The End

So it’s finally here: the end.  I can’t believe it.  Exams are over (I got all As, of course) and last evening we had the Alumni Ball, which was kind of a SAS prom.  The dessert buffet was the best.  I’m officially a Semester at Sea alum.  Hard to believe.  In my mind it still seems like yesterday I was just leaving the Philadelphia airport on a cold, January morning.  Now, in two days, I’ll be back at that airport, but now it’s spring.   My voyage around the world is over.

So, I literally sailed around the world.  From California, I went to Hawaii, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, India, Mauritius, South Africa, Ghana, Brazil, and now back home to the USA.  Three continents in about three months- scary.  Sitting out here on the deck looking at the ocean, it all seems surreal.  Did it ever really happen?  Where did the time go?  Of course, these are silly questions.  It did happen, but it all feels like a blur.  So, now I have to get used to the fact that I’ll be back in reality, not the suspended reality that I’ve been in.  Back to working, “real” school, driving, and all that good stuff.   Hopefully, it will be a smooth transition for me.  I think it will.

These past three and half months I think I’ve really grown as a person.  I no longer look at things in such a narrow view, rather I see things on a global perspective.  Reading CNN.com a few weeks ago there was an article about an earthquake in China.  As soon as I saw this my mind flashed to the streets of Shanghai and my time there.  In December it would have flashed to I have no idea.  Maybe a picture of China on the map.  Maybe the Great Wall.  Maybe nothing.  I don’t know.  I do know that I will be doing that for pretty much every country I’ve been to.  These countries are no longer just places on the map or in the news.  I have memories, and feelings associated with them.  To me, they are real.  I’ve been there, I’ve eaten the food, and met the people.   Now, I’ve only scratched the surface of the world, true, but all of this is a major start.  In January the only international destination I’d ever been to was Bermuda, if you can call it that.  So to sum all this rambling up: am I the same person that left on January 16?  No.  I’m a worldly, traveled individual, with a different perspective on a lot of things.   Take Obama for example.  Despite the fact that I don’t politically agree with a lot of stuff he’s done, I see him in a different light.  In both Ghana and Brazil our ship docked in ports where slave ships docked hundreds of years ago.  In these very same ports, African slaves have hundreds of atrocities committed against them and God knows how many other horrible things done.  Knowing about the slave trade is one thing, but knowing that you may be walking on the very same roads that slaves traveled on is very, very different.  In Ghana, also, I met and spent a great deal of time with a native Ghanaian.  He showed me around, helped us break the language barrier, and so much more.  If he’d been born a few hundred years ago, he’d have been a slave.  So to bring all this back to Obama, I really see what he means to the African people, and can relate because I was there.

Invariably, the question I will get asked by so many people when I’m back home will be: “Nick! What was your favorite country?”  The only answer I can think of for that is: “That doesn’t really put it into perspective.”  It’s not just about one country; it’s the knowledge that there’s a world out there.  So, the only people I think I’ll ever be truly able to relate all this with will be the people I sailed around the world with.  Not that we’re better then the average Joe, but we’ve experienced it all together, can understand, and will forever have that bond that one time we sailed around the world together. So, I hope I didn’t ramble too much and that makes a once of sense.  I think it does…

If you ever hear a college student talking about going abroad, recommend to them Semester at Sea.  I’m so glad I choose this over spending a semester in one country.  I’ll never, ever get to travel like this again.  If you ever come across $30,000 and want to do Semester at Sea, become a Lifelong Learner.  They’re older folks who are on the ship with all of us and can experience it.  It’s worth it. Trust me.  You also realize that traveling on a ship is the best way to travel.  There’s something special about sailing into a country, hearing the ship’s horn blow, docking, finally getting off and seeing the ship.  Way better then flying. 

We arrive in Ft. Lauderdale on Wednesday, and I can’t wait.  I can’t wait to be home, eat American food (cheesesteak anyone?), see my family and friends (Vino’s guys? Can’t wait!), drive, and just be back into my normal life again.  A good song that sums up how I’m feeling right now is “Last Days” by Sugar Ray.  It’s on You Tube if you want to hear it.   These last few days on the ship I’ve declared “cruise ship days.”  That means laying out reading, drinking smoothies, and just enjoying the ocean. 

So, first and foremost, I’d like to thank my parents.  Not only for paying for this voyage, but for letting me travel around the world and supporting my decision to do this.  I’m sure they were nervous at some points.  I don’t have kids, but I imagine knowing that one is going to all these crazy countries could make you bite your nails occasionally.  I love you, and will see you on Wednesday.  Secondly, I’d like to thank Dr. Nick Uliano Cabrini College’s Study Aboard director.  Without his advice and words of wisdom, I might not have decided to do this last summer.  And lastly, I’d like to thank so many people for reading this blog!  From the e-mails I’ve gotten and what my parents have told me a lot of people are!  I’m glad I could share this voyage with so many people.  I hope my writing and attempts at humor didn’t fail every time.   If you want, e-mail me: djd4598@mac.com.  Once I get back home, I’ll be practically living on the Internet, uploading pictures.  I’ll post the link to my Facebook album (you don’t need a Facebook to view them!) and I’ll also upload a tour of the ship, done by me, to You Tube. 

Now, I’m bracing now for some tearful goodbyes, happy reunions, and long day of traveling on Wednesday.   Think of the last day of a vacation (how you just want to be home) times a thousand.  Lots of luggage, lines and complicated customs procedures.  See everyone soon and again thanks for reading!  Check back for the pictures and video links!