The First 18 Days on the Ship: Featuring Germany, Spain & the Canary Islands

The past 18 days have been incredible!!! We started off our journey from Newark Airport in New Jersey and flew directly to Hamburg, Germany. In Hamburg, a group of Elon friends and I all explored the city. We spent our first day sightseeing around and found a delicious coffee shop. The weather was rainy and cold, but we still got out and explored. The second day we went to a beer garden and had amazing Italian food. The third day we jumped on buses and headed to Bremerhaven to embark on our semester. We spent 5 days on the ship traveling from Germany to Spain. The days went by quickly and I met so many new people from all over the world!

Our first port in Spain was Barcelona. I had the best time here! We met up with some Elon friends who are spending the semester there and they were great tour guides! We saw most of the top tourist hot-spots, such as the Arco de Triunfo and the unique architecture of Sagrada Famiglia by Gaudi! We also walked to the beach and enjoyed the views and the warm weather! I wasn’t quite ready to leave Barcelona but after 2 days it was time to head to another city. We traveled overland to Valencia via train early on the 17^th and spent the whole day exploring the port town!

I absolutely fell in love with Valencia and hope to go back someday soon! The people were so friendly and the beach town was beautiful. We drank and ate our way through Valencia with lots of Sangria and gelato! After 2 days in Valencia it was time again to head back onto the ship! 4 days into our voyage from Spain to Ghana, we stopped at the Canary Islands to get gas! The views were incredible and it was difficult not being able to get off the ship! However, over the next 3 days on our way to Ghana I thought I would really miss being on land but the boat is starting to truly feel like home.

Here are a few highlight of ship life:

Whale watching during an outdoor HIIT workout class
Seeing dolphins at sunset during dinner on the back patio
Long pool days
Meeting some of the greatest girls from all over the country who I feel like I have known for years – Shout out to Caitlin, Morgan, Tate, Savanah, Hannah and Bella
Pub nights which include 2 glasses of wine and lots of socializing
The pool bar smoothies
My interesting classes; the Hospitality Industry, the Tourism Industry, Hospitality Marketing and a Global class
Getting to speak with Akosua Busia, who played Nettie Harris, in the film The Color Purple – She is from Ghana and had so much to share with us about her country
My incredible roommate, Morgan, who is the best
Movie nights with the girls
Getting to experience this adventure with Curtis

Here is what I have learned so far:

The friend group I have on the ship will last forever – they are the best
Peanut butter can be its own meal
The rocking of the ship gives you the best night’s sleep
Being on the water constantly is so refreshing and calming
A smoothie a day keeps the doctors away
Working out with a view makes it a lot better
Breakfast is the best meal on the ship- it’s worth it to wake up early

I am so grateful for this experience! Each day brings something new and I couldn’t ask for a better first 18 days on the ship or better people to spend it with! I can’t wait to see what the next 3 months bring!