R went to the east of Turkey a few months ago.
This is the result of his advanced video taking skills.
Watch out Spielberg!
Charlaine Harris, Dead and Gone
Embarrassing moment reflection:
One of my most embarrassing moments in Turkey is when I had to be taken to a hospital because the fuzzy part of a Q-Tip was stuck in my ear. I was staying in a lovely hostel in Fethiye, decided to take a nice long shower after a long day and the fuzzy part of the Q-Tip got loose and left in my ear. I panicked and tried to reach it with my tweezer, no luck.
The hostel owners were a lovely old couple with very little English. The old lady set my head on her lap and tried to help me tweeze it out. Again, no luck.
The old man decided to take me on the back of his moped at about 12:30am to the nearby hospital…20 minutes away. We waited and when I was finally ‘admitted’, they nurses laughed and the doctor presented a much longer, slim version of a tweezer. Nice a easy, it was finally removed from my ear. A little chuckle and giggle from the nurses and a big smile from the doctor, it was all over.
At the innermost core of all loneliness is a deep and powerful yearning for union with one’s lost self.
Look at you. You’re young. And you’re scared. Why are you so scared? Stop being paralyzed. Stop swallowing your words. Stop caring about what other people think. This life is yours.
When are you going to realize that you can do whatever you want?
Life in Istanbul. Selling anything that you can in the middle of traffic.
Kolay Gelsin.
grouch
One of the best parts about living where I am, breakfast.
In Istanbul, having a Turkish breakfast is something everyone must experience. Completed with olives, cheese, cucumber, egg, peppers, butter, jam, bal-kaymak, and of course bread or simit; it’s a must.
I’m going to miss lazy day breakfasts.
Behold, the mighty Zeus!
Picture taken in Antakya, Turkey April 2012.
Most of you know that I can be easy going with food. I care mostly about taste and flavor. I am quite lucky because the school that I work for serves a free lunch everyday. Might I add that I work for a private school, therefore not only do I get free lunch, but I get free delicious quality-worthy lunch. Oh la la!
My lunches usually consist of a soup, main course (kofte, chicken, rice, traditional Turkish food, beans, chickpeas, potatoes…), dessert (pudding, cake, custard, helva…), yogurt (organic from the farm of the school’s owner) and a salad to top it off. Lucky me.
One day, the soup looked extra delicious. It looked like nice lean meat with what I thought was pieces of fat floating in it. Not bad at all. It looked more like a hearty winter soup, so I thought it was highly unusual to serve this soup on a warm day. No one warned me, and I dived it.
It was delicious. So delicious, that I opted for seconds, and sadly didn’t. As I was eating, I observed that no one was really touched their soup. They still didn’t say anything to me.
After lunch, I had a class, and my students usually like to joke around with me. They asked me how I liked the lunch, I said it was delicious, especially the soup! They burst out laughing with a few “eww” faces. They informed me that it was Sheep Face Soup! At first, I thought it was a joke, it was way too delicious to be Sheep Face. One of my girls said none of the students ate the soup, “teacher, didn’t you notice that none of us ate the soup…” My heart did back flips when I heard this. They told me to confirm it with my head teacher. I promptly left the class and asked her. My face in fear and she burst out laughing at me. She confirmed that it was indeed Sheep Face and Brain Soup. Guess those little fat pieces wasn’t fat pieces after all. Gross, so gross.
Being in Turkey for almost 2 years, I’ve become familiar with about 90% of the Turkish cuisine. I generally won’t shy away from food. I can’t say that it was a bad soup eating experience, as it was flavorful, but I did learn to always ask what’s floating in my soup before I eat it.
Look again, I’m on a horse.
Summer time in Kirklareli means Horse Riding Club. At our sister-school in Kirklareli, Turkey, we have about 8 weeks of horse riding. The students learn how to ride a horse and if they’re good enough, they learn tricks for the horse. I wish my school was like this when growing up. Nevertheless, here I am riding a horse.
Summer is here in Istanbul! And what better way to enjoy the sunshine and heat than by the occasional BBQ. Pictured here is R’s and I very own BBQ! We BBQ on our rooftop overlooking the Bosphorus, the city and the sunset. What more can I ask for?
I know I’ve been a bit separated from the computer lately, and I’m really sorry for not updating anyone on my life. But the truth is, lots have been going on. Lots of what? Well just lots of great company, friends and dare I say a nice routine.
The Good:
I finally got some time to travel to the east of Turkey. An interesting must-see place for everyone. The views were breathtaking and simply wonderful. The people, even better. I traveled from Malatya—>Adiyaman (Mt. Nemrut)—>Osmaniye—>Antakya—>Gaziantep. It was quite the adventure. I promise that I will upload some pictures and write an update of every city.
Also in the ‘good’ category is my job and personal relationships. Everything seems so balanced and effortless with a bit of excitement in between. It’s nice to achieve this balance.
The Bad:
Confession time. I’m moving back to Toronto in June. This is the end of Istanbul and the end of Turkey for me. I’ve had a great 2 years, learned so much and now life must go on.
The Ugly:
I am freaking out about what to do when I get back to Toronto. How am I going to manage to re-integrate into Toronto again? I’ve spent a good chunk of my life in Istanbul which is completely different from Toronto. Also, job situation. Am I going to find a decent job?
That’s my mini-tiny update.
PS: I started crocheting again :)
My students and I welcoming spring 2012 in Kirklareli, Turkey
People who travel a lot, WHERE ON EARTH DO YOU GET ALL THAT MONEY??
I need an answer.
