The Scholar Ship: Day 1

Trip Start Sep 02, 2007

Trip End Dec 25, 2007

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Flag of Greece Piraeus, Greece
Wednesday, September 5, 2007

The bus left the hotel at around 10:45 by the time we had everyone figured out and their luggage on the bus. I ended up with someone's huge duffel on the seat next to me because it didn't fit under the bus with everyone else's. I wish they'd known that was going to happen; I would have carried mine on the bus since it was half the size of these and actually fit in the isles. We had to lift Ricky's almost over our heads before it would pass by the seats. I nearly fell asleep on the way to Piraeus; it was a long drive but soon we could see the other ships and the noise level rose with the excitement level and I could stay awake to watch. Check-in was easy enough; in the cruise bay we stood in line for our cabin assignment and luggage tags and then someone took our luggage to the ship for us. We boarded, had our visas checked, and then had to leave our passports with them. That was unnerving at best since I'd had to keep the thing so close for the past several days. But apparently they do all the immigration and everything for us

Alfred Flores, director of onboard life

. I am a little nervous about having to actually go into these other countries without a passport on me, though. I hope to get it back full of stamps!
           I tried to make arrangements to go back to the flea market for a souvenir or two I had started to wish I'd bought, but as it turned out it was a twenty minute walk to the metro and probably a half hour ride at best and they wanted me back on the ship at three. It's probably a good thing that didn't work out; I would not have wanted to get lost with such a time crunch on my hands. So I wandered around the ship and got a tour from one of the staff, who I found out later is my Intercultural Resident Councilor (IRC), my RA, essentially. Her name is Amanda; she's from Washington state but living in Vermont.
           We had a safety intro in the evening (we'd have a drill the next day) and then a really nice dinner in the dining hall before the opening ceremony. All the meals are buffet style but limited to what they're serving, which leaves several options still but not as many as if we had constant access to supplies and more space. While we were eating we looked out the window and noticed we were moving; the ship had pulled out of port without most of us even noticing. I finished eating quickly and immediately headed for the deck. There was a breeze blowing and the water crashing around the hull and the roaring of the engine complemented the excitement of the students. I wanted to fly, to leap of the deck and soar above the open ocean. It wasn't long before Piraeus was out of sight and we watched as the islands of Greece gradually passed out of sight. I soon realized that I didn't need to leap off the deck to fly; I already was.
           A helicopter came over a little later to take pictures of the ship and of us all up on deck, then I just hung out up there waiting for the sunset

all our bags at the hotel

. The sun set behind a heavy cloud before it ever made it to the horizon, so it was beautiful but did not necessarily merit a picture. I imagine I will have lots more chances for the perfect sunset photo.
The opening ceremonies were incredible; the President spoke first and the entire student body gave him an immediate standing ovation, which he returned, followed by the staff and the administration. We were all standing there honoring each other. It was beautiful. I wish I had had the foresight to have my video camera ready. After that some other admins spoke and then we went out on to the aft deck, where the names of each of the over 50 represented nations was read. Each time a name was announced, all of the students representing that country or feeling an identification to that country came forward. It was really a lovely experience. Then we had "informal social time" in one of the lounges. I met some new people and just sat and talked for a while, and then a group of us went wandering around the ship.
We found the work-out rooms and the saunas and most importantly the massage rooms. There are about twenty different options available for massage, including Swedish massage and some Japanese thing I can't pronounce and all kinds of other things. The prices are pretty reasonable too. I'm afraid I'll be tempted to use a lot of my money on board... Then we went outside and the wind was blowing so hard we had to hold on tight to keep our balance. We went out on the deck and stood at the rail and yelled to each other over the wind. It was amazing. The stars were out in full force and considering we are at sea level, it was pretty impressive.