We're at sea now on our way to Mauritius and things are alright. It's been a rough couple of days for me and a ton of things have been running through my head but I know that everything is going to OK. Those that have known me for any amount of time, know that travel and exploring the world is my passion, and this is a dream come true but for some reason, it just isn't making much sense at the moment for a lot of reasons. I think that the emotional ups and downs are all a part of this journey though...its not just a journey on a ship; for most of us it is a journey in life. Semester at Sea is not just about sailing around the world on a big blue ship. And its definately not an extended vacation as alot of people think. I think its alot about figuring out our relationships with ourselves and with the world. We learn alot about ourselves, about living and working with others in one of the most unique environments, and we also learn about our relationships with the rest of the world...we travel to places many people will never see, experience cultures far different from our own, learn just how large the world is, and how small our place in it is...but we also learn that no matter what nationality, color or language, people are people and we can build relationships with them. In the process, we challenge ourselves (and sometimes we challenge those who are a part of our lives). I know I've said it before but Thank You again to everyone along with me on this journey....travelling with me both in spirit and here on the ship.

On a more positive note, I'm looking foward to arriving in Mauritius. From what we've been learning, it should be a great place! I have no plans for the first two days as of yet and will be leading two SAS trip on the 3rd and 4th days. On our 3rd day there, we'll be going on a service project to visit a children's home and on our final day there, I was just asked to day to lead a trip to some Adventure Center and Beach, which I think is going to be like a high ropes course in the jungle there and then spending the afternoon at the beach. Should be fun! It is also official that I'm the trip leader for the Beijing trip I'm on. That is all great news becuae there is a huge discount for serving as the trip leader.

M/V Position Reports for the last few days:

27 February 2008 -- Latitude: 31 degrees, 01 minutes South, Longitude: 035 degrees, 21 minutes East, Distance Made Good: 953 Nautical miles (Since Cape Town), Distance Made Good: 422 Nautical miles, (Since noon), Distance to go to the next Port: 1363 Nautical miles, (Port Louis, Mauritius), Average Speed: 19.6 Knots, Distance to the nearest land: 216 NM from Richard's Bay (South Africa), Sea Depth: 132 Meters, Sea Water Temperature: 25º Celsius (77º F), Air Temperature: 25º Celsius (77º F), Wind: Southeast, 10 Knots Sunset Today: 19:07, Sunrise Tomorrow: 06:04

26 February 2008 -- Latitude: 33 degrees, 55 minutes South, Longitude: 027 degrees, 46 minutes East, Distance Made Good: 530 Nautical miles, (Since Salvador), Distance Made Good: 511 Nautical miles, (Since noon), Distance to go to the next Port: 1784 Nautical miles, (Port Louis, Mauritius), Average Speed: 21.2 Knots, Distance to the nearest land: 38 NM from Stalwart Point (South Africa), Sea Depth: 3128 Meters, Sea Water Temperature: 22º Celsius (71.6º F), Air Temperature: 22º Celsius (71.6º F), Wind: Westerly, 10 Knots, Sunset Today: 18:42, Sunrise Tomorrow: 06:34, Tonight ship's clocks will be advanced 1 hour

25 February 2008 -- Latitude: 34 degrees, 02 minutes South, Longitude: 018 degrees, 13 minutes East, Distance Made Good: 26 Nautical miles , (Since Salvador), Distance Made Good: 26 Nautical miles, (Since noon), Distance to go to the next Port: 2296 Nautical miles, (Cape Town, South Africa), Average Speed: 20.4 Knots, Distance to the nearest land: 4.5 NM from Karbonkelberg Point (South Africa), Sea Depth: 109 Meters, Sea Water Temperature: 15º Celsius (59º F), Air Temperature: 15º Celsius (59º F), Wind: Southeast, 2 Knots, Sunset Today: 19:22, Sunrise Tomorrow: 05:54, We'll be passing Cape of Good Hope at 13:05

And a poem....

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yey knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sign
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -
I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.

By Robert Frost