One more day to China - 18 September

We are one day away from China and the activity in the library is pretty much all about planning independent travel in the country. It's pretty rare to actually hear talk about class assignments or papers. The students are in a state because they are still recuperating from Japan, trying to stay abreast of their readings for classes (and not being successful) and planning their time in China. It isn't pretty.

I spent my time in the library today doing more scanning. I had thought that activity was pretty much over and then, BAM! I get all sorts of requests at the same time. Is there a signal that runs through the faculty herd telling them it is time for scanning? I'm mystified.

I mentioned yesterday that I needed new luggage since everything I have is too big. I visited the S@S store this morning and bought a very stylish small duffel bag that suits the requirements perfectly. I did a practice run of packing everything into it and filled only a fraction of the space. That 11 pounds limitation is what is most difficult. I think I've met that one too but it is difficult to tell since there aren't any scales on board - that I can find at least.

Tonight was another gastronomic delight! We have a visitor from UVa on the ship right now who is going to be the Academic Dean for the Fall 2008 voyage. He wanted to get a looksie at what it is like on the ship. The current UVa Academic Dean hosted a fancy dinner for him and the other UVa folks - Go Hoos! It was almost as good as the Captain's dinner: free flowing wine, excellent service, and beef! It wasn't filet mignon but it was still totally tasty. The dean has promised that we will have more of these dinners before the voyage is over. Works for me!

Because we were having this fancy dinner, we completely missed the logistical pre-port lecture. Oops. It was one that I really should have gone to since I am a bus leader and they share vital information about ports, phone numbers, and embassies. I'm hoping that I can get the information tomorrow morning.

I spent the remainder of the evening in the faculty lounge celebrating more birthdays. September birthdays are rampant! Between the wine at dinner and the wine in the faculty lounge it will be a miracle if I don't wake up with a headache tomorrow. Here's hoping for miracles!