I Was Feelin' So Bad...

I was feelin' . . . so bad,
I asked my family doctor just what I had,
I said, "Doctor, . . .
Mr. M.D., . . .
Now can you tell me, tell me, tell me,
What's ailin' me?"

He said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Yes, indeed, all you really need . . .
(Is good lovin')
Gimme that good, good lovin . . .
All I need is lovin' . . .
Good lovin', baby.

-The Rascals

I am sick. I am quite sick. I have the cold from hell. This plague has evolved from a tiny cough uttered by one of my fellow travelers during this week's Oulanka field school. Now at least half of the group is sick. Most began with sore throats and stuffiness and progressed to mid-grade fevers, body pains, and extreme fatigue. I'm on my way down that road as we speak.

Now that that's out of the way...let's talk about the trip! The events went as follows:

MONDAY:
Up at 7:30am. Bus leaves at 9. We were told the bus trip took 4 hours to get to Oulanka. That would have been the case had we NOT stopped each half-hour for an educational experience in the middle of the woods. They were interesting, but tiresome. You couldn't sleep or really get into a book or album, as each 30 minutes or so, the bus stopped in the middle of Damn Near Nowhere for us to speculate on the chronological spectrum of bear claw marks on pine trees. Anyway, we learned a lot on the way up there.

We stopped in Kuusamo to buy what was necessary. We immediately took to the large, well-constructed tee-pee in the woods which contained a wonderful fire pit where (almost) all of us could sit and tell stories. Dinner was awful. I'm rooming with Lee (UNCG) and Emanuel (Germany) who are both very nice. We get along extremely well.

We later proceeded to the sauna. Girls first. Boys second. Mixed last. I went in with the boys, where they began to play some kind of heat-standing game. Endless scoops of water were tossed on the wood-fired rocks and the steam was unbearable. It burns your ears first, so I'm told, and then progresses down your body. This is called loula. If a Finn ever looks at you in a sauna with a bucket of water and says loula? you tell him/her to kiss your butt and then get out of there!

Here comes the interesting part of my Monday story. We left the sauna, men and women (it was mixed by now) in nothing but our towels. We proceeded outside and across the courtyard, down the steps, and directly into the river. I do not carry in my vocabulary words in English with which to describe the temperature of this water. Let's just say that, luckily, after 10 seconds or so, your body goes so completely numb that you don't mind the cold anymore.

We stayed up very late that night and regretted this the next day.

Reindeer spotted: 0

TUESDAY:
Up at 7:30. Breakfast is awful. Nothing new on this trip. After morning lectures, we had lunch (awful) and then hiked about 5 miles through the woods near the river. It was beautiful. I have many pictures to show you all when I return. We learned a lot more about trees (endless trees!) and were amazed by the amount of woods around us in all directions. What to do for my art project? (Our art class requires us to create a piece of environmental art at Oulanka, photograph it, and present it when we return). A good day. Dinner was awful.

Reindeer spotted: 1...no, 0 (it was a tree)

WEDNESDAY:
Up at 7:30. Awful breakfast. After morning lectures, we spotted 2 reindeer which walked right into our courtyard and ate grass by the girls' cabin. Then, we rode all around mid-northern Finland in our wonderful bus. They never actually tell us where we're going or when we're getting there, so I began calling this trip the Magical Mystery Tour. We actually visited the Russian border! Picked lots of lingonberries and blueberries. Very tasty (don't eat the dark ones, they ain't done yet!) Very tiring day.

Middle of the night, Wednesday: terrible reflux. Cannot sleep. Tomorrow will undoubtedly be horendous.

Reindeer spotted: 2

THURSDAY:
Not up at all. Extreme reflux and fatigue led to my staying in bed all day (and missing the 8 mile hike) alongside several others who had caught The Plague. To which, I soon realized, I was not immune. Went out at 10:30 to look at the stars/northern lights (I saw many stars, but no northern lights. Too cloudy). There are so many stars that we cannot find any constellations. I've never seen so many in my life! It was beautiful. Reflux greatly improved. Back to the tee-pee. Back to the sauna (lasted much longer in the sauna, did not return to the river as some did).

Lee, Emanuel, and I spend every night giggling like schoolgirls for half an hour before bed. We can't help it. We're so excited to be there and just lay in the dark telling the most offensive stories and jokes you've ever heard, as well as spouting complete gibberish in English/German/Finnish to make each other laugh. Each night was like a PJ party. I have a sore throat tonight. How odd.

Reindeer spotted: 0

FRIDAY:
Oh...my...God...I'm...sick (achoo!) Definately glad to be going home. Skipped breakfast (what's the point, I mean, really). Up for morning lectures by guest lecturer Thomas who spoke about Aurora Borealis and climate change. Very long. Ready for trip home. Feeling quite sick. Bus ride back had only two site stops and a pee break. Much better. We went to the top of one of the highest peaks in Finland. Beautiful.


Returned and went quickly to bed due to awful sick feeling. Hopefully I'll feel a little better tomorrow. Vitamin C. Water. Bed.

Well, it's Saturday and I'm much worse. I'm pushing the C's and reading/watching movies all day. Pizza will only deliver 3 pizzas or more. Cannot order that. No real food. Dinner is cereal and fruit. I guess that's healthier anyway. Antihistamine yes, decongestant no (must have Rx in Finland) Must away now to blow nose/get a drink.

Hi to all. More reports soon.
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