Student takes semester at sea

A glance through Marc Federico's photo album from his time studying abroad reveals a trip both varied and extensive.

Like a stolen garden gnome passed hand to hand and photographed in front of the world's most famous landmarks, Federico - now heading into his senior year at the University of Miami - is seen in front of the Taj Mahal, the Shanghai skyline, and the Great Wall of China.

But this is no prank.

Federico, a 2005 graduate of Westwood High School whose parents, Joseph and Judith, live on Porter Street, recently completed a "once in a lifetime" 110-day trip around the world with the University of Virginia's Semester at Sea program.

The experience differs from more traditional, one-location, "immersion-style" approaches in that participants "get to really see the world," said Lauren Heinz, the program's director of communications.

"It's more of a global approach," Heinz said.

During their time at sea, college students like Federico circumnavigate the globe while stopping at a variety of "less typical" destinations, Heinz said. Often students return to these places, many in the developing world, Heinz said, to "dig a little deeper."

Federico always knew he wanted to study abroad. Initially, the 21-year-old thought Europe was the place to go. But then a friend told him about a program that took students all over the world aboard a boat - from Nassau in the Bahamas to Penang, Malaysia, to Kobe, Japan.

So Federico figured, "I can probably go to Europe anytime. ... I'm never going to get this opportunity again."

It helped, he said, that he's always been comfortable on a boat. His family owns one.

The family vessel is a bit smaller than the one used for the Semester at Sea program. The program's MV Explorer, a 590-foot-long, 24,300-ton heavy passenger ship, is the fastest of its kind in the world, according to program literature.

It's not just transportation. It's a floating campus, complete with classrooms, study areas and an 8,000-volume library; access to University of Virginia's online library resources, wireless Internet, a computer lab and a medical clinic.

Each student takes three or four classes per day, Federico said. Professors from across the country teach them, he said. Professors link their teachings to the places on the itinerary.

There were 650 to 700 students on board, Federico said, along with 100 faculty members and senior citizens referred to as "lifelong learners." These students and teachers spread out over seven decks, 418 cabins, and two dining rooms, an outdoor pool, a fitness center, a sports court and a hair salon.

The ship set sail from Nassau on Jan. 29. Ports of call included San Juan, Puerto Rico; Salvador, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; Port Louis, Mauritius; Chennai, India; Penang, Malaysia; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Hong Kong and Shanghai in China; Kobe, Japan; Honolulu, Hawaii, and Puntarenas, Costa Rica. On May 9, the ship made its final stop in Miami.

For the fall of this year, the University of Virginia charges a student $17,975 for a spot in a four-person cabin with an ocean view, according to the program's Web site. The charge ranges up to $28,450 for a single cabin with an ocean view. Double rooms cost $22,450, and there are other options.

Time spent at sea between ports varied, Federico said. For example, while the trip from Kobe to Honolulu took eight or nine days, the ship docked at a series of Asian countries every three days or so, he said.

Students typically had four or five days to spend in each location. This was plenty of time to get to know each place, he said.

People he encountered during the programs' tour through Asia looked "completely different" in clothes and appearances from those in neighboring nations, he noted.

His learning went deeper than appearances, Federico said. Studying the governments and cultures of Japan and China opened his eyes to "the small details that distinguish one place from another," he said.

The difference between the countries' two governments reveals itself in the culture, he explained.

The Japanese seemed more orderly, he said. For example, Japanese citizens riding escalators divide rigidly between those who let the moving stairs take them and those who bound over the steps without waiting to be carried away - one group on the left, the other on the right.

Federico's favorite place was Vietnam. He said that country's thriving marketplaces fascinated him. Its economy is exploding, even by international standards. Vietnam's annual gross national product is increasing at a rate second only to China, he said.

Federico was also struck by the difference between the simplistic perspective on the country typically shown in American movies, and what he experienced standing on a beach in Na Trang in Vietnam, soaking up the real thing.

And the beach was beautiful, he said. It could have been South Beach, back in Florida.

Jeb Bobseine can be reached at jeb@walpoletimes.com.