Hello everyone! I just thought I'd give you a general update as I'm already half way done with this program, sniffle sniffle.
I absolutely love my classes. The education systems are quite different over here and there is a real emphasis on learning (weird, right?) and not just covering check points of what must be said whether students are understanding or not.
One of my favorite classes is my cultural anthropology class (m/w nights). Anthropology is really interesting to me and hearing an anthropologist's theory on major discussion topics such as race is quite interesting and rather eye-opening to say the least.
I'm also really enjoying my figure drawing class. My teacher is from the US (grew up in Philly) and she is incredible. She doesn't care if you are the best or worst artist but rather she teaches you from where you're at and all she cares about is you improving. She, unlike all other foundation art teachers I've ever had, teaches you different ways to approach the art of drawing. It may sound silly but when other teachers just set up a still life and say draw and you've never drawn in your life it is quite daunting. So every class we draw for 3 hours straight, typically about 100 faster drawings and one long drawing.
By far my favorite "class", yes a class for one elective credit, is my yoga class. It is a small class with about 6 students and the teacher is so well rounded and knowledgeable about the philosophy of yoga. She wants us to learn and understand everything about yoga, not just the asanas (the positions you hold and what most people think of when they hear the world yoga). We also do relaxation and meditation and I know it makes a difference in my day to day life, both physically and mentally. I bought my own yoga mat and I've been practicing, I plan to practice yoga for quite some time!
My photography class is daunting. I'm pretty overwhelmed but I know I can do it. It's a premaster’s class (400 level Comm class) that incorporates both photography history/theory and a practical assignment as well. For our assignment it is a documentary project that addresses a particular cultural or social issue with a final portfolio of 25 prints. I'm wanting to address the Cyprus problem as it would be an relevant topic back in the states, more so than any other smaller scale issue that Americans would have no background context. However the language and access barriers are proving to be rather difficult to overcome. I have another work of research before I go out into the field, so regardless wish me luck, I'll need it.
Art history and Pilates are good too, helps when you only have a Monday-Wednesday class week! (haha technically have one Friday class but we only have 3 students in that class so it’s not held all the time)
Other than that I finally went to the North side this past weekend, that’s actually where I went paragliding. It was a really interesting experience for me. The politics of the Cyprus problem actually remind me a lot of many of the world views of America. For example, when I say I'm from the US many people instantly reference our politics and what our government is doing. That’s how I felt when I went to the North, I looked at all the Turkish people living there, living in the old homes of Greek families working at their old shops and living their old lives. At times I looked at them like they were the ones who took over but they weren't, it was their government and army that invaded in 1974, much like I don't tell our army where to go and what to do. It's sad too because there were Turkish families in the south that made to move to the north because of the invasion as well... the fact of the matter everyone was affected.
Also, since all the lectures I listened to I've gained a more rounded opinion of the situation and found that the Greeks actually somewhat blame the US. The US supports Turkey and funds a lot of what they do because of their geopolitical situation and therefore many think the US supported the invasion of 1974, whether that can be proven or not, I don't think I'll ever know. It was definitely interesting though and that’s one of the main reasons I'd like to make a body of work about the situation to share with my peers and the communities back at home in the states.
So if you're wondering how you get to the North and all the details about that, let me fill you in because it is odd! So basically you have the city of Nicosia and I live about ten minutes out of the city. So you drive into the city and first you see the south city fill with Greeks and normal shops and such. Then you enter the old walled city where the old moats are now parks and ball fields. Just inside the walled city you get a strong sense of old city life, small walk ways, shop after shop, gyro stands, etc. If you walk far enough north you get to the buffer zone and eventually the green line. What happens at the border crossing (acknowledged only by the Turkish) you hand over your passport, they take your details, stamp an external piece of paper with your details that you hand write just before and then you can enter the Turkish occupied north. So you continue to walk past flower bucket after flower bucket next to destroyed and tarped buildings. I wish I could photograph or video how odd this process is but there is no photography what so ever. So just like that you're in the North using Turkish Lira, listening to Turkish music, eating (delicious) Turkish food and hearing their language.
Also worth noting, the Turkish only opened up this footpath crossing and a few others over the island in 2003. They started by only letting Greeks cross for the day but then later that year they allowed them a longer time frame to visit which allowed them to return to their old homes, which were sometimes still abandoned while others had large Turkish families living in their old quarters. The boarder is highly protected and you can sense it as soon as you reach the buffer zone.
So anyways, once I got across I really started to enjoy this new culture. We took a "bus", well the closest thing they have to bus - aka a van, to Kyrenia. Kyrenia is a beautiful harbor town on the north coast of the island. We drove over the mountain range and the road winded right down into the heart of the city passing many old castles and monuments on the way. One castle sits right next to the harbor and it’s beautiful.
So that’s when we were walked along the (small) harbor to the hostel when I saw the paragliding stand, so you know where I was for the next 3 hours! After paragliding Kate and I got lunch on the water and met up with the group. We ended up climbing onto a ledge overlooking the harbor and just watched the sunset and enjoyed good company. After that is was time for dinner, chatting and watching live Turkish music.
The next day we had take away breakfast (cheap and SO good!) and ate along the water. We then took taxis up to an old Temple turned monastery overlooking the sea. The views were stunning and the old ruins themselves were stunning... we need stuff like this in the US! But anyways, there was a really neat shop with hand crafted bowls that were hand painted ceramic... I really wanted some but I'm going to wait until my next trip and to check my budget, I could have bought them all if I was rich! Just beautiful and reminded me of miss Hannah Rasker :)
It was warm and I was roasting in my conservative clothing (ha) so a friend and I went swimming just below Kyrenia Castle. Never thought I'd be able to say I was swimming in beautiful teal water just below a gorgeous castle, but I guess I've had a lot of those moments lately! It was such a good trip with a great group of friends, 7 in total.
(Another slide show! Easier this way, click viewer to view one at a time. All pictures are from this weekend in Kyrenia)
Other updates, I’m really enjoying both Greek and Turkish food! I think I will actually miss it when I leave. Gyros, doners, greek salads, etc etc, mhmmm! The weather is still amazing, and I must say I have a lovely tan! Still low to mid 80's during the day and lows at night are around 62-65. The men here still drive me nuts sometimes. I really don’t think it’s necessary for them to stop or slow their cars to get a better look of me walking down the street but I have no control over that, so I deal… sometimes better than others. The people in my GLS group are awesome, everyone is so different yet we all have something in common, after all out of the hundreds of study abroad programs we did seek out this Cyprus one with many travel opportunities in a very alternative location. Everyone loves to travel and experience as much as possible, never a dull moment over here. However, some sad news. My returning flight from Jordan got cancelled so I had to cancel that flight all together. Like anyother situation though, that just meant something else good would come of it... I think I'll be traveling to Turkey first weekend of December for a lower cost! Yey!
At times it isn’t too rewarding just writing and not hearing from all my friends and family, so if you get a chance write me! kihrig@email.arizona.edu or snail mail is always adored (My name - c/o GLI Global Learning Institute - PO Box 24842 - CY 1304 Nicosia). Also I’ll use this as an opportunity to thank all my friends and family who have taken the opportunity to keep in touch. Every time we talk I get a little piece of home when I’m on the other side of the world and it’s really nice; after all, “For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else.” Thank you to everyone who is supporting me, I hope that one day I can do the same for you. The other day a friend told me I inspired him to sign up for a summer program helping families in Africa… I couldn’t ask for anything more.
Time to do some laundry (for 8 euro, aka 12 usd! Grossss, sink laundry most of the time though) Gotta get everything together before miss Tiffany Brown gets here tonight! Cheers and an early happy halloween!
XOXO,
Kayla
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