"French fries and ice cream.could this day get any better?"

June 22, 2009

 

Finally, it feels like summer. The sun is out and the deck crowded; there’s not a free lounge chair in sight. From about 10:30am-3:00pm the pool deck was at full capacity. As I was lying out in between Global Studies and Ethnomusicology, I heard some guys talking about renting a Ferrari to cruise around in when we get to Italy. I have to say, that would be pretty awesome. Throughout the day it was definitely easy to see who had spent the day outside based on their attire. Those in jeans had clearly not stepped outdoors. Sunscreen was apparently not an option for some of us…one girl had obviously fallen asleep outside without flipping over once because she was bright red on her front side and white as a ghost on the other, and there was a definite line down her sides separating the two ends of the spectrum.

 

If the warm and sunny weather wasn’t enough to make it feel like summer, the dining hall played their part by serving french fries (surprisingly a form of potatoes we had not experienced on the voyage thus far) and ice cream sundaes. The ice cream was perfect and definitely hit the spot. “French fries and ice cream…could this day get any better?” –that was my art history professor’s opening remark at the start of our class. He then went on to explain how Romans invented apartment buildings. Who knew?

 

Random funny story: I talked to a girl at lunch today who had been doing her homework outside on deck all day, and when she was two questions away from completing her Spanish take-home test it flew right off the boat- into the ocean, never to be seen again. She had to run her professor down at lunch to get another copy so she could finish before class. Lesson learned: Don’t do important homework on the deck of a boat, and “I swear, my homework flew out into the ocean” can be a legitimate excuse here.

 

Everyone is getting anxious for Spain now that we are 647 nautical miles and 44 hours from Cádiz. People are finalizing their plans, trying to find people to travel with, and researching hostel and train prices. While in the computer lab, I overheard people planning everything from flights to Barcelona to spending the day exploring Portugal. I have a city tour of Cádiz on the first day, two days free, and then a tour of a sherry production cellar and Carthusian horse farm on the last day in port. I’m trying to figure out what to do on those two free days. Most of my friends are going to Ronda, Córdoba, Granada, and Sevilla during our last three days in port, but I would have to travel from Granada back to Cádiz by myself on Friday. That’s one 5 hour train ride I didn’t want to endure solo. A lot of people are going to Sevilla at some point, so I’m looking into that. That means missing out on La Alhambra in Granada (a very cool old palace, citadel, fortress, and previous home to sultans), but I’ll have all spring to explore Spain. Later that night, one of the professors hosted an information session centered on Spanish cuisine. It was highly attended, as everyone was anxiously anticipating a break from the “ship” food onboard. Don’t say those last few words too loudly; you might offend someone.  ;)

 

I went to the gym that night and ran three miles on the treadmill before doing crunches on the side deck right around sunset. I left before someone started teaching a yoga class out on the deck. It was somewhat wavy during the day, but nothing too serious. I did read, however, in our daily dean’s memo that the ship actually has stabilizers which stick out into the ocean underneath the boat and “reduce up to 90% of the pitching and rolling of the ship caused by swells.” Now, those would have been useful the first couple days of the voyage. The memo went on to explain that “because they extend out into the water, they cause drag and cause us to expend more fuel. The deployment of the stabilizers is decided by the Captain, who does so whenever doing so benefits participants.” Hmmm…