Norway photo essay

I feel like I’ve been writing a lot of text on my blog lately and let’s be honest here – you’re busy and don’t want to read paragraph after paragraph about my adventures in Northern Europe. You want the quick and dirty! So instead of dolling on about my visit to Norway, I’ve decided to just include pictures with short captions.

Here’s the skinny: I was in Bergen and Oslo, Norway – 1 day in Bergen and 2 days in Oslo. In Bergen, I did a SAS-organized field program which took me on a fjord tour to Flåm and Aurlandsfjord. In Oslo, I went to the National Gallery to see the “Scream” painting and other artwork by Edvard Munch. I also toured the Royal Palace, which is a bit like the White House except with less security. You could basically walk right up to the front door and everything but knocking was allowed. The weather was beautiful and not surprisingly, I got sunburnt. (I am actually quite proud of this because I think it takes great skill to achieve a sunburn in Scandinavia.)

Enjoy the pictures from my visit to Norway! After Norway, we sailed on to St. Petersburg, Russia – more on this country in my upcoming posts!

Waterfalls seen on the bus ride up to Aurlandsfjord. 

I took a fjord cruise on Aurlandsfjord. The fjord was beautiful. As you can see, it was a cloudy and rainy day but the weather held for the cruise.

Aurlandsfjord, as seen from the boat cruise.

Sailing through Aurlandsfjord.

Big waterfall on the way back to the ship from Aurlandsfjord. There were many waterfalls seen throughout the day, snow pack melting and running down into the fjords. Yes, there was still snow on the mountains in July.

A staple on the Oslo waterfront - the opera house. It's built so you can walk on the roof for a good view of the city and waterfront.

View from the top of the Oslo opera house.

Oslo opera house. The inside looks a bit like the Sydney opera house.

Norway Royal Palace. I took a tour of the inside but wasn't allowed to take pictures.

No big deal - just plugging in my boat in Oslo!

The world is truly a small place. In the Oslo city hall, I ran into fellow spring voyager Phyllis! We sailed together on the spring voyage and were in Oslo at the same time! Great fun to see Phyllis again.

Summer Sea Olympics

My birthday was a special day on the ship for another reason - it was the date of the Sea Olympics! Each voyage, the shipboard community is divided into teams for a day of friendly competition. I was part of the faculty/staff team called the "Sea-lebrities" (very clever, right?!). I've found that I'm quite the joiner this summer and partook in two events plus judged two more events. It was quite fun.

As it turns out, I've made the Semester at Sea blog News from the Helm again. Can you spot me in the post about the Sea Olympics? Check out the post here: http://www.semesteratsea.org/2014/07/25/summer-2014-sea-olympics/

One of the pictures from the Sea Olympics blog post. Can you spot me?
Also, this cutie up front is my co-worker's son Michael.

Birthday reflections

July 22 marked my 27th birthday. Twenty-seven is an important number for this blog as it’s included in the blog title and my goal to visit 27 countries before my 27th birthday. Although I’ve been fortune enough to have the opportunity to travel to many beautiful places, traveling continues to show me that I have so much more to learn. I feel as though my continued travels leave me with more questions than answers. Although there are still many things I don’t know, here is a list of 27 things that I’ve learned about myself and about the world during the past 27 years.

1. The world may seem big and scary but it’s actually quite small. Our ever increasing technology and the ease of travel continue to make our world smaller each day.
2. Although technology makes life easier, we all need to disconnect every once in a while. I’ve enjoyed being away from time-sucks and anxiety-builders like facebook while working with Semester at Sea.
3. Time marches on. Somehow my late 20s caught up with me and I’m not sure how this happened or why the years seem to come at an ever-increasing rate.
4. I feel cramped if I don’t have easy access to the following: green space with legitimate plants and trees, a gravel road and a wide open view of the countryside. I guess you can say I’m a Midwesterner at heart.
5. I love reality TV (some of you already know this!!). The trashier, the better! To the Real Housewives of New Jersey – I can’t wait to reunite with you when I get home and have cable again!
6. My favorite city in the world will always be London. This was the site of my first study abroad experience and will hold a special place in my heart forever.
7. I’ve gotten this question lately: “You haven’t had a boyfriend in a while. What’s wrong?” The answer is nothing is wrong. I’m busy working on me! In the past two years I’ve lived in three states, plus on a ship, got my Master’s degree and visited 20 countries. If you know someone who wants to ride this crazy train otherwise known as my life, give me a call!
8. Somehow I became scared of heights as I grew up. Not sure how this happened.
9. A quote that has really been sticking with me lately is “You may be comfortable, but I’m free.” This was stated during a SAS spring voyage talk by Serengtee CEO and SAS alum Jeff Steitz.
10. I am not a reader and would rather watch TV to get my information than read the newspaper.
11. I also really stink at keeping a journal. This blog is my first real success at keeping some type of record of my life for an extended period of time.
12. Although I will never turn down exotic cuisine, my favorite food is scalloped potatoes followed by fresh peach pie.
13. Although it’s somewhat cheesy to say, study abroad truly changed my life and I’m excited to see what the future holds as I move forward in the field of international education.
14.  Friends come in and out of your life as they need to and it’s ok to move on when it’s time.
15. I do not have a smart phone and I’m not sure I’ll get one until “dumb phones” become obsolete and I’m forced to move on.
16. Reflection makes me uncomfortable and I’m not sure how I survived two years at SIT Graduate Institute!
17. The act of having a child scares the daylights out of me and I’m not sure I’ll ever be ready for that rodeo.
18. Shoes are always my weakness. I have far too many pairs than are necessary and continue to purchase more because they make me feel better after a long day.
19.  I think the aftermath of a sunset, as the pinky sky turns to darkness, is prettier than the sunset itself.
20. I am not a cat person because who wants a pet that doesn’t even care if you’re around?!
21. I am feeling a lot of pressure about finding a job and moving onto my next stage in life. I want to stay in the same place for a few years so I feel like I have to get this one right, which is scary.
22. Mint tea rocks my socks.
23. My goal used to be to run a marathon before I turned 30 years old. The half marathon I did a few years ago was good investment because I realized I have no desire to run that many miles in one go!
24. Believe it or not, there is another “Whitney Longnecker” in this world and I have an irrational hatred towards her.
25. Bon Jovi’s Livin’ On a Prayer is my favorite song because it brings people together. You can go anywhere – a bar, the grocery store, your family Thanksgiving dinner – and people will start dancing if you play Livin’ On a Prayer.
26. I just learned that listing 27 things makes for a long blog post!
27. Last but certainly not least – I have a great support system in my family and friends and I thank each and every one of you for being there for me through thick and thin. I can’t wait to see what the next 27 years bring with you by my side!

Return to Dublin, Ireland

After departing Scotland we had just one day at sea before arriving in Dublin, Ireland. If you’ve been keeping up with my blog you may be thinking “wasn’t she just in Ireland?” The answer to this question is yes. Not knowing that I was going to be working on the summer voyage which includes a stop in Dublin, I booked a week-long vacation around Ireland with my sister and two friends. This trip occurred following the spring voyage and it was wonderful.

When I arrived in Dublin with Semester at Sea, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to see or do since I had just been in town and done most of the “touristy” sites. So here are two “off the beaten path” sites I visited during my recent visit to the Emerald Isle:

-Book of Kells: The Book of Kells, a 9th century illuminated manuscript, is a special exhibit at Trinity College. The Book of Kells is featured alongside the Books of Durrow and Armagh and all are beautiful. The illustrations are very ornate and amazingly detailed.

The Books are set in a museum that explains their significance and you get to see them at the end of the exhibit. Following the Books exhibit, you enter the Long Room which is Trinity’s old library. I have to say, I enjoyed the Long Room more than the Books! The exhibit was very crowded and dark and therefore hard to navigate. The Long Room was just as crowded but brighter and full of ancient books and artifacts. The ambiance was wonderful and I could have stayed there all day! I also saw an employee cleaning some of the books which was pretty neat. He was using a small vacuum to clean each book one by one but said he could not open the books unless his supervisor approved because they were so old and delicate.

Long Room at Trinity College.

Cleaning the books in the Long Room.

Long Room, Trinity College.

Long Room, Trinity College.

-Chester Beatty Library: Chester Beatty was a New Yorker who made his fortune in Colorado mining and then retired and died in Dublin. Mr. Beatty was a collector of manuscripts and ancient books so after his death, his collection was turned into a Museum. This museum is right up my alley – ornately decorated pictures and books from mostly Asia and the Middle East. Everything was beautiful and the museum was wonderfully done. They had a whole floor dedicated to manuscripts for different religions that I especially enjoyed. They had manuscript fragments of books of the Bible from 200 A.D., which completely blew my mind. How could these pieces of paper have survived for so long and then how did Chester Beatty find them?! A-Mazing.

No pictures are allowed inside the Chester Beatty Library so you'll have to check it out for yourself!

Major fail in Glasgow

I wasn’t sure what I was going to do on my final day in Scotland. I had already been to the highland games, explored our port town of Greenock and taken the train into nearby Glasgow. Although I didn’t like the idea of staying on the ship, I felt like I’d “done it,” “done Scotland.” So, I Googled “free things to do in Glasgow” and found the Glasgow Cathedral. The Google images were quite nice so I decided this would be my last-day activity.

I took the 50-minute train ride from Greenock to Glasgow and huffed about 30 minutes to the Cathedral. Upon arrival, I knew I’d made the right choice. Although I’ve been to many European churches and cathedrals, they never get old for me. I love the Gothic architecture and the stained glass windows. I especially love old Scottish churches (this one was built before the 12th century) because the stone seems to darken over time so the buildings end up a sooty-black color. It makes the building look dark, mysterious and intriguing.

Glasgow Cathedral, as seen from the Necropolis.

I walk up to the Glasgow Cathedral and pull out my camera to take a picture. After several tries at the power button, the camera won’t turn on. It’s then I realize I’ve forgotten my camera battery in the charger in my room back on the ship. HUGE bummer! So, I’ll do my best to describe the cathedral in this blog post and also please note that the pictures I’ve included are completely stolen from online and therefore, I take no credit for them.

The cathedral opens into a main hall that is in the Gothic style. Large, carved, dark gray stone pillars line the main hall with brightly colored stained glass windows all around. The church smells musty and makes me sneeze. Lining the main hall are tombs of ancient Glasgowians and although most tombs have been walked smooth, others state dates leading back to the 1600s.

At the end of the main hall, I walk up a few stairs to a room known as The Choir. This appears to be where the services are held and the room feels somehow cozy despite being filled with hard wood pews and cold, gray stone. The stained glass windows are enormous and magnificent.

Postcard of the Cathedral that I purchased since my camera was without the battery. The picture on the left is The Choir.

I go back to the main hall and go downstairs. It is very dark despite the newly installed lights which seem out of place with the continued Gothic style. The downstairs holds many different chapels and small meeting rooms. I literally stumble through the only remaining original door in the cathedral complete bullet holes from a more difficult time in Scotland. The room with the original door features old Scottish flags, threadbare and stained from Scottish wartimes. The place reeks of history.

After leaving the Cathedral I make my way up to the Necropolis, the Cathedral’s graveyard. The Necropolis is on a small hill and features a good view of Glasgow. The Necropolis is an eerily interesting place that has been described as a city of the dead. It’s estimated that 50,000 people are buried in this graveyard although not everyone has a stone. The gravestones are neatly lined up and very large; most are taller than me and feature whole families with some dating to be 400 years old. I wander around the Necropolis as the clouds roll in and it begins to lightly rain. I realize I’m the only person in the Necropolis, get creeped out and hurry down the hill to join civilization again. After a quick lunch, I take the train back to Greenock and board the ship in time for our departure to Dublin, Ireland.

Glasgow Cathedral, as seen from the front.

Glasgow Necropolis.

Glasgow Necropolis and a view of the city below.

No internet = catching up now

I’ve come to realize it’s very hard to maintain a blog when one has no internet access, which is the situation I have been placed in for the past several days. The ship recently docked in Dublin and we lost internet for our entire stint in this country, plus one additional day because of a faulty satellite connection. Our internet has finally been restored and I’m working to get this blog up to date over the next few days.

Continuing on with my last post about the Highland Games in Scotland, I am happy to announce I’ve made an appearance on Semester at Sea’s blog News from the Helm. You can read all about the Highland Games and also see me in a group shot located about halfway down the blog. Check out the post here: http://www.semesteratsea.org/2014/07/11/scottish-athletics-the-luss-highland-games/.

Upcoming posts on my blog which you can look forward to: a story about my major fail in Scotland, updates on my return to the land of leprechauns and Guinness otherwise known as Ireland, and also info about the country in which we just docked today: Norway! Stay tuned.

Have you ever seen someone throw a tree trunk?

I arrived in Scotland on Saturday and on my first day in this country, I went to the Highland Games in a small village called Luss located on Loch Lomond. With the backdrop of rolling hills and beautiful Loch Lomond, I watched burly, bearded men dressed in their finest kilts compete in events like the strongman competition, caber toss, running races, wrestling and more. What a way to begin my visit to Scotland!

Fellow staff member Julie Hurst and I at the games.

At first glance, most events seemed to be based on brute strength but some required more finesse than I initially thought. My favorite event was the caber toss – or as I would call it – the tree trunk toss. The caber toss is not only about strength but also balance and poise. The competitors have to lift the caber which looks about the length of a telephone poll, can take a few steps if needed, and have to launch the caber end-over-end with the goal of having the caber land straight forward in the 12 o’clock position. How this event came about it beyond me but it was great fun to watch.

The event seemed to be open to both men and women but women only completed in a few events including bicycle racing, running races, bagpiping and Irish dancing. The Irish dancing was very nice and it was wonderful to be surrounded by the music of the bagpipe competitors throughout the day.

The Highland Games were a great start to my time in Scotland. More in my next blog about the rest of my time in the land of whiskey, golf and plaid.

Ready...set....

...let it fly!

Irish dancing at the Highland Games.

Irish dancing at the Highland Games.

Scottish Backhold Wrestling. If your opponent loses their grip or is thrown the ground, you get a point.
First person to three points wins. 

Tug of War. The longest tug of war game at the Highland Games went on for 43 minutes!

This guy is really digging in during Tug of War!

My shipboard community – Summer 2014

I realized that I’ve told you about my travels in Semester at Sea’s first two ports-of-call but I haven’t spoken about the shipboard community yet! So, who am I sharing the ship with this summer?

There are 465 students completing the program this summer. These 465 students come from 215 different colleges and universities around the world. The top represented universities are the University of Virginia, Oregon and the University of Colorado at Boulder; a few Iowa institutions are represented including Iowa State and UNI. Top majors include business, psychology and engineering.

The student population is 70 percent female and 30 percent male, which is right on track with the nationwide study abroad gender ratio. Thirty percent of students racially classify themselves as something other than Caucasian/White and 12 percent of students are non-U.S. passport holders. The top international student senders for the summer voyage are China, Canada and India.

The voyage also includes 41 faculty and 27 staff members. The faculty and staff brought along 58 family members ranging in age from 2 years old to grandparents who are in their 70s and 80s.

Semester at Sea has a program called “Lifelong Learners” which allows people to complete the voyage but not necessarily be enrolled in classes. Most often, Lifelong Learners are recently retired but some come from all walks of life and are simply looking for a unique travel opportunity. There are 46 LLLs this summer.

Combined with the crew, we are 817 strong this summer! You can learn more about my shipboard community on Semester at Sea’s blog News from the Helm where they just put up a video describing our voyage. Enjoy!

"News from the Helm" article. Check it out at the links above!

¡Hola España!

After just two days at sea, I arrived in Bilbao, Spain, on Friday morning. I must admit – I’ve had reservations about visiting Spain as part of the summer voyage. I have been to southern Spain (specifically, Granada) once before and did not have an enjoyable experience. My long weekend in Granada consisted of being yelled at repeatedly for not being proficient in Spanish. Not a fun time and I was hesitant to return to the country after my initial not-so-friendly welcome. Secondly, I have been wondering “why are we going to Bilbao?” There are many nice port cities in Spain like Barcelona; why are we going to somewhere I’ve never heard of before?

Well, I must say my fears and hesitations of Spain were quickly dashed away upon arrival in Bilbao. We docked in a small city called Getxo (pronounced “get-cho”), which is located about 25 minutes from Bilbao. Around the turn of the 20th century, Getxo was a seaside getaway for Spain’s elite. Think Rockefeller-level, only the Spanish version. The small city is full of huge old mansions that have been kept up very well even though they were built 100 years ago.

Bilbao is a nice city that has been forever changed by the building of a Guggenheim modern art museum in 1997. The city was dirty and forgotten but the museum has revived Bilbao and it’s now a destination for foreign tourists and Spaniards alike. I spent my first day in port in the Guggenheim viewing exhibits by Georges Barque and Yoko Ono.

Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain.

My second day in Spain was spent on a SAS field program to San Sebastián and Hondarribia. Hondarribia is the first city in Spain when traveling south across the French/Spanish border and had a medieval feel. San Sebastián is a popular beach-town and most SAS students made their way here to catch some sun.

Sopelana was my destination on Sunday. Sopelana seemed like somewhat of a suburb of Bilbao and had a festival celebrating Saint Pedro that included a parade and traditional Basque dancing. Bilbao is located in the Basque region of Spain, the people are particularly proud of their Basque heritage and the Sopelana festival was an example of this.

Finally, I spent my last day in Spain horseback riding on the beach. The horses were a tad feisty for my taste but I managed thanks to all the horseback riding I had to do on vacations when I was younger (thanks, Cady). Plus, what beats riding a horse along the beach?! So pretty!

Spain was a success and I’m glad I gave this country another try. I very much enjoyed myself in Bilbao and the surrounding Basque region. Up next – Scotland!

Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain.

Front of the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain.

Pintxos, like tapas, are small plates orders in Spain. Yum!

Me overlooking La Concha Beach in San Sebastian.

Festival in Sopelana. These 15 foot tall dolls were carried through the streets as part of a parade. I don't know the significance.

Traditional Basque dancing in the Sopelana town square during the festival.

Horseback riding along the beach on my final day in Spain.

Horseback riding along the beach in Spain.

Visiting a small town after horseback riding. We are very small in this picture!