Sea News

Charleston

2009-10-17T11:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am starting to forget to write on my blog, this isn't good! I left Charleston yesterday and am now in Miami, but I haven't even written about Charleston yet. So here goes:

I took the train down from New York with Zeta and Kirsty (friend of crew mate). We all decided we didn't want to sail down and face the terrifying Gulf Stream. Turns out we were right in doing that, because after 4 days of sailing, the guys were in pretty bad shape, as well as the boat. So anyways, the three of us were able to enjoy the adorable town of Charleston together. The first night, we went to a restaurant/bar to get dinner and drinks. We walked into one that used to be a church, right on market street and were excited to see they had live music AND every single sports game going on in the world that night. It was also about 85 degrees and extremely muggy! I am not used to that weather, but I compared it to weather in Seattle and decided I prefer mugginess to rain. Charleston is a cute little southern town, with great shops, lots of history, adorable old homes and a market that stretches out for 4 or 5 blocks with hand woven baskets, jewelry and art, and an occasional horse and carriage rolling down the street. They also serve things like hush puppy's, fried green tomatoes and grits!

I was able to visit several schools in Charleston and found the kids to be extremely polite. It was great to finally interact with children and teach them about what we are doing. I gave a slide show presentation in a few classes and the kids were amazed; constantly asking questions and telling me stories about their experiences with the ocean (mostly having to do with sharks). We also conducted cloud observations, a program through NASA where kids record the types of clouds they see and upload their data onto an online database, which NASA scientists use to verify satellite images. Later that week we gave a community presentation at the public library and I spoke for a few minutes about the education. I met the mayor of Charleston, he was VERY southern and told us about his past sailing adventures.

On the last day we were there, Michael Reynolds (scientist), Dave Thoreson (photographer) and I went to Hollings Marine Laboratory. http://www.nist.gov/cstl/hml/index.cfm
Michael gave his science talk and we were given a tour of the facility. They have a coral lab with species of coral from all over the world, where they conduct tests to see the effects different toxins have on them. Charleston recently found they have a large amount of deep water coral, and the University has a fantastic Graduate program for Marine Science. I met one of the students who researches Sandbar sharks in the area, and was able to interview him. I am planning on writing a story for the website, but for now check out his blog at: http://southernfriedscience.com/

For those of you who haven't heard, I will be returning to Seattle after Miami. I decided it would be best to have a spanish speaking teacher in South America, and I have found that sailing and my stomach don't get along. So I am excited to come home and see everyone! Miss you all very much :)

New York

2009-10-07T06:01:00.000-07:00

I am fortunate to have New York on the list of ports we are stopping in, because when else would I have ever been able to sail under the Statue of Liberty? It was a very unreal experience sailing past the city, seeing how crowded and narrow the streets are from the ocean, ducking under bridges, stopping to view Lady Liberty and then docking next to the Intrepid. We had the Concord on the bow, a Submarine on the stern, the Intrepid on port and a massive German cruise ship on starboard. So when our first open house happened last Sunday, which happened to be an 80 degree gorgeous October day, we probably had hundreds of people stop by to see the boat, ask Zeta and I questions, check out the tent and write in our memory book. New York is great because no one here is really from New York, and so we were able to speak with people from all over the world and ask them their views on global warming.

That night we had dinner at David Rockefeller Jr.'s home. It was right next to Central Park and was just beautiful. We ate while David Thoreson (photographer) gave a slide show of the trip so far and Herb and Mark told stories of the people they had met in the arctic. If you get a chance, visit the gallery on the website because their are some wonderful pics of wildlife they encountered, people they met and lots and lots of ice!

I was also able to explore the city on Monday when the intrepid museum was closed. I walked through Central Park, visited the American Museum of Natural History and picked up a few postcards to mail to friends. The museum was huge. They have a planetarium that is a massive sphere suspended in the air and surrounded by glass windows so you can see the trees that make up Central Park. We went to an Extreme Mammals exhibit and saw life-size and very real looking mammals that are either now extinct or just happen to have strange features. You walk into the exhibit and immediately see the largest living land mammal ever, Indricotherium (4 times the size of an elephant), and the smallest land mammal ever, Batodonoides ( the size of a marble). Go to http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/extrememammals/index.php

I am starting to really get to know the crew and am so excited for the rest of this trip. We are leaving for Charleston tomorrow around 3pm, and will be sailing for 4 days straight (wish me luck). I have a few free hours before I am watching a presentation the guys are giving to inner city kids, and am going to get some coffee and just wander around New York so I can get some more pictures.

First Days on Ocean Watch

2009-09-26T14:23:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I am currently in Newport, Rhode Island. It is absolutely beautiful here, all of the trees are beginning to turn those red brick and burnt orange colors, and it is a crisp sunny fall morning. Tuesday night we left Boston and sailed 18 hours straight to get here. It was officially my first hands on sailing experience... and I loved it! We went on 3 hour watch shifts, so from midnight to 3am, 6am to 11am I was on the lookout for lobster and crab traps, shining a bright light on the bow of the boat and yelling things like "Lobster 11:30, move starboard!". During the times in between my watch I was either eating the baked apple crisp Zeta had made (apples were a gift from their time spent in Halifax), or passed out in my bunk. The ride was a little bumpy at times, and I managed to make it 17 hours without getting woozy (last hour was rough). We were met sailing into Newport by a photographer from a boating magazine, and once we docked we were bombarded by journalists, photographers and t.v crew. It was exciting and we welcomed the media warmly in the hopes that the public will hear and visit us in this city or the following cities.

I am going to write a little about Boston. Boston is now one of my favorite cities! It has so much history, the buildings are brick and have gorgeous architecture, the people are very friendly and you can walk through neighborhoods that make you feel as though you have just stepped into Italy or Ireland. I was fortunate to spent the first few days with Kris Ludwig who has been the project manager for this mission and is also an oceanographer who shares the same interests as me. We flew in Thursday night, and happened to sit next to a chatterbox of a man who spoke loudly in another language on his phone while the flight attendant was giving safety directions and informing us to turn our phones off, as well as a man behind us who had passed out the minute his head hit the seat and was snoring for everyone within 10 rows of us to hear. Needless to say we spent that flight laughing and were happy to get off. Kris and I arrived in Boston starving, rushed to an Irish Pub and had delicious food and cold Irish beer. When we walked into the hotel room, we noticed something strange. There was one small bed. The concierge said that was all that was available, and so we slept in a bed made for one person in a "haunted" room (the bell man later told us). The next day we spent at MIT's Sea Grant office, looking over ROVs and AUVs (remote operated vehicles and autonomous underwater vehicles). These guys are smart. They developed an ROV for kids to build, and AtA will be using it to collect water samples and will be sending the data to an online database that kids can access. Check out their blog at http://mit-auv-lab.blogspot.com/ These guys are not only geniuses, they are also very down to earth and love what they do.

That night Kris and I walked around the Italian neighborhood, had homemade lasagna and wine, stopped in a little shop to get gelato, and walked through the cobblestone streets, listening to the heavy Boston accent and pausing to look at Paul Revere's house with the city lights shining behind it. It was my first time really seeing the city and Kris's last night in Boston.

That morning, we met the crew who had finally arrived from Halifax. They were all tired and VERY excited to have a hot breakfast, so the first thing we did was walk to the nearest restaurant and order a round of mimosas, along with some very large plates of steaming pancakes, eggs benedict, omelets and the list goes on and on. Even though the weather was terrible for them sailing down from Halifax, they were all in very high spirits, excited to be in Boston and to meet up with us.

So far, life on Ocean Watch has been eye opening. Not only am I trying to learn all of the sailing terms, I have also been living with people to excel in their fields, including a first class sailing captain, a photographer, a journalist and a scientist. I have a feeling I am going to come away with some knowledge of a variety of subjects and hopefully an understanding of life that I couldn't get in any other situation. I am looking forward to New York and will post pictures soon!
Miss you all,

Sarah

Goodbye Seattle!

2009-09-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

I am flying to Boston Thursday morning. Tomorrow morning. Less than 24 hours! This summer has gone by so quickly and I am now actually packed and ready to begin this adventure... crazy! It almost feels like a dream. I have had a completely wonderful summer, including visiting my good friend in Massachusetts, kayaking the Puget Sound, hiking in the Olympic National Park, teaching in Broetje Orchards, spending the weekend in beautiful Vancouver B.C, camping on Lake Crescent, sailing Lake Tahoe and visiting Monterey Bay Aquarium. Phew! It has been incredible, and now it is time to say goodbye Seattle, hello east coast sailing, Woohoo!

For those of you who don't know, or are still unsure of what I will be doing, here it is: http://aroundtheamericas.org/

I have been hired through the Pacific Science Center to be the On Board Educator for a mission called Around the Americas. A 64' sailboat called Ocean Watch has been travelling through the Arctic this summer, beginning in Seattle and now currently in Halifax. The boat is collecting data on the ocean's health including cloud formations, recordings of whales and sound pollution, jellyfish samples, water salinity and pH readings. I will be helping gather data while on board as well as contributing to sailing, cooking and cleaning. While in ports I will be teaching! I will be in charge of setting up education and outreach events, boat tours for the public, small group marine demonstrations, school presentations and meeting with local teachers. It is a wonderful opportunity to see parts of the world I would normally never see, learn to sail, meet interesting people and improve my teaching. It will also give me a chance to get back to studying and teaching Marine Biology, a subject I fell in love with while studying with the Aussies!

I am so excited for the next few months and appreciate all the support everyone has given me so far. I still have a few things I need to pack, including a few pictures of friends and family, a giant pair of boat boots that resemble moon boots, grapefruit vanilla tea bags and lots and lots of chocolate! Stay tuned for more posts while I'm at sea :) Adios!

Sarah

Port Schedule: (as of 9/23)

Sept 25-29 Boston, MA

Sept 30-Oct 2 Newport, RI

Oct 3-8 New York, NY

Oct 12-15 Charleston, SC

Oct 18-25 Miami, FL

Nov 1-7 San Juan, Puerto Rico

Dec 1-9 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Dec 17-23 Punta del Este, Uruguay

Dec 24- Jan 2 Buenos Aires, Argentina