Anne Frank, D-Day, and everything else.

Well it has been an exciting week!
Last Sunday we landed in Belgium to spend three days in the Benelux region. I spent much of the first day wandering around the port city of Antwerp, visiting museums, enjoying a cultural festival that was being held, and testing various Belgian foods and drinks.
Naturally our first stop was in a chocolate kitchen recommended to us by a man traveling to Belgian from Amsterdam. Belgian chocolate was highly impressive, as I had expected it would be. It probably helped that I was very hungry when I go a chance to eat it though.

Later in the day I visited the train station of Antwerp, which is one of the most incredible buildings I have ever had the chance to stand inside. The building is very large, and the scale of it dwarfs anything you could put in the building. In fact, even trains rolling to the end of their tracks appear as if they are toys rolling into the station.

After waffles, fries, beer, and more chocolate I wrapped up the day by taking a walk across the river to watch the last few rays of sunshine fall on the MV Explorer, the ship I've come to call home over the past month.

The following day I hopped on a bus to Amsterdam, took a boat tour of the city, and visited the Anne Frank House. Being there in the house where Anne Frank and her family hid was incredibly moving. I haven't read Anne Frank's Diary since early in high school, and I don't remember much of the content of the diary. However, what I do remember is the innocent worldview that Anne Frank's writing conveyed. Knowing that Anne died in Auschwitz brings to light the stark contrast between the innocence of a child and the horrendous acts of the holocaust. It seems impossible that humans are capable of treating each other in such a way, yet I am constantly reminded of ongoing genocides in Africa and the Middle East. Unfortunately true evil is still present on our little blue dot, and I believe it always will be.

After visiting the Anne Frank House I toured the city with a few friends for several hours. We got lunch on our way to the southern end of the city; stopped at a cafe in the red light district for free wifi, and then caught our bus back to Antwerp. The following day I went into town to pick up a few souvenirs and eat breakfast before the ship left at noon.

The next day we arrived in Le Havre, France. I traveled to Gold, Sword, and Omaha beaches along the S. Normandy coast. Yes, there were five areas of beach attacked on D-Day, but I didn't make it to them. Many artifacts have been preserved from the D-Day landings given the fact that it happened more recently. The museum there at the western end of Gold sector is full of uniforms, weapons, and gear from soldiers who landed on the beaches on June 6, 1944.

The neatest site I visited was Ponte du Hoc, the location of a German outpost taken by Army Ranger who scaled 100-foot cliffs in order to accomplish their mission. The determination and bravery it must have taken to storm those beaches is something I think most people in the 21st century (myself among them) cannot even comprehend.

The last two days in Le Havre were more leisurely and not so somber. I rented bikes with several friends and toured the city, eventually making our way to a series of trails on cliffs above the port. From these cliffs we were able to see the entire harbor and across the water to the southern coast. Many concrete bunkers still remain on the cliffs above the city, spaced out every few hundred yards. As much as the city of Le Havre itself was rebuilt after the Germans destroyed it on their way out, much of the military infrastructure still remains in the area. Massive concrete slabs with rusted out gun mounts sit atop the ridge around the city as silent reminders of a past that did not include crepes and cider stands along the pebble beaches.

The last day in France was one of the best I've had on the trip so far. I joined a few friends on a bus to Étretat, a small coastal town about an hour north of Le Havre. A hike along the edge of the cliffs revealed view painted by Monet and Van Goh. Spectacular white cliffs accented by stone archways and pillars stepping towards the sea. After lunch I decided I needed to swim around the beautiful rocks. A few friends joined me as I swam out to a series of boulders just below the white cliffs. The water was cool and clear, and small schools of fish swam around me as I made my way further into the ocean. The entire scene was just picture-perfect. I swam in the sunlight with friends, while a few other stayed behind and drank cider and ate bread on the beach. Definitely one of the best days of the trip thus far.

Today we are en route to Ireland, where we will spend four days before setting sail for Portugal. I will try to get some pictures here as soon as I can, although it could be a few weeks. Until then!

The Last Three Weeks (In a Nutshell)

I'll just go ahead and apologize now for not posting updates earlier. I lost my login credentials and it has taken me a bit of time to get them back.

 

Exactly three weeks ago I hopped on a plane from RDU in Raleigh, NC and flew to Heathrow in London. After a few days aboard the MV Explorer docked in Southampton our ship left for St. Petersburg, Russia, where we spent three days before leaving again. Sailing back down the Baltic coastline past Estonia and Latvia, eventually we made our way to Gdansk, Poland. After two days in Gdansk I took a bus to Berlin with friends where we spent a few days enjoying the city before traveling north to a little fishing village near Rostock, Germany called Warnemünde. It has been a long few weeks.

 

I haven't quite figured out how I want to format these posts, so today I am going to try to just to a quick top-10 list from the past three weeks.

 

10. My roommate is not lame (woo!)

I had no idea how the rooming situation was going to go because I got a random roommate. I was a little nervous about living with someone I didn't know, but my roommate turned out to be really neat. We share a lot of the same interests and friends, so we spend a lot of time together. We even traveled across Germany together last weekend.

 

9. Classes are very interesting.

I am taking classes on International Relations, Democracy Around the World, World Architecture, and Public Health. My professors are very knowledgeable and have spent a good deal of time working in their respective fields. All four of my professors are very helpful and I have really enjoyed working with them so far.

 

8. Foreign Food

On the ship we eat ship food, which won't kill you. Off of the ship I have had the opportunity to try a lot of different local foods and drinks. In Russia I had several traditional meals, and the same was true in Poland. In Berlin I had a different experience because many of our meals were rushed, but we still managed to find interesting meals (Greek, Bavarian, etc).

 

7. Making New Friends

The first few days on the ship felt like freshman year all over again. Everyone wanted to meet everyone else and make as many new friends as they possibly could. That is still the case, actually-I meet new people every day that I haven't had the chance to interact with before. I made new friends at breakfast today. It is great.

 

6. St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg           

The first port we stopped in was St. Petersburg, Russia. I spent two days in the city seeing the sights, and I have to say that the most beautiful building I saw the entire time was St. Isaac's Cathedral in the center of the city. Sure, the Winter Palace is pretty, sure the Church of Spilt Blood is neat and made me want ice cream, but the truth is that the enormity of St. Isaac's was astounding and it left me filled with awe. Google the building if you get a chance. It is magnificent.

 

5. Traveling from Berlin to the MV Explorer

My roommate and I had to get back to the ship a day earlier than the folks we were traveling with, so we left Berlin on Monday afternoon headed north through Rostock to Warnemönde. Once we were out of Berlin the country opened up and we were amazed by the beautiful farmland and wooded regions we got to pass through. After spending two days in East Berlin it was a real joy to get to see a more natural aspect of Germany.

 

4. The Last Night in Germany

On the bus from Berlin we met three other SAS students who were also headed back to the ship. We all made it to the ship and decided to grab dinner in the little town nearby. After dinner we took a walk down the riverfront all the way to the edge of town where we put our feet in the Baltic one last time. I spent some good time there on the white sand, in the dark in reflection as the rest of the group headed back to the ship. There was nothing particularly special about that night, but it was a reminder that simply being the places we are and have been is an experience that will have an impact on us for the rest of our lives.

 

3. Seeing the Berlin Wall

I'll do a post on a few eye-opening moments a little later, but suffice it to say that putting my hands on the Berlin Wall and seeing how it divided the city was an incredible experience and I learned a lot from it. Just within my lifetime, Berlin has changed drastically and I got a chance to see the city it is now.

 

2. Visiting Gdansk

After the Second World War, Gdansk, Poland was destroyed. 90% of the infrastructure had been demolished by various air raids and bombing runs. Despite that, the town that it is today is incredible. Full of art, architecture, music, commerce, shipping, and everything else a good city should have, the two days I spent in Gdansk were probably my favorite two days of the trip so far. On our first morning in town I had Polish food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. After a quick stop in a local market we visited St. Mary's Cathedral, a massive brick structure with a long stairway to the top of the bell tower. I could go on and on about Gdansk, and I probably will later, but for now I need to move on.

 

1. Visiting Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp

There aren't really words I can use to adequately describe what happened at Sachsenhausen during WWII, and the truth is that even if I could describe it adequately I wouldn't. I spent most of the day thinking about the world that we live in and human nature. I know that is vague and I am sorry. The truth is that every single person who visits a place like that cannot leave without confronting his or her own image of what the world looks like. I left feeling a mixture of sadness and frustration. The toughest part of the whole experience was remembering that the same crimes are being committed elsewhere on the globe today. Not only that-but knowing that those crimes are and were committed by people. The exact same species of people I belong to. I don't understand how people could do that to one another, but to know and really understand that it is possible is appalling.

 

 

            So that is a quick recap of my time in Russia, Poland, and Germany. It feels like a year since I first climbed the gangway up to the MV Explorer, and at the same time I know it will be over in a flash. God is good and he has provided me with a really neat chance to see the world and grow at the same time. I am always up for an adventure, and while I may have been apprehensive when I first flew away from home, I can say with confidence that this experience is and will change me forever. I am so thankful for this opportunity, and I can't wait to see what Belgium has in store (besides waffles, naturally).

 

-Cam

 

P.S. I promise to do a better job of publishing updates now that I have my posting information figured out.

To Infinity and Beyond!

As I sit at my desk doodling on a notepad, I trace it over and over again. The smooth, round edges meeting at a crisp junction in the center of a perfectly symmetrical shape. The number is 8. I leave the country in 8 days. When I say that my heart flutters up to my head and my stomach sinks deep into my gut. After months of planning and working out details, I am about to embark on an exciting adventure. In eight days I will leave behind the little world I've known and venture into a world that is entirely unknown, and entirely new.

Am I excited? Absolutely.

Am I scared? Absolutely.

Do I know what I've gotten myself into? Absolutely not.

As I was tracing the number 8 on my notepad, thinking about all that I have yet to accomplish in the short time that I am still here, I noticed something. I turned the paper on its side, and there they were; symbol upon symbol upon symbol redirecting my focus.

This was the doodle I'd been working on:

And this was a reminder of the infinite possibilities that I'm facing in the next few months:
 

I realized that I've been focusing on the tiny, finite issues I have to deal with in the next few days, when I should be focused on the infinite that lies beyond this week. I have so much to learn this semester, and what I do or don't do the week before I leave for my trip is not going to make or break my experience (well, except for packing-but that is almost done).

I guess the main point I'm trying to drive home is this: I am worrying too much about what is going on this week. I'm traveling across the state, visiting friends, saying goodbye for a while, and making final arrangements for my travels to the ship. I am not worried about those things getting done-I know they will be done by the time I leave, but I really need to think less about this week, and spend more time mentally preparing myself for the new world I am about to jump into. As everyone's favorite laser-packing winged toy spaceman used to say, TO INFINITY, AND BEYOND!!!

T-minus 24 days

Well, it's Monday again which means I am yet another week closer to my departure on August 21st. My paperwork is basically finished as of this past weekend. My classes have been approved, my medical forms have been reviewed, my visas have been processed, and I've started packing. I may publish my finalized packing list eventually, but for now it is a work in progress and I seem to think of new things I should take every few minutes.

I'm just under four weeks away from departure (24 days 3 hours and 13 minutes), and I still cannot believe that I will soon be leaving the country for close to five months. Over the course of evaluating my packing list I have realized a few things:

1. I have more stuff than I really need.

For the past two years I lived on campus at school with a nice room of my own. My room was filled with cool lights, trendy art, adventure gear, and two closets full of clothes. While none of those things are inherently bad, the truth is that most of those things have been packed away in boxes for the past ten weeks, and I haven't missed them at all. As a matter of fact, my life has been way simpler now that most of my belongings are packed away in boxes. Aside from a few changes of clothes, a computer, phone, and camera, most of the things I pack up and take to school would be better left in a box. Hopefully this spartan mentality will prevail as I pack for my trip, but that will be another post entirely. What I do know is that when I get back from my trip I need to spend some serious time evaluating what I take back to school with me and what I don't need anymore.

2. The things I really need are not things I can pack into a suitcase.

I'm about to leave on a grand adventure around the Atlantic Ocean. I am being provided with an opportunity that very few have been blessed with and I could not be more thankful-but in the process I am coming to grips with all of the other ways I have been blessed as well. I have been blessed with family who are supporting me, mentors who have guided me, and friends who have invested in me. In 24 days 3 hours and 4 minutes (as of this moment) I am going to leave all of that behind to take on a new adventure. I'll be making new friend along the way, but in a sense I will be making this journey alone. My parents, friends, and mentors don't get to come with me-in fact the only piece of them that can travel across the ocean with me is the person I am because of them. My journey started long before I began putting clothes into a bag, but I am  just weeks away from having most of what I know stripped from me in a process that will force me to grow. Like a recent high school graduate approaching college, I am at a junction where I am grateful for the experiences of my past because of the unknown that dominates my future.

There are plenty of other thoughts swirling around in my head, but none are coherent enough for words just yet. I promise when the words come to me I'll put them here, so check back when you can!

24 days 2 hours and 55 minutes...

Changing Course

Looking over my previous blog posts it has become painfully obvious that I have not been as dedicated to this project as I initially thought I would be. Shocker. I like to document events and lessons learned, but in the months since I started this blog only a few things have been deemed exciting enough to qualify for, "blog-worthy status," explaining why my posts are few and far in between (laziness is another possible factor, but fixing that issue is too hard). Quite frankly, this blog had no focus when I started it. I aim to fix that starting now.
I find that I only want to write about exciting life lessons, and when I do write it tends to ramble quite a bit, so I'm going to take a new approach. As of now, I am going to document my adventure with succinct stories about what I've been doing and hopefully the lessons and adventures will trickle through.
In exactly one month, I will be traveling to London, UK where I will board the 590-foot MV Explorer, an ocean liner managed by the Institute for Shipboard Education. Over the course of 4 months I will travel to 18 ports in 16 countries on four continents while taking classes on board the ship. Most of the tedious paperwork for my voyage has been completed, and my plane tickets have been purchased. Now it is time to start packing and thinking through exactly what I will need on my trip around the world. It hasn't really sunk in yet that I am leaving the country for such an extended period of time, but I know as soon as I start putting notebooks and socks into my suitcase it is going to hit me like a ton of bricks.
I'll use this blog to post updates about what I've been up to and where I am in my journey. Follow me or check back often to see what I'm up to!

That Cold Night in Queens

   It was a Thursday night in late November of 2012. I was sitting alone on a stump in a dark church courtyard. Police cars roamed the streets around me with their blues flashing; trying to provide citizens with some sense of security. The neighborhood was in a constant state of emergency, as it had been for nearly a month now. It had only been dark for an hour or so but the streets were completely abandoned. Across the street from the church a pair of shattered shop windows seemed to stare at me like dark empty eyes. I poked at the last of my Thanksgiving dinner–a few undercooked green beans–with a disposable fork and sipped the last water from my cup. I zipped up my jacket as a cold wind blew through the empty courtyard and turned to head back into the old church, but for a moment I paused and looked around.
    In my entire life, I have never been more thankful than I was in that moment, and here is why. On that cold Thanksgiving night in 2012 I was in Queens, New York. One month earlier Super-storm Sandy had wrecked hundreds of communities along the East Coast. Somehow I found myself on a last-minute trip to help provide relief where it was needed most. A van full of students from App State drove all day Wednesday to a small community called Far Rockaway to help residents in low-income communities with reconstruction efforts. In the overall scheme of recovery, a van full of students armed with gloves and hammers couldn't accomplish much in three days, but given one or two houses to help out with we were able to accomplish a great deal.
   Lots of great memories were made on that trip–some happy and some heart-wrenchingly sad. But among the others one memory stood out–the memory I have of sitting alone in the cold that Thursday night. It stands out to me because I took the time to reflect on the ways I have been blessed in my life. I have a warm home to spend cold nights in, a roof that doesn't leak, and walls that are not moldy. I have a family who loves me, and friends I can turn to when things get tough.
   On that cold Thanksgiving night, surrounded by people who didn't have much, I realized just how much I had to be thankful for. No matter how tough school gets, or how much I worry about what I'll be doing next year after graduation, at least I was given the chance to go to school. What I am trying to say is–as frustrating as it can be, my life is so remarkably blessed. I get upset when one or two things go wrong, but there are other blessings that I often take for granted because they worked out so perfectly. This week I am working on being more thankful, and I continue to mentally revisit that cold night in Queens when I realized how much I really have been given.

The iGeneration.

I wrote out a long essay on technology a few days ago. I picked it up again today and decided to start from scratch, because the whole thing was really just an overzealous manifesto railing on everyone born in the early 90's, and I figured that wasn't the best kind of blog post to make. I am no better or worse than anyone else in my generation where this topic is concerned. In all honesty, this post is partially an observation and partially a way for me to obtain useful, practical advice by crowd–sourcing (that last term just lost a few of you-I know and I am sorry).
I often wonder how previous generations were viewed in their early 20's. What kind of messages did their older, wiser mentors give them, and how did that work out? Have the messages changed over the years, or just the context? Is rock and roll still just for satan-worshippers, or has that belief faded a bit? Sometimes I feel like half of the older adults I know view mine as a generation's worth of potential wasted staring at screens. Maybe they are on to something. Then again, maybe not.
My generation has been named the millennial generation, but I jokingly refer to it as the "iGeneration." We are characterized by 4G data plans that cater to even the most insatiable among us and phones with more computing power than the spacecraft that put mankind on the moon. Between selfies and snapchat, skype and social media, somewhere along the way we forgot a lot of the things that makes us who we are.
What I mean by this is that social media and technology allow us to filter our lives in a way that is detrimental to our interpersonal relationships. I only post happy things on my Facebook/Twitter/Instagram. If I think of a witty joke or a relatable experience I upload it and then measure the success of each post by the number of likes that it gets or by who comments on it. I don't share sad experiences online. Nobody wants to log into Twitter to see my sad tweets about how my life is hard and I am so busy and, and, and... We leave behind parts of who we are when we enter a virtual network. I run my own PR, deciding what my internet friends get to see and what I choose to leave out.  The people who do post sad, dramatic or otherwise melancholy material to Facebook garner little attention from those around them. Why on earth would I post something that isn't going to make me look good? That would be ridiculous. No matter what I say, I am sure that the efficacy of this blog post will be measured by the amount of buzz it generates. I want to change that.

I've made an effort recently to take a step back from the screen. Facebook isn't on my phone, so that is a start. I always try to keep in mind some practical strategy for being productive. The question lately has been "What is the most effective use of my time at present?" Sometimes the answer is homework. Or sleeping. Or reading a book. Rarely is the answer checking Facebook. Again.
So what is it about the current atmosphere that prevents people from connecting with either other? This is a complex issue, but I think a part of it can be simplified quite easily. I want to offer a very simple explanation, but feel free to disagree with me if you want. I think that nobody wants messed up friends. The problem is that until 5 years ago, you really didn't have a choice. Your friends were just as messed up as you were, and you got to be closer by dealing with things together. Whether it was a break-up or a lost job, etc, your friends were there for you. In person, dealing with the same crap that you were dealing with. In fact, the show 'Friends' was just that–a group of young people going through life together, struggling through everything that young people had to deal with in the 90's. Today it is just as easy (if not easier) to get online and see only the well-manicured snapshots your friends want you to see.
I am terrible at this. I really am. I'm the guy who blogs about his problems with technology–if that isn't ironic then I don't know what is. I want to do better and be better. I want to use technology to its fullest potential without losing an ounce of mine in the process. I know this issue is far more complex than I made it out to be, and I apologize, but I had to say something about this. If you disagree with what I've written or want to add something feel free to let me know–I'd love to sit down over coffee with you.