Semester at Sea: Study Around the World

Just do it. Four months on a ship that goes around the world?! When else will you have a chance to do something so cool? Every day is something new and exciting! You get the chance to meet people from all over the U.S. and all over the world. The professors teach super interesting courses in a wealth of different subject areas. The food is terrible (or was when I did it), but bring food with you and buy stuff in ports and you'll be fine. Go on as many excursions as possible, as they often get you further away from the port then would be feasible on your own. They can also help you get visas to secondary countries, because you can't leave the country on your own- you must be on an excursion.

I would recommend this program to any individual that has a passion to travel and see the world. The experiences I had on Semester at Sea opened my eyes to the possibilities that life has to offer as well as gave me insight into new cultures. This program also challenged me to step out of comfort zone and explore places I have never even heard of. I made the most amazing, lifelong friends on my voyage and loved every second of my time on the MV Explorer.

This was an epic experience and I had some of the best times of my life while on this study abroad program. It was eye-opening, inspiring, exciting and made me see the world in a different light. I would highly recommend this program to anyone!

While traveling to 13 different countries in 4 months is incredible in itself, it is the unique shipboard community of Semester at Sea that makes it one of a kind. I will never forget the ship cutting the lights in the middle of the Indian Ocean so the on-board astronomy professor could captivate us with the legends and stories of ancient gods and goddesses, all while underneath a captivating night sky that words will never truly describe. There's no feeling like being in the middle of the ocean with the nearest humans hundreds of miles away, and the stars are just the beginning.

It is incredibly fun to travel the world, on a ship, with over 600 students from around the world. Every day is a new adventure, both in the ship and in ports. Most of the time we did not speak the native language of a country and it was very hard to communicate, but we were always able to figure out a way to express our feelings and needs in each country.
We were a group of six friends in Myanmar and we had the opportunity to get in touch with relatives of my aunt's friend. They were three and they took us sightseeing, took us out for dinner, and they invited us to the pool at their condo. It was a beautiful experience because we got to connect with locals and see their life styles. We were able to ask any questions and they were also interested in learning about our culture.
Even though we had never heard about each others, we did not make plans ahead, and we are from different continents and have different likes and dislikes, we had a great time, and it was a very valuable and enriching experience I will always remember.

An incredible summer, visited 9 different countries around Europe all while living on a ship with other college students. The classes were well structured and the teachers excellent, but the real fun was being able to explore different countries and cultures with people who had been complete strangers just days before. I still stay in constant contact with several of the friends I made on the trip, and it has allowed me opportunities to travel all around the United States to visit them in the last couple years. I could not possibly recommend semester at sea more highly than anything to a student interested in travel.

Semester at Sea really was an exceptionally unique experience. I was convinced that if I didn't study abroad in college I would be missing out on a huge opportunity, but I was having difficulty deciding on just one country to go to. I was initially attracted to the idea that Semester at Sea traveled to multiple countries but that was just the beginning of its uniqueness. I found a "home afloat" in my ship accommodations which gave me a comfortable home base to decompress and familiarity that became so important to my mental health among all the new locations and culture shock. Semester at Sea took its time in picking the best of the best staff and faculty, so my education came from people I would normally not of had the opportunity to learn from. An overall theme of sustainability gave us a global lens to view all our lessons and experiences through, and something very applicable to take home and unique to put on my resume. Finally the in-country excursions set up by the program were absolutely once in a life time experiences I wouldn't find anywhere else, such as canyoning through the mountains in Spain, seal watching on rib boats in Sweden, and kayaking through the Fjords in Norway. If you are on the fence about doing this program I hope my review has convinced you to go. This is something you don't want to miss out on.

I met so many beautiful people in India. One of those people was my tuk tuk driver. He made me and my friends feel comfortable and safe from the moment we went into his tuk tuk and who knew we would end up such great friends. He took us anywhere we wanted. We went to shops where we bought spices and a sari. After I bought my sari and went to another shop he told us he would be right back and when he came back he had a string of jasmine flowers that he put in my hair making me look like a beautiful Indian princess. I loved it, at that moment he felt like my father and although I come from somewhere on the other side of the world we had a connection and I trusted him. After I bought and immediately wore my sari we went to get some local Indian food. At this restaurant the waiters helped us order the foods we must try not he menu and we did. While we waited for our food I looked up and noticed an older Indian woman looking at me and smiling. I smiled back and she pointed to her sari and then at mine and gave me a thumbs up gesture. This was another amazing moment for me. This older Indian woman just approved my Indian outfit which meant more to me than just looking good. I felt that with her approval I was culturally acceptable and didn’t look like a tourist wearing an Indian outfit because it was cool. I was falling in love with India, the people, the culture, and soon enough the food. When the food came I was awestruck. It was amazing! So amazing that we ordered another plate of it. It was some type of masala but it was so different than the ones in the United States. After eating our driver asked us if we wanted henna tattoos and when we said yes he explained to us about his mother in laws where they can do it for us. This day was getting better and better. We got to the house and immediately neighborhood children and aunties came over. They were so nice and reminded me of my family back home. They wanted to make my hair, give me chips, and tea. It was one of the most memorable moments for me. We sat down and they started doing henna’s on us. While they did henna’s they were talking and asking us questions all while laughing because most of the time we had no idea what they were saying. Although there was a language barrier our body language and laughter was more than sufficient. We stayed there until the sun was going down. We had so much fun that they invited us to a Hindu celebration in Kerala where there would be food, elephants, music, and fireworks. That was an automatic yes! Our driver took us back to the ship where we showered and got ready then came back out and went with our driver to the event. It was a unique experience. We were the only people not from India at that event especially because most of the Semester At Sea students were at the Taj Mah Hall. As we walked through the crowds with our driver all eyes were on us. It was different but I knew our driver had our backs and he reminded me so much hot my father that I knew if anything would happen he would step in. It was amazing. We watched the elephants all dressed up march through the area with loud music, It was so exciting to witness for the first time. After we met up with his family and watched the fireworks together. I loved being with this family. We loved them so much that we pretty much went with the same driver everyday where we went to his families house about 2 more times. I am so thankful that I met a wonderful tuk tuk driver who I built a relationship with. He was more than our driver he was our father, bodyguard, and friend. After the last day in India when we had to say our goodbyes I got his mailing address and I am currently working on a package to send to him and his family with toys for his kids, books, and pictures of our time in India. One day I will make it back to India and reunite with this amazing family.