Today marks my two month anniversary of arriving in Turkey. I am half way through my study abroad adventure. I have midterms this week, which is fitting as I am halfway through the semester. In some ways the time is flying by. But I am excited for the semester to finish as I am then able to travel throughout Turkey before returning to America.
Some other observations about Bilkent and Turkey:
1) In the dining center there is a piano. People can just sit down and play a few songs if they want to. There is usually someone playing during dinner time who I believe is paid as he or she brings an entire stack of music and plays for a few hours. The music creates a very relaxing mood and distracts you from the clinking of trays and glass happening around you. You can just sit and enjoy the music. Music is literally all around us. I think every dining center should incorporate this idea into their design as it makes the place look and sound more appealing and more professional.
2) If you are a dog and cat lover and are not afraid of stray animals, come to Turkey. On the campus, many of the buildings seem to have a pet cat or dog that hangs about the vicinity to get attention and I'm guessing food. Outside of Bilkent, the cats curl up on entryways while the dogs roam throughout the parks. They are generally quite friendly, but I do not get too close to them as I am not too comfortable around large wild dogs. The cats are quite adorable though.
3) Throughout Turkey, and especially throughout Bilkent, they use automatic lights in major public locations. In the music building, as I walk down the hallway to find a practice room, the hallway lights up like a runway. The staircases also have automatic lights. I imagine it cuts back on the electricity bill and saves money and energy, as they really do make sense for many public places. The only issue I have had with them is in the bathroom. If you are the only one in the bathroom, all the lights could turn off while you are still in there and you must wave your arms about to trigger the lights to turn on again. I think that the bathrooms could just be regular lights.
4) In my political discussions with my roommates and other Turkish people about American and Turkish politics, I sense the love for Ataturk and a longing for a leader just like him. Turkey looks to America for examples of great leadership. Obama is generally perceived as a great leader and many people find him handsome. On the other hand, they do not like Bush too much and blame him for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars that they believe were not a good choice. I find Turkish politics fascinating as things are constantly changing. Turkish people really want to be a democracy and have a separation of mosque and state so that they can be a more developed country.
In answer to a question I received, the Muslim call to prayer can be heard from campus a little bit but definitely while walking around Ankara. However, things do not shut down or pause for everyone to go to pray. I think it is more of a reminder to go and pray when you can. The hustle and bustle of Ankara never stops! On Bilkent's campus though there is a small prayer building for the Muslim students to pray. I pass it everyday on my way to the music building. It's like an on campus ministry. However, you don't find many American universities providing a chapel or prayer area for their students.
I am enjoying my time in Turkey and am sad to see it going by so fast as I realize that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. However, I do miss my family and friends back home. Odysseus says it very well in the Odyssey: "So true it is that his motherland and his parents are what a man holds sweetest, even though he may have sttled far away from his people in some rich home in foreign lands."
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