Turkish and pilaf and orzo, oh my!

I’ve been in Turkey for 9 days now. I’ll admit, I’m not putting forth the amount of effort I should in learning Turkish. I should be studying ten to fifteen new phrases every day, make note cards, practice with one of my American colleagues, quiz myself, then get out on the streets and practice with native Turkish speakers.

Instead, I sort of skim half-heartedly for 15 minutes, extracting the phrases I think I’ll need once out in public. But for someone who came to this country able to only say ‘hello,’ I think I’m doing okay. For instance, I can say:

Thank you.

Please.

Good morning.

I’d like…

Yes.

No.

This morning, Carly and I went shopping at a new market that is superior to TW. I had some shopping-specific Turkish phrases written down that I wanted to trot out. Excited, I approached the young man who was behind the olives/meat/cheese/chicken counter and said “Yarım kilo zeytin istiyorum lütfen” which is literally “Half kilo olives I would like please” or “I would like half a kilo of olives please.” I made motions and a facial expression as though I was having trouble deciding between the black olives by my left hand or the ones by my right. Using his metal scoop, he took one out and let me try it. I noticed that there was a small tray on top of the counter where customers can discard the olive pits and subsequently discarded mine. After I made my decision, he rattled off something in Turkish that I didn’t understand. I replied with what I consider to be a universal sound of I-don’t-understand. “Eh?” He smiled and said “English?” Nodding, I smiled back. He then asked “Where you from?” I said “America” to which he responded “Welcome to Turkey.” Awww, so sweet!

One of the purposes of the trip was to get some bottled water. There is a large water cooler on each floor, but ours ran out yesterday and there was none on the two floors below us. Carly and I figured that we wouldn’t get a replacement bottle until Monday when housekeeping returned. Anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I am NEVER without a bottle of water, so the thought of running out was not acceptable. At the market, Carly and I both bought a hulking 5 liter jug of water each. When we returned to the dorms, the cooler had been replaced. Carly swore profusely, which I have to admit was enjoyable. I love that she’s just as crass and profane as I am. She’s nicer, though, and has less of a tendency to speak her mind the way I do. Suffice it to say, we were not “left here to die” as Carly put it; there was water!

The other purpose of the trip was for me to do a massive food shopping trip. I came across a website featuring Turkish recipes. I saw recipes for the pan-fried potato salad and the rice pilaf, two dishes I’d tried and loved at the campus cafeteria. I picked up ingredients for both. I’ll make the potato salad tomorrow, but I made a huge recipe of pilaf tonight so that I can continue to enjoy it for a few days. I learned something new in my search: ‘orzo’ is the Italian word for ‘barley.’ I never knew that; I just thought it was an alternative type of pasta.

When Carly saw the finished product, she noted, “It looks just like the rice at the cafeteria.” That was a proud moment for me. I have to say, though, I put massive amounts of butter in my pilaf so it tasted better than the pilaf the cafeteria serves. Next time, though, I need to be a little more patient and cook the rice slower as it was a bit undercooked.

FAQ

Well, these aren't technically Frequently Asked Questions, but they were asked, so I thought, "hey, why don't I blog the questions and answers in case someone else wanted to know the answer to this question?"

Has your body stopped rejecting the environment?

Thankfully, yes.

Do they drive on the right or the left there?

It's exactly as it is in the States, albeit without lanes. Well, there are lanes here, but people sort of make their own lanes.

Are there busses? Is a bicycle an option?

There are buses, but at this point in time, it’s like a really confusing labyrinth to me. I’m thinking of just getting on the bus near where I live and riding it around Ankara, just to see where it goes.

Since I’ve been here, I’ve only seen one person on a bicycle. That may change on campus once students arrive. Honestly, though, the campus is only comprised of three or four buildings, which are all within an easy walking distance of each other.

How about your phone, did you set up international before you left? Or are you going to get something there?

I brought my cell phone with me, but only to update Facebook during my U.S. flight legs. We, the other American teachers and I, can’t get cell phones, or even Turkish bank accounts, until we have our residency permits. We won’t receive those until September 25.

I'd love to see the room you have.

The site is in Turkish, but you can click on the first picture and then click the red arrow to go to the next photo. I’ll be perfectly honest, I was a little nervous at first. You know, sometimes accommodations in the U.S. will show these beautiful, shiny rooms in photos. Then you arrive, and the room looks closer to something out of a horror film. My fears were unfounded, though, since these photos are an accurate representation, eliminating the need for me to take my own photos of the room.

http://www.antikyapi.com.tr/tr/belge/1-123/tobb-ekonomi-ve-teknoloji-universitesi-yurtlari.html

When do you start teaching?

I’m not sure. It will depend on what I’m teaching. The lower level English classes begin on Tuesday, September 10 (or 10 Eylül, Salı). The upper level English classes begin on Tuesday, September 17 (or 17 Eylül, Salı). I won’t know what I’m teaching for another week or so. I’ll update everyone at that time.

Are you going to be missing any special show?

Not really. I don’t watch a lot of TV and I tend to ignore my Facebook family when they discuss weekly shows en masse (i.e. Game of Thrones, Honey Boo-boo, The Walking Dead, etc.) I do miss my Gilmore Girls, but all my DVDs are in the States.

What's the weather like in Turkey?

It’s a dry climate, which is a nice change from the Carolinas, where I’ve lived since 1989. However, it’s summer, so it’s still hot, in the 90s every day.

I should mention that the weather forecast for the next few days seems to be cooling down. It's currently 6:30 A.M. in Ankara, and it's 65 degrees. I’m looking forward to September since we should have some really nice weather.

I know your city isn't all that close to the border, but PLEASE be safe!!! I fear it's about to get crazy where you are and I am concerned for you.

Ankara, which is where I am, is about an 8-hour drive from the Syrian border. So, we’re talking the same distance from Columbia, SC to Washington, D.C. Damascus, which is where the most recent clash happened, is a 13-hour drive from Ankara.

Rest assured, I am taking the precautions that I feel are necessary. I receive emails from the U.S. Department of State whenever something is going on in Ankara that they feel I need to know. I’m also smart enough to know that in this situation, I need to steer clear of any protests.

That being said, I need for all of my friends and family to understand that I am not the kind to live my life in fear simply because of a possibility that something might happen. If I lived like that, I would never leave the house. But I do appreciate your concern; in fact, I might be offended if my friends and family weren’t concerned.

I'm not happy

It's 5 A.M. in Ankara and I've been awake for two hours. What the hell?! I'm not an insomniac, so what's going on? Huh, body? You hear me??

First day of orientation

Today was our first full day of orientation and it was long, but then isn’t it always? At least we got the paperwork for our residence visas under way yesterday and someone from the university took us around Ankara to help us complete the necessary steps. I was relieved that we weren’t left to flounder around on our own with our questionable grasp of Turkish; that could have been a hot mess.

In other news, I returned to my room and boy was my room clean! The best part was that I didn’t have to do it. Yay!

I would also like to take a moment to comment on the hospitality in Turkey. When we were sitting in the HR office yesterday, someone came in with small glasses of hot tea for everyone. It happened again today during orientation. Then at about 10:30, someone brought in a large tray that had small plates of sweet and savory cookies. I think I’m really gonna like it here! (I’m singing that last line to the tune of Postman Pat, particularly the part that says “Pat feels he’s a really happy man.)

The American teachers were taken down to the university-authorized bank in an attempt to open up Turkish bank accounts. We were told that we had to have our passports and our Turkish tax ID, which we knew beforehand wouldn’t be given until we had our residence visas. We won’t get our residence visas until close to the end of September, which means no bank account for these furr’ners yet. We all went down to the bank for nothing and it was hot out that day, we’d walked a few blocks out in the sun, we were thirsty, hot and pissy. (Okay, I was; I’m not sure about everyone else.) We walked outside the bank to walk back to where we could catch a bus back to TOBB, passing a fruit and vegetable stand. My ears perked up when I suddenly caught a whiff of fresh dill, something I’d been looking for each time I went to TW. I bought a bunch and it only ended up cost me 1.25 TL, or about 60 cents. I had a lovely omelet the next morning with my fresh dill. In addition to finding fresh dill, we all took our first ride on a city bus. The afternoon, then, was not a total waste.

"What's that?" you ask? Oh nothing...

...it's just my view from the kitchen balcony.

My first two days in Ankara

TOBB ETU, my new employer, has kindly provided the incoming American teachers with housing. Granted, it’s in the dorm but I prefer it for several reasons. First, it’s free and each teacher gets a room with a private bathroom to him/herself. Second, housekeeping comes twice a week to clean our rooms; that is also free. Third, it’s a five minute walk to work from the dorm. If I stand on the balcony of the kitchen and look to my right, I can see the building where I work. And last, but not least, at this point, I’m trying to adjust to living in a new country, a new culture, and a new job. I don’t want the added stress of trying to find an apartment that’s affordable and close to campus. In addition, I would have to figure out how to get to work from the new apartment. On top of that, once I got an apartment, I’d have to figure out how to get furniture. So, yeah, I think I’ll stay here for the time being.

There was one glaring disadvantage to staying on campus. Right now, none of the students are here, and therefore the air conditioning hasn’t been turned on. The first night’s sleep in the dorm was unbearably hot to the point that I couldn’t even sleep with any covers on. I woke up at 3 am, too hot to sleep. I wandered out to the kitchen where I heard a noise, and I saw someone sitting there. Her name is Nehal and she’s a Turkish graduate student at TOBB, who also happens to be an insomniac. We chatted for awhile then I went back to my room, wet the tip of my hair towel, and kept it on my face in an attempt to keep cool.

I continued to be nauseatingly hot through the next day, which was compounded by a brief 15-minute walk to Armada mall with Carly and Jacob (fellow teachers.) Little known fact: I’m extremely sensitive to heat. So after being hot in my sleep on Thursday night, hot all day Friday, then taking a hot walk later that night, the events culminated with me vomiting twice at the public restrooms at the mall. That’s okay, though; in between my war with my body where it was trying to purge and I was trying to force it the other way, I bought an oscillating fan at Tesco Kipa. Carly refers to it as “the Turkish Wal-mart.” My second night here, then, was much more bearable and all was right in Whoville.

On Saturday, I went back to the Turkish Wal-mart (TW) for a few more things. I hadn’t thrown up anymore and I was feeling closer to normal again, though I hadn’t completely said my final sayonara to Mr. Jetlag. I first went to the bookstore to buy the Lonely Planet Turkish phrasebook. At some point during checkout at TW, I lost my phrasebook, so that was 20 Turkish lira down the drain. I don’t have enough Turkish to have been able to insist to the cashier “no, I’m sure I left my phrasebook here in a small bag; please look under your counter.” In fact, this experience marked the eighth time in two days that I thought to myself “My god, I really need to learn Turkish or I won’t survive.”

When I got back to the dorm, I made myself an omelet. I think that may have been the first time I cooked since my arrival in Turkey. There’s something about being able to cook that makes me feel more at home, so it definitely contributed to settling in and feeling distance from the gross crustiness of my travels on Thursday.
Stay tuned for more of my adventures and griping!

Heading to Turkey

Well, here I go, embarking on my next great adventure: teaching in Turkey. I interviewed for an was accepted to an EFL teaching position at TOBB University, a private university in Ankara.

The plane left Charlotte, North Carolina at about 6:30. From there, I had two-hour layover in Chicago. It was a long flight from Chicago to Istanbul: eleven hours. In hour three, I could already feel my ankles hulking out into cankles. However, I promised myself that I wouldn't disturb my seatmate too much, so I only got up two or three times during the entire flight.

I flew Turkish Airlines. At this time, I'd like to give a shout-out to them as they took very good care of their passengers. Once we were airborne, a small helping of Turkish Delight was brought around to all the passengers. About an hour later, the crew brought menus to us so that we could decide on our dinner. Being a carnivore, I chose the meat option, which was some sort of beef roll, a cucumber salad, rice, and an eggplant dish that was too spicy for this little white girl.

At some point in the middle of the flight, a crew member brought around some hot towels. Let me tell you, that was refreshing to put the steam over my skin and suddenly not feel so gross.

About two hours before landing in Istanbul, breakfast was served. I thought that was a bit odd, since we would land in Istanbul at 5 pm. However, if one was counting from when we left Chicago then, yes, breakfast was appropriate.

When we arrived in Istanbul, the plane stopped right in the middle of the tarmac. All the passengers then took stairs to the tarmac, then took an airport shuttle bus, which was about the size of a city bus, to the main terminal. I panicked while I stood in line for visas and passports, but I made my flight to Ankara just fine.

I knew I had to meet the university-supplied driver at International Arrivals, but Ankara is a large city and therefore boasts a large airport. I asked the gentleman at the information desk where I could find IA. He said "Go out, take left, walk 200 meters." I smiled and thanked him, but as I was walking away, I thought "Oh no! How far is 200 meters? Twenty feet? A mile?" I still have no idea how far it is.

Once I found my way and retrieved my luggage, I was happy to see the driver with my name on the placard he held up. He knew very little English; however, that's more than I can say for my Turkish. The only word I knew was "hello" (merhaba). Needless to say, it was a quiet ride to my lodgings. But after being in transit for a grand total of 19 hours from Charlotte, NC, to Ankara that was just fine with me.

Until next time, kiddies!