On to Izmir

Our trip yesterday from Istanbul went well, although very tiring. We took a taxi, ferry, train, bus, and another taxi to get here, but we are here, as are all of our bags. I hope to never have to deal w/ that much luggage again. yick.

Izmir is a LOT different than Istanbul. 80 and low 90s instead of mid-70s for temperatures. And whereas in Istanbul it was rare to see women w/o a headscarf, here it is rare to see one. Lots of Westernized dress and fewer people. However, in Istanbul most people spoke fluent English, which made it easier for me to ajust. Also, restaurants and stores were just a few steps away. Here, not so much. We haven't found ANYONE who speaks English besides our CELTA coordinator, and most of the restaurants, stores, banks, etc are a little over a mile away. That whole isolation thing people were telling me I'd be feeling? Yup, pretty much. We were told the other non-Izmir students would be arriving later this week, and I'm hoping some of them will speak English. But so far, I'm kind of sad to say, I'm feeling very uncomfortable and obviously foreign here. Kind of hating that. It's very hard to communicate with other people when I speak basically no Turkish (except "I'm sorry" and "Thank you") and they speak no English at all. Even going to get something to eat has turned into a little bit of a fiasco. Questions we take for granted like, "Where do we order?" and "What is in this dish?" are pretty much out of the question for us. So I'm relying on Chris to get by on the little Turkish he knows; I just smile and nod. And the waiters just stare at us and us back at them when we can't understand each other. Can anyone say uncomfortable?

Ok, enough whining, sorry about that. I will talk about food, as that seems to get me geeked and helps me forget my crankiness. We didn't eat much yesterday, since we were traveling and there wasn't any time in between modes of transportation for things such as food. So last night we walked down into town and got supper. I had something (sorry, again I don't remember the name- I was tired, ok?) that was little medallions (I'm guessing lamb) in a dish with sauteed onions and tomatoes. Very good! Chris had adana, which he said was also good.

Today we walked to the tea garden, about the only eating establishment close to the university for lunch/dinner (we slept through breakfast). We both had a döner 1/2 etmek, which is the döner meat on half of a small french baguette. Very good, although I gave most of mine to the 3 tiny kittens who came over for the food. Absolutely adorable, I had so much fun with them. We both had ice cream for dessert as well, which was good! It was much more like sherbet, and we had strawberry, raspberry, vanilla, lemon, and chocolate flavors. Chris also bought me some chocolate, since I am in desperate need of it. Basically delicious, tastes like Dove chocolate!

During our walk last night we also found a mall, which, as you can all imagine, overjoyed me! Ahhh, AC (most other places don't have it), multiple floors, and things to buy! YAY! Unfortunately for me, we bought boring things like a desk fan, hangers, and tissues. But now I know where it is for future reference ;)

I'm hoping tonight to find a store that sells olive oil, since we purchased fresh bread today. I also need to find an open-air market that has fresh fruit and vegetables, since I know they're in season here. Eating out every day for 3 meals gets expensive, and I'm hoping to have simple meals that I can eat in the dorm. We have a mini-fridge, but that's it.

Oh, speaking of the dorm, get this: there are MAIDS who come in every day to empty the trash, change the towels, stock toilet paper, change the sheets, and mop the floor. SO weird for a dorm! I feel like it's more of a hotel! And it was even weirder this morning- the maid walked right into our room while we were still in bed, and after some misunderstanding between her and Chris in Turkish, she proceeded to clean the room while we were just waking up! (Yes, go ahead and laugh, I did after she left.) So I'm laying in bed, JUST waking up, and she's mopping 2 feet from me. One of the strangest ways I've woken up...

Ok, this is getting long again. I'm sorry, I'm sure once everything isn't so new to me my posts will get shorter and a little less full of boring details, but as of yet, quit reading whenever you want :) I'll make it easy for you this time.