Part 8

I arrived at the hostel in Sultanahmet, which is the area of main attraction in Istanbul. Immediately, the owner and receptionist were aware of my situation. I was told to hang out for three days before they would get me trained for work. I got to know the people I would be working with, and befriended many hostel goers. Then, about two days into my stay, the owner pulled me aside, “you will work as a host, make people happy, sell beer and water, take them clubbing, talk, and nothing else, you are here to make the people have a good time. Hours will be from 7 PM to 2 AM” (At this time I will not talk about whether I got paid or not due to certain reasons, however, I did get breakfast and a bed to stay in.)

So, I am safe, I am working, which not only am I making people have fun, I am having fun. We were to play loud music until 1:30 AM as per the owner’s instructions, and so there I was, blasting my favorite music, singing and dancing along to it freely, in front of dozens of people, getting them to join in. The next thirty days consisted of nights of playing “Psychologist,” drinking lots of beer, taking people to “Araf,” a gypsy club in Taksim, and taking advantage of my freedom.

I learned during this time, that life doesn’t need to be so bad. You don’t have to follow the normal 9 to 5 idea of work, and if you are not having fun, there is no reason to waste your time, your life. I am free, and I will use my time wisely, I will take advantage of life completely, waste no time in a place that I am unhappy.

I also realized that I would go through all of this again, knowing what I know now. I never would have had the chance, or the guts, to travel Europe alone, but because these things happened, a whole slew of doors have open wide for me. I have decided to hostel jump, and this is how I am getting through Europe. I will be able to see much more than originally planned, and who knows when I will make it back to the United States, maybe in six months, maybe a year…I am not in a rush to get back to a place that I have no home. The odd part about this, is that I am strangely comforted by the fact that I have no idea where I will be…at any given time. I am not making plans, they seem to fall through anyway, as they say “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”