Before I dive in, let me give you some background on Semester at Sea. It is a multi-country study abroad program on a ship open to all students of all majors, emphasizing global comparative study. Each semester they offer a different voyage that goes to around 10 to 11 countries. This program is through Colorado State University bringing in professors from around the world that teach on this floating campus.
Now that I got that out of the way, let me get right into how it went. Long story short our Semester at Sea journey of going to 11 countries ended up being limited to 4 countries due to COVID-19. I could talk about how it was to be on a cruise ship going through Asia as the pandemic felt like it was chasing us. But, instead, I am going to focus on the experiences that I was so grateful to live through (not all of those we missed out on).
I am a student at UW-Madison. They pride themselves on their own study abroad program. I decided to go through a non-approved program and let me tell you the study abroad office did not offer one ounce of help. To follow through with a program like this you have to be dedicated and passionate enough to go the extra mile and do everything yourself. After a bunch of frustrating email chains with various workers at my university, I was ready to go on this adventure of life. I did not know a single person beforehand. I found my roommate on a Facebook page much as I did for freshman year. I was scared, but this fear was washed out by excitement.
My experience on Semester at Sea was not perfect (shocker). But it was in those imperfections, the tears, and the times where I just wanted to be with my friends studying in Barcelona that I grew the most. I had no crutch. No cell service to call home. No internet to scroll on Instagram. Only an email account that allowed me to communicate with the outside world. You had no choice but to become the independent adult you needed to be.
Instead of waking up to scroll on TikTok, I would go to a sunrise abs class followed by a 30 minute guided meditation. This shift in perspective gave me the confidence to silence my self-consciousness and help me put myself out there. I love meeting new people, but something about having to meet brand new people as a junior in college is unfamiliar. I loved how Semester at Sea provided this environment where people were longing for connections. While going on a wine tour in Cape Town, staying in Ha Long Bay, and swimming with wild dolphins in Mauritius were all insane, it was really the people that surrounded me that made everything even more special. I have loved to travel for as long as I can remember. But, I realized you cannot go through life and be truly happy unless you find people to share that with. While I cannot promise that you will find your best friends on day one of going abroad, I can promise if you continue to seek connections with everyone around you will start to see the beauty of the world. This world is made for people to bond, share stories, and most importantly cry together.
I will conclude this article with an Instagram caption I wrote during one of my last days on the ship before getting sent home in March. "It was this journey and these people who have changed my life. These people brought such a ray of light into each and every experience. These people deserve to be celebrated. Every single day was an adventure. An adventure we may have not signed up for, but taught us far beyond what we could have ever imagined. SAS I have never smiled more, laughed harder and slept less than I have these past couple of months. Even though we lost everything from phones to countless countries and days together we gained lifelong friendships. You guys are my people and I can’t wait to do life with ya."