We are on our last stretch in to San Diego.  We arrive there the day after tomorrow!!! We both cannot believe how fast this trip has gone, but we are super excited to get home!!

Our stop in Hawaii was a few days ago and super fun.  Frank enjoyed getting to use his ID for once and we stayed at a hotel with a bunch of friends.  We hung out on the beach and ate delicious food.  When everyone saw Wal-Mart it was crazy.  We haven’t seen an American store for four months so we all bought a bunch of snacks that we hadn’t had in a long time.  The weather was great and we really enjoyed our last time to get off the ship and hang out with the friends we have made these past four months.

We cannot believe it has been four months!! We are so excited to get home, we can’t even describe. 

The past few nights have been fun.  Last night was the Alumni Ball.  Everyone got dressed up and we all had  a night on the boat, almost like a vacation cruise.  There was a great dinner and huge dessert buffet.  Then everyone hung out outside on the upper deck.  Tonight, my roommate Emily, invited us to a special second to last night dinner that she bid and won on in the auction.  So we get to get dressed up again.  Its nice to feel like a real person every once in a while.   We cannot wait to get back to real regular life.  Its been kinda weird living on the ship and traveling so much.

We arrive in San Diego on Sunday morning.  Frank’s Dad, my Dad and my little brother Sean will be there to meet us!  We are then staying the night in San Diego and heading back to Chicago the next day!  I am not excited for the weather change, but really excited to get back home.  However, it has been nice getting to lay out in the sun everyday.

Cant wait to see you all soon!

Medbh&Frank

Hello all.

We left Taiwan yesterday and have been having a nice relaxing day of no classes on the ship, besides the lifeboat drill at 9 am. But Taiwan was an unexpected but exciting port to explore. The first day we got off the ship and headed straight for Burger King. I was so happy to have a delicious chicken sandwich. After eating we were not sure where to go or what to do. We stumbled upon the train station and found a man who spoke English who helped us get tickets to Taipei. The train ride was about an hour long but such lush green landscapes were just outside the window to look at. The main train station in Taipei was actually the main subway station also, so we took the subway (very cheap) to the hot springs. As we were walking in the rain toward the hot spring area we heard about we saw a creek running through the city. Many locals were hanging around or in the creek, which turned out to be the hot spring. We found an indoor hot spring at a hotel. It was so nice to soak in the hot water considering the rain outside was a little cold. After the hot spring we walked around and did a little shopping. Medbh stumbled upon a pet store and bought a raincoat for Jackson, I figured I would get one for Lola. We went back to Taipei via the subway and walked around there through local markets with food that looked like it could be in fear factor. We skipped the cockroach looking food and had some dumplings that were delicious. We ate at a small restaurant inside and had a salad. The next day we went to the zoo.

That night we met a Russian man who was the chief engineer on a boat for Green Peace that was docked next to us.  He told about a bar in Keelung and a few of us went and hung out with the crew on that boat. 

On every corner in Taiwan, there were delicious bakeries everywhere.  So the next morning we got up and headed straight for one for some fresh baked breakfast.  So yummy!  We then got back on the train and headed for the Taipei Zoo, which was 1 train and 1 subway and 1 “El” trip away from us.  We felt like quite the travelers.  Once we were at the zoo outside of Taipei I wanted to go see the Panda’s first since I had never seen one before.  They looked like humongous stuffed animals laying there.  The 2 pandas at the Taipei Zoo were given to Taiwan by China as a peace offering and are quite famous.  We spent the whole day walking around looking at all the animals that the zoo had including, elephants, tigers, giraffes, and tons of monkeys.  We ate panda shaped ice cream and had the most delicious corn dogs.  We were the only tourists that we saw at the zoo and everyone else seemed to be from around Taiwan or Asia.  We even were asked to take pictures with some people, which was funny and weird at the same time.

After spending the day at the zoo we headed back on the “el” train to downtown Taipei.  We then got on another train to get to the famous Taipei 101 building; the second tallest building in the world beat in height by the Burge Dubai.  We found a bagel place (YAY!) and got onion bagel sandwiches.  I was so happy!  And walked the few blocks down to the building.  We were not going to go up in it, but decided, why not? So we did.  On the 89^th floor you could see all of Taipei.  Because it was dark out, we could not see much past that, but the lights of the city were really pretty and the building was really cool to go up in.  They have the fastest elevators in the world that get you from floor 5 to floor 89 in 37 seconds.  They also have the worlds largest wind damper that is a huge sphere that takes up almost 3 floors in the center of the top of the building.  After leaving the building we headed back to the train station to begin our trek back to Keelung.  But, we saw a Coldstone and could not resist getting some ice cream.  After that, we finally headed back on our 2 hour journey to the ship.

The third day, and our last day in Taiwan, we woke up and decided to just walk around Keelung.  We spent the day meandering through the streets and eating the food we saw that looked good.  There literally are bakeries on every block that have all sorts of breads, pastries, and cakes in the windows.  I wish we had bakeries like that on every corner at home! 

Now we have been on the ship since yesterday afternoon and it is day 1 of our 11 day sail to Hilo, Hawaii.  Frank has made a short 5 minute film to enter into the ship’s film festival that we are having on April 10^th.  They also have all sorts of other things planned like a talent show, auction, and various other activities.  It is going to be a long stretch til we see land!  I plan on just working on my tan and schoolwork because after Hawaii we only have 6 days until San Diego!!

We are so excited to get home this month in less than 3 weeks!  We cannot wait to share our trip with everyone in person, rather than through typed words. 

See you soon!

Frank and Medbh

We have now just left Shang Hai, China.  During our 6 day stay in China we managed to visit Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shang Hai and are now super tired from the past week.  It was a lot of traveling, but definitely well worth it. 

Starting with Hong Kong…

We arrived in Hong Kong last Saturday morning.  When leaving the ship we had no idea where to go or even how to get out of the cruise terminal.  Once we found our way out, we boarded the ferry to the main Hong Kong Island.  Once there we got a cab to a market called Stanley Market, where many other SASers were going.  We hung out there for a while and shopped around in the market.  We took a double Decker bus back to the ferry stop and headed back towards the area around the ship for dinner.  Everything was SO expensive, so we ended up at Mcdonalds because we were starving.  We hung out in the area around the ship with a bunch of other SASers and even some of the crew was hanging around too.

The next day we had to be up early because we were meeting up with one of Franks families’ friends, CH, his wife Nancy, and their daughter.  We met them at the Four Seasons and immediately went to breakfast.  The place we went was a local breakfast restaurant that was supposed to be one of the best in Hong Kong.  It was packed with a line trailing down the block and inside was super crowded.  We got in, ate our food, and out.  This restaurant did not let you sit around and talk.  Noone spoke English, so CH and Nancy ordered for us. 

We then headed to another island called Lantau.  We boarded a glass bottom cable car that took us over a lake and tree covered hills to an area with a huge Buddha statue.  We walked up the stairs to the big statue and then walked down for lunch.  It was cold and raining.  We went to an all vegetarian restaurant, which was very different from what both Frank and I were used to.  After lunch, we continued on to a bus ride to a fishing village near by.  We walked around the village, which had many buildings built on stilts and streets filled with all the seafood you could imagine served in ways that I had never seen before.  We ate delicious donuts and also tried some Chinese desserts. 

After this, we returned with CH and Nancy to their home in a high rise building in downtown Hong Kong. (Everyone lives in high rises in Hong Kong)  They have lived in their apartment for 30 years and it was decorated with beautiful woodwork and lots of other things.  They took us out to dinner at their favorite local restaurant and we enjoyed all the food family style, like at most meals in Hong Kong.  Frank loved the curry and I really liked the calamari.  CH then showed us movies of his travels and we showed them some pictures of where we had been so far.

We spent the night at CH and Nancy’s and went to bed early in order to get up for our flight to Beijing the next morning.  They were very nice and even got us a car to take us to the airport and got us breakfast from Starbucks.  We really appreciated everything they did for us and could not imagine a better way to spend our short time in Hong Kong and if they read this, we really are thankful for everything they did for us and hope to return soon.

As soon as we got to the airport it was off to Beijing. The airport was so huge, white, and clean I could hardly open my eyes. We met up with several other students when we got to the gate. As soon as we arrived in Beijing, with about 120 other students, we met up with The China Guide. The China Guide is a trip that was through a company that many other students from Semester at Sea have already done on previous voyages. The China Guide drove us to a hotel in the heart of the city. Coming from the airport I was looking out the window and almost thought I was in the north woods of Wisconsin except no snow and snowmobiles. Lines of huge trees with leaves fallen were all along the side of the road. The hotel was great and was called F.H. my initials. For dinner Medbh and I walked to the center of the city which was so lit up I thought it was still light out. We walked into a mall and both stopped and just stared at all the lights and escalators in the mall it was extravagant. We walked around dehydrated looking for pizza hut, we got to pizza hut and they didn’t even have bottled water. The pizza was good and I just settled with a beer. The next day we woke up early and The China Guide split all 120 of us into 4 groups. After we were in groups we rode to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City and walked around there for about 3 hours from the south entrance to the north. It was MASSIVE and talk about crowds. It was very impressive and Medbh felt like she was in the last scene of Mulan by Disney. From there we went out to eat at a local restaurant, the food was put on a lazy Suzan and was spinning around for all of us to enjoy. Then they drove us off and we saw the “birds nest stadium” aka Olympic Green. It was so nice outside and windy so I bought a kite and flew it in the air while we viewed the stadium from a distance. Then finally (by this point we were very exhausted) we took a 3 hour bus ride to The Great Wall of China. We got there at about 8 pm and first ate at the restaurant near the parking lot. It was then finally time to hike up to the Great Wall of China. It was pitch black out so we got flashlights and were handed our sleeping bags and mats. The hike to the great wall was about 40 minutes up steep stares. As soon we stepped on the The Great Wall of China I knew it was going to be an amazing night that we would never forget. I was so anxious for it to become morning so I could actually see the whole wall on the horizon but it was night and we were sleeping on the wall so it was just as cool. We set up camp with our whole group in a tower, hung out for a little bit while I was playing Bongos that I bought at a market earlier that day. We then fell asleep under the stars with our whole group. In the morning it was so jaw dropping and beautiful. You could see the wall for miles and miles. We then went on separate hikes. Medbh took the short one with her roommate and I decided I would go on the long one about 3 hours. It was so steep and dangerous but an awesome experience.

We took the overnight train from Beijing to Shanghai that night after hiking on the wall and a great peking duck dinner.  The overnight train was a white train with no graffiti or anything on it.  We got on and had our own compartment with 4 small bunk beds.  Everyone from SAS was near each other and we all hung out for a while on the train.  I went to bed early and Frank stayed up with a bunch of other kids.  The next morning we got a bus back to the boat, and I have never been happier to see the boat.  It was a great feeling to finally be back “home”.  As exhausted as we were, we took showers and ventured out into Shanghai on almost no sleep.  We went to lunch and went to a few areas of the city, one known as Yu Garden.  It had really pretty buildings, but was primarily a tourist market that was way overpriced.  Frank and I decided we needed sleep so we headed back to the ship to take a short nap before dinner.   After napping, we went out to try and find some “western” food for dinner.  Eventually we found a restaurant called Morning Shanghai, that had a western and chinese menu.  Frank got his favorite curry and I got a club sandwich.  It was great.  We then walked back to the ship and stopped in a convience store and I found Vietnetta ice cream!  I was so happy.  When we got back to the ship I decided to stay in because I was so wrecked from all the traveling.  Frank went out on a bar crawl organized by some other SASers.  He had a great time and went to 5 different bars /clubs in Shanghai.

The next day we went to a market located in a train station.  We shopped around for a few presents etc. for friends and family and headed back to the boat because we had to be back early for on ship time. 

We left Shanghai that night and have now been back on the ocean for about 24 hours.  We had class today and have class tomorrow before arriving at our last international port of Taiwan Sunday morning.  After that we have a long 11 day stretch in between Taiwan and Hilo, Hawaii.  We are home just six short days after that, so we will see everyone very soon!  There are only 21 days left of the voyage.

See you all soon!

Medbh & Frank

Hello

So where should I get started? Well we went into Vietnam having no idea what it would be like. On the first morning the ship was cruising down Mekong Delta River to Ho Chi Minh City blowing our horn nonstop as we were dodging all different types of boats even rowboats. When we got on land Medbh and I went to the Market which was insanely cheap. Medbh got a couple purses but she doesn’t want anyone to know they are fake..sssh. We stumbled upon a little 7 year old girl trying to sell us bookmarks and fans. I bought them of course because she was so nice and I felt bad she was out on her own trying to sell things for her Dad. Her English was very good. We all hung out for awhile until we had to say goodbye, although the next day we went back and gave her some silly bands and candy. After a long day at the market and walking about the city we decided to go out for some dinner. Where else would we go but Hard Rock Café! It was a lot of fun; we went with a big group and listened to some great music.

The second day we got out early and went to the war remnants museum. It was shocking. I feel like I never really knew what the Vietnam War was really about until now. They had descriptions of how Americans would torture the Vietnamese and photos of people who were and still are affected by Agent Orange, you could tell it was a museum that the Vietnamese had built considering the way they portrayed the lean of the war. I am glad we went to the museum though.

The third day we decided to go to a spa that some friends had told us about called Jasmine Spa.  When we got there we looked at the list of services and it was so cheap and SO nice.  (12$ for a mani/pedi!!)  We decided to get massages.  Frank got his first facial and I was so proud of him J I got a mani/pedi and a deep conditioning hair treatment.  It was SO nice.  Afterward we walked down the street and found the cutest ice cream shop.  We got ice cream shaped like sushi and the sorbet was delicious.  After walking around for a bit more, we decided to head back to the ship to get ready for dinner.  We found a great Mexican restaurant, with Vietnamese versions of Mexican dishes.  The “tortilla” chips were so good, even better than real Mexican ones.  We then decided to head over to the Rex Hotel, a famous hotel for housing journalists during the Vietnam War.  We went up to the rooftop bar to see the view and have a drink.  The drinks were expensive, but it was well worth it for the view of the city!

The next day was an early one because we had a trip through SAS.  We boarded a bus for 2 hours to an area called the Mekong Delta.  We got to stop off and see a beautiful Buddhist temple on the way as well.  At the Mekong Delta we got on a boat to journey to the 3 islands in the area.  On the first island we ate local fruit and listened to the local music.  On the second Island we got a tour of how coconut candy is made and got to try some that was still hot and fresh out of the oven!  We then got on to these small horse drawn carts for a tour of the town on the island.  The carts brought us to little boats which we took up a small canal to our big boat.  Once back on the bigger boat we were starving.  On the third island we were taken to a restaurant where we had the most delicious, fresh Vietnamese food.  A woman came out with a whole huge fish just for our table of 6 people.  She began to make us fresh spring rolls right at the table with mint, pineapple, rice paper, and the fish.  They were one of the most delicious things ever.  Afterwards plates of fried squid, fish, and other things were brought out to us.  It was one of the most delicious lunches ever.  After eating we headed back to the bus for the 2 hour trip through the rice fields back to the boat in Ho Chi Minh.  When we got back and freshened up, we went out for some sushi right by the boat.  Another delicious meal. (All the food was SO good everywhere we went in Vietnam, it was awesome.)

The next day and last day we got some last minute shopping in before we left.  We went to a small café for lunch and I tried some of the Vietnamese iced coffee, which is something they are also known for.  We went shopping and got a few presents for our families back home, used the internet at a restaurant, and before we knew it it was time to get back on the ship. 

We got back on the ship at 6 but did not leave till 9 this morning. The reason is because of high and low tide. During the day the tide is low so we were able to get under a bridge. Now we are off to Hong Kong China and so excited.

We are now almost to Vietnam and we dock in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) tomorrow at 11AM, which is 11PM in Chicago.  On Wednesday we docked in Singapore for a short visit of about 12 hours.  When we arrived it was hot, humid, and sticky.  We got off the boat at the cruise ship center and really had no idea what to do.  Above our ship was a gondola type thing that we thought looked really cool.  We decided to take a ride on it and see where it went.  The gondola called the “Jewel Car” took us up above over the ship, and to a small island called Sensota.  Sensota is an island in Singapore that has a lot of tourist attractions.  We walked around and found many stores, restaurants, and even Universal Studios Singapore.  We decided to treat ourselves and eat at Chilis.  It was expensive, but delicious.  After we took the gondola around the rest of the way and got a great view of the city skyline.

We then decided to take a cab into downtown Singapore.  It was the nicest cab we had been in since starting our trip on Semester at Sea.  We went to a downtown area called the “boat quay”.  It started to pour rain.  The area was filled with seafood restaurants, bars, and shops.  All of the restaurants would kill the seafood right there.  The crabs and lobsters were huge.  It was right on the riverfront, so we had a great view of downtown. We had a drink at an English pub and then joined some other SASers for a “Singapore Sling” at a local restaurant.  The “Singapore Sling” is a famous drink that a hotel in Singapore created.  It was super sweet and not my favorite thing, but it was good.  We then took a cab back to the port because we had to be back on the boat fairly early.  The port had a huge shopping area, so we ate dinner and relaxed before getting in line to get back on the boat so we would not get dock time in Vietnam.  (If your over 1 minute late you get 3 hours “dock time” where you have to stay on the boat in the next port)  Neither of us wanted that, so we made sure we got back in plenty of time!  Even though our time in Singapore was short and we did not get to see much we had a great time.  It was the cleanest city I have ever been to.  They had laws against everything, so everything in Singapore is very organized and very much like in America and even stricter. For example: In Singapore chewing gum is illegal and you get fined 500$ for spitting it out on the sidewalk!  It was very different than the cities we have been to previously on SAS.

In about 12 hours we will arrive in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, which we are both really excited for.  We have heard so much about the great food there and cannot wait to have some fried spring rolls and pho!

For those who haven’t heard, SAS has cancelled our visit to Japan due to the recent events that have occurred there.  Instead of visiting Japan, we will now be going to Taipei, Taiwan after we leave Shang Hai, China.  If any of you have any information on Taiwan we would appreciate any help that you can give us!  We don’t really know of any places to visit or to go see.  SAS is working on getting information, but as of now we don’t even have any books on it and we cannot easily access the internet.  We can both be reached easiest at:

MaFox@SemesteratSea.net and FwHuschitt@SemesteratSea.net

We will update on our adventures in Vietnam soon!

-Medbh and Frank