Amazonian woman performing traditional tribe dance

Sun rising over the Amazon River

Beautiful Amazonian sunset

Life in Namibia and Other Things

I haven't written in a little while because not much has really been happening. I will try to catch up. I had my first exam the other day in my Philosophy class and I think I did really well. I was finished with fill in the blank, short answer, and a 4-5 page double spaced essay in 30 minutes. I have been kept busy by the clubs I'm in. With Students of Service, we put on a "So You Think You Can Dance" competition and raised over $500 for charity. It was a lot of fun and the dancers were great. I also went to my first Scriptures at Sea, which is like a Bible study, and really enjoyed it. The Ambassador's Intercultural club has kept me busy too. I met with the three Diplomats yesterday morning! It was amazing. I really really enjoyed it. I am thinking about taking the state exam when I graduate. I was talking to Frank is particular who is from Virginia and I believe graduated undergrad with a major similar to mine. He just came from an assignment in Bolivia and has only been in Namibia a month. He gave me his business card before he left. I am really interested in pursuing the Global Perspectives major, maybe instead of the Marketing one. The Diplomats were so friendly and helpful, it really was a great experience.

 
I had an awesome day yesterday. Namibia is beautiful! I like it so much more than Brazil already. I went to the Salt Mines yesterday with my art class and it was beautiful. The salt crystallizes into a bright pink. Usually there are flamingos but we were told that they come and go, and that they were everywhere the day before, but had just left ...partly because of the wind. Namibia is the windiest place I have ever been. Luckily I was wearing sunglasses to mostly block the sand from my eyes, but when I came back during the day I had sand caked on my face, in my ears..it was crazy. We found a grocery store too. We were really happy about that because we got to buy some snacks. I got multiple packages of cookies, a Namibian candy bar, and a box of cereal ...it was only 51 Rand!!! That equals out to only about $6.50 here! Everything is so so cheap here. We went out to the most delicious dinner at this place called the Raft which was recommended by one of the local guides for having great seafood. I got prawns and breaded crab claws with a girl named Carrie that I came with. A glass of wine was only one American dollar! The semi-sweet white wine was very good. I spent 100 Rand for that amazing dinner...and that's only about $13 USD! I went with 7 other girls ...my roommates Rebecca and Savannah, the girl we're good friends with across the hall (our fifth roommate) Tori, Marcella (the girl I met the first day here boarding the ship), her roommate Carrie, and two other girls, Tristan and Catherine. It really was such a fun time. Half of Semester at Sea showed up at the Raft because there was a bar there too so it was fun mingling with everyone. There are a lot of Germans in Namibia! If you look up the history of the country you will see why. But we were told everyone loved our business there! After that we went to a club which was again filled with Semester at Sea people. They played all American music! So I can't remember if there's anything else I'm missing, but today we are going to Swakopmund which is supposed to be really beautiful as well. We are hoping to check out the dunes soon. No country is ever how you really picture I don't think. Well at least from what I have experienced so far. The ports we dock in don't even seem like the continents we're on. Africa really is beautiful. A lot of the architecture in Namibia has German influence; everything is very well kept up. We went down a street called Millionaires row, beautiful houses and architecture and right on the water...the houses are all at least a million ...Rand..this equals only about $130,000 USD! I might be moving here :)

Alright that's all for now. I need to shower so we can go see the sights! This continent is amazing and I am so excited to go to South Africa next week. I truly am a lucky girl! Thanks for reading, and leave any questions you might have for me!