Molakara

So we've got our own little Dead Sea right here in Balkanabat. There is a lake that literally has so much salt that you can't hit the bottom. There are feet sticking up here and there, some log rolling and a lot of slow floating. If you get water in your eye, you're screwed. I've been there twice and I love it. If you get out of the water for a few minutes, your skin literally looks white with dried salt. It makes your skin soooo soft, though. After paddling around for a while we always head over to a mud-pit area to put black mud all over you. It's healthy they say. I did learn the word cork in Russian, however, which makes it kindof an educational trip. I even tried some floating-yoga, which seems to have some potential! Last time we were there, we decided to camp out on the other side of the lake, where naked children were not pooping in the sand and wild cows weren't rummaging through the trash for watermelon rinds. So we just wrapped up our clothes in the absolutely-necessary packette (plastic bag carried by every human at all times here) and caravanned slowly over like camels. I floated along with bags held high above my head and only broke down in laugter watching Pavel try to get a watermelon across. Watermelons are heavy evidently.

I highly recommend it. The park costs 4 cents to get in.