Jessica Öğretmen (teacher) is now in Turkey: Week 1 Teaching in Istanbul

Merhaba (hello) and kiss, kiss on each online cheek! xx

Got picked up right off the 10hr plane ride by Teachers in Turkey, whisked to the downtown office for paperwork, and was set off into the world by afternoon. A friend from Canada helped me get in contact with her friend, so I had a couch to crash on for my first few days until I found an apartment. I was taken out for some Turkish coffee at a beautiful café on the Bosphorus. Turkish coffee comes in a baby coffee cup (size of a shot glass), 2/3 filled with coffee and 1/3 coffee-grind mush; on a beautiful silver tray with a little biscuit or Turkish delight bite. On the weekend I wandered around Taksim, the major downtown nightlife district, and we had an incredible Turkish meal: a meat assortment, tzatziki, hummus, beets, a tomato and seasonings dip, and of course some seasoned bread and pita :) We drank some Raki (local liquor), and a sip of Ayran (a regular-as-pop drink, highly salted yogurt that got one sip and a YUCK from me), and did some nightlife in Taksim at the bars. Kebabs, kebabs, kebabs galore on every street corner!



Lots and lots of crafts for the kindergartens

I woke up on my first day at 5:00am to what I could only describe as a loud mix of crying out and moaning coming from outside...then I began to hear some music to the voice, and eventually understood: I woke up to the (5x daily) Muslim call to prayer. I can't understand the language or meaning, but for 2-3 minutes I feel there's comfort and beauty to the voice calling to the neighbourhood over its loudspeakers. I was already whizzing around on buses and metro's alone that day (with varying levels of success).



Assuming this is who they sing the school-wide National Anthem to

Turkish children are WILD! And I'm in a fundamental Islamic school that personally chooses its students (or so my English head says proudly). We wear white labcoats over our loose, long and non-revealing clothes. But my Turkish teachers warned me right away, "these children are crazy, very hard to control!" I vow to take a video of what happens when each 40 minute period is over...the kids SPRINT through the halls in a stampede, falling over and bumping into each other. It's a mad house. But it's my mad house now! Honestly, I teach much less hours than in Korea, going from 9:50-3:20 everyday, but some days I finish even earlier. The school provides a great Turkish salad bar (cooked beans, garden salads, beets mixes, chickpea mixes), soup, buns, a main dish, and dessert! I teach kindergarten, grade 1 and grade 2 at Fatih Koleji, so I've got the youngest of the bunch. The rascals in grade 1 will run, eat, hide under desks, hit each other, run up and hug you (or more likely grab chalk from you), and they understand less than 20 English words. I've got about 15-20 kids in each class, so it's a bit of a challenge for me who's used to Korea's 2-10 kids. Turkish kids (and adults) are very affectionate. Boys and girls at my school run up and hug me in the halls or as I say goodbye, sometimes the girls kiss me and hold my hands.

Jessica Öğretmen in her official labcoat...it shows I'm a real professor

The Turkish teachers are divided into women and men's staffrooms, so I haven't actually talked to any males besides Esat (my head English teacher). The women are incredible. Most have very little English, but everyone is so friendly and always ask about how our day's are going, how our classes are, and if we need anything. It makes me smile to see all of them wear their headscarves and skirts to their ankles, but then whip out their smart phones to message and play Candy Crush. Like in Korea, I found myself thrown into a classroom after a couple hours of somewhat observation on Friday and was teaching Monday. Although I know the unit I'm on in each class, the pages I'm supposed to be doing and the speed - who knows? Very little planning communication happens between the Turkish and 3 foreign teachers. But way less hours than in Korea...and Friday's I'm out by 1:50pm! Ready to explore the metro's and buses, and explore this beautiful city that's my new home. xx