Learning Turkish

Two guys in my section are exchange officers from Turkey, so I'm picking up a few Turkish phrases. So far, I can say Hello, Good Morning, How are you?, I don't understand, That's all, I live in Istanbul, What is your name, Yes, and I would like some batteries. It's a real kick.

But the really fun part is seeing English through their eyes. In conversation with them, I'm forcefully aware of how many figures of speech and colloquialisms we use. "You're twisting my arm," for example. So I'm becoming more aware of what I say and how I say it. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for them to sit in classrooms, particularly when the instructors handwriting on the whiteboard is illegible. Thank goodness for powerpoint charts (never thought I'd write that phrase!).