 Hey
everyone! I am John Mallow, and even though I have not been assigned a
country yet for my Rotary student exchange, just knowing that I will even
have a country is enough for me! I live in a city in Florida called Weston,
which is pretty much Ft. Lauderdale.
For the most part, I've been told that I am curious,
outgoing, and even a little bit crazy, but I've found myself to be
hard-working and loyal. I love sports, especially football, and I am a music
junky. I've played in numerous bands (even as a part time job), playing the
bass and the guitar. I have a personal love of the international community,
and I am always curious about what is happening in the world. Also,
honestly, I love school, and I love taking part in my favorite clubs, which
are Model UN (United Nations), Interact, DECA, D.F.Y.I.T (drug free youth in
town), S.A.D.D. (students against destructive decisions), Friends of
Gilda's, and the National Science Honor Society.
I love to try new things, and this recent "thing" is
almost scary, but I can't believe that I am able to take part in something
so much bigger than myself; to learn and become more mature; become a better
leader a role-model; to be a foreign exchange student. I can't wait to see
where the world takes me!!! |
|
Hello people of RYE florida and my friends in the various parts
of the world! I am here writing in my Turkish house to say (mostly to Al
Kalter, Joe Altschul, and Roy) that I am alive and healthy- I promise :D! I have
been to various houses throughout my stay in Istanbul, and I have had no
internet in some of the houses, and I have also had the basic exchange problems
too, so I am sorry that my monthly reports have been... not so monthly... but I
promise to keep you updated as much as possible!!
Anyways, Merhaba!!! From Istanbul, Turkey. My stay here in
this country is the single most greatest experience I have ever had. I am
lucky to still be on this continuous adventure, because I am always afraid
that I will wake up. Everyday is like a dream- I am having a problem
explaining it more.. but I will describe it by writing about my new life in
one of the biggest cities and cultural centers in the world.
The day I arrived in Turkey, I was quite intimidated by
the immensity of the traffic, which is now famous to the exchange students,
and the crowded population of Istanbul. Everywhere you go there is traffic,
and when you think the traffic is getting better, there is always more
traffic up ahead. The traffic is the worst in the mornings across the
Bosphorus, because most people live on the Asian side of Istanbul, and then
go to the European side for work, and then it reverses when everyone is
going home... so taking a car to work is usually not the best idea because
there are only two bridges for most of the population of Turkey. Also, when
you cross the street, cars SPEED UP... which is havoc for everyone, so
walking can be bad because of this reason, and the drivers use cars in ways
that would otherwise be illegal in the USA...
In Istanbul there are two sides- the Asian and European,
as I mentioned before. I live on the European side, which has more religious
and old Turkish buildings; for instance, there is an old mosque right
outside my school which is a pretty neat thing if you come from the United
States (we are not used to mosques, etc). Everything is so close together in
Turkey, including the rich and poor, which can be quite odd. I live in a
wealthy part of Istanbul, but right next to the flats are slums that are
only visible if you look down from the highway. It's interesting how the
poor people literally live lower than the more wealthy.
School is awesome. I can talk on and on about school, but
I will keep it short. I love my friends in school. I have many friends, but
mostly in the 9th grade because there are only thirty six 12th graders. I am
in the school band, like an actual rock band (I play bass), and they are
planning on going to a huge Turkey band competition for schools, and I might
be playing with them. I am also doing dance in my school, and on the 29th I
will be dancing in front of my whole school! When the Model United Nations
club starts up, I will be joining that too! Everything is so great in my
school, and they are the least strict school in Turkey (and to add, it is a
boarding school).
The students in my school are some of the most hospitable
people I have ever met, including the people outside of school (the rest of
Turkey). The first day of school I met up with another exchange student, and
we were given students to show us around the school, and they attempted to
go overboard in the whole introduction process for us in the school. I can't
stop making new friends everyday- young and older students, they are all
just as curious to where I am from because I stand out in the crowd of the
Turks (blonde hair blue eyes), and also, they are quite curious in why I
have piercings in my eyebrow and ears (other students have earrings too!).
Everywhere I go, when I am meeting new people with my friends, the new
person always says "Merhaba" to my first friend (it is a greeting which is
equivalent to hello in English), and they kiss each other's cheeks. The same
happens for the next few friends, but when it is my turn for a greeting they
always stick out their hand for a handshake and say "HELLO". In the
beginning it was quite alright and understandable, but since now my Turkish
has improved dramatically, I am getting quite frustrated because sometimes
it halts my Turkification =P. However, when people see me from a distance, I
am always proud of myself because when people need directions, they ask me
in Turkish, and I always find them the right way... in Turkish!!
Lets go back to the traffic. Traffic is again, the worst I
have ever seen. People literally fight for the road. Most people walk or
take the otobus or minibus, which are cheap ways of transportation that
never exceed two lira (about, with the rising of the dollar, is only one
dollar a ride). Taxis can be more expensive, but take much less time because
taxi drivers are insane. The minibus can be frustrating because of where I
live. I live in the middle of a place called Istinye, which is a great part
of Istanbul. However, where I live, there are no minibus stops; there are
minibus stops, but I have to walk a nice mile and a half to get to one. I
already walk to school everyday because of the awkwardness of where I live-
I pass a school that is literally three minutes by walk, compared to the
twenty minutes I take every morning (twenty minutes is rushing). The
geography of Turkey makes it ever harder to get to school- it's not so bad
in the rest of Turkey, just where I live.. then in most places it gets more
flat in other places.
My diet consists of... everything. Nutella, which is my
absolute favorite, is my breakfast, which goes along with different cheeses,
breads, sometimes meat, olives, jam, honey, sometimes eggs, and Pinar, a
Turkish brand of milk- and let's not forget Turkish tea, which is an
if-you-are-Turkish-you-always-must-drink-it type of thing. Lunch consists of
the usual doner kebap (meat), toast- which is basically a grilled
cheese sandwich with meat and tomato, and sometimes a few other traditional
Turkish dishes which I forgot the name to. Dinner is.... amazing. In my
family there is always different soups, and in there are also different main
dishes you can eat. Domla is a pepper with rice and meat in it, there
is also kofte, a kind of meatball, salad, beans, fish, different
other meats like chicken; the list goes on. After you are stuffed and can't
eat anything else and you're about to pass out from all the food you ate,
there is of course, dessert. The desserts are truly extravagant, and I have
made them my own personal delicacies in Turkey. You'll have to come to try
them out yourselves! Also, even though it seems I eat everything in Turkey,
which of course I do, all the food is fresh and usually comes from a Bazaar,
an open air market with cheap food sold by the kilo. It is all fresh and
more healthy for you, and I have lost about ten kilos since the beginning of
my exchange. My host mom (and bless her English because she has problems
saying the TH sound, like the and that) always says "John! You are getting
too TIN!"
I have been to many places on my stay in Turkey. The first
one, is in a place called Sapanca, on the Asian side. It is a beautiful
village type place outside of Istanbul, in the mountains. I stayed there
with a temporary family while my family had their vacation in the United
States. From this stay I realized that Turkey has everything- beautiful
people, food, and places. Everything is the same but also everything is so
different at the same time. I am truly witnessing the mix of the East and
West cultures together. But one thing most Eastern and Western cultured
Turks agree on- Turkish pride. The crescent moon and star on the Turkish
flag can be found everywhere, as well as Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the most
important Turk in Turkish history, who founded the republic of Turkey. If
you thought Americans were patriotic, think again. There are more Turkish
flags waving in Istanbul then there are American flags in the whole United
States. It is quite unbelievable.
This is just my introduction of my stay in Turkey. Much
more has happened, but I will let you know in three weeks. Stay tuned my
friends!!
Hosca Kalin! Gorusuruz!
Kandi ne Iyi Bak! |
John Mallow