2017 Archives - Page 3 of 12 - following the funks

HOLIDAYS: How do expats celebrate Thanksgiving abroad? Glad you asked!

December 4, 2017December 4, 20172017, EXPAT, HOLIDAY, IZMIR, TURKEY Catie

Thanksgiving celebrations in another country are NOT for the FAINT OF HEART. After celebrating 5 Thanksgiving in a foreign country, I have learned to be resourceful!

Last Thanksgiving we totally escaped up to Istanbul and celebrated with American friends. Don’t worry, I was not excluded from my share of the cooking, or eating, for that matter. In fact, I may have done MORE cooking because we were staying with the host of the Thanksgiving dinner.

This year, however, we decided to brave the holiday ourselves. Not alone though. We invited 30 of our friends and neighbors into our little apartment to celebrate the day with us! Instead of the traditional Thursday celebrations, we waited until Friday night hoping it would be easier for guests to come.

This is what our actual Thanksgiving day dinner looked like… eating out and watching a movie at the nearby mall.

And unlike almost all events in my life, I actually started early with the planning, menus, recipes, and activities for kids. I was very impressed with myself, and if you know me well, you would be too.

Turkey and all the stuffings:

While the list looks ambitious, (and it was) we did NOT cook all that was on this list. ‘A’ was to assign out, the boxes were some I were to do… but of course, nothing happened like that. Almost everyone did bring something, but the Americans were the only ones I assigned a traditional Thanksgiving item too.

Jason was responsible for the turkey and gravy. I made a veggie tray and cheese tray for appetizers. My main course dishes were sweet potato casserole, corn casserole, and roasted veggies (which just collected juice from the turkey while it cooked).

We spent our weekly ‘Turkish’ cooking class prepping for the Thanksgiving party instead. I could not have made it through that week without my helpers that day! They cut up veggies, boiled sweet potatoes, made pie filling, and a list of other things I can’t remember right now. I had great ambitions to make green bean casserole, but unless you have those handy french onions or just a lot of time to fry your own… it just didn’t make the cut!

Our hardest prep work went into making the pie crusts. Yes, we made them from SCRATCH because Y’ALL, we can not get ready made pie crust here. It is just NOT A THING and it has yet to reach here. If you have ever made homemade pie crust, every stinking recipe calls for shortening, and well, yet again, it is not here in Turkey. Yet, somehow our brave American friends ordered a massive box of it from the local METRO (think SAM’S Club or COSCO) and they shared some with us!

Going to the store looks a little different here… I usually only buy what I can carry. If I know I am going to the weekly market or will buy a lot, then I bring my handy Pazar arabası or market car (no, I did not forget the ‘t’. The actual translation is ‘car.’)

Later that evening, I had a sweet friend take me to METRO to pick up our special ordered turkey. The people of METRO are my heros! I had given up on a whole turkey after asking several big stores, but METRO came through with a special order for us last minute. In Turkey, the stores do not start getting them in until the end of December to be used for New Year celebrations.

Our kilos of shortening: I stored the stuff on the left for later, and the right we used for the pie crust.

P.S. – It also makes great turkey pot pie crust with leftover turkey!

Pre-cooked! I never got an after picture! While we make our own pureed pumpkin, an Australian friend of ours picked up 2 canned of Libby’s canned pumpkin on a recent trip to Ireland for her American friends living in Turkey! Crazy, huh?

Jason did an AMAZING job with the turkey! I was so impressed. Everyone raved about the gravy he made from the turkey broth.

Having a 68 cm wide fridge means we had to be very creative with our storage!

Decor

Because of all the prep work, the day of our Thanksgiving party was actually calm and somewhat relaxed. I mixed up a few casseroles and my neighbors cooked them for me since our oven had the turkey cooking. Jason and I worked together to rearrange our furniture and prepare a kid area in one of the back rooms.

I love decorating for the seasons, and thanks to the internet and a printer, I already had prints hung up for the season. And thanks to $10 and a Dollar Tree in America, I decided to get plates, napkins, tablecloths, and a few other fallish items. The Dollar Store is one of the things I miss most here!

To seat 30 people, we had to be a little creative with our seating arrangement. And while it wasn’t ideal, everybody was great sports about it!

Thanks LB for letting me borrow the banner!

Guests

Our guests were amazing. With over 7 different countries and a mix of English and Turkish, I was a little anxious to see how it would turn out. Our friends were warm and open to one another and I was very thankful to see conversation flowing freely between groups of people.

Due to the amount of food (people are so generous), we had 2 rounds of eating just like any good Thanksgiving. After Jason made a short speech and prayed over the food, I explained how it works (buffet style complete with Thanksgiving decor paper plates). Everyone enjoyed the first round of ‘savory’ foods and then we pulled out the sweets!

Finished turkey. We also had some extra turkey breast cooked for extra meat.

Overall, our first time hosting Thanksgiving was a huge success. Yes, it was work, but we LOVED sharing this experience with our friends. Thanks to all our friends who came and made this a special time we will ALWAYS remember!

For a verbal account of our Thanksgiving party, listen into Episode042!

Episode042: When you host your first adult Thanksgiving

Your turn!

How was your Thanksgiving?

How do you celebrate?

If you are an expat, what do you like to make? What is easy or difficult to find in your country?

Here are a couple a pics from the day after!

I spent some time on my winter cross-stitch with tv and coffee. Yes, that would be leftover pie on the table.

Not pictured: me in my jammies

Leftover dishes that need to be returned! Poor Woody has a tendency to get left behind.

GOING HOME SERIES: 5 expectations to explore before expats return home

November 30, 20172017, EXPAT, EXPAT GOING HOME Catie

“How was your trip over there?” a sweet but not close friend asked me.

It was the fall of 2009, and I had just finished my two-week visit back to the states. Little did she know that for the 100th time, she asked me the same questions everyone else had. Even harder still, she had used the word ‘trip.’ This was my first visit back to the states after living 13 months abroad. In my mind, while not all of my earthly possession had accompanied me, I had entirely moved to another city and established myself there.

I learned early on not to be offended by the use of that word. In most people’s mind, my expat life and living arrangements were/are temporary. And in their minds, expats will forever belong to their native country and that time living in another country could be considered ‘extended travel.’ It can be hard to grasp that, just like Americans move to other states and it is not a ‘trip,’ so is moving to another country.

That story above is just one example of the vast amounts of interactions you will have with others as you visit your native country. Learning to manage your expectations for your return ‘home’ will be a significant benefit to you, and it doesn’t take that long.

Taking a half hour, evaluate the areas listed below, and consider how they apply to your life, family and friends and home country.

Don’t expect your family will understand you.

I write this being thankful that we, for the most part, have understanding, loving, and interested parents and family members. But I also know that most have NOT been to Turkey and for them to understand what our lives look like is not fair. You may find yourself frustrated or short tempered if they don’t remember things you have shared. Do you remember everything they have shared from their lives? Have grace and patience and consider starting from ground zero, re-explaining your live and stories you may have already shared. This allows for lots of room for understanding and especially room for them to hopefully tell you, “I remember you telling me about this!”

Much has changed in your life, but maybe not theirs. In return, perhaps you are 3-4, 5, even 10 years into your expat years, but a lot more has changed for your friends back ‘home.’

You may find yourself overloading the conversation with all your stories, triumphs and woes of moving abroad, but consider asking questions about their lives as well. While their lives look different, it is still as relevant. You may find that your friends back home have moved on and your ‘home’ country has drastically changed with time. For us, we visit my home state for two reasons, my brother and a couple of friends we consider families. But for the most part, our time is now spent in another state 14 hours away by car because our friends and rest of the family live there.Consider your ‘whys’ of visiting that area and make the most of the people who are left there. Otherwise, consider planning to visit those close, #1 friends that have moved away. I find seeing where they live and their lives in their new cities help keep a friendship going and deepens the relationship!

Prepare for cultural and political transitions

New presidents, rulers, political parties are bound to change out over time…as well as your opinion of them since moving abroad. Or perhaps, your expat country has had some interesting changes that others want to ask you about! Ask yourself how you feel about these new changes and how you will respond questions about it.

Prepare and expect there to be uninterested parties.

There are some reasons for this. Some people just don’t have interest in travel and other countries. More possible, they may not have the context or background to understand the culture and country. For others, and I hate to write this, returning expats may face jealousy from friends and loved ones. Consider how you will help others understand. How can you love those people even if you never discuss your life abroad? Interestingly enough, there are people I considered close friends who didn’t care at all about my overseas life. Eventually, I had to face the hard truth that maybe those friendship were great for a season, but aren’t great for this new season of life.

Added family members change the atmosphere, maybe a new in-law or added children.

Adding to your family will always change the dynamics! Consider when the best time is for you to travel home. Is it best to travel around the holiday, will everyone be able to get together, or are other times less stressful times?

How do you counteract this? Great question!

Here are a few other tips to help you manage your expectations for reentry:

Have you already notice friends or family that communicate last with you? Make a list of those who may need a little extra background to understand you better.
Tell your life in small doses. Use images and stories to help others understand where you live. I use the phrase ‘show me, don’t tell me’ when trying to explain your culture to family and friends.
For those family or friends who seem to be uninterested, figure out what you do have in common and start from there. Perhaps your words are changing their perspective on the world and will create a curiosity about your life!
If you can, find a mentor couple or another family whose has previously lived abroad who wants you to share everything. Jason and I are fortunate to have a few families that have lived overseas, even in Turkey, before. We have found it much easier to express our joys and frustrations with them because they have once been where we are!

Bonus: Tell people how much you care for them. Yep! Seems a weird one on this list, but how many times do we forget to share how much others mean to us?

Here is your FREE worksheet to make sure you cover your expat visit home well!

Questions for you:

Are you an expat living in a foreign country? If so, where?
What expectation has been the hardest?
What would you add to this list?

Like this post? Pin it for later.

P.S. – This is the first post of a 6 part series called EXPAT GOING HOME SERIES. Stay tuned for the following articles:

Going Home Series: 10 thoughtful questions to ask your returning expats

Going Home Series: 8 ways you can bless your returning expats

Going Home Series: 6 ways to make your expat visit ‘home’ more enjoyable (Part 1)

Going Home Series: 6 practical ways to destress your next expat visit ‘home’ (Part 2)

Going Home Series: 5 expectations to explore before expats return home

Going Home Series: 7 self-care tips and why it is important for expats returning home

TURKEY: Day trip to Tire’s Tuesday Market

November 27, 2017November 27, 20172017, IZMIR, TRAVELS, TURKEY Catie

Tire’s market has been around for more than 600 years, and up to 30 thousand people visit every. More than 1700 sellers display their goods from nearby villages, including fresh produce, herbs, flowers, cheeses, and oils. The handmade textiles produced by Tire’s village ladies are also beautiful.

90 kilometers away from Izmir (just 60 from Kusadasi), Tire holds a farmers market held in the downtown area every Tuesday. This market carries the distinction of being one of Turkey’s largest outdoor market and it’s fame brings day tours like our to see what there is to offer. Alongside the local vegetables and fruits, visitors can find clothes, houseware, blankets/sheets, and even electronics. Farmers come from several villages nearby selling their products.

Different than other farmers market you would also see:

Handmade goods such as scarves and tablecloths
Dainty jewellery made from Point Lace
Beledi Weaving
Felt Makers and clothing products that use a blend of silk and felt.
Handmade saddle for horses and donkeys. (Probably we are the last generation who would see this)

If time, visit the Tire Museum:

While we did not visit, the Tire Museum founded in 1935 is said to be well curated and informative. Two halls display earthware, coins, and other artifacts from 3500 BC and 1100 AD as well as jewelry, carpets, clothing, war items and other everyday wear from Ottoman times. If time allows, visit the museum for a quick look through to learn more about the history of Tire. The museum is open every day except Monday from 8:30-5:30 (closed for lunch between 12:30-1:30).

Lunch at Kaplan Restaurant:

Like most cities in Turkey, Tire boasts about it’s special ‘Kofte’ (meat patty made of beef and lamb). After our time at Tire Market, our IWAI group traveled up to the top of the mountain to eat at a well-known local restaurant, Kaplan Hill Restaurant. The meal started with mezes, appetizers which included their well-know greens, some cooked with garlic then chilled. Another carrot based meze stood out as my favorite. For the main course, we enjoyed the area’s famous Tire Kofte. If you prefer not to eat meat, as for their local dish of greens and eggs, served hot. Dessert in Tire uses a special Lor Cheese (soft, uncured cheese like Ricotta) topped with black mulberry jam.

How to travel to Tire Market:

Tire is also accessible by train from Izmir Basmane Train Station. It takes 1.5 hours for the train to go to Tire from Izmir through several villages and towns.

Questions for you:

Have you been to Tire, Turkey?

Have you visit the Tire Tuesday Market (Salı Pazarı)?

If, so what did you like about it? What did you buy?

Save it for later!

RAMBLINGS: Are systems and workflows truly productive?

November 21, 2017November 21, 20172017, EVERYDAY LIFE, EXPAT LIFE, WORK Catie 2 Comments

(Welcome to Day 1 of a 31 day challenge to write 500 words or more. For more on that click here: goinswriter.com)

Running together is like, his least favorite thing to do. But talking while running is worse which usually means I promise not to talk to him if we run together.

Yet, my loving husband found himself on a run with his wife NOT listening to his podcast like he prefers but instead, once again was helping me process how to be more productive with my work/life balance.

He was encouraging me while doing the thing he least loves, twice over.

You see, I was yet again discouraged and hard on myself for not staying on task and in return not making very much progress to my to-do list. It’s not the first time we have had this conversation and in fact, I thought I WAS doing well at it. That morning, instead of writing, I found myself finishing my Christmas Card list, Christmas shopping, and spent way to much time on my phone.

How did I get distracted when I had started with such good intentions?

We work backwards…

How did I start on the Christmas Card list? I was looking for Christmas gift and remembered I needed to send the card list to my sister.

How did I think about the Christmas gifts? Jason has sent me text message thanking me for taking care of the gifs.

Message = Trigger

Ugh. Totally not his fault.

But really what has started this problem was I was ALREADY distracted before starting to write. WHY? My phone. I usually bring my phone out of my room and jump straight onto everything that I missed while I was sleeping 9 hours ahead of the states.

Real Trigger = Opening my phone before I finish my morning routine.

Other Trigger = NOT moving from my reading chair to my work area.

So we had this conversation about creating routines and systems to help me ‘have a plan’ and ‘know exactly what do to’.

Here are the questions that continually plague my mind:

How does a distracted and jumbled mind work productively?

How do you move past feelings to do your hard projects?

How do you tackle projects that seem too big to manage?

What is the trigger to keep me from doing the things I need to do? Is it environment? Is it my phone? Do I just say yes to every thought that comes to mind?

How do you move past wanting to take care of tasks that trigger my thoughts… that I want to do but can wait until later?

It seems SOOOO SIMPLE.

Just do them…

Just start your big project…

Just forget about feelings and move forward.

Just start…

But sometimes it IS NOT ENOUGH.

and

Sometimes, we are, *um* I am like a 5-year-old and can’t seem to resist the temptations, like NOT looking at my phone… or Instagram… or anything else.

So you know what? I am starting to put the Triggers out of hands reach.

What does that even mean?

Here are a few guidelines I will work on to help create triggers and boundaries:

I will leave my phone in my room until I finish my morning routine and 1-hour writing.

I will start my writing at my desk or dining table.

I will start changing environments for different task –

Consider using a coffee shop right after Turkish lessons to do my homework so I don’t put it off.
Consider another writing location for Monday’s and Friday when I do most of my writing.

I will create a task list the night before to know what my next morning will look like

I will place that task list in front of me so I know what my top 3 are for the day.

I will have a list of random thoughts that come to mind while I am working.

Who’s with me???

Questions for you:

Who else has this problem?

Who will keep me accountable?

What tips do you have for me?

REVIEW: Why Glamping is the new way to camp – Our experience with Glamping Hub

November 13, 2017November 13, 20172017, REVIEWS, TRAVELS, TURKEY Catie

Glamping is a new term to Turkey and one I hope that catches on! Glamping is the slang word for ‘glamorous camping’ and it’s a great alternative to being in nature without the nature being on you! This fall we used Glamping Hub and booked a weekend at Saklı Göl Evleri. (Listen in to our podcast episode041 to hear about this experience as well!)

I had considered some glamping locations for our travels through SouthEast Asia but camping in another country can mean different rules and would have to figure out where to even camp. Sometimes the culture of camping can definitely be foreign. Choosing to stay with a glamping hub location meant someone else knows the rules and takes care of the details.

Don’t misunderstand, I am a camping girl! I love the campfire, morning smells of tree and dew, and the sounds of nature. However, when we left the states to move to Turkey, we left all our camping equipment behind. Maybe one day we will bring it over, but even then it would be hard to transport it since we do not own a car. So what do you do when you want to go camping but don’t have the convenience of it?

Our new solution is glamping of course!

Here are a few reasons we loved Glamping over camping:

We don’t have to buy all the equipment!
We don’t have to bring all the equipment!
Never worry about getting cold. Glamping locations usually come with comfy, warm linens and a heater!
Rain? Stay inside your nice warm cabin and enjoy the view… or TV.
Budget friendly!
Food is provided or available for purchase. Well… at least ours was!

Glamping Hub is the perfect blend of comfort in the middle of nature.

Staying with Glamping Hub was not just a place to sleep, but an experience. Jason and I wanted to experience the Glamping sites that Turkey had to offer! The booking process is easy and the website is user-friendly. Sign up, search a location or country for a glamping host, and message the guide to check for availability if needed. Or if you prefer, just book right away. You can save properties you find interesting at a later date.

Just an hour drive north of the popular summer destination of Antalya lies several man-made lakes created by a few electrical dams. For years, the place we stayed at was only used as a daytime getaway for those wanting to spend a day outside of the city in the mountains, enjoy a breakfast or lunch with family, or relax the whole day with friends. Within the last 5 years, the owner has slowly created a weekend retreat by building tents and cabins into the side of the mountain above the restaurant. It has such a modern feel to it that you forget you are staying in a tent!

The tents and cabins are equipped with private bathroom with a waterfall shower (some even have a personal jacuzzi!), a LED TV, a minibar, self-regulated air-conditioning/heating, a hairdryer, a sofa, and 2 armchairs, and a closet to store your belongings. Daily cleaning services are available as well. The best part about the tents and cabins is the balcony because each comes with a panoramic view of the lake where you can watch the colors of sunrise and sunset!

Activities are easy to come by here. Bicycles and canoes are available to rent at an hourly or day rate. Ask for a map of the area from the manager and pick one of the walking/hiking paths and go by foot or bike. If you have a larger group, the owner can organize a boat tour for fishing or one that takes you through the small river connecting 2 of the lakes. For history lovers, Sagalassos, Kremna, and the Ancient city of Milyos are some of the historical places you can visit nearby.

Enjoy ordering Turkish food from the barbecue restaurant. On a hot summer day, the natural spring water infinity pool is the perfect place to sunbathe. The facilities are family-friendly, providing a playground and shallow pool area for children. Multiple sitting areas mean you can enjoy different views of the lake or find solitude away from other guests.

Our time at the Saklı Gol Evleri was amazing. From the friendly greetings and tea offered upon our arrival to the beautifully designed rooms with a view, we loved everything about our stay here. Our room had a panoramic view of the lake where we enjoyed the mornings while our drinking coffee. The self-regulated heater and down comforters on the beds allowed us to always be at a comfortable temperature.

Breakfast was provided for us (although it may not be included with all rooms) but it looks as if it could feed more than just the 2 of us! The gozleme, or Turkish quesadilla, filled with cheese and parsley came to us hot and fresh. We definitely started craving it by the time we left! Lunch and dinner are on your own but there is always a cook on hand to take orders. We found that the delicious Turkish breakfast filled us up until dinner time.

Nature walks and relaxing filled our time here. One day we drove to Sagalassos, the ancient ruins of a city dating back to the Hellenistic period and Roman Empire situated at an altitude of 1450–1700 meters. Another time, we joined the boat tours that weaved through the small river connecting the lakes. The last morning we woke up early and watched the sunrise on the top of the Karacaören mountain!

Our weekend glamping was such a wonderful experience for us. With a unique resource of hand-picked destinations around the world, I’ll definitely be booking with Glamping Hub again! Not only did we find a new place to visit, we found a new way to travel. We suggest that if you want to see the true beauty of Turkey and enjoy the quiet, serene nature, stay at Saklı Göl Evleri!

If you want to see more pictures from different Glamping trips others went on, then go check out the Glamping Hub Instagram. This is where I first went to get some inspiration and became curious about locations near us.

I want to give a huge thank you to *Glamping Hub and *Saklı Göl Evleri for our complimentary stay. It was truly beautiful.

For more information:

Our Glamping Location –Saklı Göl Evleri

Website: Glamping Hub

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/localguddy/

Podcast episode about our experience: EPISODE041: When Glamping becomes your new favorite hobby

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[DISCLAIMER: *This post was in collaboration with a brand.* I was not paid for this post. However, I did receive a complimentary voucher from Glamping Hub and a stay from Saklı Göl Evleri a travel writer and expat blogger. One of the purposes of our website is to highlight tours and services for travelers like ourselves. At the same time, we will not recommend businesses/activities we do not think our readers will enjoy regardless of the friendship we create along the way.]