Countdown to SAS..

1. I've been academically admitted since February
2. I sent my deposit to the Institute for Shipboard Education (ISE) in March.
3. I received the forms for financial aid about a month ago and I need to write my essay and send the information in by September 15.
4. The sample field program for my voyage was released yesterday. I made a list of all the programs I am REALLY REALLY interested in doing, and compiled them.

Here's my list for now

Puerto Rico - docking in San Juan
- I figure a lot of Puerto Rico can be done independently. It is such a tourist destination for Americans, takes US dollars, and I've heard a lot of people speak English, so it seems like it would be the ideal place to just travel with people I meet on board.
- Welcome Reception: $36
- Bioluminescent Bay $42
- I want to visit the churches: San Juan Cathedral, Iglesia de San Jose, Capilla de Cristo...and any Episcopal church I happen upon :)

Brazil - docking in Salvador
- Service Visit Cultural Mobilization Project for Children in Danger $16
- Welcome Reception $40
- Bahia by Night $50
- Itaparica Island $38
- Iguassu Falls (Three Days/Two Nights) $995
- The Amazon (Three Days/ Two Nights) $1036

South Africa - docking in Cape Town
- Service Visit: Operation Hunger $30
- Khayelitsha Township $48
- Robben Island $37
- Cape Peninsula and Cape Point $98
- And I'm going to do a safari independently with some other people on my ship for around $600
- And I'm going to sky dive and do one of the cage diving with sharks things

Mauritius - docking in Port Louis
- Mauritius is basically our spring break, so they don't offer many SAS excursions...most people just get a house and hang out on the beach and such. I plan on lazying around too, but..
- Service Visits and City Orientation $59

India - docking in Chennai
- Delhi/Agra/Varanasi (Four Days/Three Nights) $1241 (This is my first choice and if I get it, I won't be able to do these other options.)
- Welcome Reception $34
- Service Visit: Mother Theresa's Orphanage $12
Seminar on Poverty and Gender $16

Malaysia - docking in Penang
- Welcome Reception $25
- International Student Exchange: Universiti Sains Malaysia (Two Days/One Night) $75
- Singapore (Three Days/Two Nights) $454
- Temples and Shrines of Penang $26

Vietnam - docking in Ho Chi Minh City
- Cu Chi Tunnels and Cao Dai Temple $41
- Mekong Delta Overnight $149
- Cambodia: Temples of Angkor $689
- Ho Chi Minh City Temples and Churches $14

Hong Kong - docking in Hong Kong! and Qingdao
- I will be leaving directly from Hong Kong to the Internation Student Exchange to Beijing and will travel for four days in China before arriving in Qingdao to get on the boat.
- Internation Student Exchange $560

China - docking in Qingdao

Japan - docking in Kobe
- Welcome Reception $5
- I am going to be getting a rail pass ($250) so I can travel to Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nara, and within Kobe.

Honolulu
-Stars and Stripes (All about the role of Hawaii in World War II) $67
- Snorkeling Adventure $75
- Polynesian Cultural Center with Luau $107



so that's my little bit of SAS planning so far!
5 months 3 weeks 2 days :)
- Polynesian