Domo Arigato, China and Japan

China and Japan have been two of my favorite countries on the voyage thus far. One is rich with a vibrant culture while the other contains more natural beauty than any other country I’ve ever visited. To really understand China, one must grasp the concept of Ying and Yang. I’m sure the first thing that pops into most people’s minds is a yin-yang symbol etched on a piece of jewelry or something like that. Most people are aware that it represents balance, but what does it mean to the Chinese? It represents a balance that permeates nearly every aspect of life; not just good and evil. It represents man and woman, sun and moon, sweet and salty, strength and weakness; every opposite present in our lives, and how we need those opposites present to be complete. I admire this philosophy of balance. We could learn a lot from it as United States citizens. So often we lack the ability to maintain balance in our lives. We think being strong means being powerful, being rich leads to success, and being smart means being wise. I’d like to propose that, on each of these fronts, we are quite wrong.
We spent two days in Hong Kong and two days in Shanghai. Hong Kong, as you may or may not know, is a “special administration region.” Basically, it’s a free state that the Chinese government claims jurisdiction over. As such, it has a free market, making it a rich area. I’ve never seen so many tall buildings in my life! A cool side note: our ship was docked across the bay from a business center affectionately dubbed “batman tower.” One of the scenes from the dark night was filmed there. Yeah, Christian Bale leapt hundreds of feet from that building! Got to love Hong Kong.
One of the best experiences I had in Hong Kong was learning tai chi by the waterfront. Tai chi is a perfect display of the Chinese philosophy of balance. It’s a smooth and graceful pattern of exercises, but every position can be used for defense. It requires steady footing and a clear mind. Well… I’m working on the steady footing thing! We also learned how to serve tea. Tea drinking, in China, is an activity widely practiced by scholars. If you’re going to be a proper scholar in China, you learn how to serve tea. It’s not as easy as you’d think, either. The tea tastes AMAZING, though. I had some of the best teas I’ve ever tasted in China, and I drink a LOT of tea. Most of their teas are very light in contrast to British teas. You can buy packs of tea leaves in some shops, and it’s like purchasing fine wine! The packs are dated and aged for flavor.
In Shanghai, we were lucky enough to get tickets to a Chinese acrobatics show. It was pretty amazing. Yet again, most of their stunts were about maintaining balance. In one act, a woman balanced nearly twenty crystal glasses on her forehead. She was standing on a moving platform and she was wearing heels. Well, I was impressed. One of the main social arenas in China is the night market. They sell everything from food and clothes to luggage and paintings. I personally enjoyed the street vendor food, but I’ll eat nearly anything. Night markets are the perfect place to really immerse yourself in China. You can people-watch, try local dishes, and just explore!
Culturally, I found Japan to be different than China, at least in the modern sense. Japan is very orderly, dare I say mechanized. On the subway, the cars were stuffed with people, but no one was making a sound except for a group of noisy American study abroad students (yes, they were from Semester at Sea). I was actually kind of embarrassed. Everything is clean, and everyone dresses fashionably. Nearly every woman I saw was wearing heels. I felt rather shoddy in my sweat jacket and jeans with my hair pulled back in a messy bun. Japan feels more westernized than China, yet the sense of communalism is similar. Another thing I admire about China (and Japan): people aren’t nearly as individualistic as they are in the United States.
The natural beauty is what stands out to me when I reflect on Japan. We arrived in Kobe/Kyoto during the cherry blossom season. Japan’s cherry trees only bloom for 1-2 weeks every year, so we were lucky. Only 1/3 of the Semester at Sea voyages have a chance to see cherry blossoms in Japan. The first time I saw cherry trees in bloom was at a Shogun’s palace. We had taken a day trip to Kyoto and were walking through a garden. When we turned a corner, the whole pathway was lined with trees in full bloom. Few things are more beautiful in my mind. When the wind blows, petals fall from the sky like snowflakes. It’s an awesome experience.
In Yokohama, we visited Tokyo and Mount Fuji. Tokyo has two sides: it is both historical and metropolitan. We took a train to Tokyo and walked to a park in the center of town. We went to a business center, where a lot of local people worked, and bought fresh tempura and rice. So good! We took the food to the park and ate there. After we ate, we decided that it would be fun to fly a kite. Not a conventional thing to do on an afternoon in Tokyo, believe me. We were having a great time. The kids in the park were playing with us and the weather was fantastic. After about ten minutes, a cop approached us and indicated to us, in Japanese, that kite flying was not allowed in the park. We were kind of sad, but we didn’t feel like flying a kite in that particular park was worth being thrown into a Japanese prison. So we moved our scandalous kite-flying elsewhere. We walked to another park and started flying the kite by a lake. There were trees nearby and the kite managed to get stuck. We wrestled it free but, as soon as we had freed the kite, the cops were upon us once again. Apparently it is illegal to fly kites in Tokyo. We don’t really know. We kept getting reprimanded in Japanese!
Mount Fuji was definitely a cool experience, too. We had to drive several hours to see it, but it was still covered in snow from a previous winter storm. The trip we were on took us up the side to the 5th station. That’s about 2,000 kilometers (6,000 feet!) high. Abby, Jessi, and I got to lob a little snow at each other. It was cold, but well worth it! After Fuji, we visited a town called Hakone on the edge of Lake Ashi. Once again, incredibly naturally beautiful!
I enjoyed China and Japan so much because they left a beautiful imprint on my mind. Every country has left a lingering impression upon me, but I feel like I learned so much from these places; things I wish every American citizen could learn.
As we head towards Hawaii, Guatemala, and the Panama Canal, I can hardly believe Fort Lauderdale, FL is on the horizon. The voyage of a lifetime is coming to a close and I cannot even fully fathom all that I have seen, experienced, and learned.

Drinking tea in Vietnam

After my experiences in India, I was desperately in need of a breath of fresh air. Thailand and Vietnam have been wonderfully refreshing, although not without challenges. I feel as though I understand Asia, and I’m at no loss to know why. I’ve had experience with the Asian culture before, and I’m fascinated by it. I can emotionally and mentally connect with the people’s customs and perspectives. I used to believe Europe would be the ultimate travel destination. Don’t get me wrong: I still want to visit all of Europe, but the world is so much bigger than that! The world is bigger than my Italian, British, Irish, and German ancestors. Its history is rich and it cultures are diverse; Europe cannot contain all of the things I’ve discovered and learned. It cannot contain all of the people I’ve met.
I think I like South Asia because of its reliance on water. I love being around rivers, lakes, and oceans. The people of Vietnam and Thailand greatly rely on rivers for transport. I suppose that’s where I should begin my reflections. While in Thailand, Abby, Maggie, and I travelled with a new friend, Donna, to Bangkok. We stayed at a hostel in downtown and used river boats to get around the area. River boats are Bangkok’s form of public transportation, kind of like New York’s subway system. It costs less than a dollar to ride the boats for an entire day, and, while riding the river boats, you have an excellent opportunity to people watch. We saw families, monks, elderly people, and businessmen all going about their daily lives: shopping, working, and travelling to various destinations.
While in Bangkok, we visited 2 temples: the Temple of the Dawn and the temple that houses the Reclining Buddha. The temple of the dawn was built in a location that magnifies the sun. It’s simply amazing at sunrise and sunset. The Reclining Buddha… well, it’s kind of self-explanatory. It’s a giant golden statue of the Thai-style Buddha, and it’s enormous! It’s plated in gold, which makes it an even more staggering sight! At the temple, I got to ring a gigantic gong for good luck. Maggie explained to me that, in the Chinese culture, if you ring the gong once, you’re wishing for good fortune for the year.
While in Thailand, we got to interact with quite a few animals. We rode elephants and held baby tigers, both of which I have wanted to do since I was a little girl! We were extremely fortunate to hold the baby tigers. We happened to be visiting a tiger nursery, and one of the workers pulled us aside and asked us if we wanted to see the babies.
Vietnam has really surprised me. When we arrived in Ho Chi Mihn, I felt very strange. All my life, I’ve heard stories about South Vietnam from war veterans. I wondered what I would see and how the people would receive me as an American. Now, I can honestly say Vietnam is an amazing place. My favorite experience was definitely visiting the Mekong delta. The Vietnamese use boats to transport rice, fruits, meat… well, all kinds of things! They have canals running all through the area and it’s quite an adventure to ride through them. They are packed with tiny canoe-style boats, and people are not afraid of crashing into one another!
The night markets are a great place to meet people and pick up some awesome items. I had a dress made at a silk shop and managed to pick up several plates, bowls, cups, and a tea pot. I have no idea how I’m going to pack it all, but I’ll work on it!
I’m extremely excited about China and Japan. I know so many people who’ve lived there or have family from there. I feel like it’s a chance to understand them and their heritage better. Not to mention, I love eating with chopsticks. I wish we used them in the U.S. more frequently. In Japan, I’m definitely picking up some manga comic books.

I’ll write again soon!

India: The Turning Point

I would like to say that I loved everything about India. Don’t get me wrong: India was wonderful, but I found myself culturally shocked and tested with every step I took. From the time we stepped off the ship to the time we pulled away, watching the port lights fade into the distance, we were constantly immersed in a drastically different way of life. Some of the differences were fascinating, while others shook me to the core.
India was the turning point in our voyage. It marked the middle of our expedition around the world, and everything shifted when we arrived. When I reflect on India, I’m exceedingly glad I visited, but it takes on a more serious tone in my mind. It affected me in a very different way than any other country. My perceptions are forever changed.
Two incidences stand out in my mind when I think of India. I had many experiences in India, but I feel that these two sum up my visit the best. The first occurred when I was returning with my friends from a tailor. We had just gotten outfits made and we were taking a tuk-tuk (a mo-ped taxi) back to the ship. As we approached the port, we were stopped at a rail road crossing for several minutes and a cargo train slowed to a stop on the tracks. I turned to chat with Abby, and when I turned around again two little boys were standing beside the tuk-tuk. We had been warned about beggar children in India. Many of them belong to beggar gangs, and giving money to them contributes to a dangerous cycle. Unfortunately, when confronted with hungry, desperate children, I was tempted to forget the warnings. I knew I wasn’t going to give the kids money, but I found myself quickly looking through my pockets for granola bars and chips. I only had one granola bar, and once I’d given it away, I was swarmed by kids looking for more food. I had just bought a set of bracelets, and I felt compelled to give one to a little girl who was standing by my side. The more I gave, the more the kids begged and crowded around me. My nerves became frazzled. All I wanted to do was get away because I didn’t have any more food or small presents to give away. When I finally got back to the ship, I was exhausted. My experience with the kids shook me up more than any occurrence on this trip thus far.
My watch battery had died the week before we arrived in India. I had borrowed a watch from my friend Nicole until I could find a replacement. Because it was very muggy, I had taken the watch off and put it into my backpack. Once I was back on the ship, I discovered that the watch had disappeared… no doubt in my mind it was taken while I was surrounded by the kids. The watch had only cost her $10 and it was 4 years old, so it wasn’t a huge loss. The fact that a group of kids all under the age of 10 could steal from someone who had showed them kindness hurt me. Losing the watch was not the problem. It was hard to see children, who should still be so innocent and carefree, hardened by circumstances. I struggled with this incident for several weeks, trying to understand how I felt about it. I will never give to the beggars of India again; I may not be able to return. I wish there was more I could do to remedy their poverty, but frankly, I don’t know what can be done. Seeing the poverty in India left me feeling very small; sort of helpless.
Although my experience with the beggar children was difficult, I also had the privilege of visiting the Bala Mandir orphanage while I was in India. I thought that seeing these orphan children would prove to be challenging too, but they brought me so much joy. They were filled with the curiosity and joy of childhood, and they simply wanted to hang out with us. We played on the swings, took pictures, and gave them stickers and coloring books. The boys at the orphanage taught us how to play cricket out in the yard. We had an amazing time.
As we were preparing to leave, one of the older girls ran up to me and began talking with me. She grabbed my hand and placed a small plastic ballerina in it. It was a strange moment for me. We had gone to the orphanage to give the kids toys, coloring books, time, and attention. I had not expected to leave with anything, yet I left with many wonderful gifts! The kids at Bala Mandir taught me that you can be joyful under hard circumstances. They renewed my hope for India. I tried to tell the girl that she needn’t give me anything. I was thrilled just to meet her. But she wanted me to have the gift. It is a gift I greatly treasure.
Before embarking on the voyage, multiple Semester at Sea alumni had told me about India. Some had greatly disliked it while others loved it. All agreed that India had a great effect on them. I agree. You cannot visit India and leave exactly as you were. Personally, I feel India has had a positive impact upon me. Although my experience was far from perfect, I learned a great deal.

I’ll write about Thailand and Vietnam soon!