Fun fact about me, I ALWAYS grossly overpack. For example, I will go away for a weekend and bring about five different outfits for each day because who knows what I’ll feel like wearing? So for me, the biggest challenge prepping for this trip is the packing.

Before I go over packing requirements, let me introduce my program: Semester at Sea.

Semester at Sea is a program based out of Colorado State University and accepts students from all over the US and international as well. The program offers different classes every semester depending on who they get to be professors. I haven’t taken a lot of my general education classes yet so I will be taking a few of those. There is a Global Studies course that all students are required to take and then they only recommend students take three additional classes for a total of 12 credits. Most of classes offered relate to the world in a physical or social capacity. In addition to the required course, I am taking a course in each of the following: Political Science, Music, and Philosophy.

Each voyage takes a slightly different route around the world. My voyage is called Canals and the Atlantic. I embark from the Netherlands and here are the countries in the order I will be in them: Poland, Portugal, Spain, Croatia, Morocco, Ghana, Brazil, Trinidad & Tobago, Ecuador, and Costa Rica. I disembark from San Diego after my 106 day semester.

When in port, students are allowed to explore on their own or they can opt to participate in field programs offered through the ship. Each course a student takes has one in-port day throughout the whole trip where students must participate. My field program countries are Spain, Croatia, and Ghana. Besides these three days, I will not have classes in port and I do not have to come back to the ship, although if you wish to eat and sleep aboard you can. I signed up for field programs in all the countries except Spain and Portugal because I had no idea what to do myself and the programs seemed like unique experiences; whereas Spain and Portugal were countries I had previously wanted to travel to, so I want to explore these on my own.

At sea is when classes take place. The ship has A and B days with the Global Studies course being everyday. If we’re in port Monday through Friday, our classes would be Saturday through however long it takes to get to our next port. When traveling for longer spans of time, it is my understanding that we may have one day off as a study day or for Sea Olympics (which I will talk about in a later post).

Back to the packing point now, I will be in a lot of different locations doing multiple activities so it was hard to figure out what I wanted/needed to bring. Also, we are only allowed to bring two checked bags, one carry on, and one personal item. So basically, let me reiterate, packing is the hardest part of all the preparation (for me).

We were told to pack for maximum versatility. The nice thing about my trip though is most of the countries will be warmer so I don’t have to pack snow pants and winter coats like I would if I was going back to North Dakota. I packed a good amount of t-shirts because we will be in 60°F or warmer, mainly warmer. We were advised to bring clothes that we wouldn’t mind leaving behind, getting ruined, or trading (which I think is cool). There is also an Alumni Ball on board towards the end of the voyage, so I had to pack something semi-formal for that. Other than that, I brought what I would normally bring to school.

Not quite sure how I made it work, but I was able to get everything I needed, probably more, into the baggage limit. I ended up using the trick where you just pack and then take out half of it to lighten the load and prevent overpacking. Let me tell you, the tip works.

Now I’m at the airport and my flight boards in less than an hour and my flight leaves in a little over an hour. The fact that I’m leaving hasn’t quite hit me. I mean it doesn’t seem real, but I am very excited with a touch of nervousness.

Oh, and I don’t know if I mentioned it, but my semester doesn’t start until September 9th. My parents and I just happen to be going over to Ireland and the Netherlands early, so my next post will include some Irish adventures.

If you guys ever have any questions feel free to comment and I will try to answer them as best I can.

Anyway, Stay tuned and I’ll see everyone in Ireland,

With Bated Breath, Abby Lynn