NOTE: I only get 2 hours of free Internet on this trip! Please email at paige.codilis.s12@semesteratsea.org . It is free and it is like text messaging to me. I miss you all and want to hear about what is going on in the states so email me! If you don't email me don't expect gifts. =)

                                 Jumping 45 feet into a waterfall in Dominica. Living the dream.

                                                                     Rum punch!

Life on the boat

 Hellllo from the middle of the ocean! So basically I am having the time of my life! Everyone is so friendly and I have already met some great friends. It turns out that my roommate never showed so I have a room to myself! It’s very nice.  The boy next to me also has a room to himself so him and I have been playing lots of Uno. Most of the kids on this ship are from California or the East Cost.  Not many people know what Mizzou is or where it is even located.  The other day we had a book discussion by the pool. Everyone is so relaxed here and wants to learn. I think its safe to say this will be the only time in my life I will be in class with Cornell and Brown students.  All the teachers are so smart and interesting.  My writing teacher is one of the top editors at the New Yorker.   My classes are so fun and interesting.  It is a nice break from Mizzou classes.  All the kids are so well traveled and down to earth.  It is cool to be with kids like me who love the outdoors and traveling.   We had pub night the other night.  Everyone LOVES pub night.  It is not all fun and games though.  The classes are a lot of hard work but I don’t mind because they are so interesting.   The food on the boat is ok.  I am not sure how much more pasta I can eat.  The ship is just like a vacation! They have a gym, spa, and much more.   They also clean our room’s everyday and make our beds and do our laundry.   They also offer classes like zumba and kick boxing.  As I am writing this I am sitting on the top deck looking out at the ocean drinking a cup of coffee. Now this is the life! 

Dominica

We left our first port 3 days ago. Dominica was amazing! It is a small Caribbean island.  Having been to many islands, I would have to say this was one of my favorites. It was beautiful and the people were amazing.  I can honestly say this is the happiest I have even been! Anyways let me tell you about my first port! When we first arrived I had an 8am river tubing tour.  They first took us on a short hike to a waterfall where of course I was the first one to just jump in. Then they took us to a river with crazy rapids.  We were a little nervous when the tour guide grabbed a huge knife and told us to hop in our tubes and follow him.  It turned out to be a little rough but a lot of fun! We stopped along the way and sang songs and told jokes (They love to sing songs).  I met so many cool kids on the tour.  After our tour was over me and a group of kids went into town and grabbed drinks and tried to grab food but the food sucked.  We then found this bar right on the water with dollar bottles.  We were having a blast listening to reggae and drinking together.  Then we saw a dock and decided to take our drinks and jump off the dock.  It was so relaxing a fun.  We met a lot of Europeans that were on vacation and hung out with them.  Later that night we rented a hotel and went out.  The locals are so nice here and love to party.  The laws on the island are crazy.  You can drink and drive and go any speed you want, but if you litter you can get a $5000 fine or 1 year in jail. A group and I decided to go to a club called crazy coconuts. It was filled with sas kids.  We had a blast! Then the next day we had to be up at 7am for another tour.  I love to hike but not hung-over.   We went on a hike threw the rainforest.  I am not kidding when I say it was one of the hardest things I have ever done physically. 6 miles all up hill and not to mention it was down pouring so everything was slippery.  The hike lead us to one of the most beautiful/ biggest waterfalls I have ever scene in my life.  It was well worth the hike.  When we got to the waterfall our tour guide asked us who wanted to jump from a 40-foot jump.   I could not say no. The motto of this trip is YOLO. Everything we do someone says it. I was nervous to jump off the fall but someone yelled YOLO (you only live once) so I had to jump. So yes, I jumped from 40 feet! It was the scariest thing I have ever done.  We had to climb up the side of a mountain barefoot literally just holding on to branches.  I cannot believe they let us do it.  The whole time I was shaking thinking I was going to slip and die.  I am so glad I jumped it was awesome! I got a picture of it.  It was the coldest water I have ever been in.  Then after we swam around for a while, we had to climb back up to the top to hike back.  I was climbing up huge boulders that were so slippery. I got pretty cut up. It was so hard to climb up these rocks.  When I finally got back up to the top we had to hike back.  The hike back was just as hard.  I don’t even know how to explain this hike.  We were climbing over branches and rocks in the rain trying not to slip.  I was so dirty and cut up by the end.  At the end we got free beer that was much needed. It was very adventurous and I am glad I did it.  When our whole day hike was over we had to get back on the ship.  The ship was a ghost town last night.  Everyone was in bed by 8.  We were all so tired.  It is so funny how even though we all were so hung-over the next day, we all got up and did what we had to do. I am very sore today from the hike.  Dominica was amazing. Our next stop is Brazil.  I will be taking a small boat down the Amazon River then I am flying to Rio.  Rio is supposed to be nuts right now b.c they are getting ready for carnival. The world’s largest carnival.  I am so excited! 

DAY 1

After a tearful goodbye I have set sail! Right when I got on the boat as I was checking in I met a girl who went to IU and we have about 6 mutual friends! It turns out I actually had met her once before at little 5. Small world. When I got to my cabin I was actually surprised how big it was. I was expecting a lot smaller of a room but it really is not that bad. I have a big window and the view is amazing.  The beds are questionable but hopefully that will encourage me not to nap. When I got to my cabin and saw the letter from the captain I got a tear in my eye.  He put a quote on the letter that said, “ Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in you sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” This quote seems very appropriate for this trip.  But the reason I got a tear in my eye was because the quote was by Mark Twain.  Mark Twain was from Missouri and from the town where my roommate is from. Miss you Caryn. 

                                                           Great Day at Senor Frogs.

                                                                   This is the life.

                                                                 Boy will I miss her!

                                                         This is one of my teachers!

wasting away again in margaritaville

And I'm off!

I have finally made it to the Bahamas! I have not set sail yet but I am already having the time of my life. Last night was one for the books. When I finally got here I right away made a new friend. Him and I went to a fish fry and met even more kids.  We all then went to Senor Frogs and had a blast.  Looking out on the water and seeing all the ships lit up with a Margarita in my hand I could not help but laugh. Is this really school?! On the way to the bar our cab driver decided to make a pit stop....at the police station. Having to deal with cops on my first night was interesting! My cab driver got in a fight with another driver and had to go to the police station while my friend and I sat in the cab and waited.  While we waited I just kept thinking how this would happen to me.  It all turned out to be ok in the end. Just some crazy cab drivers! Tonight I get to meet most of the kids at a dinner.  Everyone I have met so far has been so interesting.  Some of these kids are so well travelled.  We set sail tomorrow at 5pm and I can not put in to words how excited I am!

Shout out to Melissa Murphy- First person to bookmark my blog! Miss ya!

I will have limited internet on my trip, but when I do get it expect updates here! 

Cheers!

I have been hearing stories from both my brother and my sister for years about SAS. Finally It's my turn to tell the story!  I have been looking forward to doing this trip since 7th grade and I can't believe I am getting ready to go.  11 days and counting. I am very excited to start my journey.  Besides just cruising and snoozing I will be looking forward to my adventures.  From riding in a canoe down the amazon, working in refuge camps, petting elephants, drumming with a tribe, tasting the best wines in South Africa, river tubing in Dominica, sky diving, and much more I can say I have a fun semester ahead of me. What I am mainly looking forward to is working in an orphanage in Cambodia that my sister visited on her SAS trip.  The orphanage has special meaning because my family has made it a part of their lives the past few years. My family and I strongly believes in their mission statement which is EGBOK. Everybody's gonna be ok. All the paper work is finally done and now all I have to do is get 105 days worth of clothing in ONE bag! I guess this is why they all say its going to be a " life changing experience".