Aw Yeah, Avengers

We had to wake up early Thursday morning to meet Sarah and catch a minibus to Tulay's house.  She and her mother had made a huge spread for kavalta (Turkish breakfast).  I love it all, but I'm not a fan of how hosts serve you food even after you are done eating.  It's rude not to eat it, but it makes me want to die.  What starts as something lovely becomes torturous.  Probably I should learn to eat slowly, so that my empty plate doesn't look like I want more food.

Sarah had to leave to do something else, but Stephanie and I stayed a couple more hours to watch Turkish celebrity gossip TV and take some pictures.  Fatma, Tulay's mom, gave me a gift, which was super sweet.      I hope Stephanie is able to keep in frequent contact with their family even after her language classes are over.

Around noon we caught another minibus to take us to the dernek.  There were no scheduled classes or anything, but two women (can't be alone) are assigned to be there Thursday afternoons.  The dernek is set up so that the ground floor is for men and the upper floor is for women.  In a couple weeks Thursdays will be women-only days, so women can use the couches downstairs and be more visible to people walking by.

Stephanie baked a cake to give to a woman who lives across the street.  Then we worked on putting together a video, because that's what we do when we hang out.  One woman stopped by, but she was looking for someone else.  If I were working at the dernek all the time, this would have been one of those guilty days when I really don't want anyone to come, even though it is my job to get people to visit.

When the dernek closed at 5:00, Stephanie and I caught the metro bus and rode to the hugest of huge malls.  We met Vonda, Emily, and the boys at a Carl's Jr in the food court.  When we finished eating, we met up with Bir Kan, a Turkish friend of theirs. Then we went to the in-mall movie theater to see The Avengers!  And it totally met and sometimes exceeded my ridiculously high expectations.  I just completely adored it.

Watching it in Turkey was extra funny, because a lot of the American culture references went over the heads of 95% of the theater, but our row would crack up.  Especially Vonda.  Half the time I was laughing at her loud laughter. It was just gearing up and getting really good when the movie went off!  Apparently it is a thing to have intermissions in Turkey.  It is the only thing I hate about this country.  Stephanie tried to tell me that she enjoys breaking up an awesome movie to stare at a blank screen, but I refuse to believe her.  It's awful.

The movie ended around 10:00, and Bir Kan walked Stephanie and I back to the bus stop.  He is really hilarious and sweet.  We parted ways, and as we rode the crowded bus back toward the apartment, I raved and raved about The Avengers.  I need to see it again.  Now.