Job Discussion Forums

[tvik]

What's wrong with living in Ankara???? isn't it safer than istanbul?? aren't the people more friendly and less inclined to rip you off constantly??? I am thinking about going there to do a masters degree. am i off my head? is istanbul the only viable choice?
what do i do if i don't like crowds?

[Golightly]

Ankara - Brussels without the history; Milton Keynes without the charisma.

[Nmarie]

I agree with you, Tvik. Istanbul drove me insane, mainly because I could never feel at ease there -- Two years was my limit. If you don't do Ankara, maybe consider Izmir. At least, it's on the sea.

[ghost]

Ankara has advantages and disadvantages compared with Istanbul.

Advantages of Ankara

1. Cheaper than Istanbul for rent, transport, meals and most everything.

2. You will be treated less like a tourist, and 'blend in' more easily.

Disadvantages of Ankara

1. Ghost actually finds the people in Istanbul to be more friendly, in general, than the inhabitants of Ankara and surrounding areas (incl. the City of Eskisehir...).

2. Rather boring city, compared with Istanbul. Not much 'buzz' to the place.

3. Weather can get pretty cold in winter. Summer, though is good in Ankara.

Ghost did its Turkish language training at the Tomer Institute in Ankara, and was generally pleased with the training and services offered, including homestay.

Ankara is also a good venue to travel North, South and Eastern parts of Turkey, with excellent services at the huge 'Otogar'

Overall not a bad place, but certainly not the most friendly people....but if you do make friends in Ankara, they will tend to be more genuine than other locales in Turkey.

Ghost, in Montreal, Canada

[tvik]

thanks for the input....
i'm in izmir now but there is no masters program here that i am interested in.
being canadian i don't mind a cold few months in the winter.
about the night life, i've always been a bar person rather than a club/dance music person. As long as i can find a comfortable bar stool with a few interesting people i will be happy.

[mongrelcat]

mongrelcat agrees with Ghost
mongrelcat is getting out of Ankara this summer.

Ankara is brown, not green. It gets to you after a while.
Yes, people are not friendly. They will stare at you, especially if you have blue eyes. At first its okay. But after a while its maddening.

You will become friendly with the shopkeepers in your neighborhood though. They enjoy having a yabancı around to mess with. I will actually miss a couple of my shopkeepers when i go.

But yes...it is stupid cheap here compared to elsewhere.

[harry the hobbit]

Harry the hobbit says stay in Izmir there are a lot more Canadians there and the people are very friendly especially the girls ,they love hobbits !

[dmb]

Is harry related to Ghost?

[yaramaz]

Just out of curiosity, how does the abundance of Canadians in Izmir make it more appealing? (this is speaking as a canadian myself...)

[tvik]

i didn't really understand that one myself...

has anyone gone to university in Turkey does anyone know what it's like to be a student in this country?

[ghost]

[yaramaz]

I still wouldn't seek out Canadians, nor other foreigners- A lot of my friends in Istanbul are foreign because of where I work and who I come into contact with, but where I used to live I had no foreign friends in my second year. I felt no great loss.

Why are there so many cnucks in Izmir?

[tekirdag]

[thrifty]

[yaramaz]

Don't be silly. I came to Istanbul for the food and drink.