Things always go full circle!

It's been nearly 6 months since i finished my Erasmus place ment, the end of it tailing away into somewhat of anti-climax of emotions, sadness at having to leave a place which had been home for nearly a year and the eagerness to return to normality. Not all quite went to plan, my mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer not long after i came back, which was another spanner in the works, but after the initial shock, it has helped us all become more ponderous and thoughtful, although it is something that you would never wish on even the worstest of enemies!

Having now settled back in at the University of Leicester, preparing to work hard for my final year, I've reminisced more about Turkey than ever, especially with preparing for the International fair. I guess i never had the opportunity to think about, miss, evaluate or feel nostalgic about my time in Turkey, may not have been long enough, or it may have just got swept aside by a whirlwind of sorrow and troubles. Looking back, it was a fantastic experience, great opportunity, to live, feel and love another culture and of course, I'd do it all over again! I'd like to think i'd do certain things differently but i'm not so sure I actually would. There were times when I cursed the place but at the end of the day, it will always have a place in my heart. It's funny, never thought i'd really miss it, weird how things come full circle.

Fast & Furious in Cappadocia

On Thursday morning we took the train to Ankara, where we then caught a bus which went to Cappadocia, the journey lasted around 9 hours with waiting for buses, so we arrived in Goreme, a town in the heart of Cappadocia just before evening. We then found a hostel for 15 liras a night and set about checking out the local scenery. The hostel was nice, clean and set in a cave as many of the hotels/hostels are in Cappadocia but we were never quite sure who was a guest and who was staff, we found a Japanese guy, who was travelling around the world, serving us breakfast! Also met a Welsh guy, who quit his job to see the World, he has done 9 countries in 3 weeks, a very interesting character!

We hit the sack quite early, although i found it tough to sleep due to the amount of snoring in the Dorm, not pleasant! Made me soo glad that I don't snore myself. We woke up and planned on hiring motorbikes for the day but the owner of the hotel advised us to rent a car instead as we were planning to go quite far and it would cost the same as the tour of that area. Having not driven for a while i jumped at the chance! The car was a Renault Symbol and the interior was much the same as my Clio back in the UK, apart from the fact that the steering wheel was on the other side. It was the first time i had driven on the right hand side, but i was soon into my stride, checking out what the car could do! It was fun and we drove down to see one of the underground cities, which is not recommended for those who are claustrophobic, as there were a couple of tight squeezes. It was a city built underground back in the times of the Byzantine Empire, to protect civilians from invading armies. Soon after, we drove to a small village called Belirsirma, which was as rural as it gets! Very refreshing however and we then moved on to Ihlara valley. We made a few more stops at some monuments and old churches, aswell as another underground city. We then made our way back, I loved driving on the empty roads, made some sandwiches and walked around Goreme.

The following day we planned to use the mini bus transport service they had in Goreme, however Mario, one of the guys who came, was adamant he wanted to hire motorbikes, so we did! They were Mopeds really, but having never really driven one, and then driving them on dirt tracks and up mountains, It was much more of an adrenaline rush then it may seem! With the bikes we did a radius of about 20 km around Goreme, going off road and into dirt tracks and along the highways around the mountains and up into the mountains. It was a great experience, although it gets quite cold even with the sun shinning. We definitely conquered most of what there was to see.

The journey home was more than eventful, the two Spanish guys wanted to hitchhike, but we were such amateurs, in the end we settled on buses and trains. We eventually got back home around 2am. Cappadocia, calm, dusty and enough to do, definitely worth a visit.

Travels around Greece

Greece was a pleasant experience for the most part, with very cosmopolitan areas complimented by the historical sights. The first city we stayed in was Thessaloniki, which is greece's 2nd city, we managed to find a nice hotel for 15 euros a night and considering we arrived so late, we snapped it up! There were nice restaurants and the most significant of the historical monuments was the White Tower or sometimes known as the Bloody Tower, which was a building used by the Ottoman's to kill young Greek boys or house them there as slaves. The city was also the birthplace of Kemal Ataturk, although it wasn't really high on my agenda to see his house, and as we didn't have time, we never went. I was also introduced to a drink called the Frappe, no matter where you go in Greece i'm reassured that everybody drinks this coffee based drink, why? I'm not too sure. It is basically nescafe mixed with sugar, milk, cold water and ice. Although i drank more than one, there was nothing appealing about it apart from the fact that everyone else was drinking one!

When we arrived in Athens, we were left with the familiar predicament of having no where to stay, but we found some travelling Canadians and basically followed them to their hostel. It was based in the mother of all ghettos! Walking down the street we saw a man with a needle in his arm, numerous eastern European prostitutes. As a son of immigration, i was bewildered to see how so many immigrants were living, basically on the street, and it was completely against my expectations. There were Africans, Arabs, Asians, Eastern Europeans, yet they were all living in terrible conditions. I spoke to a few of the Bangladeshi, who worked on the street selling souvenirs and they told me that they stay and work for 6 months, and afterwards spend 6 months living well in Bangladesh and being able to provide food and education for their children. At times it was hard to see.

One particular incident came on the final day, when we were walking through the 'tourist shopping' area and an immigrant had sat down on the floor, with the sunglasses he wanted to sell, when the owner of the shop he was outside of, came out and shouted at him in Greek, gave him two swift jabs to the jaw and threw him on the floor. It was unreal. I felt for that guy. For some life isn't filled with promise, as is with our own, Alhamdulilah we're more than blessed.

Acropolis, the ancient Greek ruins, was an amazing sight as were the many other greek ruins we visited around the city. Although not as pleasant as Thessaloniki, Athens had its own aura about it, a city with so much history.

The experience of having to take a bus from Athens to Istanbul, is one i'll never forget and insh'Allah i'll never have to do it again! In the end it had taken us 26 hours to get all the way back to Eskisehir and there were two particular reasons for this absurd journey, or rather the choice of it. Firstly, it was by far the cheapest options, the Greek companies are aware of the appeal of travelling from Greece to turkey or vice vera, so the ferry travel option is very dear, as is the plane or the train! Secondly, we didn't want to get stranded at the border again, hitchhiking across a border, although an experience i'll never forget, it's one i never want to do again!

I'll leave you with a quote from Ancient Greece, by the Philosopher Aristotle:

“Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence”

We all have a chance of obtaining it, but Alhamdulilah, some of us more than others.

A Most Unforgetable Journey.

It is 1.39 am. At roughly 1.27 am yesterday we set off for our journey to Greece and just that alone has been remarkably memorable. Wer arrived in Istanbul this morning and were lucky enough to find a train to Edirne, which we believed had Trains which came straight to Thessaloniki. However, when we got there, we were met by a very dusty, deserted train station, in a town where very few people appeared to speak English. Eventually after a Burger King, which didn't appear to go down well on any of us and had the adverse effect to what we desired, we managed to get a bus to the bus station, where we thought we would be able to take the bus into Greece.

How wrong were we.

When we got there, we were told we had to take a bus to the Turkish town of Kesan, followed by another bus to Ispala, where we could then get to the Border and cross over into Greece. So much for a quick train ride from Edirne. The journey to Keshan took 2 hours and it was around 6pm by this time. We got the next bus to Ispala at 6.30pm and finally got there at around 7pm.

This is when the fun began.

We took a taxi to the border, and just as our taxi disappeared out of sight, we were informed that we could not cross the border without a car and if we attempted to, we would be shot, as the area between the two borders was a military zone. The Officer promptly advised us to hitchhike across the border, the idea of which seemed easier than in practice.

We tried our best to explain to Lorry drivers the predicament we were in, but many weren't willing to offer help, probably due to fear we were illegal immigrants. There was a British guy who was willing to help but wasn't himself crossing the border for a few hours.

And just when our spirits were at their lowest, a guy who appeared Dutch was telling he would be willing to cross us over.

Bear in mind, we had been travelling for roughly 20 hours at this point, If Charles Manson had offered a lift, I doubt any of us would have rejected.

Alhamdulillah, this guy took us across, and it was revealed that he was in fact a German, originally from Chechnya, a pious Muslim and it turned out to be that my first experience of Greece, was praying with him on the side of the motorway. The more amazing thing however, was that he took us all the way to Thessaloniki, 400 km away! He was going there aswell, subhanAllah!

Things were looking bright, a long day seemed to be drawing to a close..

Until we got to the city and couldn't find a Hotel because they were full for the weekend, but we did find one eventually around 1.20am and the first thing I had to do was to right this down, because it has been draining, frustrating and unbelievable at times, it's just that i think it's one of those scenario's you look back on and think "Actually that was kind of cool!"

A night in a Hotel never sounded so appealing.

Tales from the Old City.

Wow, it's been nearly a month since my last blog post, i am seriously getting lazy at this, i can't say i hadn't been warned though, guess when it is no longer something unusual and its much more a normality then your surroundings blend in, nothing seems as excited because it is all part of the norm and you don't feel the need to comment. I truly feel at home. For now atleast.

One thing caught my eye today as i was walking back from Friday prayers and it was the construction. I have to admit the semi built buildings which have left sand and stones everywhere, are not so much a nuisance but an example of authenticity. There is a very Turkish feel about their construction, as you see them building, it doesn't look as safe as it should and living in an apartment myself, it probably doesn't feel as safe as it should. However, its the sand and stones which caught my attention, i can't explain it, but it brought a wry smile to my face. In England, once a building is built, then there is no evidence left behind of the work, everything is finished off nicely. Here, not really the same, but to me its interesting, unique and shows how Turkey are in the middle. They have the aims and ideas to want to grow like Western/European countries yet in practice their it is the Eastern part of this nations mentality which seems to be the practical side.

By no means is that a dig towards the Eastern countries, I love the Eastern countries, it is a realisation that at times Turkey seems to want to dismiss its Eastern roots, these guys had Ottoman Empire which is a huge part of history and was pretty awesome! But at times its like the rich son who wants to forget his pauper father, or vice versa i guess.

A couple of days, I was speaking to a Turkish man and he had asked me where I had previously travelled to, so i gave him a list including Spain, France x2, Ireland etc, and then came the big question, where would you like to go? So i said my next trip is hopefully to Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, this is where he was quick to point out that these countries are nothing like Turkey! I carried on, as though he hadn't said anything and said how i'd love to go to the far east, maybe Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia etc and he looked astonished! "Why would you go these places??" He asked bemused, he again reiterated that Syria, Lebanon and Jordan are nothing like Turkey and they don't speak English there. I Laughed. I told him how if you're from the West, then you want to see the East, and if you're from the East you want to see the West. I don't want to go to places like the USA or Australia because thats my world, they are the same Capitalist, American imperialist product driven states as my own, and as much as i love it, theres more to the world than that, thats why i wanna go east and see the things that are different from my mundane comfortable world.

I looked at the guy and i told "You're right Turkey is not like those places, but it is just as different to me as those places." I wanted to say, you're from the east so you wanna go the West, theres nothing wrong with that as long as you appreciate what you have, if you cant, fuck the west, contentment is sought after in the heart, not in a place and value of its economy, but i thought it would only confuse him. Last night, i had a vision, I want to go to Africa.

Pro at Pro Evo!

The last couple of weeks, since i arrived back in Turkey, have been spent not doing much apart from lazing around and doing essays. I have however found a new hobby! That is playing pro evo 2010 in one of the many playstation shops around eskisehir, okay it may not be the most adventurous thing ever but it's pretty cool. Having handed in most of my work for the first half of the semester, with the rest due in January, im beginning to think about my plans for xmas and the new year. I have a few ideas floating around my head, with options such as Cyprus, Istanbul or Olympus, something is telling me to go back to Istanbul for the umpteenth time, i duno what it is about the city, im just drawn to it as many people are, it's fascinating! But the idea of Cyprus is appealing, if all the logistics can be sorted out, it would be pretty cool spending new years there. i have also pretty much decided to go back home for the semester break, i would have liked to have done the trip around eastern Asia but the financial means dont appear to be there and besides it would be nice to spend some substantial time at home, jus basically doss around, my favourite activity. What else? Hmm, it's bloody cold! Thought a year in Turkey, would mean sun, instead it feels like frickin' Siberia at times! Makes English rain feel exotic!

Back In Eski Town

I haven't posted for a while, but in the mean time i have been to the UK and back. Right now, im feeling pretty rough, with the flu and a cough, so i haven't really left the apartment since i came back, just a couple of times, once to go play PES 2010 at a local PS3 shop. I had left for England on the 19th November at 1am, but the train to Istanbul was delayed until 2am, i slept pretty much thru the train journey but it arrived two hours late in Istanbul as it was supposed to be there at 7, but arrived at 9am. I then jumped on the E10 bus to Sabiha Gokhen Airport which took around an hour and then i sat around a couple of hours until boarding which was just after midday. I arrived in England at 16.30, but my mum had broken down, so i had to call one of my closest mates to see what he could do and someone came and got me around an hour and half later, i owe them big time! So i finally got back at around 20.30, but then was definitel a great sense of relief. I spent the two weeks pretty much sitting at home and seeing close mates, before i went back i thought i would be going here, there and everywhere, but i just didnt feel like doing much. My lil sister had been bought a lil Ford KA, so i insured it and drove it around, certainly felt nice to be back :) So two weeks past, Eid past, a simple one, spent at home and partly working in my dads restaurant and i came back on a 8am flight on wednesday morning, after another whole day of travelling i finally arrived back in my room in Eskisehir at around 22.30. I sat there thinking, it feels like just yesterday i was sitting here packing to go home, how those two weeks flew by i dont know. Time is flying uncontrollably, i'm just trying to hold on to its wings :)

Time for a UK break!

I must admit i have slacked with the blog and haven't updated it in a while, but the last couple of weeks have been as eventful as ever, and i'm noe preparing to go back to the UK in a couple of days, the excitement is starting to take over! I spent last weekend in Istanbul, and even got the opportunity to see the great DJ, Grandmaster Flash perform live, in a tiny venue so it felt very personal! That was amazing and i also walked all around Istanbul as per usual, but this time visting the little bazaars and picking up bits and bobs. The previous week i had accompanied Leyland to his usual volunteering gig at a local school which aims to help small children gain extra education to their government provided education, which was quite eye opening. I have also had a couple of exams and an essay to hand, I can't believe i actually had to learn something, the audacity of it! Nevertheless the last couple of weeks have been good and I think i'm ready to land on British soil and taste some of mama's food :)

Olympos Fire

Antalya/ Olympos

I spent last week in Antalya, where i went white water rafting, which was an incredible experience. The instructor was a bit of a comedian constantly pushing people in the water, but i escaped as i had my treasured Hugo Boss watch on me and i attempted to explain sentimental value, he understood enough to not push me in. The following day was spent swimming in the Mediterranean sea, which wasn't too cold but was far too salty, i was pretty dehydrated after as i think i drank atleast a couple of litres of salt water! The following day was spent in Olympos, where the eternal flame was burning, it was interesting to see the concept of natural elements making a fire burn forever, it made me contemplate though, because nothing lasts forever, something may last a very long time but in the world everything is eventually perishable, it was amazing to see that fire burn bright and fight in strong winds and rain. We had a 7 hour bus journey back and it gave plenty of time to Leyland and myself to philosophise. I came to the conclusion i'm a very lucky boy lol That if you could have chosen the hand life would have dealt you, there aren't too many better options, so i'm thankful, i'm more than thankful to Allah. However, sometimes you can have everything and at the same time have lost everything, it's what measures as importance to you, for example a KG of Gold is worthless if you have no water to quench your thirst in the middle of the desert. In my two months here i have already had poignant moments and have seen many magical sights, but sometimes you just need to appreciate everything back home first, all though it's probably too late, i think i finally do.

New Job!

I have spent my first day in Antalya, and i have to say that it is pretty impressive! It feels slightly like a ghost town due to there being no tourists but thats not really a bad thing :p No doubt that it is a beautiful place though. Today, we will be going white water rafting, and i can not contain my excitement :) I have some interesting news, in that i will now be teaching english at a private education school. It's primarily a part-time post, which i can do around my own studies, so it sounds like a great opportunity. Once, i took the job i was thinking in my head, how if anyone asked me what i did in my year abroad, i could say i studied international law, travelled around, and taught english, not a bad life is it?

Mash'Allah

water anyone?

No prizes for guessing what this shope sells.

My culinary skills.

Turkish construction.

Time is flying already!

After having spent the early part of the week in Istanbul, due to my family visiting, i was able to visit some of the more tourist orientated elements of the city. I took a trip to the Archaeology museum which had things from as early as 8/9th cetury BC and also revealed a lot about the history of the Ottoman Empire, such as how they took over from the Byzantines and which Sultan was in charge when, all fascinating stuff. However, the best was yet to come, we went to the Topkapi Palace museum, which gave fascinating insights into Islamic history, they had on show hairs from the beard of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW), the rod which Musa (AS) used to split the ocean, the arm of Prophet Yahya (John the Baptist) and swords from the the first four Khalifas' and the Sahaba and much more, really amazing! I had had a great time and after another sad farewell with my mum, came back to Eskisehir on Wednesday. I have to say those four hours on the train from Istanbul to Eskisehir, seem to fly by everytime, the scenery on the way is breathtaking, its just so beautiful and poetic, i seem to lose myself in it everytime! Although, i was rather glad to get away from the chaotic nature in Istanbul and be back in more peaceful territory. I have atlast realised how fast time is going, so im just trying to poise myself and appreciate everything and take it all in as much as i can. This year has started to fly already, guess thats the problem when you adapt to life. Im also planning to go Antalya next week, im going to try and travel as much as i can, but it looks like time is running away already, but i guess thats a given for all of us.

Small city or Big City?

I am currently in Istanbul, with the family visiting. I am doing my best to impress them with my basic Turkish, seems to be working so far lol! It has been another action pack week, which has ended with my arrival in Istanbul, a city which i fell in love with the moment i stepped foot into it. However, this time i seem to be fed up with the constant crowds, haggling and traffic! This has made me realise that everybody settles into a lifestyle and once we are brought out of it, we get frustrated. Eskisehir is my Turkish Loughborough, my hometown, my comfort zone. Istanbul is my Turkish London, nice for a couple of days, nice history, but a bit of a headache. Im not doing another Victor Meldrew, i do still love it but it's fact that im a Hometown boy and i prefer Eskisehir for that cosy factor. Most of the week has been spent socialising, i did do a little reading, it's a start! I also cooked last night, a mean chicken curry, which fed 6 people, i surprised myself with the culinary talents, but im no Jamie Oliver. The Turkish Adventures are going pretty well at the moment, theres still that little bit of homesickness in me, but time is flying, i'll be home for Eid pretty soon! I think i'm beginning to like this place :) Don't worry Loughborough will always have my heart though!

Living it up in Es Town!

The last two days have been actioned packed, on Friday I experienced traditional Turkish folk music in the Serdivan Cafe, the entertainment was interesting, that was until it got a lot more interesting, when the customers started to get up and dance and before you knew it, more than half the people were doing the traditional dancing, I got dragged up but me dancing to turkish folk music is not a pretty sight! I was fascinated by what I would call real Turkish culture, it's easy to see it masked by the new European culture. On Saturday, The Erasmus students were given the opportunity to Midas City, an old town actually, which had beautiful landscapes and mountainous terrain, I think the pictures speak for themselves. We also visited Sultan Beyazite's Tomb. So, it was tiring and yet refreshing to experience some real culture. All, I can say though is that for the folk music nor the mountain climbing, will I be quitting the day job!

Brown, Sarkozy, Al-Essad, Obama?

Yesterday i was invited round for dinner at a friends house and quite a few of the Erasmus students came. After dinner, we embarked on a conversation about politics. Everyone was bemoaning the lackings of their own state/nation, whilst we also intriguingly listened to takes of human rights abuse and poor social security systems, there was conversations on communism, capitalism and everything in between lol! What i found though, was that no matter how much someone bemoaned their country's politics, it didn't matter, because regardless of that, everybody held their own nation as the best place to be, for one reason or another, so i guess home really is where the heart is, but if the heart was ever allowed to wonder, i couldn't have wished for a more intriguing place, i guess in reality, for the next year, Eskisehir is home!

Lock, stock, the f***ing lot!

Today at long last I finally received my timetable and after having visited most of my Lecturers, it looks like it's going to be a few months of long, hard, independant learning lol! Understandably, it's not easy for them to lecture in English but they have set quite a few semester papers and are there to help when required, though it all appears quite flexible, i am warned that there is quite a lot of work, so it looks like a lot of reading is going to take place! If anyones interested the subjects i've taken for this semester are Humanitarian Law, Welfare State and Social Rights, International Law, European Legal Systems, Rights in Roman Law and of course Turkish for beginners :P On a much brighter note, i've found a DVD shop round the corner, which sells British/American DVDs, get in!! :) This is great news considering i have watched the only 3 DVDs i bought with me about 10 times each, they were Snatch, Layer Cake and Lock, Stock & Two smoking barrels! Thank you Guy Ritchie!