Arrival and Settling

After one helluva long travel day, we arrived in Ankara, Turkey this past Sunday. All of Bali's papers were in order, but, of course, there were no customs officials, no need to declare anything--not even bag scanning. The woman in Denver was so overwhelmed with all our bags and connections, she didn't even remember to charge me for Bali. This is getting easier and easier. From Chicago to Munich, we got a free upgrade to economy plus which was helpful. But we still didn't sleep. Bali just about tore her carrier to shreds every time she needed to potty. We were afraid she'd bust out of her carrier and run amok around the plane. I got her out several times to hold her and feed her water while Tim held his magazine in front of us. Pulling a cat out on the plane is a no-no!

We could only buy 2 liters of booze each once in Turkey from the duty free, but we could bring in as much as we wanted (we brought in extra from Munich). This is important to remember when you come to visit. Good alcohol is available here, but it's almost twice the cost in the States.

Several people from the school met us and took us (and our 9 bags) on a bus across the city to our new home: Bilkent University.
First impressions---well, we can't help but compare it to Quito. I think a lot of people come here having never experienced the third world and think that the city is ugly or that it's not very nice. We have been nothing but impressed so far in this first week. Ankara is not Istanbul, and everyone LOVES Istanbul. But Tim and I are not city people. What we have seen has been a clean, nice, modern city where people seemingly obey traffic laws, the infrastructure seems good, and there are a couple cool parts of town.

We live at the University which sits on the outskirts of the city and up a big hill. So, while Ankara is smoggy, we don't have to experience it. Right outside our door, the hills and open space goes on and on and is laced with hundreds of miles of trail and dirt roads. We've already begun exploring this treasure. One thing about jet-lag--we're up super early in the morning, ready to run!

The weather has been wonderful. The mornings and evenings are cool. It's hot in the afternoon, from about 12:30 to 5ish. Hot as in, in the 90s. But it's super dry, so the heat doesn't bother us too much. We also know it's short-lived. We're looking forward to experiencing fall for the first time in what has seemed like ages. It's sunny and beautiful--almost no clouds in the sky. Ever. The altitude is about the same as Boone, my hometown in NC. Oh, and there are three ski areas within 2 hours of the city--woo hoo!

Some last little observations and curiosities to leave you with because I know you're wondering:
-Whenever we need a taste of the States, there's Ben and Jerry's
-We're buying our coffee at Starbucks. And thank goodness for it because the coffee at the grocery store is crap!
-You can't say "sick," "um," or "peach/es" because these are all very bad words in Turkish
-We have not heard a single call to prayer, seen anyone praying, or seen anything that would indicate what we Americans think is Muslim except for some older women at the store who wear pants, long sleeves, and head scarves. But I can wear whatever I want. Tank tops, shorts, short skirts--anything. The conservative old-town area and out in villages are the only places I would not dress like that and only because I don't like people staring at me. I dress more conservatively naturally than many of the Turkish women I've met/seen.
-the food is GOOD
-I have not yet had the tea because it's hot
-I have not yet seen any whirling dervishes
-I have not been in a carpet shop
-There are kitties EVERYWHERE!!!!

Okay, off now to shop Ikea online (it's in Istanbul) for some stuff for the house.
I will post pictures as soon as we get the big computer on the internet. It's having issues connecting.

Runner's Knee

I went to the sports doctor here in Boulder. He quickly discovered what my problem is/has been. My knee cap collapses too far to the left. My outer leg muscles pull my knee cap, causing pain due to the compression and to compensate, the tendons on the inside pull to try to align the thing, causing pain on the inside. Because of the push and pull, my patella tendon can't run in a straight line and I get tendinitis. Poof. Tah-dah. We learned this from a simple x-ray. An x-ray they didn't take, for some reason, in Quito. But the x-ray shows that it's not as bad as my MRI suggests. Thankfully, it seems to be something I can manage. Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to run long distances. Ever. But who knows? I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. The good news is that I know what the problem actually is, and I can work on it. I have two physical therapy appointments scheduled so that we can make up a plan for me. And there we have it.

In the meantime, we've been running. Since my knee really only hurts after running, not during, I've kinda gone at it, and it's been great! These pics are from our 4th of July run at the Avery Brewing Company. A bunch of friends got together and ran the 4k on the 4th--then drank LOTS of beer! It was a blast!

This past Saturday, Tim and I ran a trail 10k up at Eldora and it was sooo much fun! We were flying through the woods, whooping and hollering and grinning ear to ear. If my knee ever acts normally enough for me to do longer runs, I think this one may help me convince Tim to do big Euro mountain runs with me. It was a tiny race--only 118 men and 95 women. It wasn't really a race for casual runners, either. It attracted a crazy hardcore crowd, so we didn't place very well. But that's what you get in Boulder. And we loved it.

Bali's Nudity

Bali's nudity is really pretty much all that's wrong with her. In less than a week after sugery, she's already putting weight on her leg, she fully extends and bends it herself (she's doing her own physical therapy), her stitches fell out yesterday, and I quit giving her pain meds days ago. This kitty is no longer a tri-pod. She is only 1/2 naked and limping. She's sleeping with us at night (not hiding) and generally letting me mess with her leg.

I'd say that bodes well for how "normal" she'll be when she fully recovers. She's still pretty embarrassed about being naked and her fur will take awhile to grow back in. But if that's all she has to worry about, I'd say we're doing great!

Little Tri-Pod

Bali got her ACL surgery on Monday, and I must say, she is not complaining much! When we brought her home Monday, she was all growly, and hissy, and we're pretty sure she was not growling at us, but rather at the pain in her leg. But by Tuesday, she was all purry and lovey, and now she's not even struggling when I give her the meds.

They say it'll be 3-4 weeks before she's putting much weight on it, and another 6-8 after that before she's approaching normal. But the kitty is doing well, and maybe things will get better faster for her. What all this means is that we'll be traveling to Turkey with a hurt kitty. Will the import police have a problem with a half shaved, limping kitty, or will they not even notice her? That's the question. I'm banking on them not noticing her. But if they do start poking and prodding, I'm ready to throw a tantrum. Tantrums get you far in many other countries where English is not widely spoken.

A Post About Turkey!

We are experiencing our first taste of Turkish bureaucracy as we attempt to procure visas. Because I have bachelor degrees specific to the subjects I will teach (English and Psychology), I will be employed by our school. This means that my paperwork is easy, but it takes a long time to get it. So I only need to show up in Turkey, get a tourist visa there in the airport, and then the school will eventually finish my paperwork and get my work visa.

Tim, though, is different. He will be teaching English as well, which is not what his bachelors degree is in. Therefore, he must be hired by the University. The University will then "lend him" to our school to teach. Because he will work for the University, he must get his work visa here in the States. To get a work visa, you must show up at the embassy--no mailing this stuff in like we did for Ecuador.

Can't wait to see what other convoluted, irrational hoops we'll have to jump through!

We also just bought our first rock guide to Turkey, and, thankfully, it looks like all the silly bureaucracy will be worth it. It definitely gets us excited to go. The areas really look fantastic and are pretty accessible to where we'll be.

About a month to go!

Poor Kitty!

Bali, being the true-blood Coloradan she is, has torn her ACL. We imagine she did it while attempting some sick jump from a window ledge that she didn't calculate just right. That's cool, I mean, she's the first one in a family of skiers to bust her ACL, but she's also the only one without health insurance. Maybe she should have calculated the risk a bit further. But in true Colorado style, she went ahead and tried that epic jump.

Can you imagine what ACL surgery is going to look like for a person that small? I bet her little tendon is maybe a cm long? Anyway, for now, she's a tri-pod kitty, hobbling around the house, missing out on the sweet mountain biking and trail running. But we'll get her back in shape for the winter ski season.

Goodbye

I'm at work. It's our last day. Tomorrow night, we go home. Our home. The home we made together for ourselves. Colorado.

We have grown so much in the last two years. The life education we received was much more intense and severely enlightening than anything we signed up for or expected. And I don't think we'll be able to focus on all the wonderful things about it until we have some distance and space from this life here.

And yet...goodbyes are in order. We leave wonderful people, a fascinating culture, my first teaching job, a language we've cultivated in ourselves, and norms and expectations we have finally adapted to. We are taking our experiences with us, the beautiful and the ugly, the severe and the suave, the scary and the comforting--they have all changed us. The rest, we leave behind.

Goodbye, year-round beautiful flowers and gardens.
Goodbye, awe-inspiring volcanoes. Cotopaxi, twice you rejected me. I was never able to try for a third.
Goodbye, seasonless year--holding us all in a perpetual springtime.
Goodbye, rain. I will miss you not.
Goodbye, easiest teaching job ever. I may miss your ease later in life.
Goodbye, eucalyptus leaves in my running park, filtering sunlight and freshening the air.
Goodbye, fear. Disappear. I don't want to see you again.
Goodbye, chatty, kind, and endearing students. I love you.
Goodbye, slow internet. I hope one day soon you can be fast.
Goodbye, colleagues. It's been one helluva ride.
Goodbye, climbers. You people are awesome. I hope we meet again somewhere soon.
Goodbye, airplanes overhead. All the time. Oye.
Goodbye, cheap and deliciously perfect steak. I think maybe we took you for granted and may regret that soon.
Goodbye, kind families that took care of us. We will always remember you.
Goodbye, pan de yucca, fresh fruit juices, my favorite yogurt, and all other yummies.
Goodbye, all the broken stuff in my classroom.
Goodbye, tall concrete.
Goodbye, Galapagos and jungle. You are treasures.
Goodbye, Canoa--home aways from home, great friends, lovely vacation spot.
Goodbye, severe green landscape with your nausea-inducing, twisty, curvy roads.
Goodbye, valley, goodbye, sigsi--our one climbing area, goodbye clothing that doesn't fit me.
Goodbye to all the things too numerous to name but that still made an impression--like the crowded buses, the sink holes, easy travel to the coast, etc.

Tomorrow night, we board a plane and say our goodbyes from above, looking down and back, on our first international living experience.
Goodbye Quito.

Klassic

I took Bali in so she could get her very official, stamped and dated health certificate. The vet listened to Bali's heart for about 30 seconds, declared her perfect, and signed the certificate. This was after much oooing and wowing over her age (kitties don't survive long south of the border) and about five minutes of me begging the vet to make the date on the cert this Friday, the day before we leave. I only had to ask twice and make a mild show of being upset about bringing in the cat too early. Ta-daaahh! Kitty ready to fly.

I'm doing something new with Bali this time. I'm not carrying litter and her little travel poo box. I'm going to try lining her carrier with diapers. Last time, she only peed in her carrier once and then refused food, water, and the chance to potty like a dignified kitty the whole rest of the travel time. We'll do a trial run tomorrow. All I worry about is how much space she has (nil) and how well the diapers will adhere and stay put.

And finally, some good news for us: we're moving to Martin Acres! A friend there needs her house sat for July. Lucky us, huh? South Boulder, watch out! Here we's come.

4 on the 4th

I just officially registered for Avery's short run and long drink event on the 4th of July. I think you should too.
You can register here for $25.

I'm also going to try to register for La Sportiva's trail 10k the 1st of August. I think you should do that one too.

Only 2 weeks for us to go. 2 weeks and we'll be finished with our first overseas living/teaching experience. I'll re-cap soon when I have some distance and so a clarified perspective as well. Right now, I can only focus on getting to Colorado. So I'm going to continue to honor that for now, and I'll get back to Quito in my mind soon enough.

Teaching Assignment

In honor of learning my teaching assignment today (and because I´m at an internet cafe until the Censo office opens), I thought I´d go ahead and open my new blog.

Next year in Turkey, I´ll teach 3 sections of English 9 (IGCSE curriculum) and I´ll teach IB Psychology again. Blissfully, no more TOK! I´m very excited to be teaching both my loves, and only having two preps--down from my current 4. I think it´ll be fantastic!

If you have not yet heard, our house in Quito was robbed. Quite a bummer. But my cat is fine, thank you for wondering. She hid while the baddies were in our house. But they did manage to take both our computers. Since we only have about 3 weeks left in Quito, we won´t be trying to replace those until we get back to Colorado (June 28th!!! WOOOOHOOOO!!). Thus, we are sorry about the limited contact. And pictureless blogs. The camera is gone too. But we´re not letting it get us too down. We´re fine and we´ll slowly replace what we´ve lost.

Can´t wait to see everyone this soon--we are so ready for a great Colorado summer!