Merhaba (hello) my peoples

So yesterday Jacopo and i went running. We got lost. It took us 45 min to get back on campus and at one point we were running along the highway. The Turks looked at us like we were crazy. Good times!!

After we finally found our way back we found people playing basketball on the outdoor courts. We joined and beat the crap out of the Turks (there was even a crowd wathcing us play). It was really fun and we are supposed to come back and play tomorrow night. Its interesting though that there is no language or cultural barrier when playing sports. As long as you know the rules you dont need to communicate. Sports are a great way to get to know the locals!

Today was international day. We gave presentations on our countries and learned a little bit about Turkey and Erzurum.

Interesting facts about Turkey and Erzurum

1. The mean age is 27 years old (Turks are young)

2. There is a Jewish population (less than 2%)

3. Bottled water = 65 cents for 1.5 liters

4. Crazy dance moves in horse costumes. here is a video



We were given 10 min/ country, which was not long enough by any means. The presentations started with Azerbaijan. It was a very odd presentation. They talked about how they do not get along with Armenia and that the Armenians took their land by force. The even played a video displaying dead soldiers and civilians. At one point they said that 40,000 people from Azerbaijan were killed and later said only 600 people were killed. The worst part! they went over by 10 min. We sat through Italy, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Georgia (they showed a sweet video of sword fighting) before we got to speak. Our presentation was very short and i talked about the amazing Steelers and Penguins (Respect!!!).



After this Jacopo and I got a shave from the local Turkish barber for 5 lira. Take a look!

We then went out in the city for dinner. We had Kabob which was amazing. We then took a walk around the city trying to take in all the cultural differences of the Turks. For one thing there are not many women on the streets mostly men. Another thing men are very affectionate with another. You can see men holding each others arms (This would never fly in America). Things are also very tight. Examples: Not a lot of sidewalk space; people bump into you constantly; Cars will hit you if you don't pay attention. We also bought beer!!! This is an amazing thing because it is very hard to find alcohol in Erzurum (alcohol is forbidden in Muslim culture). It was located in this really shady corner and it felt like i was buying something disgraceful and wrong. But right now it tastes delicious and cold. The Turkish beer is called "Efes" and i am really enjoying it.