Something New Every Day

I just climbed a balcony.

Honestly. From the ground. In a skirt. Today, I got back from school and no one was home, and as I don’t have a key yet, I was left in something of a predicament. It was then that I remembered last night’s dinner conversation, in which my host parents had joked about how their son Alp (who is now on exchange in Colorado) would often forget his key and climb the balcony to get into the house. Well, I thought, I’ll just go have a look. Suffice it to say, I ended up doing more than that. I’ll admit I was feeling pretty accomplished, and it took all my self-restraint to keep from mimicking the salute to the judges gymnasts perform after completing a routine. I had gotten up without bumping, breaking or twisting anything and, most importantly, without flashing anyone. Until, mere seconds after my feat, my phone rang. It was my host mother, telling me she was in the apartment right above ours, and I can just go up there when I get home. “Don’t go trying to climb the balcony or anything, she joked.” About that…

The final result: my host parents made sure to get me a key as soon as possible.