Merhoba!:The First Few Days

This is my blog for my time in Ankara, Turkey, during which I will be teaching English to students at TOBB University of Economy and Technology. This is for my six month co-op internship at Northeastern University.

I arrived in Turkey on Thursday the 7th, after about 24 hours of travel. I was reminded of the movie 'Planes, Trains, and Automobiles,' because the travel was a whirlwind of different modes of transportation. I did not tell my mother, but in order to get to TOBB University, I had to make my way from Esenboga Airport on the outskirts of Ankara to central Ankara via shuttle bus, then take a taxi to TOBB University. Making my way through the airports and bus stations was easy enough; in fact, it was almost too easy: English is very much the second language of the world. My flight out of JFK was delayed two hours; consequently, I missed my connection to Ankara. My new flight to Ankara from Istanbul left within 20 minutes of my landing; I didn't discover this until the clerk at the Turkish airlines counter told me to (literally) "run" to the gate so I wouldn't miss my flight. It was only a 40 minute flight to Ankara from Istanbul; we were descending as soon as we reached altitude it seemed. When I finally found my luggage (in the darkened, deserted international terminal, as opposed to the domestic terminal) I almost hugged it. The shuttle bus brought me to ASTI, the central bus station; from there I took a taxi to TOBB. At TOBB, there seemed to be some initial confusion as to who I was; when I finally did meet my boss, a jovial Turk named Semihbay (bay is a term meaning 'sir'), baggage in tow, I was suddenly aware of my fatigue, my disheveled appearence, and my acute body odor. Nevertheless, Semihbay was very nice, and had someone take me to my apartment. Triumphantly, I lay down in the apartment for a nap...

I was awoken an hour or so later by the arrival of Mackenzie and Annie, two more co-opers. We discovered that the other apartment had no electricity and emitted a foul odor (later we discovered just how much food the previous co-opers left in the refrigerator to rot!). After a brief crisis (Mackenzie got stuck in the elevator!), we went to TOBB to pick up Julia, the other co-oper who was arriving that day. She arrived with tears streaming down her face: she had just left her important documents, including her passport and the confirmation number for her lost baggage, in the taxi! Fortunately, she was safe (we now have the passport and the missing baggage :) )

The next day we had lunch with Semihbay, then explored Kizilay, the new part of downtown. On Saturday, Zack and Will arrived; now we are just waiting for Jamar, who comes Wednesday. On Sunday, we had a late start (we are all still travel weary; also, anyone who has been to a non-English speaking country knows the mental fatigue as your brain constantly works to process the new language); we took the bus into Kizilay and explored some more. We walked in the plaza of a large mosque, though we're not sure its name. Hearing the call to prayer everyday has been an amazing experience as well; it really drives home exactly how far from home I am! Furthermore, it is a subtle reminder of the Turkish past and the complexities of integrating that past with the Western conception of modernity (more on this later).

I'd like to note that everything I have read about Turkish hospitality is true: everyone has made an attempt to communicate, regardless of their proficiency (or, more often, lack of proficiency in English). Ankara is off the beaten path for most tourists-- imagine the appeal of DC without the monuments and statuery; however, people are somewhat knowledgeable of English and the United States. For instance, there is Ekram (all names are close approximations: it is difficult to distinguish names from other words at this point), the custodial head whose crew of cleaners set to work on the malodorous apartment; Dugyo (pronounced like a short form of 'do you go?') the security guard who tried to teach us Turkish, gave us cay (chai: tea) while we waited for Julia, and later Zack and Will; and Yoos, who calmly helped me free Mackenzie from the elevator when I, in panic, knocked desparately at his door and began babbling in English.

For our part, we are trying to learn as much about Turkey as quickly as possible. This is such a dynamic land with such a vibrant, complex history that I could easily spend more than six months researching Turkish culture and identity. I plan on working on at least one research project while I am here; Northeastern offers a scholarship for students conducting research in the Middle East (while I could do my entire project on determining whether Turkey is indeed part of the Middle East, I think I will focus on Turkish environmental movements instead). If anyone could recommend some research I would be very appreciative.

I am currently at my first day of work. This is the first prolonged period of Internet that I have had. We have had to walk to ASTI everytime we wanted to use the Internet thus far. Since it is day one, not much is happening. Right now, I'm just enjoying Internet time.

I apologize if there are any egregious spelling or grammatical errors; also, if you would like me to explain anything further, I certainly will.

Hoeshjeckal!