Start of Amazon River to Manaus, Brazil Saturday Jan 28th

Entering the Amazon River

We have entered the Amazon River around 3:00 Saturday Jan 28^th while I was in class.   However, because it is so wide, we will not see land until 8:00 tonight (2000 military time). The water is brown; it is so awesome to actually be here. I have learned about the Amazon so many times and right now I am actually looking at it. However when you see rivers, you expect for there to be land on the sides….

The ship has been calmer the last couple days but on the way to Dominica, the ship would rock back and forth.  Walking down the hallways makes you walk zigzag and you have to avoid other people. Running on the treadmill is also very difficult because you rock back and forth. The benefit is that when you go to sleep, it rocks you back and forth and you pass out instantly. I have been sleeping so well on the ship. Food is buffet style and is only served at certain times during the day. Breakfast is 7:30, Lunch is 12 and dinner is 5:30. It was hard to adjust to eating at those times. Luckily for me, there is pasta served at every meal. Now those meals are complimentary, however, there is a bar on the 7^th deck with burgers, salads, fries, smoothies and such. The food smells so good! I haven’t gotten a burger yet, but I will cave in soon. Everett got one and I have never seen him eat so fast. We also both got smoothies.

It feels like a month has past but it has barely been over a week! I have gotten a chance to meet a lot of different friends. It feels like Sacred Heart again, being able to recognize people and say hi anywhere. I miss the intimacy of being in a small institution. There is so little space that it is very easy to get to know everyone. Everyone is very social which makes it hard to allocate any time for work and play.  The work is not a lot but I know it would be easy to fall behind with all the other options of things to do! Also, I met 2 other ballroom dancers and last night we danced for 2 hours just sharing the moves we knew and talking about the dances. I taught a couple other people that came by. Dancing on a moving ship is really difficult- It is hard to maintain balance and manage to do the proper footwork. Luckily we are only doing it for fun. I am going out to a Samba club with the guy and the girl in Brazil! I’m really excited for the chance to dance in another country.  

 I got accepted to the Global Ambassador program and will be getting an opportunity to mingle with diplomats and dignitaries of other countries as well as students from different ports.  I am also starting to relax about what I want to accomplish from the voyage.  I found from other people that is just a time to explore and let that change me. I don’t need to achieve any great insight but to enjoy my travels.

Ambassador’s Visit SAS on the Amazon-The MV Explorer welcomes international guests on every voyage, and we'll be making a quick stop in Macapá early Sunday morning to welcome three delegates from the US Embassy in Brazil. The officers will sail with the students up the Amazon River to Manaus, leading discussions, attending classes, and engaging with students along the way. 12 members of the Ambassadors Club get the extra-special privilege of guiding our guests throughout the ship during their visit. The Ambassadors are a 45-student corps of shipboard tour guides, representing the best that Semester at Sea has to offer.

Everett and I will be in Manaus, Brazil on Tuesday Jan 31st. That night, we will be embark on a night jungle exploration and will be spotting alligators and on Wednesday Feb 1^st, we will be going on a river boat cruise to fish for piranha and see where the brown and black water of the two Amazonian rivers meet! I am ecstatic to go in to the rainforest and see the animals and all the species of wildlife. I am missing everyone back home. I will make time to visit an internet café to Skype people.