Anchored in Ankara

İyi gunlar!

I've made it safely to Ankara, for those of you who have been keeping track of my whereabouts. Leaving Istanbul was quite sad; our small hotel had begun to feel like home in the few days we'd been staying there, and we got to know the staff quite well. Jane and I said a teary goodbye yesterday morning as I was whisked off to the Karaköy ferry station in order to take a short ferry trip to the Haydarpaşa train station.

It was a seven hour train ride with non-functional AC in deadly heat; adding insult to injury, I had been feeling a little "off" all morning (sensitive gut and all that). The whole combination might have pushed me over the edge if not for the kindness of strangers. It seems I was the only non-Turkish speaker aboard, and therefore a bit of a curiosity for the other passengers. I first met a pair of university students who kindly invited me to join them in the restaurant car. There, we chatted for quite a while and taught each other about our respective countries, cultures and languages. At the end, we did some photo-taking and swapped MSN contacts. When they got off the train I met another really friendly group of women (this time, who didn't speak English) who insisted that I partake in their picnic meal. All the while a third older woman, very conservatively dressed, had been eyeing me suspiciously. Then all of a sudden she started speaking with me in excited Turkish, explaining that she had two daughters and wanted me to sit next to her. With the help of my handy phrase book (A GODSEND!) and a ot of frantic gesturing, we managed a rather simplistic conversation over the next few hours. She shared her frozen water bottles and some baby wipes to help me stay cool, and was really very sweet.

I rolled into Ankara at 5 p.m. and met up with my friend Banu (my Turkish teacher in Halifax) and her sister Başak. They brought me to their lovely apartment where we feasted on some mantı (a lamb-filled ravioli-ish pasta) and tea and other treats. They have been really delightful hosts and I'm glad to see how people live a little bit. The plan is to head into the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations today, which I've heard is really delightful.

If all goes according to plan, I'll be moving into my new longer-term accommodations in the city tomorrow. Word on the street is it's a hotel for hotel management students in training. Sounds like I'll get my own room and stuff, which will be a welcome upgrade. I don't know how easy it will be to find internet access from then on, so no guarantees about the frequency of these posts.

Hope everyone is well back home.

Güle güle!

Casey