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I'm only occasionally not clicking "quiet publish" so I don't clog all your inboxes. But I have written A LOT since I sent out a publish notification so if you have missed the past couple weeks of entries and wish to read you can click on previous entries.
I arrived in Turkey a few days ago, and have been getting settled. This week I start to work out what I'll be doing here this summer with the special needs population. It is nice to be out of Uzbekistan, and I have really enjoyed re aquainting myself with Antalya! I had forgotten, or now have a new appreciation for the beauty of this place! It is truly beautiful when speaking of the shoreline, the sea and the mountains! It has also changed quite a bit in 3 years. It has become a lot more westernized and is a more modern city. Everything is a lot more expensive now too. Gas prices have almost tripled. They are working toward going to the Euro because the goal is to become part of the EU. I have a cell phone for the summer here which is nice! It was kind of surreal when I
was swimming in the sea this morning ( a little detour on the morning run) and my dad called my cell phone from the US. So I got out of the water, and called him back as I looked out on the blue mediterranean, with little fish swimming along in the clear water right where I had just been. It sure felt strange talking to him in Puyallup!
I have been hanging out a lot with Verna (Our project facilitator when I was here for deputation after my senior year of college) and Ben (her husband), and Karn (Ben and Verna's daughter), who I'm staying with, and paying rent. Karn has a Turkish girl who's in highschool, named Ishugul (not sure of the spelling) staying with her also who doesn't speak much English. Since I don't speak much Turkish it might work out that we both learn from each other! It's funny because I pass by really nicely for a Turk until I speak. It has happened repeatedly that I go into a shop, the sales person says something like a welcoming remark to me in Turkish, I smile and nod hoping I can get by without saying anything,
View from my window
I'm on the 7th floor of an apartment building, located next to a busy street with constant car noise! Located right next to a large hospital in town.but then eventually I have to speak and it starts this whole thing where I say "do you speak English?" and they look confused or shake their head and then go find someone in the store who does because they think I have a question. When really I don't wish to talk- just want them to know I don't speak Turkish so they don't think I'm ignoring them! So I've started to learn a few important phrases. Today a guy in one store said he thought I was Turkish until I said "Merhaba" (Hello) back when he said it to me, and he knew I was foreign because I guess I didn't say it with the right accent or something. Anyway, I haven't taken a lot of pictures yet but for now here's a mix of a few pictures from 3 years ago, and some from now.
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