Rough Seas Ahead...

Sea Update for January 22, 2006:

We are expecting severely rough seas this afternoon into the night and upon arrival in Puerto Rico. Currently, we are 20 degrees 04 minutes north, 068 degrees 23.0 minutes west. We have traveled 621 Nautical Miles (NM) since leaving Nassau and are 159 NM from Puerto Rico. Our average speed is 8.5 knots (the reason we are going so slow is to make sure we have enough time at sea to get classes and housekeeping work done before arriving in port). The Sea depth is 2800meters or 9,185 feet, temperature 79 degrees F. Air temp is 80 degrees. The winds are coming from ENE at 27 knots, because of this we have swells ranging from 13-15 feet. The seas are expected to get much rougher as the evening goes on.

Yesterday (1/21) I laid out for a half an hour and got some color, nothing to severe, just a light sun kiss. Today I’ve been mostly doing school work and getting ‘stuff’ out of the way. Today at lunch I sat at the Spanish table to brush up en mi espanol before PR. This table will continue to meet at lunch throughout the trip, so I hope to come back a bit better in Spanish than when I left.

Last night was the first night where alcohol was served. There was a happy hour from 5-6 where you were allowed two drinks (wine OR beer), and then an evening social from 9-11 where you were allowed 4 drinks. It was a wonderful evening. It wasn’t that people got drunk or wasted, it was that it was a great way to break some ice and get people REALLY socializing. I met so many people, but of course remember so few names.

As a note for the blog, leave you email address in the comments section as it is easier for me to access it that way. I have free internet access to the Semester at Sea website where I can send postcards to people, which is much easier than doing it through AOL or gmail. Also, if you are going to email me, please send email to: jclefrancois@gmail.com.

Back to sailing!