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Today's Zaman, Turkey
April 15 2012
Watch those words
by Pat Yale
A flexible attitude. A readiness to learn the language. A good support
network. These are suggestions that have come up time and again in my
ongoing straw poll of the characteristics that might help someone make
a success of a new life in Turkey.
Other suggestions have been more specific. For example, `Try to find
out the sensitivities in Turkish culture. Avoid talking about
sensitive or taboo issues when you meet Turkish people for the first
time; only discuss them with your best Turkish friends, and even then
be careful,' says Dutch enjoy-istanbul.com writer Marc Guillet. `Turks
are very proud and nationalistic and they don't like to be criticized
(or have the feeling to be criticized) by a foreigner. Those
sensitive/taboo issues/words are: Ataturk, Armenian genocide, PKK,
terrorism, politics.'
Wise words, but to Guillet that doesn't mean that there aren't plenty
of safe topics with which to engage new friends: `Talk in general
about issues that Turks are passionate about, like football, soaps,
Turkish food, music, movies, fashion, the beauty of their women, cars,
traffic, your favorite places in İstanbul and Turkey.'
What could be easier and more sensible? After all, every country has
its sensitive subjects. In the UK of my childhood, for example, it
might not have been especially wise for a newcomer to start laying
down the law about the Irish problem in the aftermath of some dreadful
atrocity, and visitors to Germany are probably wise to skirt around
the subject of the Nazis unless they know who they're talking to. Much
better, always, to look for common-ground topics, at least in the
early days.
Others have emphasized the need to come to grips with Turkish culture
rather than sticking with what feels familiar. `Be prepared for
culture shock and show some respect for the country you have chosen to
move to,' says `Perking the Pansies' author Jack Scott, who settled in
Bodrum. `Do what you can to integrate. Understand where you are. Learn
a little history and read the English language newspapers.'
CaptivatingCappadocia.com author Duke Dillard more or less echoes
those sentiments but adds another thought about Turkish culture: `One
mistake expats often make when they arrive in Istanbul or Ankara is to
assume that Turks think like they do. The cities are well developed
with the latest technology and shopping malls and nice cars, so Turks
must think like Europeans. However, most of Turkey is in Asia and the
worldview of the average Turk is not European. That is not a negative.
I am not making a judgment here, but expats who understand this idea,
have a better experience in Turkey and are able to relate to their
Turkish friends on a deeper level.' Others have commented that
exploring Turkey will help a newcomer understand it better. `Bridge
the gap between you and your new home, learn about the food, culture
and see different places within Turkey,' suggests Natalie Sayin,
author of turkishtravelblog.com.
In the end, though, I'm leaving the last word to Jack Scott. What
characteristics do you need to make a go of it as an expat here? `The
wisdom of Solomon and the patience of a saint.' Which, when you come
to think of it, are probably the characteristics you need to make a go
of life anywhere in the world.
April 15 2012
Watch those words
by Pat Yale
A flexible attitude. A readiness to learn the language. A good support
network. These are suggestions that have come up time and again in my
ongoing straw poll of the characteristics that might help someone make
a success of a new life in Turkey.
Other suggestions have been more specific. For example, `Try to find
out the sensitivities in Turkish culture. Avoid talking about
sensitive or taboo issues when you meet Turkish people for the first
time; only discuss them with your best Turkish friends, and even then
be careful,' says Dutch enjoy-istanbul.com writer Marc Guillet. `Turks
are very proud and nationalistic and they don't like to be criticized
(or have the feeling to be criticized) by a foreigner. Those
sensitive/taboo issues/words are: Ataturk, Armenian genocide, PKK,
terrorism, politics.'
Wise words, but to Guillet that doesn't mean that there aren't plenty
of safe topics with which to engage new friends: `Talk in general
about issues that Turks are passionate about, like football, soaps,
Turkish food, music, movies, fashion, the beauty of their women, cars,
traffic, your favorite places in İstanbul and Turkey.'
What could be easier and more sensible? After all, every country has
its sensitive subjects. In the UK of my childhood, for example, it
might not have been especially wise for a newcomer to start laying
down the law about the Irish problem in the aftermath of some dreadful
atrocity, and visitors to Germany are probably wise to skirt around
the subject of the Nazis unless they know who they're talking to. Much
better, always, to look for common-ground topics, at least in the
early days.
Others have emphasized the need to come to grips with Turkish culture
rather than sticking with what feels familiar. `Be prepared for
culture shock and show some respect for the country you have chosen to
move to,' says `Perking the Pansies' author Jack Scott, who settled in
Bodrum. `Do what you can to integrate. Understand where you are. Learn
a little history and read the English language newspapers.'
CaptivatingCappadocia.com author Duke Dillard more or less echoes
those sentiments but adds another thought about Turkish culture: `One
mistake expats often make when they arrive in Istanbul or Ankara is to
assume that Turks think like they do. The cities are well developed
with the latest technology and shopping malls and nice cars, so Turks
must think like Europeans. However, most of Turkey is in Asia and the
worldview of the average Turk is not European. That is not a negative.
I am not making a judgment here, but expats who understand this idea,
have a better experience in Turkey and are able to relate to their
Turkish friends on a deeper level.' Others have commented that
exploring Turkey will help a newcomer understand it better. `Bridge
the gap between you and your new home, learn about the food, culture
and see different places within Turkey,' suggests Natalie Sayin,
author of turkishtravelblog.com.
In the end, though, I'm leaving the last word to Jack Scott. What
characteristics do you need to make a go of it as an expat here? `The
wisdom of Solomon and the patience of a saint.' Which, when you come
to think of it, are probably the characteristics you need to make a go
of life anywhere in the world.