Intense

Merhaba! Class has gotten much better. I was not prepared for the breakneck speed and copious amounts of homework intensive Turkish would bring, but the more I study, the more fun class time is, and the more Turkish I can use in day to day conversation. (Very little as of yet...)

The good news is I can't speak this language without smiling. It's full of "oohs" and "oooleys" and other assorted funny sounds and facial features. It's a lot of fun to speak, and we learn about 100 words per day. Sometimes that almost makes my head explode, but as my vocabulary is expanding exponentially, I'm more and more conversant all the time. Considering I knew zero words on Sunday, that's not bad.

I especially enjoy practicing Turkish in Alanya's restaurants and bars. We have a place near our dorm (lojman) where we go and drink tea (cay) while we study and the owners are incredibly kind. I'm learning Turkish with a group of brilliant linguists (summer of humility) and some of them are basically conversant after four days. We chatted with the owners and fellow diners -- well, my friends (arkadashlar) chatted and I would occasionally interject with "my name is Andrea," and "the cup is on the table." People were particularly interested to hear that "that pencil belongs to the gentleman." I am a riveting conversation partner so far.

Right now, I know my numbers, I can introduce people, and I can say hello, how are you, and answer in a variety of ways. I tried to tell the restaurant owner that her shirt was beautiful. She had no idea what I meant, but after my fellow classmates translated, she kissed me, offered to take me shopping, and brought me ice cream (dondurma). This place is great!