I'm Hooommmeeeee!!!

Hi Everyone!
Thanks for checking in and keeping tabs on me while I've been traveling!!! I am back at home now and enjoying seeing family and friends again!!! I hope you are all well and I am looking forward to seeing you all again :-D
Love you all! Merry Christmas!!!
Love and hugs,
-Bethany

I'll be home for Christmas...

Things are wrapping up here on the MV Explorer! Last night I slept outside as we pulled away from Costa Rica, and now we are heading towards home! It was a beautiful night :) Tomorrow we will be traveling through the Panama Canal which should be very interesting to see! And I have lots of packing to do as well :-p I am soooo excited about coming home and seeing you all again!!! I hope that you are all well, and I will see you soon!

Love and hugs!

-Bethany

Happy Thanksgiving from Hawaii!!!

I just jumped out of a plane!!! wicked awesome! basically I can't stop grinning... :)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone and good luck surviving crowds for Christmas shopping!

see you all soon!

-Bethany

:-D

Life at Sea...

Things are going well here aboard the MV Explorer! We have a few more days at sea before we stop in Hawaii for Thanksgiving, and then we will be at sea for another week for finals… I enjoy life at sea a lot, even though by now I am quite sick of being offered potatoes and pasta at every meal. Yesterday we had a special BBQ and that was a lot of fun!

I figured I would tell you all a little about things here on the ship, since I realized that I have only really told you about all the other places I have been :) Here on the ship we have 7 decks, though the lowest is for crew only. I live on deck 2- lots of stairs to climb :) I work four hours a day in the computer lab on deck 6, though most of the time I just end up hanging out or doing homework there- we don’t have a lot of work to do :) Every four days at sea we have a Bible study and some worship time, and that’s always really nice. I am leading Bible study for the first time on the 26^th- please pray for me! We will see how it goes…  Days of the week don’t matter much here; our schedule goes back and forth between “A” and “B” days. I have two classes each day so it keeps me busy, but I still manage to have time to watch random TV shows and go on coffee and tea runs with the people who live on my hall :) Every couple nights or so we lose an hour of sleep as we turn the clocks ahead- one of the downfalls of traveling East- but yesterday we crossed the international date line and got to have a second November 22^nd! So that was cool :-D They even gave us a day off from classes so it was like a real Saturday…

Well I won’t bore you with any more details, I just figured I would check in and say hi even though I don’t have any crazy stories from ports in different countries. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!! You should all eat extra pumpkin pie for me!!! Have fun…

-Bethany

 

:-D

Japan :)

I got to see two different ports in Japan, Kobe and Yokohama. The leaves were changing colors which was beautiful, and overall both cities were very nice! I spent all of my time in Kobe staying with a nearby family on a homestay visit. My family was very friendly and sweet, they had a one year old daughter named Yuki who was very cute :) I got to bike to a huge park in the area where we played on the playground (yay!) and then enjoyed a picnic with LOTS of sushi… which was  pretty good actually, though I think I prefer my food to be cooked :) It was a nice time.

After our time in Kobe we had a day off while we traveled in between Kobe and Yokohama. Do you realize that we have not had any days off since this trip began? No weekends or anything- we are either traveling or having classes. So I finally had a chance to play some guitar and relax… Needless to say, I enjoyed my day :-D

When we arrived in Yokohama my friend Kristene and I wandered around the city for a while… we found Chinatown, ice cream and a nice park :) I got to ride one of the world’s largest Ferris Wheels, visit the Ramen Museum, find a 100 Yen store (like a dollar store) and do a lot of people watching. It was a great time! It was so nice to be walking around, it was so beautiful out...

So now I am back on the ship until Thanksgiving! It is weird to think that now we are starting on our trip home. Lots (and lots!) of work to be done by then! :) And I will try to get some pictures up sometime as well! I hope that you are all doing well and are enjoying the Fall weather! I will be home soon and look forward to seeing you all! :-D

love and hugs,

-Bethany

 

pictures! (as promised)

ni hao from China!!! :)

China! So many things were so wicked amazing!

First of all- it was COLD. Yay! After visiting hot, humid countries I was excited to be in a place where I needed to wear my sweatshirt  :) Walking around Hong Kong there was an interesting combination of poor shops and beggars alongside huge, modern skyscrapers and elevated walkways. At night we took a bus to the top of Victoria’s Peak which had the most beautiful view- everywhere we looked we could see the magnificent city below us.

After Hong Kong we braved the Chinese subway to the airport to get to Beijing. There were ten of us who had put together an independent trip with a Chinese tour group. The guy at immigration laughed when he compared my passport picture to my new short hair, but they let us all into China without any problems. Yay for China! I had so much fun trying to read the signs and listen in on conversations even though I could only pick up random words here and there- my Chinese classes were quite a while ago :) Our tour got us up and moving early in the mornings, we got to see many temples and palaces and the Forbidden City. And, of course, no visit to China would be complete without a visit to the Great Wall! It was beautiful. The sun was out, the leaves were changing colors, and we had a great view from the top! The wall stretched on FOREVER- on every mountain peak in the distance we could see more towers. It was amazing :) Besides the Great Wall and seeing all the other sites we also got to eat a lot of great (and sometimes not so great) Chinese food and visit some markets. In the markets we really got a chance to practice our bargaining skills that we’ve practicing in different countries- here we basically tried to pay about 10% or less of the asked price. It was a pretty intense and interesting challenge. We had a brief scare at the airport in Shanghai when first of all no one spoke English to give us directions and then no one had ever heard of the port where our ship was docked. After bugging all sorts of people who worked there we finally got a hold of two minivans to get us back to the Explorer. We were so glad to be back on the ship! Our last day was spent wandering around Shanghai before we had to say goodbye to China.

And that has been my most recent adventures! Now I am back on the ship listening to Flogging Molly and figuring out what I need to do for classes before we get to Japan. I have pictures I am going to try to put up here soon, I promise :) Things are moving fast, and between school and work and traveling there is not much (or any) down time… but things are going well! Send along any comments, questions, snide comments or favorite recipes! I love you all and hope you are well!

 

pictures of Vietnam...

Hi friends! :)

This morning we left Vietnam at 6am- I was not awake, I said my goodbyes last night :) Vietnam was an interesting place to be, and many things made me think...

I visited the War Remnant Museum (formerly named the Museum of American War Crimes) where I saw pictures, stories and pieces of the Vietnam War. It was…intense. At times I wanted to cry. I had never thought much about the war before but here it became very very real and very very horrible. It was not easy to see but I was glad I was there. When I was looking at pictures of people protesting the war a boy next to me said hello. He asked where I was from and I said the United States, very mindful of where I was and what the United States had done to his country. He immediately smiled and welcomed me to Vietnam. I was just a small moment but I was so grateful.

 I also got a chance to visit an orphanage for children disabled because of Agent Orange from the war. Again, not an easy thing to see. But we got to play with the kids, hold them up so they could move around on their deformed legs, hold their hands as they lay unmoving in their cribs. I was surprised at how these chemicals could continue to cause problems today, and I was glad of my small chance to hold the children in this house, bounce them up in the air and make them smile.

So I’ve seen some thought provoking stuff here in Vietnam! Beyond that I have just been wandering around, eating “Pho”(a Vietnamese noodle dish) and looking at the millions of things they are trying to sell you on the street! It has been a good time, and now I am trying to get ready to land in Hong Kong next…

I love you all and I hope that you are all well! I would love to hear from any of you- just send me an email at brwakeman@semesteratsea.net :) and I will get more pictures up when I can! cheers...

-Bethany

Malaysia

That went fast...

I left Malaysia last night and still can’t believe it is over already! Ready for a random story? I was staying with a family in this village and my friend and I got invited to go to a wedding! How cool is that? They dressed us all up and we got to watch the ceremony. It was interesting because since it was a Muslim wedding the women, including the bride, had to watch from behind a green divider and peek out…it was strange to be excluded in that way.

Malaysia was a lot cleaner than India and not quite as overwhelming…so that was nice :) The people were friendly, the food was amazing and the temples and mosques were very beautiful and interesting to look at. There was a very relaxed atmosphere especially in the village- people didn’t really care about being late; they would do something when they were ready.  I started off looking at my watch and being frustrated that I didn’t know when things were going to happen or what was going on, but once I just relaxed and let things be it was actually nice to not care about being on time. I got over that mindset quickly when I came back on the ship and started needing to get to classes again, but it was nice while it lasted *grin*

And now I am back on the ship, writing papers, thinking about classes for the spring and catching up on homework! It’s not all work though, I had some nice procrastination time last night watching “Friends”with some friends :) And soon I will be in Viet Nam! It is all pretty surreal…

I hope you all are well! I am missing all the fall colors and apple picking- you will all have to eat extra apple pie for me! Love you all,

-Bethany

 

pictures :)

Namaste from India!

I hope that you are all doing well! I have been LOVING my time here in India! Things started off with a group of us getting ripped off by our auto rickshaw driver (which is like a cross between a golf cart and a motorcycle, painted yellow and driven by a madman)- but things looked up from there. I ended up meeting this really friendly and sweet Indian college student named Priyanka who invited me and two other girls to visit her house and meet her family. We ended up spending two days with her and she showed us around, took us shopping and to a coffee shop and we just hung out and had a blast. Her mom fed us soooo much wicked delicious South Indian food- they were all so welcoming and friendly! After we left their house I got a chance to visit a farming village where we got to see the rice fields and coconut harvesting, so that was pretty cool to see. I tried to climb a coconut tree and failed, it was pretty hysterical *grin* Later, a group of us went to see a movie (it was like Bollywood only in Tamil, not Hindi) which was so much fun even though there were no subtitles…they would throw in English words here and there and it was surprisingly easy to follow. Every once in a while the characters would break out dancing and singing which was pretty great :)The theater was huge and the music was SO loud- it was amazing.

sooo that’s a bit of what I’ve been up to here in India! There is so much to see everywhere that I could never write down even half of it here- it is hot and sticky out and there are always a million things to look at no matter where you are. There are rickshaws, motorcycles, bikes, buses and cows going chaotically in every direction and people everywhere. I think one of my favorite things to see is the women in their traditional saris riding on motorcycles sidesaddle- I have no idea how they do it…

I will try to get pictures up for you as soon as I can! I am now back to classes and a lot of work for the next three days before we get to Malaysia on the 22^nd. It is crazy to think about, but time is really moving fast…someone just told me the semester was half over (or half begun, depending *grin*) which is hard to believe! I will be home to see you all soon! :)

I hope things are going well wherever you all are and with whatever you may be up to! Many thanks to all of you who are praying for me- it is definitely appreciated! I have been praying for you all as well, feel free to send any specific requests my way. Love you all!

-Bethany

 

hello friends!

I've been at sea for ten days now and it is crazy to think about the fact that I will be in India on Tuesday! Some of you seem to be under the impression that I don't actually do any work here... really I promise I do have classes! *grin*  no really, these last ten days I have been wicked  busy with papers to write, midterms to study for and computers to fix... in between I've also found some chances to procrastinate either by napping (yay!), standing outside and watching the ocean, playing some dodge ball, reading, listening to music or emailing you guys :) So that's about it... I didn't really have a whole lot to say, I just wanted to say hi and assure you all that I was in fact still alive (no I haven't fallen overboard...yet) and working hard (at least some of the time)

I hope that you are all well! I am off to celebrate being done with midterms by eating something sugary and playing cards with some friends across the hall :)

much love now and always,

-bethany

:-D

hey everyone! i am back at sea for a while to go before we land in India... and lots of work to do before then :-p i hope you all enjoy the pictures!!! love you all! :)

pictures from south africa...

Hello from South Africa!!!

From our ship we can see Table Mountain, Lion's Head and Devil's Peak rising above the city of Cape Town and it is soooo beautiful! Unlike Namibia there are no sand dunes here, instead we have the mountains, trees and a city. The waterfront area near our pier is filled with people, music, food and three different malls- there is always something to look at! Here is some of what I have been up to... (warning- longish post ahead)

The first day we got here, Friday, I climbed Table Mountain and it was BEAUTIFUL! I realized how much I miss being active outside, and it was just a great time. It was COLD at the top, but we could see the whole city and our ship looked tiny in the distance. We ate PB&J while feeling like we were on top of the world. I managed to be the clumsy one on the way down and step on my ankle funny, but hey I can smile while wearing an ace bandage so it's all good :)

Saturday I visited a township, which several years ago started off being the area where they sent Black people to live when they were segregating the city and is now a poor collection of run down shacks and people wandering about on the streets. While on one hand it was a hard thing to see, especially when we saw the houses on the outskirts of the township that were so much worse that we would not even go camping in them let alone live in them, but we also got to play with some of the kids and they were smiling and laughing as I swung them up in the air :)

On Sunday I went to Hillsong church with a couple other people from the ship. It was AMAZING. It was good hearing the loud music and having people dancing by their seats and clapping as they sing, and then the pastor was really great... We sang the song "I am a friend of God" and the verse really spoke to me- I felt this great feeling like Jesus was home. No matter how far away I go He is there and He is more than enough :) as I left I picked up a brochure and all it said besides the name was simply "Welcome Home." Amazing.

Monday and Tuesday I explored the waterfront area and the further downtown- there were numerous markets to poke around in, sooo many people to talk to and different music performances everywhere to watch. I became friends with one guy named Hakeem who has a stall at the Greenmarket Square. His dream is to become an artist and we got to talk for a while and it was really cool. We exchanged email addresses and small gifts- he gave me a pair of earrings and a bag and I gave him a New Hampshire postcard and some candy. His email to me said "Don't forget friends."

Wednesday! That's today! Today a group of us got together with this amazing guide to drive down to Cape Point and several other places. We got to go on a ferry out to see Seal Island which was covered in (you guessed it) seals! We also saw lots of whales. Then we saw baboons on the side of the road!!! They were so cute. Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope were both pretty cool... we had a great view of the water and some mountains. Then we stopped at Boulder Beach where we saw PENGUINS! That was probably the best part of the trip :) they were sooo adorable. On the way back we stopped for food and he took us to a traditional African place to get... fish and chips! Apparently that's what you eat if you live at the sea front :)

Besides these things I have also watched people play with fire at a street corner, poked around in a bookstore, and eaten warthog and snoek (which is some fish that you can apparently only find here). We leave tomorrow night to head toward India! We will be at sea for 11 days, so I will be working hard and busy with classes :) I hope that you are all well and having fun with whatever adventures you are having!!! Let me know what you are up to!

Love always, -Bethany

PS: I will try to get new pictures up soon! And you should now be able to comment on these posts if you want but I probably won't be able to reply to them... just so you know. If you want to actually tell me something and get a reply then just send me an email (brwakeman@semesteratsea.net <mailto:brwakeman@semesteratsea.net> ) :-D

"who am I that you are mindful of me? That you hear me when I call. Is it true that you are thinking of me? That you love me? Its amazing... its amazing..." -from the song "I am a Friend of God"

sand shenanigans!

Namibia was an adventure for sure... I climbed, played and jumped on sand dunes, ate unpronounceable flavors of ice cream that came in funky colors, had three different run-ins with the Namibian police and swam in the ocean- which was COLD. I got to visit an outdoor market where everyone asked me where I was from (United States) and then asked whether I was from California or New York- obviously New Hampshire isn't that well known worldwide :) Short story: One guy named Eric seemed very pleased that we were all there (this was the first time Semester at Sea has ever visited Namibia) besides the obvious fact that we were probably doubling their economy just from staying there five days. Unlike most of the people at the market he was not pushy about selling me something after I told him that I was just there waiting for a friend to be done shopping. Eric was interested in the U.S. and pleased to hear about the things I had seen and liked in Namibia, and then he told me about the market and how he gets by working there. So that was a cool conversation to have- it was nice that many people in Namibia spoke English, it made things a lot easier :) Lots of exciting things happened while riding taxis around- whether it was getting pulled over for having too many people in the backseat (oops), having people following us to stick their heads in the car to try to convince us to get out and into their cabs, getting pulled over and having the car searched for firearms, listening to a Dolly Parton tape for half an hour or having the police tell our driver that his license was expired... things were never dull! With the sand dunes stretching on forever on one side and the ocean on the other Namibia was a beautiful place to be.

So that's the short version of my time in Namibia! We arrive in South Africa bright and early tomorrow morning so I will have to keep you posted on that as well!!! I always love to hear from you all and I hope that you are enjoying lots of sunshine, laughter and ice cream! May God bless and keep you and give you peace...

-Bethany

fun in Namibia!

hello from Africa!!!

This morning we arrived in Namibia, Africa! My first sights of Namibia included lots and lots of fog, a pier covered with stacks of huge storage containers and a seal swimming behind our ship... :)

Here are some random pieces and pictures of my first day here-

There is a new stamp in my passport, sand in my face, and such a strong wind that we can barely walk upright and Frisbee is definitely out of the question. Roy next to me is walking backwards so the sand in the wind doesn't get in his contacts. I am walking into town with him and my friend Jennie, the rest of the group we usually hang out with are off on tours and stuff. We visit four different grocery stores and one twice; there are lots of interesting things to look at! For 4 Namibian dollars (about 50 cents) I buy funny colored lolly pops in some strange flavor that I can't pronounce. We have to stop walking as a train goes slowly by with two workers hanging off the back...it makes me want to jump on too. *grin* We see "China Shops" on every other corner and they sell things that you might find in a pawn or outlet shop. We eat ice cream and "chips" or French fries at "Wimpys" which seems to be Namibia's version of a Friendly's . Short, fat palm trees line most of the roads and we argue about whether they are date trees or big pineapple trees. They keep blowing in the wind and attacking Jennie but so far we are all still unscathed. We watch the sun set from the ship and it is beautiful, in the distance behind the city we can see the sand dunes... we will go climbing and sand boarding there soon. When I return at night back to my sand free room I find letters from home waiting for me- thank you!!! I feel very loved.

I still can't believe I am in Africa! It is all very insane... I will post more soon and try to get some pictures to you when I can! Sorry this update is somewhat scattered... hope it made you smile anyway :)

Love you all! I think of you often- let me know how you are doing and what crazy antics you have been up to! :)

With many hugs and smiles I remain yours,

-Bethany

here are some pictures from Brazil... :-D