boat + vandana = bad

we are at the treehouses in olympos. our "room" is literally a treehouse with gaping holes in the walls/ceiling, and a mattress on the floor. i think i'm what you'd call a "luxury traveler" -- this kind of stuff doesn't fly with me. i think i got a tummy illness from the nasty food (the guidebook also warns against "sewage" in the beach water near here. yummy.) but i'm feeling a bit better.

we had to cut the boat cruise short (thank god) as i was seasick and going crazy from the heat, waves, and the smell of sewage from the pump toilets in our our "cabins." not to mention the seven bikini-clad australian party girls, who we dubbed the spice girls, a.k.a. the seven spices. one night was more than enough, though we had signed up for two, and the rest of the passengers (the seven spices, three canadians, two turks, and an american peace corps volunteer living in azerbaijan) were staying onboard for three nights.

the most dramatic part of the cruise was when i swam in the middle of the ocean for the first time in my life and was promptly bitten/stung by some sort of sea creature on my rumpus. sea anemone? urchin? jellyfish? who knows. it wasn't serious, but it did require me to sit on a block of ice for half a day. i am officially done with the sea.

last night we did a ridiculous hike in the dark to see there eternal flames called "chimaera" on top of a mountain. it was sweaty and ridiculous, especially when we reached the summit and there were about a hundred russians shouting and drinking wine. i would swear i dreamed it all up, but sarah can back me up that it was real. and surreal.

next stop, cappadocia, which is supposed to look like some kind of moonscape. cool.