overlooked the ocean. There was a beautiful wood deck with tables and a 180 degree view of the ocean. The food was fantastic but the view was definitely the best part of the restaurant. The restaurant was next to a museum of wood and its many uses. It was actually a pretty cool museum that had examples of all the forms that wood can take, from boats to furniture to instruments and much more. After visiting the museum, we headed to Flic en Flac beach. We went swimming at the favorite Mauritian beach for about an hour until it began downpouring. We parted ways with the Venkatasomys after driving back to the ship and boarded the ship to head off India. I would like to thank the Venkatasomys very much for being so welcoming and informative.
Things I’ve Learned In Mauritus:
-Rough seas can be quite uplifting, especially for food.
-Politicians don’t like clever people.
-Flat tires happen in Mauritius too.
-Coral does not make nice sand.
-Monkeys like to show off for an audience.
-You can abandon your gender, but not your sex.
-U-turns on a cliff are an acceptable maneuver.
-We must do all we can to avoid perpetuating the American stereotype.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Alissa and Mauritius
Hey everyone,
It’s been a while since the last time I have written. Sorry for the delay, but after South Africa the waters were very rough and I stayed in bed most of the week. Since Chris has given a detailed look at what we did in South Africa, I will skip right to Mauritius. The day we arrived in Mauritius, we were 4 hours late due to the cyclone nearby, so I missed the excursion that I had planned for that day. I was supposed to go on a hike in the mountains and swim in waterfalls. It probably would have been a lot of fun, but instead I just walked around the port. I was happy to do this because Thursday was really the only day that I would be able to see the markets and the main city. As we went ashore, a group of us, including all of the Malottes met up with Maliga and Venkat, the parents of someone Joanne works with. We first relaxed at a hotel with them and enjoyed some conversation about Mauritius. Then we left the hotel and walked around the city. This included looking through the marketplace, going in a fish market (which smelled really bad especially since I hate fish), walking up to a fort, walking through China town, and looking at all the beautiful buildings Mauritius has to offer. Once we were done walking through the city, Maliga and Venkat left to go home and the rest of us had dinner. Joanne and Kevin ate at a Chinese restaurant, I ate at a little fast food place, and everyone else ate pizza from Pizza Hut. Once all the kids were done eating, we had to wait for Joanne and Kevin so we decided to go into a Sports Bar restaurant and have some brownie sundaes. They were delicious!!! Once we were finally done, we took a water taxi back to the ship and went to sleep.
The next morning I had a trip planned through Semester at Sea entitled Rainbow Culture and Religion. This was an all day thing and I got to see so much of Mauritius. The first stop was to a Hindu temple that was absolutely gorgeous. We were not allowed inside the temple, but we still could see and learn a lot about this religion. The next stop was to a Church, in which a service was taking place. I felt a little awkward and rude in the Church because our group was tourists taking pictures, and the people in service were trying to pray. The church was very beautiful though. After the Church, we then went to an Islamic Cultural Center. At this center, we got to learn about how Islam came to Mauritius and one of the guys who works there gave us a short presentation on the religion as well as on the purpose of the center. The next place we visited on this day was a Buddhist temple. In this temple, a woman was lighting incense. I don’t exactly know why though. Anyways, after visiting this temple, we drove up to the fort that I had seen the previous day, but I was able to see a different side of it. From the fort, you are able to see pretty much the entire port city. It was a great view! Once we left the fort, we finally went to lunch at a traditional Muslim cuisine restaurant. I ended up eating pasta because the rest of the food had cinnamon in it. The pasta I had though was very good and kind of spicy. The Muslims really know how to add tons of spices to all of their food. After quenching our hunger, we continued our journey on the island to the Eureka Colonial House, which is a house that has been left in its original form, and it demonstrates the homes that the English generally lived in on the island. I of course loved this stop because walking through any house amuses me. The next stop was at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute, where we looked through a museum that explained the history of Mauritius. At this institute, we also looked through an art museum that had very interesting art. The last thing we did on this trip at this institute was watch a Hindu interpretive dance demonstration. The dancing was great and I even recorded some of it. Finally, at the end of the day we returned to the boat where I met up with Alex, Jay, Sheryl, and Kasey.
The five of us the night before had decided that we wanted to go back to the Sports Bar Restaurant because we had noticed on the menu that they had Mexican food, which we have all been craving along the entire voyage. At the restaurant, I ordered chicken enchiladas, which were very good. The interesting thing about this meal though was the rice and beans that came with the enchiladas. The rice was very plain tasting and the beans tasted like barbecue beans instead of a Mexican flavor. It was all pretty good though and helped in satisfying my need for Mexican food. Once we were done with our main course, we ordered the brownie sundaes once again since they were so delicious the night before. After finally completing our meal, about two hours later, we took a water taxi back to the ship and relaxed the rest of the night.
The next day, our final day in Mauritius, I tagged along with Alex’s family to tour the southern part of the island with Venkat and Maliga. On this tour, the first place we stopped was at a lake, which we ended up finding out that the reason for this stop was a flat tire. This was funny because as you heard from Chris we got many flat tires on our safari. In addition to the flat tire, when the driver tried to change it, the spare tire was even flatter. Due to this, the driver dropped us off at a Hindu temple, where we stayed for an hour until he returned from fixing the tire. The Hindu temple was very interesting and we saw a massive statue of Shiva, one of the major Gods in this religion. Once we left the temple, we went and saw some waterfalls in a few different locations. At one of the sites, a monkey walked up on the wall to about 4 or 5 feet from us. It was very cool and a little intimidating. After the waterfalls, we went to a restaurant that was on the same mountain that had a great view. The restaurant was good, but had very small portions. Once lunch was over, we walked down to a museum that a man created who was a very skilled woodsman. The museum contained stuff he had made. Once we finished looking through the museum, we left the mountain and continued to drive along the island. We stopped at a grocery store where I bought some snacks. It was pretty amazing, I bought three packs of cookies and 5 glass soda bottles for only like $3. I should have stocked up on more food, but with the currency exchange, it seemed a lot more expensive. In Mauritian rupees, this cost 92, which seems like a lot more than $3. Anyways after the grocery store, we continued to our last stop, which was Flic-n-Flac beach. This beach was pretty and the water was very clear. While walking along the water, we noticed some sea urchins as well as some small sand crabs. This helped dissuade me from entering the water. After about 45 minutes at the beach, it began to rain so we departed and went back to the ship. Once on the ship I just did homework for the rest of the night, just in case I would be unable to due to extreme rocking again.
The next day on the ship, we did not have classes because we had Sea Olympics, which is when each of the seas (halls) competes in different events for the prize of getting off the ship first. Unfortunately, my sea tied for last so I will most likely be one of the last people off the ship. This kind of sucks, but maybe when the day comes they will change it a little and it won’t take as long as expected. Well that’s all for me for now. We are back to calm seas, which is really nice because I can actually get work accomplished.
I love and miss you all!
Alissa
It’s been a while since the last time I have written. Sorry for the delay, but after South Africa the waters were very rough and I stayed in bed most of the week. Since Chris has given a detailed look at what we did in South Africa, I will skip right to Mauritius. The day we arrived in Mauritius, we were 4 hours late due to the cyclone nearby, so I missed the excursion that I had planned for that day. I was supposed to go on a hike in the mountains and swim in waterfalls. It probably would have been a lot of fun, but instead I just walked around the port. I was happy to do this because Thursday was really the only day that I would be able to see the markets and the main city. As we went ashore, a group of us, including all of the Malottes met up with Maliga and Venkat, the parents of someone Joanne works with. We first relaxed at a hotel with them and enjoyed some conversation about Mauritius. Then we left the hotel and walked around the city. This included looking through the marketplace, going in a fish market (which smelled really bad especially since I hate fish), walking up to a fort, walking through China town, and looking at all the beautiful buildings Mauritius has to offer. Once we were done walking through the city, Maliga and Venkat left to go home and the rest of us had dinner. Joanne and Kevin ate at a Chinese restaurant, I ate at a little fast food place, and everyone else ate pizza from Pizza Hut. Once all the kids were done eating, we had to wait for Joanne and Kevin so we decided to go into a Sports Bar restaurant and have some brownie sundaes. They were delicious!!! Once we were finally done, we took a water taxi back to the ship and went to sleep.
The next morning I had a trip planned through Semester at Sea entitled Rainbow Culture and Religion. This was an all day thing and I got to see so much of Mauritius. The first stop was to a Hindu temple that was absolutely gorgeous. We were not allowed inside the temple, but we still could see and learn a lot about this religion. The next stop was to a Church, in which a service was taking place. I felt a little awkward and rude in the Church because our group was tourists taking pictures, and the people in service were trying to pray. The church was very beautiful though. After the Church, we then went to an Islamic Cultural Center. At this center, we got to learn about how Islam came to Mauritius and one of the guys who works there gave us a short presentation on the religion as well as on the purpose of the center. The next place we visited on this day was a Buddhist temple. In this temple, a woman was lighting incense. I don’t exactly know why though. Anyways, after visiting this temple, we drove up to the fort that I had seen the previous day, but I was able to see a different side of it. From the fort, you are able to see pretty much the entire port city. It was a great view! Once we left the fort, we finally went to lunch at a traditional Muslim cuisine restaurant. I ended up eating pasta because the rest of the food had cinnamon in it. The pasta I had though was very good and kind of spicy. The Muslims really know how to add tons of spices to all of their food. After quenching our hunger, we continued our journey on the island to the Eureka Colonial House, which is a house that has been left in its original form, and it demonstrates the homes that the English generally lived in on the island. I of course loved this stop because walking through any house amuses me. The next stop was at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute, where we looked through a museum that explained the history of Mauritius. At this institute, we also looked through an art museum that had very interesting art. The last thing we did on this trip at this institute was watch a Hindu interpretive dance demonstration. The dancing was great and I even recorded some of it. Finally, at the end of the day we returned to the boat where I met up with Alex, Jay, Sheryl, and Kasey.
The five of us the night before had decided that we wanted to go back to the Sports Bar Restaurant because we had noticed on the menu that they had Mexican food, which we have all been craving along the entire voyage. At the restaurant, I ordered chicken enchiladas, which were very good. The interesting thing about this meal though was the rice and beans that came with the enchiladas. The rice was very plain tasting and the beans tasted like barbecue beans instead of a Mexican flavor. It was all pretty good though and helped in satisfying my need for Mexican food. Once we were done with our main course, we ordered the brownie sundaes once again since they were so delicious the night before. After finally completing our meal, about two hours later, we took a water taxi back to the ship and relaxed the rest of the night.
The next day, our final day in Mauritius, I tagged along with Alex’s family to tour the southern part of the island with Venkat and Maliga. On this tour, the first place we stopped was at a lake, which we ended up finding out that the reason for this stop was a flat tire. This was funny because as you heard from Chris we got many flat tires on our safari. In addition to the flat tire, when the driver tried to change it, the spare tire was even flatter. Due to this, the driver dropped us off at a Hindu temple, where we stayed for an hour until he returned from fixing the tire. The Hindu temple was very interesting and we saw a massive statue of Shiva, one of the major Gods in this religion. Once we left the temple, we went and saw some waterfalls in a few different locations. At one of the sites, a monkey walked up on the wall to about 4 or 5 feet from us. It was very cool and a little intimidating. After the waterfalls, we went to a restaurant that was on the same mountain that had a great view. The restaurant was good, but had very small portions. Once lunch was over, we walked down to a museum that a man created who was a very skilled woodsman. The museum contained stuff he had made. Once we finished looking through the museum, we left the mountain and continued to drive along the island. We stopped at a grocery store where I bought some snacks. It was pretty amazing, I bought three packs of cookies and 5 glass soda bottles for only like $3. I should have stocked up on more food, but with the currency exchange, it seemed a lot more expensive. In Mauritian rupees, this cost 92, which seems like a lot more than $3. Anyways after the grocery store, we continued to our last stop, which was Flic-n-Flac beach. This beach was pretty and the water was very clear. While walking along the water, we noticed some sea urchins as well as some small sand crabs. This helped dissuade me from entering the water. After about 45 minutes at the beach, it began to rain so we departed and went back to the ship. Once on the ship I just did homework for the rest of the night, just in case I would be unable to due to extreme rocking again.
The next day on the ship, we did not have classes because we had Sea Olympics, which is when each of the seas (halls) competes in different events for the prize of getting off the ship first. Unfortunately, my sea tied for last so I will most likely be one of the last people off the ship. This kind of sucks, but maybe when the day comes they will change it a little and it won’t take as long as expected. Well that’s all for me for now. We are back to calm seas, which is really nice because I can actually get work accomplished.
I love and miss you all!
Alissa
Monday, March 12, 2007
South Africa
Friday, March 2, began at about 6 with a sunrise over Table Mountain. It was a beautiful sight to see and what was more amazing was that it was clear. Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain in Cape Town and is famous around the world for its uniqueness. We took some pictures, ate some breakfast and watched the ship pull into port. We then went to the student union for a diplomatic briefing by the United States consul in Cape Town, who discussed safety concerns in South Africa. We were then welcomed to Cape Town by the Premiere of the Western Cape (like their governor). He spoke very eloquently of trying to bridge the gaps that separate religions and cultures and to create a peaceful society free of terror and fanaticism. Both Archbishop Tutu and the Premiere have helped build my faith in faith. After the ship was cleared we (family minus Tyler (Hey Ty, we still love you!), Alissa, Jay, Casey, Gary and Diana) headed up Table Mountain via taxi then cable car. This was a gondola like contraption with a 360 degree view of the mountain and city of Cape Town. We ate lunch atop the mountain and then went for a two hour long to the highest point on Table Mountain. We took the cable car back down and then took the taxi to the ship where we ate dinner. Next, Alex, Alissa and I went to The University of Cape Town for an evening of theatre. Alex and I saw Truth in Translation and Alissa went to Everyone Else. Truth in Translation is about the translators’ perspective of The Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It was a very moving play and truly showed the important role that Archbishop Tutu played in the peaceful end to Apartheid. It was quite hilarious because the translators made fun of the Archbishop and he was in the house watching and laughing along with everyone.
The following morning Alex, Alissa and I went on an SAS trip to Cape Point and Cape Peninsula (Cape of Good Hope). We first stopped at Hout Bay, a small fishing town where we purchased some souvenirs and enjoyed the scenic views. We then headed to the Cape of Good Hope, but unfortunately it was raining and we could not see much of anything. Next, we headed to a nearby beach to check out the penguins that had moved in just 13 years ago. They were quite cute, waddling around and posing for pictures. After that, we headed to a seafood lunch (mussels, fish and crabs). Alissa was unable to stomach the seafood platter and decided to get the steak instead. It was not until she was completely done with it that she found out that it was not beef steak but ostrich steak. What an adventurous girl! We then headed back to the ship, had dinner and decided to go out to a few bars on Long Street with some friends from the ship. Unfortunately the night ended up abruptly when Alex had the camera stolen. It was a frustrating experience, but did not ruin our time in South Africa.
The next morning we began our safari journey. We had a 2 hour flight from Cape Town to Johannesburg followed by a 6 hour bus ride to Thornybush Game Reserve. We were greeted by our rangers in their land rovers and taken on a wild Disneyland-like ride to Thornybush Game Lodge. This place was the epitome of luxury. We were welcomed with the most delicious iced tea and a fabulous dinner. The lodge is not enclosed so we had to have night porters take us to our rooms for fear that there might be a large animal on the path.
The next morning began with a 5 am wake up call. After our first of seven meals for the day, we hopped on the land rovers and began our journey. The land rovers were open topped with a spotter on front (July) and a ranger driving (Greg). Our group consisted of some new people, Alessa and Kristin, and the usual suspects, Alissa, Alex, and me. Our first day was a bit humorous. Our first sighting was a cheetah, a rare find in the wild. We saw several bucks and then were hot on the trail of a few rhinos. July and Greg got out to look at some prints left by the rhinos and found them at the river bed. We then raced off to the river bed where we got stuck in the sand. Alex and I got out and helped July and Greg push the land rover out of the rut, but by the time we were free, the rhinos had disappeared. We then went off in search of an elephant, but upon seeing it got a flat tire. After changing the spare tire we returned to the elephant, saw some giraffes and then headed back to the lodge. After a hearty breakfast, we went on an hour long walking safari. Greg pointed out a few smaller animals and some important plants to know in case we were lost in the savannah. After a nice long nap (where we were visited by some baboons), we headed out on our second game drive. Here we saw some more bucks, a heard of elephants and stumbled upon a younger male lion. One of the elephants walked briskly to within a few feet of July. Unfortunately, we had nowhere to go because there was a large tree behind us. July was forced to pull out his machete and Greg had to rev the engine before the elephant chose a new path. When we saw the lion a similar close encounter occurred when the lion decided that the tire would make a cute play toy. Fortunately we were not blocked in and could simply back away quickly. The lion then attempted to snag a wildebeest but was unsuccessful. Oh, did I mention we got 2 more flat tires before heading to our sundowner. On the day we got stuck in the river bed once, 4 flat tires (1 happened during lunch), 2 near death experiences and yet we still had an absolutely amazing day.
Greg was not as happy about the progress that he had made and vowed to make it up to us. He said he would show at least 3 of the big 5 game (cape buffalo, rhino, elephant, lion, leopard) the next day. Our first find of the new day were some zebras and giraffes. What interesting looking animals. We then saw a pride of lions that got within a few feet of the vehicle, but this time just passing by. We then spotted some leopard tracks and decided to work with another group to find the leopard. After a few hours of slowly closing in on the leopard, the other group spotted it. Unfortunately by the time we got there it had already disappeared. After another half hour we decided to head back to the lodge. Just as Greg was announcing our plans we turned around and zipped off to find the leopard. The other group had again caught a glimpse of the leopard and luckily it stayed in the tree long enough for us to see it. After another large breakfast and walking safari, we headed back to bed for a nice nap. The last game drive was going to be “the easiest” because we had already seen the hardest ones. Our first spot was of the cape buffalo; they are ugly animals that look like they have a greasy hair do that has the part right in the middle. We then finished our big five by spotting a rhino resting in the grass. They are such beautiful animals that have been around for so many years. To top it off, we ended with the hippos. After an elated sundowner, we headed back for our final dinner in the savannah. Even though I had my doubts about Greg and July, they turned out to be the best trackers and we were the first and one of only 2 range rovers on all safari trips to see all big 5 game.
The following morning we woke up at 6 and headed to the busses for our 6 hour drive to Johannesburg. We arrived back at the ship after our 2 hour flight to Cape Town and spent an hour waiting to get on. I had an awesome time on the safari, but the one frustrating thing was that the travel agency did not calculate the time it would take to travel from Cape Town to Thornybush and we missed 2 of our 6 game drives. That night I had dinner (crocodile and waterbuck) at a restaurant by the harbor and then went out to a bar with some friends.
The following morning was Kevin’s FDP (faculty led trip) to the Desmond Tutu HIV Center at the ________ Township in Cape Town. The family (minus Tyler) all went and it was a great opportunity to understand the severity of the issue and some very simple prevention measures that can be enacted to help curb the high rates of infection. There was a short presentation about the things that the Tutu Center is doing and a play from the local awareness group. We then went on a tour of the township. It really was like something you see in a movie or on those adopt-a-child commercials and I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the poverty. These living situations are not humane by any standards and have re-sparked my desire to work in politics to make a change. We are far too advanced a world to let so many people continue to be treated as though they are less that human. The one source of true hope was in the smiles of all the people of the township, especially the children. We must realize that these are people that share all the same feelings of happiness and sadness as us. After returning to the clinic for a tour, we returned to the ship where everyone seemed very moved by the trip. Alex, Alissa and I decided to spend our last few hours in Cape Town at the Green Street Market where we picked up some souvenirs. We then headed back to the harbor for some pizza and groceries and then hopped on the ship well in advance of the “On Ship Time”. After everyone had returned to the ship, the Kayelitsha Choral Group came and sang some choral music for the entire shipboard community. It is one of my favorite types of music and was absolutely amazing. South Africa is an amazing country; one with many problems, but also a place of great progress and hope. I encourage everyone to visit. I definitely plan to return in 2010 for the World Cup.
Things I’ve Learned In South Africa:
-There is a reason they call Table Mountain a mountain.
-The Cape of Good Hope is not the Southernmost point in Africa (Cape Agulhas is!)
-Ostrich tastes quite a bit like beef.
-It is not just a ride, that elephant is real.
-That hissing noise is not a snake, it’s a flat tire.
-That guy who had 5 flat tires and was stuck in a rut actually does know what he is doing.
-Crocodile does not taste like chicken! Yuck!
-Restorative justice can do more for a society that retributive justice.
-People in Africa are the same as people in the United States and need to be treated as such.
The following morning Alex, Alissa and I went on an SAS trip to Cape Point and Cape Peninsula (Cape of Good Hope). We first stopped at Hout Bay, a small fishing town where we purchased some souvenirs and enjoyed the scenic views. We then headed to the Cape of Good Hope, but unfortunately it was raining and we could not see much of anything. Next, we headed to a nearby beach to check out the penguins that had moved in just 13 years ago. They were quite cute, waddling around and posing for pictures. After that, we headed to a seafood lunch (mussels, fish and crabs). Alissa was unable to stomach the seafood platter and decided to get the steak instead. It was not until she was completely done with it that she found out that it was not beef steak but ostrich steak. What an adventurous girl! We then headed back to the ship, had dinner and decided to go out to a few bars on Long Street with some friends from the ship. Unfortunately the night ended up abruptly when Alex had the camera stolen. It was a frustrating experience, but did not ruin our time in South Africa.
The next morning we began our safari journey. We had a 2 hour flight from Cape Town to Johannesburg followed by a 6 hour bus ride to Thornybush Game Reserve. We were greeted by our rangers in their land rovers and taken on a wild Disneyland-like ride to Thornybush Game Lodge. This place was the epitome of luxury. We were welcomed with the most delicious iced tea and a fabulous dinner. The lodge is not enclosed so we had to have night porters take us to our rooms for fear that there might be a large animal on the path.
The next morning began with a 5 am wake up call. After our first of seven meals for the day, we hopped on the land rovers and began our journey. The land rovers were open topped with a spotter on front (July) and a ranger driving (Greg). Our group consisted of some new people, Alessa and Kristin, and the usual suspects, Alissa, Alex, and me. Our first day was a bit humorous. Our first sighting was a cheetah, a rare find in the wild. We saw several bucks and then were hot on the trail of a few rhinos. July and Greg got out to look at some prints left by the rhinos and found them at the river bed. We then raced off to the river bed where we got stuck in the sand. Alex and I got out and helped July and Greg push the land rover out of the rut, but by the time we were free, the rhinos had disappeared. We then went off in search of an elephant, but upon seeing it got a flat tire. After changing the spare tire we returned to the elephant, saw some giraffes and then headed back to the lodge. After a hearty breakfast, we went on an hour long walking safari. Greg pointed out a few smaller animals and some important plants to know in case we were lost in the savannah. After a nice long nap (where we were visited by some baboons), we headed out on our second game drive. Here we saw some more bucks, a heard of elephants and stumbled upon a younger male lion. One of the elephants walked briskly to within a few feet of July. Unfortunately, we had nowhere to go because there was a large tree behind us. July was forced to pull out his machete and Greg had to rev the engine before the elephant chose a new path. When we saw the lion a similar close encounter occurred when the lion decided that the tire would make a cute play toy. Fortunately we were not blocked in and could simply back away quickly. The lion then attempted to snag a wildebeest but was unsuccessful. Oh, did I mention we got 2 more flat tires before heading to our sundowner. On the day we got stuck in the river bed once, 4 flat tires (1 happened during lunch), 2 near death experiences and yet we still had an absolutely amazing day.
Greg was not as happy about the progress that he had made and vowed to make it up to us. He said he would show at least 3 of the big 5 game (cape buffalo, rhino, elephant, lion, leopard) the next day. Our first find of the new day were some zebras and giraffes. What interesting looking animals. We then saw a pride of lions that got within a few feet of the vehicle, but this time just passing by. We then spotted some leopard tracks and decided to work with another group to find the leopard. After a few hours of slowly closing in on the leopard, the other group spotted it. Unfortunately by the time we got there it had already disappeared. After another half hour we decided to head back to the lodge. Just as Greg was announcing our plans we turned around and zipped off to find the leopard. The other group had again caught a glimpse of the leopard and luckily it stayed in the tree long enough for us to see it. After another large breakfast and walking safari, we headed back to bed for a nice nap. The last game drive was going to be “the easiest” because we had already seen the hardest ones. Our first spot was of the cape buffalo; they are ugly animals that look like they have a greasy hair do that has the part right in the middle. We then finished our big five by spotting a rhino resting in the grass. They are such beautiful animals that have been around for so many years. To top it off, we ended with the hippos. After an elated sundowner, we headed back for our final dinner in the savannah. Even though I had my doubts about Greg and July, they turned out to be the best trackers and we were the first and one of only 2 range rovers on all safari trips to see all big 5 game.
The following morning we woke up at 6 and headed to the busses for our 6 hour drive to Johannesburg. We arrived back at the ship after our 2 hour flight to Cape Town and spent an hour waiting to get on. I had an awesome time on the safari, but the one frustrating thing was that the travel agency did not calculate the time it would take to travel from Cape Town to Thornybush and we missed 2 of our 6 game drives. That night I had dinner (crocodile and waterbuck) at a restaurant by the harbor and then went out to a bar with some friends.
The following morning was Kevin’s FDP (faculty led trip) to the Desmond Tutu HIV Center at the ________ Township in Cape Town. The family (minus Tyler) all went and it was a great opportunity to understand the severity of the issue and some very simple prevention measures that can be enacted to help curb the high rates of infection. There was a short presentation about the things that the Tutu Center is doing and a play from the local awareness group. We then went on a tour of the township. It really was like something you see in a movie or on those adopt-a-child commercials and I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the poverty. These living situations are not humane by any standards and have re-sparked my desire to work in politics to make a change. We are far too advanced a world to let so many people continue to be treated as though they are less that human. The one source of true hope was in the smiles of all the people of the township, especially the children. We must realize that these are people that share all the same feelings of happiness and sadness as us. After returning to the clinic for a tour, we returned to the ship where everyone seemed very moved by the trip. Alex, Alissa and I decided to spend our last few hours in Cape Town at the Green Street Market where we picked up some souvenirs. We then headed back to the harbor for some pizza and groceries and then hopped on the ship well in advance of the “On Ship Time”. After everyone had returned to the ship, the Kayelitsha Choral Group came and sang some choral music for the entire shipboard community. It is one of my favorite types of music and was absolutely amazing. South Africa is an amazing country; one with many problems, but also a place of great progress and hope. I encourage everyone to visit. I definitely plan to return in 2010 for the World Cup.
Things I’ve Learned In South Africa:
-There is a reason they call Table Mountain a mountain.
-The Cape of Good Hope is not the Southernmost point in Africa (Cape Agulhas is!)
-Ostrich tastes quite a bit like beef.
-It is not just a ride, that elephant is real.
-That hissing noise is not a snake, it’s a flat tire.
-That guy who had 5 flat tires and was stuck in a rut actually does know what he is doing.
-Crocodile does not taste like chicken! Yuck!
-Restorative justice can do more for a society that retributive justice.
-People in Africa are the same as people in the United States and need to be treated as such.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Joanne's thoughts on South Africa
If you have no concept of what Cape Town looks like, give yourself and treat and search for it on the web. It is one of the most beautiful cities that I have ever seen. The city is on the water and arising sharply behind it are some very spectacular granite peaked mountains. We arrived to the city at Sunrise and were able to witness the suns rays breaking through just above Table Mountain. We were all in awe and watched as the Flag of South Africa was raised on our ship next to our flag.
We had spent time in Global Studies learning about South Africa, but still being there made it hard to even imagine what it must have been like under apartheid. When Kevin was here thirty years ago, there were signs everywhere saying “no blacks or no colored.” We learned from the master and Nobel Peace Prize winner, “The Arch” about “Truth and Reconciliation.” He taught us why it was so important to know the real truth of what has happened and then to in doing so move on to forgive the person. This is done because Africans believe that we are all part of and belong to a greater whole. As such, retribution is not an option. It is an amazing thing and you can see that it was real. The South African’s were warm, kind, jovial and good natured towards us. They look forward to hosting “the student ship.”
As usual, when we arrived we hit the ground running. It was a sunny clear day with very little wind so we decided that a trip to the top of Table Mountain was a must. The mountain is often shrouded in clouds which they call “the table cloth.” There is a cable car like tram that brings you to the top weather permitting. When you get to the top there are many foot paths to take to get even more spectacular views of the Cape. Joanne, Kevin, Diana, Gary, Jay, Chris, Alex, Alyssa and Casey (a very nice girl that hangs out with this group) all joined in to hike the trails. The views helped to put into perspective just how many mountains and how much water surrounds Cape Town. Since it was such a clear day we could see forever. A great time was had by all and we managed to get off of the mountain before the winds and the clouds closed it down.
That evening Kevin and I went out with some other shipboard friends to a jazz supper club on the water. We ate well and listed to some very talented jazz players. At one point we were sent a bottle of wine from one of Kevin’s students and our adopted son. Nice! FYI, we have four officially adopted shipboard kids and several others that the boys call their orphan family. We even had a game (and candy) night pitting our adopted family, against the orphan family against another family. It was fun. Our kids’ orphan team beat us all. The young people that we have met really give you tons of hope for the future.
On Saturday, Joanne and Kevin were met by new friends from Johannesburg, John and Sue. We met them while on Safari last year and we stayed in tough via email. John and Sue came down to spend the weekend with us and to show us around Cape Town. Day one of the weekend was very raining. We decided that Wine Tasting would be a good wet and cool weather activity and drove out to a beautiful little winery in the town of Pearl. We sat inside a beautiful stone cellar and a woman just kept pouring. It was a very fun thing to do. South African wines are extremely good and by our standards very cheap. Unfortunately we are limited in what we can bring on board so we only ended up bringing a few bottles the whole time. We had fabulous Italian food that night and I thought of the Moreno’s as I ate some yummy Pasta Carbonera. On Sunday, the sky had cleared and we were able to begin seeing some of the sights. John and Sue picked us up early and off we went. We went to Cape Point, which is the site of where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. It is also an area where many ships have gone down due to rough seas. More on that later. On our tour we drove through some quaint villages and also went to a Penguin refuge area. The African Penguins are small and not much taller than 18 inches. Very cute! That night we had a yummy meal at a water front restaurant (you looked out on our ship) and bid our sad goodbyes to John and Sue who have promised us a visit to California. Siblings I have offered your hospitality as well if they want to tour the coast.
Monday we began our bike trip of the wine lands. We had this image of rolling hills with frequent stops to taste wine. Our guides, Peter and Marge, were our ages or older and they were serious bikers. There idea of an easy ride is thirty miles of riding per day including some very steep hills. Unfortunately due to rough seas and illnesses, Kevin and I were not in our peak shape as we had hoped. We did manage to hang in there for day one and then asked for more wine, less bike for the remainder of the trip. The scenery that we saw was so beautiful. It is like seeing El Capitan of Yosemite but on all four sides of you and with grapes and vineyards in the valley and climbing up the mountain. I hope a few of my photos will do it justice. In my mind, I have inscribed it. It was great to be out doors and on a bike again. We did have a chance to really see the class difference at work in these days. In Africa, during Apartheid, folks were divided into White, mixed colored and then black. Clearly the whites have the wealth, the colored are their laborers and there is very little evidence of blacks in the Wine areas. The towns are clearly for those with money. There were fancy shops, fancy restaurants and if you did not know better you would think you were in Napa. We did indeed enjoy our stay and did take advantage of the many good foods and cheeses and wines. Interestingly, this stop was the first nights that we spent away from the ship since we departed. Wednesday night we met a former colleague of Kevin’s who is presently living in Cape Town. She, Diana and Gary and us, went to a well know game restaurant, where we sampled all kinds of game meats. We even ate Crocodile and Ostrich along with Antelope, Kudu and others I can not even remember. I must say, it was one of the best meals that I have had. The meats were tender, not gamey tasting and sort of like the best steak you had ever had. I am seriously contemplating going vegetarian (along with Solar powered) when we return, so I decided this was really a unique opportunity that I should not pass up. Talk about Carnivorous!
Our last day in Cape Town was a sobering one. We now had a chance to see the South Africa we had expected to find. We were invited guest of a local township (mostly consisted of Blacks) where there is the Desmond Tutu HIV centers. Kevin led a group of students and Chris, Alex and I got to tag along. The community we went to houses about 30,000 residents. Down the street from it looks as though you are in Simi Valley or a nice beach town. This township was given very small plots of land where the government ran electricity and water. The people have made homes from anything they could find. Mostly they have used pieces of old rail cars. As the area has grown, folks keep adding families to their tiny plot of land and have also spread out to the wet lands where there is not water or electricity. The government along with some foreign aid has built a health clinic, an HIV center, a community center, a school all within this township area. People clearly have very little. Some are lucky to be employed as domestic workers in the wealthy neighborhoods, but unemployment and diseases are high. The main diseases they battle are TB and Aids with both at very high levels within this community. We were impressed to see the things that had been done, but so saddened to see that humans must live in such substandard conditions. The community appreciated our visit and welcomed us. The kids came out in marching band costumes and greeted us. Members of the community walked us around. We were even invited in to some of the makeshift homes and shops. We had brought some small gift for the school and also donated some money for the clinic. It is already too small for all of their needs, but it is very clear what good work they are doing. I believe we will continue to adopt them as one of our causes when we return.
That afternoon we went to Robin Island, the site of imprisonment for Nelson Mandela and other political activists. What a place of horrors. Basically the prisoners, we sent into a bright stone quarry and made to use a chisel and hammer to make materials for cement. They would not allow them to wear any protection on their eyes and as a result many (including Nelson Mandela) lost most of their vision. They allowed them two letters per year of which they censored heavily. We heard over and over again while in South Africa, how important we were to their freedom. They clearly have huge gratitude for the pressures the world placed on them to make a change. They know it would not have occurred with out our help. So the next time you think you can not possibly make a difference with something so trivial like boycotting goods, know that you can and that you have and that there is a whole nation in our debt because people stood up.
We are once again on ship. We hit our biggest seas thus far when going around the Cape. There were ten foot swells causing the boat to lift off then slam down. I joined the patch behind the ear and the wrist bracelet club. Sea sickness is not a pleasant feeling. The nurses were walking around with back packs full of crackers and anti nausea medications. Fortunately, it was a day off from School. Kevin and I spent much of it in bed. Fortunately today the seas have calmed and everyone is feeling much better.
My neighbor has just invited us over for happy hour prior to a planning committee dinner meeting for the Sea Olympics, some bracelet making, followed by a Sea Party, so I will sign off for now
We had spent time in Global Studies learning about South Africa, but still being there made it hard to even imagine what it must have been like under apartheid. When Kevin was here thirty years ago, there were signs everywhere saying “no blacks or no colored.” We learned from the master and Nobel Peace Prize winner, “The Arch” about “Truth and Reconciliation.” He taught us why it was so important to know the real truth of what has happened and then to in doing so move on to forgive the person. This is done because Africans believe that we are all part of and belong to a greater whole. As such, retribution is not an option. It is an amazing thing and you can see that it was real. The South African’s were warm, kind, jovial and good natured towards us. They look forward to hosting “the student ship.”
As usual, when we arrived we hit the ground running. It was a sunny clear day with very little wind so we decided that a trip to the top of Table Mountain was a must. The mountain is often shrouded in clouds which they call “the table cloth.” There is a cable car like tram that brings you to the top weather permitting. When you get to the top there are many foot paths to take to get even more spectacular views of the Cape. Joanne, Kevin, Diana, Gary, Jay, Chris, Alex, Alyssa and Casey (a very nice girl that hangs out with this group) all joined in to hike the trails. The views helped to put into perspective just how many mountains and how much water surrounds Cape Town. Since it was such a clear day we could see forever. A great time was had by all and we managed to get off of the mountain before the winds and the clouds closed it down.
That evening Kevin and I went out with some other shipboard friends to a jazz supper club on the water. We ate well and listed to some very talented jazz players. At one point we were sent a bottle of wine from one of Kevin’s students and our adopted son. Nice! FYI, we have four officially adopted shipboard kids and several others that the boys call their orphan family. We even had a game (and candy) night pitting our adopted family, against the orphan family against another family. It was fun. Our kids’ orphan team beat us all. The young people that we have met really give you tons of hope for the future.
On Saturday, Joanne and Kevin were met by new friends from Johannesburg, John and Sue. We met them while on Safari last year and we stayed in tough via email. John and Sue came down to spend the weekend with us and to show us around Cape Town. Day one of the weekend was very raining. We decided that Wine Tasting would be a good wet and cool weather activity and drove out to a beautiful little winery in the town of Pearl. We sat inside a beautiful stone cellar and a woman just kept pouring. It was a very fun thing to do. South African wines are extremely good and by our standards very cheap. Unfortunately we are limited in what we can bring on board so we only ended up bringing a few bottles the whole time. We had fabulous Italian food that night and I thought of the Moreno’s as I ate some yummy Pasta Carbonera. On Sunday, the sky had cleared and we were able to begin seeing some of the sights. John and Sue picked us up early and off we went. We went to Cape Point, which is the site of where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet. It is also an area where many ships have gone down due to rough seas. More on that later. On our tour we drove through some quaint villages and also went to a Penguin refuge area. The African Penguins are small and not much taller than 18 inches. Very cute! That night we had a yummy meal at a water front restaurant (you looked out on our ship) and bid our sad goodbyes to John and Sue who have promised us a visit to California. Siblings I have offered your hospitality as well if they want to tour the coast.
Monday we began our bike trip of the wine lands. We had this image of rolling hills with frequent stops to taste wine. Our guides, Peter and Marge, were our ages or older and they were serious bikers. There idea of an easy ride is thirty miles of riding per day including some very steep hills. Unfortunately due to rough seas and illnesses, Kevin and I were not in our peak shape as we had hoped. We did manage to hang in there for day one and then asked for more wine, less bike for the remainder of the trip. The scenery that we saw was so beautiful. It is like seeing El Capitan of Yosemite but on all four sides of you and with grapes and vineyards in the valley and climbing up the mountain. I hope a few of my photos will do it justice. In my mind, I have inscribed it. It was great to be out doors and on a bike again. We did have a chance to really see the class difference at work in these days. In Africa, during Apartheid, folks were divided into White, mixed colored and then black. Clearly the whites have the wealth, the colored are their laborers and there is very little evidence of blacks in the Wine areas. The towns are clearly for those with money. There were fancy shops, fancy restaurants and if you did not know better you would think you were in Napa. We did indeed enjoy our stay and did take advantage of the many good foods and cheeses and wines. Interestingly, this stop was the first nights that we spent away from the ship since we departed. Wednesday night we met a former colleague of Kevin’s who is presently living in Cape Town. She, Diana and Gary and us, went to a well know game restaurant, where we sampled all kinds of game meats. We even ate Crocodile and Ostrich along with Antelope, Kudu and others I can not even remember. I must say, it was one of the best meals that I have had. The meats were tender, not gamey tasting and sort of like the best steak you had ever had. I am seriously contemplating going vegetarian (along with Solar powered) when we return, so I decided this was really a unique opportunity that I should not pass up. Talk about Carnivorous!
Our last day in Cape Town was a sobering one. We now had a chance to see the South Africa we had expected to find. We were invited guest of a local township (mostly consisted of Blacks) where there is the Desmond Tutu HIV centers. Kevin led a group of students and Chris, Alex and I got to tag along. The community we went to houses about 30,000 residents. Down the street from it looks as though you are in Simi Valley or a nice beach town. This township was given very small plots of land where the government ran electricity and water. The people have made homes from anything they could find. Mostly they have used pieces of old rail cars. As the area has grown, folks keep adding families to their tiny plot of land and have also spread out to the wet lands where there is not water or electricity. The government along with some foreign aid has built a health clinic, an HIV center, a community center, a school all within this township area. People clearly have very little. Some are lucky to be employed as domestic workers in the wealthy neighborhoods, but unemployment and diseases are high. The main diseases they battle are TB and Aids with both at very high levels within this community. We were impressed to see the things that had been done, but so saddened to see that humans must live in such substandard conditions. The community appreciated our visit and welcomed us. The kids came out in marching band costumes and greeted us. Members of the community walked us around. We were even invited in to some of the makeshift homes and shops. We had brought some small gift for the school and also donated some money for the clinic. It is already too small for all of their needs, but it is very clear what good work they are doing. I believe we will continue to adopt them as one of our causes when we return.
That afternoon we went to Robin Island, the site of imprisonment for Nelson Mandela and other political activists. What a place of horrors. Basically the prisoners, we sent into a bright stone quarry and made to use a chisel and hammer to make materials for cement. They would not allow them to wear any protection on their eyes and as a result many (including Nelson Mandela) lost most of their vision. They allowed them two letters per year of which they censored heavily. We heard over and over again while in South Africa, how important we were to their freedom. They clearly have huge gratitude for the pressures the world placed on them to make a change. They know it would not have occurred with out our help. So the next time you think you can not possibly make a difference with something so trivial like boycotting goods, know that you can and that you have and that there is a whole nation in our debt because people stood up.
We are once again on ship. We hit our biggest seas thus far when going around the Cape. There were ten foot swells causing the boat to lift off then slam down. I joined the patch behind the ear and the wrist bracelet club. Sea sickness is not a pleasant feeling. The nurses were walking around with back packs full of crackers and anti nausea medications. Fortunately, it was a day off from School. Kevin and I spent much of it in bed. Fortunately today the seas have calmed and everyone is feeling much better.
My neighbor has just invited us over for happy hour prior to a planning committee dinner meeting for the Sea Olympics, some bracelet making, followed by a Sea Party, so I will sign off for now
Saturday, March 3, 2007
Brazil, Part 2
Finishing Up Brazil:
On February 20th, I went with a Semester at Sea group to Itaparica Island. The bay at Salvador, known as All Saints’ Bay (for the day it was discovered), is the largest bay in Brazil and the second largest bay in the world. It is a gorgeous place littered with various islands; one of the more inhabited is Itaparica Island. At first we walked to the boat that was to take us on our tour of All Saints’ Bay. It was a rickety old boat about 40 feet long and powered by a disgusting diesel engine. The first leg of our tour took about an hour and a half. Our first stop was a beautiful island where we were given the freedom to go for a swim and enjoy the sun. Then we hopped back on the boat for a 45 minute trip to Itaparica Island. When we arrived there lunch was waiting for us. It was a delicious traditional Brazilian meal of meats and salad. After that Sheryl (Alissa’s roommate) and I walked around Itaparica and had a coconut and collected seashells. It was a cute town, but it did not really have much to offer. The day was just a nice chance to relax after the hectic schedule of classes and traveling. When we got back to the ship we ate and prepared ourselves for the night. We (Alex, Alissa, Chris, Jay, Sheryl, Joanne, and Kevin) decided to spend our last night partying it up at Carnival. We went up public elevator to the Pelorinho, or old town Salvador, and then went right for a while. We had no idea where we were going but we ended up in the best location in Salvador. It was right where two of the large circuits intersected, which meant nonstop dancing. We stayed for several hours listening and dancing to the great music. There were two main types of music; one circuit had more traditional, drumming and African-influenced. The other circuit had more modern pop like music. They were both very fun to dance to and we felt quite safe, especially with the MPs right behind us.
The following morning Kevin, Joanne and I went on a geological tour of Salvador hosted by Rachel O’Brien, one of the more enthusiastic and friendly professor on the ship. It began with an hour PowerPoint lecture by a local geology professor from Universidad Catholico de Salvador. It was actually quite interesting. We then went to the busses and headed out to a town that was about an hour outside of Salvador. It was originally founded by hippies 35 years ago and was home to some unique geological conditions. Waves constantly pounding the surface created was looked like a man made rock wall. It also created a pretty cool tide pool with a lot of sea urchins, crabs and fish. We then went to Praia do Forte, which was much better the second time. This time we had boxed lunches and were able to eat whenever we wanted. The geological landscape that we were viewing was much like the hippie town, but instead of it being created by the energy of waves, it was created by sea creatures living near the shore. Again we had the opportunity to check out the sea life in the tide pools because it was low tide. We then headed back toward Salvador and stopped at a point to view the Salvador landscape. All Saints’ Bay was created when a fault tried to split, but was unsuccessful. This created a large canyon like formation which was cover up by the sea and created a beautiful bay. It was a great place to get a picture of the city and actually see a fault line.
Now for some shipboard updates…
On first night back on the ship it was “Rock The Hawk” night. People were shaving their head in Mohawks and donating their hair to Locks of Love. To join in with the madness, Jay and I corralled Martha “AKA Diana” and Joanne to cut our hair. We sat out on the balcony and let free our newly cut hair to roam the ocean. I felt a little bad for their cabin steward, though, because he was probably picking up hair from all the neighboring balconies. The hair turned out great and Jay even had a “J” carved into his hair.
Neptune Day
Neptune Day is a fabulous British tradition, where one must pay homage to King Neptune, god of the sea, when passing the Equator. Unfortunately, we were not able to get to it until 9 days after we crossed the Equator. It began with the crew dressed in hand made costumes banging on drums through the hallways at about 6:30 in the morning. We were then reawakened at 9 and told to go up to the 7th deck, where the pool is located. Upon arrival, we saw King Neptune “AKA Captain Jeremy”, Queen Minerva “AKA Dean Larry” and their crew of shellback miscreants “AKA faculty, staff and crew who had already crossed”. King Neptune and Queen Minerva were fully dressed up with green paint and headdress to fit the part. After Staff Captain Costas welcomed them all on the ship, we were told that we needed to earn our safe passage and shellback status. We had to stand in the shallow pool and get a fish gut concoction poured on us, then swim across the pool, then kiss two fish and King Neptune’s ring and then get shellbacked (like knighted). It sounds awful but was actually quite a lot of fun. After the ceremony we were given the day to do whatever we wanted. Many of the people decided to shave their heads and so Jay and I joined in the fun and shaved off our Mohawks. Neither of us went to the skin, but I can say that this is the shortest my hair has ever been. The evening dinner was a great festive barbeque with ribs, hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream and all the goodies that one would expect to see on a Fourth of July celebration. It was the best meal we have had on the ship so far.
On Tuesday the 26th, Kevin gave a lecture on AIDS in South Africa to the entire shipboard community. It was quite a good lecture and I overheard many students talking about how it was the most captivating lecture that they had seen so far. He blended a video with his lecture quite well to keep the attention of everyone. This yielded a more powerful and lasting impression of the full impact of AIDS and HIV not only on South Africa but the world as a whole.
The interport lecturer for this leg of the journey was Gusavo Goni, an oceanographer from NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration). He lectured a couple of my classes about the research he was doing and we were able to see him throw over a couple scientific buoys and floats. The best part is that once he leaves, students will get to throw the buoys over. Alex and I will be throwing one overboard somewhere between South Africa and Mauritius. These instruments will be used to help record the position and surface temperature of water, which will help to understand currents and lead to better predictions of hurricanes and other weather patterns.
Two days after Kevin spoke we were blessed with the presence of an even better speaker (no offense Dad). Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave an enlightening lecture on the power of youth, the importance of forgiveness, and the positive possibilities of restorative justice. We were able to record his lecture for any of you who would like to see it when we get back. The man is a great speaker and full of life, happiness and hope. It was a great thing to hear after all the “gloom and doom” that the professors had been spouting for the past 4 weeks. He again spoke the following day, addressing the questions of students. It was a more informal setting and yet he still made a powerful statement about the ability of humans to do great and noble things. He has definitely been an inspiration to me. The Archbishop again joined us for the logistical pre-port meeting, where he helped Dr. Matt (the ship’s physician) and friends to sing a “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” rendition that was geared toward making the shipboard community aware of possible health dangers. It was one of the most entertaining and hilarious things that has happened so far. The man definitely likes to dance and has created a new dancing craze on the ship known as “The Desi”.
Things we have learned in Brazil and while crossing the Atlantic:
-Brazilian Portuguese is nothing like Spanish.
-Thumbs up and a smile can get you very far in life.
-Brazilians really know how to dance, and love to party…hard.
-While New York may claim to be the city that never sleeps, Brazil is definitely the country that never sleeps.
-Brazil is not that unsafe, if you take proper precautions and don’t temp anyone.
-During Carnival, all of Salvador is a bathroom.
-I don’t really look that bad with a Mohawk.
-British people have some really bizarre traditions.
-A “#4” on a beard trimmer is not the same as a “#4” on a hair clipper.
-Humans have “an incredible capacity for good”.
On February 20th, I went with a Semester at Sea group to Itaparica Island. The bay at Salvador, known as All Saints’ Bay (for the day it was discovered), is the largest bay in Brazil and the second largest bay in the world. It is a gorgeous place littered with various islands; one of the more inhabited is Itaparica Island. At first we walked to the boat that was to take us on our tour of All Saints’ Bay. It was a rickety old boat about 40 feet long and powered by a disgusting diesel engine. The first leg of our tour took about an hour and a half. Our first stop was a beautiful island where we were given the freedom to go for a swim and enjoy the sun. Then we hopped back on the boat for a 45 minute trip to Itaparica Island. When we arrived there lunch was waiting for us. It was a delicious traditional Brazilian meal of meats and salad. After that Sheryl (Alissa’s roommate) and I walked around Itaparica and had a coconut and collected seashells. It was a cute town, but it did not really have much to offer. The day was just a nice chance to relax after the hectic schedule of classes and traveling. When we got back to the ship we ate and prepared ourselves for the night. We (Alex, Alissa, Chris, Jay, Sheryl, Joanne, and Kevin) decided to spend our last night partying it up at Carnival. We went up public elevator to the Pelorinho, or old town Salvador, and then went right for a while. We had no idea where we were going but we ended up in the best location in Salvador. It was right where two of the large circuits intersected, which meant nonstop dancing. We stayed for several hours listening and dancing to the great music. There were two main types of music; one circuit had more traditional, drumming and African-influenced. The other circuit had more modern pop like music. They were both very fun to dance to and we felt quite safe, especially with the MPs right behind us.
The following morning Kevin, Joanne and I went on a geological tour of Salvador hosted by Rachel O’Brien, one of the more enthusiastic and friendly professor on the ship. It began with an hour PowerPoint lecture by a local geology professor from Universidad Catholico de Salvador. It was actually quite interesting. We then went to the busses and headed out to a town that was about an hour outside of Salvador. It was originally founded by hippies 35 years ago and was home to some unique geological conditions. Waves constantly pounding the surface created was looked like a man made rock wall. It also created a pretty cool tide pool with a lot of sea urchins, crabs and fish. We then went to Praia do Forte, which was much better the second time. This time we had boxed lunches and were able to eat whenever we wanted. The geological landscape that we were viewing was much like the hippie town, but instead of it being created by the energy of waves, it was created by sea creatures living near the shore. Again we had the opportunity to check out the sea life in the tide pools because it was low tide. We then headed back toward Salvador and stopped at a point to view the Salvador landscape. All Saints’ Bay was created when a fault tried to split, but was unsuccessful. This created a large canyon like formation which was cover up by the sea and created a beautiful bay. It was a great place to get a picture of the city and actually see a fault line.
Now for some shipboard updates…
On first night back on the ship it was “Rock The Hawk” night. People were shaving their head in Mohawks and donating their hair to Locks of Love. To join in with the madness, Jay and I corralled Martha “AKA Diana” and Joanne to cut our hair. We sat out on the balcony and let free our newly cut hair to roam the ocean. I felt a little bad for their cabin steward, though, because he was probably picking up hair from all the neighboring balconies. The hair turned out great and Jay even had a “J” carved into his hair.
Neptune Day
Neptune Day is a fabulous British tradition, where one must pay homage to King Neptune, god of the sea, when passing the Equator. Unfortunately, we were not able to get to it until 9 days after we crossed the Equator. It began with the crew dressed in hand made costumes banging on drums through the hallways at about 6:30 in the morning. We were then reawakened at 9 and told to go up to the 7th deck, where the pool is located. Upon arrival, we saw King Neptune “AKA Captain Jeremy”, Queen Minerva “AKA Dean Larry” and their crew of shellback miscreants “AKA faculty, staff and crew who had already crossed”. King Neptune and Queen Minerva were fully dressed up with green paint and headdress to fit the part. After Staff Captain Costas welcomed them all on the ship, we were told that we needed to earn our safe passage and shellback status. We had to stand in the shallow pool and get a fish gut concoction poured on us, then swim across the pool, then kiss two fish and King Neptune’s ring and then get shellbacked (like knighted). It sounds awful but was actually quite a lot of fun. After the ceremony we were given the day to do whatever we wanted. Many of the people decided to shave their heads and so Jay and I joined in the fun and shaved off our Mohawks. Neither of us went to the skin, but I can say that this is the shortest my hair has ever been. The evening dinner was a great festive barbeque with ribs, hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream and all the goodies that one would expect to see on a Fourth of July celebration. It was the best meal we have had on the ship so far.
On Tuesday the 26th, Kevin gave a lecture on AIDS in South Africa to the entire shipboard community. It was quite a good lecture and I overheard many students talking about how it was the most captivating lecture that they had seen so far. He blended a video with his lecture quite well to keep the attention of everyone. This yielded a more powerful and lasting impression of the full impact of AIDS and HIV not only on South Africa but the world as a whole.
The interport lecturer for this leg of the journey was Gusavo Goni, an oceanographer from NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration). He lectured a couple of my classes about the research he was doing and we were able to see him throw over a couple scientific buoys and floats. The best part is that once he leaves, students will get to throw the buoys over. Alex and I will be throwing one overboard somewhere between South Africa and Mauritius. These instruments will be used to help record the position and surface temperature of water, which will help to understand currents and lead to better predictions of hurricanes and other weather patterns.
Two days after Kevin spoke we were blessed with the presence of an even better speaker (no offense Dad). Archbishop Desmond Tutu gave an enlightening lecture on the power of youth, the importance of forgiveness, and the positive possibilities of restorative justice. We were able to record his lecture for any of you who would like to see it when we get back. The man is a great speaker and full of life, happiness and hope. It was a great thing to hear after all the “gloom and doom” that the professors had been spouting for the past 4 weeks. He again spoke the following day, addressing the questions of students. It was a more informal setting and yet he still made a powerful statement about the ability of humans to do great and noble things. He has definitely been an inspiration to me. The Archbishop again joined us for the logistical pre-port meeting, where he helped Dr. Matt (the ship’s physician) and friends to sing a “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” rendition that was geared toward making the shipboard community aware of possible health dangers. It was one of the most entertaining and hilarious things that has happened so far. The man definitely likes to dance and has created a new dancing craze on the ship known as “The Desi”.
Things we have learned in Brazil and while crossing the Atlantic:
-Brazilian Portuguese is nothing like Spanish.
-Thumbs up and a smile can get you very far in life.
-Brazilians really know how to dance, and love to party…hard.
-While New York may claim to be the city that never sleeps, Brazil is definitely the country that never sleeps.
-Brazil is not that unsafe, if you take proper precautions and don’t temp anyone.
-During Carnival, all of Salvador is a bathroom.
-I don’t really look that bad with a Mohawk.
-British people have some really bizarre traditions.
-A “#4” on a beard trimmer is not the same as a “#4” on a hair clipper.
-Humans have “an incredible capacity for good”.
Alissa's Adventures Through Brazil
Hey everyone,
Now that I am about to enter South Africa, I will tell you about my travels through Brazil. As we arrived, we woke up at 6:30 am to see the ship pull into the port. The port was full of tall buildings and a huge crane that ended up right next to the ship. After pulling in, everyone had to go through immigration and meet face-to-face with a Brazilian Customs Officer. Once the ship was cleared, I stayed and took a nap on the ship until my trip later that day. Once I awoke from my nap, I went on a day trip to the Candomble temple. Candomble is an African religion that was originally forbidden in Brazil. At this temple we got to see the buildings that contained the shrines for each of the deities (you can only go in if you are part of the religion), and we also saw a museum containing many items that are used in the religion. Once we were done in the museum, we met the priestess of this Temple who told us a great story. Something I found interesting about this Priestess is that when she was a teenager she decided that she did not want to be a part of this religion and left for many years. Eventually she came back and then was selected as the Priestess. The next cool thing about the Priestess is that if you bought a beaded necklace, each of which symbolized one of the deities, she would bless the beads and then put them on you. I bought one and I was able to have her bless my beads. Alex recorded this for me so if anyone wants to see it, I will show you when I return home. After the Candomble temple, I went back to the ship for the rest of that night, did a little homework, and then went to sleep because I was exhausted.
For my next day in Brazil, I did not have a planned trip until the evening so during the day a little group of us walked up to the city and looked in many of the shops and the main marketplace (mainly crafts and souvenirs). For everyone reading this that has never been to Salvador, Brazil, I will tell you about the interesting way to get into the main city. The city sits on a huge hill or so and in order to get up there you must ride in an elevator about 10 stories high. I think that is about how high it was. Anyways well, I hate elevators and for this one they pack as many people as they can in it and then they have an elevator worker who runs the elevator. It was kind of scary. As we left the city that day, it is about a ten minute walk from the elevator to the port where the ship was. As we walked back, it started to pour huge drops and we got absolutely drenched. We were running from overhang to overhang to try to have a little protection, but it was a true adventure! Once we got back and dried off a little we relaxed for a few hours and then met with our group for our organized trip, which was called Traditional Carnival. For this we went back up to the city to celebrate Carnival, which for those of you who might not know what this is, it is what Mardi Gras is based off of. It is crazy! People fill the streets and celebrate by dancing and watching floats filled with many people and loud music go by. There were also kids who bought this soap spray stuff and sprayed it everywhere and on everyone. It was a lot of fun.
For my next day in Brazil, I had a day trip planned. Like Chris, I went to the Praia Do Forte Escape, which is a very touristy preserve for sea turtles. On the way there, we stopped at a beach that had mangrove trees and we learned more a lot about them. Then our next stop was at the Castle of Garcia D’Avila, a Portuguese settler. The ruins of this castle that was built in 1552 is all that remains. Finally, after this stop we finally reached the marine turtle project, where we got to see many marine turtles including baby turtles. I even learned a very interesting fact: when a turtle egg is laid, the sex of that turtle will be determined by the temperature of the sand (warmer sand will produce females and colder sand will produce males). After we looked at the turtles we ate lunch in a local restaurant and it was very good food. Once lunch was over we had about an hour to explore and then we returned to the bus for the ride back to the ship. That night I again just relaxed on the ship because I was tired from walking around all day in the heat and humidity.
The next morning was the beginning of another day trip, in which I did not go with any of the fellow bloggers. One of our friends that we have met, Jay, was on the trip as well and I met another girl Heather, who I hung out with for most of the day. On this trip, we first stopped at a little market area that had all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and even mud crabs that were still alive and looked disgusting because they were all covered in mud and smelled really bad. In this little market town, we walked around a little and saw very pretty buildings. Once we were done there, we continued our trip to a local farming town, where we got to go to a local woman’s home. At her home, she let us sample chocolate that she had made from cocoa beans, as well as the fruit that these beans come from. I did not try them because it seemed a little too fresh and maybe not very safe to eat. After this little farming town, we traveled to our final destination of Cachoeira. When we first arrived, we ate lunch at a pousada, which used to be a monastery. There was a table set up for about 45 people and it was just one long table. It was strange. The food at this place was very good as well. After our lunch, we got to walk around Cachoeira, where we went into the old jail and saw the house of some very famous singers. I didn’t know these singers but our guide told us that this brother and sister are famous worldwide. We then walked down by the waterfront, which was very beautiful. All of the towns that we visited on this trip were nice and quiet compared to Salvador, since everyone had left these remote towns to celebrate Carnival in the major cities. It was a very relaxing and scenic day even though we had to do a lot of walking. We then took the 2-hour bus ride home, which was nice because I got to take a little nap.
When we returned to the ship, Jay and I swore that we were exhausted and did not want to go out that night. But once we got back and were sitting at dinner we somehow got convinced to go back out to the Pelourhino (the upper city in Salvador) to celebrate our last night in Salvador, as well as the last night of Carnival. Once we got up to the city, we decided to go to the right instead of left like we had done the night of Traditional Carnival. To the right there were probably thousands of people packed together dancing and watching the floats go by. It was so much fun and a great way to spend my last night in Brazil. The only creepy thing that happened to me in my whole Brazil stay was that night when some random guy walked by and tried to touch my wrist or hand. I realized that he probably did this to try to steal my watch because I accidentally forgot to take it off before going up. Anyways Carnival overall was a lot of fun and I am happy my fear did not get in my way.
Now, finally the last day in Brazil. On this day, we went back up to the city to buy souvenirs because I had about 160 reals to spend which equals about $80. You would think that it would be easy to spend money, but Alex and I had a lot of trouble. Some stuff just seemed too overpriced for what it was and we just did not want to pay, but eventually after about 4 or 5 hours, we spent all of our reals. While up in the city, we also tried to go to an internet café. After, we finally found one where the prices seemed reasonable we attempted to check mail. It ended up that the computers were very slow and I was the only one able to check just one e-mail account. It was a little ridiculous. Well after these long five days in Brazil, I was very happy to get back on the ship and to not have to walk so much anymore. That night when we were on the ship, we enjoyed watching a few students return late to the ship, which meant that they were going to get dock time in the next port. In addition, Alex, Sheryl (my roommate), and I went up to the 7th deck to watch the stairs that we had been using to get on and off the ship get pulled back up to the 7th deck where they reside at sea.
When I first entered Brazil, I was so scared to even get off the ship because we learned of all the horrors that we might face in Brazil. I am very thankful that nothing happened to me or any of my friends. I did hear some stories from others. One girl in the post port said that her and a few friends got held up by knives and all of their cameras and stuff were taken. I can’t even imagine that happening. Anyways I think that is enough information about Brazil, and hopefully since I am already in South Africa it won’t be too long until I post my next blog!
I love and miss you all!
Alissa
Now that I am about to enter South Africa, I will tell you about my travels through Brazil. As we arrived, we woke up at 6:30 am to see the ship pull into the port. The port was full of tall buildings and a huge crane that ended up right next to the ship. After pulling in, everyone had to go through immigration and meet face-to-face with a Brazilian Customs Officer. Once the ship was cleared, I stayed and took a nap on the ship until my trip later that day. Once I awoke from my nap, I went on a day trip to the Candomble temple. Candomble is an African religion that was originally forbidden in Brazil. At this temple we got to see the buildings that contained the shrines for each of the deities (you can only go in if you are part of the religion), and we also saw a museum containing many items that are used in the religion. Once we were done in the museum, we met the priestess of this Temple who told us a great story. Something I found interesting about this Priestess is that when she was a teenager she decided that she did not want to be a part of this religion and left for many years. Eventually she came back and then was selected as the Priestess. The next cool thing about the Priestess is that if you bought a beaded necklace, each of which symbolized one of the deities, she would bless the beads and then put them on you. I bought one and I was able to have her bless my beads. Alex recorded this for me so if anyone wants to see it, I will show you when I return home. After the Candomble temple, I went back to the ship for the rest of that night, did a little homework, and then went to sleep because I was exhausted.
For my next day in Brazil, I did not have a planned trip until the evening so during the day a little group of us walked up to the city and looked in many of the shops and the main marketplace (mainly crafts and souvenirs). For everyone reading this that has never been to Salvador, Brazil, I will tell you about the interesting way to get into the main city. The city sits on a huge hill or so and in order to get up there you must ride in an elevator about 10 stories high. I think that is about how high it was. Anyways well, I hate elevators and for this one they pack as many people as they can in it and then they have an elevator worker who runs the elevator. It was kind of scary. As we left the city that day, it is about a ten minute walk from the elevator to the port where the ship was. As we walked back, it started to pour huge drops and we got absolutely drenched. We were running from overhang to overhang to try to have a little protection, but it was a true adventure! Once we got back and dried off a little we relaxed for a few hours and then met with our group for our organized trip, which was called Traditional Carnival. For this we went back up to the city to celebrate Carnival, which for those of you who might not know what this is, it is what Mardi Gras is based off of. It is crazy! People fill the streets and celebrate by dancing and watching floats filled with many people and loud music go by. There were also kids who bought this soap spray stuff and sprayed it everywhere and on everyone. It was a lot of fun.
For my next day in Brazil, I had a day trip planned. Like Chris, I went to the Praia Do Forte Escape, which is a very touristy preserve for sea turtles. On the way there, we stopped at a beach that had mangrove trees and we learned more a lot about them. Then our next stop was at the Castle of Garcia D’Avila, a Portuguese settler. The ruins of this castle that was built in 1552 is all that remains. Finally, after this stop we finally reached the marine turtle project, where we got to see many marine turtles including baby turtles. I even learned a very interesting fact: when a turtle egg is laid, the sex of that turtle will be determined by the temperature of the sand (warmer sand will produce females and colder sand will produce males). After we looked at the turtles we ate lunch in a local restaurant and it was very good food. Once lunch was over we had about an hour to explore and then we returned to the bus for the ride back to the ship. That night I again just relaxed on the ship because I was tired from walking around all day in the heat and humidity.
The next morning was the beginning of another day trip, in which I did not go with any of the fellow bloggers. One of our friends that we have met, Jay, was on the trip as well and I met another girl Heather, who I hung out with for most of the day. On this trip, we first stopped at a little market area that had all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and even mud crabs that were still alive and looked disgusting because they were all covered in mud and smelled really bad. In this little market town, we walked around a little and saw very pretty buildings. Once we were done there, we continued our trip to a local farming town, where we got to go to a local woman’s home. At her home, she let us sample chocolate that she had made from cocoa beans, as well as the fruit that these beans come from. I did not try them because it seemed a little too fresh and maybe not very safe to eat. After this little farming town, we traveled to our final destination of Cachoeira. When we first arrived, we ate lunch at a pousada, which used to be a monastery. There was a table set up for about 45 people and it was just one long table. It was strange. The food at this place was very good as well. After our lunch, we got to walk around Cachoeira, where we went into the old jail and saw the house of some very famous singers. I didn’t know these singers but our guide told us that this brother and sister are famous worldwide. We then walked down by the waterfront, which was very beautiful. All of the towns that we visited on this trip were nice and quiet compared to Salvador, since everyone had left these remote towns to celebrate Carnival in the major cities. It was a very relaxing and scenic day even though we had to do a lot of walking. We then took the 2-hour bus ride home, which was nice because I got to take a little nap.
When we returned to the ship, Jay and I swore that we were exhausted and did not want to go out that night. But once we got back and were sitting at dinner we somehow got convinced to go back out to the Pelourhino (the upper city in Salvador) to celebrate our last night in Salvador, as well as the last night of Carnival. Once we got up to the city, we decided to go to the right instead of left like we had done the night of Traditional Carnival. To the right there were probably thousands of people packed together dancing and watching the floats go by. It was so much fun and a great way to spend my last night in Brazil. The only creepy thing that happened to me in my whole Brazil stay was that night when some random guy walked by and tried to touch my wrist or hand. I realized that he probably did this to try to steal my watch because I accidentally forgot to take it off before going up. Anyways Carnival overall was a lot of fun and I am happy my fear did not get in my way.
Now, finally the last day in Brazil. On this day, we went back up to the city to buy souvenirs because I had about 160 reals to spend which equals about $80. You would think that it would be easy to spend money, but Alex and I had a lot of trouble. Some stuff just seemed too overpriced for what it was and we just did not want to pay, but eventually after about 4 or 5 hours, we spent all of our reals. While up in the city, we also tried to go to an internet café. After, we finally found one where the prices seemed reasonable we attempted to check mail. It ended up that the computers were very slow and I was the only one able to check just one e-mail account. It was a little ridiculous. Well after these long five days in Brazil, I was very happy to get back on the ship and to not have to walk so much anymore. That night when we were on the ship, we enjoyed watching a few students return late to the ship, which meant that they were going to get dock time in the next port. In addition, Alex, Sheryl (my roommate), and I went up to the 7th deck to watch the stairs that we had been using to get on and off the ship get pulled back up to the 7th deck where they reside at sea.
When I first entered Brazil, I was so scared to even get off the ship because we learned of all the horrors that we might face in Brazil. I am very thankful that nothing happened to me or any of my friends. I did hear some stories from others. One girl in the post port said that her and a few friends got held up by knives and all of their cameras and stuff were taken. I can’t even imagine that happening. Anyways I think that is enough information about Brazil, and hopefully since I am already in South Africa it won’t be too long until I post my next blog!
I love and miss you all!
Alissa
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Joanne's thoughts on Brazil
We are presently in the middle of the Ocean and as Cat Stevens put it “miles from not where, not a soul in sight…oh yeah.” This is a very long leg to our journey with eight days at sea and no land in sight. I am beginning to get that this is a very long adventure. Each stop feels like it should be the end to the adventure, but we get to do many more. Lucky us! I am determined to share some of my thoughts with you before we arrive in our next port of Cape Town, South Africa.
Brazil was amazing. It reminded me a bit of the feeling I had when we first arrived in Thailand several years ago. At first you are a bit taken a back and almost disturbed by the smells, the sights, the poverty and the disparities. For some reason Brazil previously to me conjured the image of Miami Beach or what the tourist pages had shown me of Rio. Our ship arrived in Salvador, which was the former capitol and it is also was the sight of the largest African slave trade. You quickly see the influence of Africa everywhere. I had to keep reminding myself that I was not after all in Africa. Bahia (Salvador) is very much of African decent. In contrast to the United States, the slave trade there was larger and lasted longer. In Brazil, tribes were allowed to remain intact; where as in the US we deliberately split up tribes and families so that they could not organize or protest. As a consequence many of the African traditions made their way in interesting ways into the Portuguese traditions of Brazil. One example of this was seen at in the Candomble religion. The Catholic’s thought that they were converting the slaves from their native pagan religion, but what the slaves did was to worship their gods as the Christian symbol. They have two names for Mary and Jesus and St. Joseph. One is the Christian name, but all along they are worshiping their gods. They managed in doing so to keep many of their costumes alive and to form a hybrid sort of religion which is recognized by the Catholic Church. Another very big thing here is a martial arts form of dance. It is called Capoerra. The slave owners thought that all that was occurring was dance, but what they were doing is training and conditioning themselves through acrobatic types of maneuvers. Now on every corner of every street you can see kids engaging in this form of activity. It is a mind body kind of exercise which today gives kids a sense of purpose, belonging and keeps them strong and fit. The purpose is to move as quickly as you can doing Karate types of moves without touching or harming the other person. There are drums and a string instrument played while this goes on. It really is literally everywhere. We saw an amazing group of professionals perform this for us our first night there and they literally moved so fast that it was a blur and they were within inches of each other with each and every move.
Bahia is a very crowded city, especially during Carnival. We were most often the only white faces in some very large crowds. We went out in groups two different nights and in two different directions to observe at first and then to dance in the streets with the kids and with the natives. We were warned of the high crime rate so we only went in large groups and remained very close together. We found the native crowd to be protective of us and genuinely affectionate. None of our group had any problems. Although we could not communicate with words, the thumbs up sign is somewhat universal and we were given that often as we danced and pretended we knew the words to the songs that the crowds were singing. The celebration is amazing. It is like Disneyland on Main Street during the electric light parade and fireworks, but it is on every street and every block in every nook and cranny. There are stages and musicians every few feet and floats blasting music. Some folks dress in elaborate traditional costumes, others dress in outrageous outfits, but ALL participate. This party goes on for days. Apparaently according to the Guinness book, this IS the largest party in the world. It is not an observation; it is full participation regardless of age, social status etc.
We did manage to get out of the city for some day trips and to visit some other small towns. There is evidence of the clear cutting of the Atlantic rain forest that can be seen even near Salvador. The Geologic features are many and very interesting. On day we went with the ships Geologist and also one from the local university and learned so much. We were able to observe two different locations of amazing tide pools. The tide changes very dramatically each day and allows for some of the finest tide pools that I had ever seen. We saw corals and tropical fish and all sorts of life in miles and miles of the tide pools. The beaches are fabulously scenic. The sand is a dark beige color and the water is very blue and warm. I am sure you will agree when you see photo’s how beautiful it is.
Shipboard life continues to keep us busy although not too busy to read emails so please keep them coming or start for those of you that have not sent any. We love getting mail and miss our family and friends. This week Kevin gave a talk to the entire shipboard community in our Global Studies class on the Aids crisis in Africa focusing on the role that the government of South Africa had played, more specifically in denying that the HIV virus caused AIDS and then denying their citizens treatment for a very long time and long after we knew the drugs to be effective. He pointed out the importance of individual, community and global activism in forcing change which ultimately led to a shift their governments’ policies to allow for treatment. However, much of this shift is only very recent and in the meantime the disease continued to spread allowing many to die needlessly. South Africa continues to be the country in the world with the highest numbers of HIV infected residents. It was a very powerful talk and well received by the community. I know that Kevin is happy to have this behind him. He worked very hard on preparations for it. This week was also Neptune Day celebrations which I am sure Chris will share more about. Basically it is a long standing sailing tradition that you do when you pass over the equator to pay homage to the god Neptune. Part of the festivities have included some folks shaving their heads to give homage to the god Neptune. It is kind of like an initiation for those of us that have never passed across the equator in a boat. We are known as “pollywogs” and those that have crossed are know as “shellbacks (Kevin)” and they get to plan the festivities and the initiation. It was a very fun day. We had no classes. Yehah and we also had a big California style BBQ with all the trimmings. It happened to also be one of the best days we had thus far while at sea. Clear, warm, still, flat sea's and low humidity…A combo rarely seen. I tell you this by way of introduction to the next of the weeks activities. At noon the day after the event they announced that for the next twenty four hours we were going to have an Apartheid exercise. All those with shaved heads would be the privileged group (clearly a very small number). They would be given special privileges and those of us with hair would lose ours. No pool deck, no snack bar, no eating in one of the two dining rooms, no faculty lounge etc. They put up signs saying only shaved head allowed and only shaved heads lines for services etc. You get the picture. The lines for food became very long. Folks started to grumble. It was interesting to watch it. Interesting to me how all of the sudden the shaved head folks really started to enjoy the power and taunt those without it. You begin to understand that power mentality. Some kids actually shaved their head to fit in with the privileged ones. I joined a group of folks that did a non-violent protest at dinner and blocked the entrance to the cafeteria. We made signs that said “hair is beautiful” and “restore our rights” etc. It was a game and simple, but really stimulated some amazing conversations as we sat there imagining what this would be like in real life and what we might or might not do. The simulation experiment ended with the most inspiring of speeches given by the Archbishop himself on Truth and Reconciliation. I am flabbergasted at what he was part of in this commission and what he must have seen, felt and heard. Their rules were simple, to receive amnesty, you needed to tell the truth about the crimes you had committed and then ask forgiveness. You had to face those that you had harmed. I could not imagine how I could possibly ever have the courage to face the person who had killed my child, husband, parent or community and to hear the gruesome details and at times even see live footage of these tortures and then grant their forgiveness and let that person or people walk free. I just did not understand how it could be until I heard him speak. He spoke of the options at hand and how the world expected South Africa to be a blood bath after the end of the oppressive white rule. It was their belief that people could not heal without this forgiveness. He said in South Africa community is more important than individuality and that black and white is all part of that community along with victim and perpetrator. He went on to say that we are all a part of a whole. That God wants us to be a family, all of us and that if they did not forgive and seek to heal, they would be harming themselves even more. He said over and over he was amazed at the effect this process had on people. How in finally hearing all that had been done, they were relieved and better able to move on. If you have not seen it and can get a hold of it, there is a documentary about this commission and it is called “Long Dark Nights Journey into Day.” I watched parts of it and wept and was utterly amazed by peoples capacity to rise above such pain and bring their better selves for the good of humanity. I can not give the right words to what this taught me, but I recommend that if you do not know much about this time in South Africa that you take the time to learn. It is an amazing part of our collective history. The Archbishop actually took time to give a very warm, heart felt thank to all of us in the room for our part in “breaking their shackles and opening the prison doors.” He spoke of the protests and the activist and the financial sanctions that occurred to help them win in their struggle. He has this way of making each person feel so important and never letting any of this be about himself. I am sure that you will hear more from all of us for years to come about what he has taught us.
Switching gears from oppression to privilege. Our social life continues to flourish. We were invited to two very nice sea socials (parties) this week and to a formal Captains dinner for a select few. This voyage is as I have said before, far from a luxury cruise. Food is acceptable but not exceptional…except for that night. We received a formal invitation. There were about twenty of us invited. It was first rate. The food was five star. Kevin and I were placed at the table with the associate captain, Kosta. We spoke a great deal about Greece, life at sea etc. It was a very special night. I did manage to change out of my college clothes to grown up dress clothes. Kevin wore a suit and tie. It has been a long time since we had been so groomed.
The boys remain as busy as their parents. Chris is on the Ambassadors club and he is as always very social. Alex is on the year book committee and having a ball. He works to the wee hours of the morning on year book stuff. He has learned much about photographing and is looking forward to using my camera while on Safari. Tonight we are getting together with them, our adopted family of six other kids, our neighbors and their adopted kids for a game night of sorts. It should be fun. We have much planned to do in Cape Town including spending the weekend with a South African couple who we met last year while on safari, a three day biking and wine tasting tour, Trips to table mountain and Robin Island, and a visit to an HIV center and the township with Kevin’s student. The boys will visit Kruger National park on a safari. Tune in again in a week or so for my impressions. I think you may need to send me some new superlative words to use. At this rate of amazement, I am running out.
Kevin and I both send you our love a good wishes. We love the fact that this blog is being followed from so far, including Botswana, China, New York, Florida, Tennessee and Ohio just to name a few. We enjoy your emails and your comments so please chime in any time if you have anything to add.
Brazil was amazing. It reminded me a bit of the feeling I had when we first arrived in Thailand several years ago. At first you are a bit taken a back and almost disturbed by the smells, the sights, the poverty and the disparities. For some reason Brazil previously to me conjured the image of Miami Beach or what the tourist pages had shown me of Rio. Our ship arrived in Salvador, which was the former capitol and it is also was the sight of the largest African slave trade. You quickly see the influence of Africa everywhere. I had to keep reminding myself that I was not after all in Africa. Bahia (Salvador) is very much of African decent. In contrast to the United States, the slave trade there was larger and lasted longer. In Brazil, tribes were allowed to remain intact; where as in the US we deliberately split up tribes and families so that they could not organize or protest. As a consequence many of the African traditions made their way in interesting ways into the Portuguese traditions of Brazil. One example of this was seen at in the Candomble religion. The Catholic’s thought that they were converting the slaves from their native pagan religion, but what the slaves did was to worship their gods as the Christian symbol. They have two names for Mary and Jesus and St. Joseph. One is the Christian name, but all along they are worshiping their gods. They managed in doing so to keep many of their costumes alive and to form a hybrid sort of religion which is recognized by the Catholic Church. Another very big thing here is a martial arts form of dance. It is called Capoerra. The slave owners thought that all that was occurring was dance, but what they were doing is training and conditioning themselves through acrobatic types of maneuvers. Now on every corner of every street you can see kids engaging in this form of activity. It is a mind body kind of exercise which today gives kids a sense of purpose, belonging and keeps them strong and fit. The purpose is to move as quickly as you can doing Karate types of moves without touching or harming the other person. There are drums and a string instrument played while this goes on. It really is literally everywhere. We saw an amazing group of professionals perform this for us our first night there and they literally moved so fast that it was a blur and they were within inches of each other with each and every move.
Bahia is a very crowded city, especially during Carnival. We were most often the only white faces in some very large crowds. We went out in groups two different nights and in two different directions to observe at first and then to dance in the streets with the kids and with the natives. We were warned of the high crime rate so we only went in large groups and remained very close together. We found the native crowd to be protective of us and genuinely affectionate. None of our group had any problems. Although we could not communicate with words, the thumbs up sign is somewhat universal and we were given that often as we danced and pretended we knew the words to the songs that the crowds were singing. The celebration is amazing. It is like Disneyland on Main Street during the electric light parade and fireworks, but it is on every street and every block in every nook and cranny. There are stages and musicians every few feet and floats blasting music. Some folks dress in elaborate traditional costumes, others dress in outrageous outfits, but ALL participate. This party goes on for days. Apparaently according to the Guinness book, this IS the largest party in the world. It is not an observation; it is full participation regardless of age, social status etc.
We did manage to get out of the city for some day trips and to visit some other small towns. There is evidence of the clear cutting of the Atlantic rain forest that can be seen even near Salvador. The Geologic features are many and very interesting. On day we went with the ships Geologist and also one from the local university and learned so much. We were able to observe two different locations of amazing tide pools. The tide changes very dramatically each day and allows for some of the finest tide pools that I had ever seen. We saw corals and tropical fish and all sorts of life in miles and miles of the tide pools. The beaches are fabulously scenic. The sand is a dark beige color and the water is very blue and warm. I am sure you will agree when you see photo’s how beautiful it is.
Shipboard life continues to keep us busy although not too busy to read emails so please keep them coming or start for those of you that have not sent any. We love getting mail and miss our family and friends. This week Kevin gave a talk to the entire shipboard community in our Global Studies class on the Aids crisis in Africa focusing on the role that the government of South Africa had played, more specifically in denying that the HIV virus caused AIDS and then denying their citizens treatment for a very long time and long after we knew the drugs to be effective. He pointed out the importance of individual, community and global activism in forcing change which ultimately led to a shift their governments’ policies to allow for treatment. However, much of this shift is only very recent and in the meantime the disease continued to spread allowing many to die needlessly. South Africa continues to be the country in the world with the highest numbers of HIV infected residents. It was a very powerful talk and well received by the community. I know that Kevin is happy to have this behind him. He worked very hard on preparations for it. This week was also Neptune Day celebrations which I am sure Chris will share more about. Basically it is a long standing sailing tradition that you do when you pass over the equator to pay homage to the god Neptune. Part of the festivities have included some folks shaving their heads to give homage to the god Neptune. It is kind of like an initiation for those of us that have never passed across the equator in a boat. We are known as “pollywogs” and those that have crossed are know as “shellbacks (Kevin)” and they get to plan the festivities and the initiation. It was a very fun day. We had no classes. Yehah and we also had a big California style BBQ with all the trimmings. It happened to also be one of the best days we had thus far while at sea. Clear, warm, still, flat sea's and low humidity…A combo rarely seen. I tell you this by way of introduction to the next of the weeks activities. At noon the day after the event they announced that for the next twenty four hours we were going to have an Apartheid exercise. All those with shaved heads would be the privileged group (clearly a very small number). They would be given special privileges and those of us with hair would lose ours. No pool deck, no snack bar, no eating in one of the two dining rooms, no faculty lounge etc. They put up signs saying only shaved head allowed and only shaved heads lines for services etc. You get the picture. The lines for food became very long. Folks started to grumble. It was interesting to watch it. Interesting to me how all of the sudden the shaved head folks really started to enjoy the power and taunt those without it. You begin to understand that power mentality. Some kids actually shaved their head to fit in with the privileged ones. I joined a group of folks that did a non-violent protest at dinner and blocked the entrance to the cafeteria. We made signs that said “hair is beautiful” and “restore our rights” etc. It was a game and simple, but really stimulated some amazing conversations as we sat there imagining what this would be like in real life and what we might or might not do. The simulation experiment ended with the most inspiring of speeches given by the Archbishop himself on Truth and Reconciliation. I am flabbergasted at what he was part of in this commission and what he must have seen, felt and heard. Their rules were simple, to receive amnesty, you needed to tell the truth about the crimes you had committed and then ask forgiveness. You had to face those that you had harmed. I could not imagine how I could possibly ever have the courage to face the person who had killed my child, husband, parent or community and to hear the gruesome details and at times even see live footage of these tortures and then grant their forgiveness and let that person or people walk free. I just did not understand how it could be until I heard him speak. He spoke of the options at hand and how the world expected South Africa to be a blood bath after the end of the oppressive white rule. It was their belief that people could not heal without this forgiveness. He said in South Africa community is more important than individuality and that black and white is all part of that community along with victim and perpetrator. He went on to say that we are all a part of a whole. That God wants us to be a family, all of us and that if they did not forgive and seek to heal, they would be harming themselves even more. He said over and over he was amazed at the effect this process had on people. How in finally hearing all that had been done, they were relieved and better able to move on. If you have not seen it and can get a hold of it, there is a documentary about this commission and it is called “Long Dark Nights Journey into Day.” I watched parts of it and wept and was utterly amazed by peoples capacity to rise above such pain and bring their better selves for the good of humanity. I can not give the right words to what this taught me, but I recommend that if you do not know much about this time in South Africa that you take the time to learn. It is an amazing part of our collective history. The Archbishop actually took time to give a very warm, heart felt thank to all of us in the room for our part in “breaking their shackles and opening the prison doors.” He spoke of the protests and the activist and the financial sanctions that occurred to help them win in their struggle. He has this way of making each person feel so important and never letting any of this be about himself. I am sure that you will hear more from all of us for years to come about what he has taught us.
Switching gears from oppression to privilege. Our social life continues to flourish. We were invited to two very nice sea socials (parties) this week and to a formal Captains dinner for a select few. This voyage is as I have said before, far from a luxury cruise. Food is acceptable but not exceptional…except for that night. We received a formal invitation. There were about twenty of us invited. It was first rate. The food was five star. Kevin and I were placed at the table with the associate captain, Kosta. We spoke a great deal about Greece, life at sea etc. It was a very special night. I did manage to change out of my college clothes to grown up dress clothes. Kevin wore a suit and tie. It has been a long time since we had been so groomed.
The boys remain as busy as their parents. Chris is on the Ambassadors club and he is as always very social. Alex is on the year book committee and having a ball. He works to the wee hours of the morning on year book stuff. He has learned much about photographing and is looking forward to using my camera while on Safari. Tonight we are getting together with them, our adopted family of six other kids, our neighbors and their adopted kids for a game night of sorts. It should be fun. We have much planned to do in Cape Town including spending the weekend with a South African couple who we met last year while on safari, a three day biking and wine tasting tour, Trips to table mountain and Robin Island, and a visit to an HIV center and the township with Kevin’s student. The boys will visit Kruger National park on a safari. Tune in again in a week or so for my impressions. I think you may need to send me some new superlative words to use. At this rate of amazement, I am running out.
Kevin and I both send you our love a good wishes. We love the fact that this blog is being followed from so far, including Botswana, China, New York, Florida, Tennessee and Ohio just to name a few. We enjoy your emails and your comments so please chime in any time if you have anything to add.
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