Pros and Cons.

So here I am, sitting once again by my dorm room window, my view graced by an early-morning torrential downpour. If I've learned anything in the past week or so, it's that Turkish weather is downright schizophrenic. One minute it's sunny and mild, and in another cold, windy and rainy (sound familiar Vancouverites....). As such, it's pretty much impossible to dress properly for the day - no matter what you wear (this time of year that is), you're going to be uncomfortable. 

I have to apologize for having taken such a long time to write a second post...I just wasn't sure how or when I'd be able to come up with a new post that would be as expansive or vivid as my first. My second (or third..? not sure where I am exactly) week here has been very interesting and positive, though less dynamic than my first. 

Because two of my four classes were cancelled for the week, I had lots of time to explore the backstreets of Sariyer (the nearby fishing "village") and Beyoglu with my newfound crew: Marc (the Catalan - NOT Spanish) and Jeremiah (AU student by way of Atlanta). Whereas Beyoglu is trendy and European, complete with beautiful old buildings, sidewalk cafes, tourist traps and relentless shoe shiners (Sean, you were right to warn me!), Sariyer is in many ways the antithesis of Beyoglu - a semi-rundown working-class fishing town along the Bosphorus, beneath the elevated seclusion of Koc University. Exploring Sariyer has allowed me the opportunity to see many  of the day-to-day lifestyles of average Turks. I was fascinated to find many beautiful old homes, both wooden and stone in near-ruin - once elegant mansions of the late-Ottoman or early-Republican era. It is strange to see such historical buildings in such disrepair. In North America, where relics of history are few and far between, it would be considered a crime to leave these buildings in such a state. However, for the Turks, the weight of history is simply overwhelming. Driving along the highway on a packed Dolmus, I was amazed to see a Byzantine wall co-existing with an urban slum....

As you might guess, I could probably write forever and bore you all - so instead I've decided to make a fun list of pros and cons - perhaps the best way to capture the experiences of my time here since my last post. Here goes:

Pros:

1) Patates (French Fries) - In Turkey I have found paradise. Turks love fries  and they are to be found EVERYWHERE, cooked in a different and better oil than in that which is used in the US or Canada. Plus, they're eaten them with mayonnaise. The combo is killer.

2) Backstreets - From Sultanahmet to Beyoglu to Sariyer, there are an infinite number of backstreets with hidden corners and surprises. It's an urban explorer's wet-dream.

3) Koc University - Wacky professors with strong accents, beautiful campus (complete with a hockey rink - thought the Canadians would be amused....), friendly students, girls in the drama club (to be continued), surprisingly good cafeteria food (and cheap!)....

4) Doner - Dana, I now understand your obsession. Nothing beats a late night doner (imagine cheese, thinly sliced beef, and fries all co-existing in a grilled wrap...ahhh). Well, perhaps with the exception of Pho (once again, a reference to my Vancouverites....). 

5) Ambiguity - a teacher of mine always used to urge us to "embrace the ambiguity." I've found this saying to be particularly helpful in Turkey - a country where cultural practices and lifestyles are so diverse and varied that it is difficult to absorb any concrete social norms or expectations. Though this can be quite a challenge on a daily basis, I find it absolutely fascinating. 

Cons:

1) Bureaucracy - a 4.5 hour trip to a police station to drop off a residence permit application, complete with a daunting human obstacle course is NOT fun.

2) Traffic - Istanbul is like L.A., arguably worse. The lack of a functional public transportation system in a 2,000+ year old city of 18 million is troubling, at best.

3) Line-cutting - apparently it's o.k. to cut lines here. I find it really irritating at 9 am when I stand in line to get my morning coffee fix...not like in Canada where line-cutting is a cardinal sin that is always accompanied with profuse apologies. 

4) Heating - apparently Turks don't like to be cold. Ever. They really should think about turning down some of the heating on campus buildings however....I might die of heat exhaustion. Seriously.

5) Cigarettes - Bah. They're everywhere. Trying to dance with a girl at a club when both of you have one in hand is a dangerous balancing act (don't worry - I only have the occasional smoke on the weekend.....).

Well, that's about it for now. I'm sure I'll have lots of stories to come and more details about Koc....next week marks the arrival of Ezra (five days) and a few other Mainers.....

In the Beginning.

Sitting by my dorm room window, watching big warm drops of rain fall outside, I'm finding it extremely difficult to summarize my first week here in Istanbul. To make matters worse, I'm hungover to the max and popping advil every hour or so...three shots for $6 US does not bode well for my liver, nor does the existence of an entire district (Taksim), where one can frequent any of 3,000 nightclubs without having to adhere to a last call. I can't tell you how awkward I felt last night, stumbling in to my dorm room and trying not to awaken my very-Muslim roomate who does not even drink. I spent nearly an hour sneaking back and forth between my room and the washroom, emptying my system of copious amounts of alcohol and spicy doner. Sorry, too much detail. 

To give you all some more context, Istanbul itself is a MASSIVE and chaotic city...although it supposedly has 13 million residents, I've been told that there are more likely 18 million people living in the area, many of whom are poor migrants from Eastern Anatolia who aren't counted in the census. When I first flew over the city, all I could see was a massive layer of mist, the occasional skyscraper or dome of a Mosque and then distant mountains and the Sea of Marmara...all in all it appeared peaceful and mysterious. 

Having since traveled on the ground however, I've developed an altogether different impression of the city. Because it is so sprawled out and haphazardly-planned, combined with the fact that there isn't much of  a Metro system (Earthquake zone), traffic is horrendous and I either take a small rickety bus (the dolmus) to get around, or taxicabs (whose drivers constantly try to rip-off foreigners!!). Gazing out the window of these dangerously speeding vehicles at packed thoroughfares, I see fish vendors, veiled women, trendy and affluent urban professionals, stray dogs and cats, soccer hooligans and begging children, all somehow co-existing together. Istanbul really is a city of contrasts - between rich and poor, east and west, those who are religious and those who are not. Sitting last night in the crowd of a packed stadium at a Football match, I was amazed by the energy of the crowd and insane amount of people. Apparently people don't sit at Turkish Football matches...they stand and scream obscenities...even an hour before the game has actually started. 

My school itself is beautiful and clean, perched above the urban chaos, surrounded by forest, mountains and a huge barbed security fence - apparently the children of many affluent (read: Jewish) and powerful families go to school here so there is a need for security. You can't enter the school without a Koc Universitesi I.D.! Though I have yet to meet many students here, I really enjoy my roomate (Recep) who explained to me the other night that Islam in fact advocates for a Republican or Democratic form of government...I feel like such an ignorant American. On a side note, Recep is also a fan of "Prison Break", "Lost" and "How I Met Your Mother." As for the exchange students, they are a great rowdy group of Germans, Canadians, Americans, Singaporeans, Swiss, Dutch and Catalans who for the most part smoke copious amounts of Tobacco. You wouldn't believe how common smoking is here....people do it anywhere and EVERYWHERE...my lungs are on the countdown to total destruction. As for our Turkish mentors, there are a great group of kids. My mentor, Cuci (pronounced Gugi), who has long curly hair is really cute and opinioned. I'm not sure she's so interested in us exchange students - she seems to be a Party-girl - but either way she's been pretty cool. Other than her, there's also another student named Mert who just completed his semester abroad at UBC! I'm glad there's someone I can reminisce with about drunken Pit nights and BC bud.

Ok, at this point I've written probably more than you all wanted to hear and likely from this point on my entries will be shorter. I'll end though by saying that this country and city is absolutely fascinating. The food (major factor for me) is effing amazing and the urban landscape is a unbelievable. Seeing Byzantine Christian mozaics and Islamic symbols co-existing together in the ancient interior of Haghia Sophia was an incredible experience - I've never seen anything like it. Probably the neatest moment for me so far, however, was sitting by the waterfront at dusk, hearing the daily prayer-calls blasting on microphones overhead the city as small fishing boats criscrossed the Bosphorus in front of me. 

Miss you all and look forward to staying in touch. 

*To the RBF crew, I've drunk Efes Pilsen every day since I've been here. You'd be proud.