A-rockin' and A-rollin'

Good morning everyone!

 

Today our ship is almost halfway across the Atlantic. We will be crossing the Mid-Atlantic Ridge today which means that we will be getting some pretty big waves. The waves are already a lot bigger than yesterday. It is the funniest thing when a bunch of people are walking down the halls. A wave will come and all of the people will just slam against a wall. We have finally given up trying to walk in a straight line. I had a ton of reading to do last night. I had over 120 pages that I needed to read just for today. The highlight of my day yesterday was taking my books onto the deck and laying out while I read while also watching the sun sink below the horizon.

 

For those of you who might be wondering...Our ship is 591 ft long and 83 ft wide with a 21 ft draft (the part that goes under the water). Four engines give this vessel 53,000 horsepower and the ship weighs 24,000 tons. We typically travel at 21 knots but the ship can go as fast as 33 knots. Right now we are currently at 33 degrees north and 54 degrees west. (There is also a link on www.semesteratsea.org that can be used to follow our ship....)

 

Every other day that we are at sea we change the clocks so that when we get to Spain we are already set to their time. Right now... if I'm thinking correctly I am 5 hours ahead of California time. We change the clocks again tonight so the I'll be 6 hours ahead of you. Today is the first day I am going to try not using a sea-sick patch or medicine. They make me so sleepy!! I need to stay awake in class because midterms are on Friday!!

 

Fun facts I have learned so far... DON'T under any circumstance think that you can put pants on while standing up on a ship. It DOES NOT work... There is a good reason why there are bars or handrails on every wall in the ship. If you're in bed sleeping and you hear someone come in... don't automatically assume that it is your roommate... it could very well be housekeeping and you both could very easily get frightened by the unexpected visit of the other. haha... (sorry Rey!) Lastly... never close your eyes while you're in the shower because you will definitely lose your balance and crash into the wall during the first wave.