Goodbye Ankara

After 9 months of teaching in Ankara my time has come to an end and its been a fantastic experience.

I met some amazing people during my time there, students, colleagues and complete strangers.  Turkish people are so welcoming and are willing to help you, whatever the problem.  I had a few laughs with the problems with trying to learn the language, and unfortunately after my time there it didn't really improve as much as I had hoped, so during my time in the UK, I will study my Turkish language book ready for my return to Turkey in September.

I look back on my time here and I consider myself to be very lucky to be able to travel and meet so many wonderful people.  I received such a welcome in Ankara, and made some good friends, who I am sure will remain friends for some time to come.

Something that struck me while I was in Ankara was how people stick together, and I saw evidence of that during some of the recent problems.  One of my last classes I taught we talked about pride, and one of the students said 'I'm proud of my country, the people, the food and my football team.'  I have to agree with the first three, but I'm not convinced by the fourth.  Turkish people are very proud of their country and rightly so.  Its a stunning country, and I am proud to have called it home for the last nine months.  This isn't the end of my time here, as I plan to return to Turkey again in September, but I say goodbye to Ankara.

I will miss all my friends, thank you all for the welcome you gave me.