Melis Hotel Urgup

I like long bus rides, but not overnight busses and not with small screaming kids on the row behind me. We boarded the bus in Antalya yesterday evening at 8.30 pm and was here in Ürgüp at 7.30 this morning, where upon we went straight to bed, and didn't get up until noon to go out and have som breakfast/lunch. Overnight busses in China are really cool, coz you're lying down in an actual bed, so you can sleep. In Danish overnight busses the seats can be changed into something ...

... come. The children were incredible. They walked over fairly rough terrain fro a full hour, and couldn't wait for the next view. Unfortunately, we did cut it a little short at the end, as the we ather did look a little more threatening. All the same, we got back to the car dry and exhilirated. This had truely been a most incredible afternoon of sight-seeing. For dinner, a quick drive down from our hotel to a local restaurant. Fitted out ...

... is a chance to see people deep in prayer and emotion. His body, and the bodies of his family and some major devotees, is also preserved there. It is a larger than life arrangement, as apparently was Rumi. A few baklavas later it's time for another long bus ride...this time on the way to Goreme in the region of Cappadoccia.. got about 2 hours left... it's dark and another terrible movie is on - it's in Turkish so all I know ...

... Just take a flashlight! Derinkuyu, the underground city was also a must see in cappadocia. At one time about 20,000 people lived in the 18 stories under ground hiding out from invaders. The maze of rooms was ingeniously laid out with all rooms connected by tunnels that can be closed off with a huge stone for protection, access to water & food stores, and with fresh air ventilation. My favorite room was the largest, a church shaped ...

... and if that is my measure then it has to be pretty bad. The morning before the trip, none of our groups showers had hot water... so no one had a shower. Coupled with our drivers already... interesting... odour, the bus begain to take on a particular smell of funk. Not the kind with afros and disco balls. To add to this wonderfulness, the front of the bus was like a boiler room... the back of the bus like a deep freezer. The air outside ...

... just an extra neck rub. After you flip/slip over and over to get washed, you sit on the one of the small slabs and get your hair washed. Surprisingly, this felt quite good. Nothing like the salon with your head in a basin; just sitting up getting a head massage with good shampoo. The rinse, however, was a few throws of cold water at your face, brisk. When you are done with that, you can proceed to take a quick shower ...

... my preliminary results at a seminar last week and everyone seemed to be quite happy with it. The bricks are grouping nicely into chronological sequences but the mortar is not behaving itself: it seems to jump all over the place. I still need to think that through a bit more. The day following my seminar, Ian wanted to inspect my work and gave me a lecture on multivariate statistics. AAAHHHHGGH! Scary stuff. Last week we played a friendly game of football ...

... right?? When I pointed out that iconography and cultural meaning are not the same thing she agreed with me. I was baffled with her agreement because it undermined her research. As nice as she was, several of our team members left the room after she spoke out of sheer frustration and disgust. ::sigh:: Every year I get excited about them coming and every year I get annoyed. And I'll probably do it again next year. Oh well. I still find it amusing. Slightly disgruntled. Serena

... another trip to a place with Byzantine Churches. My traditional Friday bath is no longer becoming a tradition, much to my displeasure, but I always complain that I never visit this country: I come in, I do my work and I leave. This year, I want to see some other places. I'm contemplating a trip at the end of the season to Cappadocia with a few others. I've heard nothing but good things about that place so I'm excited to get a chance to see it. In lovingkindness, Serena

... very cozy here with 31 people and I am not looking forward to our imminent increasing numbers. Ian has been away for the past few days and returns today along with Marin, a human bones grad student. Marin and I have been regulars in the Turkish bath in Konya so I am looking forward to renewing that tradition. This Friday we are going on a field trip and we're not going into Konya. It took me about a day to get over being angry about not getting a bath this week, which was quickly ...