Bahamas/Ship Departure

1-18-06

Just another day in paradise!

Wednesday was an awesome day. I woke up at 3:45am and we left the house at 4:30. We flew from Syracuse at 6am to JFK airport, and then boarded the plane for Nassau, Bahamas. The flight down was beautiful. I saw the sunrise form above the clouds which was magnificent, and at times the cloud cover broke and I could see straight down to the ground from 40,000 feet above. I fly several times a year, but these were the greatest views I have ever seen. As we were approaching the Bahamas, we flew over the turquoise blew water and palm trees, and I was as happy as can be. We cleared customs and immigration in no time, and I found some people in the airport who I knew from Syracuse who were going on SAS as well. We chatted it up, then hopped in a taxi to take us to the Atlantis hotel. Those of you who don’t know what the Atlantis is, check it out here http://www.atlantis.com The hotel, or resort I should say, is unbelievable. I have been here before just to tour the aquarium a few years ago when our cruise docked in the Bahamas, but this is the first time I have stayed here. Anyways, they drive on the left side of the road here, and I swear we almost died 10 times.

So at the Atlantis, I did many things. The weather was really nice, about 75 degrees. It was a bit overcast, but the sun broke through many times. This was much better than the predicted thunderstorms that thankfully didn’t show.

Pretty much everyone going on SAS is staying in my section of the hotel (the beach towers), so it is packed with SAS’ers. My dad got to work on his laptop, big surprise, so me and my Mom headed out for a walk. We walked around the resort and saw the massive yachts in the marina. My dad joined us later and he also went to look at the boats with us. These boats were so big that they had their own crews working on them. They are all privately owned, and I made sure not to get too close, because they are probably all owned by big drug dealers from South America. Haha, I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m not prepared to die my first day of this voyage.

We then walked out to the beach, where I saw the Caribbean ocean that I love. I rolled up my jeans, took my sandals off and stepped in the water. It was cold, but also felt really good at the same time. After numerous, yet failed, attempts by the local Bahamians to sell us Jet Ski rides, we washed off our feet and headed back.

So after that we walked to the aquarium, and it is the largest aquarium in the world I believe, or so they say it is. There were tons of fish, but we messed up and didn’t go in the shark part because we got lost. Oh well, there will be enough sharks in Africa. Once we were out of the aquarium, we went to the casino for a bit. I tried my luck at some slot machines, even though I hate them with a passion, and I won $35! So I was happy after that.

My parents had signed up to go to a reception on the ship that SAS was holding just for the parents. They took a taxi into town to get on the ship, and I came along too because I wanted to meet up with some people in town. My parents got on the ship, and I went with about 5 of my new friends to Senior Frogs. This is where the night gets interesting. We walked into Senor Frogs and were met with a scene of about 100-150 gothic people partying. Black clothes, skirts for girls AND guys, red glitter lipstick, mohawks, black fingernails, you know the deal. We weren’t quite sure what to make of it, seeing as we were the only white non-devil worshipping kids in the place. We decided to stay. They turned up the music, and after four margaritas and a tequila sunrise, I was feeling pretty good. One of the gothic guys in a skirt came over to our table and started talking to us. He was actually pretty cool and told us that there were about 250 of them taking part in “Gothic Cruise 2006”. It was interesting. About an hour later, more SAS kids showed up and we had a great time meeting each other. After getting a little bored of the crazy gothic scene at Senor Frogs, we decided to go look for a new establishment. We wandered around the streets of Nassau, which seemed extremely dead for some reason. We stopped at a corner just talking and wondering why we were walking around aimlessly when a guy came out of a restaurant/bar and said, “Drinks and Karaoke in here!” Well that got our attention. Apparently the name of the place was called The Blue Genie, and we had a great time singing karaoke and chillin with the cool Bahamian guys who ran the place. I had a type of beer there called Kaleek, and it was really good.

After our fun time at The Blue Genie, and haggling a cheap price with a taxi driver, I arrived back at the Atlantis where I crashed for the night. The next day I was to start my journey.

1-19-06

I live on a fricken ship. This is amazing. Here is the day from the beginning:

Today is the day. I was so excited to get on the ship, I awoke before the alarm and got my bags all ready to go. My name group was supposed to be at the ship at 8 to check in. I went outside and grabbed a taxi with three really cool guys named Brad, Kevin, and Ryan. We got to the ship a few minutes after 8, and the line was massive. We waited in the line for 2 hours, shuffling all of our luggage with us. When we finally got to the end of the line, I went through security and then was given my ID, and I then walked out of the building. There she sat. The M.V. Explorer. The ship is AWESOME. I waited for Brad, Ryan and Kevin, and after a few pictures we looked at each other and I said, “Guys, this is our home. What do you say we go check it out?” And with that, we boarded our home.

The ship is without a doubt the nicest ship I have ever been on. I have been on 2 cruises before, but this ship far surpasses those ones that I have sailed in the past. This ship is very new, and spotless. The crew cleans constantly, and they are all really nice. There is everything you can think of on this ship: a spa, basketball court, fitness room, computer lab, library, pool, everything.


We met some other people while we were waiting in line for 2 hours, and everyone decided to hop off the ship and grab some lunch before we sailed. I had promised to meet up with my parents for lunch, so I didn’t grab food with them. They got some food at a café, and we all sat on the edge of the pier with our feet in the turquoise water and ate lunch. My parents showed up about an hour later, and I went with them to a small café. After that I got back on the ship and unpacked all my stuff. I am on the fourth deck. Students only live on decks 2, 3, or 4. Faculty and staff live on 5 and 6. The crew is on 1 and 2 I believe. I took some pictures of my room, so you can see them if you go to my Webshots, which you can access by clicking on the link on the right side of this page. My room is somewhat small, obviously, but I don’t mind. There is a TV (no outside channels though), a fridge, bathroom with shower, and a desk. I have a big window I can look out of, but I don’t have a balcony. Those are reserved for the faculty and staff.

My roommates is great, his name is name is Matt, and he is from San Francisco. He has a bunch of friends from there who are also on here, and they are really awesome. After unpacking, my parents were allowed on the ship for visiting hours, and I showed them around. At about 4:00, they all had to leave, and I said goodbye to them.

I then went and hung out in my friend’s room with a bunch of people, until we heard the three long tones over the loudspeaker. We knew what that meant: lifeboat drill. We grabbed our life jackets and headed up to our “muster station”. One of my friend’s thought it was a mustard station, and this is what he said to the conduct officer, “Colonel Mustard, can I be the team leader of the mustard station?” We were cracking up. What was even better was the conduct officer says to him, “There is no team leader, and if there was, you wouldn’t be it.” That was hilarious. Then a lady yelled at us because we weren’t supposed to be talking, because apparently if you talk it will make the ship sink even more. Whatever.

After the exhilarating lifeboat drill, we were now clear to head out to sea.

At 5:00 we set sail. I went to the back of the ship and watched as the tugboats began to pull our massive ship away from the dock. All of the parents were on the pier waving us goodbye, and we did the same. I waved goodbye to my Mom and Dad, and we set out for the open ocean.

About 10 of us then went to dinner, and the food was surprisingly good. I’m sure it will get old after a while, but it is a hell of a lot better than UNH food. Not to mention the juice man’s name is Slim Shorty, who we had a great time with. It was even better when one of my friends couldn’t remember his name and called him Short Willy. That was great. Even though we really aren’t on a cruise, there really are aspects of this that remind me of one. They come around and fill up your cup, take your plates away when you’re done eating, etc. The biggest thing is that I have my own cabin steward who cleans my room every day.

So anyways, after dinner we hung out for a bit, and then had to go to a brief presentation in the union. The union is the big theater type room in the ship, and it is also where the global studies class is held that everyone is required to take. The presentation was a little boring, but we met up with our RD afterwards by sea. Every hall of rooms on this ship is labeled as a “sea”. I live in cabin 4113 and I am in the Arabian Sea. Don’t worry though, no terrorists here.

Tomorrow is orientation, and then Saturday we start classes. That’s right, Saturday. It doesn’t matter though, because we don’t count days of the week. They are A or B days, that’s it. Every day we are at sea is an A or B day, and we have class.

The amount of students on the ship is 683. A little over 200 are guys. That means that 70% of the students are female. That’s almost a 3:1 girl to guy ratio. I like those numbers.

If anyone is sending me mail, make sure my cabin number is on it! It will get to me much faster.

I am having the time of my life, but I miss you all!

We get to Puerto Rico on Monday, and so far the forecast is calling for rain. We will see. Look for an entry late next week after I get everything written up. That is all for now. From the beautiful M.V. Explorer, and for the first time in what looks to be an exciting series of journal entries, this is Mike Gilbert; over and out.