I'm Drinking My Tap Water, Boston...

I heard "the news", that which is dominating the broadcasts of all Boston-based news stations and consequently the residents of said area 24/7, on the way home from the airport. My dad brought to my attention that a water pipeline in Weston broke and was forcing all residents East of there (most of metro-Boston) to either boil their tap water or rush to groceries and buy out all of the bottled water for fear of parasites and disease.

What could these parasites and disease actually do to you? In the 12 hours I've been in the States, no news anchor has managed to tackle that question. All they're telling me is that I, as a Lexingtonian, am being forced to boil my water, whether to use for refreshment or to brush my teeth. But I can shower in it! --- as long as I keep my mouth closed...

I keep thinking back to that time in Varanasi, India when the bed and the toilet were the only things I saw for 36 hours. I had been washing my teeth with tap water for 6 months, and nothing happened. It took a lot more than that for me heave over myself sick with parasites. Over the course of my travels, I never asked for no ice cubes, even though travel advisories told me to in all the countries I visited. I even drank tap water in Turkey! It was uber-chlorine-y and deliciously refreshing! After a year of travels, I'm still alive and I didn't even get that sick, except for that time in India briefly mentioned above. Keep in mind: loose bowels are completely manageable --- I don't consider myself "sick" when I have them.

So screw you, Boston. I'm drinking my tap water. I won't waste the plastic or gas to make sure I have purified water. Those parasites and me, we'll be great friends by the end of all this!

B(ee)

Now: Real Life Time...

I'm sitting in the Frankfurt (Germany) airport, waiting for my flight back to Boston. I've nearly checked out of my alternative world, my eight month tangent from the Real World and My Life. I'm sure I haven't been dreaming the past few months; it's been far too unpredictable (even in my dream world) and way too clear of a vision. Everything happened, but just how the last eight months fit into My Life is not clear yet.

Whatever we choose to call this program --- a fantasy, a myth, a tangent from life, an alternate world, a dream, an educational program (yeah...right?) --- it is an experience whose seeds have been planted and watered. Some have drowned, others have managed to survive in the darkest corners of my mind and will show themselves at appropriate moments to come. But for now, my mind so densely forested that it's difficult to find the seeds that were planted this year. Some of my memories and things I've learned are growing, thriving, shooting their branches up into the sky of my life. The others --- the late bloomers --- well, we'll see about them.

Apparently I can't think in anything but analogies right now. Everything else is hidden behind the branches and the brush. The next few months will be filled with a lot of clearing and I hope you're all ready to come along for the ride, I'll be needing your help.

Trying to see the light through the trees and the seeds through the soil,
B(ee)

Home Feels Further Away Than Ever Before...

Someone asked me today if I was happy I was nearing the end of this program. I quickly answered yes. He then asked if I would do it again. I quickly shook my head "No." Then thought for a second, and said "Maybe, after some time has passed."

Don't get me wrong, the year has been great! I've had more sincerely incredible experiences that I'd ever expected to have in a life time. But too many incredible things, packed into eight months, and self-reflexive examination on top of it absolutely takes the life out of a person.

I've slept in at least 19 different beds in the last 4 months because of my travels. From the piles of poop in India to the constant caffeine boosts in Turkey, my body is tired and more than ready to get to that 20th bed, the first one in a long time that will make me remember what home feels like.

8 days, not like anyone's counting...
B(ee)

We are in...Turkey?

Last night we had an "India" experience in Turkey. Half of us drove to the train station, unpacked the van of all our huge bags, entered the train terminal to hear the words "There is no train."

Not literally. There is a train. And a month ago, when our tickets were purchased, the rails from Konya to Istanbul were complete and suitable to travel on. Since two days ago, this is no longer the case. The line is closed for repairs until May 16th. This would have been nice to know, oh, before we packed the van, or maybe even when we bought our tickets, or at least somewhere in between.

So...yet again...we piled onto a private bus, this time barely squeezing our bodies and our bags into an 18-seater van --- every single seat was taken by a body and the aisle was chock-a-block full of bags.

At least this was the last move.

Now, back in Istanbul, on the Asia side this time. We arrived at 7:30 and looked around for a place to eat --- people looked at us like we were crazy. Again...I'm in Turkey, right? My body wasn't transported back two months to India where nothing opens until 11 and everything is closed before 8? No...there's still kebab and smiling faces everywhere we go, this is definitely Turkey.

Exhausted doesn't begin to describe,
B(ee)

Easter Fromps and Frolicks...

Yesterday, spending yet another Easter away from home, I attended my first Orthodox Easter service and then drove for two hours to Hasankayf, an old ruined Roman castle on the Tigris River.

The caves were by far the most beautiful place we've visited thus far in Turkey, and quite possibly the most beautiful place we've visited thus far on CRC. On the 2-hour drive to the caves, we were all wondering whose idea it was to put us all on a bus again, considering we've spent at least half of the past week on buses.

But after we had lunch (literally) sitting over the Tigris river and hiked up the old Roman road to the castle, which sits on a piece of higher land surrounded by deep gorges, we understood why this place was a must visit. Our professor had to literally herd us like sheep away from the half-ruined rooms and ruins when it was time to go back to the bus.

Today we're heading out on yet another bus ride (13 hours this time) to a Sufi village south of Ankara. We'll be there for five days and then head back to Istanbul, the last stop on our 8-month journey. A month from now, I'll most likely be passed out in my own bed with my own blankets, and bags still packed to the brim.

Happy (late) Easter,
B(ee)

Turkey and Europeanness...

I was talking with a fellow American (not on the program) the other night and dinner who's been teaching English in Ankara for the past few months. We got on the topic of our first impressions of Turkey and my immediate reaction was "It's so nice to be back in the West again...everything is on time and reliable and I just know how it works here!" He laughed and replied "That's funny because I feel so out of place here because I think it's very Asian."

I was awestruck by the reply. But considering he's never been to Asia, the reply was understandable.

Now, I'm not claiming to be an expert on any of the countries I've lived in by any means, but I've made some adjustments to my lifestyle as a result of living in Asia for 6 months. Little things like remembering that nothing has to be on time, and most likely will not be. Or observing hierarchies around me and putting myself within them in certain circumstances, despite how much it goes against my values.

In Turkey, I can still feel some of these values (mainly the hierarchies) but it doesn't take a huge effort for me to go to the store and buy groceries or order food and have at least a slight idea of what will be on the plate in front of me. The showers still don't have curtains and are still directed to spray into the toilet. However, the water is hot immediately! But for someone not coming out of a run across Asia, Turkey could be a rather strange land.

We're currently in Goreme (Cappadocia), living in a hotel that has been carved out of a mountain, surrounded by faerie chimnie mountains with thousands of caves carved into them. It feels a little bit like Star Wars, or some other fairy tale land. [I tried to upload pictures but it took too long and didn't even work. Check Picasa!]

But as the end draws closer, I find myself wishing for a stable place to stay and a reliably comfortable bed.

Home, is all I want right now,
B(ee)

Language Skills and Other Things...

Guess what?! I can officially order in Turkish and specify what I do and do not want...all in Turkish!...will accompanying hand gestures that aren't really necessary. I'm so proud of myself! I know most of my vegetables and I know what meat words are, although I'm not always sure what they are. It's a much better feeling, knowing enough of the language to know how to get through daily tasks like getting food, pharmacy things and all that.

Eating as a vegetarian is getting irritating. Bread and cheese (cold), bread and cheese (hot!), bread with some vegetables and cheese, or...just bread? The choices are varied...really...

Our week last week was insane! We had two to three classes a day, all away from our hotel so we spent a lot of time on the metro (which is unbelievably quiet, both the train and the people) getting form place to place. It was like real college again! Instead of one big field trip. Although the field-tripping starts again next week when we head to Cappadocia (aka faerie chimney land). We had classes on: Islam, political science, sociology, and Turkish language. Most of our professors were fabulous and we learned a lot about the political history and current situation in Turkey and social politics as well. Islam...on the other hand...hm...

Some topics we discusses that are floating around in my brain are: secularism, minority rights, "Europeanness", and modernization.

That's all for now,
B(ee)

Learning Turkish...

I'm not sure whether it's the fact that there is little to no English everywhere we go, or the familiarity of the script, or the friendliness of the people here, but I already know more Turkish than Thai or Hindi...and I've only been here a week! We start formal Turkish lessons tomorrow (also the start of many more classes in Ankara), but even without those I'll know a bunch of Turkish by the end of my time here.

We've been matched up with a huge group of students from universities in Ankara and they've been wonderful hosts for us, even aside from teaching us Turkish! Hanging out with peers has been one aspect of the program that's really been lacking so far so it's great to finally get some intercultural interaction with people our age.

Although Ankara is not as amazing and fantastical as Istanbul, we're still having a wonderful time and I'm sure I'd be absolutely in love if I hadn't spent a week in Istanbul prior to coming here.

Our classes are looking really great here! Turkish language, Politics and Modernization of Turkey, Islam, Sufism and Popular Religion in Turkey, Women and Islam...and more! It's going to be a jam-packed two weeks, but it's looking really fun already!

Wrapped in Turkey's arms,
B(ee)

Toasts in Turkey...

Some fellow CRCers and I made a toast last night. To cafes and to cobblestone streets; to water that is scorching hot immediately and to living circumstances that are basic, but cleanly; to learning how to trust people again and getting the same answer from three different people when you ask for directions.

India was a whirlwind, something to be remembered and cherished with space, in time. I can't say that I loved it, but I certainly didn't hate it. It was an incredible experience while it was happening, but I'm glad to be back in a place where I feel comfortable making friends with the locals and relaxing a little on my vacation.

We saw garbage trucks yesterday and street cleaners! We've already made some friends at the stores nearby and friends mean free hot apple tea which is wonderful in this winter-y weather.

I realized yesterday that if I had come to Istanbul from home, I would think it was incredibly busy and filled with people. But coming from a country that boasts the largest population in the world (yes, it passed China last year!) where privacy can't even be bargained for, this city is heaven. Our windows don't look out into someone's house! I can eat a meal without the men in the restaurant staring at me like a critic would a piece of art! There are sidewalks! I've never appreciated sidewalks so much in my life...

In appreciation,
B(ee)

A Twinkle in my Eye, Turkish Delights...

I knew that I was no longer in India the minute my feet hit the tarmack in Turkey. We boarded buses that seem wider than any motorized vehicle I've been on in my life. And I could stand while the bus was moving without clutching on to something (or someone) for dear life. The drivers not only drove on the side of the road I learned to drive on, they also stuck to that side of the road reliably! Both on the airport tarmack and in Istanbul!

There are numerous other differences between what I saw in Northern India and here in Turkey. And even though I do feel much more comfortable, at home, here, it's still distinctly different from what I see as "The West". There's a flavor of Asia in the air, in the art, in the pace of life, which makes sense considering Istanbul is the only city sitting on both the European and the Asian continents. But simple things, like head gestures, are familiar to me here. And just when I was getting used to the Indian head bobble!

One major thing I've noticed is that, at least in the area we're staying in (right near the Blue Mosque and Aya Sophia), there is very little English around. In the other countries we've been in, the least a restaurant has had has been a poorly translated menu that gives you at least some idea of what you're ordering. Here, there's not even that. But the script is familiar, which is essential. But because of it, even in the short few hours we've been here we've picked up more words than we've learned in a few weeks in India. The possibilities of actually learning a minimal amount of Turkish are looking bright!

As good as "rugged living" is for my soul, I can't lie that it's nice to know that I have reliable electricity, hot water, and clean living arrangements for most of the next two months.

Reviving and relaxing,
B(ee)