#337 Remembering Dad and Paul

One of my earliest movie-going memories is from 1973. It was special because it was the only time Dad and I saw a movie without the rest of the family. And it was special because we saw The Sting starring Paul Newman. Dad was born a year later than Paul and sometimes he looked to me like the brown-eyed version of the actor. Though he never won an Oscar, Dad tried his hand at show biz, starring as The Wizard in The Wizard of Hill, produced for our Hill family reunion in 1996.

Yours in remembering Dad and Paul,
Mary

#336 A Jam-Packed Saturday

Now that the Talk Like a Pirate Day celebrations are behind us, it's time to move onto a very eventful Saturday. First on our list are sealing the deck and...

the laundry.

For an even more exciting adventure, this afternoon just might include grocery shopping.

Yours in enjoying a jam-packed Saturday,
Mary

#335 Get ready to talk like a pirate!

Ahoy, me hearties! (Hello, my friends!) Avast ye. This Friday, September 19, is Talk Like a Pirate Day. If you've forgotten your pirate speak, it's not too late. Check out these pirate phrases and start practicing! In honor of this special occasion, I've found some of my favorite pirate photos.

Kelly and his pirate gang at IDEM

  The fierce pirate armed with a sword full of candy

 

Kelly on pirate watch

Yours in shivering me timbers,
Mary

#334 Missing from our summer voyage

We had a terrific time on our summer adventure, but there are a few things we missed...fast internet speed, a comfy reading chair, Mexican food, and you. UVA librarians visiting the ship in Norfolk are Kathy (F07 librarian), Tina, Mary, and Cathy (F08 librarian).

Yours in enjoying the fall voyage while munching on a burrito from my comfy reading chair with my lightning-quick internet access,
Mary

#333 Summer is over

Our summer at sea is all over now but the stories.

The MV Explorer docked safely in Norfolk 75 days after sailing from New York City. The fall voyage soon departed without us on board and we are back home again in Charlottesville. After sailing twice on a Semester at Sea voyage, we can't help but think about the similarities and differences of the two voyages.

DIFFERENCES
On our summer 2008 voyage, we...
- Enjoyed calm seas. Library books did not have to be tied down once.
- Visited 6 new countries
- Norway, Russia, Denmark, Belgium, Italy, Greece.
- Revisited 2 familiar ports - Dubrovnik and Alexandria.
- Changed our route for security reasons.
- Said “Well the last time we were in Dubrovnik, we found this great little restaurant right on the sea...” instead of saying “I have no idea.”
- Crossed the wide Atlantic without Kelly, my human map.
- Docked in our home state instead of half way across the country.
- Returned home wondering if Virginia has a "Back home again in Indiana" kind of song.
- Visited 2 museums, both called The Hermitage, a world apart...

The Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia

The Hermitage Museum in Norfolk, VA

SIMILARITIES
Despite all the differences in our two voyages, much remained the same. As on the fall 2006 voyage, we were...
- Blessed with responsible and fun student library assistants.
- Delighted to get to know our adopted students.
- Impressed by faculty and staff.
- Amazed by the accommodating and hard-working ship's crew.
- Focused on Dr. Seuss who advises, "Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."

Yours in smiling,
Mary

#332 Carrying on at sea

Even though Kelly is on land, we continue to carry on his kite-flying tradition here at sea.

Summer and Aree, now avid kite flyers, are shown here preparing to launch some of the kites Kelly purchased in Alexandria for the exorbitant price of 50 cents each.

While Summer proudly flies her kite, Aree is despondent over her kite's inability to stay aloft, while Melissa, Amy, and Michelle stand amazed.

To commemorate the event, the ship's videographer interviews the kite flyers.

Yours in carrying on,
Mary

#331 Kelly is on land

Back in Halifax in June, Croatia in August seemed so far away. Then boom! It's August and we're in Croatia. The plan all along was for me to fly home from Croatia to prepare for the fall semester.

The Aer Lingus flight from Dubrovnik to Dublin took me over some of the most beautiful landscapes in Europe.

And after an unexpected extended layover in Ireland, I am home 32 hours after leaving the ship.

Yours in Charlottesville,
Kelly