TravelStream™ news feed for member kellyandjess on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/kellyandjess en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:44:13 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1219426920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1219426920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1219426920/tpod.html Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:44:13 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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Norfolk, Virginia, United States

This trip really has been the opportunity of a lifetime. We have learned so much about the world and ourselves. This will be the summer we never forget. He voyage has exceeded our expectations and we can't wait to get home and share our stories and pictures!

We will be arriving back in the States on August 22 and will be back in Maryland on the 24th. Can't wait to see you!
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Dubrovnik, Croatia

Croatia
August 8-10, 2008

August 8, 2008
Croatia is a very beautiful place with its natural surroundings, many islands, and gorgeous beaches. It was also very hot and humid while we were there. On our first day in Croatia we did a city orientation of the city walls. Within these walls is the Old Town of Dubrovnik. Walking the steps around the city walls allowed us to get a fantastic view of the ocean and the town with its famous red-tiled roofs. This panoramic spot above Old Town gave us a spectacular view of the whole area below. After walking around the walls of the Old Town we spent some more time sightseeing and then did a little souvenir shopping. There were neat little shops, restaurants, and cafes. After the orientation we took the bus back to where our ship was located. For this port, our ship did not dock but we instead were anchored in the harbor of Dubrovnik. So in order to get to land, the tenders (life boats) would take us to and from the ship.

August 9, 2008
Today was a free day. We decided that we wanted to go to a beach, so we went to an information center where we bought tickets for a ferry that would drop us off and pick us up at an island. The Elaphite Islands are three different islands (Sipan, Lopud, and Kolocep) that have their own special uniqueness and scenery. We decided to go to the island of Lopud because we were told it was the best sand beach to go to. When we got there we had to hike to the other side of the island where the Sunj beach was. It is the prettiest beach either of us has seen. The water was clear blue and very refreshing. We spent the rest of the afternoon sunbathing before we headed back to Dubrovnik. That night there was a festival being held in the streets of Dubrovnik. There was a lot of music, food, and people. It was a really good time and it gave us an opportunity to get a feel for the Croatian culture.

August 10, 2008
Today was our last day in Croatia and our last port. We decided to take a trip back up to Old Town to do a little bit more shopping before we left. After spending a few hours there we headed back to the ship. We had a cook out on the top deck, which everyone enjoys. You could tell that it was a really bitter sweet moment. Everyone is finally ready to get back home but we are all sad that this trip has to come to an end.


]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217785140/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217785140/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217785140/tpod.html Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:40:49 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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Piraeus, Attica, Greece

Greece
August 3-6, 2008


August 3, 2008
Upon arriving in Greece we had a tour of Athens and the Acropolis. The Acropolis is one of the world's oldest cities that dates back over three thousand years. The most exciting site of the Acropolis was the temple of Athena, better known as the Parthenon. After the tour of the Acropolis we had a short guided bus tour of the city. Before the bus headed back to the ship, we decided to get off the bus and stay in Athens for dinner. We returned to the ship after dinner and a little shopping.

August 4, 2008
On our second day in Greece we took a day trip to Delphi, one of the most beautiful and fully preserved sanctuaries of ancient Greece. Home to Apollo, Delphi is one of the most enchanting sites in Greece. It is also said to be the sacred site of the oracle of Apollo. It is located on a high mountain tarrace with gorgeous surroundings. We spent most of our time wondering around the ruins seeing the remains of buildings and sculptural treasures.

August 5, 2008
We did not have a tour planned for today. We went into downtown Athens and enjoyed walking around the large city. We were in the city's center for most of the day before returning to the ship for dinner. After dinner we headed out to see the nightlife in Athens. Athens is a beautiful city when it lit up at night.

August 6, 2008
Our last day in Greece we planned to go bungee jumping in the Corinth Canal in Cornith. We left the ship early to catch the hour train ride to Corinth. At the train station, we caught a taxi to the 'zulu hut' next to the canal that offered bungee jumping. We got suited up and they took us down to the bridge and we jumped! Words can't describe the freefall, all I can say is that it was pretty awesome. Sadly, we didn't get any pictures of us jumping, but we purchased a DVD of the entire thing. After jumping, we waited for the staff to finish making the DVD of our jump and then headed back to the ship. We had a great time in Greece!

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Alexandria, Egypt

Egypt
July 30 - August 4

July 30
We were both excited about the itinerary change from Istanbul, Turkey to Alexandria, Egypt. In fact, the rest of the ship was as well. We were supposed to arrive in Istanbul one day before the change of plans. The field office (the people in charge of setting up excursions) did a great job setting up 8 different field trips to choose from in only 24 hour notice.
The first day we took a tour of the city we were docked in, Alexandria. Our first stop in Alexandria was the Catacombs of Shawqafa. These Catacombs are deep underground and were used from the 2nd century to the 4th century. Entrances were soon buried and the Catacombs were rediscovered in 1900. The Catacombs didn't have any bodies or mummies left in them, because underground floods had washed them all away. Although we were not able to take pictures inside the Catacombs, it was still interesting to see the tunnels and tombs carved deep underground. We left from the Catacombs to the National Museum of Alexandria. This was a great collection of ancient Egyptian, modern Egyptian and Roman artifacts. The museum housed many artifacts that were salvaged from the coast, which was once part of Alexandria, but had sunk due to a massive Earthquake. After the museum, we had lunch at a very nice restaurant on the beach. On our way to the restaurant we stopped at Abu El Abbas mosque, which is one of the largest mosques in Egypt. We made our way to the restaurant, which had a beautiful panoramic view of the beach and harbor. After lunch, we were taken to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. On our guided tour, we learned that this is one of the world's largest libraries, second only to the library of Congress. Inside the library was also an archeological museum, which we were able to explore. From the Library, we were taken to two different scenic views of the coast for pictures. We were then taken back to this ship in time for dinner.

July 31
We left early this morning for our trip to Cairo, the capital of Egypt. The drive took three hours from Alexandria. On arrival in Cairo, we were taken to Sakkara, Egypt's oldest cemetery, and the world's first monumental stone building built over 5,000 years ago. Sakkara has an enormous six step pyramid called the Step Pyramid of King Koser and a tomb we were able to enter. After the visit to Sakkara we were taken to lunch at a restaurant and then taken to the National Archeological Museum. This museum houses the world famous Tut Ankh Amum collection. King Tuts tomb was the only tomb that had not been ransacked by grave robbers. When it was opened in the 1922, the entire intact collection of treasures, including the sarcophagus, was taken into this museum for the world to see. After the Museum, we checked into our hotel for a break and dinner. After dinner, we were taken to see 'Son et Lumiere' at the Giza Plateau. We were seated in front of the Sphinx for a light show at the Pyramids of Giza. After the light show, we were taken back to the hotel and went to sleep.

August 1
We woke up at 4am this morning to see sunrise at the Great Pyramids. We were taken to a panoramic view, where we waited for the sun to show before the pyramids. After many pictures were taken, we took a camel ride down to the pyramids. This was a very unique experience. The camels were enormous, and we almost fell off when the camel stood up after we got on. After we arrived to the bus after the camel ride, we took the bus to the bottom of the pyramids. Here we got more pictures and we were able to go into one of the Pyramids! We had to climb down about 100 feet in a tiny 3 ½ foot tall corridor and then up 100 feet in the same small corridor to reach a small room at the end. This room held a tomb, but all other artifacts were taken from inside. After the tour of the pyramids, we went to the Khan El Khalili Bazaar, where objects of all sorts were for sale. The shop owners were incredibly aggressive. After the Bazaar, we were taken to a cruise of the Nile River, where lunch was also served. The cruise was very nice and relaxing, and even had a belly dancer and a folkloric performance. After the cruise we headed back to the bus, for the three hour journey back to the ship.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217343000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217343000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1217343000/tpod.html Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:51:22 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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At Sea, Italy

July 28, 2008
This morning we were awaken by an announcement informing us that there had been bombings in the suburbs of Istanbul the previous night. At this point, the administration was not sure if we would still be going to Istanbul. We were supposed to arrive in Istanbul tomorrow, July 29. In the middle of the day we were saddened to hear that we would not continue to Istanbul. A few hours later we were notified that we would turn around and go to ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT!!!! WOOO HOOOO!!!!
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Naples, Campania, Italy

Italy
July 23-26, 2008

July 23, 2008
This morning we arrived in Naples, Italy. We have signed up for a four day guided tour that included Capri, Sorrento, Rome and Naples, of course. Our first stop was Capri. Capri is an island across the bay of Naples, and only a 30 minute ferry ride. When we arrived we took a train that goes straight to the top of the island in about 3 minutes. At the top of the island we had a beautiful view of the town on the mountain side. We were taken to a few scenic spots before eating lunch at a restaurant. The restaurant was outside and had a beautiful view of the ocean. After lunch we went back down the mountain to board a small boat that was going to take us on a short ride around the island where we would see some caves. We had about 20 people on the boat and the water was quite calm. We stayed close to the rocky coast and were taken to a few caves and actually went into one of them. The water was gorgeous, and people had their yachts anchored around the coast to hop of the boat and go swimming. We were quite jealous. At one point, the water was 60 feet deep and we could see the bottom of the sea. After we got back to the dock, we boarded a ferry to take us to Sorrento. We arrived in Sorrento around 4pm and finally got to our hotel around 5ish. We tried to walk around the city before dinner, but our hotel was so far up the mountain we didn't get to see much. We had dinner at a restaurant close to the hotel and this restaurant had an even better view. After dinner, we sat with some friends at a beautiful terrace, ordered a few bottles of wine and looked across the bay at the millions of lights shining from Naples.
July 24, 2008
Early this morning we left for Pompeii. This ancient city was buried by ash from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. The city was buried and forgotten until it was rediscovered in 1748. We were taken around the city, visited the amphitheater, a few of Pompeii's main roads, houses and even a brothel. We also saw casts of human bodies that were killed from suffocation and buried in ash. We had lunch outside of the city walls of ancient Pompeii and then left for the 3 hour ride to Rome. We arrived in Rome in the afternoon and we had some time to walk around by ourselves before dinner. Dinner was great but we were anxious to start our night tour of Rome. After dinner we were taken to the Trevi fountain, the Pantheon and the Piazza Navona. These sites were beautiful; we just wish we had more time for pictures! After the night tour we went back to the hotel.
July 25, 2008
This morning we visited the Vatican. The Vatican is located inside of Rome, and is actually its own country, the world's smallest country. We were taken straight to the Sistine Chapel. Here, Michelangelo painted the entire ceiling of this enormous cathedral, it was a truly a magnificent site. (Sorry, no pictures allowed!) After the Sistine chapel, we were taken to St. Peters Basilica for a guided tour. St. Peters Basilica is the largest Cathedral in the world. It was built upon the grave of St. Peter and is also home to the famous Pieta, a stature of Mary and Jesus, sculpted by Michelangelo when he was only 24 years old. We had some free time in Vatican square and then we departed to see the Colosseum. We arrived in the Colosseum and were given a brief history of the Colosseum before we were given some free time to take pictures. The construction started in 72AD and completed only 8 years later in 80AD. The amphitheater was constructed to hold 50,000 spectators for the famous gladiator games, executions and other public events. After we got tons of pictures, we met back up with the tour guide and walked down the street to the ancient Roman Forum. In ancient times the Forum was a civic piazza, which held a market place, a senate building and a few temples. After the Roman Forum, we split from the group with two friends and went back to the strip of shops in front of the Trevi Fountain and ate dinner at a small café. We walked around this area a bit before we took a cab to the Spanish Steps. The Spanish Steps were just a few stories of steps facing a fountain, what was not as nearly impressive as the Trevi fountain. By this time it was late and we decided to head back to the hotel.
July 26, 2008
We left Rome early this morning to visit the palaces and gardens of Caserta. This was a massive palace that had over 1000 rooms and over 1,500 windows, it was also the second palace of Italy. We were not there long, but just long enough to get some good pictures. We continued back to Naples, which was only a 35 minute drive. We were served lunch at a local restaurant and then were given some free time before being taken back to the ship. Next stop: ISTANBUL, TURKEY!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1216650480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1216650480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1216650480/tpod.html Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:30:04 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium

Belgium & Holland
July 14, 2008
Today we arrived in Antwerp, Belgium. We were able to leave the ship around 10 am. After we left the ship we went with some friends to explore Antwerp. There was much more in Antwerp than we expected. We walked around for half the day before we had to be back to the ship for our tour of Brussels. Brussels was about a 45 minute drive from Antwerp. Brussels is the capital of Belgium and also the capital of the European Union. Our first stop in Brussels was the Atomium. This was an amazing structure built in 1958 for the world fair. The building is a replica of an iron atom, magnified 165 billion times. It includes nine large spheres connected by 20 tubes and stands 102 meters tall. Our next stop in Brussels was the St. Michael's Cathedral. We were not about to go inside, but left from here for a walking tour of the city. We walked for about 20 minutes to reach St. Hubert Arcade and Butchers Street. This open area was covered with restaurants, cafes and shops. It is also home to the famous 'Mannequin Pis' aka the peeing boy. We had learned about this statue on the ship, it was a fountain of a boy peeing. We were surprised to see how small the actual boy was, he was only about two feet tall. He was also dressed up in a musketeer outfit. The peeing boy is significant to Belgians because it lasted though both world wars. After seeing the fountain we had some free time before we had to meet on the bus. We strolled around the main strip doing some souvenir shopping, and eating the famous Belgian waffles and chocolates and fries. After our drive back to the ship in Antwerp, we meet up with some friends to have dinner. We found a café close to the ship and had a great meal. We spent the rest of the night observing the nightlife that Antwerp had to offer.
July 15, 2008
Early this morning we left for a trip to Holland. First, we drove an hour and a half to the small town of Delft. On arrival in Delft, we left the bus for a short guided walking tour of the 17th century town. We then continued to a porcelain factory, 'Porceleine Fles'. 'Here we watched the process involved in creating the world famous Delft Porcelain. After the factory tour, we drove to lunch. This was the best meal we have had in a month! The Dutch know how to cook! Next to the restaurant was a small petting zoo. We were able to see and pet donkeys, peacocks, goats and pigs. After lunch we proceeded to The Hague. The Hague is the political capital of The Netherlands. We got out of the bus for another walking tour. We walked from the Dutch government building to the Peace Palace. In front of the Peace Palace, there was a monument to all of the victims of World War II. We then drove from The Hague to our hotel in Amsterdam. We checked into a very nice hotel and were served dinner in the hotels main restaurant. After dinner we were eager to see the famous Red Light District. With a group of friends we walked about 15 minutes to the Red Light District, where the party had already started. We walked up and down the main canal of the Red Light District before calling it a night.
July 16, 2008
We woke up early to catch breakfast before our city orientation tour of Amsterdam. During our drive to the center of the city, we passed the Royal Palace at the Dam Square, the Mint Tower, and the Weeping Tower. Our first stop was the Rijksmuseum. This was a collection of paintings by famous Dutch Masters. It also is home to the famous 'Nightwatch' by Rembrandt. After leaving the museum, we then drove a few minutes to a local restaurant for lunch. We walked from the restaurant to take a boat tour of the Amsterdam Canals. There are more than 60 miles of waterways in Amsterdam. Amsterdam contains more canals and bridges than Venice. After the boat tour, we disembarked close to the flower market, where we had another walking tour down a few of the main strips in Amsterdam. We continued to walk to Ann Frank's house. We took a tour of the house Ann Frank and her family went into hiding during the Nazi occupation of Holland. After Ann Frank's House we were taken back to the hotel for dinner. We went out again to the Red Light District after dinner. Amsterdam really is the party capital of the world.
July 17, 2008
We left Amsterdam early in the morning for a tour of a few small towns outside of Amsterdam. Our first stop was Marken. Marken is an old fishing village that dates back to 13th century. Holland has a pleasant countryside, and scenic view included many old windmills. We were then taken to a cheese factory in Zaandam. Our tour of the cheese factory showed us how cheese is produced. After the tour we were given samples of all of the cheese the factory produces, which were delicious. We then drove to the town of Volendam for lunch. After lunch we had some free time to check out the stores around the restaurant. We had a guided tour inside a windmill. Volendam was replicated to look like the town had been in 1700. After our tour in Volendam, we drove three hours back to the ship in Antwerp, Belgium.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1215786360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1215786360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1215786360/tpod.html Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:28:17 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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Copenhagen, Zealand, Denmark

Denmark July 8 - July 11

Tuesday July 8
Today we arrived in Korsor, Denmark! We were greeted by a band playing music and even a red carpet laid out in front of our gangway. We traveled by bus to the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen. Our tour started at Christiansburg Castle which is where the Parliament resides. It was built in 1167 and is the city's first fortress. A tour was guided by a member of parliament who was more than glad to show us around. The first 'Dane' we met proved what we had been told that Denmark is home to the happiest people in the world. On the other side of the fortress we were guided through the royal reception rooms, royal library, and balls rooms. Here is where the Royal Danish Family once resided. From there we traveled across the city to the famous Little Mermaid statue, commemorating Hans Christian Anderson's fairytale. After the tour we stayed in Copenhagen to do a little exploring on our own. We met up with some friends from the ship and had dinner and drinks. We walked around the different strips of shops and cafes before heading to the central train station.

Wednesday July 9
Today we got up early and took two trains to Malmo, Sweden. We went with three of our good friends Kate, Eden, and Abby. All together it took about two hours to get there. Malmo, Sweden is much like Copenhagen but a little smaller and less touristy. We spent half the day walking around and doing a little souvenir shopping. We also got some Swedish ice cream which was delicious!! It was a wonderful day because it wasn't hard for us to get there and we had a great time just relaxing. After a while we decided to take a train back to Copenhagen. Here we spent some more time souvenir shopping and roaming the city. We came back to Korsor early that night because we had a tour the next more of Roskilde Denmark.

Thursday July 10
This morning we took another bus ride to Roskilde, Denmark. Our first stop was to Roskilde Cathedral which is the oldest cathedral in Denmark. It holds the tombs of 39 Danish queens and kings. It was much different from that of the cathedrals that we visited in Russia. We took a short walk from the cathedral to the Viking Ship Museum of Roskilde. During this walk, all of the bugs in sight flew to Jessie's bright yellow shirt. It was pretty funny. Once arriving to the museum, we watched a short film which explained that the museum held five Viking ships. These ships were found in the Roskilde fjord and were excavated piece by piece in 1962. It took 25 years to put the ships back together. After touring the museum, we had a picnic lunch outside. The bus then dropped us off at the train station. We caught the next train station to Copenhagen with a few friends. We decided we wanted to see the famous, world traveling "bodies' exhibit. We had seen advertisements of the exhibit all over Copenhagen and it had been recommended by other students who had already seen the exhibit. This exhibit had real human bodies somehow chemically treated so they do not decompose. These bodies were skinned so they showed muscles and organs. Other exhibits showed different body organs and blood systems. No words can really describe what we saw; you're just going to have to see the pictures. After visiting the 'Bodies' exhibit, we headed back to the ship in Korsor.
Friday July 11
Today we walked around the very small town of Korsor. There really wasn't much to see. When the ship was supposed to depart, it seemed the whole town; probably 200 people came to see us off. They even had the marching band playing music for a good hour. We were supposed to depart at 9PM. However, the crew decided to change route and go though the Kiel Canal in Germany. This would save us time on our way to Antwerp, so we did not leave until 4AM. Eventually, the ship made an announcement telling the people waiting outside. We felt really bad for them, but it was amazing how welcoming the Danish people are. It was really amazing to see the town outside our ship.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1214934660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1214934660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1214934660/tpod.html Sun, 13 Jul 2008 14:13:31 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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St. Petersburg, Russia

July 1, 2008
On arrival in Russia, we were greeted by the US Consulate from the American Embassy in Moscow. This was a mandatory meeting for all students where safety in Russia was discussed. We were supposed to start our city orientation of St. Petersburg at 12:30; however we were not able to make it to the bus until 3. After leaving the ship, all students had to go through customs. Unfortunately we were not at the front of the line and we ended up waiting 3 hours next to the ship to get though customs. However, our tour did wait for the students who did not make it to the bus on time.
Our bus tour of the city first took us to Rostral Column which overlooks the Admiralty. The Admiralty is a golden spire which is one of St. Petersburg's most renowned emblems. The Admiralty sits on the fortress in the middle of the Neva River. We continued to the Cathedral of Spilled Blood for a quick chance to get pictures. We were not able to go in, but this was by far the most beautiful Cathedral we saw in Russia. We then drove down the street to St. Isaac's Cathedral, the worlds third largest domed cathedral and was a monument to Tsar Nicholas I. This was an enormous church and when it is open for services, it can hold 14,000 people. We drove from there back to the ship, passing the famous Nevsky Prospect along the way. We went to bed early because we had a long day planned for Tuesday.
July 2, 2008
Today we had to be up and ready to go at 4:45am to catch a one hour flight to Moscow. Once we arrived in Moscow we headed straight to the Kremlin. The Kremlin was originally built in the 12th century as a wooden fortress, by the 14th century the walls were replaced by stone. In the 15th century Ivan III ordered the reconstruction of the Kremlin, and that is how it appears today. We spent most of our time in the Kremlin on a guided tour of the State Armory. The State Armory was built in 1851 to house Russian treasures. Here, there were numerous collections of Russian History. Displays ranged from royal clothing, jewelry, crowns, thrones, famous fabraga eggs, carriages, and other artifacts either captured or received as gifts from other countries. The jewelry, crowns and thrones displayed were covered in a different array of diamonds, jewels and gold. After we left the State Armory we walked to Cathedral Square, still located within the grounds of the Kremlin. We were able to visit two of the numerous cathedrals in the square. First we entered the Cathedral of Archangel Michael. Here, all of the bodies of the previous ruling Tsars are kept. (Gross!) The cathedral was huge, but the tombs covered most of the floor area. These churches were decorated with numerous icons and murals on the ceiling. We walked across the court yard and went into the Cathedral of Assumption. All of the Tsars were crowned inside this cathedral. We left the Kremlin and went to lunch at very nice restaurant. Next on our itinerary was Red Square. Here we got some good pictures of us in front of St. Basil's Cathedral. Kelly thinks it looks like a delicious ice cream sundae. Lenin's tomb is also in Red Square, but it was closed for visitors by the time we got thereL. We went from there to the airport. We finally got back to the ship around 2am!
July 3, 2008
We left early this morning for Tsarskoye Selo, which was an hour bus ride from St. Petersburg, to see the summer palaces of Catharine the Great and her son, Paul I. We first went to the Summer Palace of Catherine the Great. This was the biggest palace we had ever seen. On our way there, our tour guide told us that Catherine the Great wanted an enormous summer palace. She had palace after palace constructed until the seventh palace suited her. There were a total of six palaces constructed on the same site until she was finally happy with the final one. When the palace was occupied by Nazis in World War II it was practically burnt to the ground. In every room of the tour, there was a picture of what the room looked like after the Nazis had left, which were basically ruins. The Russians did a wonderful job restoring the palace to its original form. This palace is also home to the famous Amber Room. This room is made completely of amber, and its amber panels were a gift from a Turkish prince. No one knows where the Nazis took the original amber panels, but new panels were replicated. After walking though the gardens surrounding the palace, we left for the summer palace of Paul I. This palace was not nearly as large as the previous one we had visited, but still just as beautiful. This palace is also significant because 80% of the artifacts in the palace are original, since they were placed into storage before the Nazi's invasion.
Later that evening we had another tour planned called "White Nights." We left the ship to take a one hour cruise along the Neva River. This was a very pleasant and relaxing ride. This tour was much more enjoyable from a boat, instead of a bus. It was nice to see the sites and travel though some of the many canals that make up St. Petersburg. After our boat ride, we continued to the Rimsky-Korsakov Museum. Rimsky is one of the most famous Russian music composers of all time. After the tour we were seated in a large room for an opera performance. Anna Startseva is only a college student, but has already won a few international music competitions. She had an amazing voice and everyone seemed to enjoy her. That was the end of our evening tour.
July 4, 2008
On Friday we went to the grand palace of Peter the Great, also known as Peterhof. The city of St. Petersburg was founded by peter the Great. Peterhof is a town of parks, palaces, and fountains. We took a tour through the grand palace and even saw the study of Peter 1st. After the tour of the palace we left the tour group to explore the garden of fountains on our own. We saw as much as we could with the time that we had but we would have needed all day just to see the entire gardens and fountains designed by Peter himself. However, all that we did see was amazing and gorgeous, including the famous Grand Cascade.
After the tour we went out to dinner in the city of St. Petersburg with two of our very good friends that we have met, Kate and Eden. We were able to find a restaurant, Da Vinci, with menus in English! Hooray! It was a wonderful time.
July 5, 2008
On our last day in Russia we went to the world famous Hermitage. The Hermitage is THE Russian art musuem. In this amazing collection, we were able to see some of the most famous pieces of Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Picasso and Vincent Van Gogh. Our favorite exhibit was Ancient Egypt. Here, there was an actual mummy displayed in a glass case. This was defiantly the scariest thing we have ever seen.
Our last tour planned was a visit to a Russian home. This was an enlightening experience for the both of us that we greatly enjoyed. Natalia was our host for the afternoon, she was an older lady and was very welcoming. She did not speak any English however we had a translator with us. She immediately welcomed all 12 of us into her home and served us tea, cookies, and chocolates. Her apartment was small with only one bedroom, a living room, kitchen, and bathroom. She shared the apartment with her daughter and grandson. We had a nice conversation where she wanted to know about each of us and then told us about herself. The Russian home visit was an opportunity for us to really get a sense of what the Russian culture was like. It was one of our favorite parts of our stay in Russia.
When we returned on the ship, they were having a 4th of July cookout on the top deck to celebrate. Everyone was having a great time enjoying the cook out and listening to live music. It made us not miss home as much being able to celebrate the 4th of July with everyone.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1213565100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1213565100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kellyandjess/1/1213565100/tpod.html Mon, 30 Jun 2008 06:38:30 -0400 Semester at Sea Summer of 2008

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Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

June 14- June 16, 2008
We made it to Nova Scotia safe and sound! After arriving to the hotel we spent some time walking around the city. Nova Scotia was a surprisingly beautiful place and everyone there was extremely friendly and helpful. We met many other students that were planning to go on the Semester at Sea trip as well, on the flight to Nova Scotia and at the hotel.
On Sunday morning we woke up early and proceeded to the boarding dock where we had to check in. The whole process was very fast and we made it on the ship with no problems. The ship is very large and beautiful. Our room is also bigger than we thought it would be. We are both very happy with everything and are excited. There are 583 students enrolled in Semester at Sea, and all of them made it on the ship on time, however their luggage is a different story. Unfortunately, about 30 people made it on the ship with no luggage as it was lost during their flight. Their suitcases will hopefully meet them in Norway. Including staff, faculty, faculty family members and students there is about 1,000 people on board. We finally set sail about 7:00 pm on Sunday night. The meals on the ship are delicious (at least so far). We attended a few mandatory orientation meetings and socialized with the other students and people on the ship. There are people from all over the country and the world that are participating in this voyage. The crew, staff and teachers are very nice and personable.
The first night on the ship went well and we both seemed to sleep fine. The roar of the sea is soothing however, it gets loud at times. Luckily neither of us has had any sea sickness. We spent the majority of Monday in mandatory meetings regarding health and safety, going over the honor code, meeting the captains and staff, and just doing an over view of the voyage and what we should expect. We made it to the computer lab where we learned that we only have two hours of internet for the entire voyage, after that we will have to purchase expensive internet minutes. On top of that, the internet is incredibly slow. One thing we found to be very cool is the diversity among all the people on the ship. We are making friends quickly!
During a break in our orientation meeting we stepped outside on one of the decks to get some fresh air. A girl that was standing close to us said that see saw whales. We all rushed to the side of the ship to see and sure enough we saw what seemed to be a school of whales, at least five of them. As we continued to sail, we passed them and they were very close to us. It was an amazing and unexpected experience to see these huge whales swimming beside our ship.
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