The port of Ensenada, Mexico stood prepared for the 629 students arriving from San Diego on ten buses. This group of anxious students would soon board a ship filled with faculty, staff, and crew members – all about to form one single, cohesive community aboard the MV Explorer.
As the students arrived, passport in hand and new best friend by their side, it was clear that they were about to enter a new world, a world of opportunity. The adventure begins, as they embark on a journey around the world, visiting 15 cities, in 12 different counties, over 112 days with Semester at Sea.
Boarding the ship the question was posed, “Why SAS?” Why choose this brave voyage above all other study abroad options? The answers vary, but the enthusiasm and clarity does not. Monica Fezuk, from Texas State University, response was simple, “I chose SAS because of the classes that are offered. I’m a marine biology major in Texas. This was perfect”. Raisa Alstodt, from Saint Leo University, answered just as unwavering, “I’m a tourism major, SAS is literally the perfect choice for me”.
Juliette Alfaro, from Panama and Loyola University Chicago, said she chose Semester at Sea to “go back and see my country differently. To compare all of the different ports and countries and be able to go home and see everything with a new perspective.” While Eliana Geller, from the University of Michigan, expressed that she “just couldn’t get excited about any one place to spend four months” and that SAS was the perfect way to “grow and interact with other cultures”. Oswaldo Chavez, from Lindenwood University, also shared his reason for joining the SAS family, “What a great opportunity to travel the world with more than 600 other students! I’ve never been to these countries and I hope to see every country in the world before I get married.”
Why SAS? The responses may sound different, but the ambition and purpose is the same – to travel the world and make new friends, to receive some of the best academic instruction from world-class faculty, and to compare multiple different cultures across the globe.
