9/30/10 & 10/1/10 – Day 6 – Crossing the International Date Line

     At some point in the wee hours of the morning our ship crossed over the International Date Line.  We are now 16 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, instead of 8 hours behind.  I believe this happened around 4:00 a.m. on September 30^th; when it instantaneously became 4:00 a.m. on October 1^st.  Yep, we skipped an entire day.  Don’t worry though; we’ll pick that day back up when we head back east later in our journey.  I even looked for the line in the water and never even saw it; maybe on the way back.   

     I’ve learned a little about the date line over the past couple of days, and thought I’d pass some knowledge along to those of you who are reading my blog.  The International Date Line is an imaginary line that separates two consecutive calendar days, which is used as a convenience. The International Dateline could be anywhere on the globe, but was found to be most convenient to follow the 180^th meridian of longitude as it mostly passes through empty ocean.  However, the line does deviate in some places to keep the same date on certain islands, states, or countries.  Without the International Date Line, travelers going westward around the globe would discover that when they returned home, one more day than they thought had passed.  This first happened to Magellan’s crew after the first circumnavigation of the globe.  Likewise, those traveling east would find that a day fewer had elapsed than recorded.  People in Eastern Russia and New Zealand are some of the first to usher in each and every new day (and year).

     Tomorrow is our first port of call, Petropavlovsk on Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.  It will be nice to step foot on land after be at sea for a week.  I am excited, mostly because I have never been to Russia before.  As part of the Pacific “ring of fire”, this is supposed to be a very beautiful place with 3 magnificent volcanoes encircling this port city.  I will be sure to share all about it after tomorrow’s visit and maybe include some pictures, as well.  The currency in Russia is the Ruble, with one dollar equaling approximately 30 rubles.