The Big Island and Hilo Tomorrow

Sunday 25th January

You have permission to envy us now. All day the seas have been a calm deep blue, the sun has been shining in a clear sky and the temperature was about 72 Fahrenheit. (Sorry I always revert if left to my own devices). We have seen birds galore signalling the closeness of land and we spied a tiny island, probably a volcano someone said, on the horizon this evening almost simultaneously with a stunning sunset.....a deep orange sphere which seemed to plonk into the ocean but no splash...some said they saw green (I never do, stare as I might) at that final moment but that it didn't 'flash'...ah well that doesn't count. It's gotta be a green flash!

I'm really enjoying Erika Paterson's theatre class: lots of creative ideas floating around and fun in store for us BUT the exciting information that came out of it was the discovery, through Erika. that she and and a few others want a news bulletin given daily. I have felt that huge lack, being a news junky myself, and offered my sevices instantly. So.... I am to collect news because I have access to the Internet through George, which most don't have. I immediately sent off Top Stories in the New York Times, The UK Independent and the South African AOL news to Midhun, (from Kerala) who I shall be working with. We'll get organised after Hawaii. Midhun is an LLC. (Living Learning Counsellor for the students). I am very excited about this, it gives me an oppertunity to explore the news daily and pass it on which I feel should have been done. Here we are after all sailing around the world to educate these young people and they have no idea what's going on anywhere! We might land in the middle of a revolution!

Sadly Jonathon Spence leaves us in Hilo and returns to Yale. He will be sorely missed, he has been such an inspiring teacher. Our Sino/American Relations lectures will lose quite a spark I fear. I realise that since the age of about 13 when my Girls Own Paper had an essay on Mme Chiang Kaishek, extolling her virtues as a Chinese heroine I have been fascinated with China. Of course it was later discovered that she and her husband the General were personally salting away millions of American Aid dollars! Ah well, she sparked my interest and I then read Han Su Yin's biographical novels and was hooked. China will be so much more interesting this time around. because of Jonathon.....give him a standing ovation.

We had a madly off key sing-song in the faculty lounge this evening led by our other China expert John Israel from the University of Virginia with the guitar being played by our Academic Dean Mark White. (Note bene John and Theresa!) We sang choruses from almost everything, going back to the early part of the last century I think, to the dismay of the Life Long Learners who were trying to be earnest on the other side of the room!

Had a fascinating conversation at lunch with Lynn and Marc whom I have mentioned before, (English and Morrocan but live in the States with a home in NICE!!), about what it was like to live and teach in the States under the Presidency of George W. Bush. I realised what luxury we enjoyed living in Canada where we could laugh at and criticise him without constraint (as long as we weren't politicians!) because in the US they dared not. Lynn ,who teaches International marketing says she had to steer clear of all political discussion because if a whiff of criticism was suspected she could have lost her job and apparently many did. She said she couldn't even risk discussing opinions with the other members of Faculty because there was such an atmosphere of fear. "If you're not with us you're against us' as Bush said. I had not realised the tension that existed and the restrictions on freedom of speech which we take so fore granted.

We have just had our Logistical pre-port and you would honestly think we were landing in Mongolia, not another part of the United States. I suppose they are trying to terrify the students into good behaviour but I thought they went a little over the top. Only go around in groups of three or four with at least one male in the group?! Please. Amazing to think that Americans actually reside on these islands....and survive!

Guess where George is.....you got it in one, go to the top of the class!

More tomorrow maybe or the day after...