July 7th, back to Texas
There it is. I’ve had it booked since January, but it still doesn’t feel very real. Sometimes I really wish it weren’t. Anyway. I’m weary of worrying about it. Here’s what I’ve been up to.
The past few weeks have actually been fairly quiet. I spent most of the last weekend in February with Yasemin. Just hanging around the house, but also going out. We walked around Istinye Park for a little bit while her grandmother saw a movie with her friend.
On Tuesday, Conor and I spent some time at Starbucks chatting before we both went to our different Rotary club meetings. Asli picked me up around 6:00 and we drove in to the heavy traffic. Heavy even for Istanbul. What’s on the agenda for this week’s meeting? A wine tasting. I had never been to a wine tasting before, but I was pretty sure I knew the drill. Swirl, smell, sip, swish, spit. Easy enough. Though, there was less spitting than anticipated. More swallowing.
The challenge, though, was writing my opinions of the wine in Turkish. Asli reminded me that I have to do my presentation for the club soon. In Turkish. My stomach twisted in to a knot. I better get to work on that. I really like my club and I want to impress them. I feel bad when I speak so much English. Asli really encourages me to speak Turkish so I should definitely be taking advantage of that.
Turkish is an awesome language. I want to keep improving.
My club is so chill. It’s not too big. The location is gorgeous. We have Turkish coffee before and after meetings. I really enjoy the people and I really enjoy going. And I am going to make my presentation the best I possibly can for them.
While I was at the meeting, my dad texted me. Turns out he needed me to fill out some more scholarship apps. And the deadline was 11 pm Texas time. I ended up staying up until 4:30 am filling out over 30 scholarship applications and writing various essays. Needless to say, I did not go to school the next day.
Not now, college, I’m trying to be an exchange student.
Rotary is really starting to mean so much more to me. We have the same values. I didn’t realize just how many opportunities Rotary can offer in regards to peace studies. It’s brilliant. It’s perfect. I can’t wait to be more involved when I go back to Texas. My district is the number one in all of North America. And the people I know have hearts of gold. I can really trust them. And I’ll hit the ground running when my studies begin in the fall. I’ll follow their lead if that’s what it takes to make a difference in the world. I am so grateful to my Rotary district!
And if I can get that Ambassadorial scholarship, I can come back to Istanbul and study at the best university here for my masters in peace studies. It’s all too perfect. I know what I want. But I’ll continue to be flexible and keep an open mind. Who knows what’s in store. As long as I never stop learning and experiencing. Always wanting more culture, language, people, and love.
Last weekend was tons of fun. Friday, I was with Deniz to celebrate her birthday. We had dinner at this awesome Mantı restaurant in Etiler and then we went dancing with her friends. I met some really nice people my age and we all just danced the night away. I spent the night at her house and in the morning, I walked back to Etiler to catch a cab and head to Asli’s apartment. There, we hung out for a while, then we went to get our hair done. Ah, my first hair cut in Turkey was a success. The guy was awesome. He curled my hair and it stayed for two days. No one has ever been able to successfully curl my hair. I was quite impressed. Unfortunately, I never went out to show it off. I just went back to the house, which was great because I hadn’t seen my family all weekend! My host mom was home alone when I got there, and we sat on the couch for a bit. Then, my host dad, Yasemin, amd Erim got home and we left to have dinner at Kanyon with some family friends. :) Dinner and dessert. It was great. My host mom and her sister talked about how since I like pretty much all Turkish food, it’s going to be hard for me to get used to American food again. They said this as I finished my bowl of amazing Turkish rice pudding. I love being around the family.
On Sunday, Yasemin and I woke up a little late and had breakfast around 10:30. A little cheese toast and then took Bal for a walk. The weather was nice. I mean, way too cold for me, but this weekend was the first sunshine we’ve seen in a week of so. And when the sun is out, the world just seems like a happier place. The sun did wonders for my mood. Now, all I would like it some warmth outside. I’m obviously not a cold weather person. Though it’s supposed to snow this week. I’m really excited about that.
Later when my host mom and Erim got home, we played Scrabble in Turkish. I just sat next to Yasemin and my host dad as if I was playing, but frankly, I’m not even good at that game in English. I sat there staring at the board and looking at the pieces they had. I tried to come up with words. I did come up with a few. But kept the to myself for some reason. Maybe I was nervous about being wrong.
Pelin and Hakan came over to watch the soccer match. Yasemin and I prepared a salmon dinner. It’s my favorite dinner that my host mom cooks. And now I know how to make it. Yes.
That was a nice weekend. I’m looking forward to my mom and Nana coming to Istanbul in 2 weeks. They’re going to love it here. And they’re going to love my family as much as I do. But mostly, I just can’t wait to get a hug from each of them.
My families rock.
