| Turkey |
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| City: |
Ankara |
| Country: |
Turkey |
| Submitter's Name: |
Christy |
| Nationality: |
American |
| Arrival Date: |
September 2006 |
| Date Submitted: |
February 25, 2008 |
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Turkey is often referred to as Europe but I think the only
part that would qualify as European is Istanbul. The city of Ankara itself
has some beautiful parts, including European architecture, large parks, and
shopping streets, but it is hard to get around due to the awful driving
habits, the one-way streets (which few people follow anyway), and the lack
of parking. |
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Driving here is a free-for-all with no enforceable rules,
lanes, red lights, parking places, or anything else. Even harder than
driving in Turkey is trying to walk in Turkey and cross the street with
Turkish drivers actually speeding up when they see a pedestrian (cars have
the right of way). Within the center of the city it is even difficult to walk on the sidewalks, as cars often park there since there is very little parking available.
The Turks are wonderful people, very kind and eager to get to know you. They
are extremely proud of their country, which is great when they are excited and show you around, not so great when they arrest you for saying or writing
anything derogatory about Turkey.
Most Turks do not practice Islam, but nevertheless they love to hear the
call to prayer 5 times a day. Some traditions never die. Most Muslims here
respect the non-Muslimness of foreigners, but in Ankara and anywhere East of
here foreign women are expected to respect the conservative dress of Islam
and not wear shorts or skirts above their knees, nor tank tops or too much
cleavage. Those that do are considered to be inviting verbal abuse and come-ons by Turks.
This is not a good city for homosexuals, due to the Muslim feelings against
them. Otherwise, families, singles, and couples can all be generally happy
here.
Despite the Muslim bias against women, I have not found much prejudice here
against me, as a non-working female spouse, in my day to day life. Professional women may have different experiences.
I have had no security concerns here and feel very safe even walking late at
night in the city. The normal awareness applies about watching your purse in
a bazaar and avoiding street demonstrations where violence can erupt. That
said, while we have been here the PKK has tried to blow up a building, but
such activity is not directed at foreigners. |
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| Our employer took care of visas
and work permits for us. |
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An apartment inside the city is best or way out in the suburbs
in a house (like in Bilkent). When you are on the outskirts of the city but
not far enough out, you have crappy, cramped apartments and even worse
traffic problems than inside the city. The construction here is not first
class, so be careful what you buy/rent. Our employer provides our housing,
so I do not know about rental issues. |
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It is common to have a maid once a week for US$40 for an 8-
hour day. Child care is more expensive. |
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| Best way to make calls back home is Vonage if you have high
speed internet (which is around $50/month). The service quality varies greatly, but at least it does the job. There is a local English newspaper and several English TV stations on DigiTurk cable service. The local postal service is not very reliable. |
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I am surprised at how few people speak English in Ankara.
You really need to know some Turkish to get around. |
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| The water is not safe to drink. Everyone drinks
bottled water although you can brush you teeth with the local water. There
is not much water as it is in Ankara, so sometimes they ration it and you
can only shower every second day. |
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There are always jobs for English teachers, but for
everything else you need to know Turkish. |
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YTL (New Turkish Lira) is the currency. Setting up a bank
account requires proof that you are a legal resident here. |
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Medical care is pretty good - great hospitals with English-speaking doctors. Major hospital stays and work are inexpensive, but
individual doctor visits are expensive (around US$150 for a routine examination). Many expats get Lasik eye surgery here, which costs around US$900 for
both eyes. Dental care is very good; small projects are inexpensive (a cap on a tooth is around US$100), but big projects are expensive (braces are
around US$4000). |
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| Three English speaking schools here - Bilkent University Prep
School, The British Embassy Study Group, and Oasis International School. All are pretty good. |
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Drive or walk at your own risk. It is easy to own a car if
you have a place to park it and if you do not drive it much (because gas here
is outrageous - around US$8/gallon). Taxis are not cheap. |
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Laser hair removal is cheap, so are manicures and
other beauty services. Beauty products, clothes, and shoes are very
expensive (twice what they cost in the U.S. but half the quality). |
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Although this is a Muslim country you can find
alcohol everywhere and there are plenty of bars and pubs. The British Club
(the pub on the British Embassy compound) is popular among expats. Many good
restaurants around town cater to expats with excellent food and atmosphere,
and higher prices accordingly. |
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It is a paperwork nightmare to get a pet in or out of the country. The vets here are good and very inexpensive. |
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Flights are expensive to get outside the country from Ankara and
driving inside the country is expensive, so often any money you do save,
despite the relatively high cost of living, is spent on getting out of the
city. Taking an overnight bus is a relatively inexpensive and surprisingly
comfortable option. Turkey has so much history and so many amazing things to
see, that you can easily spend several years here and not see everything
that you would like to.
See too:
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City Description
Healthcare