A Break from the Heat

I haven't posted in a week, I apologize, but there hasn't been as much culture shock/new things this week. I started my job on Friday, but I only went to one school and gave a half-hour presentation about the United States. This was the most basic English class you could have and the teacher translated just about everything that I said or what she thought that I said. So, we will see how it goes in the upcoming week since it looks like I will have to change my presentations to fit an advanced class and a beginning class.

Yesterday (Saturday) the trainees went to Teleferik and rode the cable car up to Uludag National Park. It was completely spontaneous, but somehow 10 people were able to go. The ride up the cable car was nice, although a little scary, but the best part was the coolness and the breeze once we went higher. Everyday here is about 95 (lacking the humidity of Cincinnati) and you just bake in the intense sunlight. At the top of the lift, we walked around and saw places to have picnics at the foot of this large mountain. We just sat in the shade by a creek and enjoyed the greenery. It was a nice change of pace (and temperature) from the city. Check out the pictures link and see how pretty it is!

We are going to Mudanya by the sea in just a little bit, so I'm off to get ready!

Tea Under the Branches of a 600-Year Old Tree

Yes, it's true...I had tea under the branches of a tree that is 600 years old. I have to post pictures of it because it was incredibly beautiful, like some kind of fairyland. I went with Derya and Sarkan outside of Bursa to a small village named Inkaya with steep narrow streets. Toward the upper part of the village, this enormous tree grows in the center of this paved area with dozens of tables underneath its thick branches where people shared an afternoon meal or a pot of tea. It was so cool and calm in this little paradise, and a stream corralled by stones ran through the center. I have never seen anything like it, and I doubt I ever will again. Looking down from this village high up on the hill, you see how Mediterranean the landscape of Turkey appears, even inland from the sea.
After we got back into Bursa, Derya and I walked around to parts of the city that I had not seen before. Because of all the walking I have done around the city, I think I many know Bursa better than downtown Cincinnati. I saw Yesil Camii, the Green Mosque with its carved marble facade and turquoise tiles around the windows. It dates from 1419. Columbus hadn't even discovered America. Sometimes it's hard for me to wrap my head around the age of this city, and I keep having to remind myself, that I'm in such an ancient place, part of the Silk Road and the Ottoman Empire. I can't wait to see more of Turkey!
P.S.: An extra thank you to Jake for getting me through a tough patch yesterday :)

More Football

I sat in on AIESEC Bursa's chapter meeting - in Turkish which Enis kindly translated for me. They all work so hard, bringing in nearly 80 trainees for internships around Bursa during the span of a year while continuing to raise funds and network with businessmen in the city. I was approached about doing some English lessons, and I accepted. I have no idea how to teach English, but I'm going to give it my best shot!
Last night, Turkey played Croatia in a quarterfinal match in the EuroCup 2008. I've always told people I hate soccer ("football"), but watching it with the other trainees and AIESECers in an outdoor cafe is so much fun. It was 0-0 after 120 minutes of play when Croatia scored with a minute or two left in overtime. By this time, I was home and watching the match with my host family and their friends, and everyone was so disappointed. However, less than a minute later, Turkey scored with little time to spare! Everyone in the room jumped up and shared hugs and kisses while dancing around. The game finally went into penalty kicks, and Turkey won. The celebration in the streets (car horns, cheering, singing, guns firing) lasted an hour. Can't wait for the next match!
I woke up early this morning intending to use my computer, but I soon discovered that my adapter that allows me to plug my computer into the European-style sockets was missing. I hopped on the bus for an hour-long ride to the AIESEC office where I found it sitting on the desk where I left it. I don't know what I would have done if it was truly gone...I need my computer!
Because I was already down on the main street in Bursa, I walked to the Kultur Parki because I read there was an archaeology museum there. It was so nice being able to walk around this cool, quiet musuem and just look at the Roman-era artifacts, coins, pottery, and marble statues. The museum did frustrate me a little bit because, in addition to lacking descriptions of many of the artifacts, nearly everything was in Turkish or broken English. I couldn't really put together a coherent picture of life in such a historical region, but I enjoyed looking at marble busts of Zeus and Roman grave markers (stele) with intricate scenes. Sitting behind the museum, there were dozens of stele, sarcophagi, and the capitals of columns mounted on brick bases, a random array of artifacts exposed to the elements.

Culture and Such

It's about 96 degrees today with no air conditioning. I walked about 25 minutes from my host family's house to the Metro station, just to see how far it was. There mountains that surround the city are green, but down on the central avenues, its all concrete, brick, and stucco. I had breakfast at the apartment of a woman who lives upstairs from my host family with my host mother. I am just not used to eating a lot for breakfast, but it's rude in Turkey not to finish the food that has been given to you. There is a little girl that learned a few English words from the last AIESECer that stayed in the building. She is very sweet and learned my name quickly, and will call out to me when I pass on the sidewalk. I am at the AIESEC office now working on revising the reception booklets that they give to trainees, especially since I found my way from Istanbul to Bursa by myself following the directions in the old reception booklet.

Before I left, a lot of people asked me if the women wore veils in Turkey. The answer is, many do. A lot of women cover their entire bodies with loose pants, long jackets, and headscarves. However, these silk scarves are colorful prints and patterns: geometric shapes, flowers, animal prints. These women wearing the scarves are not oppressed in the way that the Western world envisions them. It is out of respect for their faith and themselves that they choose to cover their bodies so as not to be objectified. There are women here that choose to cover themselves in long black veils and loose cloaks that reveal only their eyes and hands. It is their choice to wear such clothing in a culture that freely permits tank tops, skirts, t-shirts, etc. to be worn on the city streets. I think sometimes the purpose of wearing a veil needs to be clarified, and its negative connotation is rarely deserved.

Bursa <3

The past two days have been a blur! Yesterday, I went to the AIESEC office early and stayed all day. I had the traditional office breakfast of bread, cheese, yogurt, tomatoes, and peppers. And tea of course. I sat up on the fifth-floor terrace with the AIESECers and talked about hometowns, our studies, English grammar, and just about any topic you can think of. The Turkish students all speak relatively good English, and I have learned to slow down my speech to make sure that I am understood. A group of us went to dinner and had hamsi, a small fish that you eat cooked and whole. After that, we went back up to Topane to view the city again.

I have had trouble sleeping because my schedule has been off, but I finally had a chance to really rest last night. I had a good breakfast of bread, olives, strawberry preserves, and a tomato-ey mix. Today it was very hot by the time I headed off to the AIESEC office, and I sat in the shade on the terrace. I had a chance to see Ulu Camii, the large mosque in Bursa with 20 domes, built in the 14th century. This was my first time entering a mosque, and it was beautiful: arched ceilings, Arabic calligraphy, and half-sphere windows capping the domes. Since my independent study had partially been about mosques, finally seeing the features that I had researched so much about was particularly rewarding. I also saw the silk bazaar, an Ottoman building with a mosque in the center, used by those who would come to the bazaar to trade. Bursa was one end of the Silk Road, and silk can be found there in great quantities. I am learning so much about Turkish history and culture, and I am finding my way around parts of the city with ease. I haven't taken that many pictures, and I apologize, but I don't want to feel like too much of a tourist since this lovely city will be my home for the next two months!

Turkey plays Croatia in the EuroCup on Friday, and you can be sure that I will be watching this "football" match :)

My First Days in Bursa

My first few days in Bursa have been a blur. I haven't been sleeping well because I am wide awake until 3 am because I still am on Ohio time, 7 hours behind. Reaching Bursa was an adventure. There was no one waiting for me at the Istanbul Airport, so I took the Istanbul Metro with my luggage to Istanbul Otogar, the main bus station. I bought a ticket to Bursa on a coach bus. Part of the bus trip was on a ferry over the Sea of Marmara. I wish I wasn't so tired at this point to have watched from the top deck because the scenery was so beautiful. Once I was in Bursa, I saw that traffic does not stop for pedestrians in Turkey. A man from a small flower shop helped me drag my luggage across the street to the AIESEC office. I was picked up by an AIESEC trainee from Columbia that had lived in Bursa for over a year. I went with her and another trainee from Kazakhstan to the home of several trainees for dinner. A Moroccan AIESECer made us a wonderful dinner with rice and tomatoes and we played cards until it was time to meet my host sister, Derya, and go to her home.

My next day in Bursa I had breakfast with my host family and went with Derya to the hair salon, just trying to take it all in. We met Erhan at a cafe where we had tea with lots and lots of sugar. I love the tea in Turkey, and I plan on drinking it as often as possible! With Erhan, I had a chance to see Topane, a fortress of the Ottoman Empire, and walked around the city a great deal. I learned about Ataturk and saw the AIESEC office in Bursa. It overlooks busy Altiparmak street, a main artery of the city, and you can see the clock tower on Topane right across the sreet and up a steep hill. Bursa is an incredibly unique city, as it grows and curls up the mountainside. There are no skyscrapers that interrupt the view. Clusters of colorful buildings with terra cotta roofs encircle countless numbers of mosques. The call to prayer for the majority Muslim population is heard 5 times daily from the delicate minarets that appear over the rooftops. That evening, I went to watch the Eurocup soccer match between Turkey and the Czech Republic at a large outdoor cafe. I now understand the soccer phenomenon in the rest of the world. Turkey was losing 2-0, but came back to win 3-2 in the last 20 minutes of the game! There were celebrations in the street with people yelling "Turkiye! Turkiye!" throughout the night.

Arrival in Turkey!

I finally made it to Turkey after hours upon hours on planes and buses carrying 70 pounds of luggage behind me. It was a miracle that I made it to the AIESEC office in downtown Bursa with everything intact (you should see the traffic). I will write more later, but I am tired and have to get up early tomorrow to go back to the AIESEC office.

One More Day...

I leave for Turkey tomorrow morning at 10:45. I spent a lot of time the past couple of months thinking about this day, but I still can't believe it has arrived. I feel a lot of things right now...anxious, nervous, unsure...but excited really doesn't have a place. There are too many legs of my journey that have to fall in place just right for me to arrive in Bursa without complication. My bags are nearly packed and I've said goodbye to a good number of people so physically, I'm ready to go. It's the right time for me to undertake such an experience.