Ship Life – It’s a VOYAGE, not a cruise!!

Both times we’ve returned from our Semester at Sea (SAS) adventures, friends ask us what our favorite place was.  After struggling to choose just one place, we have realized that the ship itself is among the most memorable places on Semester at Sea, although it seldom gets the attention the ports get.  We spend over ½ of our time aboard our floating home surrounded by the students, faculty, staff and families that have become our lifelong friends. 

People often think of SAS as a cruise and it is almost hard to convey just how different it is from a cruise.  In fact, the word “cruise”, along with “boat”, are dirty words on board – it’s a “voyage” and a “ship”!  On the ship, we immerse ourselves into campus life and integrating into the close-knit community.  The ship was not only our floating bedroom, it was also our classroom, our exercise room, our dining room, our social life, our tranquility and basically – our community & town.   Some of our favorite times on the journey were during the long stretches on the ship.  From Cape Town to Buenos Aires we sailed for 12 days without seeing land, and from Rio to Manaus we sailed for 9 days along Brazil’s coast and far up the Amazon River. 

On the ship we learned and socialized with passionate professors, negotiators that helped end Apartheid and even the US Ambassador to Brazil.  Not to mention the time we get to spend in and out of class with the amazing students on board – there is a lot of inspiration to be found in the college students on board.  We learned by listening and studying on the ship, and following that with opportunities to experience first-hand what we learned in class by doing things like staying in townships in Cape Town or in hammocks in the Amazon jungle.  Travel Rule #4 from our Global Studies professor was: “The more you know, the more interesting it is” and it is certainly true in international travel.  He also suggests that your age should never exceed the number of countries that you have visited – a luxury for sure but a worthy goal.  And you can always shift the focus to states or cities or concerts or whatever is your passion.  The point is to get out and experience things.

Our experience was so much improved by developing relationships and sharing time with our fellow voyagers – students, faculty, staff and crew who are now part of our extended family.  And our learning was broadened so much by seeing the journey through others’ eyes – whether that came through class discussions, post port reflections or cocktails while watching the sunset.  We’d like to thank all of our shipmates for making our time with you a rich, rewarding experience. 

Pictures speak a thousand words.  We have thousands of photos we would like to share with you, but here are just a few.