Hola from the Atlantic Ocean! We're almost at our next port, Cadiz, Spain. So let me catch you up…
Last Monday night the whole group of us went out to an SAS dinner in Halifax then to drinks at a bar on Argyle Street. We had a ton of fun because everyone (for the most part) was doing SAS so we were able to meet some new people. Tuesday morning Nicole, Hannan, and I had to check into port at 9am, so we woke up early to finish packing and grab a cab to Pier 22. Honestly, I have no idea how we fit all of our stuff into a regular cab, we had 5 huge duffle bags and 3 backpacks, plus the three of us, it was crazy. There was a long line, but once we got through security and checked our luggage, we were finally able to board the ship! Nicole and I did some exploring, the ship is really nice and has seven decks, two dining rooms, a library, a computer lab, a piano bar, plus plenty of places to hang out. My room is in the middle of the ship on deck 4, so I get a little more space and a window. My roomie Julia is from Boston College and seems wicked nice. We had to do a drill out on the deck with our lifejackets, so we would know what to do in case of an emergency…let's just hope we don't need it. We set sail a little after 5 that night, but Julia and I both slept through it since we hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.
Wednesday we had orientation all day, so we had to watch presentations about classes, health and safety, and a computer lab demo. Because there are over 700 students, we can't all fit in the Union, which is our main classroom, so we use satellite class rooms and the piano bar. A ton of us fell asleep on the floor of the piano bar, so that should tell you how interesting it was. ☺ It was really rocky, so a ton of people got sick. I pretty much slept all day because I had taken Dramamine which made me drowsy, plus the waves rocked me right to sleep.
Thursday was our first day of classes. We all take Global Studies at 9am, so our group watched it from the piano bar. The class is about the Mediterranean's history and how it affects the rest of the world. It was really sunny and warm, so we layed out by the pool until my International Business class. After that I have a Human Development class about beliefs and perceptions, which seems pretty cool. We had our first pub night, so we all went up to the top deck for a few beers.
Friday got pretty rocky again, and overall I was just tired and dizzy. After dinner, I studied a bit for classes, then we had another pub night. A big group of us decided that we wanted to watch a movie so 15 of us crammed into Thomas' room to watch a crazy bootleg version of The Hangover. Honestly, it was crazy we could fit so many of us in that tiny room, but it was a pretty awesome bonding night.
I had class Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday (yes, even on the weekends!) which was alright. We actually saw land the other day, which was pretty exciting. We sailed through the Azores islands, which were beautiful. A bunch of us went up to the Observation Deck to take pictures.
Other than the crazy waves and the fact that we're losing an hour a night (so as of right now, I'm 6 hours ahead of you), it's been amazing so far. We're almost in port and I can't wait to eat amazing food and explore the city. I'm going to Barcelona with 5 other people, plus we're meeting up with some others, so it should be a good time! Until then…

Peace & Love,
Kati