Land of OUR Sojourn

Let me begin this episode by saying how much  I adore my family. I have been SO incredibly blessed.

For my mom's fiftieth birthday, my aunt gave her a trip to come to Turkey. Together they would explore Istanbul and then make their way to Trabzon to see me...well that trip was this week. Earlier this afternoon I waved goodbye to their taxi to the airport, sobbing and hugging the woman who cleans the Koru Tesisleri, the hotel/guesthouse that may continue to be my semi-permanent housing for the near future. This woman is quite tiny, so the hug was awkward, and she truly doesn't speak a lick of English, but seeing a mother and daughter say their tearful goodbye doesn't need to be explained in any language. As the taxi pulled away, the woman pulled me back into the building to sit with her in the lobby until I collected myself and attempted to say something in my broken Turkish.

Mom and Aunt Anne were in Istanbul for four days, then they arrived in Trabzon on Thursday. I had night classes at 5:00 and 7:00, but Ali, being awesome, showed them around while I was teaching. Then we all had a bite at Koru Pizza downstairs from my room and discussed the next day's plan.

Though they're new to Turkey, and Turkey is a fascinating place, Mom and Aunt Anne really came for me. They came to make sure I'm adjusting and settling in, and also to force me to buy some real silverware...instead of using a broken plastic fork to eat my tuna mac. That, in and of itself, just blows me away. They came all this way to see me and to take care of me. It brings me to tears even now to think about it. I already miss them so MUCH!

I don't teach on Fridays, so that morning they came back to campus and Mom unpacked the things that she had brought me from the States. Highlights include an AWESOME Columbia coat, a raincoat, Bananagrams, ranch dressing packets, ballet flats, and a jug of New Hampshire maple syrup. Also peanut butter and plenty of other little treats...it was like an early Christmas. And, to a certain extent, it really was the "Christmas" or "birthday" that I'll get with my family this year. Aunt Anne brought some great ESL resources and printed-off Beatrix Potter stories...see already why they're the best?

After the exciting opening of Mom's carry-on full of stuff, we saw Naci Bey, the head of my department, and he invited us into his office for a nice chat. He also gave me permission to attend the International Studies Association conference in April (in San Diego), should I achieve the financial means to make it happen. We also ran into Evren and Fehmi Bey, other colleagues in my department, who informed me that there was NO way my mother could actually be my mother; "She is too young! She looks younger than you!" My mom actually got a LOT of that during her stay here...guess who gets those genes? Hurray! Evren and Fehmi Bey also said that they would arrange a trip to Uzungol for the three of us, and I never should have doubted that they would...haha!

Next we headed to the Meydan (city center), where we grabbed a bite to eat, some fun hamsi (anchovy) souvenir things, and some exciting Trabzonspor gear at the official TS Club store. Then we were off to Forum, the big old mall next to campus, to purchase homegoods to turn my hotel room into a home. I am now living large with an iron!!! After I asked my friend Bahar for help finding a dolmus to get to the Novotel where Mom and Aunt Anne were staying, she just told another colleague, Onur (who's hilarious), and he said he should probably just drive us...so he did! That evening we ate some good Western food in the hotel restaurant (I was jonesing for some salad dressing...) and registered me for the ISA conference. Yes, I'm going. And this has all been made possible by my aunt, who sees the conference as an important first step for my career...needless to say, I sort of wept. She is so good to me. March 31st I'll fly to San Diego, in the good ole US of A, and leave on April 3rd for a return on the 4th. It's still sinking in. Now I need to get on creating the paper itself from my thesis!

Yesterday Ali Bey drove the Ponder women contingent (Mom, Aunt Anne, and me) plus Ali up to Sumela Monastery, the most iconic attraction in the area. It SHOULD be...it's a monastery attached to a sheer rock face. And walking up there ain't no picnic...it was over a mile of uphills switchbacks. But was it worth it! Here are some pictures:

Not my picture, but the fog was so thick that WE didn't even see the monastery from the outside...but it's on the magnets that we bought. :D

A look at one of the many sections of pathway up to Sumela.....

Ali Bey, Aunt Anne, and Ali pause for a breather

Example of the thick fog that surrounded us all day. Spooky!

Can you read it? That's why I included it...

As we enter the monastery

Behind the walls

A look at the outside of the cave chapel - incredible frescoes

A look back towards the entrance

Inside of a room on the outside wall

At the base of the path; many tourists mill around, but few of them will attempt the walk. They'll drive to the upper parking lot.

Example of the incredible frescoes painted onto the ceiling and walls of the cave chapel

The sign at the beginning of the pathway up

So we saw Sumela, and it was really wonderful. My camera ran out of battery about halfway, but my mom and Ali were able to take a lot more. These are just some highlights, but they do cover most of what we saw. Then Ali Bey took us to a restaurant for some authentic local cuisine (best kuymak I've had yet), which was delicious, and then drove us back into Trabzon. Ali hung out with us and we had dinner at the hotel again (featuring wine...something I haven't had since Ankara, and sometimes forget exists), then got back to campus. This morning Mom and Aunt Anne helped me unpack completely and organize/clean. Aunt Anne calls it "nesting." They helped me nest.

You know how, when rockets are launched, they get an initial boost to get them out of the atmosphere? That's what my mom and aunt provided for me over the past three days. I was treading water, but they came in here and helped me get organized, helped me to get out of survival mode and into living mode. I feel like I own my space now. Also, whereas I thought I had learned no Turkish since I've been here, helping my mom and aunt get around helped me to realize that I've come an incredibly long way, even if I can't hold extended conversations. They helped me to feel competent, to feel secure. I miss them already so much...but I feel rejuvenated and ready for what's to come. I can't thank them enough for coming to see me, or for their generosity both to me and to Ali. The Big Guy's looking out for me, has so blessed me. Starting this week off with some serious optimism.