come sail away

ah - what can i say - sailing down the coast was amazing - it has got to be the most relaxing experience i have ever had in my life - we were on a boat with 13 others - mostly from Australia and new zealand - although there were 3 other americans.

we had all our meals provided on the boat and slept up on deck under the stairs every evening. we spent our days swimming and sleeping in the sun as we sailed to ruins, small towns, and even a smugglers bar in a little cove (it felt like being in the pirates of the Caribbean ride - except you could drink, and there were crazy new zealanders dancing like maniacs and fire walking)

we have bonded with two other wandering souls and will now continue our adventures in the company of jacinta, who is from australia and ryan who is from oregon. we're not exactly sure our plan but we're talking about going up to the lake country, hitting konya (birthplace of the whirling dervishes) and then on to cappadocia.

right now i'm sitting in olympos - a most beautiful spot nestled in between the mountains on the southern coast of turkey near anatalya - the valley is filled with greek/roman ruins, a rocky strand of beach, and amazing mountains - there are only guest houses - no town - so it's just a little oasis of a spot for backpackers.

i'll load more photos when we get back to istanbul. we've taken tons - although mostly of ruins and old churches/mosques so i don't really know how exciting they will be.