WOW!

I am writing this first entry in a surreal environment, one that I have dreamt about for what seems like forever, my cabin on the MV Explorer! To know that it’s real and to know that I am here is still too crazy of a thought to really understand fully.
We arrived in the Bahamas a week early, and stayed at the Atlantis Hotel on Paradise Island. That place is a world of its own, with a huge casino, one of a kind art, and my favorite part, one of the most amazing aquariums in the world. Just looking at the huge manta ray swimming makes me at peace somehow. I went diving with dad on Wednesday, and both of the dives were amazing! I almost descend right on top of a HUGE stingray, and when I swim to the edge of the blue hole, I spot a reef shark 30 feet down in the darkness. I also saw my second ever lionfish on this dive!
On the morning of Feb 4, we got up around 7, ordered room service, and packed up the last remaining things. Then we went to the loading dock and waited in line for a loooooooong time, and then headed to the cabins. Our new home is cabin 4045, and it is actually a decent size, and I fit all of my stuff in, so things worked out pretty good. Instead of a porthole, we have mirrors! Big ones! But at night, when we shut off the lights, it is pitch black. The same applies in the morning; there is really no way to tell if it is 9 pm or 9am unless you look at a clock. Mom got to come on the ship to have a little tour and a short parent presentation before leaving. I was very sad to say goodbye, and so grateful for all that she has done to prepare me for this trip. Both my parents have been amazing these past few months! Thank you Dad, for spending hours researching cell phone options so that I would have the best way to communicate with you along the way. Thank you Mom for the many shopping excursions before departure to make sure that I was prepared for the next three months! Words cannot even say how grateful I am for this opportunity that you have given me. You have made me the person that I am, the kind of person who wanted to come on this adventure, willing to put everything that I think I know about the world to the test. Basically, THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE WORLD! I love you both so much!
We had a lifeboat drill at four, and the ship departed at exactly 5pm. During the lifeboat drill, we had to report to our muster stations and await further instructions. I saw a little man in a large orange vest come dancing past us with a camcorder following him, on his way to lifeboat #5. That was y first glimpse of Desmond Tutu, and it was sure a memorable one! He will be an amazing presence on this ship and that will surely be a highlight of the entire voyage!
The first night we had a welcome orientation. Our executive dean Larry Senegal gave us a great introduction about the most important port on our voyage. Not one of the 11 countries that we will be visiting, but the 12th port, our ship community. I love the quote “be the change you wish to see in the world.” What a unique opportunity it is to create a shipboard community, filled with cooperation, tolerance, diversity, and compassion, which reflects the type of world we all wish to live in! That night we were asked to reflect on two quotes which I will leave for you to think about as well:
“I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I experience and I understand” ~Old Chinese Proverb
“Travel makes one wiser but less happy” ~Mark Twain
Well, this semester is off to an amazing start, I love all of you and will post again from San Juan, Puerto Rico!