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Sebnem and me, Turkey |
It is easy
for expats, especially in a country that speaks another language,
to form friendships with other expats. While they can be
enormously supportive and fun, it is also important to befriend locals in
your host country.
Nur and me, Turkey |
I feel indebted to
my Turkish friends for their help during my time in Turkey, especially at the
beginning. I was young when I first fell in love with the country and not only
was I pretty naïve, but I was clueless about Turkish culture and knew nothing
of the language.
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Ferhat and me, Turkey |
I have always
believed that if you can communicate with people everything you want to do can
be achieved more easily. My Turkish friends were not only encouraging when I
embarked upon my mission to learn Turkish, they were endlessly patient as I
butchered their language with my dodgy pronunciation and sometime dreadful
mistakes. They did nothing but gently correct me and laugh with me about
whatever terrible declaration I had made.
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Elif, Ahmet and their little girl, Turkey |
My friend Sebnem
refers to me as the Turkish-English girl on account of my passion for the place
and accumulation over time of various Turkish habits. Elif, Ahmet and I shared
a passion for scuba diving. Ferhat warns his friends that I understand Turkish
(so goodness knows what they normally talk about). My friend Nur and her
children also speak French so we have fun communicating in a mixture of mostly Turkish
and French. Eko enjoys laughing at my mistakes (and then correcting them).
Were it not for
these friends of mine and several others I am sure I would be less capable in
Turkish and therefore also feel less at home in Turkey. Of course, I also had
lots of friends who were expats themselves and they played a huge role in my
life there too, but it is my Turkish friends who I have to thank for
encouraging me to learn their language, appreciate their culture and ultimately
love their country.
Who made a difference to your experiences overseas?
