I survived the first week!!

Well... Hi again. I finally made it to Woods Hole, MA, about a week ago, but things have been so crazy busy since then that I just haven't had a chance to update. But here we go.

In the past week I started the "shore component" of the program, which takes place in Massachusetts. For the next 5 weeks I will live on the SEA campus and learn not only the basics of sailing and navigating, but also learn about and plan a research project to be done while on board the ship. The theme of the program is "Oceans and Climate", so my project has to have at least something to do with that. I have no idea what it's going to be yet.

The SEA (that's Sea Education Association) campus is located about halfway between the towns of Woods Hole and Falmouth. If you look on a map you will see them near the end of the hooked part of MA that sticks out into the sea. SEA is built on a hill, with the classrooms and offices in a building at the top and the student houses at the bottom. It is somewhat secluded, with the neighboring properties blocked off from the campus by trees and a large grove of what looks like bamboo. Definitely gives the campus more of a "community" feeling. In fact, it actually reminds me alot of Ripon, just a little smaller.

The houses the students live in are somewhat old, with no television, no internet, and no heat. (The heat will turn on later, as soon as it gets "cold". It is apparently unseasonably warm here right now, although at night it gets down into the 40s and 50s.) It is strange to not have TV or internet... there is a TV in the Center up the hill, but they only get local channels here. No cable= no Packer/Badger football games. :( But it's probably just as well; the workload here is pretty heavy... I would say an average of around 70 pages of reading a night. We have class pretty much all day from 8:30 am until 5 pm, so that's kind of rough. The material is really interesting though. I'm a little behind at many things, since alot of people have been taking classes in climate and marine science and for them alot of the stuff we are covering is review. I am also one of the only student whose grades transfer back to Ripon, not just credits, so I have a little more pressure to do well. But so far I am keeping up with assignments and I think I can do okay. The professors (who are very cool) keep assuring me that, yes, you can learn all of this stuff in just six weeks, and still have time for some fun along the way!

Next, my housemates. There are about 8 people living in each of the five houses. My roommate is from Alaska (cool, huh?)... she's very outgoing and fun to hang out with. We do crazy things like get up every morning at 6 am, run for 30 minutes, then jump into the freezing cold Atlantic Ocean. Surprisingly, after the initial plunge, the water feels incredible. What a way to wake up in the morning! Anyway, other than my roommate and I, there are 4 other girls and 2 guys in the house. It's only been a week, but strangely I feel like I've known them for a lot longer than that. They all come from very different places, from California to Massachusetts to Bulgaria.
We do have to cook and clean for ourselves, which can sometimes be a challenge. So far, though, everyone has done a really good job. We have some really incredible cooks!

Anyway, that's about all the time I've got for now. I'll hopefully have some pictures to put up soon. As always, I am excited to get news from Wisconsin (everyone here makes fun of how I say that... apparently I have a funny accent), so if anyone would like to email me, it would make my day, or maybe even my week.

Laters,
Jenan

Freeloading

With only a week and a half left until I leave for Massachusetts, I decided that I had better start writing about... something. So let's see, for the past month or so I have been going back and forth between Ripon and Madison. Some of you may have seen me on campus over the weekends. I know I have had to do a lot of explaining in response to questions like, "Why are you still here?" and "Aren't you supposed to be gone?" It's good to know everyone is going to miss me...

But seriously, it is tough being on campus without a room or even a functioning keycard. I basically lived out of my car. I stayed with several friends in the apartments (which are very nice, by the way) and also in Tri-dorms. I had to mooch off them for food, too. So thanks, guys, if you're reading this. Although I guess I could have slept in Farr Hall if I needed to. There's a shower and everything, and the cleaning lady wakes you up at precisely 5 am. Plus, there's coffee in the lounge. A person could probably live there pretty comfortably. Hmmm... maybe I could save $3000 on room and board next year.

So anyway, although I am still working at my job in Madison, I have officially started packing and getting ready. The tough part is getting my mind back in school mode. Because, despite what the program might sound like at first, this is not going to be a vacation. During the first six weeks in Woods Hole, MA, I will be taking several classes as well as designing a research project that I will do on board the ship. Oh, and I should mention that right now, I know absolutely nothing about sailing. Yep, this isn't a cruise... the students actually help crew the ship. So I have to know how to navigate and everything as well. At least I won't be bored.

I also just bought my plane tickets... which were pretty expensive. The ship ends up in Tahiti, so I had to get a one way flight back to the US. Through STA (Student Travel Agency), I got about a 50% discount off of normal prices. So if anyone is planning a trip for next semester or spring break or whatever, STA is a good place to buy your tickets. It's about time we get something back for being students.

Anyway, that's all I've got for the moment, other than I am pretty excited to get to Woods Hole and get started. Strangely, I miss being in classes every day. I'm such a dork. Well, until next time. Cheers.