The handbook gives you good guidance as to what to bring with you, but there are a few things that our experiences have suggested might be useful. But don't pack too much! Remember: storage space is limited, and dress on the ship is aggressively casual. There is a small store aboard, and there are always opportunitites to pick up things in ports. Herein, our personal and limited list of things that you might want to bring with you:
ziplock baggies
Off!
Pepto Bismal
sunscreen
pens
Sharpie
scratch paper
French press coffee maker
travel coffee carrier/mug
coffee
work-out clothes
corkscrew
magnets (no tape allowed on walls)
masking or box tape
fold-up umbrella
gifts for children in countries: stickers, balloons, crayons, etc.
European two-round-prong plug (your cabin has normal outlets; the rest of the ship is European)
extra passport photos (for Cambodia visa, for example)
scissors
thank-you notes/notecards
stuff for the auction
3 1/2-months' of meds (your doctor will authorize it)
Don't bring a ton of clothes; you can have stuff washed for $7 per bag (ironing is slightly extra; no dry cleaning). Ship life is casual. It's COLD in the Union, so bring a sweater or sweatshirt (or buy one of the Semester at Sea products on board). There are two dress-up events (business casual: Captain's Dinner and Alumni Ball).
And now, wise tips from previous voyagers:
Itty Bitty Book Light
Travel alarm clock
Small binoculars
Plug-in night light
$50-$100 in local currencies (avoid long lines of students at ATMs)
suction hooks for back of bathroom door
empty light-weight duffel bags for trip home
hand sanitizer
small toilet paper for in-country use
small first aid kit
Woolite
external hard drive to back up (if your computer crashes, you lose everything!)
zip drive
Clothing note: on the fall 2009 voyage, China was COLD (very cold).
Hi David,
ReplyDeleteThis is Krista Simundson, Field Office Coordinator for S11. This will be my 3rd SAS trip, and you have nailed some very important items! Pepto Bismol is a must, and I recommend the chewable kind (take 2 before a questionable meal!) Something else I throw into my med kit is a bottle of GSE (grapefruit seed extract)! This stuff is amazing! If you experience "funky- belly" you can put 10 drops of this into some juice, and it helps to kill whatever is bothering you!
GSE is available at Whole Foods and other health-food stores.
Hope this helps someone!
See you soon!