Thursday, January 14, 2010

Before a few more weeks pass, I’d better write in my blog right away this time. It’s kind of a shame that I forgot to write about Cappadocia, Manavgat (Antalya), and especially the short trip to Bochum, but it’s probably too late to catch up now… maybe I’ll upload some photos to StudiVZ later. ;)

The reason I’m writing today is, first of all, my move… at some point, I realized that smokers really stink, and as it happened, a room became available at a good friend’s place here (Zeynep). The latter was actually rather sad… her previous roommate, Katherine from Boston, was actually one of my few close friends here, and she has now gone to London to continue her studies. It’s incredible how much you can miss someone once you’ve gotten used to them. The rest of the day after she left, we lay in bed crying and watched comedies to distract ourselves.

I figured that even though I only have one month left here, it’s always worth it! So, I grabbed my suitcase, said goodbye to Apo and Murat (whom I barely saw anymore anyway since they wake up when I go to sleep and vice versa), and moved into the apartment with the rooftop terrace and the piano (yay!). But instead of getting Katherine’s room, the annoying cousin (who also lives here, is totally spoiled, and nobody likes her) cut in and took over the room because it was bigger. I honestly didn’t care at all… but since Madame couldn’t manage to move her stuff, I’ve been sleeping on the couch in the living room until today.

Last Saturday, said cousin finally managed to have the rest of her belongings transported from Ankara to Istanbul. In a truck. At four in the morning. Naturally, she was somewhere else, sleeping. The guys from what was apparently a very cheap moving company then tried to convince Zeynep and me that they weren’t responsible for carrying the furniture up to the apartment under the roof. Nice try. They ended up carrying it… and wrecked the whole apartment. But by that point, we didn’t even care anymore. The cousin then didn’t show up for a while… which we didn’t actually mind at all.

The next morning—just two hours later—Zeynep’s sister and her husband came by to invite us on a trip. Oh man, I did not feel like going! I just wanted to sleep… but I’m so unbelievably glad I went after all!! We had originally planned to go skiing, but since it was unusually warm and there was no snow left, we headed to Lake Abant (3-4 hours from Istanbul) instead, stopping for a breakfast buffet on the way. The breakfast alone was worth getting up for! I’m telling you… 20 kinds of cheese… countless olives… sucuk with eggs… baklava… dates… fruit… I love food! We sat outside on the terrace in 18°C (64°F) weather, wearing T-shirts. Yeah, it’s a bit warmer than in Germany. Then we headed into Anatolia… and suddenly, there was snow everywhere! :D Of course, I was totally thrilled, but it was also my first snow in a year… I guess with what you guys are experiencing right now, I probably wouldn’t be as excited anymore.

When we arrived at the lake, we somehow ended up at a beekeeper’s place with his wife. We had only planned to cuddle their cats a little, but of course, we were immediately invited in for tea. It turned out that the couple had lived in Germany for 20 years. Unfortunately, I didn’t understand much of their stories because their accent was too hard to follow, but Zeynep kindly translated for me. They weren’t always treated very well in Germany… and I have to say, this was yet another situation where I felt very uncomfortable… as a German. Since being here, I’ve come to realize how strong some Germans’ prejudices against Turks are. At first, I tried to deny it or distance myself from it, but by now, I have to admit quite a bit to myself. But I’d rather not go too deep into that topic right now.

After eating our honeycombs (by the way, you spit out the wax, as I found out :D) and satisfying our cat-cuddling needs for the next few months, we continued walking along the lake. And then there they were: a herd of horses! Yessss, my dream finally came true! I’ve always wanted to ride a horse. :) So, we went up to the owner, gave him some money, and then, accompanied by his sons, we rode into the snowy landscape. Maybe just a little over an hour, but that was already more than enough for me. My horse was pretty lazy, and I couldn’t get it to do more than a light trot. But somehow, that was already perfect. Denizhan (Zeynep’s sister’s husband), on the other hand, had his horse suddenly take off at full gallop :D but luckily, he had a bit more experience.

It was amazing! =) I’ll definitely do it again in Germany! Until then, it’s only two and a half more weeks… unbelievable, my Erasmus semester is actually almost over. Kind of sad, but I’m also looking forward to going home.

After the ride, we went sledding down a small hill using plastic bags and rubber tires…

… and sometimes landed right in the stream. :D :D :D

It was definitely a beautiful day that I won’t forget anytime soon! Since then, I’ve mostly been studying. Half of my final exams are already behind me, the rest are coming up tomorrow and Monday. But then things continue right away! I’m flying to Mersin (near Adana on the southern coast) with Zeynep, where we’ll spend a week being spoiled by her mother’s cooking while lounging in the living room and looking out at the beach… or lying on the beach, depending on the weather. ;) I can’t wait and will definitely report back!

See you soon!!!!