Post Finals & Panama Canal Info

I am officially finished with exams. I took my last 2 today, and I am putting all school work behind me - I have 10 days left of the trip of a lifetime. Where has it gone?

Below is information sent to us about the Panama Canal. If you want to watch us go through on Thursday, December 11th, check out the link at the end:

The canal consists of artificial lakes, several improved and artificial channels, and three sets of locks. An additional artificial lake, Alajuela Lake (also known as Madden Lake), acts as a reservoir for the canal. The layout of the canal as seen by a ship passing from the Pacific end to the Atlantic is as follows:
•       From the buoyed entrance channel in the Gulf of Panama (Pacific side), ships travel 13.2 km (8.2 mi) up the channel to the Miraflores locks, passing under the Bridge of the Americas
•       The two-stage Miraflores lock system, including the approach wall, is 1.7 kilometres (1.1 mi) long, with a total lift of 16.5 meters (54 ft) at mid-tide
•       The artificial Miraflores Lake is the next stage, 1.7 kilometers (1.0 mi) long, and 16.5 metres (54 ft) above sea level
•       The single-stage Pedro Miguel lock, which is 1.4 kilometres (0.8 mi) long, is the last part of the ascent with a lift of 9.5 meters (31 ft) up to the main level of the canal
•       The Gaillard (Culebra) Cut slices 12.6 kilometres (7.8 mi) through the continental divide at an altitude of 26 metres (85 ft), and passes under the Centennial Bridge
•       The Chagres River (el Río Chagres), a natural waterway enhanced by the damming of Lake Gatún, runs west about 8.5 kilometres (5.3 mi), merging into Lake Gatun
•       Gatun Lake, an artificial lake formed by the building of the Gatun Dam, carries vessels 24.2 kilometers (15.0 mi) across the isthmus
•       The Gatún locks, a three-stage flight of locks 1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi) long, drop ships back down to sea level
•       A 3.2 kilometer (2.0 mi) channel forms the approach to the locks from the Atlantic side
•       Limón Bay (Bahía Limón), a huge natural harbour, provides an anchorage for some ships awaiting passage, and runs 8.7 kilometres (5.4 mi) to the outer breakwater
Thus, total length of the canal is 47.9 miles (77.1 kilometres).
For the EXPLORER the Panama Canal transit will continue as follow:

Starting canal Transit 06:20 hrs

Mira Flores locks
Arriving 0830hrs
Departing 1000hrs

Pedro Miguel                                    
Arriving 1100hrs
Departing 1130hrs


Gatun locks
Arriving 1530hrs
Departing 1810hrs
ETD Cristobal 1900  hrs

Canal lock size
Initially the locks at Gatun had been designed as 28.5 metres wide. In 1908 the United States Navy requested that the locks should be increased to have a width of at least 36 metres which would allow for the passage of US naval ships. Eventually a compromise was made and the locks were to be constructed to a width of 33 meters. Each lock is 300 metres long with the walls ranging in thickness from 15 metres at the base to 3 metres at the top. The central wall between the parallel locks at Gatun has a thickness of 18 metres and stands in excess of 24 metres in height. The lock gates are made from steel and measures an average of 2 metres thick, 19.5 metres in length and stand 20 metres in height.
The maximum dimensions of a ship that can cross the Canal are: Length: 950 feet (289.6m); Beam: 106 feet (32.31m); height: 190 feet (57.91m); Draught: 36 feet 6 inches (12.04 m).

Live Cameras
These live cameras show operations at the Miraflores & Gatun Locks, as well as other points of interest in the Canal, can be accessed on the internet at:

http://www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html

This is written by my ship neighbor from his digital story just played on Sea TV. This is more true than I can say...

"When you see me cross over that line -
I may not look any taller, but I've grown.
I may not seem any smarter, but I've learned.
I may not act any different, but I've changed."

T-6 Days until Costa Rica

Today was my last day of classes on-board the MV Explorer. Tomorrow morning I have my first exam in Global Studies, and then 2 days after that, I have my last 2. Then I will have 2 days to rest and Costa Rica on December 7th! The first day I am going to La Paz Waterfall Garden which has of course, waterfalls, but also hummingbirds and butterflies. The second day I don't have any plans so maybe I'll check out the beach with my friends, and the last day I am going on a canopy tour...zip lining. I'm pretty scared since I don't really like heights or fast moving things, and I will be zipping through the trees hundreds of feet above ground. A group of something like 10 of us are doing it so kinda got conned into it...let's hope my real fear doesn't come into play...spiders!
Yesterday I went on a bridge tour...a tour of all the navigation systems and met with a lot of the crew who handles the ship. I even got to sit in the captain's chair :) Besides that, that's all that's new for me...back to studying I suppose..

After I turned my computer off, I realized being that it was Thanksgiving, I wanted to right some things I am thankful for:
My parents, my sister, all of my family, my friends from home, my new friends I have made on this trip, this amazing opportunity I have had these last 3 months, the opportunities ahead of me, my education at my college ...the list could go on, but what better way to spend Thanksgiving than to be traveling around the world?

Honolulu, Hawaii

Today I spent Thanksgiving in my home country...in the state of Hawaii :) We arrived this morning at about 8am and had to go through U.S. customs to get off the ship (we probably got off for the day around 9:30-10). Prior to this, I had woken up with my roommates to watch the sunrise (which was beautiful...one of the only sunrises we have been able to see coming into port because of weather), and also to have breakfast. While I was sitting at the table, one of the head kitchen staff came over and asked my name. When I told him he responded by telling me I had a surprise that evening. I had no idea what he was talking about, so I asked him a few questions (none that he would answer) and because I had no clue, I guessed that maybe it was something for the Ambassador's club I'm in. Anyways, that's part one of that story. We all got off the ship, 10 of us total, and we took a taxi to Waikiki beach. It was gorgeous and PACKED! You would probably never know it was Thanksgiving! ...Except for the snack shack near us that had a Thanksgiving lunch. So what did I do today? I ate a whole Thanksgiving meal - turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, corn, and pumpkin pie - out of a take-out container - sitting on the beach in Hawaii. It really was a memorable experience, and while different than any other Thanksgiving I have ever had, I really loved it. By the way, I decided today that I do in fact like pumpkin pie. A few of my friends took surf lessons today...I decided not to because 1) I wanted to call my family, 2) I wanted to relax, and 3) I am really not all that coordinated. It was about 85 degrees today and I went swimming and bathed in the sun. I realized that after going in the ocean today, I have been in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans...who wants to come to the Arctic? :) And as for the continents and my all 7 goal...I have North America, South America, Africa, and Asia down. Europe I hope to move to in the next year or two, Antarctica my favorite and only sister has already promised to go (someday), and Australia, well I'll make it there too. I don't know why I ever came up with that goal but I've had it since I was a little kid and it just stuck...I better start saving. So after the beach, we went to where other than...Walmart. Everyone had to pick up a few things, and after that, we came back to the ship in time to get the hour of free internet promised if we got back before 6 (a lure to make us not miss on-ship time). They had a "special Hawaiian dinner" tonight, although really it was just like all other food we have ever eaten on the ship, except with pineapples. It was fun though, and after dinner, I realized my special surprise was from my mom ...a chocolate cake that said Welcome Home Lisa! ...Back in the states today for the first time since August 27th. Myself and 8 friends shared it, and with the little bit left over, I gave two pieces to a nice girl I know and her friend. Thanks Mommy :) It was a really great day...very relaxing and a lot of fun. While I do miss my family, my friends from home, and my boyfriend, I will see them soon, and I couldn't have asked for better people to spend my Thanksgiving away from home with...

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! I love and miss you all!
One port to go and I'll be home for Christmas...you can count on it :)
P.S. Please play Christmas songs for me...106.7 and 94.9 has them on all the time now!

90 Days at Sea

We had the Students of Service Charity Auction on our 2nd November 22nd. It went really great - about $5,000 raised between raffles and the silent auction ($630 went into the internet minutes raffle alone!). We raised $11,000 at the live auction! Bringing the total to $16,000 raised during the SOS auction. Below are the three organizations we are donating to, a third to each one, all donated in Kurt's name. The last one is a woman who is a victim of acid attack, whom we learned about at the beginning of the year and watch a video about (two of the people on-board have made a documentary with her) ...and she is going to get her surgery now!

Operation Hunger
Operation Hunger is an NGO whose mission is “to create partnerships between vulnerable households and caring people to combat malnutrition which, when suffered by children, undermines the nation’s health, education and economic potential.” The objectives are to improve the nutritional well being of the poor; promote the dissemination of knowledge about poverty and malnutrition in South Africa; improve existing facilities to reduce malnutrition in South Africa and to render financial assistance to develop such programs; cooperate with communities, organizations and authorities to combat malnutrition; publicize and promote the objectives via lectures, exhibitions, meetings, conferences, pamphlets, newspapers, books, leaflets, radio, television and films. Operation Hunger’s integrated development program includes locally-managed growth-monitoring programs, targeted food support, water supply, sanitation facilities, health/hygiene education, income generation and livelihood programs, agriculture and food production. 

YMCA Viet Nam and Agent Orange Children’s Center
The YMCA Viet Nam sponsors many community outreach programs, including a sewing center, school support and a Disabled Youth Center.  The Agent Orange Children’s Center cares for children who have been affected by dioxin, the chemical in Agent Orange.  Many of the children are severely handicapped with physical and mental disabilities. 

Acid Violence Victim Assistance
Chour Sreya is a young Cambodian woman whose life was forever changed when she was attacked with acid (Acid violence involves the deliberate throwing of acid into the face of another person - usually young women and children -  and is a form of violence that has been on the rise in Cambodia since the late 1990s). Chour Sreya was twenty years old when she was attacked by an unknown assailant. She was blinded by her attack, and now works to support her entire extended family as a “Seeing Hands” massage therapist for Cambodia’s Association for the Blind.

Any funds raised for Chour Sreya would be administered through a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (Cambodian American Community of Oregon) that is actively working to assist Sreya in receiving reconstructive surgery in Cambodia so that – in Sreya’s words: “My daughter won’t be scared when she grows up and sees me.”


...2 days until Thanksgiving, but it doesn't feel like it at all! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy it with your family, friends, and loved ones. Miss you all and can't wait to see you soon!

November 22nd, second day

We have an MV Explorer channel and we just watched them update the date in the date and time properties from November 23rd to November 22nd again. Maybe silly, but I got really excited because I thought it was really cool :)

International Dateline ...the first November 22nd

Alright, so I finally understand the whole International Dateline time change thing. Right now, it is 2:30pm Saturday afternoon, November 22nd. On the east coast, it is 10:30pm Friday night, November 21st. We are 16 hours ahead. Tomorrow, for us it will again be Saturday, November 22nd. When it is noon here, on the east coast it will be 8pm Saturday evening, November 22nd. So now the east coast will be 8 hours ahead. To make up for the difference, as we continue going east after Hawaii, we will lose an hour until we reach the same time as the east coast when we land in Miami, Florida. To me this is very complicated, but it makes up the whole 24 hour spectrum - so there you have it.

Tomorrow is the charity auction that we are running for Students of Service so hopefully it goes well! ...And no classes :)

84 Days at Sea

I haven't done too much today, one class, a few meetings... We realized recently that we are going to lose a full 24 hours before making it back home. Right now we are 15 behind the east coast, and by the time we reach Hawaii, will be 19 hours behind. Hawaii is 5 hours behind the east coast, so when we have 2 November 22nd days, we will still be behind the east coast, and will lose another 5. I don't like thinking of losing 9 more hours!
Tonight was Kurt's memorial service. It turned out really nice. We passed out programs with his picture and biography as well as the events of the meeting. One of the professor's spoke, as well as one of Kurt's friends who did a religious reflection with one of my favorite verses from Ecclesiastes that I recommended (chapter 3), and Kurt's roommate, Vin. There was also a great slide show with pictures and people speaking about Kurt and saying their goodbyes. After, we went to deck 4, where Vin released a bouquet of flowers, and we all had a moment to say our goodbyes. 8/23/87-11/7/08
"To every thing there is a season, a time to every purpose under the heaven."

Besides Semester at Sea...

At Tokyo Disneyland!

My new do...see a difference?

Next to a mini lit-up Tokyo Tower

Tokyo Tower

Lucky cat...everywhere in Japan

Sunset over the city of Kobe

On top of Mt. Rokko

the girls at Mt. Rokko

Feeding the pigeons

Japan, Part II

Yesterday I arrived in Yokohama, Japan, and we got off the ship about 8am. From there we took many trains to the exciting city of Tokyo. We spent most of the day walking around the various parts of the city and took trains to some of the areas that were further away such as the technology district, or what I believe they call, the electricity city (or something like that). We went to a Thai place for lunch and I got pad thai which was delicious, though I avoided the side dishes of a strange spicy soup and coconut dessert soup. In the afternoon we went to Tokyo Tower (the largest freestanding tall tower in the world) which looks very similar to the Eiffel Tower …except it is orange. There were Christmas lights and a big tree – it was so beautiful. I love lights, I get really excited :) The view from the top was incredible. We went up there right before the sun was setting so we got to see Tokyo from daylight to dark. I’ve found that ferris wheels are really big here, as I have seen huge ones in Kobe, Yokohama, and Tokyo. After the tower, we went to none other than …… Tokyo DISNEYLAND!!!! We got the night pass to go after 6, however we didn’t arrive until closer to 7 and the park closed at 10. I tried to keep spirits high and ended up having the best time. We really had SO much fun. It was Rebecca, Savannah, myself, Tristan, Iman, Katherine, and Tess. Then as we were walking in, Katherine recognized this girl Lauren from class, who as it turns out was supposed to meet her friends and they didn’t come. She had been waiting outside awhile so I was happy she came in with us. We made it onto 5 rides…and the best ones, if I do say so myself. We may not have made it to Fuji, but we saw the 3 mountains… :) Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, and Splash Mountain, and also It’s A Small World and Pirates of the Caribbean. The funny thing is, when I was younger I was terrified of Space and Splash Mountain…my parents can attest to this. I had to leave the line for Space, and my mom tricked me into going on Splash. Let’s be honest, I was still a little scared, but I had to be a trooper. We got our picture taken going down Splash Mountain and we were supposed to make the Home Alone face with our mouths open, hands on our faces. I tried so hard but I was really scared and had to hold on half way through. So 6 of the girls are making the face, and my mouth is just open, looking genuinely terrified. It really is quite funny – it’s hanging on a few of their walls. I will scan it one of these days so you can all get a good laugh. The whole place was decorated for Christmas, I am always so surprised by how much it is celebrated in these countries. There was Christmas music playing too. We saw the parade and also a fireworks show out the windows waiting in line for Thunder Mountain. It was such a great day and by the time we were leaving to get back on the train, we were absolutely exhausted. My feet were killing me and are even more so after today…. I slept well at least.

Today I woke up a few times after 7, and ended up getting up about 9 or so I guess. I decided to explore the city on my own since I needed to get souvenirs, and also just wanted some time for myself. I love traveling with other people, but with so many people, you are always deciding where to go, what to eat, etc. It was relaxing going around though very hard to find things I was looking for. It kind of drives me crazy that so many places have Little (insert country) or (insert country) Town …ex. Little India in Malaysia, China Town….everywhere, and Japan. I’m searching for Japanese things and every store I go to has magnets that say China and pictures of the Great Wall. It became a little frustrating and sure tired my feet out some more. I went to a local coffee shop this morning hoping to find internet, but Japan isn’t big on offering free wireless and brings you to a homepage, and if I wanted to pay, I can’t…because I don’t know Japanese. …For breakfast I ate a pastry. For lunch I ate a pastry. They are so delicious. It was all I ate today until dinner when, get this, I had cauliflower, rice, a few salad leaves, and a banana. I try, I really do.

I absolutely loved Japan. While I could live in other countries we visited, Japan is the first place that I really feel like I could be completely comfortable. I traveled the streets alone today and do not any Japanese to save my life, and I was just fine. A lot of the younger crowds know some English, and those who don’t usually hand motions or one word suffice. It’s a lot like the U.S. really, except cleaner and safer – and a bit more interesting since it was my first time. I have a lot of places to go back to though, as there is something I missed in many countries that I want to see, or just because I liked them so much and want to go again. It really has been an amazing experience and I cannot believe I am on my way back to American soil again. I will be in Thanksgiving on Thanksgiving, November 27th, so until then, I spend the next 9 days at sea…resting, recovering, and maybe (…unfortunately, definitely) doing a bit of work…

Thanks for comments you have left the long way – each one has been read and much appreciated. Please continue until I come home – I’m excited to see all of you! :)