It feels like I wrote my first report just yesterday, but here I am, already working on the second one. Time is moving fast, yet not a lot has happened since then. Well, nothing too fun anyways.
Since my midterm seminar, I’ve been incredibly overwhelmed with my university application, and the amount of paperwork the authorities require at every step has been quite exhausting. But do not fret! If you’re a European citizen with similar future plans, I’m sure your experience won’t be as difficult as mine (I hope?!). Jokes aside, as stressful as it is, I’m hopeful that all the effort will pay off soon.
Things have been quiet lately. As Easter approaches, most people have already left to visit their families and loved ones, leaving me alone in this big apartment, crying over how expensive the tickets back to my hometown are this time of year. Luckily, my family will be visiting me soon instead. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that they can’t bring our birds and cats with them. So I will have to miss them a bit longer.
Things have been quiet lately. As Easter approaches, most people have already left to visit their families and loved ones, leaving me alone in this big apartment, crying over how expensive the tickets back to my hometown are this time of year. Luckily, my family will be visiting me soon instead. Still, that doesn’t change the fact that they can’t bring our birds and cats with them. So I will have to miss them a bit longer.
Work has been going really well. With all the (unfortunate and frustrating) events happening in Türkiye, I’ve been asked to do more research, and my supervisors and colleagues are all looking for ways to support Türkiye from Bremen. Even though the situation is deeply upsetting, it makes me feel more involved and helpful in the office than ever before. That said, it doesn’t stop me from worrying about my friends and family back home. I truly hope things improve, but if I’m honest, my hopes aren’t very high. My individual project is also facing a lot of setbacks, unfortunately, especially since it’s been difficult to get in touch with Turkish authorities.
On a more positive note, I had the chance to visit Düsseldorf soon after my midterm. I have to say, Little Tokyo was the highlight of the trip. I’d recommend it to anyone who appreciates Asian culture (mostly Japanese, but not only) and food. I finally got to try my first real bowl of ramen, along with many snacks I’d been wanting to taste since high school, and they were all genuinely super delicious. I hope I get to visit again, but I’m pretty sure it will blow a hole in my wallet.
On a more positive note, I had the chance to visit Düsseldorf soon after my midterm. I have to say, Little Tokyo was the highlight of the trip. I’d recommend it to anyone who appreciates Asian culture (mostly Japanese, but not only) and food. I finally got to try my first real bowl of ramen, along with many snacks I’d been wanting to taste since high school, and they were all genuinely super delicious. I hope I get to visit again, but I’m pretty sure it will blow a hole in my wallet.
My flatmates and I had dreams of visiting Paris together. However, I think we’re all struggling financially, and we haven’t even managed to find a time to talk about the trip properly. To be honest, trips like that always stress me out anyway. Figuring out where to go, booking tickets, planning transport, food, accommodation… Not to mention, not everyone feels energetic all the time or wants to visit the same places as you do. With everything going on related to staying here and all the extra stress that comes with it, I think it’s more than enough already. For now, I would much rather spend my remaining two months here peacefully, enjoying time with my friends, instead of stressing about travel plans (not that I could afford them anyway, thanks to university and language course expenses). My biggest wish is to keep having those small get-togethers with other volunteers. And now that the weather is warming up, I really hope we’ll get to enjoy more outdoor activities together soon.
Despite the ups and downs, I’m genuinely quite happy here. Aside from saying goodbye to all the friends I’ve made, I think moving out of this place will be the second hardest part. Tearing down all the wall decorations I’ve put up will be more emotionally challenging than physically tiring, I’d say. Let’s just hope that my new home will have big enough walls to squeeze in all that stuff on them. I’m also sad that I won’t be seeing the same people I’ve been living with for more than half a year — and some won’t even be in the same country as me, which will make meeting up even harder. But I guess it’s still a bit early to get too melancholic. 🙂
Despite the ups and downs, I’m genuinely quite happy here. Aside from saying goodbye to all the friends I’ve made, I think moving out of this place will be the second hardest part. Tearing down all the wall decorations I’ve put up will be more emotionally challenging than physically tiring, I’d say. Let’s just hope that my new home will have big enough walls to squeeze in all that stuff on them. I’m also sad that I won’t be seeing the same people I’ve been living with for more than half a year — and some won’t even be in the same country as me, which will make meeting up even harder. But I guess it’s still a bit early to get too melancholic. 🙂
Belit is hosted by Freie Hansestadt Bremen Senatskanzlei (Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Senate Chancellery) on our project co-funded by the European Union.
