Istanbul Orientation

Hi everyone, I just made it back from Istanbul to discover that the wireless internet at my apartment is in fact working!  First of all, I am still amazed by how well the schools treat their teachers and especially new staff.  The Turks are known for their hospitality and I have very much experienced that in my time here so far.  All of the new foreign staff along with our headmaster flew to Istanbul early Wednesday morning.  They put us up in our own rooms at a posh hotel, with the best breakfast cheese spread I have ever seen.  AND segue to photo number one!

The orientation the first day consisted of a history of the schools, a Turkish language lesson, and a crash course in Turkish culture.  Turkish is a challenging language to learn, and I don't think I will ever become fluent.  Right now my goal is to learn enough words and phrases to get around.  So far my favorite phrase is bira var mi?  (Is there beer?)  The second day consisted of more Turkish lessons and some more presentations that I can't recall right now.  Probably because of the anticipation of the guided tours of the underground cistern and the Aya Sofya.  Both landmarks are on the Asian side of Istanbul.  A lovely Turkish woman named Feliz had the incredible responsibility of bringing 30+ brand new foreign teachers to these sites, guide them, and make sure no one got lost.  First stop was the underground cisterns.  They were built during Byzantine era (Istanbul has had maaaany empires rule over it!) to ensure that the people would have water in case of an attack.  The story goes that they were rediscovered by a British man who knew the cisterns existed, went walking around, got invited into a Turkish home for tea (of course), and found that the man of the house had a hobby of fishing in his house!  Turns out he was fishing in the cisterns.  

The next stop was the Aya Safya, a 6th century cathedral that was the largest in the world at the time it was built.  It is currently the 4th largest cathedral in the world.  Feliz had a lot of information about the cathedral, a lot of which my brain just couldn't process at the time.  The most interesting aspect of the Aya Safiya is that during the Ottoman Empire, it was converted into a mosque.  Many of the Christian mosaics were covered but not destroyed by the ruler of the time, who wanted to protect it.  It also used to be where the Byzantine emperors were crowned.  Go check out Wikipedia for more information about the Aya Safiya.  It is a fascinating place.

After all of that sightseeing, it was then time for a dinner cruise on the Bosphorous, the waterway that separates Asia and European continents.  It was truly an amazing experience, with fabulous views, food, and drinks.  The cruise goes by many of the Constantinople ancient ruins.  I wish I knew what they were but that will have to be for the next trip!  Not to mention all of the enormous homes with Bosphorous views.  Someone on the boat told me that Bosphorous property is some of the most expensive and hard to come by in the world.  

Colorful barge on the Bosphorous

The new foreign faculty for Tarsus, as well as our headmaster and elementary administrators.  **Photos cannot truly show how great the Turkish women's skin is, not to mention the thickness of their hair.  JEALOUS!

Homes facing the Bosphorous

A particularly gigantic home.  Unbelievable!

The Istanbul orientation wrapped up this morning with a very informative and interesting presentation about Turkish politics regarding the EU, minorities, Cypress...all very complicated and hot topics here in the country.  Again, it makes me want to read more about Turkey!  We also had the opportunity to see traditional Oya designs by Turkish village women.  Their village was completely destroyed by the 1997(?) earthquake and the money goes towards families and their homes.  Reportedly some of the most intricate and high quality Oya in the country.  Tomorrow I visit the seaside community of Mersin for some shopping and beachside lunch.  Maybe I'll get unpacked one of these days so I can share photos of the beautiful apartment.  In the meantime, I will end by saying "Iyi aksamlar"---good night :)