TheNolanK.com: July 2011

The Hagia Sophia's Mithrab

This will be my 15th day in Turkey and the start of the second week of classes. Now that a sort of rhythm has been established, I fear as if my time in Istanbul will fly past my eyes. Last week was interrupted with the Class of 2011's graduation ceremony, and resulted in the canceling of my Thursday PM class Intro to Philosophy.This week is set to be more formidable; I have my first exam on the 6th. It is for my comparative sociology of religions class and will be over the material regarding Marx, Weber, and Durkheim. I have zero clue as to what the test will be like in terms of content and structure. As usual the first exam of any class is extremely nerve racking.

My Roommate Kyle in the Aya Sofia

Even with the graduation disruption I was able to go back to Sultanahmet [The Old City] on Friday with three of my friends. We toured around the millenia-old structure and simply marveled at the art work and architecture of this magnificent structure. If I don't say so myself, my funniest quip was made after we looked at the frescoes and mosaics; upon observing the numerous Christian-themed depictions of Jesus, I said aloud "So,do they have ones of Santa Claus too?" This was mainly ignored to due the lack of tourists who could understand English, but earned a couple of sniggers from an elderly British couple and a couple of small guffaws from my fellow SuperDorm-ers.

This visit was more exciting than the last because I actually went inside the Hagia Sophia and was able to bask in its awesomeness. But there was a hitch, in order to get the discounted $10 museum pass you had to either be a Turkish citizen or a Student in Turkey. Luckily I was the latter, but unfortunately I had not yet gotten my Bogazici student ID card. I had to pay the full single use fee of $20, which served as a reminder/catalyst for me to get my student ID card this week during classes. The pass will allow me to get into over 417+ Turkish national museums for free once I get the card.

Me and fellow OU Student, Laura Anderson, throwing up the 'OU' in the Aya Sofia on Canada day 2011

Also during my next voyage to Sultanahmet, I will remember to wear pants so I can actually go inside of the Blue Mosque. That may sound funny, but if you are not a Muslim you have to go through the visitor's entrance and follow the guidelines set forth as entry requirements, the main one for men being a mandatory wearing of pants. Due in part to my repeated trips to Sultanahmet and Taksim Square, I am now quite familiarized with the lay of the land. I've established the lay of the land and have set-up a weekly routine for buying groceries at the Migros-Turk a couple of kilometers away from campus. I am ready to knock this week out of the park and I am excited to think of what adventures this weekend will bring!

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