Regrets

It is easy to have regrets while on this trip. You have more than enough time to think. And think. And think some more. But the thinking you do, is the irrational type. We don't really think clear lol. Like our thought process is that of people already used to ship life and just being abroad at this point. So naturally, trying to sort out some of these regrets or expressing this stuff to some people back home is totally worthless. I went off on my best friend a few times. I was pretty down on myself for not having gone on big, touristy trips. Thanks to ETS, I have had this experience fully funded. I personally looked through the list of SAS trips and all that I've done was chosen by me. I took the requirements for my classes which are all service based, and I looked at the magnitude of this experience in general, and I weighed it. The best way I could see to use monies that weren't mine was to make sure that I indulged in every opportunity to give back to others. Having done tons of service and homestays/visits in previous countries, I can say that I have had an authentic connection or appreciation of the countries we have come to know and respect. My logic for passing on the Rio (Brazil) Taj Mahal (India),  Ankor Wat (Cambodia), Great Wall (China) packages was that they would always be there. It didn't make sense to me to land in one part of a country and spend hours to a day or so commuting to an entire different part of that country. You lost more time, and you didn't get to experience the port of which we arrived in. The SAS ports change every semester and the probability of us going to some of the smaller or less touristy areas is a lot slimmer when we travel abroad on our own in general. For example, I am very very pleased with the way I spent my time in Takoradi, Ghana. Takoradi is not an ideal tourist attraction. But I wouldn't know how the Ghananian people lived, if I had bypassed it and simply went to Accra and Elmira. Take Capetown, South Africa. IT WAS ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS! I loved every bit of it. I could have did a lot of awesome SAS trips like wine tasting. But then I wouldn't have left the touristy coast of Capetown and saw what was beyond the beautiful and into the heart of an ugly Apartheid past...Wouldn't have done my Township homestay and met Mama Titi, Tumi and Nladte. I wouldn't have met Eugene. I wouldn't have done Habitat for Humanity and help finish a house for a low-income family, or checked out Robben Island and visit Nelson Mandela's cell.  Rio in Brazil is a known hot spot. I know that I can get there again. The chances of me going deep into the Amazon, going back to that village we stayed and the school we helped remodel? Zero to none. Most of my friends who did the Taj trip had to fly to Delhi because it was expensive to fly directly to the area of the Taj directly from where we were. Then they had to fly/take a sleeper train from there... you get where I am going with this. Chennai was quite a city... Nothing like it. Again, more time lost and costly. Great experiences heading where they went of this I am sure, but as intense and saddening as my Disabled Children's home visit or Rotarian (3 days/2 nights) homestay was, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. It was important for me to have that experience with my eventual host family and find a reason to like India again. I have built a fond connection with the family and they gave us their addresses, emails and phone numbers. They told us whenever we are in India to stay with them, and that is my intention. That time around, I hope to make the Taj Mahal part of my itinerary. Viet Nam had a variety of things going on and there were such vast differences within the (South and North) country that leaving and going to Cambodia never even crossed my mind. If I'd done the Great Wall trip I would have left the day we arrived in Hong Kong for Beijing which goes back to my comment about missing out on actual stops (Shanghai) on this itinerary. Both of which are two of my now favorite ports. Gotta say, I didn't feel so confident in my decision though when I took in account the emptiness of the ship. It was like everyone was in on a great idea, and I missed the memo...or rather I saw it and actually refused it lol. But when I stopped thinking about what everyone else was doing, and my sudden reasons for wanting to do it (and what had changed from my original planning), I realized that the pressure of just saying or being among those to say I did it, was far more prevalent than my actual desire to do it. At my core I knew my purpose was the same. I just resented feeling like the oddball. Or the soon to come conversations with people who would exchange pity glances because I missed out on the experience... ahh... annoying. But I took the time to do catch up on homework and engage in conversations with people on the ship and recording music with John... and suddenly I found myself again. I had disappeared for sometime after India and I was a functioning (although quite questionable for those who really know me) depressed person. Because of my RA duty and just general nature, it is difficult to not be social even if one isn't fully "healed" or suffering... I talked about it in my previous posts... but regardless of how you are feeling, we live for the social scene. It is so important on this trip. I had to take some time and look over the pictures of our past ports. It is humbling and very helpful. It felt nice to have clarity again and to become aware of all that I've done, and all that I will do. I can't tell you how odd it is to see what we've done and to feel so detached where we have these types of silly regrets/dissatisfaction. Proof again of the social pressures I've mentioned. I mean, it was almost as though I'd been sleepwalking... or like I've awakened from a coma of some sort. You forget what you've done, who you've seen, how you've helped. Then my India experience just threw me all outta wack emotionally and mentally. I think the proper word is traumatized and like I mentioned, I hadn't been able to relax since then... and while I was physically engaged in port and ship activities, my body carried stress (ie. that $60 7 seas ship massage I tried). I don't think at this point of the trip or just with a SAS program of this sort of intensity, that I would fully appreciate any of the world wonders if I'd went then. I want to come back and visit (preferably with family/friends)in a much more mentally/emotionally calm stable state and not processing yet another cool thing... that will become another cool thing. The over all resolution is that having done what we've done through SAS, we will not see the benefits until months after we've had time to process. It is so much overstimulation happening lol, it is impossible to really process. We were in what?  3 countries within one week at one point... nuts. I give myself 10 years. I have visas for 12 different countries, and know of 2 great stops within U.S. territories to return to thanks to SAS (San Juan, Puerto Rico and Hilo, Hawai'i). I visiting whether for a week or a few days whether in the summer or something is feasible. Hey, I'm a globe trotter now =)

2nd day of Shanghai, China

So... I am wrote about today's experience. It was alot fresher and rolled off my tongue. I will write about yesterday's (our 1st night in Shanghai) experience tomorrow lol. I also finished and posted a lot of stuff tonight in terms of blog wise so I am exhausted. It is 3:16 am. Catch ya on the flip side. Happy reading:

It is is 20:27 or 8:27 pm. I believe today is the 31st of March. Never really know lol. It is the 2nd of our three days in Shanghai, China. I gotta tell you. I absolutely LOVE SHANGHAI! I've had such a blast. The weather is up my alley. It is cold. Lol. It was sooooo exciting and great to have to bundle up and wear a coat, scarves, gloves and hats. We've been experiencing the sub-tropical humidity and heat that it was so necessary to have a brief intermission. So what have I done? Today I had my SAS trip called “Tasting the Everyday Life of a Shanghai Citizen.” There were 26 students signed up for it but only 7 and our trip leader Juliana Acheson showed up. It was perfect just the way it was though. Our English-Chinese trip guide Joe was awesome and the woman we met at the Community Center who accompanied us for the bulk of the remaining day was equally as amazing. We went there to check out the facility and talk about the services. When we first walked into room we were given tea and sat on couches. Joe translated for her, but it was just cute to watch their interaction. They were soo funny and just warm. It was so nice to be around them and it was a great diversion from the standoff mentality that we had experienced in some other countries. Seriously, they were so open and personable. So the community center we were in was for the immediate community of 95,000 residents. Pretty large. 60% were manual workers. The other 40% were an assortment of doctors, government employees, teachers etc. 10% of the population were children. Joe explained the One Child policy and the exceptions. For example, parents who were also single children were allowed to have two children; those infertile could have another try, those of the minority population in rural areas of China (Tibetans, Taiwanese etc) could have a 2nd child. Because it was the child's duty to take care of the parents and grandparents it would only be possible if they had a 2nd child given those specific circumstances. But majority of Chinese were bound under the one child policy and believed that they had to produce one quality child which explained the competitive spirit for perfectionism. Another interesting tidbit was that the Chinese retirement age versus the American retirement age. Women who worked in the manual labor force retired at 54 years old; those in the mental work force retired at 55 years old. Men retired at 65 years old. The life expectancy for Chinese men was 79 and for women was 82. Consequently most of the people who used the community center were senior citizens since most of the residents worked or were in school. She showed us the computer room where there were courses to teach the older folks how to use the internet etc., the reading room where people came and read magazines, newspapers etc. Then we went upstairs to the rec area. There was a disco room where we walked in and watched some of the Chinese elders dance. It was soo cool and entertaining. I recorded some of it for my Music & Cognition class. Then we left the community center and headed to the hospital. While there, we got to see a guy get a medical shoulder massage. It felt weird crowding around him even though they assured us it was okay. Then there was this method that was even more intriguing. The doctor took a lighter and put it on the tops of cups. He placed them down onto the guy's back. It was creating some of suction. Another guy was in the room who had just had it so the doctor took his cup off. It was a circle from the heat and imprint of the cup. I forget the purpose of it... but that was basically it. We went up a floor and looked onto two lying in bed undergoing acupuncture. It looked so painful but one lady was knocked out, the other was smiling at us and waving us in. Lol. There was a cart of needles and used cotton balls just outside their curtain and I looked at them and couldn't imagine that to be painless.

-Quick deviation: the view from my cabin is unbelievable. I feel like my pictures of the Shanghai Skyline doesn't do it justice. There are amazingly lit sky high architected buildings with weird cool shapes and everything is bright bright bright with spinning multicolored lights. It makes me feel so happy. Lol. Similar to the skyline in Hong Kong which I also loved. I tried to take a picture to best capture all of it from across the water on the ship and although it comes out, it just doesn't look the same. I guess what I am trying to say is some of the most spectacular things I've seen or explored just can't and won't be conveyed in mere pictures. Sincerely. One of the reasons I believe I loved Hong Kong as I love Shanghai is the familiarity factor. It reminds me sooooo much of the modern cities in the U.S. It could easily be Manhattan or as I hear (and will get to see when we land in San Diego) California. Today I was sooo excited just to see the highway and the traffic that we got stuck in and just the little things that we take for granted in the U.S. After being in India and Viet Nam where comprehension of roads and traffic (and even different vehicles on the road) is completely different makes traffic back in the states much more durable. I will not be complaining anytime soon.... I in fact, miss my car and the rush hours and the stop signs and crosswalks. All so minor, yet imperative lol. We've all come to a conclusion that the motorcycle, bikes and scooter drivers in Viet Nam drove better than those in India. Lol. Seriously. But I was definitely terrified crossing in Viet Nam. Like petrified. The idea is you gotta just walk. You can't slow down and you absolutely certainly never should stop if you start walking. The traffic continues around you. If you do any of the previously mentioned, you increase your chances of dying because they don't know what you're about to do. The challenge is their speed because you see a massive clump of helmeted motorcyclists coming at you top speed. Natural instinct tells you you're going to die and realistically you very well can. There are a ton of accidents in Viet Nam. But generally, they drive around you so that was one thing SAS kept stressing to us. Take a leap of faith, just walk out and don't stop or look back. Lol. Again, no worries of that here. There are crosswalks, people who follow the traffic signs lol, and speed limits. Okay back to my day.

We went to marketplace. It was one of the coolest and best marketplaces I've been to in any port. I love food. This most people know by now.... but I absolutely love American-Chinese food and while much of it is different, there are some similarities. All of the food looked delicious. We saw some of the oddest stuff though. Like pig brain, pig kidney, pig stomach, pig lung, pig intestines, pig genital, pig heart, pig ear, pig feet... just about every part of every animal. The Chinese didn't believe in wasting any parts which I guess makes sense if you are going to kill an animal... We saw whole fried/roasted ducks simply hanging up by their necks. It was very weird to see the full body to be honest. Then there were a ton of cow, chicken, and other duck parts like tongue, back, tails, feet, breast etc. We saw frog (live ones to be cooked) and cooked frog, various tofus (fried, boiled, wheat, soy etc), tons of different types of fish stingray, flatfish, blowfish, cod, catfish...live eels which we watched get split and their vertebrates taken out (nuts),  snails, mussels, clams, various types of shrimps, live turtles to be cooked that looked different than any turtles we'd seen they had longer necks and looked like they live in the sand or something...all types of green vegetables, exotic and regular fruit like strawberries, kiwis, apples, oh they had like 4 different types of mango which was interesting,  different grains and types of sticky rice which I had no idea was a huge deal...I only knew of brown, yellow or white rice in the states... (but that's just my own ignorance),  types of peanuts, walnuts, dates... In between booths of all this food, there were appliance shops, clothing/tailor shops, bedding shops and shoes shops. The smell was incredible and a few people brought some stuff for us to try. All was as scrumptious as it looked and smelled... don't know what one of them was but Joe brought it for us. Juliana brought what was like a fried omelet with chives or something. Lol. Don't know exactly what I ate but it was all great. Joe and the woman from the community center were great guides because they were so patient and talkative. They were explaining different stuff to us and asking the merchants questions if they didn't know... A lot of the folks looked at us curiously as we milled around but they were friendly and smiled a lot and kept saying hello hahaha. Anyways we left and headed for the family we would visit for a glimpse of a Chinese home and have lunch. The place was exceptional. It was one of the nicest apartments I had seen for the price or in general. They told us they paid what would be about 600-700 USD a month. It had two bedrooms, two bathrooms, one kitchen, balcony (where they had their clothes drying on hangers), one living room with a big flat screen (as they did in one of the bedrooms). They had a cute little dog named Chi Chi which depending on how you say it means “boobs” in Japanese... It was just awesome. Totally hope I could find something nearly as nice in New Orleans when I move this summer. They were flattered when we kept telling them how nice it was and Joe asked us how much apartments cost in the U.S. That brought up the whole discussion about how big the U.S and how it depended on the location... if in Manhattan near Central Park about a million while in Maine, maybe not so much lol. We had another revolving circle in the middle of the table. Its a cool way to eat family style. I wouldn't be opposed to having one of those for my eventual family... or even just when having guests over. They'd prepared food for about 26 people so we had a lot of eating to do... lol. It was a sufficient amount per plate but multiple dishes split among 9 people (including Joe and the c.center woman whose name I sadly cannot remember). There was fried pork, chicken with slices of potatoes, roast duck, whole shrimp in a spicy sauce, cucumbers, a celery and chicken dish, dumplings, some kind of noodle vegetable thing, a white looking ball in some type of watery mixture which if you bit into was very doughy yet sweet and had sesame seed inside, some more leafy steamed vegetables like their Chinese lettuce I believe, white rice with egg and some other stuff that I cannot remember. They kept bringing out more dishes or encouraging us to finish the food on the plates... it was insane lol. Oh and forget about the beverage. Man, every time I put my glass down, she was already initiating to pour more. Lol. We got fed. It is what, now 21:33 and I am STILL full. That lunch was around 1-2 pm. I am totally set until maybe lunchtime tomorrow. Lol. We talked a bit and they asked us about the program. We went around a circle and told them the places we'd been and where we're going. It's funny because Joe would translate it and they would react so excitedly or they could recognize certain parts of the name and start nodding and saying it in Chinese Lol...they were pumped when we said Singapore and Hong Kong haha.

So after that, we took pictures and then we peaced out. The woman from the c. center left us at this point and we were sad to see her go but the trip continued. We went to one of the huge strips for shopping. Ninyang or Jijiang road? I can't really remember to be honest. But that's about as close as I am going to get to it lol. We agreed to split and meet back in front of the Haagen Dazs in an hour. The weather had changed dramatically. It was sunny, breezy and hot. It was a nice pedestrian walkway. Some folks went and got bubble tea- I had no Chinese yen with me and wasn't sure if they took USD which was good for me because I was still stuffed. I could totally attest to buying food in the moment rarely because I am actually hungry. I will more than likely go get one tomorrow though =) So much I want to try!! We walked past the KFC and Pizza Hut. Joe said that the Chinese loved KFC. Hahaha. He gave us a number about how many were in Shanghai but I forget what that was. Anyways, walked around went in and checked out some stuff. Random tidbit: Walked into a store called Zara which was like a cross between Express and H&M. I looked at the tags of stuff and most things I looked at were either made in Portugal or Spain. Haha. Just thought that was interesting. How cool is that? For my things I brought during ports, I've had a kick at looking at my tags and seeing “made in Mauritius,” “made in India,” “made in Singapore” etc. I've physically been there, and I physically purchased those items I am wearing... ahhh so cool. Okay enough...

But then we all met. Joe showed off his shoes he brought hahaha. We waited for Juliana and we loaded back on the bus, made it back to the ship. I came back and slept. I woke up around 7ish pm to a knock at my door. My new cabin steward Angelito was accompanied with one of the stewards from Pursers desk. They were worried about me --it was quite embarrassing. I guess he had knocked on the door earlier so that he could come in as he usually does, and clean. He probably peeked in and saw me sleep and decided to come back later. Well later became 7 pm and I was still unresponsive hahaha. I assured them I was okay and that he didn't have to come in and clean and make our beds. Totally fine at this point... lol. Went to the Garden lounge. Folks are back from their trips and it was cool to see some people on this ship again lol. I sat talking with one of the cooks from the island whose name I forget... he's comes out with his own station for pasta during the 2nd day of ports. He was telling me how he'd gotten sick in HK and was finally feeling better. He told me it was his 2nd time to Shanghai, this time around, he and a bunch of the stewards ordered a plate of snake!!! lol. I thought that was soo cool. They sold Snake wine (with the actual snake and a scorpion inside) in Viet Nam. SAS told us we were not allowed to bring it on board even if it was for a gift for someone... I thought about buying it and giving it to some folks hahaha. I also thought about the other stuff I was open to trying while in Viet Nam... okay, don't judge me... we would eat it on a regular basis if we hadn't designated chicken and stuff as our standard meat lol... so here goes: Snake, cat, rat, dog which was apparently more expensive (so we were instructed not to fear eating it without our consent), they told us the name was Cho so if we wanted to/didn't want it we would know what it was on a menu. I plan on getting a dog when I move to Louisiana, how twisted is that. I wouldn't love him any less lol.  Seriously though. Everything I've eaten has been delicious in Asia. I have enjoyed the exotic foods and preparation techniques in every port. Okay, enough about food. Sat with Kayla, briefed her about my trip today. Then  Anna came over. We discussed plans about staying in San Diego to check out Disney Land, Sea world or the San Diego Zoo. The biggest conflict is the prices... it will all be in US dollars urgh. Lol. Gotta think about hotel, food and travel accommodations and park/zoo entrance fees. Then we discussed our earlier discussions about going to Las Vegas sometime this summer (New Year's would be too far down the line)... but then they mentioned DC and I had such a blast last semester and Kelli lives in Baltimore and would be perfect... But then we got to talking about New Orleans since I'll be down there and they got super excited and started talking about Mardi Gras and how we should meet then and how wild it gets- Anna said she went one year a month after it was held and they were still cleaning up the city from Mardi Gras lol.  Then Anna mentioned the Olympics of 2012 and how we should go to London which is hyper expensive lol... Guess you can say we will be globe trotting when we get back if we can afford it. Random: talked about phone plans, Ipads, Iphones, Sony Erickson etc. Both Anna and my phone will be coming back on April 12th. I am excited =) But will have to be cautious because I will still be in international waters and don't want a crazy bill. Just nice to know it'll be working again.

Service Visit: Disabled Children's Home, Chennai, India

        The trip began with an invasive tour into the facilities for the displaced and disabled children of Chennai, India. A well versed and dressed woman led us throughout the old buildings and she seemed almost oblivious to our glances of horror. It was all so much to take in. What was most disturbing was the number of children who walked around with tops but no underwear, pants, or shoes. They also rolled around on the floors which were not clean and we feared the amount of diseases caught that way. Through the worn, old buildings we walked, peering into classrooms of rowdy, uncooperative and barely clothed students. Teachers often sat alone in the classrooms with a certain reservation while the children fought one another or strolled in and out. Another tendency was for them to scold, slap and drag the kids back in. They often paused, flashed us a smile and let the child go when any one of us was in sight. We were instructed to drop the toys and games we'd brought with us. We were then taken to look at the other facilities with the promise we would have the opportunity to come back and play with the children.
        We were led into the hospital ward. There was an minivan serving as the Ambulance and that was humbling to see.  Our guide simply blazed through each compartment without recognition of people waiting to be treated, or as we saw respect, for those in treatment. It was highly uncomfortable. She urged us to crowd around bed rests of sick patients who were suddenly swarmed with onlooking SASers. I decided against it and observed the instruments used to treat their illnesses. Many were old, rusty and the beds themselves were dirty. The walls were filthy as was the floor. I was further disturbed when we watched toddlers undergoing “physical therapy” scream in pain. We stood watching tears stream down these poor little kids faces while their arms and legs were bent in the most unnatural places. In spite of my limited knowledge of how physical therapy works, it didn't look the least bit accurate. The “nurses” looked really irritated with the children for “making them look bad” and some again, paused when we looked in. But the overall facility was not conducive to tending to the needs of anyone—not for adults, let alone children. Several of us walked out and had a moment. The discrepancy in medical and health care from that of the U.S. was huge. It was troubling and haunting to see it and many of us felt that we shouldn't have been exposed to things the way we had been. It was very invasive and showcased the lack of privacy and confidentiality of patients. At the same time, it revealed to us the true nature of how the hospital functioned and the types of treatment impoverished people experienced.
        We came back to the center for the Disabled Children with a sense of reverence and hoped to make a difference. We were put to work with miscellaneous tasks around the building. I was paired with someone and we cleaned, sanded and then painted a blackboard with black paint. There was a German student who was a sophomore in college completing a study abroad program working with the older boys and men who had the mental capacity of young children. It was refreshing to speak to someone who wasn't necessarily from the states but shared the same sentiment about the intensity of India. He was also relieved and confessed to having difficulty staying hopeful in his position because of the language barrier and the reality that most of the students are not prepared to be independent and live in the real world.
        We were then split into classes. All of the children had disabilities. Some were subtle, others obvious—all vary from the next. The teacher waved me over and was interested in drawing. She showed me a notebook full of her drawings and would give me a name of something she wanted me to draw. I am not an artist, but readily complied. It garnered the interest of a few kids. While they examined my finished product, I took in the kids in the classroom. Most looked uninterested in what we had brought. Some were receptive, some were not physically capable of participating in certain activities, some weren't mentally cognizant, some simply sat in the corner and did nothing. With such a range of responses in the classroom with the number of SASers assigned to the room, I couldn't imagine how much was taught by the teacher.
        A couple of classes had combined so that the children could listen and dance to one stereo with Indian music. It was a genius idea. We then brought our children down and it suddenly became a massive chaotic dance fest. Children were everywhere, arms flailing, screaming, dancing or simply fighting. It was a certain level of humor that came with observation. It was to balance out the easy accessible option of feeling overwhelmed. Later that evening, a small portion of the children also accompanied us to the ship for a tour, cookies, M&M's and ice-cream. It was a pleasure to have them but exhaustion was abundant when the trip finally and officially concluded.
       

Other half of the Rotarian Homestay experience

We went to their home to get settled in and to make sure my bag arrived. We got settled in and that's how I met Mr. Selvam and Jumwala (the 14 year old who upon introduction I thought was 16!), Veigus (their dalmatian). Jumwala was soo excited to meet me. Tell me if this is fate or coincidence. Priyanka explained how they had saw a list of all the SAS students and her mom had liked our names but she didn't think she could have all of us. Jumwala in particular loved the name Candace. She greeted all of us by our full names which was hilarious but very flattering that she actually studied the list and that they had even had that conversation haha. They offered us some Coca Cola and we put our bags upstair in Priyanka's room. Priyanka changed into a saree and then we headed to the Hindu temple that they always went to. It was rush hour and the temple was at least an hour away.  En route Meg mentioned food and Mrs. Selvam asked if we wanted anything. Naturally we didn't want to cause any trouble and said we were fine. Mr. Selvam owned a restaurant and we were going to be eating there after the trip to the temple but she insisted. She gave the driver some rupees and he got out and brought some bananas and bunch of different chips. Mrs. Selvam would peel open each banana and hand it back to each of us... which was a great feeling haha.. it was very family-like. Oh, I had masala flavored cheese doodles which were awesome! Closer to the temple she got out to buy some fruit/flowers for the guards of the temple as offering. We took off our shoes and left them in the van and walk the short bit. We also left our cameras because we didn't want to take away from the moment... and it just woulda been rude. We did what they did. We briefly touched the coconut which was cracked in front of us... it broke in exacts half which symbolized good luck so that was good lol, we followed the line and waved our hands over the fire and the priest(?) prayed for us, We got the white lines and smears of ash and red dots on our foreheads, and necklaces of limes and flowers from where they were offered up....it was all explained as we walked through, what was happening... I just can't recall it well or have the knowledge to call it as it was.. Mrs. Selvam brought us blessed treats sold within the temple. Then we walked around the temple and Jumwala and Priyanka pointed out the names of the Gods and told us more about their beliefs.  We saw a section where people tied paper around several bars which symbolized people who wanted babies but were sterile; another area had a ton of master combination locks and we found that was the number of people who prayed or wished for a better relationship with their in-laws. kinda comical there. Around us we saw people laying facedown on the ground praying. It was a cool surreal experience. We left to head to the van and took pictures. Jumwala and Priyanka kept telling us how cool it was to do it with us. The feeling was mutual.
                 We went to Mr. Selvam's restaurant and we went to a separate area with tables just for us. Funny tidbit: It was the first time I had seen a bathroom with a "hole" for a toilet. Okay back to the food... It was like a family style deal. Lots of naan (garlic and plain) love that stuff mm mm mm. Then so many dishes of a ton of different stuff like prawns, chicken, mutton...I can't remember it all but it was a lot of delicious spicy food as usual... we ate until we couldn't eat anymore. Then we had pistachio ice-cream in these cute little pots which we got to clean out and keep. We went back to the house and got ready for bed. We compared mosquito bites because we had plenty... lol... talked as folks got to showering. Priyanka had grabbed 3 mattresses which we spread on the floor and put covers over it. It was like one big sleepover. Warm fuzzy feeling here =) We talked about guys- her parents were really liberal as we could observe and she could date whoever she wanted...Jumwala showed me some of the awards in her room and that was cool. While Priyanka's was pink and had disney related stuff, Jumwala's was pink and had rocker/music decal on her wall... haha. We took some silly photos where we were trying to capture our faces in motion doing something silly... either way you wouldn't understand lol. The pictures are hilarious though. Unfortunately their family camera dropped and stopped working... that upset Jumwala who went to her room. We felt pretty helpless and bad because it wasn't anyone's fault... but that sucked. We talked a bit more than went to sleep since we had a long day ahead of us.
                   The next (and last) day we got dressed to head out. Priyanka showed us her collection of bindis and we picked one out to wear. We took pics as they placed it on us... she and Jumwala lit up and exclaimed how pretty we looked with them on haha.. then we went downstairs and had breakfast. The cooks were so nice. One of the girls was a teenager and she was so tickled by us. We tried to eat as much as we could but was still stuffed from the night before. So serious lol. It was hard to say that though because they wanted to keep giving us more and with the language barrier, we just didn't know how to refuse without offending lol. Anyways, Mrs. Selvam had to leave because she had a meeting but was going to meet up with us while we shopped. In the meantime, Priyanka then drove us. During some point of the ride she got a call from an admissions person for the MBA program of a school and we cheered for her... very exciting news =) Random tidibit: I loved seeing the women in sarees sitting properly and regal driving motorcycles, weaving through crazy traffic... it was so bad azz. They Then she drove us to Saravana's which was the best store ever in the world. It was a true gem aka one stop shopping center. 7 floors with virtually everything. Each was dedicated to certain things and it was like a warehouse but not really. It was perfect. Mrs. Selvam and Priyanka was so helpful...almost like mother hens checking to make sure we grabbed stuff that was worth the price. Oh also, instead of checking out at each register for each floor, we had one of the store girls who accompanied us. We would hand our stuff to her and she'd put it into a bag as she trailed behind us. She was so cute and helpful. So many of the other store girls as we passed would come up to us and she would talk to them and they stared at us... and smile or asked us stuff in English if they knew any but mostly, they would show us stuff or they would laugh at our facial expressions lol... we enjoyed the company and they sensed that. haha. The check out system was unique. Some people rung up the stuff. Another did the payment. Then the other folks checked our baskets to make sure we had everything that was rung up and that the price was accurate (which was excellent) then it was finally packed in bags and we could leave. The thing was it was about 2000ish rupees which the young girl was shocked about... but that was about $50 full of 3 stuffed bags... nuts how far the dollar goes in India. We'd walked past guys doing Henna and some of the girls who hadn't done the Welcome Reception and got free henna had wanted to get some at some point... Mrs. Selvam paid for all of us to get it...so I did my other hand, although we didn't realize til much later it was a different base used lol so it was really light an almost rust-like color. I was done first because my guy drew what looked like a mermaid with boobs lol...and I opted to grab our bags and leave with Mrs. Selvam in a rigshaw back to the house and get ready for us to go. It was nice being alone with her... she understood/spoke limited English and could only really make out what Meg said since Meg spoke slower than Alyssa, Lauren or I. lol. But it was almost similar to a kid wanting to bask in a mother's presence even if much isn't said. I was in awe of her and her family. It was just a loving environment. I brought all of our bags downstairs and met Mrs. Selvam's mom who had arrived. Part of the SAS Rotarian trip included a tour of the ship at the conclusion of our stay and she was coming along. She brought a bunch of different earrings for us to choose from... I picked a pair and thanked her. The girls came back shortly after and it was like a full house. Mr. Selvam and everyone was getting dressed... we went to the sink and was scrubbing off some of the dried peeling parts of the Henna. It was hilarious how we crowded around the sink. Lol. Jumwala was holding some oil which she poured into our hands to lock in the color and over all appearance... Didn't really work out too well lol. But anyhow, Meg presented the family with the gifts that they'd brought. I had came at the end and hadn't gotten anything so that was a bummer. Mr. Selvam called each of our names and presented us a package of assorted Indian treats from the Krishna Sweets shop we'd seen but didn't get to stop the night before. As he handed it to us he told us good luck with everything in life... it was all so nice. Then we discussed how we would fit. Then walked outside and took pictures with Vegus. I stood next to him and he had a great load of fun licking me and biting my clothing... everyone was laughing because I kept squirming and jumping lol. The driver suddenly became a photographer haha... all and all it was awesome having that collective experience. Then we piled in the van. Mrs. Selvam, Lauren and Meg sat in the back, I sat in the middle section with Alyssa, Jumwala and her Grandma, then in the front was the driver (driving on the right) and Mr. Selvam and Priyanka squeezed on his lap. Mrs. Selvam whipped out some snacks like Banana chips and some crunchy noodle stuff similar to the stuff we had brought from the temple. She would call our names and we'd turn around with our cupped hands and she'd dish out chips.  It was so homely. Lol. At some point they remembered I didn't sing for them so I sung "Amazing Grace" and they all clapped. Grandma Selvam said "Angel voice" and that felt pretty darn awesome =) haha. Then we got Juwmala to sing and she sung Rihanna's "Unfaithful" in Tamil. I wish I had recorded it... too cool. I would've loved to love it in Tamil. Anyhow, we had little difficulty finding the gate where the ship was docked but finally got towards the area. Then we had to get out because we had to walk and do our whole passport thing. The family had problems though because while they had a pass authorizing them to visit they had to go back and take photos... we started panicking because we hadn't left too much of an open amount of time and all visitors had to be off the ship by 7:30 pm. We assured them that we wouldn't leave and would wait until they returned.

Meg took the shuttle back to the ship to let the Purser's desk know and find out what she could about the policies--but more importantly if they could extend the visitor time for us. Lauren, Alyssa stood outside and started joking about begging the guards... we'd said something about let it be.. and then ended up singing "Let it Be" haha.. anyhow, they came back shorter than expected and we were able to proceed. Then we got out the van and walked through the gate for Indian security check. The minute we got past that and up close to the ship, they whipped their cameras out and were all smiles. We posed for pictures then went towards SAS security. There was about a 25 minute issue about photo ID's and some other stuff. We were getting pissed because we hadn't been informed of the procedure so we couldn't inform our families. It was like watching people you love get interrogated and after that first issue at the Indian checkpoint we thought there would be no obstacles. It sucked that the driver had to go back and sit in the van... because he wasn't on the list. Got on finally, snapped pictures of their faces as we walked throughout the ship. We showed them Lauren and Meg's cabin and that went well. Then Meg and Priyanka ended up splitting and Alyssa, Lauren and I took everyone else around the ship. There was a cute moment in the Union. Mr. Selvam posed near the podium, Mrs. Selvam who used to dance posed on stage, Grandma Selvam posed leaning over the piano, and Jumwala posed as though she was playing the piano. haha. Then we took pictures of them near the comp lab and library...showed them the dining halls and 7th deck where they posed some more. Mr. Selvam gave us his business card and Jumwala wrote their email addresses on the back. We were now his daughters he said. Whenever we came to India, call them up and we would stay with them... or as Priyanka said when we saw her "in her room again" hahaha. We waited for Priyanka and Meg in Tymitz. They were getting a bit paranoid because the technical time for the visitors had ended but we figured if they wanted to know where we were or needed us... Tymitz was a perfect location. When Meg and Priyanka came they were with some other SAS'ers like Jack, Matt, Allan, and some other folks that Priyanka had met. it became this huge picture fest and each of us were taking pictures. But as we neared the end of picture taking, and more talks about leaving, it got really emotional. Mrs. Selvam was at first just wiping her eyes... then she was crying... it wasn't audible... it was the silent one where you look over and we was like oh no...! Then Grandma Selvam was tearing up and crying... and it was interesting to see how people who had just met them like Jack was telling me that he got teary eyed... I mean just within meeting them you felt so much love and just acceptance. It was just an awesome awesome awesome experience. I am so glad that everything happened the way it did. I can't imagine it ending any better than it do nor could I foresee myself falling in love with a family in a nation I considered myself "done with." India is intense. India is complex. India is aggressive. But India is beautiful.

My Rotarian Homestay: Mon-Wed, March 7-9th, 2011

Finally have the strength to talk/type about this-- It was too much for one blog entry so they are making me split it, here's one half:

The first evening in Chennai was spent at the Welcome Reception. It served as an introduction to the culture. In between purchasing Indian items, trying on sarees, watching the young Indian dancers and drummers, eating Indian food and conversing with local university students, it felt and was a great time. The next day was the start of my Rotarian homestay. I had no idea what to expect but was excited all the same. We were paired and I had seen and chatted with my partner, Sarah, on brief occasions around the ship. We found that we were both from New York and had went on service and home stays in virtually every port. She got off the bus first and greeted our host “mother.” I didn't think anything of the way her eyes flickered across me when she greeted me. Nor the fact that she proceeded to solely address my partner as we waited for the driver to come around with the car. I was too busy checking out the scenery to care. The family was relatively wealthy considering the car and amenities of having a maid/nanny and personal driver.
        Our host mother took us to the cultural talent show which her job was hosting. It was in a theater and we felt slightly intimidated as heads turned curiously. We were seated and tried to make out what was happening given everything was in Tamil. There were some comedy acts, singing, dancing. I enjoyed it even though I was highly uncomfortable and couldn't understand the language. As a natural musician, I understand music and fortunately it is universally beautiful. She spoke to Sarah and asked her how she felt about it. I nodded a lot even though I wasn't being addressed. She gave Sarah a cell phone to get in contact with them since they worked a lot and we would be spending a significant amount of time with hired drivers. We were then picked up by her husband who worked for Citibank and was meeting us during his lunch break. Ironically both of our host parents worked for American-based corporations. One would think that their comprehension of the melting pot that make America what it is would trickle down to its international employees, but such isn't always the case when personal biases interfere. He was polite upon introduction and took us to a fancy Indian-Chinese restaurant. He sat on the same side of the table with me, across from Sarah. For the enduring hour and a half, he simply looked across and much of the conversation was directed to Sarah.
        The waiter passed out menus and our host father asked Sarah what she wanted. She ordered “volcano chicken.” They went on a laughing tidbit about Indian food and its spiciness. I looked at the menu and couldn't make my mind up but he abruptly told the waiter what we would have. He didn't want it to be too spicy for me, he said. I kind of nodded as in agreement. The food was delicious but I couldn't be more anxious to leave. I'd tried a couple of times to be a part of the conversation. He would look at me, nod, ask a question every now and then, but revert back to Sarah. At one point she tried to include me because it seemed she began to sense what was happening, but it was completely ineffective. I also waved away her efforts. I was there, but invisible essentially. I stared at the decorum. I focused on my breathing. I ate my food. My mind was numb and I was too stunned to cry. I didn't know whether to confront him. A couple of times I turned to my right and thought to give him a piece of my mind, but voted that down quickly. I am not a disrespectful person, and while he was clearly disrespecting me, me addressing him wouldn't make him any different at the core than he already was. I thought about catching a rickshaw back to the ship but I am not a quitter. I wanted to disappear and my entire body became rigid from my growing discomfort. As I drifted in and out of my thoughts, I could hear Sarah laughing and chatting away and I simply grew resentful. How is that two people could be in the same moment yet have complete opposite experiences?
        I couldn't have been happier to finish lunch. The calamari, volcano chicken, lamb with dry chili paste, rice, soup and fried ice-cream was excellent. The restaurant was exquisite but the experience wasn't. It was humbling. I had an emotional roller-coaster surging through my veins and I was forced to deal with irrational thoughts and emotions quickly and rationally so as not to become bitter. We were picked up by two paid friends of our host family who showed us the beach and the government fair. They later dropped off to the Rotary meeting where all of the SAS students who were participating in the home stay would be. As I watched everyone come in, people were so happy and gushing about their awesome families who were also with them, that I couldn't help but feel jealous. I wasn't one who shied from uncomfortable situations. For my South African homestay, there was an odd number of SAS participants. I could either go along with one with family with two other SAS'ers or go alone with another family. I opted to go alone because of the tendency we as people have when we travel in packs. We tend to cluster ourselves with familiarity and this trip or the homestays specifically was going to be the best way to learn about myself and coping within the means of other cultures.
        People commented on my disposition. I was down and I didn't know how to shake it off. I didn't want to make it bigger than it was because I simply hoped it would get better the next day. I also didn't know the permanence of our housing situations. But more than anything, I did not have enough proof or confidence to call it a “race situation.” I am never one to attribute anything to the color of my skin or my ethnicity. I am a believer in hard work and have found perceived boundaries to be figments of the mind in my rise in education and my future endeavors. But here, I was facing something that I knew had nothing to do with me as a person because I offered my general personality and nature as I would normally do. Yet as I began to take notice, I realized it wasn't personal. They didn't have anything against me per se, but because the color of my skin made them treat me different and it being such a foreign experience to be judged so directly with less subtlety, my entire temperament was altering.
        I finally choked up and explained my housing situation with one of my SAS friends, Meg, in confidence. She consoled me and assured me that she would mention my situation to her host family who had taken in Alyssa making three total SAS'ers. It was one huge multicultural family. She introduced me to the oldest of her host sisters, Priyanka, who was very nice but I couldn't shake the prejudice of my existing family and was very tense and terse. Our host father finally arrived and picked  us up. It was another sign of our lack of connection as compared to the other families who accompanied them. I begin to think as a first time hosting families, they did not allot enough time to build a relationship with us. In the same token, it punctured me to know that the relationship they did care to wasn't with me. There was a preference and it angered me. That night, we were offered Peach Schnapps and walked out to their terrace, engaging in more awkward conversation. I was always surprised when I was asked a question. While in silence, I faded into the background and observed their faces. The way their eyes took in everything Sarah did, the way they traveled when she moved, when she asked a question how they lit up. They were extra attentive and meticulous in adhering to her needs. When they spoke to me, their eyes travelled and they were quick to refer back to Sarah. They talked to us about their upbringing, how they met and the nature of their household. I can't tell you what I remember of what they said, only of what I felt as they talked.
        We went to bed that night in the same room in separate bubbles. I wasn't sure what Sarah wanted from me since she sat up a bit and laundered around our guest room. I was conflicted. I was too angry, hurt and confused to engage in a conversation. I took the shameful passive way out. I put my Ipod on, turned over and laid awake until my thoughts ceased and sleep took over. The next morning which was our scheduled SAS outing around the city with the other SAS'ers, I stayed in the room until it was just about time to leave then went out and ate breakfast with the family. Sarah was playing with their little girls who were finally out and the maid/nanny was washing dishes in the kitchen. I sat on the edge of my chair and ate as quickly as I could. The presence of the children made it much more difficult for me. They were lovely cute kids and in my natural normal nature, I am a playful person. I wanted to smile at them and play with them as I would with any kids, but I was so out of synch with my real being that I was just as cold with them as I was with Priyanka, the host sister of Meg. I wondered if they thought I was odd or if they were learning to be discriminatory as their parents were.
        I had a chance to patch that rough beginning with Priyanka. She accompanied the girls on our SAS outing. I spent the day with them and it was refreshing to be myself. She commented on my behavior and the difference. I decided to come out and ask her very bluntly what the “deal was with Indians and black people.” She responded just as directly. She told me that back when they were oppressed, Africans were considered “worse off.” Some traditionalists or older Indians did not really care for them and thought of them as inferior or ignorant. Meg gasped but I simply nodded. It made sense. History teaches us that every civilization under oppression finds someone else to oppress. It is a way of creating hierarchy when there is none—even when it is initiated by those who have felt what it is like to be persecuted. I thanked her for her honesty. At 20 years old, she was well versed and I appreciated her liberal thinking. She asked for the origin of that question and I told her about my family. She had confirmed what I was thinking but I didn't know how it made sense in Indian culture. She asked if I told them that I wasn't African but rather American, but I told her that's not the point. They judged me because of my skin color. I had seen Indians of various shades—many darker than me yet they treated me differently because of the association. That affected me because I had never experienced that before. Telling them I wasn't “African” but rather a Filipino, Native and African- “American” would excuse their preexisting prejudices.  That was unacceptable.
        For the remaining of the trip, we began discussing how I could switch over to their house. We asked Sarah would she mind if I left. She was nonchalant and said it was no problem. We spoke to Julie the trip leader. I picked up on her discomfort given the subject matter, but she was incredibly helpful in trying to make it possible. We were all concerned about how I would get my things which were back at the apartment. I wanted to make things less dramatic and complicated as possible. I didn't want a confrontation, I didn't want them to be singled out. I just wanted to calmly and respectfully be done with that family. If they got a talk from the SAS-Rotarian club president or from Julie our SAS trip leader, it would make things worse. You know what you feel. Being threatened or sanctioned by someone would make the situation less tolerable knowing what is masked under sudden kindness. I borrowed the phone from Sarah to call our host father. The plan was to feign sickness and catching a ride back to the ship with some other students. The conversation was brief because he was at work and I hung up relieved. When the bus arrived at the original parking lot, Priyanka's mother was the first to arrive. I got off the bus with Meg, Lauren, Alyssa and Priyanka. Julie and the SAS-Rotarian club president also got off and everyone was talking and discussing how we smooth the transition. They finally concluded that I would just go home immediately with them and they got my host family information to figure out how to get my bag later that evening. I thanked everyone tirelessly. When I got into the mini-van and squished in with my SAS friends, their host mother, friend, driver and Priyanka. I couldn't stop smiling, as cliché as it sounds.. it all suddenly felt right.
        Priyanka's mother asked if I was happy with my new family and I answered quickly and empathetically. Priyanka commented about my huge grin and expressed it to her mother in Tamil. Everyone laughed and the conversation flowed naturally as we wove through the city. The relief I felt cannot be duplicated in words. They assured me we would get my bag situation sorted out and that we did. Priyanka spoke to my host father over the phone in Tamil. He wasn't going to let up so easily though. He told me if I was going back to the ship he would drop my bags off. If I was going to stay over someone else's house, I was going to have to pick up my stuff. Once Priyanka's mother heard that she began shaking her head. No one wanted me to have to go back because we were sure he would have a few words for me. What those would be, who knew but frankly, I wanted to avoid that scene as well. He started talking about me and Priyanka conveyed what he was saying. We heard some possible options and Priyanka went with them. He painted the picture of me as an introverted, unapproachable mean person. Sarah wasn't like that and that's why they connected with her. Priyanka was apologetic as she agreed with him but I waved to her that it was okay. She told him that I was very very shy and that right now I was the complete opposite because I was around my friends. It worked because she got him to agree to drop my bag off with their maid since we were out and about. Once she hung up, everyone applauded and high-fived me. It was awesome to just fit without having to be anything or anyone but me. It was the start of a better India experience, beginning with a glimpse at the kinder, beautiful people residing in India.
       

Let me tell you about Hong Kong...

Hong Kong
My FDP for my International Perspectives on Family Violence got cancelled since we've had alterations to our itinerary. The first day I woke up in time for lunch. Grabbed it on the ship, talked to my favorite crew guys (Peter, Linval) and ran into Obai. He had went out earlier and came back in time for lunch on the ship but was willing to go with me. Just next to the ship was this huge shopping plaza with over 4 floors and a ground floor with over 800 stores (appliances, electronics, salons, restaurants) anything you can think of. I heard that Hong Kong was going to be expensive---seriously they do not have “retail” or like regular stores. Everything, absolutely EVERYTHING was designer or brand name which was frustrating because I couldn't afford anything nor was I willing to pay lol. My entire agenda was to get an external hard-drive. The only one I'd seen in the stores I went to in Viet Nam was a 500 mb for a crazy price. The first and foremost thing of walking out in Hong Kong was how much like Manhattan of NYC it was. I LOVED LOVED the vibe of Hong Kong. That rush rush city vibe. Ahh. I missed it. The other thing I loved was the number of stores on each street and corner. Again, reminded me of NYC in that regard. It coulda been Fordham Road. Honestly. I found the mixture of people fascinating. Hong Kong is an expensive and international hub. I loved walking around and being of the gazillion non-native Chinese habitant. I went to one store and saw a 1 TB hard drive for 1,100 HK dollars which was about 140ish USD. Then I went to another place and saw a 2 TB hard drive for 1, 200 HK dollars which is 160ish USD. I was soooo happy I held out and waited. Went to the ATM and for whatever reason had difficulty taking anything more than a 1000 HK dollars. So I went back to the place and figured if it was meant to be then it would be. At first the guy kept saying he couldn't take it for less than 1200. Then he told me to take a seat and he talked it out in Mandarin to some of his coworkers. Finally he agreed. I mean, come on, you're gonna give up a 1000 sell because I don't have 200? lol. I think he also was trying to see if I really didn't have it... I mean, it was a brand store... Canon to be exact lol, and everything is fixed price. All I had in abundance was Vietnamese Dong. I showed him and said this lol and he scrunched up his face like eh, nah. Don't want lol. I was pretty happy that I ended up getting it for 1000 HK (120ish USD). Awesomeeeeee! We saw so many Indians. They were stopping us and kept asking if we wanted to buy watches or suits. Literally every corner was an Indian dude. We started having full out conversations with them because it got comical after a while. We also  met a black guy from Philadelphia with his little daughter who'd moved and ended up staying in HK for 19 years...then we walked into this area where a sector of money exchange kiosks were. I was able to exchange my plastic Vietnamese money (and guess I will have the smaller denominations/paper ones as a souvenir if the U.S don't convert it) for Taiwanese money. I would get more if I converted it to that versus Chinese yen or HK dollars even though I was presently there (and Shanghai would be our next stop). We now had three days in Taiwan added to our itinerary and I had nothing planned and would need it. We thought the guy was trying to jip us for a bit because he had a ridiculous fee but I just waved it off. It gets difficult to understand these things when exchanging money and the rates and stuff. Obai went to another kiok and asked to see a British Pound since he always wondered what they looked like... it was a strange request but the guys were nice and held one to the window ...which was hilarious. Ahaha. Then we kept checked out a market within a cluster of stores we ran into this older England guy who talked to us a great bit about his experiences living in China and what to expect. We noticed more and more Indian and African stores the further we walked and as with any port, all the black people we'd ever seen, were EXTRA excited to see other Black people. It was and is the most interesting phenomena. I remember seeing some black guys in Singapore when we were coming back from Chinatown on the subway. They were walking on the opposite side as me in a rush, but they raised their fists in like the black power symbol hahaha.  Even thinking about the black guy and woman  in Muslim garments when we met Mumbi in India at Spencer's plaza eating KFC. They were from Zimbabwe. We met some guys from some place in Africa... I think it was somewhere in Northern Africa. Obai asked them about their experiences living in HK and if they found it difficult and they said no, everyone was accepting. I found this to be verry true and it enhanced my overall view of HK and just my general enthusiasm about being there. We kept walking, checked out some cool stuff. Turned down a road where we smelled food but ended up at a 7-eleven since it was almost dinner time and as Obai pointed out, the food was expensive everywhere ( I have a habit of spending majority of my money in my travels on food lol). I brought this interesting sausage thing which the girl at the cash register was nice enough to cut open the wrapper. It didn't taste bad. It actually tasted like imitation crab meat.  We walked through the mall to get back on the ship and I grabbed a piece of spicy/original recipe chicken from their KFC. Ahhh... I've done my sampling of KFC since India and nothing comes close to it. It was hands down, the best!!! I also just like seeing the different types of menus and how it caters to each culture. I wish I had grabbed the menu but they had all types of fire roasted chicken and some other stuff. Came back to the ship, had dinner. Folks were getting ready to go out afterwards. I was undecided but got dressed to go out with Dorian and Courtney who was waiting on Christine and Paige. But while we stood down there, I realized that I had no HK dollars lol and some places don't accept USD but Dorian swapped with me since she was heading to an ATM before they got to a club. So I now had currency but wasn't committed to the going out part. Luckily Jack and Brittany were in Tymitz Square. One of them mentioned going to Victoria's peak/ Tram where you could go to the top of the mountain and see the entire island from the top. That was definitely more like it. We all decided to go. It was open until midnight and it was about 9ish close to 10. Just as we headed out we ran into Tian (a former red sea resident and Chinese student) who ended up coming along and being an awesome resource! He showed us and for the sake of time paid our 1.45 HK token for the ferry from the main island to HK Island.  There was one that had just arrived and because the Tram closed at midnight and the last ferry back to the island where the ship was ended at 11:30, we had no time. We ran for it. It was filled with a lot of SAS'ers. Tian and I stood for the virtual 10 minute float directly across. Felt like we coulda ran across water faster than the ferry lol. Anyways, we got off we looked at a map and tried to figure out how to get there. No direct route was in sight... Surprisingly we saw Peter  who was heading back towards the ship from checking out the island. We chatted a bit but he didn't really know any more than we did so we just opted to take a taxi as close as we could then hopefully find a subway the rest of the way. Tian, fortunately, was able to speak to the taxi driver and get us there. He also insisted on paying for the ride which was about 29 HK or “only” about 5 USD for each of us and “no big deal.” Lol. We were trying to take a picture of all of us outside the water fountain with the sign of the Tram and he simply walked to a family, spoke to them and they came over and happily took a picture of us. Lol. We were in great hands. The roundtrip on the cable car to the top and bottom was about 36 HK dollars. It was like a trolley car essentially. The other neat thing was as it went up, the buildings began to look crooked. It was the most coolest view going up (and going down). Jack was recording it and I tried taking pictures but they weren't clear since we were moving and they too dark. At one point the tram stopped and we started freaking out. We didn't know if it was going to do this roller-coaster-like drop and plunge downward or if it would roll backwards...or worse case, be broken. There was an American guy who was sitting in the corner. He was chuckling lol. He told us it was because another car was in front of us... he used the tram often.. bet he gotta kick outta our conversation. =) We got off and then we walked through what was a closed mall. It was noticeably chillier and none of us were prepared lol. We walked down the walkway and there, Hong Kong was in all its glory. It was a gorgeous view of the skyline. We took turns posing and in a circular entrance...then ran back to catch the last tram. We ran into more SAS'ers who were getting off at the top, so we weren't really sure how they would get down lol. Then when we got to the bottom we ran into Chris and a bunch of other SAS'ers who were going to go to the Penisula hotel, some getting massages, others going out. Tian decided to go with them but pointed us in the direction of the subway. We figured it out eventually lol. We walked around lost a bit but discovered some cool buildings and posed for pictures lol. Eventually got to the station, had to find an kiosk to get some change and make sure we were heading the right way, brought passes, got on it and got off =) Did a crazy illegal thing by running across a major road—Jack didn't make it and almost got hit mm mm mm. Lol. The escalator and stairs were blocked off because the mall was closed so we had to walk on the outskirts of it towards oncoming traffic. Brittany was freaking out and Jack had hopped over the bar at some point... I thought it was funny and continued lol. I was hungry (at this point and as usual) and we stopped at the 24 hour McDonald's next to the ship. We saw some of the crew sitting outside of it and inside. Tried not to be creepy and stared at them... we just think they are so awesome =) Too bad we can't sit down and have dinner/drinks with them. Anyway, McDonald's was decked out similar to the one in South Africa when I went with Mina. It was like a cool place to be, maybe even to go for a date. The menu was awesome they had different stuff as well... in Mauritius we saw Mc Royals and some other stuff... here they had some of the standard burgers, but Mc teriyaki/grilled chicken...and chicken wings in multiple flavors... Oh and it had a range of coffee drinks like lattes and legit frappuccinos... they served different deserts like tiramisu. We ate and talked, then went back to the ship. Grabbed our laptops and went back to the mall and sat with the gazillion other spread out SAS'ers in this gigantic but now empty mall to try and upload as many pictures online as possible. It was also a perfect spot to watch all the people come back from the club... it got funnier and funnier as it got later... people without shoes... one girl was being carried on some guy's back, people drunkenly asking me about the internet access and planning to come back (most didn't), people singing, falling over, trying to find their ID's, others hoping they would wake up for breakfast hahaha, or the other thing was asking their other drunk friends to wake them up so that they could all catch their flights to Beijing.

For my last day in Hong Kong I played it safe. I'd wanted to find the big Buddha but apparently it was an unforeseen full day trip. It was supposedly one of the biggest Buddha's ever. Having been to Singapore, Viet Nam, Hong Kong, soon Shanghai and Taiwan... we had had our share of Buddha's. Lol. I seen so many temples (add Mauritius and India back in there) that I am totally ready for a blast of something new. I guess that's where people's reluctance to go to Taiwan stems from. To be politically correct it is not a part of mainland China (has its own currency and a few other things) but it is technically... and so was/is Hong Kong. The Philippines woulda been an entire different cultural experience. I grabbed my laptop to use some of that awesome high speed internet SAS'ers have come to love and appreciate from Hong Kong... and spent some hours walking around the adjacent mall. With all of the gateways to so many other parts of the mall, there was so much happening, so much to see and a ton of people. I loved people watching in general. People watching with music blasting in your ears, in a foreign country, with nothing but time is even better. When I was done with my window shopping, sat at an organic cuisine place in the mall and had a organic teriyaki chicken sandwich. It was delish! Then got to researching. Looked up apartments for one (me) in different parts of New Orleans, then reverted to finding apartments for 3 people and houses for rent for 4 people. That worked out a lot better. It is also advised anyways. People walked by and had no shame in standing over your shoulder... or standing some ways to the side and just looking on. It was weird at first, but then I got over it. Lol. Appreciated the opportunity to use free fast internet, I have so much to do once I get back to the states (my real life begins) that it is a disservice not having internet access on the ship. But it is what it is. Got on the ship in time for take off. On ship time was 9 pm and we weren't going to be leaving until 11 pm. The cool thing is that the ship would be essentially empty because most people were flying out to do various things in China. They would be meeting up with the ship in Shanghai on the 2nd/last day in China. There was a light show around 8  that I stood out on 6th deck with Obai, Karen, Medea and some of the life-learners. It was really subtle lol. It took a while to notice anything changing... but there was a flashing LCD sign that did say that 8:30pm was earth hour and all the power would go out. We wondered if the ship was participating... How embarrassing would that be if all over Hong Kong all of the amazing lights went out.... all but our ship? Lol. Oh funny tidbit: I was able to pick up the internet from a place in the mall called Strawberry Forever 2... so I was on Facebook and trying to upload some pictures so I could have some peace of mind and stress less about losing my pictures forever...  and then there was a mandatory lifeboat test. I thought it was a joke, but it was for real. My roommate Mandy was still here and we laughed... nuts. But it was a great way to see who was going to be on the ship as we traveled to Shanghai. I wish I had brought a camera while we stood at our master stations which for my side is in the far left corner of the 5th dining hall. I got back to my room and only 10/80 of my photos of the day we Disembarked in the Bahamas had uploaded so I cancelled it... We joked about having a pre-port prior to arriving in Shanghai with just us. Lol. That would be hilarious but we had had our Asia pre-port when we had a full ship before we got to Hong Kong.

Recounting the two days in transit:
There was apparently only about 100 or so people on the ship for these two days. The first day we had ice-cream and veggie lasagna during lunch which was awesomee! Juliana told me about the $5 sauna deal for women today and told me it would be a lot of old folks gossiping but I was welcomed to join or spread the word lol. I ran into people I didn't even know was on the ship like Ali. Oh and Taylor and Melissa as well. Ali and I had an awesome conversation with Clive (steward) ahh love his dry humor. He has the funniest stories! John walked over to my table and we planned for me to come to the studio aka another cabin separate of him and his wife with his keyboard, mic and stand and recording equipment. We worked on two of the 7 songs (Stand by me, lean on me) for our charity DVD just before Dean Sunny (who was covering for Marti) made an announcement about dinner... There was specialty dining essentially. Basically, the 5th dining hall was transformed into this fancy “restaurant” feel. Tables were donned with proper silver ware, and awesome centerpieces. We were seated as we arrived so that could have went either way. They held out chairs, placed our napkins in our laps and produced a menu of similar SAS food...just served nicer..to you individually. Lol. That's the best way to describe it lol. The first night, we had an awkward table. Two life-learners were at the foot of our table and they probably regretted being stuck at our table lol. Two of the girls had to leave, but Laura who is from Tennesee and Kalen from Oregon and I had a great conversation. She and one of the other women at the table who worked for UVA was giving me the rundown about New Orleans...dinner the first night consisted of a basket of bread and butter, Caesar salad, Corn soup, entree of either Chicken cordon bleu or herb crusted Salmon which is what I went for, and berry cheesecake. They made an announcement about Inception playing in the Union and I watched it and called it a night =) The second day I ran into Cass who I didn't know was even on the ship lol. We had lunch and  had another chat about ship life and men... and just life. Always great!  We agreed to meet later on and watch “Love and Basketball” but that didn't work out. I ended up meeting with John and refining the stuff we had recorded the day before. Bill sat in and got to hear us and that was cool to see his face and listen to his feedback. That night for specialty dining, I was at a table with Cass and some other girls and had a great time. We talked about awkward foods on dates...haha. We had a basket of bread and butter, garden salad, choice of sirloin steak with veggies and baked potato topped with mashed potatoes and cheese lol, veggie penne or something with chicken. Most people got the sirloin. It was good. We were trying to pace ourselves. The food was coming so fast that the pressure was on to finish lol. Desert was black forest cake which I took a couple of bites and passed up. I don't do chocolate cake in general, but ship sponge cake is not good lol. I don't usually eat any of their cakes other than the cheesecake and occasionally coconut cake. Anyways, we got to talking to one of the stewards who was clearing our table. He introduced himself as Darwin, and was very friendly and like most stewards sung while he worked. I overheard him and asked him about it and he told us that he had hoped to participate in the Crew talent show but he was on vacation. He got on in Hong Kong and his contract starts up again so he said next talent show... bummer, we won't be here lol. But within a few moments he, Cass and I were jamming. He would sing a few bars of different songs like Addicted-Green Day, Yeah-Usher, One-Brian McKnight, I'm Yours- Jason Mraz and we were just sitting at the table singing as he worked around us. Ahh, I love our crew. He'd ask us some other songs like which boy band NSYNC or Backstreet Boys was our favorite then start singing and etc. When we were ready to go we stopped over to Peter and asked him to show us the robot haha, he showed us his glasses instead. Lol. Anyhow, went back to our rooms so that we could get some work done for a bit then reconvene. After a few hours or so, I called up John to see if he was back so that we could resume as we mentioned and Cass came and listened for a bit. Her feedback was also greatly appreciated. She left and the plan was for us to meet and watch the movie... but singing and being in the “studio” with John was awesome and we both had very specific ideas about our sound and what we wanted to bring to the music... we kept redoing certain parts over and layering stuff. He was also trying to figure out the program Logic Pro which he hadn't used before. I didn't leave until almost 1. His wife came up some hours before and he said we would call it quits after an hour but... that stretched into hours. Lol. It was cool though because that's what studio life is life and its so easy and important to be in the zone =) It definitely made me miss being in the studio singing. I knocked on Cass's door and tried calling but eh, that was gone lol. Came back to the room, did some blogging about Viet Nam which you read lol, and went to bed excited about arriving in Shanghai! I woke up a number of times throughout the night. I had to make the room pitch black because there were so many ships and boats with lights. It was the busiest ocean/river/  area in terms of transporting goods/whatever in all of the ports we'd been to, thats for sure.

Catching you up about our week in Viet Nam

Full details after the City Orientation:

Dorian, Christine and I went to check out the night market since the Ben Thanh market had long closed. The saleswomen were pretty aggressive and it was a bit off-putting. We walked through the stores and realized it was no different than many of the shops along the roads. The area we were in -Ho Chi Minh City- was definitely a touristy area. Everything was essentially priced for Americans. In fact, one boutique Dorian and I had checked out was great and had stuff we wanted...until we saw the price tag wasn't in Vietnamese Dong but rather in USD. No bueno. We left real fast lol. Anyway, we walked up and down the booths. Most had the same stuff but offered it for similar prices. We got dragged into trying some of the two piece Vietnamese outfits which I loved on the women but not on me. The saleslady got on my nerves tugging on my arm and totally ignoring my apparent disinterest. Ugh. She kept trying to invite herself to the ATM with me...and I calmly and politely kept telling her no thank you then she tried to drag Dorian into it. She told Dorian to ask me how much did I want to pay for it and all of this stuff... we both looked at each other like we need to get out of here fast. Fortunately Christine was buying something because the lady did a 360. She got real nasty and angry quick. Most people try to be polite when you don't buy something, she took it personal (although her personality killed any possibility of a sell but still) that was unprofessional how hostile she got haha. 

We split (Dorian and I had that sketchy foot massage as I mentioned in my previous post) Christine went with Eylee who we'd ran into. Once we got done with it, we ended up running to catch the last shuttle (10:30pm) saving us taxi money. It was awesome meeting up with Christine and Eylee who we told the details. They thought it was hysterical. Me and Dorian couldn't stop laughing either.




Mekong Delta Day Trip:

Too much happened to recount it word by word. It was far more action-packed than any of us could have imagined. The itinerary did not give much information about what it would entailed. Anyways, it was about a 2 hour bus ride into the rural part of South Viet Nam. Then we got into a ferry/boat thing and had fresh coconut cracked and given straws to drink the juice right out of it. It was hot but being on the water was awesome. We slowed down to look at the fisherman shacks on the water, then we got to observe some guys dumping freshly caught fish into huge bags to be sold. One of the guys held a writhing fish up so that we could take pictures. I opted out of that photo. Then we continued down the river towards an opening that I couldn't really make out from a distance. It surprised all of us because it was legit. In fact, it was almost like traveling down the Amazon. It was like a channel which connected another civilization to the rest of life. We traveled downstream for about 15 minutes. There were all types of wild plants and trees on both sides of us. It was like the forest or jungle of South Viet Nam. The guide pointed to a snake farm further in the distance. He named the freshwater creatures in the water. He pointed out the water coconut trees. All and all it was pretty cool scenery. We got off at a random clearing and proceeded to continue our commute via horses. This shocked everyone. Looks like we were getting a little bit of everything. The horse experience was a bit more sad than enjoyable. We weren't going horseback riding into the humid Viet Nam sunset as we immediately envisioned (or at least I did... I was totally planning on taking a cool picture with me on the horse for my next profile pic). Instead, there were very young looking horses tugging seaters with rather rigid owners who readily whipped them. We worried about the weight of six SAS'ers not including the owner who practically angled himself on the puny horse who was already struggling. From our seats we could see splotches where the horse had suffered from some sort of infection. We kept exchanging sympathetic glances when the owner muttered some words and whipped it. He was going as fast as he could possibly go but we were heavy. Shaking my head. That was sad. But anyhow, we waited for everyone to arrive by horse and then we were led into this woodsy patio area. There were clothes and other Vietnamese items for sale in one corner. There were a number of tables and we were seated before being served our “snack” which consisted of fruit... we had Papaya, pineapple, dragonfruit and some other exotic fruits found in Viet Nam whose names I absolutely can't remember. A group of two women and two guys sung and played the guitar. There was a huge python sitting on the table that a couple of us went over and took pictures with. I gotta say it was heavier than I expected. It was cold and it felt like a massive amount of weight on my shoulders. I begin to freak out after the fact that I had a python on my shoulders and I was holding its moving head in my hand, steering clear of my face. But hey, its something else I could say I did. We left that place and headed by motor canoe this time into another village. We had lunch at a sit down restaurant and that was the highlight of my day. I walked around simply hungry and constantly dehydrated. Viet Nam humidity and heat is like no other. This particular trip in which the list of things for us to do seemed to grow showcased whether or not we could tolerate it. Each table was served a whole fish on a skewer.  There was a server for each table as well. She prepared our food for us. She used rice paper, put a little bit of the noodles as base, placed some of the “leaves” as we called them, then she broke off pieces of the fish. She'd then roll it up almost like a sushi and plop it down on our plates. It was odd to say the least. The bulk of the rice paper tasted like plastic yet it was edible. I found myself eating the parts of the paper that had been moisten by the grease of the fish only because that seemed to soften it. It was very crispy but didn't really taste like much. Dorian couldn't eat most of what was there because she didn't like fish. A few other people were vegetarians, but we in general was wondering if we would have other options or if that was our lunch. Almost like our prayers were heard, more food came out. An eclectic and unknown plate of fried stuff/animal on a stick of lemongrass was delicious. There was rice, pho and some other stuff I can't remember. We finished and headed to the original ferry/boat to go to another surrounding island and watch how they made coconut candy. Upon our arrival we got to taste a fresh batch of warm coconut and caramel candy. It was amazing... there were samples of the flavors once cooled and wrapped. There was a ginger coconut, milk coconut, caramel coconut and a banana coconut. All in all a very packed trip as I said. Was exhausted when we finally got back but the night was hardly over.

I ended up going out with Jack, Courtney and Rebecca. We ended up at some Irish pub where I tried Larue Export. It was similar to a Heineken. We sat around and had some serious conversations about race, about the prostitution and high HIV rate in Viet Nam. We stopped at a corner store, grabbed some junk food. Then went to a club called Lavish which had some of the best club music I had heard in a while... honestly the DJ was awesome. A ton of folks commented about that as well. Funny tidbit, happy birthday came on. No really. It was a real song with real verses. It was great though. We danced to it =) There we ran into Taylor, Fan and Chris. It was and always is hilarious to be greeted by drunk people. There was this incredible enthusiasm and love that was just awesome to walk in. We totally felt like VIPs. I mean they were so beside themselves with liquor that they were giving us these dramatic hugs and introducing us to the all the new people they met... haha. But as I mentioned in older posts, its nothing like running into SAS folks when we are in the club. It's nothing but love. There is a certain level of relief that comes from recognizing each other even though we may be spread throughout the city. Another funny tidbit that will be forever a Viet Nam memory: There were security guards in the club. Lots of them. They were stiff, serious guys who took their jobs uber seriously. They ran to the rescue whenever they saw anyone out of "hand" or if you wanted to do something as simple as pass someone... no they had to put their arms out like they were directing traffic and clear the floor. It was one to every few tables. They kept the sides pretty divided and almost like an usher does at a church service, they had their backs to guard someone dancing a little out of their "spot." Forget about when people ordered drinks and it was brought to their table. It was like Moses parting the seas. If you had to use the bathroom, they escorted you too. WEIRDDDD. It was just foreign to us because they were so awkward and unnecessary it would have been difficult to dance or get into the groove if the music wasn't that great. Crazy fun night that ended pretty ironic too. That whole crew (Taylor, Chris etc) ended up going with the locals they met to some other club. Courtney and Becca were pretty upset because Jack and I didn't want to jump in the cab with them and go off. After watching a very drunk guy get on his motorcycle and zigzag away, and just being conscious drinkers, neither Jack or I was under the influence that much to be that foolish and run off with strangers. They grumbled a bit and we ended up in search of a cab to head back to the ship. Jack had mentioned a guy who had approached him about prostitutes and drugs. This very same guy happened to be around when we stopped briefly. He asked me a basic question then walked past me and asked Jack if he wanted cocaine or marijuana. Jack half pushed him away, telling him no. It was comical at the very worst. Lol. Then we spent the next couple of minutes trying to find a cab driver who understood where we were going and had reasonable prices. None of them really grasped so we just went with the lesser of the confused. Lol. It was against Jack's protocal and he was like a mother hen scolding us but we got back fine and didn't feel too ripped off. We got back to the ship and saw Jamie, Ian, JoJo and some other folks standing outside of Ocean Club. They talked about it and Jamie ended up going inside with us to check it out. It was like stepping into a music video scene. It was an elaborate fancy club with fog, flashing lights, a stage with 3 barely clothed dancers... it was awesome. The only other odd thing was the security guards and how they stood around but we were prepped on their behavior having left Lavish. At some point one of the guys begin to hound us and told Jack that we couldn't stay if we didn't order anything. This is of course rubbish and totally inappropriate seeing as a club is a club and no one should be coerced into buying a drink. We were dancing and we didn't want any (more) alcohol. We ignored the guys and more of them begin to flock around us like we were dangerous criminals. They told us we would have to go. Some of the nearby SAS'ers with a table waved us over and asked us what was happening. We told them and they said the same thing had happened with them. They'd ordered juice because their drink menu was too expensive and the guys got mad and told them if they didn't order any drinks they would have to leave. Shaking my head at the fact that they complied... ahh... people I tell ya. They let people push them around much too easily. We walked out laughing. Jack was talking to the owner/manager and telling him what was going on. Jack told him if they acted this way, we could easily tell the 600 other students on the ship and they would lose business. I mean after all, it was a bigggggg beautiful spot, but oh so empty other than us and the few random SAS kids. The manager was pretty apologetic and said that they shouldn't have done that and that next time it would be different. I decided to test his words and said how about we go back in. He said okay and we walked in. The guys swarmed us in again and tried to give us drink menus and we just looked at them and told them no and continued dancing. They let up when someone told them what the manager said but they didn't stop standing around us which was annoying. They were trying to intimidate us. We eventually left when we felt like it, and that was most important. Jamie was shaking his head at us. But eh, its not about anything but the principle. You can't do that and we wanted them to know that we knew that wasn't okay. I think we were successful =)

rabbed our laptops and sat outside good ole Sushiya. Some hours later we say Taylor running frantically towards the ship, she returned still running with a steward. She headed back to the gate. We finally saw Chris in a wheelchair with his head being held by Taylor and being rushed by with a trail of the SAS folks who had partied with them. They were intoxicated and crying. We couldn't make out what happened but we wondered if it had anything to do with the people they'd went with... was it drugs? Turns out he was just dehydrated. Pretty sure he got serious dock time though.

Cu Chi Tunnels & Cao Dao Temple:

I don't know what this experience was like because I was so darn tired that I overslept and missed it. Ain't that some shiz! This was one of the trips I was most excited about of my Viet Nam trips. I had spent the night and early morning out on the curb of Sushiya with a ton of other SAS'ers using their wifi long after they closed. I am not sure who found out that the password was “sushi” haha, but they shared it and suddenly we all knew it. The possibility of chatting and skyping with friends back home was too alluring for me to go to sleep at decent hours. After all, 2 am our time was just about 3 in the afternoon back on the east coast. I was lucky and caught some people. That only fueled that insanity in thinking I could stay out a lot longer with the other crazy folks until 4-6 am. Anyways, those who did go said it was the longest trip of their lives haha. It was scheduled from 8 am to 7 pm. Apparently the temple and tunnels were at least 4 hours or so away from each other. The only thing I cared about was the tunnels. I can't really picture what that must have been like. The stories my friends told me was that they were extremely narrow, catered to thinner and shorter people, and there were bats inside. They expressed feelings of claustrophobia since it was dark, it was hot, and there was no end to the tunnel in sight. They also could not really see who was in front of or behind them. A couple of people were crying and or wailing to get out. Sounds like my kinda fun. Sad I missed it. I woke up at 8:15 am. I looked outside and had false hope that I could make it. Unfortunately by the time I got out there it was at least 8:20/30 maybe. I also realized that the three big buses I saw parked were in fact the usual parked shuttle buses. Instead I talked to the crew steward for a good 30 minutes. Then about faced and took my butt back to bed to properly finish what I interrupted =)


Service Visit: (I forget the official name of the school) but it is a School for the Deaf and a Zoo Visit
      So... for this trip I packed my camera but to my disbelief and disappointment, my battery was in my room plugged in the outlet fully charged. I had picked this particular service trip with the inclusion of the zoo because I wanted to see the Vietnamese zoo. The first half of the service trip was brief. We went to the school which was bright, colorful and everything even the stairs we walked up were labeled in Vietnamese. A few kids did a dance and another did a poem for us. Then we were split into groups and the kids drew pictures and got stickers. Then we were told to grab a kid and head to the bus for our trip to the zoo. Welps, some of the kids were doing their own choosing because next thing you knew there was none left. I was pretty indifferent so I was fine childless haha. Anyhow, we got on the bus and it was mayhem as we tried to figure out how we would all fit. People were stuffing kids on their laps and with the traffic in Viet Nam it wasn't the safest idea. When we brought the kids from the Disabled Home in India to the ship, they traveled on their own bus for liability purposes. It was interesting to see the different dynamics. It was so freaking awesome and I had no camera to record or capture it. The zoo had everything! Everyone but 5 SAS'ers (I was in that 5) had a kid that they were responsible for. I ended up helping out with folks kids. They were a handful and people were grateful for the extra eyes and hands.  The first thing we saw when we got off the bus was the elephants. We distributed the boxed lunches to the kids and they were tickled by the elephants. We spent like a good 15 minutes just watching them. What they do with their trunks can become quite weird after watching for some time. Lol. Okay, so then we moved forward to the monkeys. Some woman appeared with carrots which some people took thinking it was free. Turns it wasn't and she expected money. She followed us for some time around the zoo. She was not a happy camper. Lol. There were lions, tigers (white siberian ones and bengal ones), orangutans, other monkeys, crocodiles, peacocks, random birds, black bears, hippos, and a ton of other things. Again, sad that I didn't bring my camera =(


Service Visit: Nguyen Dinh Chieu- School for the Blind
         Let me just tell you. I was surprised I even made it to this trip. It was from 7:30 am to noon. I can barely get up for my Global Studies class at 9:50 am. I make it to breakfast on occasion and by that I mean when we arrive in port. But after a week in Viet Nam where I was out all types of the night and my sleep pattern out of wack, I missed breakfast all but one day. Breakfast in Viet Nam is super crucial as compared to some places because of the overall heat and I am not a heat kinda gal. I would much rather be cold than hot (to answer that age old question). Moving on, I was one of 7 other SAS students who was that committed to wake up and turn up for this trip. Dean Al was once again our trip leader.
        The first thought I had when we walked into the premises of the School for the Blind was how clean things looked. It was pretty pristine compared to the facilities in India. I also begin to wonder how many facilities back in the states were dedicated to the blind. I hadn't recalled any within my immediate location. It was run by very dedicated teachers thats for sure. The children were delightful and it was a learning experience for sure. If you want anymore details, ask me. Lol. We basically did a lot of talking to the teachers there. We played with the children the best we could. Our toys we brought were useless because majority required vision. I don't know who packed that stuff for this trip... shaking my head. The kids were also in school and had a routine that we observed and tried not to interrupt. I also found it kind of amusing and interesting to see how they navigated throughout the buildings and the playground without sight. There were many lines of kids holding onto each other as they walked. The minute they got to their destination they would drop arms and get to wrestling as kids do. I also got bumped into a number of times and that was pretty funny. I looked over and a bunch of us was having that same moment where you are surrounded by children in uniform who are in a rush with a sense of urgency and we happened to be but isolated dots in their immediate way.
       We got to check out a map in Braille which was given to each of us a souvenir. We learned about the levels of learning for each of the students. We learned of how they were selected and where they came from. Of the students about 75 lived in the dormitories because they lived far away from the Ho Chi Minh City.... got more details if you want them!

ps, we arrive in Shanghai by 8 am and it is 3:22 am. I am thoroughly exhausted!  I will update about Hong Kong maybe tomorrow =)