Chapter 2

Despite the unsolicited advice from Turks that Eskisehir was more than 20 hours by bus, or at least 3 by a rival bus company, I arrived in no less an 4 hours, and paid no more than 9 dollars (significantly less than the hundreds of Euros I was quoted).

The city is very European, yet still strikingly Turkish. It's European in the sense that the buildings are a throwback to Prague with a river right out of an Amsterdam guidebook. The Turkish part comes into play when I realized that kebap or doner restaurants occupy 90% of the commercial space, and I've become immune to both frequent sightings of garbage carts pulled by donkeys, and full families fit tightly onto a scooter (helmetless of course).

Eskisehir has been quite for the last few days, since everyone has been with family in other parts of Turkey to celebrate Bayram, the end of Ramazan holiday. The fact that everything has been closed hasn't deterred my from exploring the city and university.

The evidence of such explorations can be found here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2175302&id=94807105&l=49bef962de

I'm living in my own apartment, fully furnished, since the student I was supposed to live with thought it would be a hilariously great idea to say "I'll host a student", when what he really meant was "I'll be in Italy for at least a semester. Don't tell him until he gets here." So it's just me, a gas stove, a redundant tea pot (credit to Hilary Beaumont) and a toaster oven that I have yet to figure out. All of those combine forces to create the most practical, unoriginal breakfasts imaginable: hardboiled eggs (I can't find a frying pan) and tea.

Living on my own has also taught me to prioritize- from now on, buying water (since they tap stuff is undrinkable) is MORE important than Facebook. A quick lesson on the second day reinforced this timeless wisdom.

While school starts next week, I've had a chance to register for courses and tour the campus. It's oasis-like when compared to the surrounding desert of the city, and is a student's haven for prices. A full meal in the cafeteria will set you back about 75 cents, and if your budget permits, a movie will also set you back the same amount. Splurging for a meal at the nice cafe will gouge the wallet about 4 dollars, but that'll include coffee for after the meal too.

So I've settled into the Turkish lifestyle (at 15 cups of tea a day, could it be anything but Turkish?) and if I don't kill myself on a gas powered stove, or die of thirst from forgetting to buy water, I will survive another week.