Things I Take for Granted In/Out of Turkey

What I Take for Granted Outside of Turkey
     1. Ethnic food (Thai, Chinese, Korean, Mexican…etc.)
     2. Rules of the Road
     3. Well-marked streets
     4. People not caring what I’m wearing
     5. People being able to understand me when I need something/anything without effort
     6. People of varying genders on the street around me
     7. Free stuff/food given out at my university
     8. Being able to drive (Not that I feel capable of driving here, see 2&3)
     9. Escaping other human beings sometimes
   10. People walking and queuing in uniform/orderly ways

What I Take for Granted Inside Turkey
     1. Everyone caring about your well-being after you've met once (genuinely)
     2. The ability to get anything delivered to your home or taken from your home for fixin’
       - Clarification on the taking part: if you shoe is broken your building manager will come get         it, take it to a cobbler for you, and the cobbler will shine and fix your shoe for a minuscule fee,           then the building manager will bring your shoes to you
     3. Street food of all varieties
     4. Sweet food in all varieties
     5. The Plethora of Public Transport (buses, ferries, taxies, dolmus, metro, tram…)
     6. Cheap, easy inter-city and international travel by bus to basically anywhere you want
     7. Finding joy in expressing yourself in a language you don’t really know
     8. Kisses on the cheek at greeting, at leaving (and double hugs)
     9. Markets where in-season vegetables can be haggled over next to knock-off Nike*
    10. My Turkish families which brightened my day each and every day










*Alleged fake, which can also be haggled down in price