Q&A with Concordia
From the week ending April 25, 1997
How many countries did you go to so far and which one was your favorite?
...Rebecca K., Solomon Schecheter School, Newton, MASo far this semester we have visited Malaysia, the Republic of Maldives, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine. We still have 13 ports to visit in about 10 countries. I think that Saudi Arabia was my favorite place we visited. We all got to stay in a fancy hotel with 2 people to a room. All of our meals were eaten in the dining room and we were treated like royalty. It was interesting because it was such a change from living on the boat. There was so much space in the rooms and we had so many luxuries like TV and fast food.
I also thought that the culture was really neat because it was unlike anything that I have seen before. The women have to be completely covered from head to toe with only their eyes or faces showing. The Class Afloat girls were told to buy abaayas, which are black robes that we wore over our clothes. We also bought head scarves and face masks. There were so many rules to follow, like no talking with the opposite sex in public. I also had a chance to visit one of my cousins who lives in Jeddah with his family. He taught me a lot about the Saudi way of life and told me some interesting facts. For example, after a woman gets married, she wears her wedding dress to the next wedding that she attends. The purpose of this is to identify herself as the last person to be wed. There are so many things to see and learn about on Class Afloat, and each port offers new experiences and memories.
...Jake C., Oregon, USA
by Jon Dillon
Everybody seems to have their own opinion on what was the most interesting port. The one I found most interesting was Odessa, Ukraine. I liked Odessa because of the history behind it. Even with the break up of the USSR and the collapse of communism, the Ukraine still seems to be under the influence of the Russian empire. An example of this was how in Odessa everyone I met spoke Russian as opposed to Ukrainian. Another interesting part was the old-fashioned design of the buildings. It was interesting to see the ornate concrete sculptures and classically designed balconies. As I walked down the cobblestone streets, I felt like I was walking back in time.