First Days in Sincan, Turkey

Randi and I are living in a suburb, 25 km outside of Ankara, that resembles a barren desert. Initially we felt a bit isolated, but after having spent time with new friends in Ankara (aka exploring the city by day and discovering it's nightlife by night), we are quite pleased with our new location. Tomorrow we'll be moving into a 3 bedroom apartment. We're happy to have an actual shower and a kitchen that isn't nicknamed "the kitchen of horrors". The cheap rent will include a weekly cleaning and fresh bread delivered to our door each morning. The only downside is that we will be neighbors to a mosque. The 5 am call to prayer will be our alarm clock!

Everyone has been extremely hospitable and welcoming. Randi and I have been placed into 2 neighboring schools with 2 male foreign teachers. Since it is preferred that women teach the younger students, we've been assigned 1st through 4th grades. In our schools, there are separate teachers lounges for the men and women, and the genders are quite segregated. We get quite a few stares when hanging out with the male English teachers and we're sometimes ushered away to rejoin the females. Also, it's advised to refrain from shaking hands with the opposite sex unless they initiate it. This year the female teachers are forbidden from wearing their head scarves during school hours so some wear wigs as a substitute. The teachers wear long, white jackets that resemble lab coats. If Randi and I can get away with minimal clothing underneath, we may join them!

~ Stacy