Time for another one of these. A "farewell" post. The end of my Istanbul Adventure. If nothing else, I'm fairly confident I now have more than enough XP to level up to a 3rd level TEFL Teacher and a 5th level Traveler. Favored Weapon: the Death Stare. For both classes.
In the morning, Sisyphus and I will head off for Egypt. Egypt. Holy Crap. I still can't believe I'm really doing this. I'm going off to see the pyramids. I'd be squeeing off the walls if I wasn't grounded with apprehension and dread. I'm packed, more or less. Sun hat, long cotton skirts, and white t-shirts have been purchased. Confirmations and itineraries have been double-checked and printed. I really think that I have done everything I possibly could to make these nine days in Egypt a success. Now to just... go off and make it happen!
But first, a farewell to this amazing city that was gracious enough to host me for a while.
Had a very nice Saturday in downtown Istanbul recently with Rachel and Mallory. We didn't do a lot that was noteworthy, just walked around a lot, bought a couple presents, and had our share of tea, Turkish coffee, beer, and cocktails. Oh, and food, of course.
It was a nice sort of formal goodbye to the city. I've made it back downtown a time or two since then, but on errands. This was the last time I got to enjoy the best of Istanbul with good friends, and good memories were made. This is the part of Istanbul that I will miss when I reflect back on my time here.
What else will I take away from Constantinople, you ask? Well.
What I Learned:
I learned that while I may be (and I think I am) a good teacher, I am not a good child psychologist. I can present the material in a comprehensive and engaging way, but I do not seem to have the gift (and really could not be bothered) to coax a pain-in-the-ass child to stop being a brat and open his book to the correct page. Education and learning has got to be a two-way street. To my mind, If you aren't willing to meet me even 5% of the way, I'm pretty much absolved of responsibility. With this in mind, I believe my teaching skills and strengths would really be best put to use with adults, or university students. Wherever in the world I end up next, teaching adults is going to be at the forefront of my search.
I learned, at great shock to my own self, that it really might be worth it to sacrifice some of those Western Comforts in favor of Experiences. As I've written previously, my Istanbul experience has offered plenty in the way of comfortableness but not very much in the way of wacky memorable fun. Upon reflection, I don't think I did one single solitary impulsive thing while I was in Turkey. I had fun, but that fun was planned in advance. It was safe fun. Tame. I walked into no surprise supras, did not once throw my towel, sunscreen, and vodka into my bag and walk off for a day on the Black Sea. Nothing wrong with being safe (now more than ever), but I think it's something I will keep in mind as I choose where to go next. I wouldn't have thought this of myself. I'd have thought I'd be the kind of person to say that a comfy, clean red couch will always win out over a rattly minibus deathtrap. Surprise!
What I Loved:
My apartment, with its comfy red couch, living room AC unit, and blessed dearth of roaches. Iskender. Manti. Schweppes Bitter Lemon as a vodka mixer. The Bosphorus. Watching all of Doctor Who with Rachel. Cooking my own dinners in my own kitchen (and that they actually turned out pretty damn well.)
What I Did Not Love:
My apartment's location and neighborhood. My school's location, which of course was a large factor in determining my apartment's location. The mass transit system, and more specifically how LONG I needed to be on said transit system in order to get anywhere. That I didn't meet more people here, or get involved in the larger expat community (see shitty location). How expensive everything is here. "Hello my friend, where are you from?" (ARGH!) The unspoken social stigma against women buying alcohol, or drinking it in public. And sadly, much of the actual teaching. Especially Class 3-B. Yeah, I called them out. Buttheads.
What I Will Miss:
Iskender. Manti. Seeing the tops of the Blue Mosque's six minarets as I stepped off the Sultanahmet tram stop. A fair number of my students.
What I Will Not Miss:
The 4:30 AM summer call to prayer. The pollution.
My Favorite Travel Experience:
Cappadocia, easy. No contest. If you haven't, check out my blogs on Cappadocia, here, here, and here.
My Most Lackluster Travel Experience:
Probably my Kadikoy/Prince's Islands weekend. Sorry. I probably just wasn't in the right headspace to enjoy it properly.
What I am Most Grateful For:
As always, first and foremost -- I'm grateful for the simple fact that I got to do this at all. Istanbul may not have been the crazy, fish-out-of-water, every day is an adventure experience that I got to have in Georgia, but at the end of the day I feel completely humbled that I was able to call this city my home for a short time.
I'm grateful that, despite challenges, I was able to turn things around for at least some of my classes. I will not miss teaching here, and I can't even say I'll miss my kids, but I will remember some of them very fondly. Looks like once again my Mom proved herself right, and things did eventually get a little better after all. Dammit.
I'm grateful for the awesome help and support I consistently received from my recruiting company, Leeds Akademi. I can recommend them wholeheartedly. Thank you again, Bill -- SO MUCH!! You were my lifesaver more times than I can count.
And Final Impressions:
Am I happy I made the decision to come here? Absolutely. Do I think the time is right for me to move on? ABsolutely. Will I be back? Never say never, but it's not part of my plans for now. I feel like Istanbul and I have gotten a pretty fair measure of each other this go-round.
There's no real concrete reason I can give for why Istanbul and I did not fall in love with each other the way we were supposed to. It should have happened that way. But it didn't. If my life were a movie and Istanbul was the enigmatic but difficult and emotionally unstable boyfriend that I'd met through mutual friends who swore on a stack of Bibles that we'd be a perfect match for each other, now would be that emotional climactic moment where I kissed my boyfriend on the cheek, wished him well, and walked off without looking back as some inspiring female artist's voice swelled up in the background. Adele maybe?
No harm no foul, Istanbul. It just wasn't in the cards for us. And frankly, I'm kind of glad I didn't fall in love with this city, because now seems to be a pretty good time for me to be taking my leave.
And what is in the cards for me now? After Egypt, I'll be spending a few weeks in Pensacola with my sister, brother-in-law, and their brand-new son, Paxton Connor. There will probably be a week or two in Northern Virginia in late July/early August. And then I will get myself up to Maine to surrender to the quiet serenity of Pemaquid Pond for a while.
In September? I'll be packing up again, although I have no idea where. Hopefully to some version of my current idea of a dream job -- teaching university students about Romantic Poetry in Costa Rica. That shouldn't be hard to find, right?
In the morning, Sisyphus and I will head off for Egypt. Egypt. Holy Crap. I still can't believe I'm really doing this. I'm going off to see the pyramids. I'd be squeeing off the walls if I wasn't grounded with apprehension and dread. I'm packed, more or less. Sun hat, long cotton skirts, and white t-shirts have been purchased. Confirmations and itineraries have been double-checked and printed. I really think that I have done everything I possibly could to make these nine days in Egypt a success. Now to just... go off and make it happen!
But first, a farewell to this amazing city that was gracious enough to host me for a while.
Had a very nice Saturday in downtown Istanbul recently with Rachel and Mallory. We didn't do a lot that was noteworthy, just walked around a lot, bought a couple presents, and had our share of tea, Turkish coffee, beer, and cocktails. Oh, and food, of course.
 |
| Tea in Gulhane Park |
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| Sunset from Galata Bridge |
 |
| Drinks on the Galata |
 |
| Eminonu in the gloaming |
What else will I take away from Constantinople, you ask? Well.
What I Learned:
I learned that while I may be (and I think I am) a good teacher, I am not a good child psychologist. I can present the material in a comprehensive and engaging way, but I do not seem to have the gift (and really could not be bothered) to coax a pain-in-the-ass child to stop being a brat and open his book to the correct page. Education and learning has got to be a two-way street. To my mind, If you aren't willing to meet me even 5% of the way, I'm pretty much absolved of responsibility. With this in mind, I believe my teaching skills and strengths would really be best put to use with adults, or university students. Wherever in the world I end up next, teaching adults is going to be at the forefront of my search.
I learned, at great shock to my own self, that it really might be worth it to sacrifice some of those Western Comforts in favor of Experiences. As I've written previously, my Istanbul experience has offered plenty in the way of comfortableness but not very much in the way of wacky memorable fun. Upon reflection, I don't think I did one single solitary impulsive thing while I was in Turkey. I had fun, but that fun was planned in advance. It was safe fun. Tame. I walked into no surprise supras, did not once throw my towel, sunscreen, and vodka into my bag and walk off for a day on the Black Sea. Nothing wrong with being safe (now more than ever), but I think it's something I will keep in mind as I choose where to go next. I wouldn't have thought this of myself. I'd have thought I'd be the kind of person to say that a comfy, clean red couch will always win out over a rattly minibus deathtrap. Surprise!
What I Loved:
My apartment, with its comfy red couch, living room AC unit, and blessed dearth of roaches. Iskender. Manti. Schweppes Bitter Lemon as a vodka mixer. The Bosphorus. Watching all of Doctor Who with Rachel. Cooking my own dinners in my own kitchen (and that they actually turned out pretty damn well.)
What I Did Not Love:
My apartment's location and neighborhood. My school's location, which of course was a large factor in determining my apartment's location. The mass transit system, and more specifically how LONG I needed to be on said transit system in order to get anywhere. That I didn't meet more people here, or get involved in the larger expat community (see shitty location). How expensive everything is here. "Hello my friend, where are you from?" (ARGH!) The unspoken social stigma against women buying alcohol, or drinking it in public. And sadly, much of the actual teaching. Especially Class 3-B. Yeah, I called them out. Buttheads.
What I Will Miss:
Iskender. Manti. Seeing the tops of the Blue Mosque's six minarets as I stepped off the Sultanahmet tram stop. A fair number of my students.
What I Will Not Miss:
The 4:30 AM summer call to prayer. The pollution.
My Favorite Travel Experience:
Cappadocia, easy. No contest. If you haven't, check out my blogs on Cappadocia, here, here, and here.
My Most Lackluster Travel Experience:
Probably my Kadikoy/Prince's Islands weekend. Sorry. I probably just wasn't in the right headspace to enjoy it properly.
What I am Most Grateful For:
As always, first and foremost -- I'm grateful for the simple fact that I got to do this at all. Istanbul may not have been the crazy, fish-out-of-water, every day is an adventure experience that I got to have in Georgia, but at the end of the day I feel completely humbled that I was able to call this city my home for a short time.
I'm grateful that, despite challenges, I was able to turn things around for at least some of my classes. I will not miss teaching here, and I can't even say I'll miss my kids, but I will remember some of them very fondly. Looks like once again my Mom proved herself right, and things did eventually get a little better after all. Dammit.
I'm grateful for the awesome help and support I consistently received from my recruiting company, Leeds Akademi. I can recommend them wholeheartedly. Thank you again, Bill -- SO MUCH!! You were my lifesaver more times than I can count.
And Final Impressions:
Am I happy I made the decision to come here? Absolutely. Do I think the time is right for me to move on? ABsolutely. Will I be back? Never say never, but it's not part of my plans for now. I feel like Istanbul and I have gotten a pretty fair measure of each other this go-round.
There's no real concrete reason I can give for why Istanbul and I did not fall in love with each other the way we were supposed to. It should have happened that way. But it didn't. If my life were a movie and Istanbul was the enigmatic but difficult and emotionally unstable boyfriend that I'd met through mutual friends who swore on a stack of Bibles that we'd be a perfect match for each other, now would be that emotional climactic moment where I kissed my boyfriend on the cheek, wished him well, and walked off without looking back as some inspiring female artist's voice swelled up in the background. Adele maybe?
No harm no foul, Istanbul. It just wasn't in the cards for us. And frankly, I'm kind of glad I didn't fall in love with this city, because now seems to be a pretty good time for me to be taking my leave.
And what is in the cards for me now? After Egypt, I'll be spending a few weeks in Pensacola with my sister, brother-in-law, and their brand-new son, Paxton Connor. There will probably be a week or two in Northern Virginia in late July/early August. And then I will get myself up to Maine to surrender to the quiet serenity of Pemaquid Pond for a while.
In September? I'll be packing up again, although I have no idea where. Hopefully to some version of my current idea of a dream job -- teaching university students about Romantic Poetry in Costa Rica. That shouldn't be hard to find, right?
Have an amazing time in Egypt and I will be SO excited/relieved when you are back Stateside and even more excited when we can all be together in FL for a few weeks!! Love you!
ReplyDeleteI've got Costa Rican connections through my sister-in-law. I don't know if they'd be helpful getting you a university position, but if you'd like I'll ask.
ReplyDeleteNow, if you want to join an ex-pat ultra-hippie-artist community in Costa Rica, I can send you *right* there.
My s-i-l's dad though seems very grounded (I think he owns an office furniture business?) AND he speaks very good English, and might be the one to ask.