Me n Barack

After three transfers, from the metro to the funicular to the tram, I found Tophane. You have to pay for each ride. You could travel all the way across Istanbul on the metro for the price of one ride. You could travel a short distance, but have to transfer three times and have to pay for three rides. I am either doing this wrong or yeah, it don’t make no sense. Pay per type of transport you ride as opposed to pay for the length of your journey. Huh?

Anyhow, I arrived at the Tophane station, which was supposed to be right at the Istanbul Modern Art Museum. I looked right and left and saw no such place. It was still early morning on Sunday and the area seemed a bit deserted and I was certainly the only lone woman about. Even though I tried to appear as though I knew which way I was going, I wasn’t very good at it, because I still got stares and the occasional random “helpful” person. The museum was supposed to be in an old boat docking station or packing factory or something industrial like that. I wandered down one road that according to my map seemed to be the right way to go, and there, over a very high fence to the left, I saw The museum’s sign rising in the distance.

I backtracked a bit, walked down a creepy street, through a parking lot and found my way inside the museum. For being the big famous modern art museum, it certainly wasn’t very convenient for walkers. Until I walked in through the front door, I thought I was going the wrong way.

Inside I found the usual piles of strange abstracts that are “okay”, paintings and sculptures most people believe their five year old could do a better job of. I love that stuff. It doesn’t make any sense for the most part and you really have to search to find the stuff that is worthwhile.

I enjoyed a much-needed lunch of chicken club sandwich with greens and fried potatoes at the over-priced museum café with a fabulous view of the Bosphorus. I don't know, however, if the view was worth making the tea the same price as my entire awesome breakfast (including the tea) that I had the day before.

After lunch, I wandered downstairs to the temporary exhibit, an ode to shadows of sorts. My favorite piece was an old shadow puppet film called "The Adventures of Prince Achmed" by Lotte Reiniger. It is considered the oldest surviving animated films. The story is based on the stories from 1001 Arabian Nights. It was quite beautiful; I saw the fourth act and part of the fifth act and hope to find the whole thing somewhere so I can watch it from beginning to end. I wasn't quite ready to sit there just then for an hour or two in the museum.


A moment from "The Adventures of Prince Achmed"

There were other little dark rooms to check out. There were some other very cool stop-motion animations and shadow puppet films. The whole experience was quite peaceful and inspiring, walking in and out of dark little rooms, each with one strange shadow film after another.

When I had had my fill of “modern art”, I thought I might wander around, head over to some place that is supposed to have the “best” baklava in Istanbul.

I never made it.

By the time I walked down my first scary empty street that opened up to a crowded square, full of people that gave me a little bit too much attention, I was done for the day. I found the tram and took my same three transfers back home. Still the hostage of jetlag, I spent my evening trying to stay awake until at least 9PM. I made it to 8:30PM.

So, now I’m at Pars McCann in Istanbul. It’s essentially my first day. I’ve yet to get something to do, aside from meeting a lot of people and getting chatted up. I just got back from lunch at a place called Num Num. at the mall. No real Turkish food yet, but I did have a delicious salad with tenderloin and blue cheese on top and the company wasn’t bad either. I went along with Martha, Oktar, Nina, Tolgar, and a lady whose name starts with an ‘f’. I mean I think I got those names right. They are also Pars McCann people; all quite super. A little Starbucks after and I’m starting to feel normal again (I woke up at 5:30AM). Nothing like being taken out to lunch and Starbucks to help one feel normal again, though.

By the way, Barack Obama is working in Istanbul today too.

I think this will be okay. ☺

No Shortage of Vegetables

I woke up famished. Thought my stomach may have eaten itself in the middle of the night. But, I survived the walk to a little café/restaurant that my (I guess I’ll call her landlady) suggested. I think it is Mayek, or Mayk.

Put all of your thoughts that they speak any English in Turkey aside. I read in some guidebook or online somewhere that “you could get along just fine with English in Istanbul”. Lies, I tell you! Though the two folks at the counter were quite accommodating with my struggling and pointing at my Turkish/English dictionary and pointing at some tomatoes behind the counter, it never really got anywhere. Eventually, the girl says something that sounded like “omelet” and I nodded my head emphatically. At this point I thought I may faint from hunger. The guy says something that sounds like “tea” and I say my one little Turkish word “cai” (tea, there’s a squiggly thing under the ‘c’, but my computer doesn’t make those, it sounds like ‘ch’). I pay 6 Lira, about $3.87 and I got this.


Breakfast

Yay!
Nope, no shortage of vegetables here. Fresh tomatoes, big hunks of cucumber, delicious olives (trumps the Spanish ones in my opinion *wink), a pile of fresh whole grain bread, and eggs loaded with some pretty super goat cheese. And the tea? Exactly how I like it. It’s brewed really strong, but somehow not that bitter. Just a little sugar, no milk, and it gives you the little caffeine buzz to start your day.

I spent the remainder of my time at the café completing the first chapter in my “Teach Yourself Turkish” book. I love language and am determined to learn enough Turkish to get around, or at least to be able to order breakfast.

The grocery store was not so different as the ones in the States, except for the fact that everything was in Turkish. So, there I was wandering the aisles with my cart, wondering why none of the milk is refrigerated, grabbing for my dictionary, and trying to decipher whether or not the freezer bags have Ziplocs on them or not.

Upon checkout, I realized I had seven grocery bags full, five of which that were heavy (the other two were bulky, one with paper towels and the other with TP), and about a quarter mile to walk. Needless to say, I made many stops along the way and got a lot of funny stares. By the time I got home, I thought my arms were going to fall off. I am sore this morning.

After grocery adventures, I dealt with some Turkish bank stuff with a friend of my “land lady”, to get my rent paid. She was really nice and helpful. She used to teach English, so she was the perfect translator. The bank felt more like the DMV. We took a number and waited for about 45 minutes along with a small crowd of people. Apparently, all the banks are closed on Saturdays except for the one in the mall. It was Saturday and we were at the one in the mall, along with everyone else who has to do banking but works Monday through Friday. *Sigh

I spent the rest of the day and evening resting, doing what I could do speed up the process of deleting my jetlag.

Today, I set out for the modern art museum and public transport adventures. Full reports in the very near sometime future.

The Many Hour Day

What a strange day. I didn’t go to bed last night until this morning around 7AM.

A driver from McCann Erickson (the agency I am interning for) was at the airport to meet me at 11:15PM, just as planned. However, when he called the number I had written down for the person who was supposed to meet me at my sublet to give me keys and such, there was no answer. As we made our way toward the apartment’s location, we called at least three times. Still, no answer. We got to the neighborhood and I uselessly tried to recognize it by the few pictures of the interior I had been sent just a week before. With a long sigh, I was driven to the house of Deniz; someone who works at McCann Erickson, whom I’ve been communicating with since I first got the internship;with the hopes of making contact in the morning.

The driver and I lugged my two fifty pound suitcases (HEY, eleven weeks is a long time!) up three flights of stairs, I met Deniz and weary-eyed, set about emailing my key contact. While I waited for Deniz’s Internet to get working, I asked if she would give the number one more try. Kevin (the “keymaster”) promptly answered, dozing a little, but ready to show me into my new home for the next eleven weeks, even at 1:30AM. Turns out, the driver had mis-dialed the number, and his non-English coupled with my non-Turkish equaled a simple mis-reading of my hand-written 2.

It was late, but the apartment was everything that I hoped for and more. I am truly blessed. I have a super cute one-bedroom apartment in a great part of Istanbul just a short walk and subway ride to work. I won’t go into the details of how I got it, or whom it belongs to. Just know that it involves an American who lives here that is going back to the states for approximately the same dates that I am going to be in Istanbul. So, I am subletting the apartment from her for an affordable price, all to myself. We are essentially doing each other a favor. Did I mention what a lucky girl I am?



My little office with a garden view!

In all my excitement, I stayed up until 7AM… maybe even 8AM, getting the Internet set up, organizing the bathroom and filling the closet. I even went on a walk around sunrise to take pictures and listen to the call to prayer.


Walking 'round "the hood" in the early morning

The driver came to pick me up this afternoon around 2PM… while I was still sleeping. There are no clocks in the house (?), my watch was set an hour off, and I hadn’t set the time on my phone with the alarm on it. Jetlag’s a bitch. I threw on some clothes, apologized profusely and rode to the agency where I will be working for the next ten weeks.

The agency is super! It’s very modern and spacious. Everyone I met was friendly. I got introduced to all the staff and even shown to my little spot at the creative table along with the other creatives. (Eventually, I’ll take pictures to share.)

I also met up with Martha, my internship partner, who had already been shown around and whatnot, since being in Istanbul since 6AM the previous day. She was already settled into her place and even given a poster to work on. Something tells me I have much creative work to do in the very near sometime future.

I found the metro with Martha’s help and rode back to my “hood”. A five-minute subway ride and a fifteen minute walk is all it takes for me to get between the agency and my sweet pad.

After spending the evening cleaning and re-organizing the kitchen (I am so anal sometimes) so everything is just so, I am bushed. Time for a much deserved rest.

Grocery adventures tomorrow!!!

I'm tired, I think, I should be, anyhow.

A day of travel is always transitional… in more ways than one. A transition in the physical body accompanied by a movement in the interior. I am physically transported across the planet in a plane to be dropped in Istnbul. My mind hopes for the best. Though everything has gone perfectly thus far, I cannot abandon the creepy thought that no one will be at the airport to pick me up; I will not be able to find nor get into the apartment. I will get stolen right off the plane. I will have nothing to eat. And on and on. But, thn the body steps in and shushes the mind with an everything is fine attitude. Thank god for mechanical mode. I may have never even have said “yes” to this internship if I wasn’t dealing with mechanical mode

The plane is currently descending into Istanbul and I am in a complete awe that this trip is still far from over… I can’t help but having a feeling that everything is going to be perfect; exactly as it should and exactly as it shouldn’t be.

Waiting in Heathrow

Nothing quite like waiting in an airport for five hours. At least there's internet and English... YAY!

I don’t think we’re in Korea anymore, Toto.

(This was actually written two days ago, and I just now got internet for my computer.)

No, definitely not in Korea any more.

In fact, right now I’m sitting in my underwear with the windows wide open (aside from the screens) with the songs of night birds and insects expressing their devotion to the warm night air. I share in that devotion. I am so happy to be warm again. The only thing that’s crumby about the tropical weather, though, is the slime. I almost forgot about the slime. All of the heat I’ve been in recent past has been dry heat. I forgot that as soon as you step out of the airport, you’re clothes feel dirty. It’s not really your clothes that are dirty, it’s not even you that’s dirty, it’s all the water and moisture being sucked up into the air and sticking to anything that… well, anything. I don’t mind it though. I certainly prefer it to freezer weather. Freezer weather makes me want to stay in, heater weather makes me want to go out.

I learned a lot from Korea. The biggest lesson I learned was the fuel of generosity and trust. In fact, I believe a large part of my enjoyable, successful travel, comes from a little blind faith and trust. There were so many times when I had no idea what was going on and I just went with my newfound friends, the advice of strangers, or the lead of my co-workers and students. When one travels without faith, one often ends up eating boring food, seeing only the tourist sights (and not even with a very insightful eye), getting lost a lot (in a bad way), and feeling rather frustrated and left wondering why they liked traveling anyways. People are bound to be generous and sharing if you approach them with love and trust. (At least, that’s what I would like to believe in some small way.) You are in their land. I’m not saying that it’s smart to be foolish and believe everything you hear, only that letting go of your way may lead you on a very nice way indeed. Perhaps it was the unexpected way, but either way, I think more is had. Working my ass off distracted me just enough to be happily willing to throw my hands up and say, “lead the way?” a lot.

I bring all this up because I have noticed an alteration in my now free travel style. (As you know, my time is now my own again and I am currently celebrating my third day off in a row!) Since landing in Thailand, I have said, “okay” to a lot more things this trip than other trips I have had. I think.

I think I usually had questioned the motives of all those helpful Thai people wanting to give rides, advice, a cheap meal, an opportunity to see more Thailand, etc. This time, I’m finding myself walking up to folks with wide eyes, a big smile, positive intentions, and an open mind. I think a lot of travelers (and I have been able to watch a lot of travelers since arriving in Thailand) are really scared. They should be! I mean a different language, different food, no sense of direction and landmarks, not even the knowledge of how to make a phone call usually makes a person a little nervous. But then, as travelers, we do a funny thing. In the midst of all this unknown, we defend ourselves from the locals, we see scams where people really are just trying to make an honest buck, we read guidebooks, and stand in front of maps for fifteen minutes wondering how to get to the train station. We shrug off people in uniforms asking us where we’re going. Maybe people are nice.

So, I’m asking. I’m asking and accepting and it’s great. I’m not accepting the tuk tuk ride for 60 Baht when I had just paid 40 earlier for the same ride and I’m not going to towns without calling a guesthouse ahead of time. I’m not being a “noob”. But, I will go on the little tour that the nice old lady from my guest house pitches to me right after I check in (I didn’t have anything else planned tonight). I will ask everyone where they’ve been and where they’re going and make a friend in some way or another every place I go and ask for advice and take it. I’ll write down people’s names and remember them later. I will take a motorcycle ride home (it was fun and cheap!) I will eat off of stalls and learn new food words from the ladies cooking up… whatever it is they’re cooking up.

I’m currently in Ayuthaya after taking a train ride from Bangkok this morning. I slept in a fabulous guesthouse called Suk 11 near the sky train. The rooms were nothing to write home about, but the shared space and overall atmosphere was very sweet indeed, all wooden and set way off the road down a flowery side street. Although I arrived in Thailand late, got to my guest house late, ate late, and got to sleep late, I was determined to wake up early and catch the 8:25AM train to Ayuthaya. Well, it was a good thing too, because I got there and was able to buy my ticket with exactly fifteen minutes to spare and I waited and I waited and I waited. I had a lot of conversations and reading time as other trains came and went, even other trains going to the exact same place, but not my train. Not until four hours later did my train come, delayed as ever. Good thing I got up early. Good thing.



I checked into the Baan Lotus Guest House for the night and it suits me just fine. I called this morning to reserve a room, but I think my timing was more important, because I don’t think GoSoom had written it down, but she did have a room for me, although it was a double with two beds. The rooms filled up and people came and went without key in hand. About an hour after I checked in, GoSoom approached me in my room to ask if I would be kind enough to share my room with another girl. So I met Gabbie from Switzerland and since I am in “I will” mode, I invited her to share the room. Heck I had an extra bed just sitting there and it saved me an extra 150 Baht and good karma is good karma. Since Korea, I feel like that’s just what you do. You don’t even think about it, you have something someone needs and it’s really not too much trouble to share, you share. I like it. Gabbie is very sweet and traveling alone as well, but for the next six weeks. She also just arrived in Thailand yesterday. She has been here before, has actually stayed at this guesthouse before, and GoSoom remembered her.


After everyone was settled in, I went on a little tour of the temples on the outskirts of town for three hours. I saw a lot of ruins. I saw a lot of ruins. Did I mention that I saw a lot of ruins? The tour group was funny. There were about ten of us. We were a motley crew of an English couple, an Argentinean couple, two German couples, an Indian guy, our Thai driver, and me, the American. I took a lot of pictures, shared a few stories and advices and… I saw a lot of ruins, by the way.





When the tour finished, I asked the driver if he could take me to the train station so I could change my ticket (a matter I had talked about with maybe five people both Thai and foreign and all advised that it was probably a good idea to change my tickets if I could). I was able to change my tickets, no problem, and now all my transportation is set between now and Chiang Mai.

I found a fabulous roadside food stall where I supped on one of my favorite roadside Thai meals, Pad Thai and a Coke in a glass bottle. (My other favorite is Tom Sum and a chicken leg!) I was then going to get my tuk tuk home but I had a little scammer on my hands. I dealt with the tuk tuk guy who wanted 60 Baht for what I knew was a 40 Baht ride by walking down the street and later accepting a ride on the back of a motorcycle for free, but I gave him 40 Baht anyways. (I know, don’t be mad Mom. It was fun and very “local”.) Now, here I am.

Tomorrow, I will probably see some more ruins and then head over to Sukhothai to see some more ruins. I like ruins.

The Last Day In Sight

Tomorrow is my last day at Inha University English Camp.

Today, we had our final day for the Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes, tomorrow, we will have the final day for our Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday classes. Today, we had our group performance project, graduation, and awards. It was a fun day and I think everything ended on a good note. The kids in my class wore traditional Korean outfits for the play; I thought they were so cool.


I am really excited about going to Thailand and seeing Robin. I am looking forward to being warm and eating some different food. I’ve been researching things that I may want to do there and having my freedom back is sounding really good.

The camp and Korea have been wonderful, educational, and interesting. I have met some really great people and have done a lot of fun things. I have learned more about others, and myself, and for that I am always grateful. Travel always puts so much in a whole new perspective, or at least a clearer one.

It’s still not over yet though. I’ve got some fun-filled days left here in Korea and I intend to make full use of them. There’s more that I want to do than I will have time for so, I guess I’ll just have to come back some time.