October 10, 2010



Glazer Lounge at the bow of the ship



It is the evening of October 10, 2010, and the seas are rougher than they have ever been during the trip, but we’re just cutting through the waves at 29 knots with only an occasional bump. (Those on the bow end on the 2nd deck, however, really feel the rise and fall of the ship!) The wind is so fast that all doors are locked! No one is to be outside on the decks, including the smokers. Our cabin is located in the middle of the 4th deck and the splashes are going right by our window! I just noticed lightning and decided to check it out by going up to the bow on the seventh deck, Glazer Lounge, which has windows all around. The lightning was spectacular and the waves were breaking over the 7th deck!

Earlier today was beautiful, warm and inviting unlike the week before South Africa when the sun never broke through the clouds and we had to wear sweats to stay warm. Today we had breakfast and lunch on the deck watching the whales cavort! We left Cape Town Friday night and traveled east along the coast of Africa along with several tankers all day yesterday and today. Now we are heading out to sea to go past Madagascar to Mauritius.

The meals in the dining rooms are usually quite good, at least, the vegetarian options are appealing. Tonight, for instance, egg drop soup and curried chickpeas and rice were served. What I really miss, however, are greens!! Thank goodness lots of other vegetables are served.

The night after next we are doing a special dinner with Louise and Frank to celebrate their anniversary. Just $25 per person includes Champaign, gorgeous appetizers and steak or fish option along with salad or soup and dessert. And then there’s the Captain’s dinner. All life-long learners and staff are invited at least once to a fancy dinner with the Captain. We had our opportunity a couple of weeks ago, got dressed up and were seated at his table thanks to my friend, Louise, who volunteers in the office and did the seating arrangements. The Captain is from Dubrovnik and when we shared that we thought that city was magical, he was so pleased.

Tomorrow night we are celebrating six birthdays (Jack, Whitney, Suzanne, Kate, Sally, Arch and Leah) that fall between October 7 and 15th, with Jack and Ann Clough and our extended families. We have ordered a Mexican dinner and ice cream cake for 17 since we have 10 extended family members between us. We invited Arch and Leah Tutu, whose birthdays are October 7 and14th, to share cake with their grandchildren. Since they consider Paul their son, or Paul considers them his Mom and Dad, our shipboard family considers them their grandparents! (They did come!)




Our extended family and the Tutu's



The cake part of the party was held in Sally Stemmons larger stateroom with large balcony which is across from the Tutu’s stateroom. Sally’s birthday was the same as Arch’s, October 7th, and he had invited her to the birthday celebration he and Leah gaver on the ship when we were in Cape Town. Sally holds an open house for Life-long learners at 5:00 each time we leave a port. We all bring wine and eats but and share stories.

One of these days soon, I’ll get more info about each of our sons and daughters and tell you about them. Right now, I can say they are really good kids, the kind who study, go to class, and take this trip seriously and offer enthusiastic “thank you’s” for anything we do.

Lots continues to go on the ship. Yesterday, one of the chefs gave a demonstration on decorating with fruits and vegetables.

I’m reading about India’s history because my Asian Art teacher said one must not visit India without studying its history. Paul has offered to help with the 12 or so “rascals” on the ship who are doing their best to ruin the reputation of the SAS program when we are in port. One kid has been kicked off for drug use. One of the professors’s had a detached retina as we pulled into Cape Town. Luckily we were there because immediate attention is imperative with that situation. Someone on the ship called a friend in Cape Town and he had laser surgery within hours of our arrival and returns to the ship in Maurituis in five days. A life-long learner fell off a bike in wine country and has a chip in her elbow. She is not certain at this point where to go have her surgery. And a student’s father died today. She had just been home while we were in Ghana to say good bye, but it is hard for her. Her extended family, Jim and Deena Behnke from Incline Village, were asked to tell her. They’ll be very supportive for her.

Speaking of Jim and Deena and Jack and Ann, we all went to a fancy place for dinner while in Cape Town which was fabulous. Paul had ostrich! I’ll have to get the photos of the food from Deena. A funny thing kept happening while we were in Cape Town. We would each go our separate ways, but bump into one another! That happened over and again and again. Paul and I sat down to dinner, ordered and saw Ann and Jack being seated across the patio. Another time we walked over to get coffee and ran into Louise and Frank and Ann and Jack. Then here comes Jim and Deena! Now we bumped into other people we knew, but not quite as regularly as these friends. When our trip to Robben Island was canceled for the second time due to wind and rain, we bumped into Louise at the coffee shop. Paul gladly returned to the ship and Louise and I spent about three hours just walking, mostly indoors, and looking at stuff. I don’t recall that we purchased anything but we sure had fun. She and I like so many of the same things. She lives in Colorado Springs and enjoys designing and machine quilting wall hanging, purses and other items.



October Birthdays



Louise and Ann in Cape Town

Cape Town, South Africa Continued

The internet was so slow when posting the Cape Town blog that I was unable to add any photos.  So I will try now, before the students come aboard in a couple of hours.  enjoy!!

Arch, our shipboard daughter, Jules, and Paul at the Tutu's home

The fog rolling down Table Mountain like a table cloth!

Made it to the top of this world!

Cape Town,South Africa

Cape Town has a truly lovely port - clean, gorgeous mountains, and lots of shopping places including a very high end mall where you  can get a great coat designed by a local woman for 5000R!  That's about $750 - somewhat over my budget and who needs it?  Or a Gucci purse or a $10 T shirt, but not a common turtle neck or  sweater.  Many of us have decided we need some warmer clothes and today proved that!  IT was windy and cold (about 50 degrees) and cloudy and our Robben Island trip was canceled for the second time. So Paul went back to the ship to entertain the troops and I went shopping with Louise, my new friend.

On Monday, after arriving, we were invited to a private lunch for a small group at Desmond Tutu's home in Capetown!!!!!! Can you believe that? This wonderful man is greatly impacting my life! And it almost makes me cry to think he included us! We're asked not to tell anyone, but we can tell you since you are not going to share it with any of our shipmates!!

But before we get to that great day, I want to share another wonderful adventure with you. I climbed to the top of Lion's Head Mountain (3000 feet) for a sunset picnic! The climb was more rigorous that I expected and I was really glad Paul decided not to go. We actually had to pull ourselves up with chains at two parts near the top. But I climbed better there than when we were in the Grand Canyon trip about 4 or 5 years ago. That’s lunges and lots of steps on the ship for you! I did have to get up during the night twice to take EmergenC and Traumel however.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu has many God-given gifts. Just one of them is making people feel special and pulling everyone into his circle. Paul and I were so very honored to be among the 32 guests that he and Leah invited to lunch in their home in Cape Town today. The other guests included 6 students, 7 of the dining room crew, 4 professors and their spouses, 2 SAS staff members, 6 life- long learners and Ryder, the 4 year old son of a professor who has spent more than half of his life on this ship and enjoys a special relationship with the Arch.

The Tutu’s home is modest and loaded with family photos and those of a few special occasions and African art of various media. Leah is a wonderful hostess just like Arch portrays her in his books. She loves to entertain. Even when they were a young couple with small teacher salaries, she could always find a way to share a meal with friends.

Arch introduced Paul to his son-in-law as his son from a previous marriage! The two of them just keep this ruse going ever since Paul called him “Daddy” back when the voyage began in late August. Leah said Arch was in the dog house because he was late coming from his office and he was supposed to pick up the drinks on the way home!

We were served Guava juice, South African wines and beer, and a delicious repast of African foods with lots of turmeric, onions and peppers. His birthday is Thursday, so the students presented gifts they had made – a painting, earrings and a necklace of turquoise stones, braided bracelets, and a student autographed SAS t-shirt. Rocky, a fantastic Environmental Scientist and Ryder’s father wowed us with a magic trick that reflected his deep spirituality and concern for the future of society.

After singing “Happy Birthday” which was led by Paul, we boarded the bus and proceeded to Arch’s office which is in an industrial office complex. When we passed the women next door, he introduced, “This is my harem.” He introduced everyone by name and their admiration was obvious. The two rooms of the office contained many of his awards, but not the Nobel Peace Prize. “I don’t know where it is!” Leah put it away and could not remember where she put it. Then someone broke into their house in Soweto some time ago, found it and stole it. But they were fools. They went to a bar and placed it on the bar. The bartender noticed and they were arrested and the Prize returned. But, alas, neither can remember where it is!! Arch says there are three requirements to win a Nobel Peace Prize.

1. You must have an easy name

2. You must have a big nose

3. You must have sexy legs!

He told us about another part of his work – building a college scholarship fund so students can put their knowledge to work to help their country grow to prosperity with health care and jobs for everyone. We learned just last night of another one of his missions – a foundation which feeds street children. As we were boarding the bus to return to the ship, many people from the other businesses around his office came out to greet him. Some even blew that raucous horn used in the world cup. He is a “Rock Star” in South Africa!

South Africa is a complicated place in contrast to Ghana.  Here land along the Atlantic Ocean is resort and high-end home oriented. But just outside the city, the poor live in squalor in tin-roofed squashed boxes of the townships (ghettos) with all the problems associated with poverty and too little of life’s necessities. Many of the older townships started in 1920 to get the blacks out of the city have no plumbing or electricity. There are no trees. They were cut down long ago by the Dutch settlers. When we were in a school in one of the townships yesterday, we saw a child’s paper on the wall stating he had never been to Cape Town (just 20-30 minutes away) because he had no money to go. The middle class is non-existent. Unemployment is 24%. Education is not very good because the black teachers are not well trained. Apartheid was officially ended in 1994, but the affects live on and will for many more generations. The fiery young leader of the ANC Youth League is calling for nationalizing the mines of mineral resources. Corruption exists everywhere. Seems like lots of potential for trouble. And yet, there is so much potential for this country to be the leader of Africa. Before, during and after Apartheid to this day, there are three basic classifications of people in South Africa. They are the affluent whites, the colored - mixed races (white and black) and the blacks who traditionally have been totally oppressed and impoverished.

It is Paul’s time to say a few words. Yesterday, Suzanne and I went on a service tour of the Amy Biehl Foundation. Some of you might remember her story. It was a TV special a few years ago. Amy was an attractive Stanford graduate, a Fulbright Scholar, whose passion took her to South Africa to fight against apartheid and help the impoverished blacks. She worked on voter education and registration in advancement of South Africa’s first election after apartheid’s end. The day before she was due to return home to California, she drove some friends home to an extremely poor black township outside of Cape Town where seven boys had just been murdered by the police – shot in the back. Neither Amy nor her black friends knew about the protest march that was taking place there that day. An angry and violent mob spotted a white woman, pulled her from the car and stoned her to death.

The four men who committed this crime were brought to trial and sentenced to 18 years. A couple of years later, during the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, Amy’s parents came from California to ask for amnesty for these young men. The Beihl’s and the murderers shared their stories. The appeal was granted. Two of the men are now working for the Amy Biehl Foundation. Her parents, Peter (now deceased) and Linda, established the Amy Biehl Foundation to continue Amy’s work. They have been highly supportive of groups concerned with the lasting effects of apartheid and the continuing racial discrimination of today.

We toured these townships in the afternoon. Most of the people are living in shacks with no electricity nor running water. Yet they were so excited to see our bus driving through their neighborhoods and waving to us. We visited three primary schools in various townships and were entertained by the staff and children who were so excited to see us. We sang and danced in a large circle and for some reason the kids enjoyed my crazy dancing etc. Of course, they hadn’t seen the wonderful dancing steps of a man in 60’s doing the twist etc. They are learning English in the 4th grade, music theory and practice, the Youth Reading and Role Models program where the 7th graders read to 1st graders. At the Buthisizwe Training Center, students get instruction on block making, sewing, aluminum widow-frame making. They have a sports club with soccer and golf. The Foundation provides these children and youth the opportunity for constructive and safe activities after school. As you imagine, this entire day devoted to the children was exhilarated and emotionally charged. We left feeling so happy to bring joy to them but so so sad for the poverty and racial injustice they continue to experience. This has to surprise some of you as Paul is being serious for a change. Ha

Unfortunately, it is taking 30 minutes to download one photo, so I will send this one with out photos.  It is 1:00 am and the students are mostly off the ship getting drunk!  But I still can't make this work tonight so later.  I will resend the whole thing with photos, but wanted you to know we're working in this.  Future blogs will include info about what the good  kids are doing and some of the new friends we have been blessed to meet aboard the4 MV Explorer!

We’re Emerald Shellbackers!!

We’re Emerald Shellbackers!!

Paul and I were initiated into the Shellbackers club today. The only requirement is that we cross the Equator. Well, not only did we cross the Equator, we crossed the Prime Meridian at the same time – the nautical center of the surface of the globe! 00 Latitude x 000 Longitude – at 12:31!!  The exact center of the earth!

Louise and Frank mark the Center of the Earth
and become Shellbackers!

That means we went from the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere and traveled back east toward the coast of Africa. The Captain agreed to go 20 nautical miles out of course in order to enjoy a moment few ever experience. There were no flags or lines marking the spot which some of the children expected. But the ship blew the horns loudly and we all yelled with excitement.

We’re now on our way to South Africa. But before we get there, we’ll have dinner with our ship family of 4 girls and 2 boys, go to classes, read, eat and work on the Ghana blogs and photos and take part in Neptune Day. We’re both doing some exercising, but it is challenging on a rolling ship. I had to hold on to a railing today to do balance and warrior positions! We’re always going up and down stairs which is excellent for the legs and rear end! Yesterday many of the decks were off limits due to the high winds! Some have seen huge sharks of the side of the ship – wish I had been one of them! Life aboard is so busy. We don’t bother doing much of the reading for our classes due to time limits. And we’re going to lose an hour of sleep tonight with a time change!

But I’m not complaining! I don't really wish I was there, I have to admit. Today is Neptune Day and a reading day (kind of a free day for us LLL’s while the students study for an exam.)  Most of us had no idea what to expect. “Just wear a bathing suit and t shirt and flip flops,” we were told. Those who knew what to expect, staff and repeat LLL’s, were not talking. Let the fun begin!!!  But before the fun began, several crew members dressed up and walked the halls about 8:00 waking everyone up with drumming and clashing of symbols.

The Court ascends noisily to the Pool Deck 7

Those of us who were pollywogs, newly crossed the Equator but not yet initiated into Shellbackers, gathered on the pool deck. Then the Shellbackers led by the King, Queen, court jester, court tax collector etc. paraded from one end of the ship to the other dressed in court regalia and painted faces to the pool side. We pollywogs begged to be allowed to cross through the King and Queen's territory. They finally agreed after a series of silly questions and the fun began in earnest!

Several of the students lined up to have their heads shaved and donated the hair. What an amazing group of people!!!

The lines formed for the traditional dunking in fishy water. First we had fishy water poured over us and then we jumped into the pool! After getting out, we had to kiss a huge fish, and the "royalty rings" of the King and Queen and bow down to them. All in good fun! Most of the students did this and many of us LLL's.



Louisa and I are initiated as real shellbackers with fishy water!

  Paul couldn’t see much from the back of the crowd so he went to check out sports news and missed out on that part though. Too bad because he would have made a spectacle of himself and had everyone laughing. He is taking his comedy course seriously.

By the way, Desmond Tutu and Leah were also holding court poolside! He even had his head shaved!! The photo was taken before he submitted to the shaving!!




The Tutu's and Karen watch the party

 I am singing in the choral group in order to greater appreciate the work of the St. Louis Chamber Chorus. We are going stand and sing the South African national anthem at the pre-port lecture just before arriving in Cape Town. The Tutu's have been asked to help us with the pronunciation since the anthem is in three other South African languages besides English. Don't mention this in emails to us because it is a surprise to the ship community and Paul does not know about it. You know how well he keeps secrets! NOT! I recommend that you all go out and rent "Invictus" this week and watch it so that you know more about South Africa. They sing the National Anthem in that movie too.
b

Brett , Rocky and Ryder cross the equator and meridian

The Archbishop’s Award

The Archbishop’s Award


Archbishop Tutu was awarded the 2010 African Lifetime Achievement Award from the Millennium Excellence Awards Foundation while the ship was in Ghana. I already described the how we were all welcomed warmly by the people of Ghana, so you can imagine the reception the Tutu’s received! He is treated like a rock star all over the world and especially in Africa.

The following is the description of the two days given to us this evening with slides by Dean David – a guy with a great sense of humor who always has his audience laughing.

Five students were chosen by lottery to attend the two day event at the Bishop’s request. The contingency flew to Kamasi early one morning – about a two hour flight I suppose in a prop plane. They were motorcade from airport to the first site and on to the palace and back to the airport during the first long day.

At every entrance and exit and during each event there was dancing and drumming. Dean David reported the entire two days were filled with energy and joy. At the palace a “durbar” (celebratory ceremony) was attended by 1000 people and 20 chiefs all in full colorful regalia. Naturally many dignitaries attended including the owner of the soccer team that beat the US in the World Cup. The days were full of dancing, drumming, joy, amazing energy and color. Even the colorful sun umbrellas danced with the people. What a picture – I’ll try to get a copy to send to you all.

Next they were off to the Palace. Arrival of the throne (a stool) occurred first. In the Ashanti tribe, the power is in the stool (throne), not the king. The Ashanti tribe is the dominant tribe in the middle of the country. Gifts of schnapps and kente cloths for both Tutus were presented. The Tutu’s were wrapped in these clothes which are the size of bedspreads and hand woven in many bright colors.

The group finally retired to the hotel for the night and flew to Accra, the Capitol of Ghana, the next morning. More dancing and drumming. And off to the castle, which is the seat of the government, to meet the Vice-President of Ghana. The President was in China on official business. Then on to the AngloGoldAshanti Corporation who sponsored the entire trip. This corporation puts money into malaria control and education. As a result of their efforts, malaria has almost been eradicated in the areas of the gold mines. Ghana is the hotbed of the world for malaria.

When the Tutu’s arrived back at the ship, I was just leaving. Leah looked so lovely in her finest and the Archbishop was all decked out in a suit with the awards wrapped around him and I was there without a camera!!! Oh, well. He gave me a hug as he passed by! That’s even better than a photo!

Drumming and Dancing in Ghana

Drumming and Dancing in Ghana


The absolute most fun I had in Ghana was attending an all day drumming and dancing workshop with other SAS students and LLL’s. The performers were all delightful, gracious and helpful when teaching us some basics. We learned that children in villages who do not or cannot go to school become dancers or drummers even though the tradition is slowly dying. That is most unfortunate. That may be due to the building of new schools and/or the natural development of the country and its inhabitants. I was surprised to learn they have drumming and dancing competitions around the country. Those must be exciting to watch! We learned through a question and answer session near the end of the day that the performers we saw had other jobs besides dancing or drumming. Some made and sold beads, some sold tiger nuts or other produce, and some made and repaired drums. Most were married.

I have always enjoyed the sounds of African drumming. Several different size drums along with a few other hand made crude instruments called bells make their music. Actually, it is the basis of all music. Africa is where humanity began. The drumming became more intense and the dancing started! It was exhilarating! One could easily imagine being in the jungle centuries or just years ago watching these performers communicate their tales. I thought of my mother and what she would say – she would not appreciate this dancing unfortunately, but I welcomed her presence anyway.



During the day, the dancers performed seven dances from Ghana, Kenya, Jamaika, Guinnea, Senegal, and North of Ghana, but my favorite was the fastest, most vigorous shaking dance from Zambia. If you watched “So you Think You Can Dance,” you might have seen last Spring’s winner, Lauren, do this dance in a blue and white feathered costume. Lauren was fabulous and so were our performers. At times some of the students were brought in to drum or dance with the professionals.



We were divided into two groups which took turns between the dancing and drumming lessons. They taught us five dance steps and three drum beats. Then we took turns dancing and drumming for each other. We even danced individually in the circle too. It was so invigorating! We all came home(to the ship) with great enthusiasm for our day of dancing and drumming and a little bit of Africa.

Kakum National Park - Ghana September 25, 2010 by Paul

Kakum National Park - Ghana September 25, 2010 by Paul


Suzanne will write you all and share some of our unique experiences in Ghana. However, I thought you would enjoy my unique experience on the canopy tour of the Kakum National Park and Rainforest. We first had to walk up a steep hill of very uneven ‘sort-of-flat rocks’– approximately 350 kilometers to get to the canopy walk over the tops of extremely tall trees. We stopped once to catch our breath. It started to rain slightly and I remembered we had left our ponchos on the tour bus. When we reached the canopy the rain was coming down really hard. Well, it is a rainforest after all. I was wearing this large tan sun hat that Suzanne ordered from a travel catalog and makes me look like a YOKO! Others, however and Suzanne, say it looks so nice. I think they are humoring me. Anyway, the brim is so large it kept the rain off my bald head and glasses. This canopy walk is approximately 350 meters long which is broken up into 7 bridges of 35 to 50 yards long. They hang over 100-200 meters above the forest floor. Each bridge was composed of several 10’x1’ boards end to end which were encased by ropes and cables chest high on both sides to grasp while crossing.

The swinging walkway

I stood up on the platform ready to resume the challenging walk. When I put my left foot forward on the wood walkway it swung to the left. Then right foot forward - swing to the right. They warned everyone not to look down as it would spook you and you don’t need to have a panic attack at that time. Ha! So here I go. Swing to the left –swing to the right –swing to the left –swing to the right –then the person behind me got on which adds to the swinging. Here I am focusing on walking with all this swinging going on – raining like Hades- totally soaked to my bones (except my head – at least I could see thanks to that darn hat!)- praying my inner dam wouldn’t break due to my recent intestinal problems(I’m sure the person behind me felt the same even though they didn’t know about my problem)– my poncho on the bus was totally dry- I’m trying not to look down- hoping a African snake would not fall on my head from the trees – and now I started to laugh and think “Why did I go half way around the world for THIS?”

More swinging to left then to the right back to the left and then back to the right- my right forearm was starting to hurt because I was rubbing it against the side of the bridge cable while pulling myself across this swinging bridge. I finally see the wooden platform in front of me about 30 more feet. At last, the platform and stability– my heart is racing – my dam didn’t break- I take a deep breath – six more swinging bridges to go! Now I would appreciate it if ALL you all who are reading this STOP laughing. It sure wasn’t funny at the time. Anyway, with the help of the man upstairs I finally completed the canopy walk and was ready to descend to ground level. I forgot to tell you that I think the man who made the stone walkway was drunk as the stones were not level –jagged-sideways etc. The path is now muddy and slick and downhill! There were a few hand rails to grasp, but not many as I take one step at a time. I was being very careful not to turn my ankle and fall down. Still thanking the man above for my dam not to break and taking one step at a time. I’m stepping over tree roots, poisonous snakes, crocodiles, monkeys jumping all over, and I finally reach the bottom. Shocking to everyone – I yelled loudly “Halleluiah” with my arms rose to the skies as everyone heard me and had the audacity to laugh at me. I got on the bus and now understand why they put a plastic covering over the seats as we all were soaked to our bones and muddy. Suzanne’s white pants were generously sprinkled with mud dots. Maybe that will be a new design! The bus took us to lunch at the Botel Restaurant for an authentic Ghanaian lunch. This lovely outdoor dining facility had a bar – another “Halleluiah” and was built on a small lake that housed ‘friendly crocodiles’ which coming crawling like ducks when fed bread by the guests.




Suzanne, Ann and Pat at end of the trail!


Then we were off to our resort for the evening. Most of the roads we traveled were paved, but one from the Midwest would think they had lots of ice and snow storms and had not yet repaired the potholes! We must have hit every pothole possible which splashed muddy red water on everything in sight. My inner dam could break any moment. We arrived at the Coconut Grove Beach Resort – very nice, normal toilets that worked – “Halleluiah” again. These were not the type of toilets we had been trained about in the pre-port talk. I am ready for a stiff drink and nap. Ha Ha! I survived – Yea – Yea ! The resort was really lovely, by the sea, outdoor dining, pool, sandy beach and coconut palms (well we are almost on the equator. The vendors of Ghanaian clothes, jewelry, drums, masks and other crafts arrived within minutes of our arrival and set upon the beach wall right in front of the bar and dining facility. They are ubiquitous! They know how to follow the money!

On a serious note-the extreme poverty was very striking – children begging – families living in destitution. Yet the Ghanaians are so friendly and very excited to talk to us and be helpful. Yes, I’m sure they want our money but a country that takes great pride in their soccer. They like to remind us that they beat us in the World Cup this year. They always ask where we live in the U.S. President Obama recently visited the country with his family which obviously meant a great deal to them. He is seen with the President of Ghana on billboards, fabrics and other items. Here we are sitting in this beautiful resort and golf course enjoying the beauty and yet see poverty all around us. Suzanne and I felt guilty that we have so much and others in this world so little – it is just not fair.