I'm in Africa! Yes, it's true, Africa! We are all so excited and already the first day has been amazing. First of all, I must apologize for the lack of blog entries. We are sailing and don't have access to the internet. I am used to this by now but, I know it is frustrating for all those who want to stay connected.

Three days till South Africa! Everyone on ship is excited to go to Capetown. Mostly everyone is ready to be on land and to stop moving for six days. The ocean was very rough two days ago. I thought it was fun, but some people were pretty miserable. It's hard to describe the rocking, we literally get thrown from one side of the hallway to the other and there is a strange change in gravity every few seconds. At times you feel like you are floating and then the next second you can hardly walk up the stairs. At dinner we had to grab our plates every time a wave rocked the ship, and if you missed, you got dinner in your lap. It did cause a lot more clean-up for the crew which we all felt badly about. At one point all the drinks set out for us toppled over and created a juicy mess on the dining room's carpet. We weren't allowed to eat out on deck because the furniture is lightweight and we would have been sliding everywhere. It did get pretty annoying at nighttime, all of our drawers were sliding open and closed until we got frustrated and duct-taped them shut.

Neptune day, our party for crossing the equator, had already been postponed due to rain, so they had it on the super choppy day despite sea-conditions. It was a lot of fun, the crew woke us up around 730 in the morning with drums and whistles, forcing us to get out of bed and join the festivities. Our dean dressed up as Neptune in a pretty hysterical costume while my history professor readt a plea to Neptune to let us pass into the southern hemisphere. Neptune of course denied us this right until we had proven ourselves worthy of passage. How you might ask?

Well, first you have to get slimy, smelly fish guts poured over your head. Its really not that bad cause immediately after you jump in the pool and rinse off. Then its up the ladder and over to a huge dead fish with floppy lips which you must kiss. Finally you kneel before Neptune and he proclaims you worthy. The whole experience is quite delightful really. Traditionally, sailors who crossed the equator would also shave their heads as an offering to King Neptune and this tradition was carried out on the ship as well. Probably about one hundred boys shaved their heads and I heard as many as thirty girls did also. I didn't shave my head, but two of my good friends did and they look great.

We've only had eight days of classes with one off in the middle and yet we are all a bit tired. The rocking puts us all to sleep, plus nearly everyone is drugged up on malaria medication. Everyone is excited for six days of dry land and no classes.

Capetown!

We pulled into port this morning around 5AM. Everyone was awake and up on deck. (Semester At Sea students really do not sleep). Sunrise was one of the most breathtaking I have ever seen as it slowly illuminated Table Mountain and seals began to play in the harbor. We set out after our debriefing and after the ship was cleared.

Capetown is a beautiful city, it definitely tops Rio. Ports are crazy crazy days when we don't have time for much other than experiencing the country!

I went to visit a township for the day which was very educational. Then we went to a musical dinner theater type of thing and ate wonderful food that only cost 15 Rand (2$). I have a TON planned for the rest of this week. It's insane. I cannot believe that this is how we go to school. Ahh!