Semester at Sea Offers Enrichment Programs for Adults Seeking Two or Three Week Escapes

You have probably heard of the Semester at Sea program which places undergraduate college students on a cruise ship offering classroom instruction (and college credits) while the ship is at sea, together with instructive shore excursions at the ports it visits. Obviously, such trips require that the student in question signs up for at least a four-month, semester-long program.

Less known is the fact that in vacation periods, these ships accept adults sailing aboard for only two or three weeks, during which time they participate in "enrichment programs" -- courses in the liberal arts taught by accomplished and eminent instructors. My own attention was brought to this program by a recent e-mail advising me that:

"The Institute for Shipboard Education runs the long-running Semester at Sea college study-aboard program with which you may be familiar. The Institute also runs a series of other programs that include the three-year-old Forum on Global Engagement program and the Enrichment Voyages, which have been operating for the past 18 years, since 1993. Enrichment Voyages run twice a year and are a unique opportunity for travelers who don't have four months to spend at sea, to experience some of the same intellectual interactions with fellow passengers, lecturers and workshop leaders."

The next two Enrichment Voyages are from December 22, 2011 to January 12, 2012 (Nassau, Bahamas, to the Caribbean and South America), and May 4 to May 19, 2012 (Ecuador, the Galapagos and Beyond: Central America, the Panama Canal, and Ecuador). Instructors on previous voyages have included Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, civil rights activist Julian Bond, U.S. poet laureate Rita Dove, and many other eminent figures.

For more information, including details of onboard amenties, port details, and activities, go to www.enrichmentvoyages.org .