The first in a potential series of short anecdotes and updates

I was going to attempt to put in a few little tidbits from the last week or so of my time in Turkey. Unfortunately this first day of "work" has somewhat tired me out.

There were virtually no customers during the day so I served the one table of Japanese and spent the rest of the time learning what words mean what foods and drinks in Turkish. It felt a lot like studying, but I now know how to count to 100 and say useful things like sour cherry juice and eggplant. That was meant to be sarcastic but they are actually useful when attempting to communicate with customers and other staff in a Turkish restaurant.

I was lucky enough for Michelle to have read my change of plans email and she sauntered into the restaurant an hour or so before her bus to İstanbul. It was lovely to see her and Jez before they took off, and it was a good excuse to get out of the restaurant and go for a walk.

The evening was steady and a few guys I'd met round town and at the festival came in. The last table didn't leave until nearly 1am after playing some cards and smoking a nargileh (hookah pipe). This has ramifications when they were sitting exactly where I'm sleeping!

Because of an incident with a couple of Australians taking a key with them to Olympos, the room I am supposed to be sharing upstairs is locked until the key returns. Therefore I am sleeping next to the stove in the restaurant with the resident musician and the head cook/waiter. The cushions are huge and comfy though and it is warm, so I have had worse deals. I think the most difficult part is that the bathroom seems to have been made for hobbits. I can only just stand up in it and can't when I have my hair in a ponytail ... oh well ...

I made a grand total of 5 YTL (new Turkish Lira) for my efforts today. This is actually really good since I wasn't expecting anything. Of course 5 YTL is the same as 6.12 NZD, 5.14 AUD, 2.14 GBP and only 6 times what I make in interest in a day. By the way, when did the New Zealand dollar suddenly drop against everything?! I feel like I'm taking crazy pills here!

BUT, if I get the same 5 Lira again tomorrow, I can buy myself a poncho cause it's so damn cold here at night!