Uphill Both Ways

I’m sure everyone reading this blog wants to know how things are getting along in Ankara since my arrival.  Adapting to a country where you don’t speak the language is very difficult, to say the least.  But a warm smile goes a long way.  And the Turkish people are very friendly—when they’re not behind the wheel!

I did well learning some Turkish my first Friday night at the Marine Happy Hour.  Somehow I seem to have forgotten most of it by morning. 

I was afraid when leaving home that I was going to miss Franklyn, my adorable, recently adopted cat, who keeps me company.  But I instantly realized that there are a plethora of strays in Ankara (both dogs and cats-but the dogs kind of scare me because they travel in packs).  We happen to have a “house” cat called Osman, but you pronounce the ‘s’ with a ‘z.’ He’s a big fat black cat and I’ve seen him eating but I don’t know who feeds him.  And there’s a picture of him in our hallway.  He seems very sociable but I really hope my rabies shots are up to date!

But these cats are everywhere…  Some girl who lives upstairs from me took a kitten home from the Marine House to keep them from kicking it.  Normally I would say that’s animal cruelty but this cat had these big bat-like ears.  It was pretty ugly.  I’ll update you when I get word on how “Batman” is adjusting to his new home upstairs.

My apartment is very nice.  Furnished and such.  Bed unmade as usual.  The hallway is unusually long.  And the toilets don’t flush backwards, like the whole Australia joke.  They kind of just flush down.  Weird.

My adventures outside the Embassy by myself (ie: without a translator) for the first time were rough.  The navigation was sketchy only because it was so dark and I was unfamiliar with all the roads and with the onslaught of Turkish traffic, it made for an interesting experience.  Well aware of the insanity of Turkish driving, I approached walkways and sidewalks as timidly as possible and was not surprised by the lack of order on their roadways. 

I finally approached my destination, a tiny super market, where I had to randomly pick what I needed by pointing to it, politely.  It wasn’t until I got home that realized I might not have picked out exactly what I wanted. 

But first, I would like to punch in the ovaries, who ever told me that Ankara was on a plateau because that is total BS!  I had to carry my weight home in water on a steep incline, stopping three times for breaths.  There was no need for a winter jacket by the time I got home and needless to say, I don’t feel embarrassed about that jerk who harassed me about cancelling my gym membership before I left, because if I have to carry home everything I eat UPHILL I’m coming home as the Biggest Loser Champion, oh and with some serious calf muscles. 

When I made it home I realized I hadn’t got exactly what I thought I had…  feel free to laugh because I had to hold the phone away from my ear when I told my mom because she was laughing so loud…

1).  I thought I got some kind of milk.  I mean I just wanted something to eat with my cereal.  I wasn’t being prejudice—it could be skim, 1%, 2% or hell, I’d even use whole! Nope, definitely wrong.  I bought some kind of sour milk.  I’m actually not sure what it is because I don’t read Turkish, but I know it’s not milk.  Haha, I wonder what that storeowner thought when I was buying that?

(this is me drinking Ayran, mentioned above- I finally figured out what it was: it's like a chunky yogurt drink that everyone drinks around here... very, very lumpy.  It's like chewing your milk)

2).  I thought I pointed to toilet paper.  Instead, I got paper towels.  I think the next months wiping is gunna be a bit rough…

3).  This one I think I lucked out on—yay!  I bought one of each because I didn’t know what I was buying and I stood in front of them staring for about a solid 5 minutes.  I think I bought I bottle of concentrated laundry detergent & softener.

I probably already drank all the water I dragged home with me because I was so exhausted from carrying it.  Alas, I’m not road kill so I live to tell another day!

(I have pictures to upload but this site is being a pain, so will try another time)