Day One of Classes

I've stacked my schedule so that I take four of my five classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and one on Wednesday and Friday mornings so I can travel on my four-day weekends. Generally, Koc doesn't have classes on Friday, but they only offer Turkish at those times. Of my four classes taken today, only one sounds remotely difficult. When professors spend half of a class explaining what a character is or what plot and setting mean, a comprehensive explanation of mythology and religion seem mere afterthought. She takes up our notes every class so she can grade us on our English comprehension, so I'm hoping I can pass muster. I happen to take this professor for this class as well as Introduction to Archaeology, a class that I had to skip to meet with my advisor but was told is even more ridiculous. The third class--a 400-level Turkish politics class, mind you--has the professor saying things like "I know most of you don't do the readings, so I'll do my best to summarize them during class because I don't want this to be difficult for you."

My fourth course might be reasonably difficult. Entitled "The Ottoman State, 1299-1566," the professor has remarked repeatedly how she likes to make the course as challenging as possible. I was one of two non-Turks in the class, and she actually started speaking in Turkish but then switched when she noticed our deer-in-the-headlights looks. She was talking about this being a supplement or challenge to all that we learned in high school about the Ottoman Empire. Me? I think there may have been a lecture or two on it during my world history class freshman year. After class, however, this professor told my friend and me that the course might actually not be so difficult because many high schools here offer very rudimentary or even somewhat inaccurate information, so this class will challenge their previous (mis)understandings of the Ottoman Empire. In retrospect, even in the States, our high school courses are generally disputed or even discounted when we take their college counterpart courses. Anyhow, she said that as long as we do readings and study we should do fine. I think I might have this class translate back to AU as a pass/fail option instead of the A-F. Furthermore, I learned that the Koc A-F scale is quite steep, with a 97% being the lowest grade for an A.

The only other course I have yet to take is my Turkish, which I have tomorrow at 9:30. Interestingly, I have to go to the police station in Sariyer at 6:15 am on Friday to get a lecture and then my Turkish residence permit (and my passport back, which is always a good thing). I hope I can get back in time for my 9:30 class, but if I don't, I'm in the same boat as half the other exchange students that comprise my Turkish class!

Overall, a surprisingly anti-climactic first day. I have a lot of my friends in my classes, which is quite comforting.

In other news, I think my financial crisis has found its end, as I discovered the glories of Western Union, "the fastest way to send money worldwide."