Am I the only person on this campus wearing a backpack and flip-flops? This was the thought in my mind during my first day of class at my new home, Bilkent, for the semester. Now, I was probably not the only person on campus wearing a backpack or flip-flops, but when you are in a new country where you can’t find A Block (why is it next to T Block?), have never made a photocopy of an entire textbook, and don’t even know the right words to order a sandwich, trust me, the differences stand out.
At the same time, Bilkent looks a lot like my home university in San Diego, California. I came to Turkey as an exchange student because I didn’t want to be another American, unaware of Turkey’s significance in shaping the future of Europe and the Middle East. Now that I’ve been here for a month,
I am slowly catching on to the customs and habits of Turkish student life, and I’ve found that it´s a combination of the new and the familiar. I have never, ever kissed someone on both cheeks in America, so that has taken some getting used to, and signing in for curfew every evening in the dorms is a novel concept. I am still trying to figure out why no one here carries backpacks, so if you see a perplexed redhead wandering around main campus, please feel free to stop and enlighten me.
But becoming a part of Bilkent University hasn’t been as scary as
I expected. My Turkish is pretty bad, but when I smile and say “Merhaba”
I always get a friendly greeting back. BISC (the Bilkent International Students Club) has been wonderful in helping the exchange student’s transition from bewildered to only slightly confused. Everyday, I learn a few more Turkish words.
And who knows, soon maybe you’ll find me carrying a purse around campus, too.

Sara Hahn (POLS)