About an hour ago(11:23pm South African time) I returned from an overnight on Robben Island. It, I believe will forever remain as one of the most empowering, moving, terrifying and amazing times in my life. The history of the island stretches back to the 1400s. The feeling of apartheid are still felt there, the island is full of raw emotion. We were an extremely lucky group of SAS students. All other SAS run trips to Robben Island were canceled because of the ferry breaking, however, we were still able to go b/c the private boats that were hired to act as ferries for the two weeks were running in the mornings which was when we would be both arriving at Robben Island and also departing the next morning. We were also extremely fortunate b/c we were the first such group to ever have the opportunity to sleep on the island. We are forever a part of history.
The first part of our tour was a walking tour, we learned about the history of the island up until Apartheid and the island became a prison. We saw so much in about two hours. We saw where the leper cemetery and learned about them and why they were there, we saw all sorts of trees and plants that were not indigenous to the area and learned what problems they were causing, we saw massive guns that were there for protection during WWII, we saw peacocks and penguins and rabbits and other animals. We also went to a home that belonged to a political detainee, who was actually not a prisoner so he was given "privileges," we saw the quarry where prisoners worked as a part of hard labor. We then went to lunch in one of the buildings that was built when it was a prison and used for those in charge.
After lunch, we went on a tour with Coach, an ex-political prisoner. He showed us the cell where Nelson Mandela spent 18 years of his life, he even let us into the cell. This was an honor for us, very few people will ever get the opportunity to do that. However because of the size of our group and who we were, he allowed us to go in. We then walked around other parts of the prison, read stories of the prisoners who were in there. I read of one man who took two years to get a approval to have a brush, another who was there with his brother whom he had not seen in months, and another who had a stapler and it was his most treasured possession. After we left that part we went to another cell block, we walked down to the end of the aisle and he turned on a light and said "this is where i spent six and a half years of my life." We saw history, we looked history in the eyes. We spent no more than 3 or 4 minutes there, yet that was enough.
At the end of our tour, we went back to where we would be staying for the night, the "multiple purpose center." The reason i put it in quotes is because really, it was the medium security prison. No new name can change that. After about an hour of freshening up and also playing soccer with some of those that lived on the island, we went to dinner. Coach was there. There were tables of four and I sat with three people. After dinner, I went over to the table where Coach was and joined in on the conversation. Of the 22 that went on the trip, 9 of us stayed in that house until 11am. For two hours we sat and heard him speak. We asked questions and he gave us the most honest answers I have ever heard a man say. I say "heard" because I did not necessarily listen. Two of us were able to record 99% of our conversation. For that reason, I took in what I could. Yet, it is impossible to process everything he said.
Our interport lecturer for South Africa is an extraordinary man by the name of Louis Patler. Google him...see what you can learn. Fortunately I had the opportunity to sit down and speak with him, he told myself and others in the group not to process what we are seeing and doing and to simply take it all in. This is what I have done since that day and what I will be doing from now on. In a sense it is for survival. It would be impossible for me to understand all I have seen and done and not go crazy. For me, this voyage has changed drastically in just a few days, and now it has been even more enhanced by a trip that was just over 24 hours.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Fish Guts and Kisses!
Happy Neptune Day!!!!! For those that don't know Neptune Day is supposed to sort of an initiation for those that haven't crossed the equator. On sunday we crossed the prime meridian and the equator at the same time which is definitley a unique experience. The captain altered his course so we would be able to do this. This meant that we were at zero degrees longitude and zero degrees latitude. This was most certainly a once in a lifetime experience. Sailors used to get dragged behind the ship in the water in addition to having fish guts dumped on them and their heads shaved...o and they had to kiss a fish. The SAS version is a little different. You get fish guts dumped on your head and then jump into the pool, and when you get out of the pool you kiss the fish. Shaving your head is optional but so far a lot of people have done it, i'm pretty sure more girls have done it so far than guys. I'm not, I want to want to do it, but still not enough. I didn't do the fish guts either. I've enjoyed watching it. Right now i'm dealing with a combination of a really bad stomach bug and seasickness so i've been pretty much down for the count the last day and a half. We have our first global test today so we'll see how that goes, especially b/c i'm in the union which is the room most likely to make someone feel sick. The test is shipwide too, so every student on the ship has to take it at the same time. Students will be all over the ship btw the union, dinig rooms, classrooms, everywhere. it's going to be interesting to see how it all works out.
Ghana was amazing. Aside from feeling a little off the entire time(the fact that i'm now sick explains it). the first day i visited the castles and slave dungeons. As one of my friends put it, it was the greatest contrast between heaven and hell that he's ever seen. This could not have been truer. However, one of the guides there was very adamant in his sentiments when he said "we are not here to judge, or to blame, or to point fingers. We are here to teach, for in order to learn, you must be educated and in order to be educated you must learn." Truer words could not have been said. My second into third day I did a home stay. my final day I went to a children home. The entire time in Ghana were a sort of progression for me. It was almost a sort of pattern of life and succession. More on this later, Right now, I'm going to attempt to rest more so i'll be able to study and prepare before the test tonight!!!
Lots of love!!!
~Angela
p.s.-i'm going to start working on sending photos as well that way you can see what i've been up to through pictures as well
Ghana was amazing. Aside from feeling a little off the entire time(the fact that i'm now sick explains it). the first day i visited the castles and slave dungeons. As one of my friends put it, it was the greatest contrast between heaven and hell that he's ever seen. This could not have been truer. However, one of the guides there was very adamant in his sentiments when he said "we are not here to judge, or to blame, or to point fingers. We are here to teach, for in order to learn, you must be educated and in order to be educated you must learn." Truer words could not have been said. My second into third day I did a home stay. my final day I went to a children home. The entire time in Ghana were a sort of progression for me. It was almost a sort of pattern of life and succession. More on this later, Right now, I'm going to attempt to rest more so i'll be able to study and prepare before the test tonight!!!
Lots of love!!!
~Angela
p.s.-i'm going to start working on sending photos as well that way you can see what i've been up to through pictures as well
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Class, food, and fun...Ship life!
Hey everyone,
I know I’m behind and I have to finish Spain and Morocco. It’s been a really busy week here on the ship. This blog is more of an update on ship life and what I’ve been up do on the ship.
First off, classes: we’re all required to take a Global Studies course, this course is a hybrid of a world history course and we also learn about the countries that we will be going to. It’s an interesting course especially because we get a lot of guest lectures from faculty and staff as well as interport students/visitors. My other classes are World Religions which is a cool b/c we actually will be seeing a lot of the religions in practice as we learn about them in class. I am also taking Emerging Markets and International Business. These two courses are really cool b/c it makes you really observant of the world around you and the differences between American business and international businesses. We have to go to McDonald’s in a few of the countries to observe the similarities and differences. In Spain they serve beer because it is a part of their culture. It’s been awesome to make observances that relate to much of what we have been discussing in class.
Second, activities/clubs: I’m involved in several on board clubs and activities. These include, being the Stage Manager/Student in Charge of the Cabaret that will be taking place at some point near the end of the voyage. It’s going to be a combination of a play, music, dance numbers and other things. It will be a lot of work, but it’s starting to shape up already. I’m also a Student Ambassador as well. I will be working on the Silent Auction that is held at the end of the voyage, as well as helping to educate the student body. Example, did you know that more than 200,000 U.S. students study abroad each year but only 1,600 take part in SAS? Cool huh? I’m also helping out with other activities that take place as well. Passport to Leadership is another club I take part in in which we attend different explorer seminars and get different amounts of credit for the ones we attend.
Third, work: I work in the Field Office on the ship. The Field Office is by far the most stressful place on the ship after the bridge (the place where all the ships controls are and where the captain is). That being said I still love it, and the whole there’s no such thing as stupid questions, only stupid people was totally right. We stress points over and over and over, such as, “you cannot sell an overnight.” And then someone comes up with some issue about something or other and has to talk to someone in private…when in reality all they wanted to know was about selling an overnight…which is not allowed. It’s frustrating sometimes, we have fun though. Someone from the field office is physically outside at the desk from 10:30-12:30 and 15:00-17:00 but our office is right behind there, yet you have to go through either the dean’s office or the student activities office so no one can ever find us if we’re not there which is amazing b/c it’s the perfect place to escape. I work with three other SAS students, then the boss I report to is Leah, there is also Lauren who works in the Field Office, and the head boss is Becca. Everyone there is amazing and we have a lot of fun there.
Fourth, meetings: in addition to my club meetings, I also attend several of the Explorer Seminars, which are also a part of Passport to Leadership. These are really cool and informative. The other night I went to one on Graduate School, which was really helpful and interesting. We also have two types of pre-port meetings. A cultural pre-port where we learn about…you guessed it! The culture of the country we’re going to. The last cultural pre-port was last night and it was by this man Joe Baami who is our interport lecturer. He taught us about the culture of Ghana, the independence of Ghana…o and about how he was one of the people that helped write the constitution for the country. Basically, he’s a pretty awesome dude. Tonight we had our logistical pre-port where we learned about the money and how the country works and politics and all that jazz. This is also the time when the medical team comes up and tells us the things we need to be warned about…liiiiiike malaria and diarrhea and rabies and loads of other fun stuff. We also learned how to use a squat toilet from one of the professors. This was definitely one of the more interesting pre-ports in a while.
Fifth, food/laundry/and the like: So you’re probably wondering about the food situation and all that jazz. The food here is decent for the most part. Sometimes it’s kinda eh but it all depends. The night before we arrive in a country(aka tonight) they do food from that country. It’s kinda odd though b/c it seems while we’re at sea they have random food but while we’re in port they serve the most America food. It’s all good, I’ve survived…some people literally eat peanut butter and jelly at every meal, it’s kinda funny. Laundry…they do our laundry here about every two weeks but sometimes in between we do laundry in our sinks…it makes things easier. so that can take some time. On of the problems with doing laundry in the room is waiting for it to dry which is annoying but sometimes easier than waiting two weeks. And the like…basically hanging out with friends and all that jazz. Being social on the ship actually takes a lot of time. We do a lot and have fun and what not. Movie nights(like tonight, we’re watching Hercules) and games nights(apples to apples and catch phrase) are also popular. It’s fun to be social and hang out with people. Its good to have time to distress and hang out. There’s also a half hour meditation that I’ve been to which is good for calming down. All in all it’s good have time just to relax which SAS has a lot of for us to go to and be a part of. There’s also snack time at 2200 hours every night which is very popular on the ship.
A few side notes: my shipboard email is ambroyles@semesteratsea.net
If you want to send me mail the link for the info is: http://www.semesteratsea.org/current-voyage/overview/staying-in-touch.php
We get to Ghana tomorrow so I’ll be updating throughout my time there as well.
~Angela
I know I’m behind and I have to finish Spain and Morocco. It’s been a really busy week here on the ship. This blog is more of an update on ship life and what I’ve been up do on the ship.
First off, classes: we’re all required to take a Global Studies course, this course is a hybrid of a world history course and we also learn about the countries that we will be going to. It’s an interesting course especially because we get a lot of guest lectures from faculty and staff as well as interport students/visitors. My other classes are World Religions which is a cool b/c we actually will be seeing a lot of the religions in practice as we learn about them in class. I am also taking Emerging Markets and International Business. These two courses are really cool b/c it makes you really observant of the world around you and the differences between American business and international businesses. We have to go to McDonald’s in a few of the countries to observe the similarities and differences. In Spain they serve beer because it is a part of their culture. It’s been awesome to make observances that relate to much of what we have been discussing in class.
Second, activities/clubs: I’m involved in several on board clubs and activities. These include, being the Stage Manager/Student in Charge of the Cabaret that will be taking place at some point near the end of the voyage. It’s going to be a combination of a play, music, dance numbers and other things. It will be a lot of work, but it’s starting to shape up already. I’m also a Student Ambassador as well. I will be working on the Silent Auction that is held at the end of the voyage, as well as helping to educate the student body. Example, did you know that more than 200,000 U.S. students study abroad each year but only 1,600 take part in SAS? Cool huh? I’m also helping out with other activities that take place as well. Passport to Leadership is another club I take part in in which we attend different explorer seminars and get different amounts of credit for the ones we attend.
Third, work: I work in the Field Office on the ship. The Field Office is by far the most stressful place on the ship after the bridge (the place where all the ships controls are and where the captain is). That being said I still love it, and the whole there’s no such thing as stupid questions, only stupid people was totally right. We stress points over and over and over, such as, “you cannot sell an overnight.” And then someone comes up with some issue about something or other and has to talk to someone in private…when in reality all they wanted to know was about selling an overnight…which is not allowed. It’s frustrating sometimes, we have fun though. Someone from the field office is physically outside at the desk from 10:30-12:30 and 15:00-17:00 but our office is right behind there, yet you have to go through either the dean’s office or the student activities office so no one can ever find us if we’re not there which is amazing b/c it’s the perfect place to escape. I work with three other SAS students, then the boss I report to is Leah, there is also Lauren who works in the Field Office, and the head boss is Becca. Everyone there is amazing and we have a lot of fun there.
Fourth, meetings: in addition to my club meetings, I also attend several of the Explorer Seminars, which are also a part of Passport to Leadership. These are really cool and informative. The other night I went to one on Graduate School, which was really helpful and interesting. We also have two types of pre-port meetings. A cultural pre-port where we learn about…you guessed it! The culture of the country we’re going to. The last cultural pre-port was last night and it was by this man Joe Baami who is our interport lecturer. He taught us about the culture of Ghana, the independence of Ghana…o and about how he was one of the people that helped write the constitution for the country. Basically, he’s a pretty awesome dude. Tonight we had our logistical pre-port where we learned about the money and how the country works and politics and all that jazz. This is also the time when the medical team comes up and tells us the things we need to be warned about…liiiiiike malaria and diarrhea and rabies and loads of other fun stuff. We also learned how to use a squat toilet from one of the professors. This was definitely one of the more interesting pre-ports in a while.
Fifth, food/laundry/and the like: So you’re probably wondering about the food situation and all that jazz. The food here is decent for the most part. Sometimes it’s kinda eh but it all depends. The night before we arrive in a country(aka tonight) they do food from that country. It’s kinda odd though b/c it seems while we’re at sea they have random food but while we’re in port they serve the most America food. It’s all good, I’ve survived…some people literally eat peanut butter and jelly at every meal, it’s kinda funny. Laundry…they do our laundry here about every two weeks but sometimes in between we do laundry in our sinks…it makes things easier. so that can take some time. On of the problems with doing laundry in the room is waiting for it to dry which is annoying but sometimes easier than waiting two weeks. And the like…basically hanging out with friends and all that jazz. Being social on the ship actually takes a lot of time. We do a lot and have fun and what not. Movie nights(like tonight, we’re watching Hercules) and games nights(apples to apples and catch phrase) are also popular. It’s fun to be social and hang out with people. Its good to have time to distress and hang out. There’s also a half hour meditation that I’ve been to which is good for calming down. All in all it’s good have time just to relax which SAS has a lot of for us to go to and be a part of. There’s also snack time at 2200 hours every night which is very popular on the ship.
A few side notes: my shipboard email is ambroyles@semesteratsea.net
If you want to send me mail the link for the info is: http://www.semesteratsea.org/current-voyage/overview/staying-in-touch.php
We get to Ghana tomorrow so I’ll be updating throughout my time there as well.
~Angela
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Getting oriented to Casablanca
Did you know that Casablanca is the industry capital of Morocco? Did you know that Marakech is the tourism capital of Morocco? Did you know that the political capital of Morocco is Rabat? Did you know that the official business language of Morocco is French, yet Arabic and Berber are also extremely prominent languages in the nation? Did you know that everyone in Morocco is required to take both Arabic and French while in school and then later must choose a third language once they get to secondary school?
One thing about SAS and going to all different countries is that you learn the “break-down” of the countries. How they work, where people live, and what languages/customs are commonplace. Being from the U.S. we almost expect everyone to know English. While many people do know English, they also usually know at least one other language fluently and a third or fourth proficiently. Our guide on the city orientation knew Arabic, French, and English and utilized every one of them throughout our tour. City orientations take place in each of the countries we go to and give you a taste of what the port city is like as well as the country as a whole. Throughout our tour we got to see many interesting parts of the city. We saw the castle that the king stays in when he visits Casablanca as well as special minarets. Our last historic stop was the Hassan II mosque which I returned to later on in the week. Nyah, our guide, was very open about the Muslim faith and encouraged us to ask lots of questions. She spoke to us about Ramadan which ended while we were in Morocco. Nyah explained to us that not all were required to partake in the fast, namely the elderly and children, also women that are pregnant and up to 40 days after having a child. There are also other exceptions as well. Also, if one were to break the fast, they have to make it up on another day following Ramadan. We also learned about the king of Morocco as well. He is very forward thinking and does much to take care of his people. He was also the first king to bring his wife out to the public, and also only has one wife. These two things are setting precedence for the future. His wife also accompanies him on many of his trips and does many things on her own. This also sets precedence for women. Women in Morocco, unlike other Muslim countries, are not required to cover their heads or faces. In fact, the women there cannot be judged based on what they wear. As Muslim women, they are also not required to walk with a man and if a man were to want a second wife, he must ask permission of the first wife. Women are also beginning to become more prominent in the workplace and in fact, Nyah, is one of four women tour guides in all of Morocco. At the end of our tour, we had the chance to visit a local government store. The interesting part about this store, as Nyah explained, is that everything in there has set prices. Much of Morocco works on the barter system. In the government store, you would not barter; you may get a discount if you pay in cash versus card, or something of the sort. You are also guaranteed quality when you buy from the government store. Often times, in the market, the quality is not the best, or you could buy one thing on the pretense that it is another. The employees in the store were also very nice and helpful and did not push you into buying items. They help you when you need help, carry your items should you not be able to hold it all, and they explain the different items in the store, such as the argon oil which is very important to the Moroccan government.
Overall, the Casablanca orientation was really interesting. Some of the city orientations tend to be boring and really touristy. However, being very unfamiliar with Morocco and also being warned about it, I felt much more comfortable after the fact and knowing how things work. One of the cool things about the trip as well…I met a few people that would go on the Marakech/Ziplining Trip which was awesome because I then had people to spend the day with the next day.
That night, I went out with a group of people. Our group consisted of 3 females and 2 guys. You’re probably thinking…bad idea...and guess what? so was I, at first. Our group originally was walking in a horizontal line and as we got closer to the market place and where the crowds were, we bunched up. We also tended to walk on guy in front and one behind. For the most part, it felt relatively safe; however, it was definitely different. Walking through NYC at night, many know that you should be aware and pay attention to your surroundings and what is going on around y. However, in Morocco, throughout my entire time there, and especially at night in that market place, I was hyper aware. Touch: hand on bag at all times, hands ready to grab someone in your party should you get a little too far away from them. Taste: trying the mint tea that is such a rich part of the Moroccan culture and also testing some of the foods. Sight: making sure your party is still together, keeping an eye on the people that are watching you, noticing the cafes/bars where there are several dozen men with their chairs all turned towards the street and watching, knowing that you are being targeted as obliviously different. Smell: breathing in the different smells of the country, the food, the spices for sale, smelling the dirtiness , and musky smell. Hearing: listening at all that’s going on around, who’s speaking English, Arabic, French, who can be communicated with should you need something, the whistles/catcalls that one of the girls in the party gets b/c she’s blond and therefore different. Nighttime Casablanca proved to be very different from daytimes Casablanca. I was definitely able to appreciate the city more after experiencing both aspects of the city.
One thing about SAS and going to all different countries is that you learn the “break-down” of the countries. How they work, where people live, and what languages/customs are commonplace. Being from the U.S. we almost expect everyone to know English. While many people do know English, they also usually know at least one other language fluently and a third or fourth proficiently. Our guide on the city orientation knew Arabic, French, and English and utilized every one of them throughout our tour. City orientations take place in each of the countries we go to and give you a taste of what the port city is like as well as the country as a whole. Throughout our tour we got to see many interesting parts of the city. We saw the castle that the king stays in when he visits Casablanca as well as special minarets. Our last historic stop was the Hassan II mosque which I returned to later on in the week. Nyah, our guide, was very open about the Muslim faith and encouraged us to ask lots of questions. She spoke to us about Ramadan which ended while we were in Morocco. Nyah explained to us that not all were required to partake in the fast, namely the elderly and children, also women that are pregnant and up to 40 days after having a child. There are also other exceptions as well. Also, if one were to break the fast, they have to make it up on another day following Ramadan. We also learned about the king of Morocco as well. He is very forward thinking and does much to take care of his people. He was also the first king to bring his wife out to the public, and also only has one wife. These two things are setting precedence for the future. His wife also accompanies him on many of his trips and does many things on her own. This also sets precedence for women. Women in Morocco, unlike other Muslim countries, are not required to cover their heads or faces. In fact, the women there cannot be judged based on what they wear. As Muslim women, they are also not required to walk with a man and if a man were to want a second wife, he must ask permission of the first wife. Women are also beginning to become more prominent in the workplace and in fact, Nyah, is one of four women tour guides in all of Morocco. At the end of our tour, we had the chance to visit a local government store. The interesting part about this store, as Nyah explained, is that everything in there has set prices. Much of Morocco works on the barter system. In the government store, you would not barter; you may get a discount if you pay in cash versus card, or something of the sort. You are also guaranteed quality when you buy from the government store. Often times, in the market, the quality is not the best, or you could buy one thing on the pretense that it is another. The employees in the store were also very nice and helpful and did not push you into buying items. They help you when you need help, carry your items should you not be able to hold it all, and they explain the different items in the store, such as the argon oil which is very important to the Moroccan government.
Overall, the Casablanca orientation was really interesting. Some of the city orientations tend to be boring and really touristy. However, being very unfamiliar with Morocco and also being warned about it, I felt much more comfortable after the fact and knowing how things work. One of the cool things about the trip as well…I met a few people that would go on the Marakech/Ziplining Trip which was awesome because I then had people to spend the day with the next day.
That night, I went out with a group of people. Our group consisted of 3 females and 2 guys. You’re probably thinking…bad idea...and guess what? so was I, at first. Our group originally was walking in a horizontal line and as we got closer to the market place and where the crowds were, we bunched up. We also tended to walk on guy in front and one behind. For the most part, it felt relatively safe; however, it was definitely different. Walking through NYC at night, many know that you should be aware and pay attention to your surroundings and what is going on around y. However, in Morocco, throughout my entire time there, and especially at night in that market place, I was hyper aware. Touch: hand on bag at all times, hands ready to grab someone in your party should you get a little too far away from them. Taste: trying the mint tea that is such a rich part of the Moroccan culture and also testing some of the foods. Sight: making sure your party is still together, keeping an eye on the people that are watching you, noticing the cafes/bars where there are several dozen men with their chairs all turned towards the street and watching, knowing that you are being targeted as obliviously different. Smell: breathing in the different smells of the country, the food, the spices for sale, smelling the dirtiness , and musky smell. Hearing: listening at all that’s going on around, who’s speaking English, Arabic, French, who can be communicated with should you need something, the whistles/catcalls that one of the girls in the party gets b/c she’s blond and therefore different. Nighttime Casablanca proved to be very different from daytimes Casablanca. I was definitely able to appreciate the city more after experiencing both aspects of the city.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Birthday Port
So I am skipping over part 2 of Spain for the time being. We have a week of sailing so I will catch up then. I am going to start on Morocco now or as my LLC called it: My Birthday Port! We weren’t supposed to arrive in Morocco until September 10th. As I mentioned in my last blog, we didn’t have the planned reading day and I have spent little time on the ship so it’s been super busy. Also, Morocco is a place that just makes you feel tired.
First impressions of Morocco: hot, dusty, dirty, busy, exposed, unpredictable. Morocco turned out to be all of that and so much more. Spain felt safe; in Morocco I was hyper away of my surrounding and every person around me. Before every port we have cultural and diplomatic pre-port ship wide meetings. The length of time they take and how much emphasis is put on certain aspects depends on the country. In Morocco, much emphasis was put on our safety and what we should be aware of while traveling. Overall, the country does not seem to have a favorable impression of the US; however, as individuals they are extremely hospitable and would do anything and everything they could to help you. Throughout my time here, I only met a few people that I thought were a little shady. Casablanca in particular was much more hectic and you had to be much more aware of whom you were with and what you were doing at all times.
When we first arrived in Morocco we were given a diplomatic briefing by men that work for the US consulate. They told us about when they do for their jobs and what their jobs entailed. They were really helpful in telling us what to be aware of, where to go, and just gave us some tidbits about the country. It was something new to hear American voices that did not belong to someone on SAS. The other cool thing about Morocco was that a lot of people here speak/understand English to a certain degree. Many of the people can speak both French and Arabic fluently and some English. It’s funny traveling from country to country seeing what languages people on the ship know. Walking around it was definitely helpful to have friends that were able to communicate with the locals even when I couldn’t.
I ended up having to leave the briefing early due to a trip that I was going on with SAS. This trip turned out to be the highlight of my time in Morocco and not just because it was my birthday. We departed from the port and took a 25min. or so bus ride to an American style school, the George Washington Academy. This school was interesting and something that I did not expect to find in Morocco. The tuition of the school was about $6,000U.S. dollars per year and these students were a part of the upper class. It spanned grades K-12 and had about 400 students. Their day consisted of 60% English, 30% French, and 10% Arabic. Throughout the day, the students were required to switch languages at the appropriate times. Many of the teachers came from the U.S., Canada and other parts of the Americas, as well as France and Saudi Arabia. There were teachers from all over the world here and it was an experience to be able to see something so different.
Following our visit to GWA, we got back in the buses for another 25min. car ride. This time we were going to an SOS Children’s Village. The SOS organization is absolutely remarkable. It was started in Austria after WWII for children that were orphaned/displaced as a result of the war. Since then, it has grown into a worldwide organization. Morocco alone is home to five SOS villages. The village we went to had eleven homes, a pre-school, a main school/work building and another building where they would also do work/hang out. There was also a large circular “square” that was set up in a way that they could play sports such as basketball or soccer or have performances. It was similar to an arena in that surrounding about half of the area were concrete bleachers that the children could hang out/watch something from. During the first half of our visit we took a tour of the village. We visited the one of one of the mothers. She had 9 children in her home including one of the “babies” of the village. The girl was 7 and her “mother” got her when she was one month old. During this time, the youngest child in the village is 5 because they are unable to take any more children since they are already filled to capacity. As children that are there grow up and move out, the village will be able to accept more children. The village “moms” give up so much to be a part of these children’s lives and are exemplary individuals. In order to be a mom they must sign a contract saying that they are not married/will not marry, they also cannot have young children. If they have children, they must be able to live on their own/care for themselves. There is also a “father” of the village. He acts as a sort of overseer/principle when it comes to schooling, care, etc. of the children. It was amazing how close knit the whole entire community is. Everyone there had a place and a purpose it seemed.
The last hour or so at the village was spent playing with the children. One of the dependent children from our voyage Ryder went on the voyage. He’s four years old with bright blond hair and big green eyes. Ryder was the polar opposite of all the children in the village. Not only was it different for him, but it was different for the children there. They would go up and touch his hair and just stair at him. Ryder in turn would go up to them and just start poking them in the face and touching them. It proved that children really do not need a common language in order to get along. Observing Ryder with the village children proved that we really do not know how to dislike others until we “learn” that this is how it’s supposed to be. While all the college students were hesitant to do anything with the children at first, he was set to dive in. Once “play time” began, there was no need for language. I played a game of football (soccer) with another SAS student and various children from the village. There was one boy who played with us for 90% of the time we were playing. Playing with the children was so much fun. They were so happy just to have the chance to spend time with us and they made my birthday amazing. When it came time for us to leave, the children were chasing us down and then chasing our buses. There were lots of hugs and kisses and they did not want us to leave. It was sad to have to leave such a happy place. I was also stuck by that as well. All the children there seemed so happy. The younger one were both looked after and bullied by the older children. Something else that was funny was the fact that once the children were older and had moved out, when they found someone they wanted to marry, they had to return back to their “mom” in order to make sure that she approved of whomever they had chosen. It was such a tightknit community that even though I was only there for a few hours I felt as though I was a party of their family. I learned so much about the true meaning of life, and love, and family. I will be visiting another SOS children’s village when I go to Mauritius and I am excited to help out at the organization again especially in a different country. It was amazing how a single day in a new country could leave such an impression. I will never forget the faces of the kids I met that day. Much of this was enhanced by the fact that I did not bring a camera. So often we get caught up in our life’s and taking pictures of everything that we see. By not taking any pictures and focusing solely on the kids I was able to get a lot more out of it than I believe I would normally have. Although I do have pictures of myself with the kids, I believe that I will better be able to remember that day without having to look back at them.
Side note: we’re back on the ship travelling to Ghana. On top of getting back into the swing of classes, I am also involved in on-ship activities as well. All the students have a lot of catching up to do on schoolwork, blogs, and general life. It may take me a few days to catch up on everything but I am going to do my best to have my blog completely up to day before we arrive in Ghana.
First impressions of Morocco: hot, dusty, dirty, busy, exposed, unpredictable. Morocco turned out to be all of that and so much more. Spain felt safe; in Morocco I was hyper away of my surrounding and every person around me. Before every port we have cultural and diplomatic pre-port ship wide meetings. The length of time they take and how much emphasis is put on certain aspects depends on the country. In Morocco, much emphasis was put on our safety and what we should be aware of while traveling. Overall, the country does not seem to have a favorable impression of the US; however, as individuals they are extremely hospitable and would do anything and everything they could to help you. Throughout my time here, I only met a few people that I thought were a little shady. Casablanca in particular was much more hectic and you had to be much more aware of whom you were with and what you were doing at all times.
When we first arrived in Morocco we were given a diplomatic briefing by men that work for the US consulate. They told us about when they do for their jobs and what their jobs entailed. They were really helpful in telling us what to be aware of, where to go, and just gave us some tidbits about the country. It was something new to hear American voices that did not belong to someone on SAS. The other cool thing about Morocco was that a lot of people here speak/understand English to a certain degree. Many of the people can speak both French and Arabic fluently and some English. It’s funny traveling from country to country seeing what languages people on the ship know. Walking around it was definitely helpful to have friends that were able to communicate with the locals even when I couldn’t.
I ended up having to leave the briefing early due to a trip that I was going on with SAS. This trip turned out to be the highlight of my time in Morocco and not just because it was my birthday. We departed from the port and took a 25min. or so bus ride to an American style school, the George Washington Academy. This school was interesting and something that I did not expect to find in Morocco. The tuition of the school was about $6,000U.S. dollars per year and these students were a part of the upper class. It spanned grades K-12 and had about 400 students. Their day consisted of 60% English, 30% French, and 10% Arabic. Throughout the day, the students were required to switch languages at the appropriate times. Many of the teachers came from the U.S., Canada and other parts of the Americas, as well as France and Saudi Arabia. There were teachers from all over the world here and it was an experience to be able to see something so different.
Following our visit to GWA, we got back in the buses for another 25min. car ride. This time we were going to an SOS Children’s Village. The SOS organization is absolutely remarkable. It was started in Austria after WWII for children that were orphaned/displaced as a result of the war. Since then, it has grown into a worldwide organization. Morocco alone is home to five SOS villages. The village we went to had eleven homes, a pre-school, a main school/work building and another building where they would also do work/hang out. There was also a large circular “square” that was set up in a way that they could play sports such as basketball or soccer or have performances. It was similar to an arena in that surrounding about half of the area were concrete bleachers that the children could hang out/watch something from. During the first half of our visit we took a tour of the village. We visited the one of one of the mothers. She had 9 children in her home including one of the “babies” of the village. The girl was 7 and her “mother” got her when she was one month old. During this time, the youngest child in the village is 5 because they are unable to take any more children since they are already filled to capacity. As children that are there grow up and move out, the village will be able to accept more children. The village “moms” give up so much to be a part of these children’s lives and are exemplary individuals. In order to be a mom they must sign a contract saying that they are not married/will not marry, they also cannot have young children. If they have children, they must be able to live on their own/care for themselves. There is also a “father” of the village. He acts as a sort of overseer/principle when it comes to schooling, care, etc. of the children. It was amazing how close knit the whole entire community is. Everyone there had a place and a purpose it seemed.
The last hour or so at the village was spent playing with the children. One of the dependent children from our voyage Ryder went on the voyage. He’s four years old with bright blond hair and big green eyes. Ryder was the polar opposite of all the children in the village. Not only was it different for him, but it was different for the children there. They would go up and touch his hair and just stair at him. Ryder in turn would go up to them and just start poking them in the face and touching them. It proved that children really do not need a common language in order to get along. Observing Ryder with the village children proved that we really do not know how to dislike others until we “learn” that this is how it’s supposed to be. While all the college students were hesitant to do anything with the children at first, he was set to dive in. Once “play time” began, there was no need for language. I played a game of football (soccer) with another SAS student and various children from the village. There was one boy who played with us for 90% of the time we were playing. Playing with the children was so much fun. They were so happy just to have the chance to spend time with us and they made my birthday amazing. When it came time for us to leave, the children were chasing us down and then chasing our buses. There were lots of hugs and kisses and they did not want us to leave. It was sad to have to leave such a happy place. I was also stuck by that as well. All the children there seemed so happy. The younger one were both looked after and bullied by the older children. Something else that was funny was the fact that once the children were older and had moved out, when they found someone they wanted to marry, they had to return back to their “mom” in order to make sure that she approved of whomever they had chosen. It was such a tightknit community that even though I was only there for a few hours I felt as though I was a party of their family. I learned so much about the true meaning of life, and love, and family. I will be visiting another SOS children’s village when I go to Mauritius and I am excited to help out at the organization again especially in a different country. It was amazing how a single day in a new country could leave such an impression. I will never forget the faces of the kids I met that day. Much of this was enhanced by the fact that I did not bring a camera. So often we get caught up in our life’s and taking pictures of everything that we see. By not taking any pictures and focusing solely on the kids I was able to get a lot more out of it than I believe I would normally have. Although I do have pictures of myself with the kids, I believe that I will better be able to remember that day without having to look back at them.
Side note: we’re back on the ship travelling to Ghana. On top of getting back into the swing of classes, I am also involved in on-ship activities as well. All the students have a lot of catching up to do on schoolwork, blogs, and general life. It may take me a few days to catch up on everything but I am going to do my best to have my blog completely up to day before we arrive in Ghana.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
11 years and the Spanish is different-Spain Part 1
Hey everyone,
Sorry about all the blog issues. It’s been a crazy few days of adjustments and literally figuring out which way is north. I am currently in Morocco; we were not supposed to arrive here until tomorrow. We were supposed to refuel in Gibraltar but instead are now fueling up in the Canary Islands. This threw everyone off because as students lost our reading day aka a day to catch up on work and sleep and now professors feel bad because of the amount of reading we have and no time to do it. It was a bit of a whirlwind going from being in Spain one day and Africa today. I am doing my best to keep on top of the blogs, it’s been a little difficult with all the moving around.
Now about Spain, Spain was amazing. I had a great few days and got to explore some new places. The history of Spain is absolutely breathtaking. We saw ruins that dated back to before the Romans. We went to one historical site that contained over 3000years of history. We found out about it by climbing the bell tower at the New Cathedral. The cool thing about the site was that during your entire visit you walked on a glass floor. It was surreal knowing that we were walking above where Roman citizens once walked. This happened several times throughout our trip in Spain. The history of Spain is so rich and the influences so apparent. While there was a stark contrast between the ruins and modern day buildings, there was a sense of assimilation and everything belonged just the way it was. This took place on the first day when Kori, Jillian and I just wandered around Cadiz which was loads of fun. Spain as a whole is very safe albeit so long as you use common sense. We went to a few different places including the Cathedral, the Bell Tower, lunch and just plain wandered and soaked up the culture. It was interesting to be thrown into a situation where most people don’t understand your language. I had some trouble when it came to using my Spanish, in part because I was nervous of screwing up but also because the Spanish in Spain is so different. There were even some native speakers from South and Central America that had difficulties communicated which in a weird way made me feel better. That night, we ended up having to go to an Italian restaurant for dinner simply because everywhere else was closed and wouldn’t let us in. It was humorous because we were in Spain where they have some of the most amazing food and we had Italian. Either way the food there was amazing and one of the waitresses spoke English extremely well which really helped us out.
The second day Kori and I went on the White Town route tour. We went to two towns, Arcos and Ronda. Since we went on a Sunday, not much was open as is custom in Spain. In Arcos, there were only a few cafés open but that was about all. When we arrived there we had to walk up a huge hill in order to make it to the top of the town where the two churches were. It was an interesting story because the two churches, St. Mary’s and St. Peter’s would fight over which church was the center of town and to resolve it, someone was sent to the pope so he could make a decision. It ended up taking 40 years and several popes before a decision was made. The decision was that St. Mary’s was the official church but it didn’t end there. As retaliation St. Peter’s got a relic of a saint and then St. Mary’s responded by getting relics of two saints. No one is really sure how either church got the relics other than the fact that there were some people in Arcos at the time that had connections in Rome and money and therefore where able to get them. The second town Ronda was actually extremely lively. The reason many of the store were open was because it was the celebration of their saint. It was the last of three days of festivities. There were street vendors all over the place and people were celebrating. It was a lot of fun and a unique experience to be a part of. Kori and I wandered about by ourselves and took everything in. We had the opportunity to experience the music and the people. The guide also explained to us about the bull fights that were taking/had taken place. On the first day, the newer and more inexperienced matadors took the stage. These bullfighters have yet to make their mark in the bullfighting world and were working their way up. On the second day, the more traditional bullfights took place with some of the best bullfighters in the sport. These bullfights were a combination of being on foot and horseback and the matador had helpers that would assist him throughout the fight and even perform some of the parts of the fight. The third day, the day we went, the entire bullfight was on horseback. In the second day fight the horses were both padded and blindfolded because the bull would literally charge the bull. However, on this day, the horses were neither protected nor blindfolded. This was because the horse needed to see the bull and know where/when to move. Our guide explained to us that the matador simply had to use his leg muscles and the horse would know instantly how to move and how fast. These horses are chosen at a young age and go through a series of tests to see if they are able to perform in a bullfight. In contrast, we also saw these carriages that were a part of a contest. The drivers competed in groups from 2-7 horses per carriages and they had to be able to perform complex moves. These horses too were picked from a young age and tested then trained. All of these horses came from different owners and were used in different parades and for the government as well. As a part of this experience, I learned that horses are as much as an integral part of the Spanish culture as bullfights are.
Sorry about all the blog issues. It’s been a crazy few days of adjustments and literally figuring out which way is north. I am currently in Morocco; we were not supposed to arrive here until tomorrow. We were supposed to refuel in Gibraltar but instead are now fueling up in the Canary Islands. This threw everyone off because as students lost our reading day aka a day to catch up on work and sleep and now professors feel bad because of the amount of reading we have and no time to do it. It was a bit of a whirlwind going from being in Spain one day and Africa today. I am doing my best to keep on top of the blogs, it’s been a little difficult with all the moving around.
Now about Spain, Spain was amazing. I had a great few days and got to explore some new places. The history of Spain is absolutely breathtaking. We saw ruins that dated back to before the Romans. We went to one historical site that contained over 3000years of history. We found out about it by climbing the bell tower at the New Cathedral. The cool thing about the site was that during your entire visit you walked on a glass floor. It was surreal knowing that we were walking above where Roman citizens once walked. This happened several times throughout our trip in Spain. The history of Spain is so rich and the influences so apparent. While there was a stark contrast between the ruins and modern day buildings, there was a sense of assimilation and everything belonged just the way it was. This took place on the first day when Kori, Jillian and I just wandered around Cadiz which was loads of fun. Spain as a whole is very safe albeit so long as you use common sense. We went to a few different places including the Cathedral, the Bell Tower, lunch and just plain wandered and soaked up the culture. It was interesting to be thrown into a situation where most people don’t understand your language. I had some trouble when it came to using my Spanish, in part because I was nervous of screwing up but also because the Spanish in Spain is so different. There were even some native speakers from South and Central America that had difficulties communicated which in a weird way made me feel better. That night, we ended up having to go to an Italian restaurant for dinner simply because everywhere else was closed and wouldn’t let us in. It was humorous because we were in Spain where they have some of the most amazing food and we had Italian. Either way the food there was amazing and one of the waitresses spoke English extremely well which really helped us out.
The second day Kori and I went on the White Town route tour. We went to two towns, Arcos and Ronda. Since we went on a Sunday, not much was open as is custom in Spain. In Arcos, there were only a few cafés open but that was about all. When we arrived there we had to walk up a huge hill in order to make it to the top of the town where the two churches were. It was an interesting story because the two churches, St. Mary’s and St. Peter’s would fight over which church was the center of town and to resolve it, someone was sent to the pope so he could make a decision. It ended up taking 40 years and several popes before a decision was made. The decision was that St. Mary’s was the official church but it didn’t end there. As retaliation St. Peter’s got a relic of a saint and then St. Mary’s responded by getting relics of two saints. No one is really sure how either church got the relics other than the fact that there were some people in Arcos at the time that had connections in Rome and money and therefore where able to get them. The second town Ronda was actually extremely lively. The reason many of the store were open was because it was the celebration of their saint. It was the last of three days of festivities. There were street vendors all over the place and people were celebrating. It was a lot of fun and a unique experience to be a part of. Kori and I wandered about by ourselves and took everything in. We had the opportunity to experience the music and the people. The guide also explained to us about the bull fights that were taking/had taken place. On the first day, the newer and more inexperienced matadors took the stage. These bullfighters have yet to make their mark in the bullfighting world and were working their way up. On the second day, the more traditional bullfights took place with some of the best bullfighters in the sport. These bullfights were a combination of being on foot and horseback and the matador had helpers that would assist him throughout the fight and even perform some of the parts of the fight. The third day, the day we went, the entire bullfight was on horseback. In the second day fight the horses were both padded and blindfolded because the bull would literally charge the bull. However, on this day, the horses were neither protected nor blindfolded. This was because the horse needed to see the bull and know where/when to move. Our guide explained to us that the matador simply had to use his leg muscles and the horse would know instantly how to move and how fast. These horses are chosen at a young age and go through a series of tests to see if they are able to perform in a bullfight. In contrast, we also saw these carriages that were a part of a contest. The drivers competed in groups from 2-7 horses per carriages and they had to be able to perform complex moves. These horses too were picked from a young age and tested then trained. All of these horses came from different owners and were used in different parades and for the government as well. As a part of this experience, I learned that horses are as much as an integral part of the Spanish culture as bullfights are.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Late Blog Posts with Altered Dates...Courtesy of Corri
Long story short, Angela can't post blogs because the ship email system has been a bit funky. I have added her old blogs which she sent to me via email and changed the date on them so they show up properly. (She doesn't know this yet...) Below is the little message/update that preceeded them.
Hi everyone,
So we’re about 20min. from leaving Spain and I am very sorry about all the problems that have been occurring with uploading blogs. The first is from August 29th and the second is from August 31st. I’m supposed to able to upload the blogs via e-mail which means that I should be able just e-mail it and it will automatically update. It took the SAS e-mail system 5 days to tell me that it was unable to upload it, which was the time when I was not on the ship for more than a few minutes. I will upload a blog about Spain hopefully later tonight, or at least cover parts of it. We are now arriving in Morocco tomorrow instead of on Thursday, which means we no longer have a reading day aka a day to rest and catch up. So enjoy…sorry for the delay!
~Angela
Hi everyone,
So we’re about 20min. from leaving Spain and I am very sorry about all the problems that have been occurring with uploading blogs. The first is from August 29th and the second is from August 31st. I’m supposed to able to upload the blogs via e-mail which means that I should be able just e-mail it and it will automatically update. It took the SAS e-mail system 5 days to tell me that it was unable to upload it, which was the time when I was not on the ship for more than a few minutes. I will upload a blog about Spain hopefully later tonight, or at least cover parts of it. We are now arriving in Morocco tomorrow instead of on Thursday, which means we no longer have a reading day aka a day to rest and catch up. So enjoy…sorry for the delay!
~Angela
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