Finally… 7 days in, I’ve found some time to recap my move half-way around the world!
Turkey is, in a word, eclectic. In many ways, Adana is just like New York City or other major U.S cities. Yet in other ways, Adana is soooo the opposite of any culture I’ve ever experienced. For instance, the trash in Adana...
Although trash-bins do exist, they are not only hard to find but under-utilized by the general public. Where does the trash go, you ask? Anywhere you please – the side of the road, the patch of grass around a tree, a fountain. After NYC, I thought “dirty” streets were hard to come by – then again, maybe not. But in actuality, the street-cleaners do a pretty impressive job of going behind the Adanians and picking up their garbage. Recycling included. Phew!
The above paragraph aside, Adana is beautiful. There are two parks nearby. One itsy bitsy park right outside our door and one HUGE park less than 10 minutes away. The bigger of the two, Merkez Park, actually means “central park” which I find ironic and amusing for obvious reasons. So far I’ve gone running there three times & felt very much at home despite being the only one running. Which brings me to my next topic. Exercise…
In Adana, walking is the most popular sport. In fact, it’s pretty much the only sport. I’ve only seen delivery guys on bikes save a few exceptions. As for runners, I think the only other person in Adana besides me who runs is the city’s oldest man (he was pushing 85, I swear, but looked very healthy). It seems “keeping in shape” is a foreign concept here.
I’m proud to say I know about 15 Turkish words and a handful of phrases. Which is a pretty good rate if I keep it up! Caroline (my fellow teacher and friend here) and I have decided to do mini-Turkish lessons to improve our fluency. Luckily, one class we have in common is comprised of two 20-something year old girls who want to be teachers. I’ve decided to structure their class such that they get 7-10 mins “teaching practice” per class … teaching me Turkish. Sneaky : )
Now for Louie… who’s adjusting quite well. The first few nights were rough as they included barking at foreign noises and all people, not going to the bathroom ONLY outside, running amuck in the house, etc. But, after a few days and some very patient roommates – he is acting like a normal 81/2-month-old puppy (mild barking “jogging” amuck and fewer accidents for the most part). He has made many neighborhood friends, both with the strays and home-afforded dogs. Actually, one of my two complaints about Adana/Turkey is the plethora of stray animals. They are some of the smartest (I kid you not, I watched one look both ways before crossing the street) I’ve ever met but also some of the mangiest and, of course, saddest. It’s the same for our feline friends nearby, too.
Sigh. Louie doesn’t know how good he has it.
I mentioned two complaints and as I’ve covered one, I’ll fill you in on the second: the sales people, who are more like sales-stalkers than people. It is absurd. Almost every store I’ve been to except the grocery means a shopping experience where the sales-person follows right on your heels to “see if you need anything,” including someone to catch you when you trip over them. To make matters worse, those handful of phrases and 15 Turkish words I know do not include “I’ll let you know if I need anything.” That’s next on the Rosetta Stone agenda.
Next topic, English Home and my students! Good and good. The school is one of the most well-know English schools in Adana. For most students, it operates as an “after-school program” they come to immediately following the long hours they attend at their primary school. Then for the youngsters, English Home is their only source of school and teachers, therefore, provide more subjects than English. But for the bulk of our students who make their way to us after school to supplement their learning, we have multiple programs designed to fulfill any ESL need. For example, my English Practice for Wanna Be Teachers speaking class, which I love. There are also YDS classes (mainly vocab building for a TOEFL type exam), Business English courses, etc. I’m really happy about this structure because it means each of my classes has a theme, purpose and achievable goal. My students are also motivated and taking classes mainly because they want to – which is a HUGE plus. So on the whole, 7 days in, I’m pretty happy with the teaching amenities. Did I mention they are less than 5 minutes door to door from our apartment? The picture below was taken from our balcony.
More to come on that as time goes on, of course.
Roommates and housing!! Well, I knew a little about the living arrangements before coming. I’d seen a few pictures and I knew a few things about the girl Caroline had been living with for a few months. We have a great dynamic going though! Our teaching, cooking. living, shopping together is going well. We having individual and group time equally balanced, which is nice. And the apartment is big enough that there are many places to escape if need be.
That is about it for now! Hope I’ve painted an image that makes you feel as if you can be here in spirit. I miss you all terribly but hope to master the balance between soaking up this experience and passing the next 11 months as quickly as possible. Then on to my next adventure – yet to be determined.
Please feel free to send postcards. As you can see from the pictures, my walls are quite barren. But I’ve been told the mail is unreliable and so anything other than a postcard might not make it to me. You’ve been warned.
Cemalpasa Mah. Toros Cad.63007 Sokak Bahadir Apt. No 32 Kat 47 Daire 4Seyhan, AdanaTurkey
Love you very much! Reservations for Skype dates welcomed : )
