About
Voyage of Rediscovery commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Fall 1998 journey of Semester at Sea, an educational program operated by The Institute for Shipboard Education that takes students to more than 10 countries via ship.
From our perspectives in 2023, one quarter century removed, we look back at the experience, speak with fellow shipmates, and explore how those 100 days impacted, and continue to impact, our lives.
Our journey will recommence on September 10—the exact same departure date as our 1998 journey. We will spend another 100 days together, releasing video and audio conversations with alumni participants, as they share meaningful moments, lingering learnings, and sage advice.
Voyage of Rediscovery is a passion project conceived by Alexander Kotler, a participant of the 1998 trip, billed as a Voyage of Discovery, and a resident of cabin 434 aboard the S.S. Universe Explorer. Artifacts and souvenirs from Alex’s journey, including his room sign, maps, matchbooks, currency, and figurines are featured on this site.
View a brief video about the Voyage of Rediscovery here.
Conversations
Throughout the spring of 2023, we spoke with 13 Fall 1998 Semester at Sea alumni, who shared their experiences from the transformative semester and how the journey shaped their present lives. They include the following:
Please note that these were their names in 1998 and some names may have changed.
Route
Our journey included nine ports of call, including Kobe, Japan; Hong Kong; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Penang, Malaysia; Chennai, India; Haifa, Israel; Istanbul, Turkey; Civitavecchia, Italy; and Casablanca, Morocco.
Across 100 days, we spent between four and five days in each country, while the rest of the time we were aboard the S.S. Universe Explorer, our classroom and home upon the sea.
The voyage began on September 10, 1998 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. We disembarked for the final time on December 19, 1998 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.A., changed from our journey around the world.
Shipmates
Thank you to the amazing and inspiring people that offered their time, energy, and support to this project. Please learn about each Fall 1998 participant by clicking their names below.
Alexander Kotler (Host)
Justin Connors
Scholarship
One of the major takeaways from our conversations was how the Semester at Sea experience was truly meaningful and life-changing for each and every one of us. In fact, it inspired us to create a Semester at Sea scholarship—The Fall 1998 Scholarship Fund—to enable a young person, somewhere, to experience Semester at Sea and immerse themselves in the transformative experience.
Our goal is to raise $50,000.
By achieving this target, the fund will continue to exist and make gifts on behalf of the Fall 1998 cohort to meritorious individuals. If you have the interest and means, please consider supporting this cause, and visit this link or click the button below to learn more.
Store
What fun is a trip around the world without shopping?
While we are raising money via The Fall 1998 Scholarship Fund to benefit a sea-bound scholar, this project is a personal initiative with real expenses. Above and beyond achieving our scholarship goal, we are selling merchandise to help offset the cost of producing the interviews and developing this platform through which we share the stories of fellow shipmates.
The Voyage of Rediscovery Store is now closed. Thank you to all of our virtual travelers and supporters!
Acknowledgements
Thank you to the people that participated in and supported this project.
I am grateful to my shipmates for making time to reconnect with me and open their hearts, minds, and calendars; to the amazing team at the Institute for Shipboard Education, aka Semester at Sea, for facilitating my requests and championing the projects; to Marlin Darrah, an award-winning director, producer, and cinematographer, for his support; and to Skye Fitzgerald, an Oscar-, Emmy-, IDA-nominated Director and the videographer of our journey.
Thank you to the talented people that helped bring this vision to life, including Tom Burks, Sunita Devi, Milan Dholakiya and the DecodeUp team, Jessica Karpinski, Huzaifa Naseer, Seeta Raturi, Samina Shakeel, Mahamane Issiaka Tounkara, and Mohamed Ben Yessef.
Thank you to my family for giving me the time, space, and permission to pursue this project.
The Voyage of Rediscovery project is dedicated to the memories of my father, Michael “Submarine Mike” Kotler, and my grandfathers, Jack Kotler and Arthur Rosenberg, veterans of the U.S. Navy and men who inspired me to love the sea.
Finally, to those from our voyage that have departed since we cast off in Vancouver 25 years ago, including Loretta Andrews, our librarian whom we tragically lost in port in India: we remember you, and we will see you on our next great voyage.
© Alchemunity LLC, 2023
