Guatemala

 The day before Guatemala, I started a little rumor that turned ship-wide that we are being diverted due to Swine Flu and an anticipated earthquake. Some people even believed that they were taking us to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The announcer voice came over the loud speaker and said, “despite the rumors started, we are STILL going to Guatemala, and we are NOT being diverted, so we’ll see you at the pre-port meeting at 20 hundred hours.” Well, there wasn’t any swine flu in Guatemala, but we all had our SARS masks that we got in China just in case.

Gillian, Mary, Cecily and I went to Tikal, Guatemala. Tikal is in the north-east part of Guatemala, and it is known for the famous Myan ruins, the oldest ruins in the world. The ruins were built in 600 B.C. and remain there in the jungle. On the way to the airport, and throughout the ruins and even in the hotel we had 24 hour armed-officers for protection. There is something like 40 murders a week in Guatemala…crazy town. We were craving some Guacamole and tortilla chips, so we went to a restaurant across the street and we probably wiped them out of their avocados, but we got our fix. Early the next morning we checked out of the hotel and went to the Jungle to see some ruins. It was an all day hike through the jungle, and if there wasn’t a path to follow, we would’ve needed a machete to get through the trees. We saw Howler monkeys, and a baby howler monkey too. They were throwing their breakfast at us from up in the trees. We also saw Tucan’s, and other wild peacock/turkey looking birds. Jungle trekking was fun, but after a while the ruins start to all look the same, so we made it interesting.

We sat on the monuments and took pictures in front of signs that said “No Sentarse en los monumentos” or climbed up the monuments when it said, “No Subir”, we were able to climb most of the ruins, but there were some forbidden areas that we had fun exploring. On top of the highest ruin was the most beautiful view of the canopy of the jungle, and we could see all of the ruins poking out from the trees. It was soooo beautiful. But this was not a task for old people or those afraid of heights. The purpose for some of really tall ruins was to sacrifice ones self to the gods by climbing up, letting someone chop your head off so the blood could drip down the temple. No one wanted to be sacrificed, so we left the jungle and returned to Puerto Quetzal.

Getting through the airport terminal was quite a task for me. Since we didn’t have security at the airport on the way to Tikal, I assumed we wouldn’t have it on the way back to Puerto Quetzal—but we did. I bought a machete with a wooden and bronze Jaguar handle with a special blade that has a side for heavy-duty severing, just in case I get lost in the jungle. The leather case has a jade rock and a cool design. I put it through the security bag check hoping that the guy watching the screen would look the other way when my bag went through—but he didn’t. So they pulled my bag, they took me out of the security check point and detained me for 20 minutes in a private office. I wasn’t allowed to leave until I spoke with the head security officer. I was really scared that they would take away my machete, or arrest me. The officer was really understanding—I have a feeling they’ve dealt with this situation before—and he wrapped my machete up in packaging and had someone check it for me. Then they let me pass through security and I didn’t miss my flight or get in trouble or anything. And I also snuck my machete onto the ship…shhhhhhh.
That night, I wanted to go to Monterrico beach to meet up with a bunch of our other friends who rented bungalows on the black sand beach at this hotel called Johnny’s. We met the driver around 10:30 pm. We got extremely lost on the way there, and our two drivers had no idea where we were, or cell phones or anything. I had my cell phone, so after an hour of being lost, we found our way and got to Johnny’s safely around 12:30. When we walked into the hotel area, there was a pool filled with naked friends. Then there was a bar filled with other friends, and on the beach, more friends running around in the dark. I knew within the first 15 seconds that this was going to be an epic night at the last port on Semester at Sea. The beach was the scariest thing at night. It was hard to see with the black sand against the pitch-black sky, but the water was so warm and tempting. Jason threw my glow stick in the ocean, so I had to go rescue it, and that’s when I realized the waves were probably too strong to really go swimming in it. Mary, Gillian and I got split up into different bungalows, but we weren’t actually planning to go to sleep anyway. I actually ended up taking care of a girl who split her chin open (I’ve been there before)—she found a cat in her bungalow, so she went down to the beach to free it, and couldn’t see b/c it was so dark, and she tripped and fell. She really needed stitches, but it was too late and probably too dangerous to go to a hospital. Poor girl. I slept for about 3 hours, and went back to the ship with her and a few other girls. I wish I could’ve spent the day on the beach, but the night before was enough fun for me. The last port was so much fun!!!

After Guatemala, I had one more final. Then we transited through the Panama Canal—an all day event. The panama canal is a set of these dam-like water gates that lower/lift boats through the canal. The canal is too shallow so that is why they have to manage the water flow. People staked out beach chairs before breakfast even started Then we had the Ambassador’s Ball where everyone gets dressed up in their global attire and we eat fine dining style, take pictures with the captain and dance in the Union. I wore the red dress I had made in Vietnam, but other people wore Indian Sari’s and other weird outfits. It’s amazing what kind of shenanigans went on throughout this night. Including me. I was in a friend’s room waiting to go to sleep in her roommates bed (b/c I don’t sleep in my room anymore b/c I can’t stand my roommate, who never sleeps, and stays up all night on the computer and the complaints could continue). Then a bunch of other people came into the room, so we were making jokes and messing around, and someone was DESTINED to get hurt in this situation—the boat was rocking a lot too and we were all hyped up from the dance. My good friend CJ accidentally shoved me, I lost balance and fell into the night stand. I busted my lip and chipped my tooth. This is where the night ended for everyone because I couldn’t stop crying and I was miserable. CJ felt really bad but I don’t hate him. Once I calmed down a little, Gillian and I walked around the ship and sat outside in the fresh air. The next day, I decided to embrace my new look after Dr. Steve assured me he could fix it as soon as I get off the ship. Gillian drew a tattoo on my arm that said “Mom” encircled in a heart, I also wore a wife beater and huge shorts, I looked everywhere for a trucker hat, but I couldn’t find one. Basically it was battered white-trash dress up day for me.


Right now I am looking forward to getting home! We arrive in Fort Lauderdale tomorrow morning. At this time, my friends are blasting music and screaming out of a classroom singing the Team America song “America, Fuck Yea” and eating an American Flag cake…oooooh man. So that’s the journey around the world.

Xoxo

Japan!

Japan is one of my top favorite ports of ALL. Japan and Thailand tie as my favorite countries. Coincidentally my favorite types of food are Japanese and Thai. I’m glad that Kayuga and Brown Sugar are both within a block from my apartment at home because I have an even deeper appreciation for them. So if I start permanently shopping at Super88 and only eating Japanese/Thai food, it’s because I loved these countries so much. Not only was the food a major highlight, but we were lucky enough to be in Japan during Cherry Blossom Season.

I went to Osaka, Nara, Kyoto, Hakone, Tokyo, Yokohama in 5 days, and I spent the first night in Osaka, the second night in Kyoto and two nights in Tokyo. This was all made possible by the efficient train system and bullet train in Japan—the U.S. cannot afford this type of luxury yet. But it was one of the most impressive systems. And very easy to navigate through, but in general the Japanese are pretty good with their English. Better than the Chinese.

Day one in Japan, I went to a town called Osaka to check into the hotel. Then Jason and I went to a town called Nara. To-dai Ji is the main attraction in Nara. It’s a huge temple and inside sits the largest Buddha in the world. There’s a hole carved out into one of the temple pillars. The hole is supposed to be the size of the Buddha’s nostril….sooooo I crawled through it. I had no problem fitting through, but when Jason tried, he got stuck cuz his shoulders were wider than the gap, some Japanese people gathered around and laughed, and I stood there taking pictures, laughing hysterically, but I finally pulled him out. The temple is also the largest wooden structure in the world. One of the most unique things in this park and anywhere I’ve ever been are the deer that populate the streets. They come right up to you—expecting to be fed—but they live among the people in Nara, and they are approachable too but I didn’t want to touch the stinky wild animals. Nara Park also had the most beautiful Cherry Blossom fields I’ve EVERRRR SEEEN. Blows away D.C…even though I’ve never been to the Cherry Blossom row in D.C. I cannot imagine a more beautiful sight. I am surprised that more of our friends didn’t visit Nara—my favorite pictures are from the day at this park. That night, we met up with our friends in downtown Osaka at an underground club. It was cool because it was like a cave bar and Semester at Sea friends dominated the scene.

The next day we went to the Osaka castle and peaced out to Kyoto. Kyoto is known for their abundance of temples, gardens, castles, and palaces so we spent the day walking through these. I also visited the  most famous cherry blossom tree in the world—yea the cherry blossoms were inescapable. I prayed at a Buddha, ate local foods from vendors. Japan is so clean that it was actually the only country other than the U.S. in Hawaii that we could drink the water and could safely eat the street-vendor food. But we were on a mission to find sushi in this town. Everyone I asked said that there is no sushi in Kyoto, but when there’s a will there’s a way. I actually ate sushi every single day in Japan, because it’s so FRESH and DELISH.
Kyoto has one of the largest train stations in the world. Inside the train station is a mall and TONS of great restaurants.

One of my other favorite things about Japan are the toilets. I know that sounds weird, but they are just as advanced as their transportation system. They have heated seats, an on command sprinkler/bidet with water temperature controls, vibrating seats, a fake flushing sound, a dryer…they were extremely fun to mess around with, and each one has a different feature from the next.

Day three. On the way to Tokyo we ran into Cecily and Karen who were trying to go see Mt. Fuji from an onsen. An onsen is a hot-spring bath. So we stopped in Hakone, went to an onsen, Mt. Fuji was way too far away, so we found one next to the train station. I was absolutely not into this hot onsen. There were about a dozen old naked Japanese ladies in there, sooooo I didn’t want to go in, but at least I can say I saw one and put my foot in.

When we got to Tokyo, we went to the baseball game. Fighters vs. Mariners. This was a fun event, the crowds are rowdier than American fans believe-it-or-not. Their chants were intense. The snack vendors also wore bright neon colors. Genvieve, Tanya, Jess and Brittany met up with us, and behind us were a bunch of other SAS friends. I didn’t spend much time actually watching the game, but it was fun. The rules are really similar to American baseball too. The couple in front of our row spoke English so we talked to them. That night we went to Roppongi—the bar district. There were lots of different clubs/bars to go into and promoters all over the street. I think we went on the wrong night because it wasn’t busy whatsoever. The next day we went to the busiest intersection in the world with the diagonal crossing paths. We also went on a scavenger hunt to find the Chrome hearts store—wasn’t labeled or anything, but we finally made it there. We also went to the Sony flagship—more like a sony museum. That same day we also went to the technology district—it was so nerdy and cool, and I even played some video games…guitar hero drums. I also went to a Kabuki theater show. I am glad I saw it, but it was incredibly boring. I can appreciate it for being a very traditional and prestigious art form that is still popular in Japan. The focus is supposed to be on the actor’s skill, so the actors are the most famous in Japan. That night for dinner I tried Kobe beef at a hibachi-style restaurant. Kobe beef is like butter. It’s so delicious. They also made shrimps right in front of us, however they were still alive when they hit the grill, and they sizzled and convulsed right before my eyes.

The next morning we woke up at 4am to go to the Tsukiji fish market. We missed the fish auction part because we got on the wrong train, but when we got there we saw a bunch of our friends and got in line with them for sushi breakfast at 5:30/6 am. This is the freshest fish you could possibly eat—off the ships for about 30 minutes, onto my plate, and into my mouth. The best was the fatty toro. This sushi was absolutely the most unbelievable tasting sushi anyone could ever have. Before going to Yokohama we went to the Harajuku district—supposedly this is where Gwen Stefani was inspired to incorporate the harajuku dancers into her performances. I was thoroughly angry at the Tamagachi store for not having Tamagachi’s in English. Yea, remember that childhood obsession??? One of the first things I want to do when I get back home is buy a Tamagachi as my Japan souvenir…really badly. And attach the key chain to my cellphone.

Then it was time to leave Japan. I really didn’t want to leave and I even considered missing the on-ship time. I’ll go back though. We had 9 days between Japan and Hawaii…I was swamped with work because the Professors assigned everything to be due at the end of this week, after having virtually nothing due before that week. I can't believe this is almost over!!!


xoxo

China!

China

First we docked in Hong Kong, I went to Macau, Beijing and Shanghai. I spent 5 days in China and my favorite city was Hong Kong. We pulled into a port in the middle of one of the largest malls in the world including 3 Chanel stores, 2 Louis Vuitton Stores, a couple Prada’s, a couple Dolce’s, a fendi, a burberry etc... During the first day, I went to Macau, also known as the “Las Vegas” of China. Macau, like Hong Kong, is independent “special administration region” from the mainland China, so I was excited to get an extra stamp in my passport that most people didn’t get. My reason for going to Macau was not to gamble, but to jump off a sky-scraper building. 763 feet. The highest bungee jump in the world. The highest sky-scraper in Macau too. The building looks like the flying saucer building in Seattle. It was not only the stupidest thing I’ve ever done, it was also the most exhilarating thrill I’ve ever had. I jumped with my friends Rory, CJ, Eric, and Rachel. I had to convince Rachel to sign the waiver because she was almost chickened out but after she saw us dressed and ready to go, she was easily persuaded. To my disappointment, the AJ Hackett people made me jump last, so I had to watch everyone do it before me. I have a video, and some crazy pictures of the descent. They strapped us in with harnesses, and a safety double harness, and to keep from getting whiplash from the recoil, they attached cables to the bungee to slow me down. At first I wouldn’t let go of the guys hooking me in and in the video you see him ungrip my hands from his arms and held them so I couldn’t grab him again. I remember screaming for a few seconds, but then something happened where my mouth and eyes were just wide open with no noise coming out. We all had the same effect so we call it the Silent Screaming Face.

That night was the finale of the Rugby Tournament, so Hong Kong was crazzyyyy. We went to this bar strip and there were tons of people dressed up in costumes and raging in the street. My friend Dylan has a friend who lives in Hong Kong who took us to a bunch of nice bars and an authentic off-the-beaten-track Chinese dinner. One place had an ice bar inside of it, and upon entering they give everyone these huge faux-fur coats to wear. Some European men gave me theirs when they ran out, and three of them proceeded to go streaking in the ice bar…I think they were kicked out, but it was funny.

The next day I flew to Beijing with a group of people. I ate Burger King for the first time in approximately 8 years , so Ashley took a picture for proof. It was extremely hard to get through China because NOBODY speaks English. I had a translator write everything and everywhere I wanted to go in Chinese characters so I could just get in a cab, show them the characters and get there. Also to my surprise, it was freezing in China! That night I met up with Jason, Murphy, and Gabby, and we went to Banana Club where they had crazy communist security blocking people from taking pictures. I wish I snagged a picture because we were the only American’s there dancing on one of those vibrating, bumpin dance floors. I was happy that they played American music too, and every Chinese person knew the Soldier Boy dance--I guess they like our music even though they cannot understand it. The following morning, I went to the Great Wall. It was huge, obviously, and I wish I could’ve taken a helicopter tour instead of climbing it. My legs were shaking by the end of the Great Wall climb. The trek down was significantly harder than going up. We went really early in the morning for the sunrise, so there weren’t that many tourists around on the way up. There were tons of Asian tourists who wanted to take pictures with us, particularly the blond girls. Peace signs up and everything. They were fun, and I tried to talk to some of them. It’s funny because they talked to me as if I knew what they were saying.

Later that day I saw the Summer Palace, which was pretty. It was boring actually. Then I went to a Chinese acrobatics show, very similar to the stunts that they do in cirque du soleil with contortionists, and human catapults, lots of stunts, it was amazing. Close by to the venue was supposedly the best Peking Duck restaurant. Not only did we order duck, but we ordered turtle and other weird food. It was disgusting, though I’m glad I tried it. My favorite food I have tried so far is Ostrich Carpaccio style. I know I’m a weirdo--I eat a lot of raw things.

Day three I went to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and I went back to the Chinese Acrobatics show again b/c it was so much fun. Interestingly enough, the Tiananmen Square “Tank Man” incident during the 1989 political protests really is a forbidden topic—if you ever go to China, my advice would be not to ask anyone about it, b/c they were almost offended by our questions. These sites were cool to see, but I was bored out of my mind, so Ashley and I made a music video at Forbidden City to a song in Mulan, the Disney movie. That night after a long day of site seeing and drinking boba bubble milk tea and eating great Chinese, Murphy, Jason, Gabby, and I went to a Chinese Karaoke club. We got our own private room, and there were lots of English karaoke songs for us to sing. The best act of the night, was Jason singing Cher, Do You Believe in Love After Love???…he didn’t even need the lyrics on the screen...I have a video of his performance which I will save for future embarrassment…PRICELESS!

The next day I left Beijing and went to the Great Panda Zoo and the Olympic birdnest and water cube. Lexi, Ashley and I each did a gymnast routine in the middle of the Olympics field, and we just hung out and walked around. The shopping we did in China was mostly counterfeit. There was a mall with five floors of just knock off EVERYTHING, called the Pearl Market. It was an incredible sight, and a sad one too that the bootleg market is so huge. Then we flew to Shanghai late that afternoon.

I woke up early in Shanghai to explore. Even though Beijing is the traditional capital of China, Shanghai is more of a business capital and trying to become more like Hong Kong status. I went to a garden/palace called Yuyuan Gardens. Surrounding that were little shops. After that Jason and I went to lunch at the Jin Mao Tower, a huge tower with the highest hotel in the world on the upper levels. I really wanted to go to the Flagship Barbie store, but I couldn’t convince him to come with me, nor any of my girls either. Instead we spent the rest of the time walking around the port area and Annie, Ashley, Mary, and I had some last minute drinks before getting on the ship.


byeee for now.
xoxo