Prof. Disson has sent us a few excerpts from her personal diary
July 20th, 9:32PM
We've set off today, in the early afternoon. We'll be stuck on this ship for about two months before we'll arrive. I'm still high on the adrenaline of going on this journey, I can't wait to arrive. It seems so far away right now, but it's also so soon. We've been briefed that we'll be spending most of our time on the ship brushing up on our knowledge, and the ship has been outfitted with a full library, which is amazing. I've spent most of my evening just browsing, and the wealth of information there is truly mind-boggling. I've spent so much of my time in libraries, but the fact that this one is on a ship makes it feel completely different, more fleeting? If that's the right word.
Almost everyone seems as excited as I am, though Profs Monia and Gaucris are expressing it very differently. Prof Monia seems hell-bound on educating us on the 'right way' to write down our documentation, and Prof Gaucris just seems like the quiet and brooding type. The only person who doesn't seem excited at all is Mr. Drest, though maybe that's because he's already in his role as expedition leader. He's gotta make sure everything is in order, and for such an important expedition, that's gotta be a tough spot to be in. He seems amicable enough, though. Maybe he'll mellow out as the journey continues. We'll be stuck with each other for long enough.
August 1st, 8:06PM
We're 10 days later, and we've started the new month. I've been reading almost everything I can get my hands on, mostly religious anthropology but I've also been trying to read some linguistics, in preparation for when we arrive. I've been finding it pretty inpenetrable, but Atuwe doesn't mind explaining. She says it's good for her too, she gets to revisit some things she's last seen when she was in university. Mr. Gaucris is still as broody as he was when we set off, though he seems to lighten up when he's playing chess with Fiachu. I think they've found each other in their respective fields, though it seems very grudging from Mr. Gaucris' side. Fiachu is very much enjoying himself, at least.
I was right on Mr. Drest, by the way. He's mellowed out a bit as we get to know each other and fall into a routine. He's gotten a good grip on what everyone needs, and he's gotten to know everyone a little better. I think he's the type who needs a little time before he really opens up. I'm curious to see how he'll be when we're two years into this.
August 15th, 11:43PM
Being on a ship for almost a month has really taught me so much about the beauty of the night sky. I've always been a city girl, so I never really realized it, but being out on the open sea for so long I've come to really appreciate just sitting outside at night and looking at the stars overhead while listening to the sea gently slosh against the side of our ship. I've read and understood why the night sky was such an important religious experience for people so long ago, but I've never understood it on such a fundamental level before. I understand why they thought there were gods up there.
It also makes me feel so small, I'm just the smallest speck in an infinite universe. Maybe that's also because we're on this expedition, we're going to explore something we've only ever dreamed would exist. Our world is so much bigger than we thought it was. And we're the ones who get to experience this new world for the first time. If I think about it too long, I start to get emotional. Another month and we'll be in a new world.
August 29th, 7:24PM
More than a month in, still haven't worked through the library. Dr. Monia keeps joking that we're gonna need to bring some books with us, but I don't think it's a joke to be honest. I'd love to take some familiarity into the unknown world that awaits us.
Everyone on the ship has become something like friends now. It's a wonderful atmosphere, everyone is laughing together during meals and there's always a little group in the library studying something. I like just sitting in the library and doing something else while the group (the makeup of which changes every day) studies what they're studying today. I participate regularly, and I've lead the group a couple of times, but sometimes it's nice to just be on my own and do my own things with the comfortable presence of other people nearby.
September 14th, 3:21PM
There's land on the horizon! Kadu says it'll still be a couple of days until we arrive, the wind has died down a bit since a couple of days ago. Still, the end of our journey is, quite literally, in sight now! Atuwe is the person who'll be most important for contact when we arrive, and I think it's weighing on her shoulders a bit. She's well enough prepared, she has been studying the IPA so seriously I'm pretty sure she's become the world's foremost expert on every little detail. She says it's important to have a baseline, because what we discover when we're there may well contradict everything we thought we knew. Kadu, while he has softened up considerably, got that stern look back on his face when we first got word of land ahoy. I think Gurum and Tarain almost vibrated out of their skins from excitement though, they're so curious to see what Trosilin has to offer. I just hope they won't faint when we first set foot on the continent, haha.