At this point, I figured the next most pressing issue I should address was that of my orientation schedule. The man at the front desk spoke hardly any English, but another Turk in the lobby informed me that we would all meet out there around 9 am. I killed some time in my room reading before heading back out at the time he had mentioned to see what was really happening. Of the small crowd amassed there, two were obviously foreigners who were also clearly struggling with the present situation. I introduced myself and learned that they were Clint and Carolyn, and that they were indeed two of my fellow exchange students. They were Americans whose flights had been delayed through the night and who had also lost their luggage en route. I expressed my sympathies, but I was also reassured that at least I would not be the only one suffering from a lack of supplies.
Throughout the next half hour, other exchange students slowly filtered into the lobby. These included the other University of Alberta students I had met at our orientation back home: Cathy, Sarah, Sabrina and Yun. In addition, our group included Luis, like Clint, from the University of Texas, Leah, from Calgary, and Jill, from Queen's. I was somewhat surprised that my home university comprised half the participants for the program, but everyone there seemed cool enough, so I wasn't too concerned.
One of our host students, whose name I forget, guided us to the International Cooperations Office, where we finally received schedules and some information on the orientation. Here we met Nilay, who had been the coordinator for me and several others prior to arrival, and Esra, who did the same for the rest of the group. After a short presentation on METU, we also met Oytun, a local student who would guide us through the medical facility and take us to lunch that day. After some quickly forgotten presentation at the medical centre, we headed to the on-campus mall for our first real Turkish meal.
Arriving at one of the largest kebapci in the place, we perused the pictures in the menu while our guide translated. Oytun is perhaps the least-Turkish Turk I have met so far. He studied in England for a couple years, so he speaks English at native fluency and even has an English accent. His mannerisms are also much more West than East, which makes it kind of surprising when he launches into high-speed Turkish and reminds you that he is actually from this country. He's a funny guy, though, and one who we would see many times over the coming days. He helped us order once we had somewhat deciphered the cryptic menu items, with the men at the table all deciding on the massive mixed kebap platter. Go big or go home, right?
The decision turned out to be a fantastic one. I had read about the many different kinds of kebaps popular in the country, but it was something else entirely to see them arrayed before me. They included Adana kebap, İskender kebap and the internationally famous şiş kebap, along with small köfte meatballs. Yoğurt, pita bread and various small salads accompanied the meat portions, and the preceding bread and yogurt mezes were the perfect segue to the main course. Some of the salads were a little too Turkish for me to enjoy just yet, but everything else was spectacular. The variety provided a good base from which to launch further culinary excursions in the future, something which I have definitely taken advantage of.
After gorging ourselves, Oytun departed and we took the afternoon tour of several small museums on campus. They were mildly interesting at best, being comprised mostly of trivialities and replicas of pieces on display in museums elsewhere. Our guide was also less than enthusiastic and seemed to just be along for the ride more than anything. After a short trip to the mall to pick up basic supplies, we returned to the dorm around dinnertime to plan our next move, which for me, Yun and Luis ended up being a trip downtown to Ankara's Kızılay district. Luis's Turkish roommate Cambak (pronounced JAM-bak) offered to show us the sites, and we eagerly took advantage of the opportunity. We hopped on the crowded dolmuş into town and had an encounter with Turkish law-bending when the driver yelled something at us in Turkish. Cambak translated and told us that we were to duck down because we were passing a police car and the driver wasn't technically allowed to have more passengers on the bus than seats available. A bit of an eye-opener, for sure.
Arriving at our destination, we took off in the direction of the shops. The initial square we crossed provided a scene little different from that of New York, with tall buildings stretching off into the distance, which was not entirely unexpected; Ankara is a modern city, largely abandoned after the Middle Ages and built up from a population of five thousand to five million in the last ninety years. A few blocks of further travel showcased a different world entirely, however, as we entered Kızılay. Shops lined the streets and carts and street vendors blanketed the sidewalks, with nary an empty booth in site. Döner and roasted corn were being peddled in high quantity, along with knockoff clothing and various other items. It was very anachronistic to see these traditional merchants selling their wares a few feet in front of modern Nike and Gucci stores, but that's Turkey for you.
We wound past various construction sites and thousands of Turks before arriving at our destination, the acclaimed restaurant Le Man Kültür. With comics lining the walls and international cuisine mixed with traditional Turkish fare, it was an enigmatic location, and one that provided delicious as well. I had chicken and peppers wrapped in phyllo and drenched in yogurt and I was not disappointed. Cambak proved to be a great introduction to the local culture, as we discussed everything from food to football to politics. The experience was a microcosm of Turkish meals throughout the country, with generous portions of tantalizing meat and vegetables and fantastic service to boot. I also had my first taste of the ubiquitous local beer Efes, a tasty pilsner that is the better of every similarly-priced beer we have back home. We got a couple good shots taken by the waiter, and it was funny to see the diversity of the group: Turkish, Asian, Hispanic and Caucasian within the space of four people. See below.
Making our way back to the bus, we heard a half-translation of that one godawful Black Eyed Peas song about good nights, with Turkish verses and English choruses.
That was little compared to what the bus had in store, however, as Yun's outgoing tendencies combined with the good nature and fluent English of a Turkish man on the bus to garner us an invitation to his wedding in a couple weeks. Should be pretty interesting.
That was more or less the end of our nonstop first day in Turkey. I have class in a little over an hour, but hopefully I can make a little headway on the next entry before then. Right now the tavuk döner in the cafe is calling my name, however, so this is it for now.
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