Eskişehir

Last Monday night, after spending the day in the office, I took the train from Ankara to Eskişehir with Didem. I'm staying on the grounds of the research institute outside of the city (I worth in the pathology laboratory). These are some photos from just outside the complex. I was going to take some of the institute, but my camera died. I will post them later.

These are the fields out behind the institute. Much of the land actually belongs to the institute and is used for experimentation and observation plots.

This is the rocky terrain I was talking about. Very rugged, but very pretty. These red flowers are everywhere. They are poppies. These are much too small to be the ones used to produce pain medications. A cousin. The large ones are called haşhaş in Turkey. They have white flowers and are MUCH bigger.

This was the path we walked down. There were signs periodically down it's length warning of severe electrical shock. We never did figure out where the electricity was supposed to be coming from.

In the distance you can see the city of Eskişehir. I will eventually get some pictures of the city. It's a very interesting place. I've been there a number of times to the same places. I'd like to see more of it, though.

This is a cemetery straight down the hill from my window in the pathology laboratory. It's been the source of a number of jokes about "bir hayalet" (a ghost) slamming the windows. There used to be a small village right in this area, and this served at their burial ground. Either it was a very small village, or people grew to be very old there, because the cemetery is miniscule.

Here's one more of those "proof of health" pictures. 

That's all for now. I'm charging my battery presently. I'll be sure to get some more pictures of the institute, the people, and especially the city. I'm also going to break out the Flip this week, I think. I don't really know what to do with it yet. I mean, I can work it, but I won't do a testimonial or anything. I would just embarrass myself. I'm sure I can find something interesting to film. Or maybe not yet. 

Work, for now, is the same. No complaints here. I enjoy it. For now, the institute is busy preparing for the arrival of Julie and Etienne who will review the research being performed. I don't yet know what I will be doing while they're here. I'm looking forward to finally meeting the infamous Julie. She's sort of famous around here. She worked at CIMMYT/ICARDA Turkey for around 10 yrs. 

Sunday was election day here in Turkey. It was very interesting to observe. Days before, there were posters, signs, and flyers everywhere. There were buses full of supporters driving down the street blaring campaign music and there were parades of party advocates marching the streets with different sorts of chants. It was crazy.  I wish I had gotten a picture. I really apologize. Yesterday, I made the odd observation that alcohol is not allowed to be sold or purchased on election day. 

I think that's all I've got for now. If anything else interesting happens, I'll be sure to post. 

I appreciate you stopping by!

Çok Teşekkürler ve İyi geceler,

Andrew—