Antalya...continuing to be continued....

Look! I've gotten so fat I have 5 chins!


This was the market in Serik on Friday that I went to with Kubra, Merve, and Sinan's mother. It was large, and not annoying like the Grand Bazaar. People go there for their everyday shopping - everything from teapots to underwear is sold there. Sometimes we see a few foreigners, probably escaping from Antalya to see a "real" city. We always giggle and point them out when we see them.



If I can say so myself, I do like this photo. I would have to say this was probably my favorite thing I have eaten here already. It was a meat borek, and it was just absolutly delicious. It was only meat, onions, parsley, and black pepper but the borek it was wrapped up in was so good, and if you see the photo below, perfectly cooked. Perfect proportions of bread and meat and a perfect amount of pepper and onion. Ahh it was delicious. I think tomorrow I am going "to the village" to learn how to make bread and borek. Should be fun!



I've moved onto the past tense in Turkish, having sort of mastered the present continuous tense. Turkish is great in that it only really has 5 different tenses. I was accepted into the certification program which begins in a little over a week, and I have 50 Pre-Course tasks to complete before beginning - questions ranging from pronunciation difficulties learners may have to the dreaded tense identification (how many do we have? 12? 13?). I've found I prefer studing Turkish over completing these tasks.

Not much else to report. I put salt in Serdar's tea instead of sugar. I left an ink stain on the lovely lace tablecloth in the guest bedroom. I stepped on Sinan's mothers shoe and it came off when walking around Serik. His dad bought a bunch of avocados thinking I would like them because I am American, but it turns out none of us do. I'm having problems with the family thinking I am just eating everything to be polite, but not because I really like it, and I can't convince them that I really am enjoying everything I am eating. I'm here until February 6th, it will be sad to leave and start real life!

Antalya cont.

This was dinner tonight - rice with a roast and then a bean and meat stew. And salad.



Last night we did clay masks - it was kind of hard to smile. Eating an orange was harder. I sort of had a little allergic reaction to it afterwards, it was kind of funny.



This is one of my favorite things here - a couple hours after dinner we eat a bunch of fruit and nuts and seeds. There are strawberries, oranges, pears, apples, and bananas easily available, and of course sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pistachios, and hazelnuts.

Above was tonight's dinner - chicken baked in the oven but with lots of juice and so moist, along with potatoes and tomatoes that seemed to have been baked along with the chicken. In addition there was the delicious salad and rice with peas. Every meal ends with Sinan's mother telling me to eat - "ye, ye!" - and me groaning. I should pretend to stop eating earlier, so then I can keep eating a little more when she forces me to continue.



Mmm breakfast. The food in the lower right corner is menemen, one of my favorite Turkish dishes (that doens't really say anything...almost everything is my favorite). It is onions and tomatoes cooked in oil (tomatoes peeled and finely chopped), then some green pepper is added, and finally some eggs are broken into it. It is sort of a stir fried omelette, but less eggy and more tomato-y. Obviously, best scooped up with bread. There is also some meat which I would make sandwiches with. Menemen is fun because you can add stuff to it - when I order it at a cafe in Istanbul I get that meat mixed in with it.



No visit to Turkey is complete without doner. This is chicken, with lettuce, tomato, ketchup and mayonnaise.



Yes, we are eating it outside! It sounds like people at home on the east coast are battling snow, and I am spending my "winter break" eating doner outside.

Today I went into Serik with Sinan's mother, Kubra, and Merve, a cousin who is staying here for a while (pictured on the far right above). I was telling Sinan yesterday Serik is the kind of place I wish I had studied abroad, or done a home stay in for a long amount of time. The population is 50,000, so it is a good size but manageable. It is more "real" than Istanbul, particularly Etiler where I am located. Most of the shops are selling hardware tools or boots to do manual labor in, not expensive clothes, jewelry, and cars. I stand out while walking around, sometimes uncomfortably so. Half-jokingly, Sinan says I might cause an accident because people tend to stare at me while driving. At the same time, people comment on how I look like Sinan's mother or even Sinan.
I like how there is a sense of community and it seems more down-to-earth here. While walking around we stop in places to say hi to people, or run into people that they know. We stopped at a shop that sells the really thin dough (like filo dough) (and a shop dedicated just to that), and they gave us a cheese filled borek. Nice!

Antalya Continued...

I suppose you all should see who Sinan is - he is an important role in my being here. This is when the power was out and we were taking photos in black and white (??).



Yesterday we went to his relatives who live in the city of Antalya (Sinan's family live about 25 minutes outside of the city). This is a view from their balcony - I absolutely love the mountains picture here, it is so different from where I come from. The sea is right below them which is also so beautiful.
It was a difficult day yesterday because I was around so many people (sort of a Saturday get together...all day) just sitting around and talking. I am so happy his family does that, because my family does that to and it is important to me, but being in an unfamiliar home with unfamiliar people speaking in an unfamiliar language can be so isolating and frustrating, but also a time for me to practice. Everyone is so nice though - making sure I am being entertained, having something to drink, a place to sit etc. I couldn't have asked for anything different. We played a lot of cards and the way I shuffle (nothing exciting, but I do the bridge thing at the end) was really neat to them, so every time I was handed the cards. It was pretty funny.


Dinner tonight was AWESOME! Kofte (meatballs) with french fries (homemade) and some rice that was so buttery and delicious, along with some soup and the BEST salad. They cut the vegetables up so finely and peel the tomatoes and they do not even put lettuce in it - ah, so good. I need to figure out the liquid they put on it - oil and something pomegranate I think. Then there was this white bean like thing with, again, some sort of dressing and eggs, AND the neighbor brought up something I think I have eaten once before here, like wheat nuggets maybe? Ah, doydum (I'm full!)!



This is Sinan's mom making a sort of a pastry with walnuts in it. I think we will be eating it soon. The little boy next to her is another cousin who was a lot of fun. He knows some English so between that and my little bit of Turkish we can communicate. We did origami and played cards and did Tangoes. The weather is truly terrible right now with wind and rain so we are all just handing around the house playing...and eating. It's rough.

More food...

A quote from Sinan, to me: "You are getting fat." It's true, but I can't help it. Breakfast this morning: Potatoes with egg and cheese, best scooped up with bread. Dinner last night was delicious, lahmacun (dough with meat on it) and ayran (something you drink - yogurt with water and salt).


Sinan is in the striped shirt, his brother Serdar in black, his mother in red, and his sister Kübra in the blue.

Today the power went out for a few hours, so we all had a fun time playing cards and eating by candlelight. Surprisingly, once the power came back on we didn't all run to our computers.

Me learning Turkish is like a baby learning to talk; I point out things like, glass! Apple! When I go get a glass of water or hand over something, I dictate every move (as possible). It helps me learn, and they are being patient and helpful.

Does this activity look familiar to anyone? It certainly brings back memories of Heath and I playing in hotel rooms when we were traveling around the world.

Oh no a big slice of cake was just brought in. It never stops. I just ate three pieces of fruit, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds. I will need two airplane seats to go back to Istanbul. I could say no but everything is so good...

Daffodils!

This is asure, a traditional Turkish dessert. Sinan's mother made a HUGE vat of it and was giving it away to friends all day. It's an interesting combination of ingredients, but it actually works pretty well. This is what I could distinguish: bulgur, rice, chickpeas, white beans, grapes, apricots, oranges, nuts of some sort and other things like sugar, water etc. Sometimes it is in a more congealed form, but this was more soup like, and warm.


We went to visit Sinan's grandmother across the road yesterday, and there were daffodils blooming!



Today I went shopping with Kübra, her mother, and some neighbors downstairs. It's so hard to shop with Turkish people because they are so generous and hospitable. I don't dare point out something I like because I know they would buy it for me. I refused to let them buy me clothes, but I think I satisfied them by letting them purchase yarn so Kübra could knit me a scarf. It was a fun outing and we actually managed to communicate in Turkish, so today was not as discouraging as the previous days. They are all so patient with me, I really do appreciate it. This picture is with a girl from downstairs (I can't remember her name...) and Kübra on the right. Kübra is one of the sweetest, most thoughtful people I know. Anyway, there is a garden and currently there are lemons and oranges!


This is a view from their balcony. The apartments you see are so standard all over Turkey, and what Sinan's family lives in as well. Off in the distance there are mountains (something new for me!) that are so beautiful, some have snow on the tips. Because Antalya is so warm, most of the apartments have solar water heaters on them, thus it is better to take a shower during the day time. I love how far ahead of us they are in so many things.

Antalya

I’m in Antalya now, where Sinan’s family lives. He just finished his semester, so it is his break now, so we are doing typical "break-like" things - eating, sitting, watching stuff...He has a brother who is an English teacher, and a 16 year old sister who knows some English. Neither of his parents speak English. It can be frustrating because I want to express myself and communicate with them, but often I just turn into a giggly American girl. Yesterday I went to a friend’s house with his mother, where no one spoke English but it was nice to sit around, drink tea and eat food, while the ladies knitted and talked. I like to listen and try to figure out what they are talking about. Every day I am trying to teach myself Turkish or get Sinan, Serdar, and Kubra to teach me. I'm learning, but I wish I had more structured lessons. Anyway, FOOD!

One of my favorite Turkish dishes:
Iskender kebap – cut up bread with meat over it, yogurt with garlic sauce, tomato sauce, and butter. This is in Istanbul.

This is what we had for breakfast the first day at his family’s house, spinach and egg. Tasty!
We eat on the floor around a big metal plate. These rolled up things are borek, which have a feta-like cheese and parsley in them. Bread with butter and honey is typical, olives, and tea of course!

This is dinner, a sort of stew with onions, beef, and chickpeas and some red pepper and tomato sauce. Of course we use bread to soak up the delicious flavor. The picture was taken earlier before water was added to give it a more soup/stew like texture.

Breakfast today, which was grated potato with parsley. One of the borek’s had cheese in addition. There were also tomatoes and cucumbers and cheese, which is usually at every breakfast. Turkish breakfasts have got to be the most delicious in the world.

I'm here!

Hi! I made it! I am trying to get used to loading photos, please bear with me. Anyway, I got here Friday night and the last couple days have just consisted of eating and watching stuff and walking around. I just looked at a couple of apartments, which I will report on when I find out, and I also purchased a cell phone. I am starting to settle down! It's been so nice to see Sinan and know I am not leaving in a week, or have to cram all my favorite Turkish foods into that week. I felt sick last time that happened.
Anyway, the top photo was taken along the Bosphorus in Bebek, which is just down the hill from where I am. The second photo was from about 8 minutes from where I live, also looking at the Bosphorus.
Tomorrow I have an interview for the certification program, and then tomorrow night we are going to Antalya. Hopefully I will have lots of cooking to report on!

Eek

It's the night before I leave and of course I am in the "My goodness what am I doing?" phase. Nothing major, but I am just quite content hanging out with the parents, playing with friends and the cats, eating and cooking good food. I am going to miss radio stations and running into people I know everywhere I go, and getting to eavesdrop on conversations. But, I have to leave at some point and now is my time to go have an adventure abroad - when else! Once I get there I will realize why I am doing it, but for now all I can think of is overpacking and an uncomfortable plane ride and leaving behind so much that I care about. I am excited though! Mmm kebabs...tea....

Welcome!

Hello!

Thank you for visiting my blog! For those that don't know my story, I just graduated from Goucher College with a B.A in Historic Preservation. I studied abroad in Istanbul last spring (to learn more about that, visit my first blog at sallygordon.livejournal.com) and now I am returning to teach English! I suppose part of the interest in returning is my boyfriend, Sinan, who I met while abroad and is still in school.
I leave in a couple days, and my plan is to become certified to teach English through a five week program in Istanbul that starts in February, then hopefully find a job after that. On Monday I will go to interview for the certification program. I have no idea how long I will be gone for, it could be a couple months or a couple years. Currently I am trying to shove my entire life into two suitcases. It is not going well.
Anyway, I don't know how interesting this blog will be, but I would love feedback and comments from you! Next week Sinan and I are going to his family's home in Antalya, where I will learn to cook with his mom, so you should learn about Turkish cooking!

Thanks for reading, and please keep in touch!