Greetings from Barcelona, Spain!
On September 15, the MV World Odyssey arrived in the first port of call on the Fall 2017 Voyage. Just six days in to the voyage, students who have spent the first few days meeting fellow voyagers, starting classes, and learning the difference between port and starboard are already looking forward to exploring the famous Catalonian region. After two days spent discovering Barcelona, the MV World Odyssey will re-port in Valencia, where voyagers have two days to enjoy their last taste of Spain (possibly by enjoying some paella, Valencia’s traditional dish).
In addition to independent travel, voyagers will be engaging with the history and culture of Barcelona and Valencia by participating in field programs that visit the breathtaking Montserrat and Sagrada Familia, tour Barcelona with local college students as a guide, view street art and the famous Picasso museum, or venture into the San Jose’ Caves and float on Europe’s longest subterranean river.
Hear it from Voyagers!
On day two in Barcelona, University of Iowa student Issac Badry will be getting an “underground” tour of Barcelona’s streets through “The Hidden City, Creating Jobs for Barcelona’s Homeless” field program.
“We’ll really be interacting with a culture that I’ve never interacted with before,” said Badry about his expectations for his first ever field program. “New customs, new issues that people face which are different from the ones from my own state. I’m very excited to be in our first port because it’s been a long time waiting. I mean you’ve got all kinds of planning for like a year to do this whole thing. And then you’re at your first port of call. So that will be really fun and it’ll be mind blowing.”
Badry also shared what he loves about ship life so far: “You’re able to get lunch with your professors and then see them up by the pool a couple of hours later. It’s only been five days so I can’t wait until we’ve been here for 50 or 60 days and see how we interact with one another then.”
