Settling in at the Superdorm

I moved into the Superdorm on the Uçaksavar campus of Bogazici University yesterday morning, and since then my head has been spinning and I've been on one of the biggest emotional roller coasters in my life. Bogazici University was founded as Robert College, an American college, in the 1860s. It wasn't until the 1970s that it became Bogazici University, aptly named for its location overlooking the Bosphorus straight (see photo of view!). The campus is kind of spread out, and most international students live in the Superdorm, which is next to the sports facilities and a large stadium. I have to walk about 15 to 20 minutes to get to South Campus, which is the oldest part of campus and where I think I will be taking most of my classes. Despite the hike, there is a beautiful view of the Bosphorus (again see photo), which divides the European and Asian sides of Turkey. I have yet to go to the Asian side, but then again this is only day 3. This afternoon I am going to go preregister with the exchange student office and then we have a short orientation followed by a dinner and some kind of party. I really have no idea what kind of a party it will be. More to come on that later, I suppose!

Since I've moved in I've met a whole lot of American students, most of whom speak no Turkish whatsoever. We are all spread out all over the Superdorm, which is still mostly empty because the Turkish students that will be living with us have not moved in yet. I am the sole inhabitant of my 4 bedroom suite, which is a little weird and lonely! Everyone that I've met is very friendly though. We're all pretty much on the same boat. A bunch of us took a bus yesterday to Taksim, which is kind of like the Times Square of Istanbul. Envision lots and lots of people (but no neon lights and flashing signs). We got off the bus too early and got a little lost, but when we finally got there it ended up being lots of fun, albeit overwhelming. One of the guys in the group took a picture of me with this statue in the center of the square. We met up with a couple of Turkish students that one American girl in the group happened to know, and they were our friendly tour guides for the evening. Overall Taksim was a fun experience, and I'll definitely be going back there! Probably not by myself though.
Time to go preregister!