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Nicole Gaa ’15 had no idea what to expect when she moved over 5,800 miles from Gurnee, Illinois to Niğde, Turkey. What she found was a diverse country that welcomed her with open arms, full of new people, places, and experiences she had never encountered before.

An English major with experience from the Milwaukee Center for Urban Teaching’s elementary school summer program, Ms. Gaa moved to Turkey to pursue an English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) through the prestigious Fulbright Program. She is currently three months into the nine month placement, after which she plans to pursue a career in college-level student affairs.

Niğde is the capital city of Niğde province, a mountainous region in south-central Turkey. “I imagined Niğde to be more rural,” Ms. Gaa says. “It is a small town, but it is still three times the population of my hometown.”

Nicole's first day of teaching in Turkey. Nicole's first day of teaching in Turkey.While in Turkey, Ms. Gaa has been assigned to assist with English classes for first year students at Niğde University. She describes her teaching experience as both fun and funny, as Ms. Gaa and her students endeavor to overcome the language barrier and understand each other. With over 200 students spread across seven different classes, as well as the daunting task of trying to learn Turkish herself, her teaching experience so far has been at times overwhelming. However, that hasn’t stopped her from trying to connect with her students. She says, “I told my students the first day that I am from the U.S., away from my family, and trying to learn a new language. My students are in their first year of university, away from their families, and trying to learn a new language. What’s wonderful about that is that we are all in the same boat.” With these commonalities in mind, Ms. Gaa strives to support her students and encourage them to keep trying, no matter how difficult their task may seem.

As is to be expected when moving to an unfamiliar place halfway across the world, not everything about living in Turkey has been easy. Ms. Gaa is a devoted member of a large, close-knit family, and still suffers bouts of homesickness. She also struggles with the language barrier—Ms. Gaa had no previous experience with the Turkish language, and is learning it as she goes. The hospitality she has found in Turkey, however, has gone a long way to combat these issues.

On her second day in Niğde, two women she had just met helped her and her sitemate set up their cellphones and bank accounts. She says, “We just met these women and they greeted us with kisses and hugs. We just met these women and they took us all over the city center to find the cheapest phones and sat with us for what seemed like hours at the bank. We just met these women and they treated us like sisters and they are still very good friends.” The hospitality she is encountering all over the country has given Ms. Gaa a support system to overcome the difficulties of her move to Turkey.

Ms. Gaa has some advice for anyone considering a similar path after graduation, “If you plan to move abroad, remember to give yourself grace. Give yourself a break. You may find yourself three months in still being homesick. That’s okay. You may find yourself reading and over-reading information about politics. That’s okay, too. But, keep an open mind and learn to gauge when to speak and when to listen. You may find yourself feeling overall overwhelmed. That’s okay! Nothing about uprooting yourself from everything you’ve known is normal, so you won’t feel normal, but you’ll make it and you’re a lot stronger than you think you are. I constantly have to remind myself I am safe with God, and so are you, in whatever form God is for you.”

If you would like to keep up with Ms. Gaa during the remainder of her ETA, you can do so at her blog http://outstretchedarms.tumblr.com/.