Hi ~
About my safari!! I just got back tonight. It was an experience. The one down side was that it is late in dry season, and most of the cats have moved north to Serengeti, etc. But I saw almost everything else. Elephants, giraffes, zebras, buffalo (at a distance) wart hogs (Like Pumba in Lion King), meer cats (Timon), impalas (a breed of antelope), a lioness� head, and so many more. We left at about 6:30 in the morning the first day for an 8 hour drive to Arusha, and then we got off of our coach buses, and loaded up into safari jeeps for the last 2 hour stretch to our campsite. We got there, ate, and that was about it. I must say it was a little difficult to get to sleep that first night hearing bugs and everything. But we got up around 6:30 the next morning, had breakfast, and headed off to Tarangire National Park. It was about 10-15 minutes away from our campsite.
Right away we see two buffalo run across the road in front of us. By the time we got up to where they had crossed, they were too far away to get a decent picture, but it was really cool to see them. Then we saw a bunch of elephants. A herd of about 25-30. It was so cool to see them. They�re HUGE. And one of them just stopped right by the side of the road and ate some grass, and we were only about 20 feet away from him. But we eventually moved on, and were driving along, and this group of really funny looking birds was in the road. They were kind of blue-ish, built like a turkey, and had a yellow triangle on top of their heads. And instead of just moving to the side, they run in front of the van. Our driver is driving so slowly so that they will move, but they just run in front. And they can fly too. It was funny to watch them run. As we drive along the road, we see these things in the bushes and grass, and they�re warthogs. They are so ugly, they are cute. They run with their tails straight up in the air. I got a really cute picture of about three little baby warthogs crossing the road. Then we came across what seemed like a thousand baboons. They were crossing the road in front of us, and were not affected when we pulled up and just stopped. There were babies that were riding on the backs of their mothers. I was amazed at how many of them there were. So after they started to move away we left. We saw another jeep, and they had said that they just saw some lionesses. We followed them to where they were. You could just barely see the head of one. I got some pictures, but they are not the greatest. And unfortunately, that is the only encounter with cats that I had. It is kind of disappointing. But Kristin has some awesome pictures. She was up in Kenya. She has a male lion with a kill in its mouth. She has cheetahs eating an impala, and a whole pride of lions. I will definitely try and get some of her copies just so I can show the kids in Jamestown a lion, and although I didn�t see one up close, it would still be nice to have the picture. We saw giraffes too. They are so funny looking. We learned that they always travel in pairs. It was really cool how when you spotted one, there was always at least one more close by.
My days are starting to run together. On the first day for lunch we just met up at a campsite. We got the same boxed lunch for four days straight. It got a little old. Anyways, at our campsite, when we first got there, there were some baboons in the trees. A couple would try and sneak up, but you kick a little dirt at them and yell, and they would run away. But as more people came, and more lunches were being distributed, the baboons got braver. And some people are just stupid and leave there lunches just sitting there. We were dong fine until this big guy came along. He had to be about three feet tall. We tried to scare him away but he just charged, and since it was about three girls trying to scare him away, we just screamed and scattered. Needless to say he got about three bananas. I couldn�t get over how aggressive they were. Some even came up and opened the lid of people�s boxes to get at the food. They are very smart. The first day afternoon was soooooo hot. We had rations of water � two bottles and then your choice between water, or a soda. At least that was how it was supposed to work. But our driver didn�t get a cooler, so we had no water on our drive, and then when we got back to the camp we didn�t get our third choice of whatever. But because it was so hot, they made water free that first night. But it was a little too late because we had about 2-3 people get heat stroke to the point where they were throwing up. But in general things were good.
The campsite itself was interesting. It was just a bunch of tents ranging in sizes set up. You just picked one on a first come, first serve basis. Luckily I was one of the first there. The girl I roomed with is actually my neighbor here, her name is Laura. She is a sweetheart. The "bathrooms" ranged from two holes in the ground, and one stool that only a lunatic would sit on. I got lots of practice in the art of hovering.
The showers weren�t too bad. There were two in a brick building, and two in tents. I got a building one the first day, and a tent one the second day. The water pressure was hardly any, and the water was straight out of a lake, but it was warm, and with soap, it made you have the illusion of clean, until you got out, and had to spray yourself with bug spray. But I took two after we got back from our game drives. Two showers in four days. I was lucky though. Apparently, on the first day, a snake was in one of the tent showers. If that would have been me, I would have probably asked to leave. I couldn�t have handled that. The bugs were bad enough. They weren�t really scary, but just really annoying. On the game drives the flies were horrible, and seemed unaffected by bug spray � even the 100% DEET. And they bite too. I have a bunch of little fly bites. I don�t think I saw a single mosquito that whole time. And the last night, the gnats were horrible at dinner time. I was close to a lantern, and they had to turn off the lights they were getting so bad.
I would have to say that one of the best things about going on a camping safari was the bonfire, and stars. The stars were amazing. You could actually look up and see the Milky Way. I had never seen that many stars and they were so bright. It was so beautiful.
But overall, it was really cool. Even when we weren�t seeing animals, it was cool to know that I was on a safari in Africa. On our drive to Arusha on the last day, we left camp at about 6:15, and got the most beautiful sunrise. It was straight out of Lion King. I really hope that all my pictures turned out. I know that I can see them, but it�s so small, I just hope they turn out.
I don�t really know what else to say. I�m sure I am forgetting something, and will remember it as soon I send this. I think that is all.
I love you. I love you. I love you.
Love,
Jamie
I just figured I should add this in, because you will probably hear something about it if you read the message board. Apparently, on the second or third night that our ship was docked, a group of our crew went off the ship. They got a taxi, but the driver took them to this remote place, where they were held at gunpoint, and robbed. After this, they got a different taxi to bring them back to the ship, where an argument followed, and the crew members beat up the driver. The next night, there was another cruise ship docked here, and two of their crew members were robbed and had their throats slit, and died. This happened right outside the harbor area, along the port. When I got back, I was so happy that I had been on safari. There really wasn�t anything to do in the city, and it was just not a safe place for us to be. But I am fine, and safe, and had a wonderful experience on my safari.
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Jamie Ship Life
We had a meeting today about Iraq, and the disease in East Asia. Right now, we don�t really know what is going on. The disease is still fairly new, and strange that we don�t know too much about it. As of now, we are not changing any of our ports. The ship itself will be starting a policy of extreme cleanliness � using more chlorine to clean, etc). We will be watching carefully the information about these upcoming countries.
We have been told that ISE in Pittsburgh is in constant contact with the CDC. They will be posting any information that they know on the web site. You will probably be hearing more than we are by looking on there, and reading the news. They also tell you not to worry. I know that is almost moot because you will worry anyways, but we are heading away from the Indian Ocean, and getting away from any tensions that may arise from the situation with Iraq in that part of the world. Right now we are looking at Vietnam first, and dealing with things as they come.
We have hardly any information about the Iraq situation. All we know is that 90 minutes after an ultimatum was made, we began air strikes on Baghdad. That is all we know. It is so hard to be here, and so far away from home, and from any information. I think the hardest thing is that we feel so cut off from the world; and with everything that is going on right now, it is extremely hard. We have access to the Internet, but at an extreme cost, and the information varies so much on line.
Our on-ship doctor will be addressing us daily with information regarding the pneumonia. I understand if we have to divert to other ports. I will be very disappointed, but will understand. Someone asked at the meeting this morning, if the ports after Hong Kong will not allow us to enter since we have been to the infected countries. The more I thought about that, I could really see Japan not allowing us to enter. That would really suck. Our dean was saying that this is such an unusual occurrence. It is just so strange to have this random outbreak in the countries we are heading into. I�m sure that everything will be fine.
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Japan
Greetings from Japan
We finally got to land. After 13 days at sea and lots of confusion we finally made it to Japan.
The first day I walked around a little, Glover Gardens, and the Monument for 26 Martyrs. I was with Jill and Lexie, and we saw this large statue of Buddha and went in search of it. That was our first mistake. We wound up getting lost for 3 hours. We all thought the ship was in a different direction. We finally stopped and asked for directions. Luckily we had a map so I could point to where I wanted to go. It also was lucky that we were on a street that would take us directly to the ship. The language barrier is great, but It is kind of fun. The Japanese are so kind that they are more than willing to help. We finally got back to the ship. You may be wondering how we got so lost. Well there are no street signs in Japan. Directions are based on buildings and landmarks. It's pretty crazy.
The second day we slept in a little and then went to the A-bomb center. We saw the exact spot where it was dropped, the museum and Peace Park. The pictures and stories of survivors are incredible. I can't begin to describe the horrors that were shown. I would recommend to anyone that they visit this site and the Museum if they are ever in Japan. There is a replica of the actual bomb that was dropped - it was huge. It was about 4 feet high, and about 3-4 feet around. The damage it did was indescribable. The entire area around the drop zone was destroyed. There was nothing left. I wish I could have stayed in the museum longer but because we were in such a large a group we had to move on.
Yesterday we went to a town called Unsen. They have hot springs and a volcano, etc there. We got on the early bus, and got there around 10:00 a.m.. It was very foggy when we drove in. We toured the hot springs right away. The first thing that got me was the smell. It smelled like rotten eggs. Apparently there is a large amount of sulphur in the ground which makes the hot springs, so when the steam rises there is a large amount of sulphuric acid in the air. Some of the group went up the volcano, but I chose to get a massage instead. I am glad I did that, because it was so foggy they could hardly see 5 feet in front of them. I came back early and walked around Nagasaki a little.
I really like Japan, and am glad that I get to come back in a week to Osaka.
That's about all I have right now. I have yet to try sushi but it is on my list.
Love, Jamie
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Ship Life
Hey everyone
Well we had our first storm yesterday. It was big too. The waves were 23-32 feet high, the wind was blowing at 40-41 nauts, and it was snowing!! There were so may people who had never seen snow falling or never seen snow before. It was pretty funny. The one down side is that it was 35 degrees, and all the doors were blowing open so it was freezing. All of the outside decks were closed. I went up to the front of the ship and watched as the waves would come crashing over the bow. There were a LOT of people sick. Luckily, I avoided that whole mess. I have yet to be seasick, and I would think that if I was ever going to be it would have been yesterday. They cancelled our classes for today, and gave us a study day. No one was able to do anything more than read and even that was risky. But I just thought I would I check in and let you all know how I was doing, and how my first storm went.
Sorry I didn�t tell you more about the storm earlier. I got distracted and so I just sent it out, but then I started thinking about what I had written and thought about all the details I left out. One of the fun things that people were doing, was as the ship rose over a wave they would jump and then as the ship fell, it would seem like they could jump almost 4 feet high. Some people were hitting their heads on the ceiling!!! It was fun to try and get around. You would be walking and falling into walls, or the ship would rise and so it would feel like you were walking up a huge hill, and you would barely be moving forward, then the ship would fall and then you�re walking down a big hill and you have to run to catch your feet up. It was funny. I enjoyed it, but like I said I wasn�t sick. While I was up at the very front of the ship watching the bow over the waves, I felt like I was on a roller coaster. You would rise slowly, slowly, then boom, down you go. I felt like I should have my arms in the air and be screaming. Like I said, I really enjoyed yesterday. I think the best part is while you�re just sitting anywhere in the ship, and we ride a big wave, you get that feeling where it feels like your stomach is up in your chest. You feel weightless sort of. That�s when it really feels like a roller coaster. I love that feeling when you go over a big hill and your stomach really feels like it is floating upwards.
Well, now you can probably imagine a little better what it was like yesterday. Hopefully between these two emails you now know the facts, and the feelings of yesterday.
Love,
Jamie
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