First few hours in India you wouldn’t believe how dirty I am. I had khaki linen pants on, they are a shade darker and despite having sneakers on my socks are now black and all of the way up to my knees are covered in dirt. We walked around Chennai while waiting for my field trip tonight, a Welcome Reception in which we get henna tattoos and attend an outdoor fair and are able to purchase jewelry and clothing. There were many school children out for lunch and they all wanted their pictures with us and were doing tricks so we would take pictures of them. We taught them to ‘high five,’ they loved it!! As we were walking away we caught them all high five-ing each other. This morning I attended a yoga demonstration where master yogis came in a showed up their moves. Crazy contortionists...my back hurt just looking at them! And I thought sun salutation was hard enough! hahaha. Miss you all, am dying of thirst and need about three more showers but I’m excited for tonight and for what is to come on this trip. Love you guys bigger than the sky!!! B

Nam

Well, here I am on the 7th deck in the 100 degree weather. We will be arriving in India tomorrow morning and I could not be more ecstatic. This week on the boat, in between Vietnam and here, has been so jam packed and stressful--I apologize I didn’t have time to write about Ho Chi Min. I honestly think I can say with solitude that Vietnam has been my favorite stop (we’ll see about that after India!). To all of our surprise the people were extremely welcoming and eager to learn about us and America. Parents of students met us in the port and I’m sure everyone was glad to see their family after such a long time. Our first mission was to have linen pants tailor made for India, and for Matt a suit made for the Ambassadors Ball. A shuttle service was set up for us from the port to downtown at the Rex Hotel-one famous in movies and where American soldiers used to relax in Vietnam. We walked around and tried a few different places, not many spoke english, that was until we found Son and her store. There were beautiful satin dresses, linen pants, shirts and skirts all custom made for your body. We picked out colors, designs, and linen material, paid half and were told to return in two days. For Matt, finding a male tailor was a little bit harder. Us girls (Andrea, Erica and I) stayed at a coffee house-Vietnam is the second largest coffee exporter in the world-while Matt went around on a scooter with a native trying places out. You wouldn’t believe how many scooters there are in this country. It really is a rarity to see a car that isn’t a taxi. Thousands of them come swarming once the traffic light turns. There are no rules for pedestrians here, a reoccuring theme in Asia I will not take for granted when I return. When you feel comfortable, you cross, with authority, and the scooters just all go around you (by a centimeter). I was able to visit the Cu Chi Tunnels that the Viet Kong used with Matt which was entirely moving. We learned about the logistics of setting up the tunnels-multiple entrances, dead end entrances to throw off American soldiers, traps made of sharpened bamboo fill with snake venom, smoke transfers from the kitchen stove, air pockets, plumbing systems, escape routes, everything you can image these people thought of. We got to go through a portion of the tunnel, it was funny to see Matt, a 6’3” man, try and go through ;) The tunnels are so small that you have to go on your hands and knees, we all got SO dirty. At the end we came out to a model of what a bedroom would look like-there’s a hammock and a bucket for the bathroom and a table to eat at. I also had the opportunity to visit a Cao Dai Temple service. Caodaiism is a religion based on joint beliefs of Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism. The temple was absolutely gorgeous, a rainbow full of colors and I could see how all three religions were incorporated. During the ceremony all the members are dressed in white and seated on their knees. They are chanting along with music that is being played on the top deck of the structure and believe in Buddha. It was a strange and foreign religion to me, but you really could feel some sort of spirit in the air. The colorful decor really had something to do with that I think, such a happy feeling all around. The next day I visited a deaf orphanage/school with SAS and brought them to the zoo. This was one of the toughest experiences of my life. The kids are still kids and need an adults help and to have a constant eye on them, which I’m used to, but what made it so hard was that these kids could not hear, and I could not understand their needs. I was in charge of a ten year old girl named Ti who was the sweetest thing ever. I bought her ice cream at the zoo and she gave me a kiss and signed the ASL sign for I love you. She was very calm and patient with me, since I was the one entering into her world not vice versa. All of the kids were so beautiful and so happy to see us. We brought them toys to play with, the big favorite was a remote control car-other things like bubbles, play doh, stickers, and coloring books with crayons. At the end of the zoo trip it was so hard to say goodbye to them, Ti literally had held my hand the whole way through the zoo. When it came time to drop them off at their school and they all high fived us and gave us hugs and kisses and waved goodbye as our air conditioned motor coach drove away. I’ll never forget that experience-entirely humbling. As was all of Vietnam. There was such poverty and so much to learn and see, mostly about forgiveness. It is incredible that Americans are still welcomed into a country we wreaked so much havoc on. Some students went to the War Remnants Museum and said there were pictures of American soldiers dead or injured and preserved babies who died from deformities. Before we arrived at Ho Chi Min we had a panel of war veterans and protesters who happen to be on the ship with us to talk about the Vietnam War. Nothing could prepare me for that. It was a war so close to our time and effects most of our families yet no textbooks really explain it to us. To see actual veterans cry in front of a bunch of college students over their experiences made me wonder how much Vietnam impacted them if it impacted me so much. I’ll always take Vietnam with me. I love you all bigger than the sky...B!

Nirvana

I’m writing this on Wednesday, February 23th around nine p.m. I can’t believe that China is over!! Shanghai and Hong Kong seemed to have gone way too fast. My first day in Shanghai, Feb 16th, Andrea, Brittney, Mariel Matt and myself all went to see the Jade Buddha Temple. Our first task to concur, and one we never really overcame, was communicating with the cab drivers, who spoke less than zero english-if that’s possible. It took about three cabs to get the point across where we wanted to go, and another that was willing to follow because only four passengers were allowed in a single cab. Our second task was staying alive through this cab drive. You would not believe the rules of the road here. Pedestrians have no right of way, but even when they’re crossing at the appropriate time and place cars still bully their way through with their horns. We clipped several people on our way and just continued to our destination. They also drive really old VW’s that clearly have transmission problems because the gears grind, the tale pipes push out a near solid form of gas and the engine would periodically turn off if at a stop too long. But all of this chaos was forgotten once I stepped into the Temple. It was 22 Yuan to enter, next to nothing. The Grand Hall, also called the Great Hall, which is the first building you see, has many statues. There are the Three Golden Buddhas, Guatama Buddha, Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru, then the Gods of the Twenty Heavens, the 18 Arhats and last Guanyin, Shen Cai and his 53 teachers above him. Around all of these statues were gorgeous hand picked flowers, which are replenished every day. Thorough the temple the smell of incense was close by because in-front of this building were huge pots where incense sticks they could be lit and then brought to the different statues. If you keep walking the Jade Buddha Chamber is to your left when you exit the Grand Hall. There are no pictures allowed in this section, but the amount of work that went into these Buddhist sculptures was truly fascinating. On the way out we got to rub the Buddha belly and near the gift shop and lady brought us upstairs for a tea tasting free of charge! There were all sorts of teas which promoted different things. One would help with digestion, another with cancer, and another still with headaches. All of them were so delicious. We learned how to brew each one and had the opportunity to buy blessed tea and beautiful porcelain cups. After that, the plan was to take a cab to the Bund to do some shopping but our cabs accidentally separated so Andrea and Brittney ended up at a different end then Mariel, Matt and myself. We will made the best of it and had a delicious lunch inside and some drinks to get into the bargaining mood. The Bund building itself was a very riche shopping mall which is where we had lunch but if you went down the road a ways you found a small souvenir shop with escalators to a downstairs which is where the real magic happened. There was everything from Northface to Rolex to jewelry, antique paintings, t-shirts to stuffed animals and everything was negotiable. We went into so many “secret, secret rooms” full from the ground to the ceiling with purses and bargained things down to cents in American dollars. It was fun for a while but soon it got to the point where people would pull you and follow you asking you to buy so it got old after about an hour. We were thankful to get out of that basement building and into civilization. Mariel and I both had to use the bathroom so we went into another mall and found.......a Dunkin Donuts!!!!!! It was so exciting we couldn’t even contain ourselves. We literally ran across the mall towards it. Once again we had to risk our lives to get back to the boat in a taxis. This time was even worse than the first. Our cab driver was so lost getting back to the ship, he even brought us to the wrong side of the river. We had to direct him where to go! Looking back of course it was really funny, but at the time it was really scary not knowing where we were or how to communicate. You learn a lot about yourself when you’re uncomfortable and that’s a lesson I think we’re all learning on this voyage, more and more with each country. That night I went to an area called People’s Palace with Matt, Mariel (Snookie) and Heather and met up with Brittney and An. We found a place with a 60 Yuan cover charge--again basically nothing, this city is so cheap!!--for all you can drink. They played all American songs and everything was VIP, we couldn’t believe it! Because it was Chinese New Year and it is the year of the tiger there were performers dressed in risk-ay tiger costumes. We were literally the only white people in there so everyone was paying us a ton of attention and we were invited to dance on stage with these performers and everyone wanted pictures with us. I never really expected for anyone on this trip to be excited to see a bunch of white kids. For some reason I assumed that most countries really didn’t appreciate America--the reality is the opposite. The whole trip people were staring at us, and so excited to practice their english and took pictures with us. One girl said a family took a picture with her while she was holding their new born baby! It really is such a strange feeling to be the center of attention or to have eyes always on you because you are the minority-I never experienced that.
The next morning Andrea and Brittney were off to Beijing so it was just Matt Mariel and I. We went in search for the Yu Gardens and Bazzar shopping area. I now know just what people mean when they say packed like sardines. There were so many people in the Bazzar area of Pudong. The whole place smelt of putrid urine but it was absolutely hilarious. So much shopping and everything was decorated for the new year. People were walking around with meat on a stick that looked like tiny whole chinckens fried and burnt--needless to say we did not eat in this area, but we did do a ton of shopping...yes, more shopping. We never found the Yu Gardens, everything was so hectic and no one spoke english to help us so we went back to the Bund area to have dinner. We ate a traditional Chinese dinner where you order different plates for the whole table, like pineapple chicken and honey chicken and rice and noodles etc and everyone gets their own plate. They food was...interesting. A lot of different smells and tastes for me, too many! But there were some really good spices to put on top which I loved and we all ordered a drink called “Around the World” because we thought it was appropriate :)
The last day all of my friends but Matt were gone so we both slept in a bit and then went up to the Pearl Tower to get a view of all of Shanghai. It felt very similar to the Empire State Buidling, a ton of long lines but well worth the wait. The building is made of eleven different pearls and we went up to the second highest (the higher the ball the more money). Engraved into the building is a poem about the sound of pearls hitting jade and how beautiful it is. The view was spectacular and you could really see all the construction that was going on in the city. We could also see our ship, the zoom on my camera could see all the way onto the seventh deck!
The next two days were spent sailing to Hong Kong on the ship. It was very quite, only 100 of us sailed, most others were in Beijing. It was nice to catch up on sleep and be able to relax. It seems that for the past month or so we have either been in class or in port and haven’t had a lot of down time. They played a ton of movies for us, including F.R.I.E.N.D.S. which made me incredibly home sick for Greta and just my friends in general. But we arrived in Hong Kong rested and ready to go!! Matt went off to Macau island, the Las Vegas of Asia with his friends and I bummed around the city with Maria while we both waited for our friends to get back from Beijing and the Great Wall. Our port terminal was part of a mall with free Wi-Fi which was totally convenient and that was my first task-talk to family and upload pictures. We got a bite to eat inside the mall and bought a forty of Chinese beer called Blue Girl. An was due to come back around 1 p.m. so we didn’t have much time. She came back with lots of stories about the Great Wall, I really wish I had gone but Dad keeps saying next time I come back ;) An and I walked around Hong Kong, looking for places to shop but we quickly found it was not like Shanghai at all. It was more expensive, much more. There were a ton of designer shops, even Dolce & Gabana kids!! Some how inside this city we found a floating garden which was totally unexpected. There were fountains and animals and people having picnics. It was so nice to be around nature again!! At the end of the park there was a great view of Hong Kong’s skyline and a Hookah Bar where we sat and got a bite to eat and some drinks, Green Peace for An and Easy Lover for me! It catches me by surprise everytime when we see european restaurants, I bet this was the last of them until South Africa so we tried to take advantage. We got back to the ship just as the sun was setting and managed to take naps before we went out. An’s roommate and her boyfriend, An, myself and Maria all took the ferry to Hong Kong Island (we had been in Kowloon) to Lockheart Street, the supposed night life area. We conquered the foreign subway and after almost giving up finding it we finally made it to the area and were very surprised. We had forgotten it was Sunday night and also the Chinese New Year. Nothing was open but a British Pub with live music-so naturally we went right in!! They lured us in with Lady Gaga’s Poker Face...how do we find these places!!?? They had all British and American beer, we ordered Coronas and nachos, so gooooood!!! While they were there Let It Be came on and I had to take a deep breath and soak all of this in. It was one of those moments when you really think to yourself, I’m the luckiest person alive, and couldn’t be happier. Thank you George Harrison. The song also made me miss my friends from back home and I began to think about Kollin and was hoping everyone was staying safe. We danced the night away and had fun talking to all of the British people, learning their stories of how they somehow made it to Hong Kong. When we got back on the ship we all passed out as fast as possible.
The 22nd Andrea, Jenna, Emily, Abigail and I all went to see Tian Tan Buddha this is the largest, seated, outdoor bronze Buddha statue in the world. We took a ferry to Hong Kong Island and then the subway to Lantau Island. We then bought tickets to a cable car ride up the mountain and to the Buddha statue. Although it was foggy the view were still spectacular. We practically saw the whole island and were so high up in the air!! I couldn’t believe how big the Buddha actually was. It is said that you can see the statue from Macau Island, where Matt was--I wonder if he could!! There were 251 steps all of the way up and was such an incredible view. Once we got up there it started to clear up, like a sign, and we got some amazing pictures. At the bottom of the mountain where the Tian Tan Buddha sits is the Po Lin Monastery, an obviously Buddhist Monastery. The main temple building has three bronze statues representing the Buddha of the past, present and future. When we got back to the ship and the mall, An and I found a California Pizza Kitchen and ordered our weight in food--including avocado club egg rolls. I miss them so much!!!! We took a quick nap before going out for the night. It was our friend Victoria’s birthday, a student who lived in Hong Kong until she was ten, and visits often. This night was probably the most fun I’ve had on the trip so far, and that’s seriously saying a lot because I have nothing bad to say!! We found the street where literally everyone from SAS was. Everyone was partying and hanging out on the street which was full of bars and music and there was dancing and love and happiness.
Exhaustion set in the next morning and after getting up early to skype with family I needed more sleep. An and I napped in my room until 1 pm and then we went to Hong Kong Island for one last walk around the city. We found a Zara and I bought new jean shorts, which I needed, because I hear it is 90 degrees in Vietnam!! The Star Ferry was so much fun, I think that’s the only reason we even went out! We had to the be on the ship by 1800 and we both wanted more internet time so we went back to CPK, just because it’s heaven, and then got back onboard.
As we were pulling out of the harbor there was a huge laser light show on all the buildings in Hong Kong Island and I got great video of it. Also Matt and I were reunited and it was great to see him after almost three days apart. We watched the show from the fifth deck and talked about our days apart from each other. He was so lucky! He stayed at a 5 star hotel and everything was free, including steak dinner, bowls upon bowls of fresh pineapple and a kitchen full of food. His friend Alec’s father is a professional gambler so they all got the star treatment. So jealous!! But it was nice to have a separate experiences and miss each other for a bit.
I got used to having free internet in Hong Kong, I miss it!!! I loved seeing you all and skyping and I really really hope that I’ll have some in Vietnam. The plan is two FDP’s, one for the Cu Chi tunnels and Cao Di Temple and the other to a deaf orphanage and we’ll visit the zoo with them! I’m so excited, exhausted and really need to get my school work in order. I hope you’re getting my postcards!!! I love you all bigger than the sky!! xoxoxo B

Japannn!!!!

I’m writing this Monday night, the 15th just after our pre-port lecture for China. Sorry this is coming so late, but not only did Japan take a lot out of everyone, we had to come right back on the ship and get back into school, tests and papers!! Not complaining though because Japan was totally unforgettable. It was quite an odd place to visit--and I never quite got used to it! It is custom to travel as quietly as possible in Japan, something American teenagers are incapable of. This means the trains, subways, buses and even the streets are impressively quite and we had trouble remembering this much of the time. Also the Japanese travel around with their own trash-bags and disposable ashtrays in their bags, so finding garbage cans were near impossible! My purse ended up as a makeshift trash for most of our group. The people were impressively friendly and helpful. A number of times, when we were lost or unsure of which train to get on, Japanese citizens would come up to us, knowing we were english speaking and utterly confused by all the Japanese scripture, and would offer us help in english. I was really pleased to see how interested the people were with us, how eager they were to practice their english and how helpful they were. I heard from more then one person that sometimes when they asked for directions, people would ride the subways to their stops, get out and bring them to their destination, going completely out of the way for them. It was a very nice change from America and made me want to bring random acts of kindness like that to the states. Those are my reflective thoughts on Japan, now for the dirty details :)
To get off the boat we had to go through customs, sign paper work and even have our temperature taken via our pointer finger. Once we got off the boat, around 1 pm (we were extremely because of rough seas) Yudai, Matt, Mac, Sam, Mason, Brittney, Brooke, I all headed straight for the train to Tokyo. Our group’s members had some things to get done on the way to Tokyo so Mac, Sam, Matt Mason and I were left to hang out while they got their Indian visas figured out at the Japanese Indian Consulate. We found a 7-Eleven, surprisingly, and had our first dose of crazy Japanese snacks. They had these delicious sour gummy snacks (which by the end of the trip Matt had tried all 10 flavors) and hot rice cakes full of beer which became a favorite of mine. They looked like balls of uncooked dough, and had a similar texture, but inside there was a crazy mixture of beef which resembled pulled pork and was colored orange. We also all had our first taste of authentic Japanese beer!! Sapporo becaues a favorite of mine, along with Suntory. They were nice and cheap in the convenient stores like that so we opted to buy them there instead of going to bars where they were 600 or 700 Yen a glass--(a little over $6-$8) After everyones visas were straightened out we headed to our hotel which we had books a few weeks ago, the Star Hotel in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo. It was very modern and to our surprise had an english speaking floor (the 5th floor) which we stayed on. Matt, Mason, Andrea and I all stayed in one and Mac, Sam and Yudai in the other. It was VERY entertaining watching Matt try and shower and walk around this hotel, he had to duck in every doorway ahahah. By this time the sun was about to set and we were to meet Andrea after her SAS trip at the Tokyo Tower at seven. We all grabbed a quick shower and went to Yudai’s favorite ramen noodle restaurant, a tiny whole in the wall which indeed did have amazing food, with funny english translations. Matt and Mason order the “Painful Ramen” and I ordered the “Salty Ramen” and pork dumplings. After satisfying our appetites we hopped on the subway to Tokyo Tower to go rescue Andrea :) It was a beautiful sight--a recreation of the Eiffel Tower up on the top there was a 360 degree view and you could see all of Tokyo at night. The city is massive, 10 Manhattans and the it looks just as exciting as Vegas. On the highest level there were computers which duplicated a picture of the view and labeled the buildings. Another computer showed an arial view of Tokyo and you could change the dynasty and time to see the modernization of the city. It started with family names and the land they owned, all the way to its current picture. After Tokyo tower, we rushed back to the hotel to get ready for our first dose of karaoke! We all went to a popular spot around town that Yudai frequents--it was $40 from 11 pm to 5 am and all you can drink. Your group rents our their own room which has strobe and laser lights and a collection of percussion to use. This place had more english songs then Japanese. Everything from Brittney Spears and Backstreet Boys, to the Beach Boys, Almond Brothers Band, Matisyahu, Led Zeplin and Limp Bizcuit. Andrea and I rocked them all and we left at 4:45.
The next morning, half of the group went to the fish market in town to get sushi. The other half woke up with no voice and starving!! Without Yudai we were quite lost so we went back to the same place he took us for ramen and ordered the same delicious meals again, only ate it twice as fast. Most of us had run out of cash by this point and only very few places in Japan take American credit cards so we walked around for an hour or so trying to find a place. Eventually, a few banks later and a lot of help from the locals we found a Citi Bank that took our Mastercards. The group then all met back up, adding two (Tom and Justin) to go to Yudai’s house 30 minutes away. I was surprised to see a very modern looking American two floor house with an impeccable garden. But once you looked inside it was a different story. The house was very Japanese and had many Buddhist sculptures and even a shrine where Yudai taught us all how to pray. His mother made us all treats and brewed us all tea and we sat down and talked while Yudai translated. They let us all use their phone to call our families but it was early in the morning and almost no one picked up. Both his parents were very gracious and tooks lots of pictures of us. They were so proud to have their son home. Yudai goes to school in Texas and only comes home for the summers so I’m sure he was excited as well. There were pictures and trophies of him for all kinds of sports and certificates of school completion. After a few hours we all left and headed for a shamisen store Matt had in mind. There, he bought one for a nice bargain price and hasn’t stopped playing since. Along with the shamisen he got a music book and a CD to get him into the mood. He plans to blow you all away with it come this May hahaha. On the way back to the train to the hotel we found another hole in the wall to eat at. This wasn’t just any other hole in the wall however, there were autographs all over the wall of famous visitors, actors, rulers and scholars. Yudai was totally impressed to be eating where they all ate-he said it was the second best ramen he had ever had! That night was karaoke round two, same place, same time, even more music and a bigger room.
The third day in Tokyo we decided to visit Harajuku street which was hysterical. It was about half a mile long and had tons of vendors and some great shopping. It was a great place to hang out and we saw a lot of fellow SASers. There was a store that was actually in the Frommers guide called Condomania--an entire store dedicated to condoms and safe sex. There was also a Nike store, three floors high that was decorated entirely with Nike shoes. On the ceilings, hanging from shoe strings were all the models of Nike sneakers they have had and on the walls all different designs with the different parts of the shoes--the tongues, the soles, the laces etc. It was really funky but we were not allowed to take pictures. Just near I had the best strawberry belgian waffles I have ever had, it was nice to have some American food even though I told myself I wouldn’t. :) Down the road we visited our first temple, the Meiji Jingu Temple. The actual entrance was a long driveway lined with some gorgeous art work done in barrels of Saki, and some interesting plant life. Before entering the temple we had to cleanse our mouths and hands with natural spring water running into a trench. There were bamboo cups and the water was freeeezing!! It had already been sprinkling so we were all pretty cold. Inside was really moving, a scene I could crucify explaining and a feeling I wouldn’t even attempt. I was able to buy a wooden prayer which I could write on and hang on the gates of the temple to come true. I wished everyone home health while I was away and the ability to take in everything this trip has to offer and let it change be for the better.
That night we were to catch an over night bus to Kyoto at 11 pm to see more temples. To make it short and sweet, the seats were smaller than airplane seets, we had to blankets or pillows and we were soaking wet from walking around all day. It was a double decker and we were on top so it felt like we were back on the ship we were rocking so bad. Needless to say none of us got sleep and it was hilarious. We were woken up by a recording or birds and blinking lights at 7 am. We put our bags in bus lockers and purchased all day bus passes...by we I mean we handed Yudai the money and he did everything because no one spoke english hahaha. Our first temple was an hour away, it took us an hour and a half because we missed the stop we were supposed to get off at because we all fell asleep on the bus due to lack of sleep. The town was very traditional and entirely on a mountain. Our first temple we saw was at the Old Imperial Palace Sohanzan Ninna-Ji. It served as the residence of the ex-emperor Uda and is now the Omuro School of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism. There were two tea houses and many sculptures, paintings, calligraphy, lacquered works and ceramic artifacts. There was also a huge cherry blossom field which would have been much more impressive in the spring. The second temple we visited was the Kinkaku-Ji Temple, more commonly known as the Golden Temple. In the center of the land is a pond, Mirror Pond, with an island where a building made out of gold lays radiating light throughout the compound. Throughout the area were bowls carved out of stone which you threw in Yen and made a wish. I lost about 300 Yen trying. By this time we were all entirely too exhausted to go an inch further so we went back to the bus station, grabbed our bags and hopped on a train to meet the ship in Kobe. Once we got back to the ship, around 3 pm we all slept until dinner at 7 and then went out for our last night of karaoke of course!!! It was a great way to end the trip and it was nice to hang out with girls after two days straight with boys hahaha. The next day we tried to find internet (apparently non existent in Japan) but it was nice to see the city and to finally come back to the ship and unpack and let my feet recover.
Japan was hectic, exhausting and gave me 5 blisters on my feet, but I learned a lot about traveling and a lot about a new culture and new way of life.
Next stop is China!! We had a tiny Valentines Day party on the ship and celebrated by playing catch phrase. There were ship Valentines cards sent out and I recieved a few, but nothing more then that. I hope you all had a great V-day and a good Presidents day off to all you teachers!! I’ll skype while in Shanghai and Hong Kong!! I love you all bigger than the sky xooxxo B

Hi all!! It’s Monday just after noon and we just finished watching the 44th Super Bowl!! Go Saints! New Orleans needed that, I’m happy for them :) It was hilarious to watch the Super Bowl while we’re going through these rough seas. We streamed it off ESPN Live and showed it in the Union. everyone had to stay off the internet in order to do so. It was not good quality at all and would freeze, but who else can say they watched the Super Bowl in the middle of the Pacific Ocean!! We will actually be delayed arriving in Japan because last night we literally were going 5 knots because of the gnarly swells. They haven’t told us how long but we’re all really upset about that :( Today however, we have off because it is Asian Day!! There are tons of activities around the ship (after the Super Bowl of course haha)--things like, karaoke, learning to eat with chop sticks, meditation, Qi Gong etc. We’re also being treated with Japanese cuisine tonight...hopefully it will be good!! I finished my one minute movie for Digital Storytelling and my teacher loved it. The videographer of the ship (Henry) came in and critiqued as well and the only thing he said was, this is a great example of storytelling and the abilities of editing...I was so proud of myself. I’ll try and send the file to a few people while I’m in Tokyo, and have internet, and you all can pass it along.
Plans for Japan:
Get off in Yokohama and grab a train to Tokyo with Matt, Yudai, Mac, and Sam and we will meet Andrea and Tom there. Yudai will be showing us around and taking us to cool places, which I’m excited to get a natives perspective of the land rather than walking around aimlessly. We will get a hotel that night, one with lots of internet so I can talk to you all!! From there, I believe we will be going to Kyoto and Hiroshima but we have Yudai to help bring us around so we’re really not worried and not making any definite plans. We won’t be traveling with the ship to Kobe, we will be meeting up with them there the night before and Matt and I would like to check out a castle nearby from the 7th century. We have all decided there must be Karaoke involved so I know we will be doing that and meeting Yudai’s family.
I will also be buying my ticket to Rio de Janero in Brazil while in Japan and possibly my villa in Mauritius.
I’m missing you all quite a bit and can not wait to be on land and talk to you. My email is back working and the weather from here to Japan should be clear so email me all you want everyone!! Love you all bigger than the sky...B

Sorry I haven't been updating or responding to emails. Things are screwy on the ship because we're trying to go around a storm and going 190 miles out of the way...tonight will be an interesting night. Everything on the ship is tied down and I've safely secured all my belongings. I'll let you know when I'm on the other side!! Love you all!!