met at 6.45 am in front of library. set off at abt 8.30 am, arkadia lines, samaina. going was ok till we passed sounion. had gone to the sheltered lower deck as it was quite windy above. tables and chairs in the bar area, so everything was cool. then the lurches came, then a grinding sound, followed by this huge lurch which sent chairs sliding. Mo and N both slid onto the floor. N started panicking and crying. trying not to feel sick and stay calm at the same time. waves crashing against the window didn’t help much. took first ever motion sickness pill. took some effort to get back to the upper deck. very windy, but small price to pay for not feeling the lurching motion. when L went down to the cafeteria, she was wondering why so many people had Chinese takeout before realizing that they were barf bags. even if u didn’t feel sick, seeing a packed room full of people barfing definitely didn’t help things. thank god I was wearing jeans, borrowed sweater fr Mo (she had on sweatshirt and windbreaker). very glad I had finished the paper before getting on the ferry. started reading michael ondaatje’s the English patient. dinner at about 7.30 pm, rice with meat sauce and soda (1200). several stops along the way, including icarus’ island. hair was one clumpy mess. salt everywhere (tequila anyone?), especially on glasses. sea spray periodically whooshed on deck. at long last, at 10.30 pm, we dock at samos. never before, never again. could still feel the swaying motion. hotel samos is mercifully nearby. room with T and L. had ice-cream soda, literally ice-cream in soda water. tried to play pin-ball but machine wouldn’t take coins. some greeks laughing; felt like dumbass tourist.