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Hi all
i would like to share with you my short story of living and working in Istanbul and hope it will help you to get a better idea if you are planning to move to Istanbul:
i came here exactly one year ago and i heard so many things about it before i come like its expensive or not safe and cant find a job without learning the language, but i didnt care about that cuz i always wanted to come here and also as being Syrian i didnt really have many options,
through this year i managed to get my own apartment, work in a stable job as head of operations in a tourism agency where i didnt need the Turkish language very much.
1- The city is safe as long as u avoid some places that are famous for its bad reputation,
2- U dont need the language to have a work if u already have good experience in a certain field, but its much better to learn the basics before u move.
3- Turkish ppl are friendly in general but for sure u wl meet unfriendly ppl anywhere u travel
4- dont talk loud with ur language in public transportation ,, they dont like that at all
5- dont apply online for jobs ,, it might work but not that much , the best way is to go search by ur self and spread ur cv's around, or try to build a good connection with local ppl around u
6- make sure u live near to ur job as public transportation is not cheap and crowded
7- work permit and resident visa are not easy at all ,, especially if u dont speak Turkish but dont deal with an Office to do it for u cuz they charge 3 times higher ,, just be calm and try to get a friend WHO speaks Turkish to help u with it
8- Taxi drivers are not honest .. in general cuz they will try to charge u more so make sure u depend more on public transportation
9- its very easy to have more friends in Istanbul from Turkish or others and they can be very helpful
10 - the city is sooooo beautiful and u wl never stop liking it either old or new part
11- u can also enjoy travelling around in Turkey like Antalya, Trabzon , Bursa so u wil never feel bored
12- the least salary that can maintain a rent, transportation and cost without saving is 1500 tl = 680 USD = 535 Euros . at least
13- working hours are kind of long as it can reach to 12 hours and in general companies dont pay salary on time unless u r working for an international organization
AT THE END i wanna say Turkey is beautiful country and in real its more beautiful, it just that u need to be very serious about finding a decent job and good friends
i hope i managed to say important things and please ask if u have any certain question.