I have to say that as a whole this cruise was one of the most amazing experiences I've had at Cal Poly. I am graduating this quarter and I am very grateful that I was able to participate in the program before my time at Cal Poly is over. I highly recommend the CMA program, but on the condition that you are adventurous, patient, and can tolerate a totally new and foreign environment.

Attitude is everything when you're living on a five hundred foot ship with 200-300 other people. But the best part is that you meet a million new friends and you get to see amazing countries that you would probably never get the chance to visit otherwise. I only heard about the program and decided to come the quarter before we left, so it all seemed to happen pretty fast. I do have a boyfriend who didn't come and that was probably the hardest part. My advice to anyone in this situation is to definitely go! You don't want to pass up this opportunity because of someone else and you definitely don't want to regret it. Besides, two months is not that long and if it was meant to be you guys will make it.

Living on a ship is an interesting experience and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I have to admit that this was tough getting used to. Don't take everything CMA and Cal Poly say prior to cruise as set in stone. A lot of things change including rules, uniforms, routines, etc. You have to be able to deal with this because too much complaining brings everyone down. Don't plan on staying overnight off the ship ever because you probably won't get to. And plan on spending at least two days working in the kitchen and eating areas. This sounds like it sucks, but if you play music in the background and wash dishes it can be fun. You also have to clean you division's designated area every 2-3 days which is no big deal and doesn't take long at all. These things are minor in the scheme of things.

Also, have fun in port but don't drink too much. Three girls got trashed in the first port and had to be brought back to the ship to stay in sick bay overnight. They had to stay on the ship for the first day of every other port and could never stay out past 10 pm. Also, they got breathalyzed every time they came back. Don't let this happen to you!

The rooms are bigger than I expected, but pack light. I thought I packed light and I brought way too much stuff. I'm probably going to have to send stuff from Hawaii or leave stuff on the ship. Save lots of room for things you buy.

I could say much more about cruise but I'll leave it up to you to ask me questions. So here's my email address (krisb6@hotmail.com) and feel free to write me about any concerns or questions you have. If you are a good sport I think this is an amazing experience that you don't want to miss out on!