I’m officially here and, as per my promises, I’ve started a
blog in less than 24 hours of arriving!
Almost like I’m setting a new record on my usually dismal blogging
abilities or something…
For those of you who don’t know, I am in Ankara (and
eventually Afyon) Turkey for the next 10 months completing a Fulbright Grant as
an ETA (English Teaching Assistant) at Afyon Kocatepe University. I’ll be teaching English speaking classes part
time and hopefully finding enough time to travel, engage, explore, and be an
excellent cultural ambassador! I still am a little (all right, maybe a lot) up
in the air about exactly what my position will look like, but I’m excited to
get to Afyon and find out! In the
meantime, we’re spending the next 10 days doing orientation in Ankara, the
capital of Turkey, and learning all about Turkish politics, social issues, and
language—and a little about how to teach English along the way as well J
So far, orientation has been going well—I didn’t get to the
hotel last night until around 10 at night Turkish time, so getting through the
lectures would be a bit more fun on a little more sleep and a lot less jet lag,
but I’m sure that’s something I’ll get over soon! We had our first introductory Turkish lesson
today and talked a lot about the background and history of Turkey and how that
ties into the education system and youth culture. It’s definitely interesting to hear about
some of the struggles facing the school systems and Turkish youth today and
compare them to issues people my age discuss in the United States. Some of them are a lot more similar than many
people realize J
Anyway, that’s about all the excitement around here J They’ve been feeding us excellently and I’m
about ready to head down for another good Turkish dinner. Stay posted for more adventures!
No comments:
Post a Comment