Author: Anna
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Valentines Day- Chocolate Strawberries & Paper Hearts
While I agree with the idea that Valentine’s Day capitalizes on people’s affection for each other, and we shouldn’t need a specific day to show our love, I’ve always had such fond memories of the day. That’s all thanks to my amazing parents who have always made sure that I know how loved I am.…
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Post SAS Depression- Coming ‘Back’
What happens after living on a ship for four months? What happens after seeing 13 countries in a row? What about after you leave your friends-turned-family and the people you saw every. single. day. ? Coming back signifies a sort of regression- ‘back’ in to the way that things have always been or ‘back’ in…
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We Are Family
Buckle up kids, this is gonna be the longest one yet. To introduce the fam is to sum up some of the best people I’ve ever met into a short ‘few’ pictures and words, and that is bound to be difficult. So here goes nothing. Disclaimer: The family has changed and grown so much over…
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Hawaii-Anthropology and Awe
When I signed up for my Cultural Anthropology class, not knowing who Dr. Janet Six was or what we would be doing, I was just happy to be able to get off the ship in Hawaii. Mauritius and it were the two ports where we had to be registered with a field class or program…
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Japan Reflection
In Japan, I learned a lot about how we interact with people, as well as our expectations versus those of others. Though not because of our location, I had enough experiences of my own while we were there that taught me some well-needed lessons. I learned that people might be used to one standard while…
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Japan-Sushi and Shibuya
Japan is a place that I’ve been wanting to visit for years, after hearing family and friends talk about it my whole life. What better way to end a voyage around the world? On our first day in Kobe, we went through the longest immigration process yet, before heading to central Kobe. After shopping for…
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China Reflection
In China, I remembered that it’s okay to sometimes skip the party if it means having a better experience the next day. I also knew that sometimes you have to drag your friends out with you if you know the party isn’t worth skipping. So, I did both. I fell asleep, accidentally, at 9pm after…
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China-The Great Wall, a Whirlwind
Despite our ship being delayed nearly an entire day, my plans for China thankfully were unchanged save for a dinner that was missed by our delayed arrival to Beijing. I chose to partake in a 5 day field program put on by Semester At Sea even though I could have done it on my own.…
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Vietnam Reflection
Halong Bay was an experience that I can honestly say does not compare with anything else I have ever done. I met so many nomadic souls just going and experiencing life and it really inspired me to be that way. To have less of a specific plan for now and more of a general concept…
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Ho Chi Minh & Halong Bay
Getting to Vietnam felt like a slap in the face, in the best way possible. It was a point in the voyage that had seemed like so far away for so long, because Jenna’s boyfriend was coming to visit. When she mentioned that around the time we were in Spain, Vietnam sounded like lifetimes away.…
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Myanmar Reflection
I’ve been meditating for a while now, but not following any sort of official practice. I was so excited to find the Meditation and Mindfulness program that SAS was holding in Myanmar. I wanted to learn more specific techniques in the heart of an area whose people are avid practitioners. I found it harder, however,…
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Thankful & THRIVING
This year, more than ever, I am so thankful to have a family and friends that I miss so dearly. I’ve always been so aware of how lucky I am to be so close to my family and be able to spend every holiday together. Now that that’s not the case, I am even more…
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Myanmar- Markets and Monasteries
Myanmar is such an absolutely beautiful country, full of some of the sweetest people with the most amazing food and culture. The ship ported about an hour out of Yangon, so there were buses provided to get us there and back. Hanna and our friend Steven and I went and spent the first day exploring…
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India Reflection
India is a place that is full of so much life, figuratively and literally. Being the second most populated nation in the world while housing wonders like the Taj Mahal is no small feat. Honestly, I had such a mix of emotions during my experience in the country that I still don’t quite know how…
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Tuk Tuks and the Taj Mahal
On my first day in India, I had a field class for International Mass Communications that visited a media academy and news/TV station. Part of the reason this program is so cool is exactly that, getting to visit places around the world that directly relate to what I learn about in class, especially a class…
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The Value of Things
I was quite literally in the middle of having a mini breakdown tonight, because an anklet that means a lot to me started to unravel somehow. Foolishly, I expected to have it with me forever. It’s made of the kind of material that makes up the handles on kayaks, so its durable, waterproof and it…
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Mauritius- Speedboats and Sunburns
Do you ever just have the urge to spend the day on a tropical island riding around in a speedboat blaring music with a ton of people? Yeah me neither. Just kidding, I got to spend the day off the island of Mauritius (if you haven’t heard of it, it’s the closest thing to the…
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South Africa – Table Mountain
I’m the kind of person who literally does not use the incline feature on the treadmills, like ever. I’ve used it once in my life and it made me sad. I didn’t think of that until I was about halfway up Table Mountain at 3:45 am hiking with only a flashlight and my friends. Two…
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South Africa-Robben Island
Hearing an ex-political prisoner talk about his experiences while standing in the room he was once caged in was so impactful that it is almost hard to find words adequate enough. I was visiting the island for my global studies field class, so I knew it would be educational. I didn’t realize how personally the…
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South Africa- Kayaking, Karaoke and Climbing a Mountain
The first day in South Africa we did the literal coolest, most culturally enriching thing I can imagine. We bought freaking SNACKS. But really, our ship docked in the afternoon instead of early morning because of some bad weather we experienced after Ghana, so we explored the Victoria Wharf area and refilled our stocks of…
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Ghana-Senase and Semanhyiya
Long bus rides have always been one of my favourite things. I’m not sure why being cramped in a bus with 40 people is enjoyable at all, but there’s something cool about it. Some people sleep while others blare music and others play games or talk about their lives. So many of us in such…
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Ghana Reflection
I had never experienced culture shock until I was hiking for twenty minutes through growing puddles of red mud that were forming as a result of Ghana’s rainy season. Always a fan of hiking, I didn’t quite expect to do so in order to get to my host family’s house. My four-day experience in West…
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Spain Reflection
I get it, what it’s like to travel which a huge group of people and explore and live life to the fullest. Running around Spain with groups of people without a care in the world, while the rest of my friends are sitting in classes somewhere, is really freeing. I love not being confined to…
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Barcelona and the Beach
The first day in Barcelona was like stepping into a portal and being 15 years old traveling with People to People again. It was amazing to be back in one of the first foreign countries I’d been to and getting to visit the same places years later. My perspective and appreciation might have changed, but…
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Sea Swells and Starting a Semester
The first day. A new start, always exciting. Except maybe not when you’re seasick because the waves are so big that they go past your porthole. Picture this, you fall out of your bathroom while brushing your teeth because there’s so much movement. Then the nausea sets in right before your first class. You have…
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Germany- Churches & Clubs
I arrived in Stuttgart, Germany around 3 pm local time after a transatlantic flight, exploring the city of Dublin, and another international flight, with maybe 3 hours of sleep in between. I was exhausted and, frankly, the idea of meeting people for the first time and finding things to talk about in the car did…
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Germany Reflection
In Germany, for the first time in my life, I learned what it’s like to sit in a group of people and not understand a single word, but still have fun. I learned to be much more engaged and try to pick up pieces of conversations from a language I don’t speak. It worked. Spoken…
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Dublin, Ireland – Travel and Trinity
It’s funny, flying makes you realize how inconsequential things are, how small your world really is. To see entire towns from above is to see how tiny the biggest buildings can appear and, in comparison, how incredibly small people are. As we flew over Dublin at 4 in the morning, it appeared as a glowing…
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“Seaing” The World
Thirteen days from now I’ll be on the way to Germany during my first international solo flight. Eighteen days from now I’ll be boarding the part-time cruise ship that’ll serve as a sort of home base for the following four months. This is a trip I’ve been hoping to partake in for a few years…
