Life At Sea

Hey Everyone!

I finally feel like I have a minute to catch up on writing, so I’m going to take advantage of it. Some of you have been wanting a little more information about the ship itself, so here goes.
So… even though the MV Explorer is a former cruise ship, we have been told by many people that the Explorer, in comparison with larger cruise ships, appears to resemble something like a tugboat. I am looking forward to seeing that contrast in some of the ports! Needless to say, we feel a lot more movement on the Explorer than folks typically feel on larger cruise lines. I don’t know if Joe mentioned this or not, but on the first day of sailing with the students, there were massive rushes to the bathrooms from seasickness. Joe said he saw someone that literally looked green running to the bathroom. Luckily, Joe and I have been okay for the most part. I had one evening where I felt a little off, but nothing more than that. I definitely have my sea legs now! Woohoo! (Knock on wood).
Anyway – the MV Explorer has 7 decks. Deck 1 is for crew only, Deck 2 is the medical clinic and a few student rooms, Decks 3 & 4 are all student rooms (Joe and I live on Deck 4), Deck 5 has the main administrative front desks, the field office, the purser, and many of the deans offices. Deck 5 also has a large dining room and outdoor deck. Deck 6 is the location of the Student Union, Student Life Office (at the very front of the ship… woozy-central), the Library & Computer Lab, the Campus Store, Snack Bar and Piano Lounge, and another full Dining Hall with an outside deck. Deck 7 is my favorite deck. It has the infamous Faculty and Staff Lounge, which is this super swanky lounge area at the front of the ship. They serve coffee and snacks all day, and have a bar service every evening from 2100-2300. We don’t spend a whole lot of time up there, but it’s a nice place to escape when one needs a little peace. It’s also a great place to, obviously, connect with fellow staff and faculty. Also on Deck 7 is the Wellness Center, which includes a very small room with treadmills, elliptical machines, etc., and an outside enclosed area with free-weights and a few weight machines. There’s also a full spa on Deck 7 that offers facials, massages, haircuts, aromatherapy, etc. The prices aren’t too bad… I’ll probably check it out one of these days. Finally, Deck 7 is where the Pool Bistro is located. The pool itself is nothing to write home about. Picture a hotel pool, but smaller. Yeah. But, there is also a large bar on the aft pool deck which is open for service most evenings. Alcohol is only served on particular evenings, which used to be called “Pub Nights,” but which we have renamed “Aft”er Hours… get it??? I came up with that one. Tonight is the first night of alcohol service, so I’ll let ya know how that goes. Unfortunately, the RDs serve as pseudo-bouncers on the After Hours evenings, so I don’t think that will be my favorite part of my job. But, it’s all good. If you’d like to know more about the ship, there is a virtual tour on the Semester at Sea website. (www.semesteratsea.com)
So… can I tell you how cool it is to wake up every morning and look out our GIANT porthole to see the big blue sea!??? I LOVE IT!!!
Our noon report just said that we are at a sea depth of 15, 900 feet!!! Isn’t that crazy!? You definitely get a true perspective on how much of the earth is ocean out here. I LOVE IT. Mom, I definitely have caught the sea bug. LOVE IT.
So… I am stoked about the students on my sea. The Caspian Sea ROCKS! Molly, you’ll be happy to hear that I have everyone on my sea shouting “HEY-O!” whenever anyone mentions the Caspian Sea. They love it. Of course, I have a couple of characters who may make the voyage, shall we say, interesting?… but, that’s just how it goes. Joe is loving the fact that I’m the R.D. and he isn’t. From Day 1 there were some students who were trying to bring alcohol on board and already have dock time. DOH. And, in terms of being on the ship on time, everyone is held to the same standards. If you’re 1-10 minutes late for ON SHIP TIME, you automatically get 2 hours of dock time. It proceeds up from there in 2 hour intervals. Even if you have a scheduled trip in one of the ports, if you have dock time, you may miss your trip. That’s the deal. So, hopefully the students will take it pretty seriously.
Joe and I really don’t have a routine quite yet. It was fun this morning because it was everyone’s first day of Global Studies. Global Studies is the course that everyone on the ship takes together. The curriculum follows the course of our adventure and tailors the lectures and assignments to each port. I was psyched to have class this morning!!
For the most part, I think my days at sea will consist of the following:
Waking Up to the BIG BLUE SEA.
Working out.
Having breakfast on the back deck – SO BEAUTIFUL!
Going to Global Studies.
Working in the Student Life Office/ hanging out with students on my sea.
Lunch.
Student Life Meetings at 1300 everyday.
Working on different work tasks… I think everyone knows I’m the R.D. in charge of Recreation & Wellness, so I get to coordinate all the classes, games, tournaments, and of course, the SEA OLYMPICS (I’ll explain later).
Hanging out/Working Out/Sneaking in on classes if I have time.
Dinner.
Going to nightly “Community College” sessions, where members of the community can share their expertise on a variety of subjects (not for credit, more like a lecture series… supposed to be really cool!)
Being a bouncer at After Hours, helping out fellow RDs.
Having a beer in the Faculty/Staff Lounge.
Hanging out late with my students.
Bed time… the waves rocking me to sleep.

Not too bad of a life, eh? I got to hang out with two of my residents last night – Jess and Coley – who are super cool. My impression is that I am going to absolutely love this experience. As if I had any doubts, but still. This is so cool.
Mom and Dad – I know you have an anniversary coming up!! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! And Tara & Hans, CONGRATULATIONS!!! I can’t wait to meet little Lauren! She is adorable!!! Yippee!!
‘til again…