February 27, 2008
Well these past few days on the ship have been pretty difficult for everyone, we all seem to just sleep nonstop. Suddenly I have three tests and two papers due before Mauritius and I can't stay away from my bed! My arm hurts because I forgot a small detail in my last blog-I was hit by a car when we went to hike table mountain. Only my arm was hit but it really hurt and the guy reversed and yelled at me for walking in the middle of the road, which i was very far from. I was walking behind a huge line of people on the left side of the road and all the drivers were going very slow except for this guy. My arm is fine though so dont worry mom and dad.
The seas have been very rough since we left Cape Town, not only because that part of the ocean is known for having rough seas, but because there was a cyclone we were heading toward which hit the island of Madagascar and then dissipated so we had to ride through the after effects. I didn't get sick thanks to these patches which put who knows what kind of chemicals into my body.
Some kid on the ship had his parents send him a copy of the superbowl to the ship so they are going to play it on our tv's tonight!!! I am so excited! I also have a dinner with my "family" here on board which consists of 4 very odd girls and 1 very very odd life-long learner who doesn't go to any classes and basically lives on the smoking deck.
There isn't much to write about, but we will be in Mauritius on Saturday so hopefully there will be some fun stuff to let you all know about then. As for now I am eating, sleeping and studying-on a ship. (That always makes it a little better)!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Africa!!
February 19, 2008
We arrived in Cape Town, South Africa around 5:30 this morning. We woke up to watch the sunrise as we pulled in to port, it was beautiful! After an early breakfast and our last briefing we hit the town. As soon as I got off of the ship I was blown away by the beauty of the city. After walking one block we found a store where African women sit on these wooden shelves and work away at these huge weavings. It was unreal. There were about 15 women all on their own looms weaving yarn into rugs with amazing pictures and scenes.
It feels so clean and everyone is so nice here. The buildings are beautiful and the trees and all the plants are magnificent. We walked to "Long Street" where all the venders, shops, bars and outdoor markets are. One store was like an African "Z Gallery" and I wanted to buy everything to redo my room, but didn't buy anything. We walked through an African Market for a good 45 minutes just being shocked by the artwork and masks, there were so many amazing things to buy and the people were so nice that I felt bad buying from one and not all. There was an African woman there with her 6-month-old son on her lap and I bent down to just smile at him and he immediately reached for me to hold him. His mother was shocked because she said he doesn't let anyone hold him and she couldn't believe he just jumped at me like that. I held him for a while and he was teething and chewing my finger, which is now very bruised. We shopped around and bought a few things then went back to the ship because we all had "field trips" to attend.
I went on a bus with the SAS (Semester at Sea) people to the District Six Museum. District Six is where the colored and black people used to live before the apartheid. They were displaced by the government and forced to move to outlying squatter camps which are now "townships." The museum was dedicated to all of the residents who were displaced. After the museum we were brought to three separate townships: 1)Langa 2)Bonteheuwel 3)Khayelitsha. As we showed up to the first two (1&2) the kids from all over ran out of their houses and ran up to us to hold our hands and get on our backs. They wanted to take pictures and play and absolutely loved being with us. These two townships are some of the better ones. People have one-room houses (made out of adobe, concrete, etc.) for their 3-5 person families. The kids don't have shoes to wear and are some of the happiest children I have ever seen.
Then we went to Khayelitsha. This is the largest township in South Africa with over 1 million people. They live in one-room shacks whose walls are made of old street signs, wood, tin-basically any material they can find. Calling them shacks is a huge overstatement. I met an amazing woman named Vicky who opened a bed and breakfast for people to come and really get a feel for a township. She said people coming here gives the children and their families hope of better days. Vicky works with the government to do things to improve her community. For instance she got sewing machines for the women and children to learn to make clothes, etc. This will give them opportunities for real jobs when they grow up rather than working in hard labor for little pay like their parents. The people have to pay for their land which their shacks are on, they pay 20 Rands (around $3.00 US) per month. We pay this much for a smoothie/coffee daily and they struggle to pay each month. After five years of paying the family owns the land.
I was fine going through everything until Vicky brought us to the "nursery" for both HIV infected babies and babies who do not have the virus. As soon as we walked in they all started screaming and crying; they were covered in flies laying on blankets because they don't have any matresses. This is where I broke down. The babies would not stop crying so we had to give them all blow-pops to calm them. They said it was possible that our white skin scared them because it is the color of their doctors. Even typing about this makes me cry. I asked Vicky what I can do to help and she said send money so she can buy blankets and things for the children, or send coloring books and fun things for the kids. Every year she tries to get gifts for Christmas. I will never forget these people and will do something to help them as soon as I can.
February 24, 2008
SAFARI! For the past few days I have been at Kruger National Park staying in a bungalow going on game drives! The park is the size of West Virginia (200 million hectors). Everyday was quite an adventure but I don't want to bore everyone so I will make it short. Basically I got to see so many great things. The bushes and trees all had stories to them and meant something to the natives. There were hundreds of different types of birds and our guides could spot anything and everything while driving. The animals I saw:
-Elephants
-Monkeys
-Antelope
-Impala
-Crocodiles
-Snakes
-Rhinos
-Warthogs
-Wildebeest
-Eagles
-Leopard
-Family of lions
-Giraffes
-Zebras
-Buffalo
-Leopard Turtle
Basically it was AMAZING! The 4:30 AM wake ups were the best because we got to see the sunrise and the most animals are out before it gets too hot. I made a lot of new friends because I went with an independent group of 10 kids. We were fed great food three times a day and I definitely gained ten pounds on one trip!! Our guide was great, his name is Edwin and he is only 22 years old. During our safari we learned that Siyabona (the company we booked through) was going out of business and we were the very last safari. It turns out that there are country clubs right outside of the park which are drawing in all of the tourists and taking away from the actual safari companies. All of the guides (our cooks, guides, etc.) were very sad so we decided to do what we knew makes us happy-drink! (Well we got them really drunk, I didn't drink much of course). Our last night we had so much fun singing and dancing under the stars with genuinely beautiful people. It was hard to say goodbye, but I promised to return and that will not be an empty promise.
Since I have been back in Cape Town I went and visited Liz (a friend from CSU who is studying abroad here for the semester). It was great to see a familiar face since it has officially been one month since I have been gone. This morning I woke up and hiked Table Mountain which was quite strenuous, but beautiful and a great achievement. Then we went to the winelands (yes I went to drink wine). My roommate and our friend Will and I had a private driver take us to two different winelands: Neethlingshof and Spier. I found out I am definitely a white wine person, not red. Some were good and I actually enjoyed them. Will and Lindsay got more testers than me, but we were all pretty good and drunk by the end. At Spier they had a place where you could go in a caged area and pet cheetahs! So I did it!!! It wasn't as soft as I expected, but still pretty cool.
As a goodbye treat to us a local high school choir came on our ship and sang for us tonight. They are the national champions and have just been invited to the UK to compete. I have never heard such beautiful voices in my life. The kids were so happy and excited and of course had never even seen a cruise ship. Their school does not have a piano or any instruments. The kids do not read notes, simply work together and listen to recordings. They sung and danced and of course I cried from the beauty of it all. I am so sad to leave here. I have absolutely fallen in love with South Africa and cannot wait to come back (I'm thinking my honeymoon:))!!
A few fun facts:
-exchange rate: $1 = 7.5 rands
-there are 11 national languages
-the culture is very laid back, they are never on time because they know things will get done
-they think Bush is an asshole
-Racism is still a huge problem here and it is a very open topic to talk about
So now I am on the ship and we were supposed to take off however the fog is too bad so who knows when we will start on our way to Mauritius. I am so grateful for everything I have experienced I wish I could give more details and share everything better. I guess we will have to wait though. The internet is too slow for me to put up pictures but I am taking TONS!
Peace and blessings to all!
We arrived in Cape Town, South Africa around 5:30 this morning. We woke up to watch the sunrise as we pulled in to port, it was beautiful! After an early breakfast and our last briefing we hit the town. As soon as I got off of the ship I was blown away by the beauty of the city. After walking one block we found a store where African women sit on these wooden shelves and work away at these huge weavings. It was unreal. There were about 15 women all on their own looms weaving yarn into rugs with amazing pictures and scenes.
It feels so clean and everyone is so nice here. The buildings are beautiful and the trees and all the plants are magnificent. We walked to "Long Street" where all the venders, shops, bars and outdoor markets are. One store was like an African "Z Gallery" and I wanted to buy everything to redo my room, but didn't buy anything. We walked through an African Market for a good 45 minutes just being shocked by the artwork and masks, there were so many amazing things to buy and the people were so nice that I felt bad buying from one and not all. There was an African woman there with her 6-month-old son on her lap and I bent down to just smile at him and he immediately reached for me to hold him. His mother was shocked because she said he doesn't let anyone hold him and she couldn't believe he just jumped at me like that. I held him for a while and he was teething and chewing my finger, which is now very bruised. We shopped around and bought a few things then went back to the ship because we all had "field trips" to attend.
I went on a bus with the SAS (Semester at Sea) people to the District Six Museum. District Six is where the colored and black people used to live before the apartheid. They were displaced by the government and forced to move to outlying squatter camps which are now "townships." The museum was dedicated to all of the residents who were displaced. After the museum we were brought to three separate townships: 1)Langa 2)Bonteheuwel 3)Khayelitsha. As we showed up to the first two (1&2) the kids from all over ran out of their houses and ran up to us to hold our hands and get on our backs. They wanted to take pictures and play and absolutely loved being with us. These two townships are some of the better ones. People have one-room houses (made out of adobe, concrete, etc.) for their 3-5 person families. The kids don't have shoes to wear and are some of the happiest children I have ever seen.
Then we went to Khayelitsha. This is the largest township in South Africa with over 1 million people. They live in one-room shacks whose walls are made of old street signs, wood, tin-basically any material they can find. Calling them shacks is a huge overstatement. I met an amazing woman named Vicky who opened a bed and breakfast for people to come and really get a feel for a township. She said people coming here gives the children and their families hope of better days. Vicky works with the government to do things to improve her community. For instance she got sewing machines for the women and children to learn to make clothes, etc. This will give them opportunities for real jobs when they grow up rather than working in hard labor for little pay like their parents. The people have to pay for their land which their shacks are on, they pay 20 Rands (around $3.00 US) per month. We pay this much for a smoothie/coffee daily and they struggle to pay each month. After five years of paying the family owns the land.
I was fine going through everything until Vicky brought us to the "nursery" for both HIV infected babies and babies who do not have the virus. As soon as we walked in they all started screaming and crying; they were covered in flies laying on blankets because they don't have any matresses. This is where I broke down. The babies would not stop crying so we had to give them all blow-pops to calm them. They said it was possible that our white skin scared them because it is the color of their doctors. Even typing about this makes me cry. I asked Vicky what I can do to help and she said send money so she can buy blankets and things for the children, or send coloring books and fun things for the kids. Every year she tries to get gifts for Christmas. I will never forget these people and will do something to help them as soon as I can.
February 24, 2008
SAFARI! For the past few days I have been at Kruger National Park staying in a bungalow going on game drives! The park is the size of West Virginia (200 million hectors). Everyday was quite an adventure but I don't want to bore everyone so I will make it short. Basically I got to see so many great things. The bushes and trees all had stories to them and meant something to the natives. There were hundreds of different types of birds and our guides could spot anything and everything while driving. The animals I saw:
-Elephants
-Monkeys
-Antelope
-Impala
-Crocodiles
-Snakes
-Rhinos
-Warthogs
-Wildebeest
-Eagles
-Leopard
-Family of lions
-Giraffes
-Zebras
-Buffalo
-Leopard Turtle
Basically it was AMAZING! The 4:30 AM wake ups were the best because we got to see the sunrise and the most animals are out before it gets too hot. I made a lot of new friends because I went with an independent group of 10 kids. We were fed great food three times a day and I definitely gained ten pounds on one trip!! Our guide was great, his name is Edwin and he is only 22 years old. During our safari we learned that Siyabona (the company we booked through) was going out of business and we were the very last safari. It turns out that there are country clubs right outside of the park which are drawing in all of the tourists and taking away from the actual safari companies. All of the guides (our cooks, guides, etc.) were very sad so we decided to do what we knew makes us happy-drink! (Well we got them really drunk, I didn't drink much of course). Our last night we had so much fun singing and dancing under the stars with genuinely beautiful people. It was hard to say goodbye, but I promised to return and that will not be an empty promise.
Since I have been back in Cape Town I went and visited Liz (a friend from CSU who is studying abroad here for the semester). It was great to see a familiar face since it has officially been one month since I have been gone. This morning I woke up and hiked Table Mountain which was quite strenuous, but beautiful and a great achievement. Then we went to the winelands (yes I went to drink wine). My roommate and our friend Will and I had a private driver take us to two different winelands: Neethlingshof and Spier. I found out I am definitely a white wine person, not red. Some were good and I actually enjoyed them. Will and Lindsay got more testers than me, but we were all pretty good and drunk by the end. At Spier they had a place where you could go in a caged area and pet cheetahs! So I did it!!! It wasn't as soft as I expected, but still pretty cool.
As a goodbye treat to us a local high school choir came on our ship and sang for us tonight. They are the national champions and have just been invited to the UK to compete. I have never heard such beautiful voices in my life. The kids were so happy and excited and of course had never even seen a cruise ship. Their school does not have a piano or any instruments. The kids do not read notes, simply work together and listen to recordings. They sung and danced and of course I cried from the beauty of it all. I am so sad to leave here. I have absolutely fallen in love with South Africa and cannot wait to come back (I'm thinking my honeymoon:))!!
A few fun facts:
-exchange rate: $1 = 7.5 rands
-there are 11 national languages
-the culture is very laid back, they are never on time because they know things will get done
-they think Bush is an asshole
-Racism is still a huge problem here and it is a very open topic to talk about
So now I am on the ship and we were supposed to take off however the fog is too bad so who knows when we will start on our way to Mauritius. I am so grateful for everything I have experienced I wish I could give more details and share everything better. I guess we will have to wait though. The internet is too slow for me to put up pictures but I am taking TONS!
Peace and blessings to all!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
V-DAY!
February 14, 2008
So we were awoken at 7 AM by the crew members running like wild Indians through the halls. They were screaming, playing the drums, shaking tambourines, blowing whistles and running with aluminum foil hats on their heads. It was basically hilarious. I woke only to run and take pictures then went back to sleep. I missed out on the pouring of fish guts all over us and jumping into the pool, but i did get to see all the boys and GIRLS who shaved their heads. It is actually very scary looking. We had a record breaking number of people/girls who shaved their heads and it sounds terrible but it looks like a big cancer cruise now. I am not sure who started that tradition but it is being taken to the extreme here in Spring 08.
The weather has been terrible all day. They have closed all the decks and workout room, the elevators are shut off and I have a contusion on my elbow from running into the wall. The boat is rocking back and forth like crazy. We were watching a movie and all of the sudden we swayed to one side so much all of our bedside table stuff flew off and drawers opened! Insanity! Dinner was even better, plates and food everywhere. Hawaiin punch spilled across the floors-oy!
As for Valentine's Day-i got a valentine from my fake "mom" on the trip. (I think I forgot to mention I signed up for an adopted family. Basically the lifelong learners eat dinner with us every once in a while) anyway my fake mom sent me a flower made of paper towel and i got a few little valentines cards that people dispersed. Other than that I wrote an essay and watched Blood Diamond. Now I have to read for a class tomorrow (hopefully i wont get too sick from the waves). I hope you all had a great Valentines day (and birthday Michael!!!). I love you all!
So we were awoken at 7 AM by the crew members running like wild Indians through the halls. They were screaming, playing the drums, shaking tambourines, blowing whistles and running with aluminum foil hats on their heads. It was basically hilarious. I woke only to run and take pictures then went back to sleep. I missed out on the pouring of fish guts all over us and jumping into the pool, but i did get to see all the boys and GIRLS who shaved their heads. It is actually very scary looking. We had a record breaking number of people/girls who shaved their heads and it sounds terrible but it looks like a big cancer cruise now. I am not sure who started that tradition but it is being taken to the extreme here in Spring 08.
The weather has been terrible all day. They have closed all the decks and workout room, the elevators are shut off and I have a contusion on my elbow from running into the wall. The boat is rocking back and forth like crazy. We were watching a movie and all of the sudden we swayed to one side so much all of our bedside table stuff flew off and drawers opened! Insanity! Dinner was even better, plates and food everywhere. Hawaiin punch spilled across the floors-oy!
As for Valentine's Day-i got a valentine from my fake "mom" on the trip. (I think I forgot to mention I signed up for an adopted family. Basically the lifelong learners eat dinner with us every once in a while) anyway my fake mom sent me a flower made of paper towel and i got a few little valentines cards that people dispersed. Other than that I wrote an essay and watched Blood Diamond. Now I have to read for a class tomorrow (hopefully i wont get too sick from the waves). I hope you all had a great Valentines day (and birthday Michael!!!). I love you all!
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Cruisin' Along
Well we are slowly moving up hours (losing one hour every night and it is killer). I have an 8AM class every other day which is super early with the time changes. On top of that the entire ship is sick. My roommate has a fever and all my friends are sick...so far I'm safe and trying my hardest to stay that way. Strep Throat is going around (and I have a knack for picking that up)! It is hard to stay healthy when there are no windows to open and keep air circulating. Tests and essays are being assigned by the loads before we get to South Africa so we are all stressed on top of everything else! The good news is we have an ice cream social tomorrow night!! I will probably be the only one healthy enough to make it to the 7th deck for it though. Hope you all are well! Oh and I apologize I spelled ferry incorrectly before but I don't have the internet minutes to use to change it.
Tomorrow is Valentines day and they have replaced all the lamps/laterns on the ship with heart lamps! There are a lot of couples on the ship which is very surprising (couples that came together). We have school off because it is Neptune Day! (we are crossing the Mid-Atlantic Ridge) It is supposed to be a crazy day full of surprises. Supposedly everyone shaves their heads, we get fish guts poured on us, the crew wakes us early by running through the halls and slamming pots and pans. Who knows what will really happen though. Tonight is a "Jungle Party," we are supposed to dress up as animals, but I am not sure what i will wear.
So my cabin steward (who makes my bed everyday) is amazing! I love him to death! Only those of you who really know me will understand why I truly appreciate what he does. Everyday when he makes my bed he takes my blanket and folds it in with my sheets at the BOTTOM of the bed!!! It's awesome!
I still haven't figured all my safari stuff out and now think that I lost $200-nice! Oh well I am trying not to stress too much.
This is very random but very important: Since I am on my way to Africa I am learning a lot of new things and the Genocide in Darfur is shocking me more and more. Everyone should please go rent the movie "The Devil Came on Horseback" with Brian Steind and spread the word. Something needs to be done and soon.
Tomorrow is Valentines day and they have replaced all the lamps/laterns on the ship with heart lamps! There are a lot of couples on the ship which is very surprising (couples that came together). We have school off because it is Neptune Day! (we are crossing the Mid-Atlantic Ridge) It is supposed to be a crazy day full of surprises. Supposedly everyone shaves their heads, we get fish guts poured on us, the crew wakes us early by running through the halls and slamming pots and pans. Who knows what will really happen though. Tonight is a "Jungle Party," we are supposed to dress up as animals, but I am not sure what i will wear.
So my cabin steward (who makes my bed everyday) is amazing! I love him to death! Only those of you who really know me will understand why I truly appreciate what he does. Everyday when he makes my bed he takes my blanket and folds it in with my sheets at the BOTTOM of the bed!!! It's awesome!
I still haven't figured all my safari stuff out and now think that I lost $200-nice! Oh well I am trying not to stress too much.
This is very random but very important: Since I am on my way to Africa I am learning a lot of new things and the Genocide in Darfur is shocking me more and more. Everyone should please go rent the movie "The Devil Came on Horseback" with Brian Steind and spread the word. Something needs to be done and soon.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
More of Brazil
February 8, 2008
So we heard from a bunch of people that going to one of the islands here is cheap and a ton of fun. Everyone said it was really pretty and very safe, so that is what we woke up at 8 to do. We wanted to catch the 9:00 fairy out to the island so we were at the place to buy tickets at 8:45. We bought our 3R tickets and stood in line, which was more of a huge mob of people squished together in a room with no air circulation. Turned out that the fairy for 9:00 was full so we waited in the squished, hot and humid place with a ton of natives for over an hour for the next fairy.
The fairies arrived and it was a serious push and shove to get a spot. Lindsay, Lindsay, and I were separated from Harrison, Chula, Dutch, and Will (our male friends). So we rode on the 45 minute fairy to this island that we cannot remember the name of now. As soon as we got off we were mauled by men trying to get us to go in their taxis, buy their goods, etc. It was so scary and overwhelming and not what we expected from the description that everyone had told us. The boys finally arrived and we went to find a spot on the beach. The beach was dirty and we were not very welcome there. "Gringas" everyone kept hissing. So we stayed for about an hour and a half and decided to get back in line for the fairy home because the line was curved around the town and was going to take forever.
Let me just remind you all that I am in the southern hemisphere and very close to the equator-it is VERY hot here. The line took another hour and then we were shoved to the bottom of the fairy. We felt like the reverse of the African slave trade, as bad as that sounds. But we got back on time for our next adventure... the soccer game!
It was the Bahia (Brazil) team (no the national one). Over half of the students on the ship went and it was so fun! These people are crazy about soccer. The first half of the game was pretty calm and when they scored we all got to yell GOOOL!!! (Goal, but that is how their scoreboard spelled it)! The yells and jeers throughout the half were great and there were so many military police there with their dogs (kinda scary). Anyway the second half was even more eventful.
In the middle of the game an entire half of the native crowd came over to all the students and were cheering for the rest of the game. They had one leader and they just screamed their cheers. It was so fun jumping around with them and pretending like i knew what they were screaming! We got tired but of course they didn't stop until the end of the game.
Then there were reporters outside of the stadium recording a crowd of crazy Brazilian boys screaming and jumping. Lindsay and I thought it would be fun to jump in. We jumped right in front of the camera and everyone started cheering even more and the reporter started talking to us in Portuguese. I yelled "Ingles!" He replied "you speak English? Who were you rooting for?" I screamed "BAHIA!!!" And the crowd went crazy. Yes I was on Brazilian TV. It was hilarious and so fun! That was my great soccer experience.
Today we took a one hour bus ride (gringas in the back) to a beach called Putia. It was much better than the island. Beautiful, nice people, waves and great sun of course! Now we are back and getting ready to go out for our last night here (oh joy another 9 days on the ship with classes)!
February 9, 2008
So last night was scary. On our way to the bar a native man came up to my friend and asked him for money, when he said he didn't have any the man threatened to stab him. So he gave him 10R and the man left him alone. After that we figured we would just sit at a restaurant and listen to music with our beer and then head back to the ship. As I am not much of a drinker, I watched as my friends got a little more than buzzed and enjoyed the warm night breeze.
Our friend Caroline got back from the Amazon last night and we were so excited to see her! She said her guide there had grown up in a tribe in the Amazon and he never wore shoes. He couldn't even take them inside at the airport because the air conditioning makes him so cold because he isn't used to it. She didn't see any animals, but went piranha and alligator hunting!
Today we spent walking around town and buying more fun things! I officially spent $392 in Brazil-I will be broke when I get home. The exchange rate was 1.6 when we got our money and when we changed it back it was 1.8 it's not too organized in Salvador. Things I learned while I was here:
- Brazil is as big as 48 of the United States
-They speak Portuguese (and we were told they would understand a lot of Spanish but they definitely didn't)
-Salvador (where we stayed) is one of the poorest cities in Brazil. They bring us here because we can see the most culture. Capoeira is a type of martial arts mixed with dance. It was originally brought over by the slaves as entertainment. There are groups all over town that perform Capoeira.
-Many natives are Roman Catholic, however the indigenous people celebrate/d Candomble. They believe that everyone has a spirit that takes the over, one person at a time. Each person has a ceremony when their spirit comes. Of course there is music and dancing during the ceremony.
-The northern part of Brazil is very westernized. Places like Rio De Janero are just like Europe. The Southern part (like Sao Paulo) is much better off than Salvador, but not as westernized as Rio. Here in Salvador, they live day by day. Don't care much for politics and what is going on in the US and love to party.
So I am on the ship and ready to go to South Africa!! I have a ton of work to do before tomorrow and I lost 30 bucks. I need to remember to not sweat the petty things and not pet the sweaty things because I am traveling the world! Oh and I don't know who is reading these but if you want a post card send me your address just in case I don't already have it. (brit0073@aol.com). Love and miss you all!
So we heard from a bunch of people that going to one of the islands here is cheap and a ton of fun. Everyone said it was really pretty and very safe, so that is what we woke up at 8 to do. We wanted to catch the 9:00 fairy out to the island so we were at the place to buy tickets at 8:45. We bought our 3R tickets and stood in line, which was more of a huge mob of people squished together in a room with no air circulation. Turned out that the fairy for 9:00 was full so we waited in the squished, hot and humid place with a ton of natives for over an hour for the next fairy.
The fairies arrived and it was a serious push and shove to get a spot. Lindsay, Lindsay, and I were separated from Harrison, Chula, Dutch, and Will (our male friends). So we rode on the 45 minute fairy to this island that we cannot remember the name of now. As soon as we got off we were mauled by men trying to get us to go in their taxis, buy their goods, etc. It was so scary and overwhelming and not what we expected from the description that everyone had told us. The boys finally arrived and we went to find a spot on the beach. The beach was dirty and we were not very welcome there. "Gringas" everyone kept hissing. So we stayed for about an hour and a half and decided to get back in line for the fairy home because the line was curved around the town and was going to take forever.
Let me just remind you all that I am in the southern hemisphere and very close to the equator-it is VERY hot here. The line took another hour and then we were shoved to the bottom of the fairy. We felt like the reverse of the African slave trade, as bad as that sounds. But we got back on time for our next adventure... the soccer game!
It was the Bahia (Brazil) team (no the national one). Over half of the students on the ship went and it was so fun! These people are crazy about soccer. The first half of the game was pretty calm and when they scored we all got to yell GOOOL!!! (Goal, but that is how their scoreboard spelled it)! The yells and jeers throughout the half were great and there were so many military police there with their dogs (kinda scary). Anyway the second half was even more eventful.
In the middle of the game an entire half of the native crowd came over to all the students and were cheering for the rest of the game. They had one leader and they just screamed their cheers. It was so fun jumping around with them and pretending like i knew what they were screaming! We got tired but of course they didn't stop until the end of the game.
Then there were reporters outside of the stadium recording a crowd of crazy Brazilian boys screaming and jumping. Lindsay and I thought it would be fun to jump in. We jumped right in front of the camera and everyone started cheering even more and the reporter started talking to us in Portuguese. I yelled "Ingles!" He replied "you speak English? Who were you rooting for?" I screamed "BAHIA!!!" And the crowd went crazy. Yes I was on Brazilian TV. It was hilarious and so fun! That was my great soccer experience.
Today we took a one hour bus ride (gringas in the back) to a beach called Putia. It was much better than the island. Beautiful, nice people, waves and great sun of course! Now we are back and getting ready to go out for our last night here (oh joy another 9 days on the ship with classes)!
February 9, 2008
So last night was scary. On our way to the bar a native man came up to my friend and asked him for money, when he said he didn't have any the man threatened to stab him. So he gave him 10R and the man left him alone. After that we figured we would just sit at a restaurant and listen to music with our beer and then head back to the ship. As I am not much of a drinker, I watched as my friends got a little more than buzzed and enjoyed the warm night breeze.
Our friend Caroline got back from the Amazon last night and we were so excited to see her! She said her guide there had grown up in a tribe in the Amazon and he never wore shoes. He couldn't even take them inside at the airport because the air conditioning makes him so cold because he isn't used to it. She didn't see any animals, but went piranha and alligator hunting!
Today we spent walking around town and buying more fun things! I officially spent $392 in Brazil-I will be broke when I get home. The exchange rate was 1.6 when we got our money and when we changed it back it was 1.8 it's not too organized in Salvador. Things I learned while I was here:
- Brazil is as big as 48 of the United States
-They speak Portuguese (and we were told they would understand a lot of Spanish but they definitely didn't)
-Salvador (where we stayed) is one of the poorest cities in Brazil. They bring us here because we can see the most culture. Capoeira is a type of martial arts mixed with dance. It was originally brought over by the slaves as entertainment. There are groups all over town that perform Capoeira.
-Many natives are Roman Catholic, however the indigenous people celebrate/d Candomble. They believe that everyone has a spirit that takes the over, one person at a time. Each person has a ceremony when their spirit comes. Of course there is music and dancing during the ceremony.
-The northern part of Brazil is very westernized. Places like Rio De Janero are just like Europe. The Southern part (like Sao Paulo) is much better off than Salvador, but not as westernized as Rio. Here in Salvador, they live day by day. Don't care much for politics and what is going on in the US and love to party.
So I am on the ship and ready to go to South Africa!! I have a ton of work to do before tomorrow and I lost 30 bucks. I need to remember to not sweat the petty things and not pet the sweaty things because I am traveling the world! Oh and I don't know who is reading these but if you want a post card send me your address just in case I don't already have it. (brit0073@aol.com). Love and miss you all!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Brazil!
February 6, 2008
We started Brazil off with more than a bang-we walked around Salvador all day yesterday and watched some of the Carnaval floats. The humidity and heat wore us out so around 4:00 in the evening we went in for a little nap... woke around 6, ate dinner and got ready to begin the night.
Carnaval was crazy! We bought $140.00 t-shirts so we could walk with the Fat Boy Slim Float in the parade. It was the most expensive t-shirt i have ever and will ever buy, but it was more than worth it! Our night started around 8:30. Beer was only 1R (which is about 70 cents) a can, so of course we couldnt pass that up! The parade didnt start until 10:30 so we mingled with tons of people from all over the world. Lots of Australians, Brits, and local Brazilians. By the time the DJ (Fat Boy Slim) got started the crowd was already bumpin'!
For hours we paraded down the streets singing and dancing like mad people. We were drenched in sweat, beer, tequila, water, anything and everything. It was like Mardi Gras times 1 million (no joke). The few breaks to go squat on the beach and release ourselves were an adventure in themselves. And my friends thought it would be really funny to pick me up and throw me in the ocean with all of my clothes and shoes on. Oh joy was that fun! Instead of throwing beads you kiss the men on the cheeks and they give you some, but after watching my friend's who had to run before being forced to make out with them, I figured I was fine without the beads.
The experience was just amazing and nothing I can write will do it justice. They say it is the biggest party in the world and that's an understatement. Thousands of people roped in for just one float, hot and sweaty, dancing and jumping, screaming at the top of our lungs. Music blaring, people cheering. I had such a blast and was in awe the entire time. The whole night we all just looked at each other and had to remind ourselves that we really were in Brazil celebrating Carnaval!
Around 3:30 AM we got slightly tired of dancing and decided to get a cab back. It wasn't too easy though with our limited amount of cash and how far from the ship we were, but after a little walking and bargaining we made it.
We showered with our clothes on and collapsed into bed around 4:30. It was a night I will surely never forget.
We woke up this afternoon around 1:00, just in time for lunch on the ship. Then we went around town and shopped a little and watched the sunset from the top of the city.
For dinner we went to a Brazilian Steakhouse-60R for all you can eat fresh cut steak. All different types, it was a meat lover's heaven and a vegetarians hell. Prime Rib, Top Sirlioin, Filet, Lamb, Chicken Hearts, Salmon, Pork and more (on Ash Wednesday). On top of the meat was a huge buffet of all different kinds of side dishes. And for dessert-fried bananas! It was definitely a meal worth writing about. Oh and they give you espresso after the meal (a traditional Brazilian meal).
Fun Facts: Population was a little less than half a million during the 50's in Salvador, Brazil and now is over 3 million which doubles during Carnaval.
-There are slums and nice parts in Brazil, but their way of thinking is not to move up into the better parts, but to better their way of life. They work together to add to their community.
-We don't wear ANY jewelry, tight clothes or flip flops here. We wear money belts, tennies and lose t-shirt. And we always walk with boys.
We started Brazil off with more than a bang-we walked around Salvador all day yesterday and watched some of the Carnaval floats. The humidity and heat wore us out so around 4:00 in the evening we went in for a little nap... woke around 6, ate dinner and got ready to begin the night.
Carnaval was crazy! We bought $140.00 t-shirts so we could walk with the Fat Boy Slim Float in the parade. It was the most expensive t-shirt i have ever and will ever buy, but it was more than worth it! Our night started around 8:30. Beer was only 1R (which is about 70 cents) a can, so of course we couldnt pass that up! The parade didnt start until 10:30 so we mingled with tons of people from all over the world. Lots of Australians, Brits, and local Brazilians. By the time the DJ (Fat Boy Slim) got started the crowd was already bumpin'!
For hours we paraded down the streets singing and dancing like mad people. We were drenched in sweat, beer, tequila, water, anything and everything. It was like Mardi Gras times 1 million (no joke). The few breaks to go squat on the beach and release ourselves were an adventure in themselves. And my friends thought it would be really funny to pick me up and throw me in the ocean with all of my clothes and shoes on. Oh joy was that fun! Instead of throwing beads you kiss the men on the cheeks and they give you some, but after watching my friend's who had to run before being forced to make out with them, I figured I was fine without the beads.
The experience was just amazing and nothing I can write will do it justice. They say it is the biggest party in the world and that's an understatement. Thousands of people roped in for just one float, hot and sweaty, dancing and jumping, screaming at the top of our lungs. Music blaring, people cheering. I had such a blast and was in awe the entire time. The whole night we all just looked at each other and had to remind ourselves that we really were in Brazil celebrating Carnaval!
Around 3:30 AM we got slightly tired of dancing and decided to get a cab back. It wasn't too easy though with our limited amount of cash and how far from the ship we were, but after a little walking and bargaining we made it.
We showered with our clothes on and collapsed into bed around 4:30. It was a night I will surely never forget.
We woke up this afternoon around 1:00, just in time for lunch on the ship. Then we went around town and shopped a little and watched the sunset from the top of the city.
For dinner we went to a Brazilian Steakhouse-60R for all you can eat fresh cut steak. All different types, it was a meat lover's heaven and a vegetarians hell. Prime Rib, Top Sirlioin, Filet, Lamb, Chicken Hearts, Salmon, Pork and more (on Ash Wednesday). On top of the meat was a huge buffet of all different kinds of side dishes. And for dessert-fried bananas! It was definitely a meal worth writing about. Oh and they give you espresso after the meal (a traditional Brazilian meal).
Fun Facts: Population was a little less than half a million during the 50's in Salvador, Brazil and now is over 3 million which doubles during Carnaval.
-There are slums and nice parts in Brazil, but their way of thinking is not to move up into the better parts, but to better their way of life. They work together to add to their community.
-We don't wear ANY jewelry, tight clothes or flip flops here. We wear money belts, tennies and lose t-shirt. And we always walk with boys.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Almost to Brazil
I have been trying to blog the past few days but the service on the ship has not been working so well so half of the websites people use can't upload, my blog being one.
Anyway we have been on the ship for a week and it seems like months. It gets super boring, especially on the rainy days when we can't go out and tan and pretend like we are on spring break! Plus the workers here cater to us 24/7. They cook, clean up and do the dishes. They make our beds, vacuum and do the laundry. There is nothing for me to clean and it is almost driving me nuts! I am trying to just enjoy it because it should be a luxury that I wont have forever.
Classes are good. I am actually learning a lot and it is very shocking to me. Usually I never know if I learned anything until finals but everyday I am learning something new and i love it! Dad i am bringing back 2 very good history books that you will enjoy.
We arrive in Brazil tomorrow, we could have been there much sooner because we were cruising so fast. But they turned one engine off because we were getting there too fast and needed to have our school days. What a tease.
We didnt get to watch the superbowl which was very depressing to me. There was one motley radio that 300 students crowded around but I got sick so didn't get to listen. I knew that Eli would pull through though!!! I hope someone Tivo'd the game so i can see it when I get back.
I work out almost everyday on the ship. I use the elliptical or bike and wont go near the treadmill because everytime I work out someone on the treadmill eats it when we hit a wave. One girl has had a brace on since Thursday because she fell so hard.
My friends and I booked a bungalow in Maritius for three days so we cant wait to get there! Carnival will be going on in Brazil so I am super excited for that. Except it will be kind of scary cause the crime is so high there so we have had like 5 safety meetings.
I am still working on finalizing my safari plans so I will keep you updated!
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