Next Stage of Life in Turkey

Returning from the summer in Dalyan, I moved into my next stage of life in Turkey–moving out of the “lojman”–a worker’s residence building–and into an apartment off-site from the school. I guess you could say I “graduated” as my seniority of employment put me towards the top of the list when an off-site apartment was vacated by another foreign employee. Before moving to Dalyan for the summer I had boxed and packed up all of my earthly belongings and put them into storage. On arrival in mid August, I moved into the new-to-me apartment which has two stellar features–a guest bedroom and a view of the seaside.

I expect it will take a full year before I have every last thing I want bought and situated to make it fully mine–but I am, for the moment, at a “nesting plateau.” Tonight I will host a housewarming party for friends. While my employer supplied basic furniture needs, I have supplemented with a number of items to make the place more comfortable, as well as more aesthetically appealing. There is more to do–but it can be over time. 

What I am most happy to report is that I have already hosted three visitors in my new home! Beyond the day-to-day bliss I experience going to sleep, and waking, in this comfortable and beautiful home, I love sharing it with others!

My inaugural guest was Harika, Turkish by descent, but visiting from her current home in Germany. I met her through a mutual friend a couple of years ago and we became fast friends finding ourselves in a similar age and stage of life. We always have a grand time together and never lack for topics of conversation–comparing our adventures in this midlife dating landscape as well as having the same attitude towards life. She visited before I had a bed in my guest room, but managed just fine on my pull-out couch!

Second came Laura whom I met through my writing for WWAM Bam, a collective blog for which I am a contributor. Laura and I had met in person just once before–in February of 2018–while I was chaperoning a sports team trip to Beijing for my school at the time (located in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia). Most of what we knew of one another was through our writing pieces on the site. Laura traveled from her home in Vienna and stayed a week which gave us plenty of time to get properly and more fully acquainted. Her visit included a trip to Ephesus and a few hours on the beach in Çeşme.

Next came Kate–my dear friend whom I hadn’t seen since my two trips to Abu Dhabi in 2019. We worked together in Mongolia and have known one another now for over seven years. We stayed in touch throughout the pandemic and I can say that video chats and audio messages helped diminish the time spent apart from one another and made our reunion feel like we had just been together yesterday. She was only here for a very short weekend, thanks to a Turkish Airlines pilot, but we squeezed every moment out of that time together–hanging out mostly in the lovely flat.

I am learning that part of the “Hotel Heather Experience” includes a visit to the delicious and well-known seafood restaurant located nearby–Muzom. As you can see here, I had a dinner out with each of these lovely ladies.

I can say that I wake each day grateful for this home, and while I have ALWAYS loved my work, and especially the work I do here at ACI, I walk to work each day to make a difference in learner lives as well as to earn this home. And that’s what it feels like, a home. It’s the first apartment that feels fully like a house to me. 

Cheers to surviving the last couple of years and returning to some version of life-as-normal. I’m fully back to making the most of every moment–one of the things I try very hard to do to my very best!

I’ll leave you with this picture of the most recent full moon setting over the bay of Izmir in the morning. While I am not a person that can meditate, I can say that sitting in my living room, staring out at the sea and watching ferry boats go back and forth, I do find my brain empty and my soul at rest. It’s a beautiful thing!