Hot Times in the City

Welcome back to Ankara where today it was a chilly 99 degrees! The good news is that both homes that I am staying in are pretty comfortable. I'm really enjoying the air conditioning where I am house-sitting. There is only air in the bedroom, but fans help circulate the cool air throughout the house. Our Turkish class is also air conditioned. Unfortunately the same is not true for the public bus system. Turks have an unusual phobia about being cold. They believe being cold makes you sick. So on some of the buses the windows are actually glued shut so the riders won't get cold. How thoughtful of the bus drivers! Seriously I have been very impressed with myself because I have not been complaining. I do not like the heat. I've always hated the hot weather. When I was thinking about coming back early to take the Turkish lessons, Jenna kept asking me if I really thought it was a good idea. She didn't think that I remembered how miserable I was and how hot it is here in the summer. She was right, but I decided to adjust my attitude and the reality is, you really do get used to the heat.

Water cuts started August 1st. The city of Ankara basically divided the city and rotate which half of the city has two days of water and two days without. We've been very lucky so far, our apartment has a reservoir. That means we have water on the off days, but lower water pressure. We are asked to especially conserve water on those days so that the reservoir will last as long as needed. Brenda, a fellow teacher, told me today she talked to one guy who said they were considering going to four days off. Now that is just crazy! The opening of school could also possibly be delayed do to the water shortage. We'll have to wait and see. The are predicting the water shortages to last into November.

As for Turkish class, things are going much better. On Wednesday after the first hour the teacher said she thought we would do better in the afternoon class. It was a lower level and they meet everyday. So we agreed and we have moved to the level three class. Since it meets every day we will actually complete level three and level four by the end of August. Class goes by pretty quickly, except the last hour. We meet for 50 minutes, break for smoke and tea breaks, and the resume at the top of the hour. That's the way Turkish schools work too. The teachers leave the students in the classroom while they go down for their tea and smoke break. Can you imagine that happening in an American school?

The good news is I understand about 50 to 75% of what is going on in class. I understand when she teaches us new concepts, but problem is my lack of vocabulary. Jenna and I are working to increase our vocabulary. It is interesting to be in a class with people who have only learned Turkish in a class versus Jenna and I who have learned most of our Turkish from living here. We have a whole different set of vocabulary than the other students. They are not familiar with spices and vegetables; I have those down pat, I use them everyday in the grocery store! I'm really glad I'm taking the class, I'm learning a lot. I'm still speaking in really simple sentences, but I am more confident about what I am saying.