My response to the Kansas Same Sex Services Bill

 

 

 

 

 

Some of the links that formed the basis for this opinion:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/13/us/kansas-bill-same-sex-services/index.html
http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2014/02/13/kansas_anti_gay_segregation_bill_is_an_abomination.html?mc_cid=c956dc4a7a&mc_eid=3daa687f0e
http://news.yahoo.com/kansas-bill-gay-same-sex-segregation-210533466.html?.tsrc=lgwnthis

 

I came home from work today to see several posts on my Facebook feed about potential new legislation in Kansas. Normally I glance quickly at these series of links and move forward along my feed, but the title of this one made me click. The link I happened to see was of a Slate article, but upon reading that particular source I continued to read many more. I posted some links above in case anyone reading this hasn't heard, but, essentially, the state of Kansas is attempting to pass legislation that allows both public and private sectors to deny services of all kinds to gays in the state. Effectively this would make any gay or suspected gay I second class citizen. This is a culmination of my feelings on the subject after reading several articles.

I would love to say that my reaction to anti-gay legislature in Kansas was that I was "appalled, repulsed, digested" and so on, but none of those words can accurately describe my reaction and do it any sort of Justice. Yes, I am appalled. Yes, I am repulsed and, yes, I am disgusted, but I am also so much more. I am angry. Angry at the people that wrote this. Angry that people actually think this humane and justified. But most of all. I am angry that this even exists. The Anti-gay legislation passed in Russia caused such concern and emotion in the heat of the Sochi Games, and yet, here we are in the "land of the free" basically repeating our Jim Crow history.

 

No one chooses to be gay. Some may argue that this is the case, or that gays can be "converted" but in anyone with half of a brain can deceiver that that idea is about as logical as believing that taking diet pills while eating 4,000 calories a day and not exercising is a healthy way to lose weight (but that's another argument). Gays live every single day fighting an uphill struggle. They are constantly fighting for equality, have to fear who they can be themselves around, and will never achieve what the world (incorrectly) perceives as a happy and healthy life. Now lets think about this for a minute. As a gay individual, you often have to hide who you are to make people around you happy. You will be glared at in public and people will tell you that you are immoral and wrong. I can't speak for everyone but I personally cannot see any way in which someone would 'choose' this life. Sexual Orientation is drilled into our DNA as much as our hair color - we can hide it, but it will always be a part of us.

Understanding that being gay is not a choice is what is truly boggling about this situation. I am baffled in seeing that some of the elected representation of Kansas seems to feel this sense of superiority in that they have the right to literally take away the freedoms of anyone who just wants to be true to themselves. To me, this sparked a thought train of how someone can think its okay to punish other people based on innate traits. Each of us has a set of heritage traits which tells us which groups we identify with - gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, handicaps, brain capacity and more. Yes, some of these can be adapted or converted throughout life, but that does not change the facts of our originality of which we can identify. Going back through history I would be hard-pressed hard-pressed to find one person who didn't belong to a group that was once persecuted simply for being themselves. I am a white, straight, Jewish woman of slightly above average intelligence and little physical handicap. Many of my memberships come from a historically "superior" background, but some do not. I may not be an extremely religious individual but I still consider the Jewish plight to a part of my heritage and part of the person that I am. I am also a woman. In my time and place, I am lucky enough that very little gender indifference exist, but that does not negate my understanding of the fight my gender-ancestors fought, or that my female peers are fighting in other countries now. We all belong to a long series of groups, and if we are to go far enough down the list, everyone will find somewhere where they once wouldn't belong. So why do we continue to think ourselves better than others?

I think that superiority should be judged on merit. How well do you treat others? Would you help a stranger? Do you do your best to look past stereotypes and see a person for who they really are? If you had all money in the world, what would you spend it on? How many good deeds have you done today? These are the questions we should be asking when you judge who is "better" than others and, in turn, how people should be treated. In an ideal world, it would be as simple as good versus bad and that would be it. The good would try to help the bad overcome their boundaries and we could inevitably create a near-perfect. Instead we have people that think they can put others down on the basis of nothing. If I were judging good versus evil, I could tell you that anyone who voted yes on this law would not make my list of the nice. This is not religious freedom - this is immoral discrimination.

I have friends that live in Kansas. I have friends that live in the "red south." I have friends that are republicans. None of these alone does make a person a problem. I know for a fact that anyone I chose to associate myself with would be some of the first people to check no against this law. I also know that while I may come from the true land of the free within in the US, but I am no longer a part of that world. Long gone is my Boston accent, my Massachusetts license and most of Boston identity as a whole. I am a Floridian. A member of a state that is notoriously anti-gay. However, I live in one of the "gayest" cities in America and I work for a company that whole-heartily supports same-sex equality. Identifying   with factors of a negative group doesn't make them a bad person, but acting on negativity does.

I majored in history in college, and I do understand that history does repeat itself. I also believe that eventually sexual equality will be won, gay marriage will be legal, and students generations from now will read about this era in the same way we did about slavery. I also believe that in its place will rise of a new challenge and this cycle will start again. But if mistakes are always going to made, that means they can always be conquered. All we can do is keep fighting. I hope that this media backlash prevents this from ever becoming a bill. But if it does pass, and other states follow suit, we will quickly find ourselves on the brink of another civil war, freedom versus punishment. And we all know how that went for the Confederacy the first time.

Friendship

Our lives our unfolding, our paths going on their own winding ways. We aren't always together, and we don't talk constantly, but the impacts that we have had on each other will never be lost. Sometimes the people we were closest to in one phase just fade into a memory in the next, sometimes they remain, though the matter of which will never be the same, and sometimes, things just change. In an inexplicable and indescribable way things change, people change, and we may wonder why, or we way not realize it all until that one day when someone asks "hey, hows _____" and all of a sudden a long-lost image resurfaces. I've been blessed with extraordinary experiences and in the past two years I've seen more, done more, experienced more and grown more than many people do in decades. Yet the one thing I lack is the foundations in building strong and lasting bonds. Even though I have solidifying strong enough relationships to withstand the test of time, the closeness factor I have always longed for seems to still be missing. My best friends from one phase become just friends in the next; there never seems to be a constant. I've been lucky enough to have a wonderful other half, but even with that our forced 1,000 mile boundary has been a struggle. Of course, no con could ever outweigh the pros that my life has given me, but sometimes it's scary to think of the people we love most in the moment becoming a mere memory in the future. I wouldn't trade the life I have had and currently have for absolutely anything and I truly can never express my gratitude for everything that I have, maybe this is just the downfall of the girl who just did everything and now finds the whole world is different. To friends of these last few years - I love you all, and no matter where life takes us, each of you has played an extraordinary role in giving me the most magical few years of all. And for that, I am forever grateful.

Hong Kong

It may have been 6 months ago that I was in Hong Kong, but I made a promise to myself to eventually blog about my last few port experiences, so here I am with round one. And while I may not remember the play-by-play of each minute, I still think I can do a pretty good job of summing up my experiences.


Introductory notes about Hong Kong:
Hong Kong is a territory of China yes, but it is completely, completely different culturally, economically, geographically and historically. It returned to Chinese rule after being under the British in 1997, and as part of the deal, Hong Kong was able to retain its own government, banking and other features for 50 years. So Hong Kong has its own dollar, is not a communist government, and speaks both English and Mandarin. Also, where as there are many restrictions on freedoms in mainland China, Hong Kong is a lot more lax. We were able to access facebook and other sites that would not be allowed on the mainland and were able to more easily navigate because of the more open culture. The infrastructure is extremely different and it is also much more technologically advanced. So when reading this, keep in mind that Hong Kong, although technically part of China, was in fact a port all its own.


We arrived in Hong Kong on April 1st. Upon going through immigration on the ship, Michael, Dain and I went out exploring while we could as there were FDPs that afternoon for Michael and Dain. Our ship was docked in an extraordinary location. Unlike previous ports where we were generally in industrial zones (with the exception of Singapore), we were in the heart of the city, surrounded by the glamour that is the Hong Kong skyline. Upon getting off the ship, many of the SAS students headed immediately to the Starbucks that was right by our port (first starbucks we saw in months - this made some of us quite happy). However, we had more important things to do and after a quick stop at an ATM for some cash (Hong Kong Dollars are SO COOL looking!) we boarded the ferryboat to take us across the island to the other side of the city. We probably only walked 30 feet before Dain and Michael suddenly had this glow in their eye that I knew had to come from something in nerd-heaven, and, lo-and-behold, I turn around to see a two floor Apple store with with clear glass walls and an amazing spiral staircase connecting the floors. Needless to say, we ended up spending basically our whole morning in the Apple store, checking out the "new" IPad (well, it was new to us), checking in on our facebooks and all-in-all just reconnecting with the real world. There were probably 100 other SAS-ers in the store too, clearly a popular destination.

After our Apple adventure we briefly walked a little further but shortly turned back around and headed back to the ship. When we boarded the ship we ate lunch on deck 6 aft outdoors and then I went downstairs with Dain to help him pack before his FDP. Of course, Dain being Dain hadn't started packing despite that we were leaving for Disneyland immediately upon his return, so while he left for his FDP I was left on the ship packing for him (thank god one of us is on top of things). Honestly, I didn't finish until shortly before he returned so after that I just stayed on the ship and relaxed for a little while. I would have loved to been adventuring in port, but alas, what could I do?

When Dain returned we went up to eat dinner on the ship and then grabbed our stuff and headed out to Disneyland! We were able to see the Hong Kong light show on the way out, which is basically a show put on in the skyline by all of the lights from the buildings, and then we were off! It took a series of 4 trains after getting off the ferry to make it there, in addition to a lot of rushing through streets that we had trouble navigating, but eventually we made it to Sunny Station, which was where we would board the exclusive purple train that traveling solely between that station and the Disneyland station. When the we got to the Disneyland track, the train was already there, and our jaws just dropped. The train had Mickey Ears for windows, and when we stepped on it was completely Disney-fied. Instead of regular train seats, there were red couches. Between couches were cases with Disney memorabilia and pictures of Walt. The handrails were Mickey-themed and the speakers were playing Disney songs! Both of us being Disney cast members, we were definitely missing the magic of Mickey and this was a great start to our trip!

When we got to the station, we were at first a little bit confused because the station is themed to be like a dim-lit park and it was unlike anything Disney we had seen before. But we made it up the ramp and saw the sign that said "Hong Kong Disneyland" and the grins across our faces couldn't have been brighter. We were here!!!!!! Hong Kong Disneyland isn't anything like the Walt Disney World Resort. Instead of being this whole world. Hong Kong is 2 resorts and 1 theme park - with nothing like a Downtown Disney or extra attractions. So we found our way to the bus line and waited for our ride to Disney's Hollywood Hotel. When our bus pulled up, it was Toy Story themed, as Hong Kong is home to Toy Story Land! We were so, so excited!

The bus first stopped at The Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel, the other (and more expensive) hotel on property, and then traveled to the Hollywood Hotel. We checked in and were walking to the elevator and not only do we pass "Chef Mickey's Restaurant" and I start jumping for joy but we see DONALD DUCK IN THE LOBBY!! I literally threw my bags down and ran like a child just absolutely ecstatic to see my long lost ducky! When it was our turn I hugged that poor duck so tight that I probably hurt his big belly! I whispered to him "Donald, you and I are friends in Florida" and Donald got SO excited! I was being a complete tourist, which is everything Semester at Sea is not about, but at that time I didn't give a damn. I saw my Donald for the first time in months and gosh was it amazing!!

After Donald, we made it to the elevator (which had Mickey ears for buttons) and went to our room. Our room was amazingly beautiful and the bathroom-provided amentities were given to us in a Mickey cup ANDDDDD THE SHAMPOO BOTTLES HAD MICKEY EARS FOR TOPS. Dain and I being the complete nerds we are were so freaking excited we couldn't take it. We dropped our bags and went to explore the resort.

We went into the gift shop where I pretty much started making a mental list of the things I would "need" to buy the next day, walked along the pool (which wasn't mickey shaped :( but did have the coolest entrance way ever which was just a waterfall you had to walk under [there was also a less cool "dry" entrance]), checked out the scenery display of 1930s California, took pictures in front of the "Hollywood Hotel" sign, went into the quick service place and got Mickey premium bars (!!!!) and Pooh-shaped Muffins (for Dain, obviously) and then used their computers to obviously and necessarily check-in to Hong Kong Disneyland on Facebook. After our adventures (which were a lot longer than the three sentences I made them out to be) we went upstairs to our room and watched Disney cartoons! They actually had three of each channel - one in Cantonese, one in Mandarin and one in English so it was perfect and so much fun!

We woke up super early the next morning so we could check out the other hotel before the park opened at 10am. The Hong Kong Disneyland hotel is basically the Hong Kong counterpart of The Grand Floridian and Grand Californian, and was no less gorgeous. The coolest thing was probably the giant hedge maze they had in the back of the resort! Extremely fun! We headed back to the Hollywood Hotel around 8:00am to meet our friend Kathryn who would be joining us for the rest of the trip, but we actually ended up finding her in the lobby of the Disneyland Hotel because she went to the wrong place! What great timing though since none of us had cell phones! We took her back to drop off her things and then got on the bus to the park. At the entrance, we met up with Grace and Sarah and went to go buy our tickets! Seeing Main Street from the line was making me so giggly but anxious, and the line moved way too slow for our liking, but eventually we made it in the park and were ready to go!

Long story short, Hong Kong Disneyland is the smallest of all Disney parks across the globe but to me that didn't make it any less magical and we still couldn't finish the entire park in a day. A lot of the attractions are similar or identical to a US counterpart, but there were still some unique ones. Here are some highlights:
-Main Street USA. Yes, its basically the same Main Street as Disneyland and Magic Kingdom, but walking down something USA themed in Hong Kong is pretty cool.
-Stitch's attraction which I forget the name of. It was basically and interactive thing like Turtle Talk with Crush, but what I loved about it was that they offered different languages at different times of day so we were able to see a show in English! And Sarah was picked to be Stitch's "girlfriend!"
-Flights of Fantasy Parade. This is a very similar parade to Disneyland's Soundsational and was just as breathtaking, with amazing floats and a great soundtrack. Donald's float even stopped right in front of us!
-The Golden Mickey's. "The Golden Mickey's" is a show that originated on Disney Cruise Line and has found a permanent home in Hong Kong. While the dialog was in Cantonese there were screens with English subtitles and the songs were in English. We loved it!
-It's A Small World. It's a lot different going on It's A Small World when you are in the midst of sailing around it. It really is that small. Plus, we all thought it was hysterical that in the cue line there was a pretty long spiel given in Chinese and then all they said in the English translation was "welcome to it's a small world," which was clearly nothing along the lines of what they said in their 2-minute Mandarin spiel.
-Toy Story Land. Toy Story Land doesn't exist in the US parks so this was a complete must do for us! We rode RC Racer, took a whole lot of pictures, got "American" food (NACHOS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THREE MONTHS = OMG ITS NOT GRILLED CHICKEN AND POTATOS ITS SO GOOD IM GONNA DIE).
-Our way out. On our way out we ran into another group of SASers that were at the park for the day and so we decided to all take a picture in front of Sleeping Beauty's castle. So Dain set up his juggernaut of a tripod and we all got together and started doing different poses, like Mickey ears, and jumping, and excited and so on. Basically, how this was memorable is because we ended up having our own paparazzi with at least 30-40 guests of Chinese origins taking pictures of us taking pictures! It was great!

After an amazing day at the park we went back to the hotel where I spent an ungodly amount of money buying stuff (I actually brought an empty duffle bag from the ship with me to fill with things I would inevitable buy and it still didn't all fit), and then went to bed to head to the airport in the morning.

I've been back on land for almost six months now, and I can honestly say that distance has simply made the heart grow fonder. I miss Semester at Sea more and more every single day.

For anyone who is going on Semester at Sea, who knows someone going on, or who has never heard of Semester at Sea at all...

Senase Village, Ghana changed my life. I got the experience to completely immerse myself in a world that I otherwise never would have been able to see, a third world country where first world norms like running water, toilets, and paved roads are non existent. I went to schools where walls did not exist and there were maybe a handful of pencils to go around for an entire class. 

Senase Village was an opportunity I had because I was a student on Semester at Sea. However, this experience wasn’t given to me by the insitution itself, but rather an amazing group of Senase villagers who opened their hearts and their homes to these foreign students. There have only been three groups of SAS students to visit Senase, but I guarantee that each and every student will say it was the most life-changing experience they have ever had.

The reason I am writing this post isn’t to try to summarize my experience in Senase (though I’m pretty sure that could never be done anyway), but rather to share this opportunity with anyone willing to read. Can Do Land Tours, the operating team of the Senase Homestay, among other student-oriented trips in Ghana, has been banned from the upcoming Semester at Sea voyages facebook groups (which have been its main source of self-promotion and registrations), and it’s founders fear that their programs with SAS students will no longer be able to run. Students promoting Senase and Can Do are being rejected entrance into the group and this lack of crucial space has created a major road black. I am reaching out the best way I know how, in the public web, to urge you to keep Senase in mind. If you yourself are going on Semester at Sea, fight for Senase. If you know anyone that’s going, tell them about Senase and to get themselves registered. If you have never even heard of Semester at Sea, I’m sure someone you know has and somewhere you can find a future student.

Here are some helpful links:

http://www.thesenaseproject.org/ <- To me, this may be the most important reason to fight for Can Do Land Tours. The first group of SAS students established a fully functioning NGO non-profit organization after their time in the village. Senase influenced them so much that somehow, someway, they were able to fully establish themselves from the middle of the ocean before their semester even ended. So far, they have built a brand new school and are working towards more aid to the community.

http://disneyalisaatsea.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html <- These are my blog entries relating to my experience in Ghana. Though they can’t in the slightest express how much Ghana changed my life, they can do more than this brief plea can.

Here is the facebook page for Can Do Land Tours, the company that runs trips in Ghana, including Senase Village. Join this page to support Can Do.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/CAN-DO-LAND-TOURS/104874722889866

Next, the link for the website of Can Do Land Tours, showing some of their hopeful offerings for the future. http://candotours.webs.com/

Lastly, here is a link to the head of Can Do Land Tours, Fred. Fred is a local of Senase and is a truly amazing person. If you are interested in a trip to Senase, please friend request Fred and send him a message. He has asked all of us to help him continue these trips, and he is a wonderful human being who loves Semester at Sea and it’s students. Fred is a true inspiration and will do anything he can to make these trips happen. You don’t need a big group of people to save this experience, we just need one person at a time. http://www.facebook.com/fredrick.benneh

Senase is inspiring, and it can’t be forgotten. Ghana has a place in my heart that no where else will ever come near. Some of my peers on the voyage didn’t think highly of Ghana, and instead prefered most of the other ports. For me, nothing will ever stand out the way Ghana did. Friends of mine expressed that their biggest regrets on SAS was not experiencing something like Senase. For me, not a single day, hell, not even a single hour, has gone by where I haven’t thought about this village. Semester at Sea is meant to be a life-changing, culturally enriching experience. And the trips that Can Do Land Tours provided are truly the definition of these goals. This village opened my heart to a whole new world and I will never be the same person. It kills me to see this program reaching its possible end. Senase needs us. Please share this message with anyone you might know. All we need is a chain reaction. Fred is heartbroken in facing this wall, but he is hopeful that we can all overcome it.

Thank you.

This is my favorite picture from Semester at Sea. I hadn’t showered for four days and I thought the dirt on my legs might never go away, but none of that mattered. I was surrounded by the kindest, most friendly, happiest people I had ever met. Looking at this picture brings back a mixture of tears and smiles. My time in Ghana has inspired me to devote myself to change. This is an experience that can never be duplicated. So one last time,I ask you to please share this message and help future voyagers experience what I got to.

Homecoming

So I may have skipped a few ports, but before I go back and finish, I think it's a good time to write a bit of a reflection. I am in Massachusetts, having debarked in San Diego where only one week ago my 8 best friends and I were standing on deck 7 holding a giant sign for our parents as we sailed into shore for the last time. Truthfully, that week feels like an eternity, a world apart from where I am right now. I have traveled 25117 nautical miles (or 28,904 standard miles) from the Bahamas to San Diego. I've traveled across 4 continents and 3 oceans. I've seen and done things most people could never even imagine. And now, I have to learn to cope with it all.

I loved being on the Explorer with my best friends, living in this world where most technologies didn't exist and we were forced to involve ourselves in the now. I loved living in a place where we all understood how our lives and our world was changing, we found it ourselves to recognize this world and develop ourselves from it. We took with us a spirit of community that can never be paralleled by any experience, ever. We lived in a community where we lived, learned and traveled together; a community of 700 that went through what no one else could ever go through, and we did it together. Students, staff, faculty, lifelong learners, children and crew...this was a journey that changed us all and forever bonded us all.  But I was one of the lucky ones, ready to go home. I was ready to graduate from college, and begin my life in Florida. I was ready for some normalcy. I was ready to not loose an hour every other day. And though my transition from home may seem easier than some of my peers, who depression has hit with a boom, I still didn't anticipate the new me in the old world.

Things have changed. I have changed. But here hasn't. I can already hear the people around me becoming sick of me talking about Semester at Sea, but the truth is, my life has been impacted so much by it that I see this voyage in everything I do. When I make a comment about throwing out a pad of paper, it isn't meant to be a joke. I envision that school in Senase where there was 1 pencil for every 2-3 students, and there wasn't a single notebook to be seen. Saying that people in Ghana need that pad of paper you are throwing out isn't a joke, it is a reality, a reality I have seen and the people at home haven't.

I hear an entire bar scream at a TV about how bad the Red Sox are currently playing, and start to wonder why then, are 35,000 people buying tickets to each and every game and why is everyone around me wearing head to toe team apparel? I hear people chanting about how people should stop supporting the team so the establishment gets a hint, but they themselves wont do it. Instead of spending time, energy and money on an amusement you aren't even enjoying, why can't that drive be focused elsewhere? But that's the American way, and they don't realize the things that I do. They support an industry that spends billions on men hitting balls and running bases when instead they could literally re-build an entire South African township. But my explanation won't do anything justice. They don't know what I do and they don't feel the same things that I do. I am no longer an unknowing American. Though I am far from an experienced world citizen, I truly hope to continue seeing and experiencing more of it and hopefully one day become one.

So here I am, home. Calling Massachusetts home sounds strange to me now. I consider myself more Floridian than Bostonian, but I also consider myself a sailor. For a place that I spent 21 years in, it's funny how 2 can change it all.

Pretty soon, I'll be walking across the Salem State graduation stage, packing my bags, and heading back to Florida. I'm not sure what life in the future holds for me, but I've learned to accept life without a plan. Before this voyage, I wanted to be a college professor, and I really believed that was my definite path. Now I find that I am lacking a desire to commit myself to a lifetime of work in a place where the majority of my students will come from a background where they think college is the norm and will probably take it for granted, students like me 4 years ago. Of course, there are exceptions to these, and this is in no way meant to generalize anyone, but I find I now have a desire to do more. I don't exactly know where this will take me, but I want to make a difference. I want to make our world more unified, more equal, more understanding.


Thank you, Semester at Sea. Thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for being the biggest change of my entire life. Thank you for making me a better person. Thank you for being the sole best thing I could ever have done for myself and for this world. It may have been, literally, rocky at times, but it was the most enriching 3.5 months anyone could ever have.  I am excited to see what the future holds, but SAS will forever be in my heart.

I said before that I was one of the lucky ones that was ready to return home. Truthfully, I was. While some people find themselves in a state of post-SAS depression, I find myself in a period of reflection, thankfulness and fulfillment. I will forever miss Semester at Sea, and I am that the moments of closing my eyes and trying to bring myself back to the MV will never end, but I am ready to set myself down in one place and set more of my life in motion. Semester at Sea has inspired me, and I am ready to use that inspiration for good. So here's to you, Semester at Sea, you life changing, awe-inspiring, motivating, thrilling, whirl wind adventure. I am so proud to be able to call myself an alum.
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I miss the freedom that came along without cellphones and facebook. Though I have no idea what happened in the world in the last four months, didn't know a single song on the radio, and am still trying to figure out some of my new friends last names, the escape from the world was such a gift. We couldn't text our way out of anything, we couldn't sit at the table and completely ignore our current surroundings for the latest app, we had to be in the now, we had to solve things without the internet, we had to hunt down and seek out situations. Our world was limited, but we were free. We lived in a world that our generation will never experience, and it was heaven. Semester at Sea Spring 2012.

Vietnam - Random Stuff

*Crossing the street. Crossing the street was quite possibly the
scariest set of experiences on this voyage so far. Street lights don't
really exist in Vietnam. In fact, pedestrians having the right of way
when crossing doesn't exist either. Though there are few cars in
Vietnam, there are thousands upon thousands upon thousands of motorized
bikes that I am not sure what to call since I just don't remember the
actual name. Basically, these cars/bikes drive super fast, take turns
widely, and don't stop for pedestrians. Since there are no stoplights,
there isn't a change to cross freely and we were literally told in
preport just to start walking. The most important thing, we were told,
was to keep a common pace and just keep going. A lot easier said than
done, right? Petrified, I noticed I was completely horrible at just
going and ended up just grabbing the person closest to me at any time
and closing my eyes while trusting them not to make me killed. My heart
raced still with each time I crossed, and I have never been more
thankful for Boston, or even New York City, traffic. At least I won't be
expected to just walk and hope that the cars decide to go around me
rather than into me. If anyone reading this is ever in Vietnam, just
cross the street as little as possible. I realize its inevitable not to
cross at all, but try your best, or at least find less crowded streets
to cross even if it requires a bit more walking. 20 people die crossing
the street every day in Vietnam. Holy shit.
*Dangerous. Vietnam was the most dangerous port that we went were
traveling to. During pre-port, we were of course told this, but since
we've been to "take care of ourselves and each other" in every pre-port
except for Singapore (where we were told to drink all the tap water we
get our hands on), so I think a lot of people neglected to believe the
severity they tried to instil. I'll admit that I didn't take it much
more seriously than any other port, but thankfully I tend to be more
cautious that a lot of other people just by nature. Anyway, long story
short, more people had run ins with guns, robbery and violence than in
all of the previous ports combined. More students than I can count got
locked in taxis until they gave up their possessions, a few others got
held up at gunpoint, more were drugged, and 2 others had very serious
accidents that for one ended, and for one greatly affected, their roles
with Semester at Sea. I won't tell any of these stories in detail since
they aren't my own, but this is the primary reason my friends and I
decided not to go out to any popular bars or clubs at night and even
stayed on the ship for the last night in port. It really wasn't worth
the risk.
*Gluten Free. And now, for a happy note on Vietnam. My tour guide had it
right when he told me Vietnam doesn't have wheat. This is the first port
where I didn't have to eat nothing but protein bars for days on end. I
got to eat almost all the same food as everyone else! I got to
experience the national dish, I didn't have to question ingredients or
cross-contamination anywhere. In fact, the only place that I even saw
wheat was at Subway. Everything is rice based and it was literally a
gluten free heaven. It felt so nice to not have to worry about hidden
gluten, like malt in my smoothies or cross-contamination. It felt even
nicer to be eating the same meals as all of my friends. Delicious is
quite an understatement. Vietnam may not even know what gluten is, but
as it doesn't even exist, that doesn't really make a difference. Though
Disney might be a gluten free heaven in America, I think Vietnam has it
beat as an international destination.
*Ho Chi Minh. His picture is literally everywhere. I expected to see
this in regards to Mao in China, but it was a bit more unusual (though
not entirely surprising) in Vietnam. When we went to the school for the
disabled, Ho's picture was plastered above the degrees of the teachers.
His face is on tees everywhere and his portrait is somewhere in ever
government entity. It is very strange how communism often sees to be
such a cult.
*Weddings. The United States doesn't recognize marriages performed in
Vietnam (or at least that's the MV community has been taught to know),
so therefore it should be no surprise that SAS students desired to make
a complete mockery of the Vietnamese institution of marriage and just
"marry" random people. There are quite a few couples now married in
Vietnam on this ship, and more than once we were invited to a "wedding."
Though I think it would have been fun, my negative attitudes towards it
definitely outweigh the fun value. Random people were getting married to
people they have known for 2 months, just because they think it would be
fun. For the Vietnamese, marriage ceremonies aren't just a joke, and it
made me pretty resentful to see students, who are supposed to be
learning about other people, having a wedding simply for satiric comedy
and entertainment. After we left Vietnam, I was proud to answer no when
people asked Dain and I if we were "one of the couples to be married in
Vietnam." This real couple has actually learned something from the SAS
experience.
*Prices. Vietnam is SO cheap. DVDs were 50cents, shirts were like $3-5,
full meals were less than $2 and magnets were about 10cents. So I got to
eat and buy everything, and spend less than any port before it. Works
for me.

Overall, Vietnam was a lot more than I expected. Ho Chi Minh was a
modern city and the consumerist in me definitely had a field week. It
was a really nice experience, and the food was just amazing, though I
can't pretend it also wasn't the scariest. I was happy with my time in
Vietnam, but ready to head to China.