Jumping out of a plane can be fun. . . . . . .

My ONE day in Hawaii began at 0600 with getting my phone to actually have service again, calling the (pa)rentals, and finally going through customs and immigration in the good ‘ol USA – God bless America. It only took about an hour for the ship to be cleared and then we were off to the North Shore to do some skydiving, much to my mother’s dismay. We were one of the first Semester at Sea groups to get out to the drop zone and before we knew it, we had signed our life away and were waiting to get suited up for the jump. At about 11am we were called up to meet our instructor and were up in the plane a few minutes later. It took about 5-10 minutes to climb to 14,000 feet. My instructor, Ed, was super cool and explained the whole process to me. Once we reached the proper altitude everyone did final checks and made sure we were all actually strapped in and you know what happens next. Ed and I were supposed to jump second but the camera guy that was jumping with us “needed a moment…” whatever that means! Let me tell you, I was not the happiest camper in the world when a guy, who has done this THOUSANDS of times I might add, is freaking out about jumping. We ended up jumping last and let me tell you, that is the biggest adrenalin rush ever! It is only for the first split second where your stomach actually drops – other than that it just feels like your floating! We were free falling for about 30 seconds – we even fell through a cloud… I have always wanted to touch a cloud! After those 30 seconds he pulled the cord and out came the parachute (what a relief, hey?). After I actually stopped going crazy with excitement, he even let me steer us (is that even what you call it?). It was so awesome! Our landing was smooth and I was again freaking out that I had just jumped out of a plane. My friends were on the ground waiting for me and greeted me with hugs and laughter as we talked about our totally awesome experiences of falling from 14,000 feet. I would recommend skydiving to anyone seeking a totally amazing adventure! I would totally go again in a second – hint hint, CHRISTMAS!! Just kidding… but really it was a great time with friends and something I will definitely never forget! After skydiving we headed back to Honolulu to see Pearl Harbour. I was really bummed because they were sold out of tours for the rest of the day so we would not be able to see the actual USS Arizona memorial. We were just going to settle for the museum and distant pictures of the memorial when a guide offered my friend two tickets – only problem was that there were six of us. When we told him, he said that wasn’t a problem and told us to just stay together and he would let us all in. How great is that! Not only do we get in with two tickets legally, but they were free! Score! We went out to the memorial and I was very surprised at my reaction. To be honest, I saw Pearl Harbour as just another memorial where a lot more people died. I pretty much expected it to be like what I saw in every other country – but when we actually got out there, a certain emotion flooded into me. I was moved – and probably more than any other time this whole semester. I guess, for once this was real to me… for once, I had reason to be prideful and for once, I was able to experience what being an American is all about. As cheesy as it sounds this trip has really made me appreciate what we have as Americans and the pride we should all take in our country. Having this new found world perspective has changed the way I think of, obviously, the world, and also the US. I wish I could explain it better, but I am at a loss for words at the moment. After we came back from the memorial my friend pointed out a gentleman, maybe in his late 20s early 30s, in a wheelchair. He looked like a marine who had been wounded in the war. I could not help but watch him and wonder what he was thinking at that very moment. What was going though his head – was it hatred? Was it pride? Was it anger? I really wanted to go and talk to him for a while but I didn’t – I just stared at him, trying to understand what he must be feeling. I have a cousin who is actually over in Iraq right now and looking back in retrospect that did not mean anything to me until my experiences at Pearl Harbour taught me something. I have a new found pride. A pride in that marine who stares into the sun as it sets over Pearl Harbour; a pride in my cousin who fights for our freedoms this very moment; A pride in what it means to be an American. As most of you probably know, I have been about 6 days since Hawaii so I thought I would catch you up on the happenings here. Classes are finally over and exams have begun as our voyage draws to an end. We will be in Miami in less than 11 days now and I can’t believe it. As I have said numerous times this voyage has been amazing and I have learned so much. I hope this update finds you all well! Miss you all… see you soon! love love love Cherie

Japan

Welcome to Japan! The Japanese immigration has been, by far, the toughest to get through. Since our ship was coming from Avian Flu land, AKA China, all 800+ people on the ship were required to get our temperature taken by the immigration officials as well as have a face to face interview with a Japanese official. It wasn’t just any temperature taking though – they pointed a camera in our face and the camera took our temperature. I was pretty much fascinated by that for the next hour… I was finally able to get off the ship around 1300 hours (we arrived at 0700 hours). Once we got off my friends and I took the train to Osaka. Once we got to Osaka we headed out to find my friend's capsule hotel. (I was not staying the night because I had a home stay the next day.) In our search for this hotel we somehow ended up in the red-light district of Osaka. (Funny stories to be told in person…) We finally found their hotel, they dropped their stuff off and we were off to the city. We toured the city for a few hours before heading to dinner at a place called Sabo Sabo. It was another place where we were able to cook our own food… I wasn’t to excited about it but the time with friends was priceless. We also went to get some dessert just a few stores down from that restaurant. After dessert we were at a loss as to what to do but we ran across the favourite pastime of every Japanese person – Karaoke! We spent a total of 1.5 hours there for $60… now, we pulled a typical student thing in not asking the price before we started. And I must say, once you get in those places you just can't stop… Anyhoo, we paid the bill and headed to the train station so I could catch the train back to the ship. My friends dropped me off and I was on my own in the middle of a BUSY train station in Japan where I do not speak a word of Japanese – Perfect! So I found the platform that I was supposed to be on but I didn’t know which track I wanted. So, I picked the one that had a line already forming… I figured I had a 50-50 chance of getting the right one. I did ask a guy in line if this was the right train for the station I was looking for and he started saying all kinds of different numbers and then he pointed to our line which I thought was promising. So the train came, I got on, and I tried my best to figure out the maps on the inside of the car to see if I was headed in the right direction. Luckily a student who spoke English saw the confusion/American-ness on my face and asked if I was ok. So I ask him if this is the right train for the Sanomyia station… drum roll please… YES!! IT WAS!! Cherie once again has a lucky break with a foreign country's public transportation. We ended up talking for the whole 20 minute ride back to Kobe. He said he just got back from London where he was studying English. He asked me to go to a foreigner’s pub with him but my mommy told me never to go with strangers so I told him I had to get back to the ship so I could pack for my home stay the next day… I made it back to the ship no problem and was in bed fairly early in order to get rest for the next day. The next morning I got ready for my home stay. The families were scheduled to pick us up around 11 but for some reason some of the students were running a little late so we were all late in getting off the ship. We finally got off and into the port terminal to be greeted by 75 anxious families. They all had signs with our name on it welcoming us into their home. It took me a little while to find my family but I eventually did and my host mom gave me a huge hug. She spoke English fairly well in comparison with her husband and son who both spoke none. After our introductions we headed out to their car, loaded up my stuff, and were off to lunch. They asked me what I wanted to eat but I had no clue what my options were besides sushi, and to be completely honest at this point in the voyage I was really craving a homemade turkey and avocado sandwich with all the fixings, but I couldn’t exactly ask for that so I suggested a traditional Japanese restaurant. We ended up going to a nice place in their hometown just outside of Kobe. They suggested tempura so that’s what I got… and it was freaking the biggest meal ever. On my tray I had a TUB of noodles (apparently that’s what this place is known for), a bowl of soup, and of course, a huge bowl of rice with 3 tempura vegetables. By the end of the meal I was very worried that I would offend them because there was no way I would be able to finish my whole meal – I was just too full. I made sure that they knew I really enjoyed the meal even if I couldn't finish so I think I was excused. When we were leaving the restaurant however, I blew it! I put my shoes on where I wasn’t supposed to – BIG no no in Japan. She was very nice about it and simply caught me before anyone else saw and showed me where to put them on. After lunch we walked down the street to a grocery store and boy was that an experience. FISH EVERYWHERE – dead, alive, dried, pretty much any way you can imagine. Needless to say I didn’t spend too much time in that section. She brought me to the bread and pastry section and told me to pick out what I wanted for breakfast… my final decision was pretty much amazing! After our grocery store adventure we headed to their house for the afternoon. That evening we were scheduled to go to a Hippo Family Club meeting, a potluck, and finally a spa. The Hippo Family Club is a part of the organization that works with Semester at Sea to plan these home stays. It is a unique organization that helps people learn different languages – they are currently up to 19… everything from Chinese to Swahili. It does not incorporate textbooks into its curriculum rather using techniques of immersion. The family members listen to tapes of different scenarios in different languages and speak together during their club meetings. I think it is a great program and I hope to learn more about the program when I get home. After our club family meeting we went to another ladies house and had a Japanese potluck. A lot of people came and they were all extremely welcoming. After dinner we said our goodbyes to all the guests and headed to the spa… now I am sure most of you are thinking oh Cherie, it’s just a regular spa like those back home in America. Yeah, that is what I was thinking too until I heard someone utter those dreaded words… public bath. That was the point that I pretty much started freaking out. Up until the moment I walked into the room full of unclothed women I was still holding out hope for an actual SPA – you know, the kind where you get facials and massages. But alas, it was not… I was there, and there was no backing out… I won’t bore you will all awkward, uncomfortable, weird, embarrassing, light-years out of my comfort zone details… its pretty much exactly what you are thinking… I think that pretty much ended the night on a VERY different note. The next morning we had breakfast and just hung out for a while before we were scheduled to leave for a shrine. I had mentioned to my host mom the day before that I wanted to go to Kyoto and hopefully try on a kimono of some sort. She knew she couldn’t exactly help with going to Kyoto but she did let me try on her very own kimono. It was beautiful! She and her mother-in-law worked together to tie me up in it. It was very nice of her to let me try it on and it is definitely an experience I will never forget. We soon left for the shrine where we were meeting some of the other Hippo family members. We were also able to attend a traditional tea ceremony. The tea was the freshest, most bitter green tea I have ever tasted – I seriously could barely get it down. My host mom, along with the other families, packed a picnic lunch that we all ate under the cherry trees. It was a great afternoon and I am so glad I had the opportunity to take part in everything. My family was so gracious to let me into their home and I am so grateful to have had this amazing experience that I will never forget. The next day me and some friends were just planning on seeing the sites in Kobe for our last day in Japan. We went around the port area and walked to a park and relaxed there for a while. We headed back to the ship before we got dock time ending our time in Japan with a good ol pizza! Only 20 days until we get into Miami – it is weird to think this will all be over so soon. I hope everything is well back home! Miss you all! love love love Cherie

China. . . .

My time in China began at 4:30 in the morning with a flight from Hong Kong to Beijing, the capitol of China. I only had one incident when going through security and that was because my face wash was more than 100ml so they made me throw it away. I was a bit peeved because that was my only face wash for the rest of the voyage but luckily there was a duty free shop inside the terminal and I was able to replace it. We made it to our flight and after 3.5 hours we were in Beijing. We flew into what is now the largest airport in the world – it just opened 10 days previous to our arrival. It is pretty much the best airport I have ever been in. As you can imagine everything in Beijing is geared toward the Olympics which begin in about 120 days. After we went through immigration and customs we were on our way to the city to eat some lunch. After lunch we went for a tour of the Summer Palace. The grounds of the palace are beautiful! My one and only complaint was of the amount of people there. The day we went was a holiday which doubled the amount of people who would normally be there. Our group was also stood out like a sore thumb. There was even one point on our tour where we were bombarded with people who wanted to take pictures with us – just a tad awkward, not gunna lie. Anyhoo, after our time at the Summer Palace we headed to our hotel to check in and to freshen up before our Peking duck dinner. It was interesting… they were displaying the ducks as we walked in which pretty much killed my appetite. I did try some and it wasn’t bad but I just didn’t feel very hungry after that oh so disturbing sight. As most of you know the situation between China, Tibet and the Olympics has made the headlines around the world… except in China of course. One of the only English channels in our hotel was CNN so consequently we were able to catch up on quite a bit of news from previous weeks… except of course the situation in Tibet. Every time a report on what is going on between Tibet and China would come on, the screen would go black. We spoke to our tour guide about different topics including Tibet, and he was unable to give his thoughts on the matter because he would lose his job if it got out. Another example of the censorship of China was with the Tiananmen Square student protest/massacre – the Chinese people are still told that there were no fatalities. Oh, and the best one yet – I picked up an English newspaper on the flight back to Shanghai and the headline was “Warm reception in Cold London.” – if anyone watched the news last week that was NOT the case. The Olympic torch was met with many protests and I believe the flame was even extinguished by a protestor – please explain how that is a so called “warm welcome…” Anyhoo, the next day we headed to the Great Wall. It took about 2 hours to get there with all the traffic. Let me tell you, driving in all these countries makes me appreciate the road system/drives we have in the states. We got to the wall and had the option to either take a tram up or hike up. I, of course, decided to hike… it wasn’t too bad really. I was very thankful that it was cool and wasn’t sweating like a pig like in every other country. We made it to the top after about 30 mins of steps and the view, although a little cloudy, was beautiful. We made our way up in one direction, of course stopping every now and then for photo ops. One time we ran into a group of Chinese junior high students who wanted to take pictures with my friends and I. It was quite the experience – they just kept multiplying – we were like celebrities! We made it to the top of the side we were climbing, had lunch, took more photos, and headed back down. We were off to the buses and back to the city before dinner. Our busses dropped the group off at the silk market but my friends and I decided to go to the Beijing Zoo and the Olympic Stadium instead. We did walk into the market for about 5 minutes to find an ATM and that was probably the worst 5 minutes of the trip. People were everywhere… pulling on my arm… calling lady lady lady… did I mention people EVERYWHERE?? So we got out of there ASAP and were on our way to the zoo. We took a cab which was interesting with the language barrier – I pointed to a picture of a panda and hoped he knew what we wanted. We walked around the zoo first, of course, making our way to the Giant Panda exhibit. The pandas were so cute but the place they were living – not so cute. For how much the Chinese love the Panda they sure do not take care of it the way I would have expected. After the pandas we tried to see the lions, and tigers (and bears – oh my!). With a Chinese map it is quite hard to get around but we managed, and saw the sad habitat that the tigers were living in. I have a feeling the animal rights people who will be at the Olympics this summer and go to the zoo will have a hissy-fit for sure! After the zoo closed on us, we headed for the Olympic stadium. Again, we took a cab, showing him only a picture of the stadium and hoping for the best. The public is not able to get very close and the stadium itself is still under construction so we only we able to see it from the new highway where our driver just pulled over for us. We took our pictures and all that jazz and were on our merry way. My friends wanted pizza hut for dinner but trying to tell the cab driver was a tad difficult. I ended up drawing a pizza and the pizza hut symbol and he understood but did not know which one to take us to. We ended up passing one and we all screamed for him to turn around… it was quite an adventure! After getting back to the hotel we watched the news and again, it was blacked out some of the time… The next day we first headed for a tour of Tiananmen Square. My friends and I were most enthused by the official Olympic countdown clock so we ran over there to take some pictures. Next we went to the Forbidden City, which is huge! It just keeps going and going and going. Our group was given an automatic headset/guide to walk around with which was not my favourite but it worked. Again, there were so many people there – definite invasion of bubble. It was still a great experience to see and I will always have some great stories. Next we went to the Lama Temple which was cool. We were able to see the way Buddhist worship and I was also able to talk to my tour guide (who is Buddhist) about her beliefs and the reasoning behind some of the ways of worship. I was also able to talk to my guide about her thoughts on Mao. She said her parents and grandparents like him but she does not. I was very surprised to hear her speak out against the government (even if its past). Again, it gives me reason to be thankful to live in America where we can say what we want – for or against the government. After we got back to the hotel me and a friend went to a tea house for a little tea time. It was some good tea! That evening we had the opportunity to go to an acrobatic show. I really cannot put this show into words so I will have to let the photos and video speak for me. Let’s just leave it as amazing! The next day we went for a tour of the Temple of Heaven. This was a really cool place because it is surrounded by a park where people can come and do exercises/sing/play chess etc. The actual temple was cool! The intricate detail of the painting is absolutely beautiful. From there we went to catch a trishaws (similar to Indian rick-shaw) to visit a traditional Chinese home. It was a great experience to see a home that has so much history and means so much to the family. There was also a bird there that would say “nihow”… he was my favourite. Next we went to the Bell Tower. We had a great view of the city from the top. From there we headed to the airport to catch our flight to Shanghai. Again, we left out of the brand new airport – pretty much amazing! The next morning I had an SAS trip to do sunrise Tai Chi. It was pretty much the most hilarious experience I have had yet – and no, I will not demonstrate any moves when I get home! HA! After my early morning I had another trip planned to the Shanghai auto industry. We visited the Volkswagen plant of Shanghai and got a tour of the facilities. That was pretty cool! We were able to see the cars being put together from beginning to end. Next we went to a car museum which was pretty cool… although I am not that into cars. Next we went to the Formula 1 race track and saw some 6 Ferraris racing (Alex – stop drooling!)… that was pretty darn cool to see that – not gunna lie! I got back a few hours before on-ship time so I was not able to go out in Shanghai by myself so I will just have to come back again… Anyone wanna come? Overall this was a great trip ranking up there with South Africa for sure! I was a great experience to be in China while everything (whether they want to admit it or not) is going on – Olympics, Tibet, Communism as a whole. It was great to be able to see it first hand and be exposed to something I never would have seen otherwise. Thanks for reading this! Hope everyone is doing well! I cant believe this voyage is almost over… see you soon! love love love Cherie

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is probably one of the most incredible cities that I have ever been to. It is full of skyscrapers and lights that make the sky line one of the best! The weather for my stay in Hong Kong was not great but the sites and sounds of the city made all the clouds disappear for me. Our port location was prime with our disembarkation of the ship leading into a huge mall with many familiar stores. I had planned a ½ day trip with SAS for a city orientation. Our tour guide took us by all the major buildings and to one of the major sites in Hong Kong. He shared how much he has seen Hong Kong change and grow into the city it is today. We went up to the peak of Hong Kong where we should have seen a 360 view of the city but because of the fog were unable to do so. I, however, decided to have my picture taken and then have that picture be photo-shopped into the skyline – Lame I know, but hey, at least I’ll have a picture of the skyline. There was also a Starbucks at the top of the peak so, of course, I got my usual London Fog and I must say, Hong Kong makes it the best. After taking the tram down the mountain we headed toward the heart of the city to tour the business district. It was quite a site to see – I will post pictures (hopefully soon) but I really don’t think they do it justice. We also went to a temple that is constantly burning incense. Now, I’m not just talking about one stick, there were coils and coils that would burn (depending on the size) for a day, a week, or even a month. I pretty much had a massive head ache after our 5 minutes in there. After our city tour was over I headed back to the ship in order to meet some friends for dinner. We ended up finding a restaurant in the mall right across from the ship – It was called the Stonegrill. It is basically the opposite of Cold Stone. They bring out your order (beef, shrimp, or seafood) on a hot stone and you basically cook it yourself. I am not as talented as everyone else so the waiter had to help me along but I eventually got the hang of it. After dinner, the 6 of us just walked around the port and found some dessert. It was a great way to spend my one day in Hong Kong but I would like to go back sometime soon to see more of that wonderful city. I will be posting about my time in Beijing and Shanghai as soon as I can. We get to Japan tomorrow so hopefully I will be able to find an internet café since the ships internet is not available in Japan. Miss you all! love love love Cherie

Viet Nam

My time in Viet Nam was an experience I will never forget. Before my visit I didn’t have much background on the American war in Viet Nam and was unclear as to why there even was a war here. The first day we pulled into port I stayed on the ship because I was required to attend an FDP (field directed practicum) for my finance class. For the most part, listening to a lawyer talk about business and economics in Viet Nam was pretty much a waste of my time – not gunna lie. He did, however, have a few statistics that were interesting to hear about. After our 2 hour lecture, we finally were able to leave the ship to head downtown. My first impressions of Viet Nam were not what I expected. For what I was expecting, Viet Nam is well built up with nice hotels, a beautiful opera house, and your everyday (legitimate) LV and Gucci stores. I, on the other hand, decided to buy my LV and Gucci supplies at the market for a fraction of the “real” price. We did some shopping (perhaps too much) and then went to find a tailor that could make us some dresses (pretty much everyone gets dresses and suits made in VN to wear to the Ambassadors Ball here on the ship). We went into one of the many tailor shops, busted out our pictures of the dress (es) we wanted and we were off – Taking measurements here, fabric there, we spent a total of about 2 hours there until we were forced to leave to meet some friends for dinner in town. We took a cab from the shop to a restaurant called the “Mandarene.” It was traditional Vietnamese food with people waiting on us hand and foot. Come to find out Condellezza Rice had been there sometime before and we sat at the same table! It was quite the claim to fame for a few of us… After our nice dinner we headed back into town to go shopping (again) at the night market. My friend, Anna and I ended up getting separated from the rest of our group and had to take a cab back to the ship because we missed the last free shuttle back to the ship. Anyhoo, I was proud of ourselves because we got the cab (which took close to 30 minutes) for like 4 USD. The joys of bargaining, hey? We made it back to the ship and I hit the sack by 1AM. The next morning I had to get up pretty darn early in order to make my trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnels are only about 60km away but it took us 2 hours to get there because of the traffic. The Cu Chi Tunnels was where the war aspect actually hit me – In downtown Saigon it just looks like a big city – it doesn’t even look like a war would have ever taken place there. As lame of a comparison as it is, the area where the Cu Chi Tunnels are looks exactly like what you see on MASH. Anyways, during our tour we were shown how the Vietnamese used different techniques to kill Americans and obviously how and why the tunnels were built. We were actually able to go down into the tunnels for about 15 minutes – it was probably one of the most uncomfortable 15 minutes I have been through on this whole trip. These tunnels were not “American size” and were extremely hot and humid, not to mention I was doing the duck walk the whole way through because if I got down on all fours it hurt my knees too much. It was a good experience nonetheless. On our tour they had the option to shoot a gun on a shooting range. It was an eerie feeling hearing the gunshots from afar, being in the jungle, and knowing that is a tiny snippet of what it was like during the war. Also, it was weird to hear such a different story of the war. Americans were sometimes described as terrorist which is definitely not something I am used to hearing. After the Cu Chi Tunnels trip we came back to the ship and headed back out to Saigon to do some more shopping… good deals can be found in Viet Nam, believe me! The next day I woke up not feeling too well but I still went into town to explore and get a cheap manicure and pedicure! It was pretty much amazing! My friend and I also made our way over to the War Remnants Museum. This was a really different experience for me – everything in that museum was showing the American soldiers in such a horrible light. I know there was huge controversy over the Viet Nam war amongst the Americans as a whole but I feel like any American for or against the war would be shocked at the images portrayed there. The next day was my trip to the Mekong Delta. Again, I wasn’t feeling very well so my trip was a bit on the dull side but it was still nice to be able to see this historic river. We took many different types of boats up the river, stopped at various villages and I even got to hold a python – holy crap was that scary! The next day I went into town to grab some last minute things and to pick up our dresses from the tailor. On my trip around town I came across an internet café were I spent about 2 hours trying to sort some things out. I also joined skype and was able to talk with my brader for a while! I ended my last day in Viet Nam by picking up my dresses from the tailor. They turned out very well and I am very happy with them – that outcome was not had by all on the ship so I feel lucky to have a nice outcome. Overall my trip to Viet Nam was great. I learned a lot but I also feel like I need to learn so much more to see the whole picture. It has recently hit me that all the experiences I am having on this trip, many people will never be able to have. I have to pinch myself every morning to make sure that I’m not dreaming. I hope this finds you all well! Miss you! love love love Cherie