Happy Birthday to You

It’s a tradition in Turkey that on the anniversary of a relative’s death, you get together with family and eat Lokma (a doughnut type thing).  Atilla’s uncle died a year ago so last Friday I got to meet much of his family.  I’m getting significantly better at the “Hello” “How are you?” “I’m good” “Thank you” etc.  I’m really looking forward to when I’m conversationally fluent.  I know it’ll be hard to learn the language, but my thought is, what will learning the language take away from this experience?

We had breakfast with the family as well the next day.  It was nice and relaxing and reminded me of old family reunions at my grandma’s house.  People walking around everywhere, somebody watching TV, a baby crying, some drinking kahve.  It all felt quite homey.

That Sunday, I went to Urla with my family to meet Banu’s cousin and some family friends.  Urla’s right along the end of Izmir and we went to a restaurant with a beautiful sea line.  Banu’s cousin had a daughter named Lars (it means rose in Turkish).  Names tend to have way more meaning in the Turkish culture than back home, which I love.  Anyway, her parents switch between speaking English and Turkish with her so she can know both languages well.  So basically, she was this adorable little seven year old who was about as good at English as many of the kids in my school.  I couldn’t quite get over it.  The meal was delicious and we ended it with kahve and, you guessed it, Turkish Delight!  I remember my father saying “No Sarah, Turkish Delight is not from Turkey…” it was quite tasty.                   

On top Lars, and then the beautiful sea view.

  

School’s been great.  The teachers are incredibly nice and I’ve been making some good friends.  Here you’re with the same kids all day and the schedule isn’t the same each day, but the same each week.  I’m still getting used to it and having to follow around my friends somewhat like a puppy.  I do know where all the buildings are by this point, but the schedule is so random, and we’ll have the same class in 3 different rooms within one week.  I don’t quite understand why, but I’m sure I’ll catch on.  During the Turkish classes I just sit there.  I see what words I can understand that the kids and teachers are saying and it usually sounds like “because” “very” “What?” “Yes” “No” “and”.  In other words, I don’t understand too much yet.  My English classes are English (obviously). Math. Environmental Systems, and Theory of Knowledge.

English class is somewhat intimidating because they’re actually doing really advanced English and the last vocab quiz was half made up of words I’ve never used before.  “That’s a hackneyed expression.” “My fears are assuaged” “I expostulated him from jumping out of the window” Anyway, I’m doing fine in the class, it’s just somewhat embarrassing when people expect you to know all of the answers because of your English skills and you can’t help, in English class.

Everybody hates Environmental Systems in my class, because we’re on the math track, and for some reason they added a Science class to the mix that doesn’t really have too much math in it, and the teacher thinks they know way more science than they’ve actually learned.  I think the teacher’s quite entertaining (He’s been to Waupaca to go fishing!) but I haven’t really had to class too much to form an opinion on it.

Math is math.  Not much else to it.

Theory of Knowledge.  This is a relatively new class.  It’s a philosophical class that should probably be somewhat interesting.  We’re learning how to think for ourselves and what is knowledge truly?  What do we truly know?  It's one of those classes with more questions than answers.  I’m not sure yet if I’m going to like it or not, but the teacher’s really fun, so that’s a plus.

Last but not least, Visual Arts.  I’m taking an art class.  Me.  It’s honestly the scariest class for me.  I've never been confident in my drawing or artistic abilities whatsoever, but it was the best option out of the elective classes.  Everybody insisted that the class is all about getting better and not being good.  But it’s hard to believe that when everybody else’s drawings are so impressive!  I think the class will be good for me honestly.  It’s always good to put yourself out there and do things that make you uncomfortable.

On the 23^rd it was Heloisa’s (one of the exchange students from Brazil) birthday.  Many of us went to her house to celebrate.  It was my first time meeting the exchange students in Izmir and it was so nice to finally do so!  They’re all so nice, but we were kind of separated into the Portuguese speakers and English speakers, which I’m sure will soon stop though.  (Also shout-out to Aaron, happy 26^th birthday!)

Then on the 26^th it was Bruno’s (another exchange student from Brazil) birthday.  We went to Ege Park, which is very close to my house, and a few more exchange students who weren’t at Heloisa’s were at his birthday, and already the groups were a lot more combined than last time.  I had a simple conversation with Junior (yet another exchange student from Brazil) in Turkish, and even though it was quite pathetic, I keep thinking that if that’s what you know in about 2 weeks’ time and you consistently learn at least that much more, we’re probably on a pretty good track.  He, Daniella (NOT another Brazilian, she’s from Mexico :) are the only 18 year olds in the group, but it was really nice to learn I wasn’t the only one!

On a final note, I finally got my phone today!  I’ve been waiting for it for a while, and it’s nice to know that I won’t miss out on any experiences now because I don’t want to be lost in Izmir without a phone!

No Smoking in the Boy's Room

Well, today has been the most boring day yet, so I thought I’d take some time and blog! (Also, I did plan on blogging more often, but the terrible internet here keeps me from doing so more often)

On Monday I went to the school with Banu to set up my schedule, meal card, and all that jazz.  I met the people in charge of the school and they were so friendly.  Dide hanim (Hanim is miss) was telling me how having a good exchange is up to me, it’s my job and the school can only do so much.  She later went on to say “But with that smile, I do not think you will have a problem!” Which I took as a nice compliment!  That night Kemal and I took a little walk around the neighborhood.  I was planning on taking pictures, but ended up only taking approximately 5 out of the 112 taken that night because of how enamored Kemal was with my camera.  We walked to Atilla’s sister’s house (she lives nearby) because Kemal wanted to see their dogs.  They invited me inside and I had some kahve with them.  Atilla’s sister was living with a girl named Mary from Georgia (the country) who, like me, was trying to learn Turkish.  It was really nice because we both knew different things in Turkish so we were teaching each other, and when we couldn’t understand Atilla’s sister Ayshen would translate for us.  The dog’s names were Maggie and Boscoe, and it was nice to finally be in a house with animals again.

Pictures I took:

 Kemal :)

I thought this was kind of cute.

(A glimpse of) Pictures Kemal took:

He said the houses "inspired him"

Almost lost this baby!

A Turkish rock...

This is Maggie, Boscoe wasn't energetic enough to get his picture taken.

My uniform! (I couldn't figure out how to turn it)

I’ve attended my first few days of school and I’m really enjoying them!  All my teachers are great and the students here are very friendly.  I do have a uniform, but compared to many it’s not bad!  The only consistent thing is the skirt, and beside that we can wear white, gray, or dark blue shirts of any kind with socks those colors and black or gray sneakers.  (The first day I was the only girl wearing black flats so I soon made an investment in black shoes) I am going to the American Collegiate Institute which (without being modest) is the nicest school in Izmir.  It’s also either the top or one of the top schools in all of Turkey.  The unfortunate thing in Turkey is that if your family doesn’t have enough money to afford a private education, you’re not going to get a good education and are way less likely to get into a good college.

My worst experience in Izmir yet has been with the Service bus system at our school.  On the first day, I got slightly lost and couldn’t find my way to the busses.  (The school is absolutely huge. There are 6 educational buildings, an amphitheater, a cafeteria, a gymnasium, and an auditorium) I found one of Eda’s friends and asked her if the busses left already and they had.  She luckily had Banu’s number and told me that Banu had to come to a parent teacher conference for Kemal anyway, so I was very lucky.  When Banu came she was not upset and on her way out double checked my number and said it was 21.

The second day I got onto bus 21 after school, but it didn’t seem right.  It didn’t look the same as the bus in the morning and there were no familiar faces.  I saw Eda’s cousin get on (almost half the school is Baysak family members) and asked if this was the bus to Karsiyaka, and again, it wasn’t.  She helped me try to find the right bus, but we weren’t able to because there are 2 busses to Karsiyaka.  The problem ended up being that they mixed up my bus number with that of another Baysak so they told Banu the wrong number.  They put me on a bus that dropped me off at Ege Park and when Banu came to get me she was quite upset.  I understand her being so, and I felt so dumb after that, but I really don’t know what I could’ve done differently.  She said I should’ve checked the number and remembered people’s faces.  I did remember people’s faces, but they were all on the bus by the time I knew I was on the wrong one, and I should’ve checked the number, but I thought I knew it.  The next day everything went smoothly though, so hopefully none of that drama will happen again!

Today I didn’t go to school because there was an IB orientation in Foca, a very pretty tourist area on the outside of Izmir, from Friday to Sunday.  I really wanted to go, and the teachers wanted me to go to, but because I came late and the ministry of education was slow, it wasn’t a possibility.  There wasn’t much a point of me going to classes if nobody else would be in them.  So during the school day I did some reading, checked email, did Rosetta stone, and took a shower.  I felt like the worst exchange student ever just sitting in my room all day, but I really didn’t have a choice.  At about two Banu asked if I wanted to go to the mall with her because she had to go to the bank.  I was so glad to finally get out of the house!  We walked to Ege Park (It’s literally less than 5 minutes away), got Starbucks, split a little cake, then went to the bank.  I sat in and tried to understand as much of the conversation as possible (I’m getting better!) and then we went to the grocery store.  This lady offered me a sample while saying lots of Turkish and then said “Cok Guzel” which means very pretty.  I hated the food but thought it was so nice she called me pretty!  During dinner that night, I learned that Cok Guzel is another way to say “The food is very good” so that was kind of a downer, but hey!  At least I’m learning the language!

A Whole New World

I arrived in Izmir late Friday night.  I was met by my first and second host family.  I was so happy to finally meet them!

Note* The mom is my current host mom and everybody else is part of my second host family.  I just couldn't find the picture with my current host dad in it.

After a few pictures we left and went to my new home!

...

or not.

My parents explained to me during the drive that their house was currently undergoing a renovation and I would be staying with Banu's (my host mom) mom.  They kept apologizing, but I really didn't mind.  We went to her house, and at 12:30 in the morning she made me a meal as a welcoming.  It was these fish like strips with some bread and my first glass of Ayran.  Ayran is a drink indigenous to Turkey with a yogurt like texture.

The next day in the morning I took a shower then got to meet Kemal!  He's quite adorable. During breakfast we were teaching each other how to say random words in the other's language.  It was really nice for me actually.  One of the best tools for learning a language is to talk to children, cause they absolutely love feeling like they're smarter than someone more than twice their age.  We spent most of the day playing Uno, other games, and watching Turkish television.  Even though I barely understood anything I got quite sucked into this show that seemed incredibly dramatic.

The interactions I had with my grandma were quite comical.  She knew absolutely no English and I still knew very little Turkish.  I realized how amazingly far you can get with just a smile and a nod!  We used a mixture of Turkish and lots of hand signals to try and get our points across. 

That night when my parents were done with work we went out to dinner together.  We went to this famous local restaurant called midpoint with delicious food.  It was our first time sitting together as a family, and it was nice to finally see how they interact with one another.  They're quite a loving family, and my host parents are hilarious.  They know English quite well, but my father is significantly better than my mother. 

The next day was quite similar to the previous.  I realize watching TV and playing Uno with your younger brother aren't the exciting things you expect to hear about from exchange, but it's the little things that make it a more real experience.  Real people don't go out on wild crazy adventures every day of their life.  Sometimes they just like to sit at home and play Uno, which I am perfectly ok with. 

Our grandma would bring in snacks like nuts, ayran, even peaches at random parts of the day, which I appreciated very much.  I find it incredible that in the whole time I've been here I haven't had a single unhealthy thing yet.  Now that I think of it, I actually had 2 chocolate squares, but those were mine, so it doesn't even count. 

My grandma's living room.

That night we moved into our permanent home.  My grandma gave me 2 bracelets as gifts before I left, which was very sweet.  My new house is wonderful!  Banu is an architecture that specializes in interior, so her whole house looks wonderful.  I wish I had that sort of eye for things like she does.  My room has a lot of pink, which is different for me.  I'm not your usual pink girl, but it still has a cozy feel to it.

The bracelets my grandmother gave me.

I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane

The first 24 hours

At 2:35 p.m. Wednesday September 11th I got a call confirming my address so my travel agency could send me my visa and passport.  About 20 minutes later I got a call asking if I’d be ok with leaving tomorrow.  I said yes not quite believing that this was actually happening.  I’ve heard of last minute flights for exchange, but not quite this last minute.  I was told that my Visa and passport would arrive at my house by 10:00 a.m. and that my first flight would be out of Green Bay at 2:30. I then proceeded with telling everyone I know that I’ll be leaving the country tomorrow and had the chance to Skype with 2 of my best friends.  I went to bed early to get a good night’s rest for the day ahead of me. 

I woke up early the next morning, made myself some crunchy peanut butter toast (figure I won’t get a lot of that in Turkey), went to see my peacocks one last time, and then waited.  And waited.  And waited.  By the time it hit 11:00  a.m. we called everyone we could think of to try and figure out what time my passport would come, or if it would even come.  Finally, my mom received a call back from FedEx saying that there was a delayed flight and that my package was guaranteed by at least 12:50.  12:50, if I were to get it that late there wasn’t a chance I’d make it to Green Bay in time.  This was followed by more frantic calling, and my travel agent saying getting upset with the FedEx company.  He even said this was an unusual situation for FedEx. (Unusual situations seem to follow me uncannily) We were considering driving down to Chicago to get to my 7:20 flight on time, but because we’d be hitting rush hour, it would still be pushing it.  At 12:05 we got a call back from the FedEx Company.  “The driver of the truck is at Burger King, you can meet him there to get your package.”  I then had to give my dad a quick goodbye and my mom drove me to Burger King.  Out of all the places for me to get my Visa, the last place I expected to pick it up was Burger King.  When I called Ed (my travel agent) he said at least it’d be a good story to tell my grandchildren one day.  I told him I’d keep that in mind.  So at 12:15 I signed that this was my package and my mom took pictures cause she thought it was too hilarious. 

       I think the FedEx guy found it funny as well.

After that we rushed over to Green Bay, following many truck in the “fast lane” that were going at a mighty speed of 66 miles per hour.  We finally made it, and I was able to get to my flight on time.  I then said goodbye to my mom as well, and at 2:35 (24 hours after I learned when I was leaving) the plane left the ground and I was on my way to Chicago.

So now here I am, in Chicago, and I’m still sinking it all in.  I’ve been talking to this sweet Indian family who had two adorable children that were so in love with my pins I just had to give each of them one.  The girl seemed enamored with my pin that has an Indian flag, and the boy asked for the pin with a hamburger on it.  As thanks they each gave me a mike and ikes.  I’m still sinking it all in, that this is really happening.  At 7:20 (Thursday) I’ll leave for London, then head to Munich, and at 11:10 p.m. (Friday), I’ll be in Izmir, Turkey, where I’ll stay for the next year of my life.  Honestly, with the luck I’ve been having lately, I keep saying “I’ll believe it when I see it.”  But in a bit more than 24 hours, I’ll be starting one of the craziest adventures in my life, and I can’t wait.