UVA Today Blogs: Semester at Sea

PHOTOS:

1. Ping pong…sans paddles!

2. Unidentified student flies a kite off Deck 5

It’s a beautiful summer evening here on the MV Explorer. In the past 36 hours, students burrowed down to write papers for their various classes. In Global Studies this morning, I saw Aaron Mayer, one of 3 teaching assistants working with Professor Allen Lynch, carrying a stack of papers that stood at least one foot high. As a former English teacher, I feel for Aaron and the others who have to grade all those essays. In the hallways and stairwells, you can feel the students’ relief, excitement, silliness and joy.

Actually, the mood aboard ship began lightening last night, when we saw Barry Lubin perform in the Union on Deck 6. Barry is a clown, quite literally, though he said the more formal term for his profession is “physical comedian.” He leaves us in Copenhagen for performances in Germany and Austria. Raised in Atlantic City, N.J., he used to watch circus divers perform their dives off the town’s famed Steel Pier.

In his act aboard the ship, Barry appeared as “Grandma,” an older woman wearing a bright red housedress, purse and a curly wig. S/He toddled on the stage as Professor Lavahn Hoh was giving a lecture on the origins of the circus. Enough with the serious stuff!

It’s difficult to do justice to sight gags, but suffice to say, Barry had us in the palm of his hand. Midway through the performance, he went into the audience, coaxing voyagers on stage to perform with him. In most cases, the voyagers went reluctantly. But when 600+ people are cheering you on, you just have to go with the flow.

Willie Wright, a lifelong learner from Fayetteville, N.C., entertained us with his efforts to squirt water from his mouth. Another gag involved a hula hoop. Everyone – including Barry himself – was surprised by the performance of one student (sorry, I don’t know her name). She leapt up from her seat, blithely stepped inside the hoop and proceeded to dazzle us with her moves.

One of the evening’s biggest laughs came when Barry cajoled U.Va. commerce professor Bill Wilkerson on stage. With the song “Unforgettable” playing, Barry grasped one of Bill’s hands, rested his head on Bill’s shoulder and began foxtrotting around the stage. Bill, who can fool you with his quiet, lowkey manner, waited until they were turned away from the audience and slyly slid his hand down Grandma’s back to rest lightly on her derriere. The crowd roared. I overheard someone nearby say, “Simple fun works.” It certainly did last night.

This evening, we dined on Danish food prepared by the galley crew: meat balls in gravy, salmon in a horseradish sauce, herring salad with boiled eggs and cherry cake for dessert. The meal has added to the festive feeling floating through the ship.

We’re closing in on our next port: Korzor, Denmark. Korzor is located about 60-90 minutes from Copenhagen, Denmark’s capital and largest city. At this point, we know the drill. A mandatory pre-port meeting tonight, followed by a presentation in the morning by an American diplomat serving in Denmark while the ship is cleared by customs. Then we bolt for the train station in to go into Copenhagen. It’s my last time getting up early to arrive in a new port. Thinking about it makes me sad. But knowing that by noon tomorrow, I’ll be standing in Copenhagen lifts my mood.

After dinner, Kelly Johnston and Don Gogniat entertained 100 or so voyagers by flying kites on the back of Deck 4. Nearby, students played ping pong – one foursome made do without paddles!

Compared with Russia, Denmark looks to be an easy time. Not only do many Danes speak English, but the country is reputed to top the list of the world’s happiest nations. It’s also a wealthy country with a strong agricultural base to its economy. Of the 5.6 million people who live there, 1.7 million live in Copenhagen. Denmark is the most densely populated nation in Europe. Like Norway, it’s quite liberal, too. Education is free for everyone, and Denmark has a 100% literacy rate for adults. It was the first European nation to legalize same-sex marriages and accords the same adoption rights to same-sex couples as it does to heterosexual couples. Denmark also provides a generous maternity and paternity leave and support program.

According to Dean Karen Ryan, during Denmark’s economic expansion of the 1960s, it relaxed its immigration policies. As a result, sizable Pakistani and Turkish populations now live in the country. With the formation of the Danish Peoples Party in 1995, however, portions of the Danish population have become more hostile to outsiders. Whereas more liberal Danes are in favor of allowing their nation to become more heterogeneous, the adherents of the DPP want to place more severe restrictions on immigration. To our American ears, that debate has a familiar ring to it.