It's official (well, sort of):

I'm coming home....

Details to be worked out, photos to be taken, finals to be completed before the deadlines, but I've made the decision to go back to Coe next semester (with hopefully a layover in Washington).

And yes, it feels so very wonderful.

m.

And now, to bed. It is a school night, after all.

Today was Black Friday,

and I did the unthinkable: for the first time in my life, I left the house and went somewhere with shops.

But, seeing as how Black Friday doesn't really exist here, it didn't matter this much.

I got the information for a photo place from Anni, one of the other Erasmus students, which was the first thing in a long while that's gone the way I had hoped it would. I then continued on to the IETT office to stand around for two hours, waiting to get my card.

Well, I didn't have to stand around for two hours.

The machine that dispenses numbers was out of order, or they'd stopped giving out numbers for the day...considering my Turkish hasn't progressed past the terms I need on a day-to-day basis, I still have issues with, well, most written things. (I'd also like to add: I arrived at 12:30, the office closes at 4, and when I was there on Wednesday, there were people getting numbers at 1:30, so it's not like I got there abnormally late or anything.)

So I still don't have my transportation card. I'll be back Monday morning at 8 for a third time. I'd love to have someone to rail at, but since red tape doesn't have a face, I'm not entirely who should be taking the brunt of my pissed-offed-ness.

I know I keep saying "I want to go home," but after all of this, I'm starting (starting) to think that I may go back to Iowa next semester.

I haven't decided anything yet, though.

What's really making it difficult is how easy it was. If all that had happened was applying for the program and then coming here, it would be totally different.

But that's not what happened.

Turkey was my third choice to study abroad, and it was the one that fit best and the one I was most excited about. And then there was Selin, and then more connections (thanks to my aunt who knows everyone my other aunt won't meet), and it all was so clear that Istanbul was where I was supposed to be. I haven't gotten many neon signs from God, but this was one of them.

That's what's making it so hard. I never really considered spending only a semester here, for several reasons, but now I'm staring at the mark five weeks out (classes end in five weeks, and then there are another two of finals, which I can finagle if I need to), willing it to come sooner than humanly possible.

So there's the part of me that really, really, really wants to go home. But there's another part of me that's tempted to stay for another semester. Part of the problem that I'm running into is that I don't really know any of the other students. Yes, I know that's my fault, but what I didn't realize at the time was that the only time I'd have to get to know them was during the parties (when everyone was drinking) or the barhopping. I think that if I stayed for another semester, I'd be far more willing to go out barhopping, knowing that it would pay off in the end.

And if I ever manage to fight my way through all of this red tape (I think I may buy some red ribbon when I get home and burn it), I won't have to deal with it again.

But, on the other hand again, I don't want to put up with the classes here any more than I have to. It was highly enjoyable to have easy classes for the first month or so, but now I'm just bored. Courses (with the exception of Graphic design) are interesting while my butt's in the seat, but after that, there isn't anything, really, to think about. The only homework I ever get is in Studio Design--a model a week--which I like, and the professors' comments are interesting and make me think, but the models only take me an evening to make, and I feel like I have to do all of the pushing myself. I try to come up with something interesting, that fits the criteria, and that I like, and with those three (rather simple) things, I have models that are near the top of the heap. Well, except for the time I completely missed the point of the assignment, but I'm pretty sure that was a translation problem. It's like almost no one in the class (they're all first years) is really interested in what's being said.

Normally, I'd have more patience with that kind of thing, but since Turkey works the same way most European schools do, which means all 50-ish of those students decided to study architecture, and even with a translator, it's obvious we're learning about the fundamentals.

m.

Don't worry, I'm still alive. Also, bureaucracy sucks here.

[Please note: this is not going to be pretty. In the end, I like Turkey more than it's going to sound.]

I think most of my current issues can be wrapped up in five words: I want to go home.

I miss green. I miss natural things.

I also miss intellectual stimulation. While three of my classes are interesting (Disaster, Istanbul Architecture, and Design Studio), they really don't require any work outside of class.

Well, that's not quite true--I have models to build in Design Studio, but that's just once a week.

Arts & Culture (when we have class) involves visiting places, which I like, but we don't go anywhere out of the ordinary. And Graphic Design is a joke. Midterms are this week, and we've had four classes. For one of those, the professor didn't show up so the TA taught (which was fine, since she's far better than the prof), and for another, the he decided that even though the entire class is international, he'd give the lecture in Turkish.

In addition, the Turkish government has decided to make some changes in the transportation, which seems to involve removing ticket booths from some (that's right, only some) MetroBus stops, meaning the only way to ride is if you have a card. Which I don't have.

Since there was no warning (Monday morning, the metal booth had vanished), I've had to depend on the kind people who do have passes, and have been trying to get my own.

I tried to go to the IETT office today to get it, but it...wasn't there. I searched the entire area. No luck.

I am not enthused. In fact, I'm quite pissed.

On a different note: pictures.

The first group is some of the cats that frequent our garden. I've become friends with many of them, and most have names.

The second is of St. Anthony of Padua Church, on Istikal cadessi.

m.

Being a post on nothing but transportation.

People say that the farther east you go, the more aggressive the drivers get. While I believe it is typically limited to the United States, it would be true even past the Atlantic...right on to Istanbul. I have encountered crazy drivers before in China, but there everyone just drives fast. Here, they not only drive fast, but they drive on sidewalks, stop inches from the cars in front of them (no exaggeration, there are some cars I can't walk between), and, oh yeah, there are no lines on the road...because there don't need to be. The roads are like the sidewalks. If there's a place to squeeze in, they will. An exit that would be two lanes at home here has four cars across and the front end of a fifth (they utilize the six-inch shoulders, too).

This being said, it still takes forever to get anywhere. My definition of "far" has radically changed. It takes me an hour to get to class everyday and the Metro is underground and the MetroBus has its own lane. Two days ago, we had the option of going (by chartered bus) to the Domaloahce Palace (which closed just as we got there), and it took over an hour and half. We did an awful lot of sitting (that particular palace is about a 30-minute walk from my flat).

Istanbul is, surprisingly, a walking-friendly city. From what I've seen, anywhere you can drive you can also walk. Including the medians of highways.

Yes. I'm serious.

I've done it.

What I find completely fascinating is it's easier to walk in the streets than it is on the sidewalks. There are three reasons, I've noticed, each well illustrated by my three different daily walks.

My flat is on a small street that parallels a larger one. The street itself is wide enough for two cars: one parked row and one driving. The sidewalks are wide enough for two abreast, but that's without the obstacles. Each block has metal trapdoors, and each one is raised, and they all clank (loudly) when you step on them. The curb is is tiny wall, and it will cut into the sidewalk if there's some kind of obstacle--like a grate--in the road. About a sixth of the bricks are loose or cracked, and half of the secure ones aren't level with each other. The steps from flats spill onto the walk.

It's easier to just walk in the street.

The second (walking) leg of my journey (pun not intended, but kept in honor of Mr. Cairns) takes me from the Metro to the MetroBus. The bricks are in much better shape, but there are light or signposts every 10-20 feet. There are also a massive number of people traveling to or from the Metro and the sidewalk's not big enough to accommodate them all (some days, it feels like I see half of Istanbul's 15 million residents). Therefore, in the morning (when the street's on my right), it's simpler--and faster--to walk next to the curb.

I would also like to add that I am not the only person doing this. If I am breaking any laws, I'm one of about 2 million.

Coming home is wonderful, because I get to walk on the sidewalk, since the road is on my left. Although there are people who still walk in the road.

After riding the MetroBus, it's only a short walk to IKU. It's not terribly busy, and the sidewalks can support 4-5 abreast, but the curbs are more like cliffs. As in: knee high. There are some places where I have to use the sidewalk, but if I can walk next to them instead of on the, I will. I wasn't planning on doing any mountain climbing while here.

After nine months of this (it's getting more and more natural each day), I wonder what it will be like at home. It's easier to walk in the streets here, but it's also safe because the drivers know there will be people there, and they look out for them. They may get closer than most American drivers (or walkers) are comfortable with, but unless you change your pace or do something stupid, they won't hit you. Speaking as a west coast driver, I/we are not comfortable with people in the road. Even if they're legally crossing. Something tells me sliding through traffic will be slightly difficult when I get home.

I'd like to say that the first horn I hear will break me, but I'm already pretty dead to them. People here are honk-crazy. Sometimes it's good: they honk if they're approaching a blind intersection (usually small streets with cars parked haphazardly and hood in the intersection) to let walkers know they're coming, but busy streets, depending on the time of day, sound similar to what Ira Glass might compose if he could only use horns.

m.