nausea, heartburn, indegestion...upset stomach, diarrhia.

i've spent my day and all last night laying in bed in agony over the fact that i have had it coming out both ends. yes, i've gotten the dreaded "travellers sickness" 12 days after being here. i'm not sure of the cause; it could be not always brushing my teeth with bottled water, the delicious mangoes auntie feeds us that are in season here in india now, or maybe the chocolate bar allie and i bought that, unbeknownst to us, expired in february of 2007.
no matter the cause i knew one thing: i was miserable. let me tell you one thing that is unpleasant- being sick with a stomach virus in a foreign country like india. there is no air conditioning (although the fans here are heavy duty and really help- they aren't kidding around with fans here in india..but they do not get rid of the humidity). i am also sharing a room with two other girls. that is another adjustment that only gets worse when sick. also, to tell the truth, i have never been sick with a stomach virus outside of the comfort of my own home with my mom tending to my every need. more 7-up? more ice cold water? a new barf bucket? mom got it.
my mind began to wander and i imagined what it would be like if i were at home. i would be in my nice, comfortable, soft bed (there is no such thing as a soft bed in india. the matresses are as thick as my pinky finger- it keeps the beds cooler). i would be flipping through the 700 some-odd channels on my television in my room with the air conditioning blowing, and maybe even my laptop on checking facebook every five minutes. and, of course, mom coming in to check on my condition the whole time.
then i realized that even if i were at home, i would still be miserable. along with the air conditioning, soft bed, and other luxuries, i would still have a barf bucket right next to my bed. these things would not make me feel any better. so, i told my mind to stop it, and i drifted off to sleep thanking the good lord that the wankhede's have indoor plumbling and a toilet that flushes.

i woke up some hours later to my team members giving me 7-up, crackers, and pepto bismol that they purchased at the store. i felt a lot better.