Questions...Answered

I know that writing a question or comment on the blog is kind of difficult, so I wanted to answer some questions that some people have posed to my mom. If there are any other questions that you have, feel free to email me at the Google address listed on the sidebar. Questions really do help me to look at my experience here more closely.

1. What are you eating?
I am eating a combination of traditional Turkish food, American food, and dessert. We will let dessert be a separate food category. Turkish breakfast in my host family, as I have described before, consists of a cucumber-tomato salad, fresh bread, olives, soft cheese, eggs, and apricot or strawberry preserves. While I say "breakfast", breakfast usually is eaten in my house at 11:30 or 12. Other meals can be a lot of different kinds of food, some of which I like, and some that I refuse to eat anymore. Doner (dough-nair) is sliced chicken, tomato, onion, parsley, ketchup, and mayonnaise on hard-crust bread. Sounds good but it has given me a stomachache 3 different times, so no more for me this trip. Iskender kebab is another famous Turkish food that is absolutely amazing. It is cooked beef on top of peppers and tomatoes on bread that is like a doughy-er pita. You pour oil and butter over the top of it and have yogurt on the side. Plain yogurt is used in a lot of things including pasta. I have had some hamburgers made in Turkey, and they just don't taste the same as back home (and they put mayonnaise on the hamburgers as well as potatoes so it is a little strange). I have had kebabs with squash and beef and those were really good. They eat soup with a yogurt base that I like a lot as well as a lot of stews. I have had stews with chicken, beef, eggplant, potatoes, and other vegetables served with a side of rice. I have also had lamb since I have been here. The one thing I really do not like is the sucuk, or sausage, and the sandwiches it is served in. The fabulous thing about living in Bursa is the availability of fresh fruit and vegetables. I have been eating more fruit, like grapes with seeds, watermelon, apricots, and plums than ever before. Bursa is known for its produce. And, a Turkish meal would not be complete without bread. I am eating so much bread, but it is the real, fresh bread bought daily not a pre-packaged loaf, so I figure it has less preservatives and is better for me! Dessert is a separate food group because there's so much to choose from: walnut baklava, pistachio baklava, Turkish ice cream, little cakes soaked in honey, and pastries. Kafkas is a shop started in Bursa that has these little chocolate bars with mashed chestnut in the middle. I hope this gives you a better idea of the kind of food available in Turkey.

2. What is the weather like?
Hot. And, if you couldn't tell from previous posts, there is no rain. Apparently, it is very rare for it to rain during the summer months. I did go a month without seeing rain which is especially odd considering the amount of rain and all the storms at home. So it has rained one day since I have been here and it was welcome relief from the heat. The temperature here is in Celsius, so I never really know how hot it is unless I check MSN weather. I know 40 degrees Celsius is really hot, but here in Bursa it is usually in the mid- to upper-thirties. It is not usually humid, although it has been the last couple of days.

3. What are the gas prices in Turkey?
Ok, no one has really asked that question as far as I know, but I think the answer will make everyone happy to live in the United States. Gas here is nearly $4...for one liter! Turkey has some of the most expensive gas in the world, so now i know why most people take the bus or drive really small cars.

Ok, there are a few answers, so please send me questions at natalie.ruhe@gmail.com. I'm going to start uploading pictures from my Ankara/Cappadocia trip and I am working on a post for that, too!