Dealing with the realities of being an expat in Turkey

In spite of its political instability, Turkey as an expatriate destination has attracted both retirees and business professionals over the years, but challenges for the newly-arrived can cause problems as regards settling in.

Whether you’re moving to Turkey for work reasons or you’ve decided on one of the country’s beach resorts for your retirement, expatriation to Turkey can occasionally be a stressful experience. Challenges are the norm for new arrivals, but for every problem there are usually straightforward solutions. The first shock for new arrivals is likely to be the Turkish language, one of the world’s most tricky to learn. A few with exceptional language abilities will become fluent but, for everyone else, it’s a relief to find that a good number of locals have a reasonable command of English, thus making everyday situations easier to navigate successfully.

It’s much the same in the workplace as English is mostly the common language, but Turkish bureaucracy is a different, extremely frustrating ball game. Bureaucracy the world over is invariably a headache, but the Turkish version includes haphazard communication between different offices, often pointless and always long-winded processes and extended waiting times between application and acceptance. Getting angry gets you nowhere, with patience the only answer. Unrealistic expectations are common across the worldwide expat community, with most stemming from a lack of cultural understanding.

One problem for expat retirees is that, soon after settling in, they find they’ve simply too much time on their hands. The transition from managing your work schedule to allow time for your life outside the office to the totally different challenge of retirement isn’t as easy as you may think, even in the seductive surroundings of a Turkish beach town. Perhaps the most-missed part of your former working life is the camaraderie of the business world as well as its social aspect. To prevent depression and the fear of becoming useless, developing a sense of adventure and curiosity as to your new surroundings should divert your mind, as can volunteering, taking up a new hobby or learning new life skills via the internet.