As of Fall Semester 07, I will no longer be able to enjoy the tasty treats from the MU, the loving preachers preach their uplifting message or the luxury of dollar lunch Tuesdays; but rather I will be suffering with all-you-can-eat-buffets, studying in 10 different foreign countries, and making friends all over the world. Keep me in your prayers; it's going to be a tough semester.

Blake Daniel Van Fleteren -- Arizona State University
Phoenix , AZ

Trip of a Lifetime

I am so excited for this trip that it is basically all I talk or think about. I have never been out of the country (except for a short cruise when I was 8), so this is the best opportunity for me to see so much of the world in three and a half months. We will go to 12 different ports in one semester. These are countries that I have been researching and googling since I decided to go on this trip. I am the most excited about seeing the pyramids in Egypt. Other than that landmark, I am also intrigued by experiencing so many different cultures, ways of life, and people. I love people and hearing people's stories, so this should prove to be a unique opportunity to do just that. We have been sent a field program that outlines various excursions that we can do while in port. There are many opportunities to visit orphanages, children's homes, and do service visits; these are the Semester at Sea sponsored trips that I am the most excited about.

I am doing this trip for several reasons:
- to learn about different cultures
- to visit different countries
- to learn what it means to be a citizen of the world
- to learn about myself
- to be independent for the first time in my life

This is the strangest mix of emotions I have ever felt. For the first time in my life, people that I love and will need won't be right there - it is so strange and sad. But t his sadness is mixed with anxiety and excitement and the feeling of adventure and I don' t know what I will experience next - I love it !!

Kristen Thompson -- College of Charleston
Murrells Inlet, SC