Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Film Competition
There was an event on the ship similar to the 48 hour film contest, that is when you have to write, film and finish a movie within 48 hours, you draw a genre out of a hat, and you must incorporate specific elements. We did that, but it was 120 hours because we had to do it between classes, and then because of further issues with time it became the 168 hour contest and ended with the 192 hour contest. My team picked action, and the competition was lat night. We took home best production, best picture, best actress, as well as fan favorite. It was really awesome to make a film that we thought was good and then have other people enjoy it just as much. definitely reassured me that I want to be a filmmaker, take care, make it count.
Hawaii
Hawaii was a blast, only a few short hours, but we made them count. we went up and saw one of the volcanoes. No flowing lava, but maybe that was a good thing. We also ate some local food and shopped at Walmart and Macy's, it feels good to be back in the US. It was funny to realize how excited I was to see Philly cheese steaks on menus, and speed signs in MPH. It felt good to be closer to something that is home. I wont get into the break down of my trip yet, I still have a week left on board and I am not about to write about how I feel now that it is over, I don't even know if I will be able to write about it, but that post is coming so stay tuned, the break down of the most life changing experience ever is still to come. Take care, make it count.
Monday, April 23, 2012
China...Finally
Hey, so sorry this is so late, It is exam time and things are a little nuts again (like most times on board). I need something to distract me from writing other essays so I thought it was a good idea to finally write about my amazing time in China.
First off, I met up with Katie in Beijing, it was late because my plane came in at midnight, but we stayed up and talked for a while. It was so great to see her, a shot of family in the middle of the trip was really nice.
She had everything figured out with the tour guides and what not which was amazing. The entire time we had our own guide and driver who took us anywhere we wanted to go. We visited Tienenman square, which was huge and had a lot of under cover police, ready to take down anyone with a "free Tibet" shirt. Right across from it is the Forbidden City, which was amazingly beautiful, you could see exactly where Mulan fought the Huns in the final scene of the Disney classic. It was crazy to think that such a massive area with such amazing architecture was only for a few people to see. It was interesting how important it was that things be only for the Emperor, like the dragon as decoration or an entire city, and it seemed like the punishment for doing anything the emperor didn't like, was death, and not only that he would kill 9 generations of your family. That was back in the day of course, but still, pretty intense. We also visited the Temple of Heaven which was one of my favorite sites, because it was just so amazingly designed, it was a circle but it was really cool. We were also introduced to amazing food. We kept on saying that no one mentions how fantastic the food is, but literally everything we ate was unbelievable, even though most of the time we didn't know what it was. Also they just kept bringing us food, we would be just finishing up and then two new plates of food would be brought out, it was nuts. The Great Wall was, well great. It is crazy to think that something so big was built up on top of a mountain, I can't imagine being on top while thousands of warriors are trying to attack it, We flew to Xi'an and saw the Terra-cotta Warriors, which was fantastic, there were so many of them, and each of them with a different face, modeled after the artists who made them. We went to the Big White Goose Pagoda, where BUddhism was brought to China, it was surrounded by gorgeous gardens that had caged birds in the trees, which we found peculiar. We also went to Shanghai,which was our favorite city, it was like New York, only 10 times bigger and if you put LED lights on the outside of all the buildings that created a massive light show every night. It was a great place to see, It was here that we had our most interesting dish, we had pizza, with tuna and mayonnaise on it. We had to try it, expecting it to be horrible, but it was actually quite good, maybe we were just hungry. I was sad when I had to leave Katie at the dock, I had had such an amazing time with her. One of our favorite things was all the planned shops we went to. In every city they would take us to a place to see how something was made. Be it pearls, Terra-cotta warriors, Cloisonné, or jade, it seemed like they would run us through a work shop and then drop us in the gift shop, Americans without a doubt, always exit through the gift shop. We thought is was funny, and things even came with an official government approved souvenir card. We also had a great time looking at all of the attempts at English on signs, it was funny, some of them actually inappropriate, by mistake of course, but still funny. I loved traveling with Katie, it was great to be with someone who knows me better then three months. Our family is awesome because no matter how long or far we go, we always have the same sense of humor and when we find each other, where ever it may be in the world it is like no time had passed at all. This trip made me appreciate that much more than ever before, my family rocks. Right now I am on my way to Hawaii, I will land in Hilo tomorrow. I am sure that I missed a lot of stuff, so Katie if you want to add anything please do. Till next time, Take care, and make it count.
First off, I met up with Katie in Beijing, it was late because my plane came in at midnight, but we stayed up and talked for a while. It was so great to see her, a shot of family in the middle of the trip was really nice.
She had everything figured out with the tour guides and what not which was amazing. The entire time we had our own guide and driver who took us anywhere we wanted to go. We visited Tienenman square, which was huge and had a lot of under cover police, ready to take down anyone with a "free Tibet" shirt. Right across from it is the Forbidden City, which was amazingly beautiful, you could see exactly where Mulan fought the Huns in the final scene of the Disney classic. It was crazy to think that such a massive area with such amazing architecture was only for a few people to see. It was interesting how important it was that things be only for the Emperor, like the dragon as decoration or an entire city, and it seemed like the punishment for doing anything the emperor didn't like, was death, and not only that he would kill 9 generations of your family. That was back in the day of course, but still, pretty intense. We also visited the Temple of Heaven which was one of my favorite sites, because it was just so amazingly designed, it was a circle but it was really cool. We were also introduced to amazing food. We kept on saying that no one mentions how fantastic the food is, but literally everything we ate was unbelievable, even though most of the time we didn't know what it was. Also they just kept bringing us food, we would be just finishing up and then two new plates of food would be brought out, it was nuts. The Great Wall was, well great. It is crazy to think that something so big was built up on top of a mountain, I can't imagine being on top while thousands of warriors are trying to attack it, We flew to Xi'an and saw the Terra-cotta Warriors, which was fantastic, there were so many of them, and each of them with a different face, modeled after the artists who made them. We went to the Big White Goose Pagoda, where BUddhism was brought to China, it was surrounded by gorgeous gardens that had caged birds in the trees, which we found peculiar. We also went to Shanghai,which was our favorite city, it was like New York, only 10 times bigger and if you put LED lights on the outside of all the buildings that created a massive light show every night. It was a great place to see, It was here that we had our most interesting dish, we had pizza, with tuna and mayonnaise on it. We had to try it, expecting it to be horrible, but it was actually quite good, maybe we were just hungry. I was sad when I had to leave Katie at the dock, I had had such an amazing time with her. One of our favorite things was all the planned shops we went to. In every city they would take us to a place to see how something was made. Be it pearls, Terra-cotta warriors, Cloisonné, or jade, it seemed like they would run us through a work shop and then drop us in the gift shop, Americans without a doubt, always exit through the gift shop. We thought is was funny, and things even came with an official government approved souvenir card. We also had a great time looking at all of the attempts at English on signs, it was funny, some of them actually inappropriate, by mistake of course, but still funny. I loved traveling with Katie, it was great to be with someone who knows me better then three months. Our family is awesome because no matter how long or far we go, we always have the same sense of humor and when we find each other, where ever it may be in the world it is like no time had passed at all. This trip made me appreciate that much more than ever before, my family rocks. Right now I am on my way to Hawaii, I will land in Hilo tomorrow. I am sure that I missed a lot of stuff, so Katie if you want to add anything please do. Till next time, Take care, and make it count.
Sad News
I just heard that Mr. Frank Anselmo passed away after a long battle with cancer. Mr. A was my band director from 3rd grade up to Aquinas. He was the one who gave me a love of music and percussion. He was a great man who taught me a lot, not only about music, but also about life, he was always willing to give a wise word and also an Altoid. I specifically remember him being there for me when my Dad died, which says something about him, because he knew how to help an eight year old who just lost his role model. He will be missed, please keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
Happy Birthday!!!
I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to Grandma, Debbie, Sarah and little Allie, I wish I could have been at your party, I hope it didn't rain to hard. See you all in only a few days now. Take care!
Friday, April 20, 2012
Fun with time
So I just wanted y'all to know a fun fact. Tonight I will be crossing the international date line, so today was April 20th, and for me tomorrow will also be April 20th. Just a fun fact, and because this year is leap year I will be living 367 days this year. For those of you who are doing math and thinking "but Josh didn't you lose almost an entire day by traveling around the world," you're rightish, but it doesn't sound as cool, so keep that to yourself, and anyway we only lost 15 hours, so I still got a few extra hours into this year. Take care, make it count.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Japan
I am going to blog a little out of order since Japan is fresh in my head, then I will write to you about China and all of the fun me and Katie had traveling China. So anyway, Japan.
Well it is the height of Cherry Blossom season, there are official scientists who declare each year when the blossoms are all at their best, and it just so happened that that was exactly while we were there. It is the peak travel and tourist season in Japan. I can see why, it was beautiful, the striking yet mild colors of the blossoms adorned the trees of each zen garden we visited and path we walked down, it created a world that was peaceful and uniquely gorgeous in its simplicity.
A major part of my time in Japan however was rain. It rained all the time, it didn't stop, but it was still fantastic and I have travelled for months with amazing weather so it was about time we had rain. Oh and it was cold, so rainy and cold, but still unbelievable. Now for what I actually did. I hope that is of interest to all of you, because I feel like it is all I talk about on this thing. If anyone has anything they would like to say about what they have been up to, feel free to comment or just email me at joshua.best.s12@semesteratsea.org, I would like to know what is going on in your lives. Anyway back to Japan.
I travelled with two of my good friends Adam and Emily. We backpacked from Kobe, to Kyoto, to Tokyo and finally Yokohama. I am not really sure if "backpacking" has any requirements, but we traveled to those places and we had backpacks on so I think it counts. We left Kobe on the first day. They do not have Kobe beef because they had to kill all of the cows because of a disease that was spreading among them. Too bad but apparently it is like 300 dollars for a steak so that was not going to happen anyway. For those of you who do not know, Kobe beef is beef that comes from fancy cows that get massages everyday and eat the best grasses and are fed beer and wine, apparently it is delicious. We ended up in Kyoto the fist night after figuring out the train system which is fun since all of it is in Japanese. This was really the first time that there was important information that was not doubled in English, some of it was, but not all of it, and we looked lost a lot of the time, but we got everywhere without much trouble, my Mom's and Grandpa's intense training of map use came in handy quite a bit on this trip. My first night was in a hostel, first time I have ever done that and I would do it again , it was clean and the atmosphere of a hostel is much more fun than that of a hotel, it didn't hurt that it was only 40 bucks a night.
The next day was intense. My friend Adam is also a film major and decided to make a travel show / travel log of our adventures and so for most of what happened both Emily and I are wearing microphones under our shirt and have a camera on us.
We started out by getting ourselves to the golden pagoda. This is a three story pagoda that is entirely decorated with gold leaf, it was the home of the third Shogun, but after his death, and upon his request it became a zen temple. I know that because I was the host of a travel show when I was there. It is amazing how simple everything is. It is awe inspiring to see the ponds and the trees and the zen temples that are all built with the idea of controlling nature and using empty space as an art form. The concept of shibusa was very evident, that is the style of simple, subtle beauty. After that we went to one of the most famous zen rock gardens. People spend hours looking at these 15 larger rocks surrounded by white gravel. I must admit I do not know why contemplating these stones was so interesting but we sat there for a long time just looking at them. It had been raining all day, but it was really pouring then and it just looked so beautiful. For most of the time I was there I could only count 14 rocks, so I spent most of my time contemplating over why they said there were 15.
We then traveled to the Philosophers path, this is a small path that runs along a winding stream, along it are homes and little shops, as well as a plethora of temples. The most stunning aspect of it however were the hundreds of cherry blossoms that lined the walk way. Unfortunately by the time we got there it was raining hard, and we were soaked. We had our bags with us the entire day and everything we owned was wet, I mean everything. So we were huddled in the entranceway of this little flower shop and this florist came out and handed us all umbrellas, when we asked him how much he just signaled for us to go without paying, it was a gesture that made our day, we were pretty down about having nothing that was dry, but this one stranger turned that around for us.
We took a bullet train to Tokyo, a two hour ride going nearly 200 MPH, it was an expensive ticket but worth the ride if you're ever there. Sure enough we got to Tokyo and it was raining, We ate McDonald's, since it was the food that was in the station, (FYI a Big Mac tastes like a Big Mac). The station was like a maze though and it took us a long time to figure out how to leave. We found our way to a hotel, thinking we could stay there, as we walked in however Adam pointed out the chandelier in the elevator and it was clear we could not afford it. We ended up taking a train to Shibuya which is where the famous scene of the crosswalks in Tokyo are. No surprise there were no open hotels there either, (again, the height of Japan tourism). I don't know who's idea it was to wing it, but it lead to some interesting turns that ended with us in a small room in a hotel far from downtown.
The rest of Japan was great, and mostly dry. We ate the best sushi ever, complained about how expensive all the gifts were, but it was really not that bad, we are just used to things costing around 50 cents. We met up with friends to do Karaoke, and then we ended up on the ship bound for the US. I can't believe it is almost over, Only two weeks left of my voyage, and then I get to see all of you for real. Take care, make it count.
P.S. one of the most noticeable things is that people in Japan are quiet. No one makes noise. We were in a crowded intersection, and it was silent except for cars. In the trains and subway cars, no one made a sound. Even the announcements that told you where you were were in a whisper. very calming, but kinda creepy. Think about being in a full subway, you are shoulder to shoulder in the entire car, professional pushers are shoving people onto the train, and it is silent. Very odd.
Well it is the height of Cherry Blossom season, there are official scientists who declare each year when the blossoms are all at their best, and it just so happened that that was exactly while we were there. It is the peak travel and tourist season in Japan. I can see why, it was beautiful, the striking yet mild colors of the blossoms adorned the trees of each zen garden we visited and path we walked down, it created a world that was peaceful and uniquely gorgeous in its simplicity.
A major part of my time in Japan however was rain. It rained all the time, it didn't stop, but it was still fantastic and I have travelled for months with amazing weather so it was about time we had rain. Oh and it was cold, so rainy and cold, but still unbelievable. Now for what I actually did. I hope that is of interest to all of you, because I feel like it is all I talk about on this thing. If anyone has anything they would like to say about what they have been up to, feel free to comment or just email me at joshua.best.s12@semesteratsea.org, I would like to know what is going on in your lives. Anyway back to Japan.
I travelled with two of my good friends Adam and Emily. We backpacked from Kobe, to Kyoto, to Tokyo and finally Yokohama. I am not really sure if "backpacking" has any requirements, but we traveled to those places and we had backpacks on so I think it counts. We left Kobe on the first day. They do not have Kobe beef because they had to kill all of the cows because of a disease that was spreading among them. Too bad but apparently it is like 300 dollars for a steak so that was not going to happen anyway. For those of you who do not know, Kobe beef is beef that comes from fancy cows that get massages everyday and eat the best grasses and are fed beer and wine, apparently it is delicious. We ended up in Kyoto the fist night after figuring out the train system which is fun since all of it is in Japanese. This was really the first time that there was important information that was not doubled in English, some of it was, but not all of it, and we looked lost a lot of the time, but we got everywhere without much trouble, my Mom's and Grandpa's intense training of map use came in handy quite a bit on this trip. My first night was in a hostel, first time I have ever done that and I would do it again , it was clean and the atmosphere of a hostel is much more fun than that of a hotel, it didn't hurt that it was only 40 bucks a night.
The next day was intense. My friend Adam is also a film major and decided to make a travel show / travel log of our adventures and so for most of what happened both Emily and I are wearing microphones under our shirt and have a camera on us.
We started out by getting ourselves to the golden pagoda. This is a three story pagoda that is entirely decorated with gold leaf, it was the home of the third Shogun, but after his death, and upon his request it became a zen temple. I know that because I was the host of a travel show when I was there. It is amazing how simple everything is. It is awe inspiring to see the ponds and the trees and the zen temples that are all built with the idea of controlling nature and using empty space as an art form. The concept of shibusa was very evident, that is the style of simple, subtle beauty. After that we went to one of the most famous zen rock gardens. People spend hours looking at these 15 larger rocks surrounded by white gravel. I must admit I do not know why contemplating these stones was so interesting but we sat there for a long time just looking at them. It had been raining all day, but it was really pouring then and it just looked so beautiful. For most of the time I was there I could only count 14 rocks, so I spent most of my time contemplating over why they said there were 15.
We then traveled to the Philosophers path, this is a small path that runs along a winding stream, along it are homes and little shops, as well as a plethora of temples. The most stunning aspect of it however were the hundreds of cherry blossoms that lined the walk way. Unfortunately by the time we got there it was raining hard, and we were soaked. We had our bags with us the entire day and everything we owned was wet, I mean everything. So we were huddled in the entranceway of this little flower shop and this florist came out and handed us all umbrellas, when we asked him how much he just signaled for us to go without paying, it was a gesture that made our day, we were pretty down about having nothing that was dry, but this one stranger turned that around for us.
We took a bullet train to Tokyo, a two hour ride going nearly 200 MPH, it was an expensive ticket but worth the ride if you're ever there. Sure enough we got to Tokyo and it was raining, We ate McDonald's, since it was the food that was in the station, (FYI a Big Mac tastes like a Big Mac). The station was like a maze though and it took us a long time to figure out how to leave. We found our way to a hotel, thinking we could stay there, as we walked in however Adam pointed out the chandelier in the elevator and it was clear we could not afford it. We ended up taking a train to Shibuya which is where the famous scene of the crosswalks in Tokyo are. No surprise there were no open hotels there either, (again, the height of Japan tourism). I don't know who's idea it was to wing it, but it lead to some interesting turns that ended with us in a small room in a hotel far from downtown.
The rest of Japan was great, and mostly dry. We ate the best sushi ever, complained about how expensive all the gifts were, but it was really not that bad, we are just used to things costing around 50 cents. We met up with friends to do Karaoke, and then we ended up on the ship bound for the US. I can't believe it is almost over, Only two weeks left of my voyage, and then I get to see all of you for real. Take care, make it count.
P.S. one of the most noticeable things is that people in Japan are quiet. No one makes noise. We were in a crowded intersection, and it was silent except for cars. In the trains and subway cars, no one made a sound. Even the announcements that told you where you were were in a whisper. very calming, but kinda creepy. Think about being in a full subway, you are shoulder to shoulder in the entire car, professional pushers are shoving people onto the train, and it is silent. Very odd.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Sorry it has been a while
Hey everyone, sorry i haven't written About China yet, I had a blast with Katie, it was awesome to see her and catch up with some family. I will not be able to blog now either because I'm on my way off the ship to Japan, I will be going from Kobe to Kyoto (it is the cherry blossom capital of the world and it is peak season). Then we will be going to Tokyo and doing big city stuff, then finally meeting up with the boat in Yokohama. It will be awesome, it is too bad that my cousin Andrew already left, he was here for two years, it would have been nice to see family in two countries! I will write more about my amazing time in China after Japan, but I also have 6 papers to write, and I have to edit my film, so it may not be very fast coming. I hope everything is well with everyone, I will be home in about three weeks, this trip is flying by. Take care, make it count.
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