Morocco.

Our last stop. Still very much in the denial period as we docked in Casablanca, I was ready for another bucketlist adventure. Immediately embarking on a 13 hour bus ride to Zagora, Morocco where we would be going on a camel trek into the Sahara and spending the night at a nomad camp. While we didn't get to see much of the Moroccan sights and culture, I did get to see a lot of the country and change in landscapes on our bus trip to the desert. It took us about a day and a half to get to Zagora, driving through the Atlas Mountains ranges and stopping every 4 or so hours for food or a bathroom break.

 After 2 days of traveling toward the Sahara, it was finally time to caravan to our nomad camp for the night (a lot of travel for just one night in the desert). I had bought a headscarf from the restaurant/hotel where we ate lunch partly in an effort to protect from any sandstorms that could happen during the trek and then partly because I thought it would be a good souvenir for the trip considering up to this point there wasn't many opportunities to get much.  Its hard to say how long it took to get from the bus to the camp via camel, but my best estimation has gotta be about 2 hours. I'd also compare it to doing a 2 hour core workout where the main goal is to not fall off or break a hip because of the saddle. Our camel trek was also hilariously on a Wednesday so you can take a moment to think about 2 hours worth of hump day jokes being made from all around me.

As we settled in to the Berber nomad camp, we got to see the sunset from atop a sand dune. This was one of the most surreal experiences of my life. Sitting next to friends I hadn't known even four months prior, on top of like a 60 foot sand dune near the Algerian border -  it seemed so strange and unreal while at the very same time made so much sense and felt so perfect. We spent the rest of the night around a camp fire and playing games, and the closest thing I can equate it to is going to summer camp, but at the same time it is nothing like summer camp at all. 

The next morning after breakfast, we prepared for our long journey back to the ship. Bittersweet was the overall feeling getting into the bus again, partly because I didn't want it to be over, but also because we had another 13 hour bus ride back to Casablanca. The hotel we stayed in this time was in Marrakesh, which was nice because we were given some free time in the morning to explore before getting back in the bus to go back to the ship. My friend Hadley and I hired a taxi for the day/time to take us to some bazaars around the city. I got to try out some of my French skills irl, and considering I had only taken two semesters of it, I think it went pretty well. (I basically got to use one of the sample conversations I had learned and the vendor thought we were French until I told him we were American. I ended up going home with some jewellery, some other little gifts for friends, and a rug (I told myself that I wasn't allowed to buy a rug, and then I bought one anyway because I have no self control). 

Arriving back at the ship for the last time was something I knew would happen, but I never wanted it to. I have so many memories and lifelong friends that getting to write this series a year later made me even more grateful for. Being able to say that, at 19, I traveled the world with some of the greatest people I've ever met, saw things people only dream of seeing, experienced so many cultures, walked through history, and lived on the seas; it makes going back home that much harder. And with that, my last Semester at Sea trip was over, and we began studying for our finals and making our way to Germany. 

Talk to you later,

- Karin xx

Ghana.

Approaching Ghana meant it was the beginning of the end of Semester at Sea. We only had four days there, and while they went by quickly, the memories are burned into my brain. I'm not gonna lie, my first day was rough, and probably the most culture shock I have ever experienced (I quite literally was unfazed by everything until this point). I was on an Accra City Tour that was meant to show us around the city (thus the name) and some cool touristy type spots, but it ended up being a bus tour of the University of Ghana, The Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, and a market. This wouldn't have been so bad if 1) The bus had air conditioning 2) We were allowed out of the bus 3) At the market I didn't get completely taken advantage of (this was partially my fault though). Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy the rest of my time in Ghana, it's just this first day was a doozy. We did stop for lunch in between which was nice, Ghanian food is really good, really spicy, but so good.

I had my last field class on the second day in Ghana, and we were going to a bead factory that is one of the biggest suppliers of beads in Ghana. My professor was friends with the owner/founder Cedi, and upon arriving at Cedi Beads Industry's "factory" (factory in quotes because it was mainly 2 pavilions  and is not your standard idea of a factory but fits the definition) we were greeted by both Cedi and his wife like friends. We got a tour of the kilns and how each individual bead is made, along with getting to make 6 beads of our own. While our beads were being fired and cooling we ate lunch and sat in the shade (Protip: Ghana is like super hot). After cooling was the cleaning process, where you basically sand down the clay from around the glass, making the color show through and smoothing out any imperfections. With our beads done, we moved on to a q&a type thing with Cedi, mostly for our paper we needed to write, but also just to learn more about the business. Before leaving on our 2 hour journey back to the ship, we practically cleared out the shop (everything was so pretty), and I personally bought like enough gifts for at least 3 holidays, even though I've kept most of it.

The last two days in Ghana were spent at Torgorme, where I did a homestay. When we got to Torgorme, we met the entire village, got named by the village elders, went to a funeral (life is strange), and just got to hang out with everyone. The naming ceremony, I thought, was an incredibly kind gesture because not only did the elders name us, but we got to join their village, making it our 'second home' and they gave us handmade ceramic bowls with both our names on them and a bracelet. At the ceremony there was also a lot of dancing and just general excitement all around. Before dinner, we got to hang out with our host Abel, and get to know him better. Getting to meet someone your age from a place that was so different than your own, and getting to see the parallels and differences in our lives. I was also loaned a kente cloth to wear, and those are no joke. It was hand woven in the village (I met one of the weavers) and was much thicker than I originally thought it was going to be; and in the Ghanian heat - man oh man did it keep the heat in (still was amazing to get to wear it for the day though). The night didn't go too late after dinner, there was some dancing and music, but other than that we had an early night. I woke up the next around sunrise, and while we didn't stay too long after, the morning was full of seeing schoolchildren before class and goodbyes. Before going back to the ship we also made a stop to go on a hike up a rock formation, getting to see just miles of plains all around. 

All in all, I wish I had more time to see more of this country. Getting to meet its people and see everyday life was something that I didn't get much of while on Semester at Sea, and helps adjust your perspective on the place you're visiting. During our post-port reflections I had also mention the fact that visiting Torgorme wasn't so much as a "Look at how differently these people live" but a "Look at how happy these people are with how they live". Because they had everything they needed, including but not limited to, electricity, food and water, internet, etc. and were happy with what they had and didn't need to have the newest version of something to be happy. I think that is one of the strongest sentiments I have taken with me so far, in that you don't need the newest and most expensive upgrade to be happy. All you need is a good community around you and the rest will either fall into place or not matter in the end.  

Talk to you later,

-Karin xx

South Africa.

After crossing the Indian Ocean into the Atlantic, I couldn't be more excited to get off the ship.  Between 12 days at sea, the ship catching on fire, and a killer sunburn -  I was beyond ready to throw myself into shark alley (literally). Cape Town was strangely familiar, a weird hybrid of Southern California and Central Europe, which gave docking there a false sense of security. The entire trip prior to South Africa we, especially myself, could be clearly distinguished as an outsider - a tourist, but in Cape Town, the lines were were blurred, we could blend in -- but only until we opened our mouths (apparently my jersey accent gets thicker the longer I'm out of the country).  My first three days were spent in Cape Town, where in which I ran around Table Mountain, visited the Castle of Good Hope (not much of castle especially with its history), the mall, and the Cape Town Aquarium, and then less than 12 hours after going to the aquarium I got on a bus at 4am to go shark cage diving.

Shark cage diving in Shark Alley was definitely an experience. While I have no photographic evidence because my gopro is prehistoric and the March waters were not the clearest, having the bait fish fly over your head and a shark bite your corner of the cage is something I will never forget. These are two landscape shots from our drive before and after the dive.

The day following my shark adventure, I got on a bus and 6 hours later, arrived in Botlierskop Game Reserve, where for the next three days we would be going on game drives to see rhinos, lions, elephants, giraffes, and so much more. The game reserve's accommodation can only be described as 'glamping' because while we were in tents, we were no where near roughing it (our beds had heated blankets). Our first drive was just before sunset, and it was surreal to say the least. You grow up with stuffed animal giraffes and elephants and you never really think seeing one in real life would become a reality - until you're sitting in a jeep driving through the South African plains and on either side of the dirt road are a mother and baby giraffe (that, even at birth tower over me) and this out of body experience you're in only breaks when the young giraffe literally looks like it has no neck and in your mind you think "that's not right" and "as you ask your guide Bertie (shoutout to Bertie) "Is that giraffe broken?" and while you and your friends laugh at the jokes you're making you continue to wonder how exactly you got to this point in your short 19 years of life. After the existential crisis of the day and a game drive full of animals and photos and horrible jokes, Botlierskop pulls out all the stops for dinner. I'm talking all kinds of weird animal meats cooked by a personal chef and like 3 courses per meal. I ate chicken but my friend Danielle forced me to try the 'exotic' ones (it's not really exotic if its native to the continent, right?), which I do not regret so thanks Danielle for 'expanding my horizons'. We would go on between 2 and 3 game drives following this, having the rest of the time to relax or go swimming, and no matter how wild it seemed to get, it was probably the most relaxing trip I had been on in the 3 months prior. Just before heading back to Cape Town I was able to go horseback riding next to rhinos and water buffalo (truly insane). 

"Bertie, your giraffe is broken."

South Africa was also the first place where I had time to hang out with my friends, without being on a Semester At Sea trip, getting to go out to restaurants we wanted to, explore on our own, without being overly fearful of not knowing the language, or being targeted as a tourist. With this being the case, quite a bit went down in good ole Cape Town, and those memories make the city so much more wonderful. 

I could see myself living in South Africa. Granted I could really see myself living anywhere and everywhere I have ever been, South Africa had a familiar feeling that I just can't kick. But this week in South Africa was only a toe in the water compared to the full immersion experience I had in Ghana.

Talk to you later,

-Karin xx