Out of Izmir and Back

If I had known that we were going to Tourist Land, I probably wouldn't have wanted to go to Kuşadası for 2 nights. You can check out the pictures in my album. Basically, I stopped taking pictures once we got there because it wasn't as amazing as I had hoped. It was an expensive two days and cruise-goers clogged sidewalks, identified like cattle with their neon plastic wrist bands. There was one total downer--on our way back to town after going out to Panucak Beach, we saw police hanging around what had been an accident sight. A body was on the ground, covered with newspaper. I guess they were waiting for the ambulance (or hearse or whatever?) to arrive? It was pretty sobering.

There were 9 of us altogether (7 women... yikes), plus a little toy-like dog named Nippy. Everyone was from work, except for a Turkish woman who is married to one of the men at work. I'm glad to be home. *sigh* I uploaded a some photos to my site, and explain a lot in there but here are the...

Highlights and Redeeming Experiences:

--- I finally found postcards. I've been in Izmir for WEEKS and hadn't found a single postcard. They were practically everywhere in Kuşadası.

--- Spending some quality time with the Aegean Sea:




--- Getting a snippet of the end of the Call to Prayer. Notice that everyone does not stop what they're doing (disassembling the massive tents/bazaar that had been going on all day long):




--- Finding something authentic. Much to our surprise, George and I managed to find actual Turks in Kuşadası. As we trailed through some endless shopping district last night, he heard music being played. He followed it and found a tiny little hole in the wall type restaurant venue where a traditional Turkish band was setting up. Though the others wanted to hang out and drink first in an Irish pub and then some bar called Golden Oldies where they met Turkish break dancers, George and I split off to watch a four-person band (a singer, a clarinet player, a violinist and a drummer--all male) and Turks dance to their hearts' content. Pretty awesome.

Moral of the Story
Though I was glad to get away for a couple of days and lay on the beach, I think next time I get a few days off work, I'm going to plan them more carefully...

Donning floaty fins & paddling out of the tsunami

It wasn't quite so bad today as I thought it would be. I woke up super early and got to school as the sun was coming up over Izmir--it was a beautiful morning and put me in a good mood. Even though it's a long walk to work, I enjoy the time it gives me. Every time I walk it, I'm a little bit different. It's good to consider that.

My new class was a little bit awkward, and I was mildly frazzled, but it was certainly manageable. This class of 7 is mostly younger women--a couple musicians who want to be able to take cello lessons in Europe some day, some professionals there for the promotions attached to good English scores, students--and a couple older men.

I was annoyed when, as I continued to lie about being 25 to my students, some girl who looks 17 commented on how I looked more like 21. Thanks. I would chock it up to mistakenly saying the wrong number--kind of like I do when I'm trying to order in Turkish--but the girl had quite good speaking skills otherwise, so I would be lying to myself. *sigh* Maybe in a few years I can look 23. Before my class even started, one of the Turkish girls from the front office said something in her broken English about how she thought I was the youngest teacher at PEÉ. "Maybe youngest teacher ever? I think you only little older than me." Yes, yes. Are we done yet?!

Does anyone know where to buy wrinkles? It's hard enough finding dental floss in Turkey, so if you'd just mail the wrinkles in a care package, I'd really appreciate it.

Tomorrow will be smoother. I was able to spend all afternoon working on my lesson plan and I feel a lot more comfortable than I did this morning. The scheduling system is confusing so I'll elaborate. I'm only teaching two types of classes right now. They both meet for a total of 5 hours a week, but they meet on either three or two days. So the Saturday/Sunday class is a particularly gnarly block of time to plan for and get under control. I prefer the Monday/Tuesday/Friday class, although the downside to it is that my students arrive tired (business men still in their suits and ties) and are more susceptible to the mood swings of the five day work week.

Upcoming Mini-Vacation
The end of Ramadan is almost here which means two things: 1) no more sleep-disturbing drumming; and 2) the celebration, Bairam, which lasts the first three days of the Islamic month immediately following Ramadan--when Muslims visit their families. Us lucky fools at PEÉ get a 3-day weekend. Tuesday morning, a few of us are piling over to Kuşadası--a resort-type town a few hours south of Izmir. I've been too swamped to know much about the plans, but it's been agreed that we're doing it on the cheap--everyone's either just started teaching at PEÉ or has just come back from vacation, so the wallets are getting thin.

Part of me doesn't even want to go to Kuşadası because I know I'm going to be tired by then and could use the alone time, but it's my last (and only so far) opportunity to travel beyond Izmir before it gets blustery and cold. I'll just suck it up so I can see a different part of the Aegean. I can rest next weekend. Besides, maybe I'll start to get the hang of this teaching thing...