TravelStream™ news feed for member mgloth on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mgloth en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sat, 10 May 2008 21:32:44 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/11/1210469460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/11/1210469460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/11/1210469460/tpod.html Sat, 10 May 2008 21:32:44 -0400 Costa Rica... the end of my voyage

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Puntarenas, Province of Puntarenas, Costa Rica

As we arrived in port and got off the ship I went with a group of friends to a beach town not too far from the port called, Jaco. There was much more to do and see here as opposed to Puntarenas. We rented several condo-type rooms that sat right on the beach. I was happy to see the use of Spanish again; finally I had some ability to communicate with the locals.

We got off the ship nice and early and had plenty of time to check in and we were able to take a canopy tour in the rainforest. There were zip lines running from treetop to treetop where we got to attach ourselves and fly from tree to tree. I had done a canopy tour in Puerto Rico as well, but here was much better. The view from the rainforest was great. We were able to see through the trees and out to the small mountain range. I was with a good size group of just my friends, which made it a lot of fun.

After zip lining through the rainforest we went back to the hotel and hung out on the beach and by the pool. There were plenty of SASers all along the beach in Jaco and it was great to see so many of my friends for the last port. That night we went out for dinner together to a local Spanish restaurant and got some great food.

Just down the beach some other students had rented a house and were throwing a party that night. It was your standard house party with all SAS kids. It was definitely a new experience on the voyage and a fun one at that. I was excited to spend time with a lot of people before it was time to say goodbye.
The next morning we left at 6am for river rafting. We got to go white water rafting down a river in the jungle inland from where we were staying. The rapids weren't too difficult, but it was still a good work out and a lot of fun. Some of the rapids got up to class 3+.

After rafting we got back to the hotel and spent the rest of the time partying by the pool and beach before we had to head back to Puntarenas for dinner and to get back on the ship. My time there went by quickly especially considering I didn't go to sleep at all. I had fun and packed in everything I could before I left.

Once we left Costa Rica there were only 4 days left at sea to get into Miami. One day was spent going through the Panama Canal. This is new to the voyage because it used to end in San Diego. I have been to Panama before and saw the Panama Canal, but it was very interesting to actually go through in a large ship and watch as we passed through the locks. We had a special barbecue that day on the ship and just lounged out by the pool and started saying our goodbyes. It was inevitable, this experience had to end sometime. These past 3 and half months have been the most amazing times of my life. I have seen and learned so much about the world and myself. There isn't enough I can really say about the experiences I had because words just don't do justice what I have done. I am part of the less than 1% population that has circumnavigated the globe and has been fortunate to do and see so many amazing things and people. It has been an incredible journey and something so valuable to me. There is just no way to communicate what this actually has been for me.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/10/1208990640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/10/1208990640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/10/1208990640/tpod.html Sat, 26 Apr 2008 18:48:08 -0400 Aloha Hawaii

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Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

I think arriving in Hawaii was ironically one of the biggest culture shocks I experienced thus far. It was so surreal entering a port where everyone spoke English and all I saw was American people, but it still wasn't home. It was so noticeable considering I had just come from Asia where most people didn't speak any English and it was impossible to communicate with anyone.

The ship pulled into the Honolulu port, on the island of Oahu, at about 6am and I woke up to watch the sunrise on the top deck. Immediately I knew the island was going to be beautiful and I was going to love it here. Unfortunately, we only were docked in Hawaii for 13 hours. It was just a stop for the ship to refuel between Japan and Costa Rica.

This was my first time in Hawaii and it was everything I imagined it would be. The beaches were beautiful and everyone seemed so friendly and relaxed. The first store I stopped in I spoke with the cashier for about 5 minutes describing what Semester at Sea was and telling her about my travels. She was so enthralled to hear about it and was genuinely happy for the experiences I had.

I spent my entire time in Hawaii on the world-famous Waikiki Beach. It was such a beautiful beach, although very much a tourist attraction. There were all types of rentals and hotels along the beach. I wanted to get the opportunity to go to the North Shore or East side of the island and get away from the tourism and really get a feel for the local environment.

Even though there wasn't enough time to see much it was still a great time. A lot of students were found on this beach and the weather was fantastic. I spent my time on the beach from 8am to about 6pm. Needless to say I've got a great tan. I rented a surfboard for a couple hours and got to do some surfing. There weren't very many waves by midday and the waves that came weren't big at all. I'm sure this was a better situation than having nothing but 10 footers, but I would have liked to have some better waves. I had a longboard so it was easy to catch whatever came.

For lunch, a group of us wandered around with the help of a local and found a great Japanese, all you can eat sushi buffet. It was great. We had just been in Japan, but it was still great sushi. After lunch it was back to the beach. The whole day was pretty relaxing and entertaining.

Considering I was only in Hawaii for 13 hours there isn't much more to say. Now I'm back to sea, writing papers and studying for finals for the next 10 days. Then I will be in Costa Rica with nothing to worry about.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/9/1208238900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/9/1208238900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/9/1208238900/tpod.html Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:58:22 -0400 Japan - The Cleanest Cities in the World

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Kobe, Japan

We arrived in Kobe early in the morning and began the clearing process in order to leave the ship. Japan's immigration and customs was the strictest we have seen yet. Everyone had to have their temperature taken and was checked individually. Normally, the passports are all checked together and the ship is cleared as a whole. After finally being able to leave I went out with 3 friends and ventured around Kobe. It was a lot like NYC, only much cleaner. The weather was perfect, a crisp breeze and sunny skies. We walked around and went to Earthquake memorial park. Everything was in Japanese so we basically just looked around.

That night we took the Japan Rail to Osaka to visit a foreign exchange student originally from Osaka that studied with one of my friends back in the states. He showed us around Osaka and took us to a great dinner where we didn't hear or see one word if English. It was authentic and just what I was looking for. We returned to Kobe that night and continued partying and stayed on the ship.

Early the next morning we got on our 3-hour train to Tokyo. When we arrived we got a delicious sushi lunch on the 35th floor of a high-rise overlooking the city. After lunch the 4 of us walked around Tokyo and worked on finding a hotel for the night. After everything was settled we head to the Tokyo Dome for the Giants vs. Swallows baseball game. The Giants were the local team and comparable to the Yankees I was told. Naturally, that was who we rooted for. It was a great game and so much fun to be at a baseball game and see it from another cultures point of view. Everything was pretty similar obviously, except for the food and the fact that they had cheerleaders, unlike American baseball.

After the game we went to the district of Ropungi. We were told this was a seedy area and to not go here or be careful if we did. All of Japan was extremely safe and people were friendly. They have one of the lowest crime rates in the world. The area wasn't that bad and it was where you go if you wanted to party, so that's where we went. The only thing off was the mix of people and being hassled to go into the different clubs and even being offered prostitutes.

The next morning we went back to Tokyo Dome city and walked around. There was a lot going on there, kind of like Yankee Road, only nicer. After getting lunch we took the rail outside of the city and went to some markets and the electronic district. I was hoping to find a nice camera and a PSP for cheap, but everything was unfortunately priced the same as in the states. I wasn't sure why considering a lot of the stuff was actually made in Japan.

That night we took the Rail back to Kobe, but stopped in Kyoto for dinner to break up the ride. Dinner here was wonderful and the city looked pretty nice, although we didn't get to see enough of it.

Once we got back to Kobe it was pretty late but we still managed to go out for one last night in Japan. There was no way we could stay in considering this was our last night to really party before beings at sea for 9 days then in Hawaii for one and back at sea for another 8 days. This is going to be the longest, toughest stretch. I have a feeling a lot of people will be getting cabin fever.

The last day I spent in Kobe. I wanted to try and hike a nearby mountain but I didn't have enough time because I had to be back at the ship early. I went to a Sake brewery and learned about how to make Sake and got to taste different types. After that I got Kobe steak for lunch and it was probably the best meat I have ever eaten in my life. The two things I had to do in Japan were eat sushi and Kobe beef and I did. It was amazing. They brought the steak out on a hot skillet and literally in flames. The meat wasn't fully cooked when it came out so it sat on the skillet and cooked in front of me till I decided to eat it at the perfect temperature for me. It was the most tender and juicy piece of steak I have ever had, and I've had a lot of good steaks before.

That was the essence of my time in Japan and it was great. I was really amazed with Japan like I was with South Africa. I think it's another one of my favorite ports on this voyage. Now it's off to sea for too long and nothing but school. The whole semester is basically over because all that's left is one day (about 12 hours) in Hawaii and two nights in Costa Rica then we arrive in Miami. I am dreading the end. I never want this to end. It has been the single most thrilling experience of my life. I have grown and learned so much without even considering the actual classes.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/8/1207753560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/8/1207753560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/8/1207753560/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 11:09:29 -0400 China - Hong Kong to Shanghai

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Shanghai, China

I arrived in Hong Kong and spent one full day here. I went shopping and sightseeing around the city. It was a big, very crowded city. There was a lot to do and a lot to see. It was almost like New York City. I wish I had been able to stay longer and see more. I had booked a tour guide with 5 other friends to travel throughout China with a guide. This was a great idea considering this was the hardest language barrier I have encountered. Of the people who did speak English, they were very helpful. Although, not very many people actually spoke English.

The next morning we were to catch a flight to Beijing. Just getting to the airport and taking taxis and ferries was difficult. A lot of signs had English as well, which made it a little easier. We met with our guide, Alex, at the Beijing Airport and from here it was non-stop business until on-ship time in Shanghai.

Directly from the airport Alex took us to Tian' anmen Square. This was the heart of Beijing and is the largest public square in the world. Located here is the monument to the People's Heroes and Chairman Mao's Mausoleum.

After this we went to the Temple of Heaven at sunset. This temple was set in a park and was considered a sacred place in the minds of the ancient Chinese people. There were people playing music and praying because it was a holiday in China. I forget the name of the holiday, but it was to honor their ancestors. After this there was a teahouse just near here. We learned about all the different teas and how they were made and how highly regarded tea is in Asia. I got to sample many different teas and found some that I really liked. That night we got dinner at a pretty touristy place, but the food was great and everyone was very friendly.

After dinner we finally got to our hotel and put our stuff down. We all showered and went right back out. Naturally after being out late the night before, and traveling and sightseeing all day long we were pretty tired. We found a small bar/lounge with hookahs and live music. We just hung out here for a while, enjoying some music and relaxing with a few drinks.

The next morning was another early start. We drove around and saw a little more of Beijing, including the Olympic Stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It was a huge building. Being this close to the Olympics you're not allowed to go inside, except for the swimming area, which was in a building off to the side. We didn't have time to actually stop and go in, although. This was on our way to the Great Wall of China. I also went to the Ming Tombs, located in a picturesque valley of rolling hills north of urban Beijing. The tombs were built by Ming emperors in an attempt to achieve a swift transition into the afterlife. An impressive marble archway and a 7-kilometer road, known as the Sacred Way, lead the way to the burial complex. A set of 12 animals, used as "guards" line the road.

The Great Wall was the main part of our China adventures. We had arranged to camp out overnight ON the Wall. When we first arrived we hiked up the wall and walked around and took pictures. This was the second wonder of the world I got see this semester and the third in my lifetime, I truly am very lucky. This was one of the best days/nights of my voyage. It was such a unique experience. There were other tour groups on the wall and some other SAS kids as well. We had dinner with a good-sized group of people at the foot of the wall with a local family. They cooked tons of delicious food for us and were extremely friendly and accommodating, even though they spoke very little English.

After waking up at sunrise on the Great Wall we had to catch a flight to Xi'an (Sian). We spent another two days here seeing different things. Since the discovery of the Terracotta Warriors in 1974, Xi'an has become one of the most important tourist destinations in the world.

The Terracotta Warriors are found in the tomb of the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty. As soon at this emperor became a ruler, at age 14, construction began on his tomb. He had 6,000 of these soldiers built to protect his tomb and himself in the afterlife. No two faces of these soldiers are alike. I had the opportunity to go and see how these warriors are made today and to visit the actual tomb. It was amazing to see these clay statues in the ground and know that it was a tomb from 246BC and only discovered in 1974.

After non-stop sightseeing and whatnot, we had yet another flight to Shanghai, where I was supposed to meet the ship. I had two days to spend here as well. When our flight got in we had to figure out how we were supposed to find the ship. We had the address written in Chinese, but the airport was nowhere near where we needed to be. Fortunately we ran into a friendly businessman from Malaysia that spoke English and told us we could follow him because he was going close to where we needed to go. We took a bullet train that went up to 230 kmh, from the airport to a subway station. Riding the subway, I felt like I was back in NYC. We took the subway as close as we could get and got out at what would be comparable to Times Square. I honestly felt like I was back in the City, except with millions of Asians around me.

Shanghai mostly consisted of shopping at the local markets for cheap stuff. It's so fun bargaining everything you buy and China had knockoffs of everything you could ever want. Fake iPods, fake purses and wallets, fake North Face gear, fake designer everything!

That's about all the time I have to tell you about China. I'm on my way to Kobe, Japan and yet again only have two days at sea. I feel like I haven't slept in weeks and I wish I had a few days at sea to recover, but it's totally worth it. I am quite the traveler now. I can't wait for Japan. I am going to have sushi, Kobe beef, maybe catch a Japanese baseball game, and maybe skiing? Who knows? I have a rail pass to travel throughout Japan so we'll see what happens. I love not knowing...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/7/1206508260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/7/1206508260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/7/1206508260/tpod.html Wed, 02 Apr 2008 01:14:10 -0400 Vietnam - Same Same, but Different

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Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh City early in the morning. I woke up and went out on deck as we were arriving through the Saigon River. It was about 7am and the only people out were the local fishermen in their small boats along the banks.

My friends and I got off the ship first thing in the morning and went out to find a taxi to take care of setting up the rest of our time in Vietnam. We found a great taxi driver named Thanh who ended up becoming our friend and taking us all over, showing us everything we wanted to see. We first went to an airline-ticketing agency and booked a flight to Nha Trang, a small beach town farther up the coast of Vietnam. Our flight was for the next day so we spent the first day all over Ho Chi Minh with Thanh.

Our first order of business was to absorb some of the culture by taking shots of snake blood and eating a King Cobra snake, which is considered a delicacy here. We get to this small, outdoor restaurant with only Vietnamese people whom were all staring at us. We sat down and in under one minute they came out with a huge 9lb. King Cobra. An incision was made into the snake and the blood was drained right in front of us. This is when it became real and we started realizing we were actually about to do this.

The blood was mixed with rice wine, kind of like vodka. The snake was cooked in several different courses. There was a stir-fry with the organs of the snake, then just sliced up pieces of snake meat, and a stew with snake meat. None of it was really appetizing, but it stayed down and the experience was well worth it.

After this delightful lunch we went to the local market to do some shopping. This was a crazy scene. We entered and everyone is hounding you trying to sell you something, anything! I had little Vietnamese women grabbing your arms telling you to come look at something. "You buy, you buy." It wasn't like India although, there were still friendly about it. It was almost funny. They are telling you they love you to get you to buy. The best shopping was for DVDs. They sold for about $1 a piece and seasons of TV shows came all together for almost nothing. I got all seasons of the Sopranos for about $6, all of South Park, and about 30 DVDs and Adobe Photoshop for my computer. This all cost about $25. In the states that could have cost me almost $1000.

That night we got dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant that was great. Vietnamese food was really good. Our flight was just before 6am the next morning and everyone was going out to local bar, it was obvious sleep was not an option that night. The bar was a lot of fun and there were tons of kids there. It was kind of like the bar in Mauritius. Somehow I got separated from everyone and was almost stranded for getting back to the ship. There was one other kid I recognized from SAS, but we didn't even know each other. We got on the back of a mo-ped and were trying to direct some guy towards the ship. He had no idea what we were saying, but like all Vietnamese people he just kept repeating ship and saying yes, yes. Luckily, an actual cab filled with SAS students passed us and we got off the mo-ped and got in with them. I got back to the ship, took a shower and then it was time to leave for the airport.

Nha Trang was absolutely beautiful. We spent the first day at the beach just relaxing. We stayed at a cheap guesthouse just off the beach that was only $20 a night. The next day we took a boat day-trip. It was a just a little cruise around the different islands. We got to jump off of the top of the boat and do some snorkeling. There were a lot of other kids there that were visiting Nha Trang. That night we checked out the local bar scene. I met people from all over the world. Vietnam is a pretty big travelers destination now. We played people with some guys our age from France; I even met someone wearing a New Jersey t-shirt. He was from Zimbabwe and currently living in London. He told me he had been to the states for a month long visit and he had a friend that owned a bar in New Jersey and that's where he got the shirt from. It's really a small world.

The following day we went to a Hot Springs center. There were mud baths, hot springs, mineral water swimming pools, and massage rooms. It was definitely interesting sitting in a tub filled with mud with my friends and then laying out and letting the mud dry to your skin.

The next morning we flew back to Ho Chi Minh. Our cab driver friend picked us up at the airport and drove us around the rest of the day until we had to be back on the ship. I went to see the Củ Chi tunnels, which is a network of underground tunnels that were used by guerillas as hiding spots during combat in the Vietnam War. A newer set of tunnels was developed for American tourists because the original tunnels were too small to fit anyone but smaller Vietnamese people. Besides being too small for most Western men to fit through, the tunnels were often rigged with explosive booby traps and punji stake pits. We got to crawl through these tunnels and see what it was like.

Here we were also able to shoot guns at the outdoor shooting range. I got to shoot and AK47 and a Colt45. There were also M60s and M30s and Tommy guns, but I was out of dong. Dong being the currency in Vietnam... $1 = 16,000 dong. That was fun when determining how much something costs in terms of dollars.

After then tunnels we went to pick up our custom tailored suits that we had ordered on the first day. I got a nice cashmere-wool blend that was custom made to fit me for only $100. This is a big thing to do in Vietnam for tourists and travelers. I'm not sure exactly why, but I'm assuming because it's such a good deal for a nice suit.

That was about it for Vietnam. It was a great place to see and I learned a lot about the area. I think I would love to travel to Southeast Asia again in my lifetime. Many students went to Cambodia on SAS trips and that's somewhere I would definitely like to go. I hope to travel to Thailand someday as well. There are supposed to be secluded areas where people live in total blissful innocence in the jungle. I am currently reading "The Beach," which takes place in and around Thailand and it seems quite intriguing.

Now I'm off to Hong Kong and will travel from China from there. I am excited to see what China will be like. I'm sure it will be quite difficult to get around because of the crowdedness and the lack of English-speaking peoples. I want to find some cheap electronics too. Maybe a nice new camera or a PSP.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/6/1205943900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/6/1205943900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/6/1205943900/tpod.html Wed, 26 Mar 2008 12:31:28 -0400 Malaysia or Beverly Hills?

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Malaysia began with a trip to Kuala Lumpur. I left Penang the first day with 8 of my friends. A lot of SAS students made the trip to Kuala Lumpur as well. This was a very popular destination for Malaysia. It was a quick flight to Kuala Lumpur and a 40 min cab ride to the Golden Triangle, which is the heart of Kuala Lumpur. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton here. It is supposed to be one of the nicest in the world. There were 9 of us so it wasn't even that expensive. We stayed in a suite that had 4 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, a full kitchen, dining room, study, and living room. We even had our own butler. Anything we needed or wanted was taken care of within minutes. There are only about 3 suites per floor so there was no problem with disturbing other guests when we had about 50 SAS kids in our suite before we would go out to the clubs at night.

Kuala Lumpur was like Rodeo Drive. There were high-end shops and malls everywhere. It was pretty expensive and every night in front of our hotel there were two Bentleys and a Lamborghini. It was quite different after being in India. The clubs and bars were a lot of fun. A few of the places had live music, which was great to have again.

During the day we toured the city and visited different temples. One day we went to the Batu Caves. There was a giant golden statue of one of the gods and a climb of 272 steps up the side of a mountain into these caves. The stairs were numbered; so no I didn't count all of them. This cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India dedicated to Lord Murunga. It consists of three main caves and several small ones. The biggest one is called Cathedral Cave or Temple Cave and has 100m high ceiling. There were various shrines inside the caves and people praying. The main religion in Malaysia was Hinduism. It was interesting to see how passionate many of these Malaysians were about their religion. In the caves there were monkeys everywhere for some reason. I bought some peanuts and I got to feed the little monkeys right there. This wasn't exactly the point of this visit, but it was cool to have a monkey take food right from my hand.

We returned to Penang for the last day in Malaysia. Penang was also a busy city, but not glamorous like Kuala Lumpur. Early in the morning I went to a fish market for one of my classes. We went to observe how these markets worked and to speak with a worker and find out about some of the fishing techniques and to see what fish might be over fished. These markets were crazy. There were people everywhere filleting fish and throwing fish around and people picking up dead fish and examining them to purchase. It reeked of fish but it was awesome to see something like this. One man that I spoke with had perfect English and spent a lot of time giving me great information. He was extremely friendly and even gave me his email. He took a picture with me holding a 3-foot makrol.

Throughout Malaysia I experienced a lot of friendly people. Not everyone was nice, but most were. I didn't feel at all unsafe as I have in some of the countries I've been to. For the most part, people were always willing to help if I needed to find something or get somewhere.

Malaysia was a beautiful country and I recommend anyone to visit. There is so much to do and so much to see all throughout the country. Singapore is not far and some SAS students went there and had nothing but great things to say as well. This was a good introduction to the Asian countries. It was crowded with a lot of Asians, but nothing like I can imagine China or Hong Kong being. I am on my way to Vietnam right now and I'm very excited. I'm traveling with a small group of friends, which should be great. My voyage is more than halfway over and each port now is very close together. It has gone by too quickly and this second half will be over even more quickly. I am not looking forward for this to end...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/5/1205820300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/5/1205820300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/5/1205820300/tpod.html Tue, 18 Mar 2008 02:13:31 -0400 India - The Taj Mahal, Hookahs, and more.

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Chennai, India

I had a two-night trip booked to Delhi and Agra through Semester at Sea. The trip left the second day so my first day was spent in Chennai. We took auto rickshaws everywhere. These were 3-wheeled mopeds with a boxed enclosure and a 3-seater bench. Driving in India could be described as nine lane roads with buses, cars, rickshaws, motorcycles, bicycles, and elephants all constantly honking their horns with complete disregard for signs or lights. Amazingly I still saw no accidents.

In Chennai we tried to take a rickshaw to a shopping plaza but we were told by the driver that it was on fire. This was just a ploy so that he could take us to whatever shops he received a commission from. I got to see some nice places still and bought some authentic Indian art and souvenirs.

My group left the next morning at 3:30am. We took a flight into Delhi and then we toured the city and visited some ruins and mosques. I was even able to see Gandhi's memorial. Everywhere we went seemed rather touristy. At every location we were bombarded by various vendors trying to sell souvenirs and other crap to us. Each person had "best prices" for us. It was kind of entertaining. The best part about visiting all of these countries and people trying to sell stuff to me is that I can haggle any price. I have not once paid what someone asked of me. With the exchange rates I'm barely spending anything anyway, but it's still fun to truly get the best deal.

That evening we took a bus to Agra, India. I slept a good amount of this time, having missed the previous night of sleep. Then I arrived at a really nice hotel. It was kind of ironic. The last things I saw were dirty shacks and cows eating garbage on the side of the road, then I woke up to a beautiful hotel.

The next morning wake up call was at 5am. I went with my group to see the Taj Mahal at sunrise. This was an incredible sight. It truly is a wonder of the world, and the second one I have seen at that...the first being the Colloseum. The next will be the Great Wall of China. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to see so many beautiful things in the world. The Taj was just surreal. It looked as though it was something out of Aladdin or something on a postcard. I couldn't quite wrap my mind around the fact that this huge Mausoleum that was built so long ago was just standing right in front of me.

Also in Agra we visited Fort Agra and several other Mosques, one of which was the influence for the Taj Mahal. India was such an enlightening cultural experience. I don't think I'd ever really want to go back, but it was amazing to see. The one thing I was unable to do was to visit Varanasi, which is where the Ganges river is located. I heard so much about it from other students that were able to see it. If I could ever return to India it would be to see the Ganges and some other nicer places in Northern India, not near Chennai.

The last day of my time in India was also spent in Chennai. We had taken a train and a flight to get back from Agra to Chennai. The train station was the most shocking of all of India that I saw. There was what seemed like 100 inhabitants sleeping on the floors of the train station. Some people with polio that couldn't even stand on their own two feet. There were so many little children, but some still seemed happy, mostly to see us I assume. I saw a man with elephantitis and his feet were enormous. His big toe was about the size of my fist. We had box lunches on our train and myself and many of the other students in my group gave anything we had leftover including numerous bottles of water.

Once in Chennai I went around and saw a little more of the city. Mainly I just went to a hookah bar/restaurant called Mocha. This place was great. It was in the middle of all the hustle and bustle in Chennai but had a totally quiet, different feeling and atmosphere. It was great to get away from everything and relax with my friends. They had the best food I ate in India here and the hookahs were excellent.

That's about it for now. Yesterday was the halfway mark for the voyage. There are only three full days at sea from India before I arrive in Malaysia. And here on out there are only a couple days at sea between ports until the trip to Hawaii. This second half will fly by so quickly and I am not looking forward for it to end at all. I will be seeing you all soon to share my stories. Hope all is well in the States.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710180/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710180/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710180/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 04:56:46 -0400 Spring Break 08 - Mauritius

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Port Louis, Mauritius

Port Luis itself didn't seem very nice. Fortunately the second we arrived into port my friends and I took a cab directly to Flic en Flac beach. This is where most of the SAS students rented villas or apartments with all of their friends to kick off spring break.

The beaches were beautiful. The island was surrounded by the Indian Ocean not too far from Madagascar. I'm sure not very many of you have even heard of Mauritius, which is why I'm giving you and idea of where it is. This island wasn't exactly like the rest of my destinations. There wasn't very much culture to absorb and many of the inhabitants spoke English. It was a pretty touristy beach area that is known as a popular honeymoon destination.

The villa we rented was pretty nice, especially considering how cheap it was. The "resort" was in a rectangular shape with every villa facing a pool in the middle. Many of the students had their villas here and this was probably the hot spot on Flic en Flac. We all had a back patio right out by the pool. It was a non-stop party and everything went smoothly. We were pretty noisy with music and playing games in and out of the pool, but we didn't seem to bother anyone and had no problems at all.

One day I decided I wanted to rent a vespa. This was interesting considering on Mauritius you drive on the left side of the road. It was a great experience. A couple of my friends rented them after I did and we traveled around the island. It was a great opportunity to get away from all of the other SAS kids for a minute and see more of the island. I went with two other friends and we spent the afternoon on a remote beach farther up the coast. There were about 5 people total on this beach and it was beautiful. The water was warm and serene and there were grass-covered mountains surrounding us.

There was a local bar called "Shotz" that most of the SAS kids ended up at every night. It was a lot of fun to party like a typical American college student again. This is why this destination was considered to be our spring break. The bar didn't have regular set hours and they stayed open late for us every night, because we were the ones bringing in all the money. On the last night on the island the bar was reserved strictly for SASers. I'm not sure how this happened but I am sure that ONLY SAS kids were let into the bar that night and it was awesome. We pretty much took over the island on this trip. Apparently this was the last voyage that is stopping at the island because of how rowdy some of the kids have gotten on past voyages.

That's pretty much all there is to say about spring break. Naturally, it was just mostly drinking, swimming, and all out partying. I only actually showered once there and was mostly just wearing board shorts and having a good time. Hope all is well back in the states and stay warm everyone on the east coast. I sure am. I'm on my way to India now.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710120/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710120/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/4/1204710120/tpod.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 04:51:28 -0400 Spring Break 08 - Mauritius

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Flic en Flac, Mauritius

Port Luis itself didn't seem very nice. Fortunately the second we arrived into port my friends and I took a cab directly to Flic en Flac beach. This is where most of the SAS students rented villas or apartments with all of their friends to kick off spring break.

The beaches were beautiful. The island was surrounded by the Indian Ocean not too far from Madagascar. I'm sure not very many of you have even heard of Mauritius, which is why I'm giving you and idea of where it is. This island wasn't exactly like the rest of my destinations. There wasn't very much culture to absorb and many of the inhabitants spoke English. It was a pretty touristy beach area that is known as a popular honeymoon destination.

The villa we rented was pretty nice, especially considering how cheap it was. The "resort" was in a rectangular shape with every villa facing a pool in the middle. Many of the students had their villas here and this was probably the hot spot on Flic en Flac. We all had a back patio right out by the pool. It was a non-stop party and everything went smoothly. We were pretty noisy with music and playing games in and out of the pool, but we didn't seem to bother anyone and had no problems at all.

One day I decided I wanted to rent a vespa. This was interesting considering on Mauritius you drive on the left side of the road. It was a great experience. A couple of my friends rented them after I did and we traveled around the island. It was a great opportunity to get away from all of the other SAS kids for a minute and see more of the island. I went with two other friends and we spent the afternoon on a remote beach farther up the coast. There were about 5 people total on this beach and it was beautiful. The water was warm and serene and there were grass-covered mountains surrounding us.

There was a local bar called "Shotz" that most of the SAS kids ended up at every night. It was a lot of fun to party like a typical American college student again. This is why this destination was considered to be our spring break. The bar didn't have regular set hours and they stayed open late for us every night, because we were the ones bringing in all the money. On the last night on the island the bar was reserved strictly for SASers. I'm not sure how this happened but I am sure that ONLY SAS kids were let into the bar that night and it was awesome. We pretty much took over the island on this trip. Apparently this was the last voyage that is stopping at the island because of how rowdy some of the kids have gotten on past voyages.

That's pretty much all there is to say about spring break. Naturally, it was just mostly drinking, swimming, and all out partying. I only actually showered once there and was mostly just wearing board shorts and having a good time. Hope all is well back in the states and stay warm everyone on the east coast. I sure am. I'm on my way to India now.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/3/1203933600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/3/1203933600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mgloth/3/1203933600/tpod.html Tue, 26 Feb 2008 08:54:51 -0500 South Africa is the most amazing place on Earth!

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Cape Town, South Africa

Hey everyone! I arrived in Cape Town on the 19th. I woke up early and watched the sunrise as we pulled into port, in front of Table Mountain. I had breakfast on the ship and waited until we could disembark. I started by taking a walk to Long Street. This is where everything goes down. There were tons of restaurants and bars and people. The market was close to there and I did some shopping. I purchased a lot of authentic African memorabilia.

After shopping and getting lunch I went to hike Table Mountain. It was a 2 and a half hour hike to the top. Parts of it were basically rock climbing too. It was hard, but well worth it. Once I reached the top I felt so accomplished. The views of Cape Town were gorgeous and I have great pictures. Sorry I haven't been able to post any pictures but I only have a certain amount of MB transfer with my Internet on the ship so I will try and get to an internet café in Mauritius and post some pictures. I should have more time there. It's going to be like our spring break and probably pretty lax. Although I doubt anything on this voyage will be that lax. Every port I don't sleep and I cram as much in as I can.

The second day I had a flight to Gorge (pronounced George) South Africa. This is home of the world highest bungee jump at 216 meters. A group of us planned to get up at about 4/4:30am to get to the airport and catch a 6:50am flight. My friend Erica was supposed to call my room and wake me up. At 6:10 I got that call... She asked if we should go. Even though I got in at about 2:30 from Long Street and was probably still a little drunk, without hesitation I said let's go now!

I threw on some clothes, grabbed my wallet and camera and was out the door running. We ran to the taxi stand and were screaming airport, airport! Our taxi driver started running to his cab where we took a death ride to the airport. We made it in about half the time it should have taken. Needless to say he got a nice tip for that. We ran through the airport and made our flight at the last possible second. Thank god!

So now we're in Gorge and we take an hour long shuttle ride to the Bloukrans Bridge, the highest road bridge in the Southern Hemisphere and the largest single span concrete arch bridge in the world. On our journey we got to see so much of South Africa. It is more amazing that you can even imagine. We saw Cliffside mansions, rivers, gorges, and great views of the Indian Ocean. The jump was unreal. It was the most terrifying and mind-blowing experience at the same time. I can't even describe the feeling. We returned to Cape Town the same day and had a great sushi dinner at the waterfront.

The next morning my 3-day safari began. This was another early flight, but I made it without a problem. This time I set my own alarm clock, haha Erica. When we arrived we took an afternoon safari drive while drinking wine in our jeep. There were 3 jeeps on this organized SAS safari and my jeep was by far the best group of kids. We had a blast. We didn't see a lot the first day except for some impala, monkeys, and warthogs. That night there was a great dinner set up for us with a performance from some of the locals. They performed something called a gumboots dance. There were drummers and people dancing in tall rain boots, stomping and clapping against the boots. It was similar to what we would call stomping in the states.

The next morning we began our all day safari at 5am. I was watching the sunrise from my jeep while driving through the savannah. This day we saw a lot of different animals, including hippos, rhinos, giraffe, zebra, crocodile, various antelope, and baboons. I think that's most of what I saw. Unfortunately our group wasn't lucky enough to see any of the felines, such as lions or cheetahs or leopards. That night we partied at our lodge and it was two girls 21st birthdays. We got a little rowdy since another SAS group arrived that night. There were about 50 kids from Semester at Sea at this lodge and we were all drinking and went in the pool and had chicken fights. It was great.

The next morning we went on a township visit. This is where the blacks were sent during the apartheid to live in ghettos. The village we were in was nicer than most, but still didn't have running water in the individual living areas. There was a local watering hole for the village. Everyone lived in small huts no bigger than my cabin on the ship. We got to see a traditional healer. They use this method of healing for various ailments in the village, minus broken bones. It's a spiritual method involving chanting and a process of examining bones and other objects that they drop on the ground. The objects are supposed to tell the healer something. It was almost voodoo-like. After that we went to a different part of the village where two groups of children performed for us. A group of girls sang different songs including the South African national anthem. Then a group of boys danced for us and brought us in to join them and taught us some of the dancing. It was a great cultural experience. What was most shocking besides the impoverished lives they lived was that I even saw people on cell phones in the village. These people didn't even have running water and they were talking on cell phones!

That day we flew back to Cape Town and I had dinner at a place called Moyo. It was an African restaurant located outside in the trees and tents. Areas of it were even up in the trees. It's a very well known place for the cultural experience and ambiance it provides for its guests. The food was amazing. I had so many new types of food including impala. Then we went back to Long Street for our last night in Cape Town. It was quite a show.

The last day I woke up at 9am, which was a real treat. The first time I got like 4 or 5 hours of sleep in a night. I took a speedboat ride around the cape with a couple friends after getting breakfast. We got to see sea lions, seals, and dolphins on our ride. After that we went to the aquarium. It was a pretty nice aquarium with a large diversity of marine life. After the aquarium I ran into some other friends at the port who said they were going skydiving. Ding ding ding! Clearly I also had to go. So then I went skydiving which incredible. I jumped out of a plane at 9000 ft. in the air!! My instructor did tricks in the air and even let me fly the parachute.

My trip to South Africa was quite memorable to say the least. I will not forget this place for as long as I live and I hope to return one day, possibly in 2010 for the world cup.
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