wholly crap we've got some movement as we head across the atlantic towards Florida.
The Croatia pictures are up http://joeandjoy.com/croat/index.html
and I hope to get Spain up real soon. We rented a car again and it was a little more hair raising to drive in Spain, especially while in town. You can't get any narrower... I thought Ireland was narrow but Spain has it beat. But of course we had a great time and saw some wonderful sites.
Only endulged in Churros con Chocolate once which is my big regret... I'll have to go back.
Look for the Spain pics soon... enjoy your last weeks without us cause we are going to be cranky when we get home!
oh yeah and who is picking us up at the airport?
GOOD LUCK ON FINALS to all the Crownies
Someone send me a picture of that Stevens kid
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Croatia
Arriving in Croatia was fabulous. The coastline is absolutely beautiful in contrast to the red tiles on all the roofs, the intrigue of the old walled city, and the giant mountains looming in the background. Joe and I decided to rent a car with our good friends, J.B. & Theresa, which totally made our trip. Having the freedom of our own vehicle was wonderful, and of course – Joe was our official driver and the three of us were happy to be sightseeing passengers.
On the first day we ventured into the walled city – built in the 1600s, which is a fascinating place. We had a beautiful blue-sky day, so we walked around the entire exterior of the walled city on top of the passageways on the outer wall. Joe and I took hundreds of pictures – it was such a beautiful day! (You’ll see the pictures SOON!) Some students decided it would be a good idea to cliff-jump off the cliffs below the city’s walls. Many of them had a great time, however, we learned later on in our trip that one of the students jumped from over 60 feet, hit the water wrong, and broke her back. Scary. Luckily, her spinal cord was not affected, so she was rushed to the hospital and eventually transferred via a medical evacuation plane to a different hospital in Vienna for immediate surgery. One of the RDs, our friend Kate, went with her to Vienna, and she just wrote me and let me know that the student is doing okay. It’s amazing that more stuff like this hasn’t happened on this voyage. I’m just glad the student isn’t paralyzed, although her voyage is over and I’m sure she’ll have permanent physical damage. Scary.
Anyway – after exploring the walled city, we were on a mission to rent a car. Dubrovnik, and the entire coastline of Croatia, is a huge tourist destination in the summer, but it is very serene and quiet in mid-November. Thus, tourism offices are not exactly prepared, nor excited, to deal with tourists. I can relate to this, having lived in Steamboat where the winter and summer are absolutely brimming with tourists, and the mud-season is barren of visitors. I used to relish those months where we had Steamboat back to “ourselves,” so I didn’t blame the Dubrovnik folks who seemed a little off-put by our presence. So, it took us a little while to find a rental car, and once we did – we decided to book the car for the following 4 days, stay on the ship the first night, and venture out early the next morning. And that’s what we did!
The next morning the four of us hopped into our Ford Focus and hit the coastal road. We knew we wanted to find a little villa along the sea, but we didn’t have a solid plan. So we just started driving. What a gorgeous drive!!! After about an hour and a half we arrived in the small town of Orebic on the Plejesac peninsula. We decided to stop and have lunch and check-out one of the tourist agencies to see what was available. The gentleman at the tourist agency was pretty doubtful, at first, that he had anything available by the sea. Then, after making a few phone calls, he directed us toward this house that didn’t have a seaside view from our apartment, but was attached to a home with a large terrace overlooking the sea. We decided to go check it out, and it turned out to be perfect and became our home for the next 3 nights. It was set right on the coastline amidst a grove of orange trees. So perfect! It was also within 5 minutes walk of local markets, so that we could make dinner in our little kitchen, drink wine, and kick back & relax.
This was the first port that truly felt like a vacation. All of the other ports have felt like a mental and physical challenge in some sense – which is good. Croatia didn’t feel that way. It is a tourist destination, and – beyond its recent history – I’m not quite certain why it is a port on Semester at Sea. Particularly in the off-season, it’s not a place that has a whole lot going on, and for the students it’s not easy for them to get around because they are not allowed to rent cars.
It’s hard to believe that Dubrovnik was a war-torn area in the very recent past – the beauty and serenity of the place masks its ugly past. The one aspect of the city that reveals the effects of the war is the tiled roofs. Many roofs have very new tile work, which we’ve been told indicated that those homes or buildings were bombed during the war and had to be re-built. You’ll be able to tell the difference in the pictures… some roofs look very new, while others are clearly worn.
Some highlights of our trip:
1. Croatia is wine country, but – again – since we were visiting in the off-season, most wineries were closed. But that didn’t stop us!! We ventured into one particular winery (that looked closed) and asked if we could do a wine tasting. Not exactly what you’d expect in the states… The gentlemen were more than willing to allow us to have a taste, so the man who spoke the most fluent English led us through the winery, arrived at one particular vat of wine, picked up the hose that was lying on the floor, brushed it off, picked up a glass that was sitting by the vat, brushed it off, and proceeded to pour the wine from the hose into the glass. We all thought this was hilarious, and – wow! – it was good red wine! So, we decided to buy a few bottles. Again, this was a little different in that we were asked – “Do you have any bottles with you?” Stunned, we looked at each other and said, “Well, we have some empty plastic water bottles..?” The gentlemen nodded that this would be a perfect solution, so we got our plastic bottles, he promptly filled them with the wine hose, and we went happily on our way. Pretty funny, huh? This was only one of a few times that we received wine in this manner.
2. Another highlight of our trip was being able to play Bocce Ball in an outdoor, lighted court while we drank our hose-filled wine, ate pizza and french fries, an d laughed the night away. We were certain the Bocce ball court was going to be closed, but were delighted when the not-so-helpful woman behind the counter said, “yes, you can play.” Woo-hoo!
3. Joe and I were itching to go for a hike in the mountain range behind our villa, so we went on a 2-hour hike to the top of the ridge and it was absolutely beautiful! It felt SO GOOD to be out in nature, taking in the fresh crisp air, and d getting our heart rate up after so many countries where we were breathing the intense pollution and humid air. We also ventured on many mini-hikes to old churches (which reminded me of the missions in California), old villages, and a few quaint local towns.
4. At one such old village, Joe happened upon a sign that read, “This site protected by the law.” This intrigued Joe, so he decided to check it out. Lo and behold, we were met by a wonderful woman named Vesna who was very surprised to see us in the off-season. After concluding that we seemed like nice people, she led us on a personal tour of this old, mostly abandoned stone village where only she and one other couple currently live. Wow. Her stories were fascinating. She was originally born in Bosnia, moved to London for much of her young adult life, was a journalist for the BBC, and then – somehow – found herself on the coast of Croatia inquiring about a home in an old broken-down village. And she’s been there ever since! She was definitely – and expectedly – a little quirky, but that only added to the charm of the place. She invited us into her very simple but amazing stone house, and offered us some homemade herb brandy, which she said she gets locally from “the brandy man in the van.”
This is one of the most amazing things about Semester at Sea… that you can end up totally off-the-beaten-path, in a small village with someone like Vesna. On most cruise ships, you are only in a port for 12 to 24 hours, which does not allow for these off-the-beaten-path experiences. I value these moments so much because they really give one a true taste of the people and the culture of a place.
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our time in Croatia. I’ll let Joe fill in the blanks with his picture commentary, but this is our story for now. We are currently docked in Gibraltar for a re-fueling session, and we arrive in Cadiz, Spain in the early morning. I can’t believe this will be our last international port!!! Where has the time gone? I’ve already asked some of the crew members if they will hide me in one of the closets so I can stay on the ship for the next voyage. The laughed and said they’re not allowed to do that. WHAT?!
See y’all SOON!!!
On the first day we ventured into the walled city – built in the 1600s, which is a fascinating place. We had a beautiful blue-sky day, so we walked around the entire exterior of the walled city on top of the passageways on the outer wall. Joe and I took hundreds of pictures – it was such a beautiful day! (You’ll see the pictures SOON!) Some students decided it would be a good idea to cliff-jump off the cliffs below the city’s walls. Many of them had a great time, however, we learned later on in our trip that one of the students jumped from over 60 feet, hit the water wrong, and broke her back. Scary. Luckily, her spinal cord was not affected, so she was rushed to the hospital and eventually transferred via a medical evacuation plane to a different hospital in Vienna for immediate surgery. One of the RDs, our friend Kate, went with her to Vienna, and she just wrote me and let me know that the student is doing okay. It’s amazing that more stuff like this hasn’t happened on this voyage. I’m just glad the student isn’t paralyzed, although her voyage is over and I’m sure she’ll have permanent physical damage. Scary.
Anyway – after exploring the walled city, we were on a mission to rent a car. Dubrovnik, and the entire coastline of Croatia, is a huge tourist destination in the summer, but it is very serene and quiet in mid-November. Thus, tourism offices are not exactly prepared, nor excited, to deal with tourists. I can relate to this, having lived in Steamboat where the winter and summer are absolutely brimming with tourists, and the mud-season is barren of visitors. I used to relish those months where we had Steamboat back to “ourselves,” so I didn’t blame the Dubrovnik folks who seemed a little off-put by our presence. So, it took us a little while to find a rental car, and once we did – we decided to book the car for the following 4 days, stay on the ship the first night, and venture out early the next morning. And that’s what we did!
The next morning the four of us hopped into our Ford Focus and hit the coastal road. We knew we wanted to find a little villa along the sea, but we didn’t have a solid plan. So we just started driving. What a gorgeous drive!!! After about an hour and a half we arrived in the small town of Orebic on the Plejesac peninsula. We decided to stop and have lunch and check-out one of the tourist agencies to see what was available. The gentleman at the tourist agency was pretty doubtful, at first, that he had anything available by the sea. Then, after making a few phone calls, he directed us toward this house that didn’t have a seaside view from our apartment, but was attached to a home with a large terrace overlooking the sea. We decided to go check it out, and it turned out to be perfect and became our home for the next 3 nights. It was set right on the coastline amidst a grove of orange trees. So perfect! It was also within 5 minutes walk of local markets, so that we could make dinner in our little kitchen, drink wine, and kick back & relax.
This was the first port that truly felt like a vacation. All of the other ports have felt like a mental and physical challenge in some sense – which is good. Croatia didn’t feel that way. It is a tourist destination, and – beyond its recent history – I’m not quite certain why it is a port on Semester at Sea. Particularly in the off-season, it’s not a place that has a whole lot going on, and for the students it’s not easy for them to get around because they are not allowed to rent cars.
It’s hard to believe that Dubrovnik was a war-torn area in the very recent past – the beauty and serenity of the place masks its ugly past. The one aspect of the city that reveals the effects of the war is the tiled roofs. Many roofs have very new tile work, which we’ve been told indicated that those homes or buildings were bombed during the war and had to be re-built. You’ll be able to tell the difference in the pictures… some roofs look very new, while others are clearly worn.
Some highlights of our trip:
1. Croatia is wine country, but – again – since we were visiting in the off-season, most wineries were closed. But that didn’t stop us!! We ventured into one particular winery (that looked closed) and asked if we could do a wine tasting. Not exactly what you’d expect in the states… The gentlemen were more than willing to allow us to have a taste, so the man who spoke the most fluent English led us through the winery, arrived at one particular vat of wine, picked up the hose that was lying on the floor, brushed it off, picked up a glass that was sitting by the vat, brushed it off, and proceeded to pour the wine from the hose into the glass. We all thought this was hilarious, and – wow! – it was good red wine! So, we decided to buy a few bottles. Again, this was a little different in that we were asked – “Do you have any bottles with you?” Stunned, we looked at each other and said, “Well, we have some empty plastic water bottles..?” The gentlemen nodded that this would be a perfect solution, so we got our plastic bottles, he promptly filled them with the wine hose, and we went happily on our way. Pretty funny, huh? This was only one of a few times that we received wine in this manner.
2. Another highlight of our trip was being able to play Bocce Ball in an outdoor, lighted court while we drank our hose-filled wine, ate pizza and french fries, an d laughed the night away. We were certain the Bocce ball court was going to be closed, but were delighted when the not-so-helpful woman behind the counter said, “yes, you can play.” Woo-hoo!
3. Joe and I were itching to go for a hike in the mountain range behind our villa, so we went on a 2-hour hike to the top of the ridge and it was absolutely beautiful! It felt SO GOOD to be out in nature, taking in the fresh crisp air, and d getting our heart rate up after so many countries where we were breathing the intense pollution and humid air. We also ventured on many mini-hikes to old churches (which reminded me of the missions in California), old villages, and a few quaint local towns.
4. At one such old village, Joe happened upon a sign that read, “This site protected by the law.” This intrigued Joe, so he decided to check it out. Lo and behold, we were met by a wonderful woman named Vesna who was very surprised to see us in the off-season. After concluding that we seemed like nice people, she led us on a personal tour of this old, mostly abandoned stone village where only she and one other couple currently live. Wow. Her stories were fascinating. She was originally born in Bosnia, moved to London for much of her young adult life, was a journalist for the BBC, and then – somehow – found herself on the coast of Croatia inquiring about a home in an old broken-down village. And she’s been there ever since! She was definitely – and expectedly – a little quirky, but that only added to the charm of the place. She invited us into her very simple but amazing stone house, and offered us some homemade herb brandy, which she said she gets locally from “the brandy man in the van.”
This is one of the most amazing things about Semester at Sea… that you can end up totally off-the-beaten-path, in a small village with someone like Vesna. On most cruise ships, you are only in a port for 12 to 24 hours, which does not allow for these off-the-beaten-path experiences. I value these moments so much because they really give one a true taste of the people and the culture of a place.
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our time in Croatia. I’ll let Joe fill in the blanks with his picture commentary, but this is our story for now. We are currently docked in Gibraltar for a re-fueling session, and we arrive in Cadiz, Spain in the early morning. I can’t believe this will be our last international port!!! Where has the time gone? I’ve already asked some of the crew members if they will hide me in one of the closets so I can stay on the ship for the next voyage. The laughed and said they’re not allowed to do that. WHAT?!
See y’all SOON!!!
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Dubrovnik, Croatia
Here's a quick blog about our port arrival... don't worry - I'm planning to write about our experience in Croatia later today, so check back a little later...
This was the absolute best port arrival ever. We were told the evening before our arrival in Dubrovnik that our ship’s captain was planning to blow the horn as we sailed around the corner near his family’s home. One official administrator had said that the captain would be blowing the horn at 0630, and then the executive dean said that he would be doing this at 0730. Being the optimist that I am, I decided to believe that this would not occur until 0730.
So… at approximately 0625, what do I hear? The freaking horn!!! I instantly jump – literally leap – out of my bed, mutter to myself “shit, I’m going to miss it!,” throw on my clothes, and sprint up four flights of stairs to the seventh deck. I burst out of the doors onto the deck to find that I am not too late. Whew!!
Our fabulous captain Roman is not a shy guy. He was not messing around when it came to blowing that horn. He did a couple warning horn blows when we were still about five minutes away from his home, and then just let it LOOSE with that horn! Wow. There was DEFINITELY no one left sleeping in his quaint little village by the sea. I was CRACKING UP, I thought it was so flipping hilarious. But then when I saw his family waving from the deck of their home, I burst into tears! I was doing the ol’ laugh & cry at the same time. Some of his family’s neighbors had made big banners and were waving, too. When Captain Roman stepped out onto the little winged platform that jets out from the bridge and started waving to his family, I totally lost it. It was such a cool moment.
I just read this blog to some students who rolled their eyes when I said I cried, but c’mon… that’s good stuff.
This was the absolute best port arrival ever. We were told the evening before our arrival in Dubrovnik that our ship’s captain was planning to blow the horn as we sailed around the corner near his family’s home. One official administrator had said that the captain would be blowing the horn at 0630, and then the executive dean said that he would be doing this at 0730. Being the optimist that I am, I decided to believe that this would not occur until 0730.
So… at approximately 0625, what do I hear? The freaking horn!!! I instantly jump – literally leap – out of my bed, mutter to myself “shit, I’m going to miss it!,” throw on my clothes, and sprint up four flights of stairs to the seventh deck. I burst out of the doors onto the deck to find that I am not too late. Whew!!
Our fabulous captain Roman is not a shy guy. He was not messing around when it came to blowing that horn. He did a couple warning horn blows when we were still about five minutes away from his home, and then just let it LOOSE with that horn! Wow. There was DEFINITELY no one left sleeping in his quaint little village by the sea. I was CRACKING UP, I thought it was so flipping hilarious. But then when I saw his family waving from the deck of their home, I burst into tears! I was doing the ol’ laugh & cry at the same time. Some of his family’s neighbors had made big banners and were waving, too. When Captain Roman stepped out onto the little winged platform that jets out from the bridge and started waving to his family, I totally lost it. It was such a cool moment.
I just read this blog to some students who rolled their eyes when I said I cried, but c’mon… that’s good stuff.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
one more to go... (tear)
So of course we had a great time in Croatia... a highlight for me was that we rented a car and I got to drive... not a real fancy car but it was fun to drive. It was a Ford Focus Diesel 1.6 L engine and it moved pretty well. If I could get that car in the states I would consider buying it... especially since they are building bio-diesel pumps in Santa Cruz County.
more on Croatia later... but I am finally putting up the Cairo pics... and for those who think we slack sometimes on our blog, we have friends who haven't written about Viet Nam yet and you get the treat of all of our pics... and of course it is great for us too... we are glad we have been able to share with everyone who reads.
so yeah... Cairo is loading as we speak and I will try and get Turkey up tomorrow and then hopefully Croatia up before we get to Spain... we shall see how we do.
Hope everyone is well!!!! Happy November!!!!
Monday, November 13, 2006
Let’s talk Turkey!
Hi Everyone! Sorry it’s been a little while. We were without Internet on the ship for a few days, so folks had to find different ways of entertaining themselves. Right now I am watching a tourism video about Croatia, which looks absolutely beautiful, so I’ll have to get my brain out of Dubrovnik and the islands of Croatia, and rewind to our experiences in Turkey.
Coming into the port of Istanbul was an incredible sight. It was the first time that we stepped out from the interior of the ship into VERY chilly weather. Brrrrrrrrrrrrr. I absolutely loved it! I’ve been missing that chill of fall weather that makes one want to put on a fuzzy sweater, drink hot coffee, and cuddle up in a blanket. Everyone was busting out their puffy jackets, stocking caps, gloves and scarves. It was a pretty quick transition from the sweltering warmth of Viet Nam through India to the mild temperatures of Egypt to seeing our breath out in the streets of Istanbul.
The picture I had of Turkey in my mind’s eye was nowhere near what it represented in reality. I had not imagined that we were entering into the western, very European-feeling, world quite yet. Istanbul and western Turkey have a very European feel, which I had not expected. To be honest, it was almost a little disappointing to emerge into a more familiar, western environment. That is not to take anything away from our experience in Turkey, but – again – it is marking the transition to the final stages of our voyage. I'm not ready yet!
Istanbul and western Turkey have a unique feel because of their European setting amidst a predominantly Muslim culture and texture. Turkey’s history and the story of Turkey’s national hero, Kemal Ataturk, are incredibly fascinating. I did not know much about Turkey until this voyage, but the tensions and controversies surrounding Turkey’s bid to become a member of the European Union have put Turkey’s history and culture under a magnifying glass. If you haven’t done so already, I would encourage you to research Turkey’s struggle with the European Union from multiple perspectives; particularly seek another viewpoint than the western viewpoint.
Anyway – Istanbul is a fascinating city. Joe and I spent many hours just walking through the cobblestone streets of the city, exploring the sights. On our first day we ventured to the Grand Bazaar in the old city, which is among the largest public market places in the world. It was fun to venture through all of the shops, the spice market, the quaint cafes serving Turkish tea & coffee, and seeing the Turkish “Evil Eye” everywhere!!! The evil eye is a symbol, in the likeness of an eye, which is traditionally believed to ward off evil spirits. We learned from our guide that the eye also represents a solar eclipse, which was something to be feared in ancient times, marking the eye as “evil.” At first I thought the evil eye seemed like a tourist trinket or souvenir, but the more we ventured around Turkey, I saw the evil eye embedded into walkways and hanging above doorways in restaurants & homes. So, don’t worry – you’ll probably get one of your very own when we return!
One of the other highlights of our first day – and definitely one of the highlights of our voyage, too – was stumbling upon this wonderful restaurant in the middle of the old city. Our friend J.B. had noticed a few rooftop bars, but most of them had looked closed and dark. However, there was one that had lights shining from above. J.B. and Joe both said, “Hey, this place looks open,” and simultaneously an attendant of the hotel/restaurant beckoned us to follow him upstairs. All I can say is “WOW.” We were ushered up seven or eight floors to a rooftop that was higher than all of the other rooftops around, nestled between the gorgeous looming sights of the Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, both absolutely beautiful in architecture and grandeur. As if that wasn’t enough, we were the only people on the rooftop, so we had our own private 5-star dining experience. My favorite part was right around sunset when the speakers of Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque rang out with their calls to prayer. Both calls to prayer echoed back and forth between the two religious sites, and it is really indescribable how beautiful, alluring, and spiritual it was to be standing up there. Luckily, Joe took a video of it, so you can experience it, too!
The following morning, Joe and I left on a Semester at Sea trip to Western Turkey. Joe was the trip leader for this adventure, along with 27 other faculty, staff and students. We had a really great group of people – very mellow folks who were interested to learn about the ancient sites of Western Turkey. As one student so poignantly put it: “There were no douche-bags on our trip.” Ha! What this comment is referring to is that there can sometimes be a select group of students who end up partying too hard during the trip, ignore the guide, arrive late for everything, and are generally a pain in the butt. We didn’t have any of that.
Our flight from Istanbul to Izmir brought us into some phenomenal weather! Our entire trip was full of blue sky and sunshine, with temperatures between 50-65 during the day. Chilly but refreshing. It is more difficult for me to write about all of the ruins we saw because I am by no means a history buff. However, I can say that we were able to walk down the marble streets of ancient Romans and Greeks, climb the steps of ancient amphitheatres from the 4th century, and walk amongst the looming ionic columns and structures of Ephesus. All of this will be better appreciated through the pictures, so I’ll defer to Joe on most of this.
Our experience was similar to that of seeing the ancient pyramids – it is absolutely incredible to see and learn about the histories of these ancient cultures that have literally been unearthed from the ground to tell stories of the past. The only time I had to really stretch my imagination was when we visited the remains of one of the seven ancient wonders of the world – The Temple of Athena – which was – literally – a lone column standing amidst a field of pieces of marble. Much of the ancient temple had been carried away and used to build other structures and buildings, so I had a hard time envisioning this massive temple from one remaining teetering column with a giant bird’s nest sitting on top. Joe found it interesting, so I tried to follow his lead.
Our second day in western Turkey took us to the smaller seaside town of Kusadasi, which is set on the Aegean Sea. A very beautiful town that we imagine is perpetually brimming with tourists in the summer. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to stay there very long before we were off to more ruins and museums.
Have I told you about the food yet? YUM! We got to sample many Turkish treats such as Turkish tea (yummy), Turkish coffee (mudlike), Turkish pizza (yummy), lots and lots of breads and cheeses, lentil soups, hummus, delicious salads, and crepes. Very similar to Greek cuisine in a lot of ways, but unique as well.
We also went to a carpet-weaving factory, as Turkish silk carpets are a hot commodity. While the factory provided a fascinating look at the process involved in making a handmade Turkish carpet, the prices were – um – not exactly in our price range, so we apologize if you were expecting a carpet for the holidays. The silk-on-silk carpets were – no joke – approximately $25,000. Do you have anything smaller?? Oh, yes, that one over there that one could place on an end table? That’s only $4500!!! They were beautiful, but c’mon people.
Once we arrived back at the ship from our trip, we had one more day in Istanbul to explore. Joe and I went inside the Aya Sofya and Blue Mosque which were amazingly massive and intricately decorated with paintings, mosaics, stained glass, beautiful archways and unique lighting. Again, we walked miles around the old city and ventured into the “new” city – the area around Taksim Square. When we arrived there, I felt as if I had been immediately transported into the Times Square of Istanbul. All of a sudden it felt like the Turkish culture had been absorbed into highrise 4-star hotels, McDonalds & Pizza Huts, department stores, and the hustle bustle of a modern city. It was interesting to experience, but I definitely enjoyed the old city feel. Before going back to the ship, Joe decided to go to a Turkish football (soccer) game. WOW. The scene in the stadium could barely be described by the words CRAZILY INTENSE. I’d say the ratio of men to women around the stadium was approximately 100:1, and the testosterone levels were through the roof. There were riot police everywhere, men pounding beers outside the stadium walls (no alcohol inside), and men sprinting to get to the game on time. I felt incredibly uncomfortable and out of place as a female in this particular environment, so my friend Kate & I watched the game from above on a street that overlooked the stadium. You could hear the crowd cheering in unison from many, many blocks away. It was amazing. Joe can tell you more about it.
Well, it’s getting late and I need to go to bed so I can wake up bright and early to see us pull into Dubrovnik. This is one of the most exciting ports for our voyage because the captain of our ship is from Dubrovnik, but his family hasn’t seen him sail into Croatia for over 14 years. So, his plan – at around 0730 tomorrow morning – is to blow the horn repeatedly as we come around the bend by his home on the coast. Hopefully we’ll be able to see his family waving to him!
Hope all is well over in your neck of the world!!
We miss all of you but will see you SOON!
Coming into the port of Istanbul was an incredible sight. It was the first time that we stepped out from the interior of the ship into VERY chilly weather. Brrrrrrrrrrrrr. I absolutely loved it! I’ve been missing that chill of fall weather that makes one want to put on a fuzzy sweater, drink hot coffee, and cuddle up in a blanket. Everyone was busting out their puffy jackets, stocking caps, gloves and scarves. It was a pretty quick transition from the sweltering warmth of Viet Nam through India to the mild temperatures of Egypt to seeing our breath out in the streets of Istanbul.
The picture I had of Turkey in my mind’s eye was nowhere near what it represented in reality. I had not imagined that we were entering into the western, very European-feeling, world quite yet. Istanbul and western Turkey have a very European feel, which I had not expected. To be honest, it was almost a little disappointing to emerge into a more familiar, western environment. That is not to take anything away from our experience in Turkey, but – again – it is marking the transition to the final stages of our voyage. I'm not ready yet!
Istanbul and western Turkey have a unique feel because of their European setting amidst a predominantly Muslim culture and texture. Turkey’s history and the story of Turkey’s national hero, Kemal Ataturk, are incredibly fascinating. I did not know much about Turkey until this voyage, but the tensions and controversies surrounding Turkey’s bid to become a member of the European Union have put Turkey’s history and culture under a magnifying glass. If you haven’t done so already, I would encourage you to research Turkey’s struggle with the European Union from multiple perspectives; particularly seek another viewpoint than the western viewpoint.
Anyway – Istanbul is a fascinating city. Joe and I spent many hours just walking through the cobblestone streets of the city, exploring the sights. On our first day we ventured to the Grand Bazaar in the old city, which is among the largest public market places in the world. It was fun to venture through all of the shops, the spice market, the quaint cafes serving Turkish tea & coffee, and seeing the Turkish “Evil Eye” everywhere!!! The evil eye is a symbol, in the likeness of an eye, which is traditionally believed to ward off evil spirits. We learned from our guide that the eye also represents a solar eclipse, which was something to be feared in ancient times, marking the eye as “evil.” At first I thought the evil eye seemed like a tourist trinket or souvenir, but the more we ventured around Turkey, I saw the evil eye embedded into walkways and hanging above doorways in restaurants & homes. So, don’t worry – you’ll probably get one of your very own when we return!
One of the other highlights of our first day – and definitely one of the highlights of our voyage, too – was stumbling upon this wonderful restaurant in the middle of the old city. Our friend J.B. had noticed a few rooftop bars, but most of them had looked closed and dark. However, there was one that had lights shining from above. J.B. and Joe both said, “Hey, this place looks open,” and simultaneously an attendant of the hotel/restaurant beckoned us to follow him upstairs. All I can say is “WOW.” We were ushered up seven or eight floors to a rooftop that was higher than all of the other rooftops around, nestled between the gorgeous looming sights of the Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, both absolutely beautiful in architecture and grandeur. As if that wasn’t enough, we were the only people on the rooftop, so we had our own private 5-star dining experience. My favorite part was right around sunset when the speakers of Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque rang out with their calls to prayer. Both calls to prayer echoed back and forth between the two religious sites, and it is really indescribable how beautiful, alluring, and spiritual it was to be standing up there. Luckily, Joe took a video of it, so you can experience it, too!
The following morning, Joe and I left on a Semester at Sea trip to Western Turkey. Joe was the trip leader for this adventure, along with 27 other faculty, staff and students. We had a really great group of people – very mellow folks who were interested to learn about the ancient sites of Western Turkey. As one student so poignantly put it: “There were no douche-bags on our trip.” Ha! What this comment is referring to is that there can sometimes be a select group of students who end up partying too hard during the trip, ignore the guide, arrive late for everything, and are generally a pain in the butt. We didn’t have any of that.
Our flight from Istanbul to Izmir brought us into some phenomenal weather! Our entire trip was full of blue sky and sunshine, with temperatures between 50-65 during the day. Chilly but refreshing. It is more difficult for me to write about all of the ruins we saw because I am by no means a history buff. However, I can say that we were able to walk down the marble streets of ancient Romans and Greeks, climb the steps of ancient amphitheatres from the 4th century, and walk amongst the looming ionic columns and structures of Ephesus. All of this will be better appreciated through the pictures, so I’ll defer to Joe on most of this.
Our experience was similar to that of seeing the ancient pyramids – it is absolutely incredible to see and learn about the histories of these ancient cultures that have literally been unearthed from the ground to tell stories of the past. The only time I had to really stretch my imagination was when we visited the remains of one of the seven ancient wonders of the world – The Temple of Athena – which was – literally – a lone column standing amidst a field of pieces of marble. Much of the ancient temple had been carried away and used to build other structures and buildings, so I had a hard time envisioning this massive temple from one remaining teetering column with a giant bird’s nest sitting on top. Joe found it interesting, so I tried to follow his lead.
Our second day in western Turkey took us to the smaller seaside town of Kusadasi, which is set on the Aegean Sea. A very beautiful town that we imagine is perpetually brimming with tourists in the summer. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to stay there very long before we were off to more ruins and museums.
Have I told you about the food yet? YUM! We got to sample many Turkish treats such as Turkish tea (yummy), Turkish coffee (mudlike), Turkish pizza (yummy), lots and lots of breads and cheeses, lentil soups, hummus, delicious salads, and crepes. Very similar to Greek cuisine in a lot of ways, but unique as well.
We also went to a carpet-weaving factory, as Turkish silk carpets are a hot commodity. While the factory provided a fascinating look at the process involved in making a handmade Turkish carpet, the prices were – um – not exactly in our price range, so we apologize if you were expecting a carpet for the holidays. The silk-on-silk carpets were – no joke – approximately $25,000. Do you have anything smaller?? Oh, yes, that one over there that one could place on an end table? That’s only $4500!!! They were beautiful, but c’mon people.
Once we arrived back at the ship from our trip, we had one more day in Istanbul to explore. Joe and I went inside the Aya Sofya and Blue Mosque which were amazingly massive and intricately decorated with paintings, mosaics, stained glass, beautiful archways and unique lighting. Again, we walked miles around the old city and ventured into the “new” city – the area around Taksim Square. When we arrived there, I felt as if I had been immediately transported into the Times Square of Istanbul. All of a sudden it felt like the Turkish culture had been absorbed into highrise 4-star hotels, McDonalds & Pizza Huts, department stores, and the hustle bustle of a modern city. It was interesting to experience, but I definitely enjoyed the old city feel. Before going back to the ship, Joe decided to go to a Turkish football (soccer) game. WOW. The scene in the stadium could barely be described by the words CRAZILY INTENSE. I’d say the ratio of men to women around the stadium was approximately 100:1, and the testosterone levels were through the roof. There were riot police everywhere, men pounding beers outside the stadium walls (no alcohol inside), and men sprinting to get to the game on time. I felt incredibly uncomfortable and out of place as a female in this particular environment, so my friend Kate & I watched the game from above on a street that overlooked the stadium. You could hear the crowd cheering in unison from many, many blocks away. It was amazing. Joe can tell you more about it.
Well, it’s getting late and I need to go to bed so I can wake up bright and early to see us pull into Dubrovnik. This is one of the most exciting ports for our voyage because the captain of our ship is from Dubrovnik, but his family hasn’t seen him sail into Croatia for over 14 years. So, his plan – at around 0730 tomorrow morning – is to blow the horn repeatedly as we come around the bend by his home on the coast. Hopefully we’ll be able to see his family waving to him!
Hope all is well over in your neck of the world!!
We miss all of you but will see you SOON!
ahhhh Internet
Hey Kids... sorry if you have been going thru withdrawls without any updates but we were pretty darn busy in Turkey and then had no internet access for a few days... sorry!!!
Turkey was ... very ROMAN... at least for us. We did a big trip that took us to many amazing ancient Roman sites... good times!
Trying very hard to get all these pics up but it is a challenge... but you can now go see the pics from Alexandria.
http://joeandjoy.com/alex/index.html
and I'm gonna work on the Cairo ones... but there are a ton of those and a ton from Turkey... oh man ... plus we are in Croatia tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2nd to last country... very crazy.
Oh and something I will write about briefly is my trip to a soccer game the last night in Istanbul... wow... we had passed the stadium on a walk around town and noticed that it looked like they were getting ready for a game so we asked around and found out that there was one that night at 7. We continued our walk and headed back to the stadium around 6:30... you could feel the energy in the air. It was right out of the news... 12 soccer fans get trampled to death at a soccer game in Brazil... I was with Joy and Kate and they did not feel to comfortable with all the testosterone and I even felt a little unnerved by it. We had decided not to go in and were walking up the hill to a space where you could watch from the road, when I realized I might not get another shot like this so I decided I would go in and go to the top of the stands where there wasn't many folks. It was AMAZING! The crowd was singing the whole time. I unfortunately had to leave with 15 min still left to play because there was thick tension in the air. The home team was down 0-1 and they were clearly the better team, so the crowd was very anxious for a goal. Wish I had some pictures but I decided it would be a bad move to bring my camera in.
ok... more later...
joe
Turkey was ... very ROMAN... at least for us. We did a big trip that took us to many amazing ancient Roman sites... good times!
Trying very hard to get all these pics up but it is a challenge... but you can now go see the pics from Alexandria.
http://joeandjoy.com/alex/index.html
and I'm gonna work on the Cairo ones... but there are a ton of those and a ton from Turkey... oh man ... plus we are in Croatia tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2nd to last country... very crazy.
Oh and something I will write about briefly is my trip to a soccer game the last night in Istanbul... wow... we had passed the stadium on a walk around town and noticed that it looked like they were getting ready for a game so we asked around and found out that there was one that night at 7. We continued our walk and headed back to the stadium around 6:30... you could feel the energy in the air. It was right out of the news... 12 soccer fans get trampled to death at a soccer game in Brazil... I was with Joy and Kate and they did not feel to comfortable with all the testosterone and I even felt a little unnerved by it. We had decided not to go in and were walking up the hill to a space where you could watch from the road, when I realized I might not get another shot like this so I decided I would go in and go to the top of the stands where there wasn't many folks. It was AMAZING! The crowd was singing the whole time. I unfortunately had to leave with 15 min still left to play because there was thick tension in the air. The home team was down 0-1 and they were clearly the better team, so the crowd was very anxious for a goal. Wish I had some pictures but I decided it would be a bad move to bring my camera in.
ok... more later...
joe
Monday, November 06, 2006
En Route to Turkey
Well… we were supposed to leave for Istanbul at 2300 two nights ago, but we didn’t end up leaving until about 1830 last night. The seas were SUPER rough as a result of major storms in the Mediterranean, so our captain kept stalling our departure - for good reason! As a side note, our captain and his team are awesome guys. After hanging out with them at the Captain’s dinner, I feel totally comfortable chatting it up with them anytime I see them. Before meeting them, they seemed like untouchable high-ranking officers – but now – they’re just regular guys out at sea! Our captain is from Croatia, so I know that he is really looking forward to steering us into Dubrovnik. Anyway – as we finally began to pull away from the dock last night, one could look out past the breakwater and see all of the large white caps!! My body was clearly not ready for the rough seas – I had my first major bout of seasickness. Boo. I guess it was bound to happen eventually.
I felt like total crap until curled up on my bathroom floor and felt the coolness of the tiles on my body. There was something about that spot that really helped, but I also knew that Joe would probably be a little disturbed by the fact that I was sleeping on our teeny-tiny bathroom floor. So… I forced myself to get up and moved into the little hallway outside our bathroom door and curled up by our closet. This spot was also helpful, so I slept on the floor all night! Pretty funny. I actually slept really well, except for the few moments when the ship would lurch into the air and then CRASH down from the front end. I was expecting to be a little scared, but it was actually kind of cool (once I felt better).
Anyway – we are VERY excited to be on our way to Istanbul! Everyone was getting very antsy to get underway because we had all been stuck on the ship in the port of Alexandria for almost 24 hours. It’s no fun to look out the window at a city and not be able to get off the ship. Istanbul sounds like a fascinating city, so everyone is psyched. Joe and I are going on a 3-day/2 night Semester at Sea trip all over Western Turkey, which sounds like a great trip. I’m really looking forward to it.
Life on the ship has transformed for me into a much more relaxed, almost cruise-like experience. Imagine that! Having the Sea’Lympics over with was a major load off, so I’m trying to take on a few other projects to help lessen some of my colleagues’ loads. Other that, I’m trying to hang out with the students on my sea, read books, and enjoy all of the amazing aspects of being on a ship… I don’t want it to end!!!
Until next time…
I felt like total crap until curled up on my bathroom floor and felt the coolness of the tiles on my body. There was something about that spot that really helped, but I also knew that Joe would probably be a little disturbed by the fact that I was sleeping on our teeny-tiny bathroom floor. So… I forced myself to get up and moved into the little hallway outside our bathroom door and curled up by our closet. This spot was also helpful, so I slept on the floor all night! Pretty funny. I actually slept really well, except for the few moments when the ship would lurch into the air and then CRASH down from the front end. I was expecting to be a little scared, but it was actually kind of cool (once I felt better).
Anyway – we are VERY excited to be on our way to Istanbul! Everyone was getting very antsy to get underway because we had all been stuck on the ship in the port of Alexandria for almost 24 hours. It’s no fun to look out the window at a city and not be able to get off the ship. Istanbul sounds like a fascinating city, so everyone is psyched. Joe and I are going on a 3-day/2 night Semester at Sea trip all over Western Turkey, which sounds like a great trip. I’m really looking forward to it.
Life on the ship has transformed for me into a much more relaxed, almost cruise-like experience. Imagine that! Having the Sea’Lympics over with was a major load off, so I’m trying to take on a few other projects to help lessen some of my colleagues’ loads. Other that, I’m trying to hang out with the students on my sea, read books, and enjoy all of the amazing aspects of being on a ship… I don’t want it to end!!!
Until next time…
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Stuck in Alexandria
We were supposed to leave Alexandria at 10:00 pm last night, it is now 1:30 pm the next day and we are still tied up to the port. The Mediterranean Sea is a little on the rough side, so rough that the Port is closed, we could leave if we wanted to but we would not get a Pilot from the Port to take us out and once we got into the open seas the swells are large. Rumor has it that two ships "crashed" last night, not really sure what that means. At 2pm we are supposed to reevaluate the weather... so we shall see.
I've decided to split up the Egypt pictures into three sections: Cairo, Suez, and Alexandria. Because Suez has the least amount of pictures I've put that up first.
http://joeandjoy.com/suez/index.html
It isn't real exciting but we had an amazing sunset... of which I took way to many pictures of.
Once I get Joy's pictures of Alexandria and Cairo I can work on those two pages... Might have Alex done by the end of today (store isn't open so I'm bored) but Cairo is going to be big so it may take awhile.
The sad news is that our summer has ended... the weather in Alexandria is not too bad, cloudy and windy but Turkey is in the high 40s, low 50s so folks are starting to realize they should have brought some cold weather gear. I forsee a run on sweatshirt in the store tomorrow.
Hope everyone is well!!!!
joe
I've decided to split up the Egypt pictures into three sections: Cairo, Suez, and Alexandria. Because Suez has the least amount of pictures I've put that up first.
http://joeandjoy.com/suez/index.html
It isn't real exciting but we had an amazing sunset... of which I took way to many pictures of.
Once I get Joy's pictures of Alexandria and Cairo I can work on those two pages... Might have Alex done by the end of today (store isn't open so I'm bored) but Cairo is going to be big so it may take awhile.
The sad news is that our summer has ended... the weather in Alexandria is not too bad, cloudy and windy but Turkey is in the high 40s, low 50s so folks are starting to realize they should have brought some cold weather gear. I forsee a run on sweatshirt in the store tomorrow.
Hope everyone is well!!!!
joe
Friday, November 03, 2006
Bibliotheca Alexandrina
Greetings from the Alexandria Library... which is amazing. It was just completed in 2004, I think and it is simply beautiful. By far the coolest library i've ever been in. The architecture is what makes it, I really have no idea how the collection is, I do know however that it has the second largest hard-drive in the world and has a picture of every website in the world (so they say)
http://172.16.0.6/English/Overview/overview.htm to check it out. You can tell by the picture how amazing the architecture is.
So far Alexandria has been good, we have a cute little hotel room on the sea, it overlooks the Stanley Bridge, we had Pizza Hut for lunch, which had an amazing view of the Mediterranean and we both wanted pizza. Then we toured some catacombs, and the grounds of an ancient Roman city, complete with large granite pillar. Then walked thru a street market that seemed to go on forever, someplace few foreigners must go, based on the looks we were getting. Finally got a cab to take us to the Library, very nice guy that spoke zero english but got us to the library, almost safe and sound. Right as we were about to get out of the cab... BAAAM... we had a little bumper bender... nothing hurt but the two cars and things got very heated as we tried to slip away from the commotion after handing the driver some money. He even tried to give me change... such a nice guy.
Not sure what we will do for dinner, there is a little ceasar's right next to the pizza hut... yum. We are celebrating our 4 year anniversary here since we will be at sea on the 6th.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my sister... hope you have a good day.
also Adam Warrington's bday but i'm not sure he reads this.
Hope the baby stevens is here... can't wait to meet the little one!!!
hasta ...
http://172.16.0.6/English/Overview/overview.htm to check it out. You can tell by the picture how amazing the architecture is.
So far Alexandria has been good, we have a cute little hotel room on the sea, it overlooks the Stanley Bridge, we had Pizza Hut for lunch, which had an amazing view of the Mediterranean and we both wanted pizza. Then we toured some catacombs, and the grounds of an ancient Roman city, complete with large granite pillar. Then walked thru a street market that seemed to go on forever, someplace few foreigners must go, based on the looks we were getting. Finally got a cab to take us to the Library, very nice guy that spoke zero english but got us to the library, almost safe and sound. Right as we were about to get out of the cab... BAAAM... we had a little bumper bender... nothing hurt but the two cars and things got very heated as we tried to slip away from the commotion after handing the driver some money. He even tried to give me change... such a nice guy.
Not sure what we will do for dinner, there is a little ceasar's right next to the pizza hut... yum. We are celebrating our 4 year anniversary here since we will be at sea on the 6th.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my sister... hope you have a good day.
also Adam Warrington's bday but i'm not sure he reads this.
Hope the baby stevens is here... can't wait to meet the little one!!!
hasta ...
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Egypt & the Suez Canal
I am writing to you from the narrow passageway of the Suez Canal! There are only about 150 of us who are making the transit on the ship through the canal. The others are off frolicking around Egypt. A tough decision to make… to stay in Egypt and find your way to Alexandria on your own, or experience something that not many people do – transit the Suez canal on a ship! Joe and I chose to do the trip not only because it seemed pretty intriguing, but also because some of our favorite people are here on the ship with us. Making the trip up the Suez definitely marks a pretty significant point in our voyage… venturing into the Mediterranean Sea makes it seem like we’re approaching the beginning of the end of our voyage, but I’m trying not to think about it that way.
Anyway – going through the canal should take anywhere from 12 to 18 hours. We started in the line-up of ships at about 10:00am, so we’ll be watching it unfold all day and into the evening. There are a series of three locks in the canal, but I’m told that one can’t really tell when the ship is in one. As I look out off the back deck of the ship I see a vast desert to the west and the city of Port Suez to the east. It is incredible and surreal to be here.
Speaking of surreal experiences, Egypt has – for me – been one of the most unreal ports we’ve arrived in. The history and culture is so ancient, it is difficult to wrap my brain around how OLD everything is!!! Joe and I went on a two-day Semester at Sea trip into Cairo, which was about an hour & a half away from where our ship was docked. It felt like we were traveling through the southwest – the desert is so vast here, but I’m not used to seeing the desert rolling into a great big sea. The Red Sea provides a lot of blue in contrast to the endless dust, brown and orange earth of Egypt.
The first sight of the pyramids in the distance once we arrived in Cairo was absolutely unbelievable. The pyramids are the only wonder of the seven wonders of the ancient world still in existence. They are over 4500 – forty five HUNDRED – years old. The first pyramid we visited is called the Step Pyramid because (shockingly, I know) it was built in the shape of large steps. The construction of the pyramids is mind-blowing; particularly considering the wheel had not even been brought to Egypt at the time of the pyramid construction. Most of the granite stone blocks used to construct the pyramids ranged from about two to fifteen TONS. Until the 19th century, the Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest building in the world! Anyway – we visited the Step Pyramid, and then went to the Egyptian museum which was almost as fascinating as the Hong Kong museum. I’ll spare you museum details, but – again – absolutely incredible to think about how intricate, beautiful and detailed all of the artifacts, jewelry and tombs were… I was blown away.
In the evening we went to “The Sound & Light Show” at the Great Pyramids. This is something that sounded incredibly hokey and cheesy, so I wasn’t expecting much. I didn’t understand why something so historically amazing needed a sound and light show, BUT… just as expectations always help to change your perspective, we actually truly enjoyed the show! It was definitely Vegas-esque, but it was well done, very informative, and illuminated (literally & figuratively) the intrigue of the pyramids. We were very much looking forward to seeing the pyramids at sunrise the following morning.
Our wake-up call was at 4:15 the next morning, so we were a little groggy. The pyramids were located very close to our hotel, so we didn’t have far to travel for the sunrise. In fact, I was shocked to see how close modern civilization bumps up next to the pyramids. It’s an odd sight to be out in the streets of Giza and feel like you can reach out and touch the pyramids.
The sunrise was incredible. They had arranged a special sunrise experience for us at the pyramids, so our Semester at Sea group was the only group there. I won’t try to describe it… Joe has some sweet pictures of it. We spent the entire morning roaming around the three main pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We were also lucky enough to be one of 100 people per day to go into the Great Pyramid. It was almost like being in a cave at first, then we had to shimmy through a claustrophobic tunnel up into one of the shafts that leads to the top of the pyramid. We got to stand in the room where the king’s tomb once lay… is that amazing?!? It felt very spiritual to me. The echoes of the past were definitely present.
After leaving the pyramids, we went to one of the local shopping bazaars in Islamic Cairo. The markets are always one of the most culturally interesting places to me… you really get a sense of the day to day life of Egyptians. It’s very powerful to be going about your daily business, and then to hear the “call to prayer” for the Muslim community. It was very interesting for me to be in a Muslim country after studying Islam and the Qu’ran in grad school. The Middle East is not somewhere I ever thought I’d be… but now that I’m here, I realize what I already knew – that the Middle East is not the stereotypes we hear on the news and in the media of the west. They are beautiful, wonderful amazing people whose culture has not been overly tainted by western influences. While I definitely struggled to comprehend the oppression against women (through my western lenses) and the widespread military presence, I also gained a respect for the conservatism of dress and culture and the importance of religion in everyday life.
Joe and I spent one more night and day in Cairo before returning to the ship late last night. What a great city. We could have stayed longer, but we are off to Alexandria! By late tonight, we’ll be in the Mediterranean Sea!!!
LOVE TO ALL OF YOU!!
Shout-outs:
JOY & JOE’S PARENTAL UNITS: Thanks for being such avid readers of our blog and for commenting so often… we love it!!
CRISTINA – We finally got your card from China – thank you, thank you!!
SARAH & DANNY – No worries about Croatia – we totally understand. You will be missed, though!! We’ll have to plan a different international adventure together!
TNT FRIENDS – KICK SOME BUTT out there in all of your training & events. You’ll have to help whip Joe & I back into shape when we get home. My longest stint on the elliptical machine is about 20 minutes and I’ve only been on the treadmill twice. DOH!
HEIDI & THE PROGRAMS CREW – I miss you guys!!! Hope all is well at C8!!
Anyway – going through the canal should take anywhere from 12 to 18 hours. We started in the line-up of ships at about 10:00am, so we’ll be watching it unfold all day and into the evening. There are a series of three locks in the canal, but I’m told that one can’t really tell when the ship is in one. As I look out off the back deck of the ship I see a vast desert to the west and the city of Port Suez to the east. It is incredible and surreal to be here.
Speaking of surreal experiences, Egypt has – for me – been one of the most unreal ports we’ve arrived in. The history and culture is so ancient, it is difficult to wrap my brain around how OLD everything is!!! Joe and I went on a two-day Semester at Sea trip into Cairo, which was about an hour & a half away from where our ship was docked. It felt like we were traveling through the southwest – the desert is so vast here, but I’m not used to seeing the desert rolling into a great big sea. The Red Sea provides a lot of blue in contrast to the endless dust, brown and orange earth of Egypt.
The first sight of the pyramids in the distance once we arrived in Cairo was absolutely unbelievable. The pyramids are the only wonder of the seven wonders of the ancient world still in existence. They are over 4500 – forty five HUNDRED – years old. The first pyramid we visited is called the Step Pyramid because (shockingly, I know) it was built in the shape of large steps. The construction of the pyramids is mind-blowing; particularly considering the wheel had not even been brought to Egypt at the time of the pyramid construction. Most of the granite stone blocks used to construct the pyramids ranged from about two to fifteen TONS. Until the 19th century, the Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest building in the world! Anyway – we visited the Step Pyramid, and then went to the Egyptian museum which was almost as fascinating as the Hong Kong museum. I’ll spare you museum details, but – again – absolutely incredible to think about how intricate, beautiful and detailed all of the artifacts, jewelry and tombs were… I was blown away.
In the evening we went to “The Sound & Light Show” at the Great Pyramids. This is something that sounded incredibly hokey and cheesy, so I wasn’t expecting much. I didn’t understand why something so historically amazing needed a sound and light show, BUT… just as expectations always help to change your perspective, we actually truly enjoyed the show! It was definitely Vegas-esque, but it was well done, very informative, and illuminated (literally & figuratively) the intrigue of the pyramids. We were very much looking forward to seeing the pyramids at sunrise the following morning.
Our wake-up call was at 4:15 the next morning, so we were a little groggy. The pyramids were located very close to our hotel, so we didn’t have far to travel for the sunrise. In fact, I was shocked to see how close modern civilization bumps up next to the pyramids. It’s an odd sight to be out in the streets of Giza and feel like you can reach out and touch the pyramids.
The sunrise was incredible. They had arranged a special sunrise experience for us at the pyramids, so our Semester at Sea group was the only group there. I won’t try to describe it… Joe has some sweet pictures of it. We spent the entire morning roaming around the three main pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We were also lucky enough to be one of 100 people per day to go into the Great Pyramid. It was almost like being in a cave at first, then we had to shimmy through a claustrophobic tunnel up into one of the shafts that leads to the top of the pyramid. We got to stand in the room where the king’s tomb once lay… is that amazing?!? It felt very spiritual to me. The echoes of the past were definitely present.
After leaving the pyramids, we went to one of the local shopping bazaars in Islamic Cairo. The markets are always one of the most culturally interesting places to me… you really get a sense of the day to day life of Egyptians. It’s very powerful to be going about your daily business, and then to hear the “call to prayer” for the Muslim community. It was very interesting for me to be in a Muslim country after studying Islam and the Qu’ran in grad school. The Middle East is not somewhere I ever thought I’d be… but now that I’m here, I realize what I already knew – that the Middle East is not the stereotypes we hear on the news and in the media of the west. They are beautiful, wonderful amazing people whose culture has not been overly tainted by western influences. While I definitely struggled to comprehend the oppression against women (through my western lenses) and the widespread military presence, I also gained a respect for the conservatism of dress and culture and the importance of religion in everyday life.
Joe and I spent one more night and day in Cairo before returning to the ship late last night. What a great city. We could have stayed longer, but we are off to Alexandria! By late tonight, we’ll be in the Mediterranean Sea!!!
LOVE TO ALL OF YOU!!
Shout-outs:
JOY & JOE’S PARENTAL UNITS: Thanks for being such avid readers of our blog and for commenting so often… we love it!!
CRISTINA – We finally got your card from China – thank you, thank you!!
SARAH & DANNY – No worries about Croatia – we totally understand. You will be missed, though!! We’ll have to plan a different international adventure together!
TNT FRIENDS – KICK SOME BUTT out there in all of your training & events. You’ll have to help whip Joe & I back into shape when we get home. My longest stint on the elliptical machine is about 20 minutes and I’ve only been on the treadmill twice. DOH!
HEIDI & THE PROGRAMS CREW – I miss you guys!!! Hope all is well at C8!!
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