Since most of the people I know have no clue what ship life is like, I figured I’d give an overview of a typical schedule of my days:

“A” Day

06:50 – Snooze alarm and decide if I’m awake enough to go to Zumba

07:00 – Arrive at Zumba/Go back to bed

07:50 Pt. 1 – post-Zumba: head to breakfast nice & energized, ready to start my day

07:50 Pt. 2 – If Zumba was not in the morning schedule – Alarm goes off for breakfast. Turn lights on; sit on bed until my eyes focus, Roll out of bed, Put jacket and shoes on, Drag self to breakfast with Malia and anyone else who has joined

08:30ish – Breakfast ends; stay and chat for a while, or head back to room

09:12ish – Get ready to go to Global Studies at 9:20

09:20 – Global Studies – a fairly interesting class, thanks to the interactive power points, games, and more that the teacher has set up; this is also the WORST place to be if the seas are extra rocky, many students will run out of class, headed for the bathroom on a bad day

10:35 – 10 minute break after Global Studies ends until International Service Learning (which I have with Katy)

12:00 – Lunchtime with Katy right after class – since our classroom is attached to the 6th floor dining room, it’s a straight shot to beat the noon lunch rush; we got lucky with that one

12:30ish – Up to the 7th deck/top deck for homework time, sun tanning, pool time and whatever else my heart desire for the next few hours

17:00 – Sometimes a pre-dinner workout

17:30/1800 – Also known as 5:30/6, Dinner time until 19:30 (7:30); but typically we leave before the end of dinner

19:00 – There is usually some sort of ship activity around 7 or 8 o’clock, whether that is Pre-port the night before we arrive at a port, a musical performance, an “explorer seminar” taught by a faculty, staff member, or Life Long Learner, to help us learn about all kinds of different topics. If there is no ship activity, it is either homework time (if there’s any left) or some sort of game time

20:00 – Around 8pm is when we do our nightly Abs workout, depending on the activity schedule

21:30 – On many nights, Pub Night is the local hang out spot, where kids are allowed three drinks “to drink at a moderate pace.” For those desperate to get drunk, two drinks are allowed at dinner, which many people toss in their water bottles to save for later consumption right before Pub Night starts. Because what’s better than being hung-over and seasick at the same time? I have had a total of 2 drinks on ship. A $3.50 glass of wine is just not worth it; especially since it’s really bad wine, and a very small glass might I add.

23:00 – This is around the time in which I may start talking about going to bed, rarely is this ever actually the case. I will either be finishing homework for the night, chatting with friends, or having some crazy, delirious fun.

Anytime after Midnight – more “talking” about going to bed, and very little action, however at some point in the next hour is when I usually end up in bed. On the occasional day after port or after an exhausting day, you may find me passed out by 8 p.m., with no movement until breakfast. But that’s only happened two or three times

“B” Day

**See “A” day for daily morning schedule from 06:50-08:30

08:30-10:35 – Free time before class. This period of time may be spent with a little more time studying my eyelids, however, I have many activities during this time, depending on my energy level. On some days, this will be homework time. On other days, I may just write, such as I’m doing right now. Today was spent looking at the South Africa guidebook in the library, trying to plan my only free day in South Africa with as many possible activities in a short amount of time. I also answered the “Question of the Day” on the library whiteboard. Who knew studying Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” about the South Atlantic bird, the Albatross, in 7th grade would one day pay off?! I certainly didn’t. Granted I had to look up the artist’s name in the Brittanica Encyclopedia in the Reference book section, but the fact that I knew the bird that was mentioned in the question gave me a very good starting point from which to reference. Snaps to that King’s education…

10:45 – Cognitive Psychology – nothing much to say about this… I have this with Katy also

12:00 – Lunch right after class – yet another round of good luck: this class is also attached to the dining room, but on the 5th floor; yet again, we have a straight shot to the line to beat the rush

12:45 – homework time, outside/tanning/pool time, or whatever else I feel like I need to do until class in the afternoon

15:45 – Cross-Cultural Psychology

17:00 – Sometimes a pre-dinner workout

17:30/18:00 – Dinnertime

18:58 – As of last night, sunset gazing time since we are in the southern hemisphere again and heading south, where it is summer

08:00 – Free time, homework time, etc.

A few activities that I have participated in, in the past few days:

• • King And Queen of the Sea pageant – we watched our two representatives from our sea, the Baltic Sea, compete for the title of King and Queen. Our girl got 2nd runner up. It was a very entertaining event with talent, ABC (anything but clothes) costume competition, and telling kids jokes to make the kid judges laugh (2/20)
• • Babysat my two “little brothers” for an hour while their parents went to listen to a talk by an author on the ship (2/19)
• • “Family Dinner” with my “little brothers,” their parents and one of my two other big sisters
• Family Time” – Family #2: I have an actual “Extended Family” in which we are designated several “siblings” and a parent or two. My family has a Mom, who is head of the writing center onboard, and is a very sweet older woman who is an English professor at Stanford when she is not on Semester at sea. I also have 5 other siblings, one of which is my friend and sorority sister, Caroline. All this family talk can get very confusing on ship. Since I have my “little brothers,” their parents have just started including me in their other “extended family,” which Katy is actually apart of. For those of you who were able to follow any of that, kudos to you.

Mackenzie Jill Weber