Cape Town is amazing. I’m not sure if it’s because of the delicious seafood on the wharf, the markets filled with wooden giraffes and glass beads, or the fact that I’m not automatically pegged as a tourist, but this place is wonderful. I’ve heard a lot of people say it reminds them of Australia, but I’ve never been so I can’t say. I’m reminded a lot of San Francisco, minus all of the hills. Our AFP was actually good this time! We talked with people from a Center for Conflict Resolution and from the University of Cape Town about reconciliation, educa [View Full Entry]

---

---

I realize I have been slacking in the blog department this week! After I explain the week I’ve had, I think you’ll understand… We departed from the Seychelles and I had 2 paper proposals, 2 midterms and 2 presentations to prepare for this leg. I handed in my paper proposals and did not get good feedback…my professor is a lawyer and is a bit harsh. Constructive criticism is not a tool she uses, and instead everything gets torn apart in a really negative manner. I was really frustrated with being told what I write isn’t literate! I had a midterm for [View Full Entry]

---

---

I just wanted to write a quick blog to update everyone. We’re in the midst of midterms here on the boat. I had one exam yesterday and I have another in about an hour. I’ve also had two paper proposals due and an economics presentation to give in the last 3 days, so I’ve been super busy. Things should calm down a bit after this afternoon’s exam. We have also hit rough waters. Right now we are sailing between continental Africa and Madagascar and life is not pleasant. I can’t even explain how much the boat is rocking, but it is [View Full Entry]

---

---

Well, we are in the beautiful Seychelles! We arrived yesterday at 8 am and I was on the beach by 10! I had planned to do research all day but there was not a single internet cafe open on a Sunday! I swam and enjoyed the sunshine for a couple of hours and then it was back to the boat to study for midterms! The island is really beautiful. The water is crystal clear and we're surrounded by mountains. Surprisingly, the area is not touristy at all. In fact, we had trouble finding something for lunch yesterday. We had our equator [View Full Entry]

---

---

I forgot to mention that in India, I did end up going to mass at St. Thomas Cathedral. Afterwards, we hiked St. Thomas mountain where Thomas was murdered. I’m glad I had the experience, but I would never recommend hiking a mountain in 100 degree weather! We’ve been getting back into the swing of things on the boat. There has been a break out of GI (basically people getting sick) and the boat is currently Code Red. That means a certain percent of passengers have been put into quarantine & if the number gets larger we won’t be able to dock [View Full Entry]

---

---

India. I still don’t know what to think. Somehow everyone made it back to the boat. I can honestly say that every single person is so glad to be back on the boat and many people speak about never returning to India. I’m not sure if it’s the hassling, the dirtiness, or just the general mental stress of being in this place, but I can see why this would not be at the top of many people’s tourist destinations. I’ve heard some incredible stories from my classmates. Some people were in Varanasi which is on the Ganges and is one of [View Full Entry]

---

---

My last couple of days in India have been alright. We had our last two days of AFP, which I must say were disappointing. Our program was very poorly planned and we ended up sitting in a restaurant being lectured to for two days. Literally, sitting in a restaurant. We didn’t visit any sites; there was no hands on learning whatsoever. I was overwhelmingly bored for most of the two days, as the speakers mostly talked about nuclear weapons and bashed America. In fact, one of the speakers went as far as to say that people needed to stop being victims [View Full Entry]

---

---

So, today was the first day of our AFP. We started off the morning as a large group at Madras University. A couple of people spoke about the university and specifically about the Gandhi Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies at the university. The English was a bit rough, as was the microphone, so I didn’t hear as much as I would have liked about the program. The highlight of the morning was definitely the cookies and chai tea they passed out. Mom, it was the best chai I’ve ever had…you need to book a ticket to India just to have [View Full Entry]

---

---

I am in India. That’s the phrase I’ve had to repeat to myself over and over today because I just don’t believe it. Being that we only had 6 days on the boat and that for most of that time I was in bed sick, I haven’t had a lot of time to get excited and prepared for India. I realized I was in India as soon as I stepped off the boat. Some local people had a surprise greeting for us with traditional music, flower necklaces (like a lei) and orange and red paint for our foreheads. It was pretty [View Full Entry]

---

---

Life on the boat is pretty normal these days. We had a post-port day, 4 days of class and today was pre-port day. We arrive in Chennai tomorrow, although I’m not sure what time we’ll be able to disembark because there have been some problems with visas and immigration. Also, my learning circle’s AFP still hasn’t been finalized. In fact, we don’t know a single thing we’ll be doing in the next 3 days. I’m really frustrated because I want to actually get something out of these programs and I’m not sure a day of preparation will encourage the most ed [View Full Entry]

---

---