Subtlety reader Svetlana Balaina recently moved with her family to Istanbul. “We have only lived here for 4 months – my husband and I, two children and a dog. I have not yet seen the city, I have not met, I have not been imbued, I have not felt … Organization of everyday life, paperwork takes too much time, but I do not complain. The time will surely come, and we will get to know Istanbul better, take a walk in the Old City, sit on the embankment and leisurely drink tea and watch the fishermen, seagulls and cats. All the most interesting — travel, trips and walks — is yet to come. I hope my story will be useful and help many, at least morally. It will help you decide whether to go,” Svetlana shares. /41/49/41492br6ykiswkww88s848sw0.jpg
We found an apartment in Istanbul without any problems /h2>
I remember there was a time when we rented an apartment in Moscow, and the presence of children and a dog immediately cut off most of the options. Even our “Slavic appearance” did not help, as did the absence of bad habits and a stable income. Children and a dog – not at once!
We settled in the Buyukcekmece area, it is quite far from the center, but here the sea is within walking distance. Every day I come to the embankment just to look at it. The area is very quiet, sleepy, there are many emigrants from Russia, there are several private gardens and circles for children in Russian, which were opened by our compatriots.
Most of our friends who do not have a job remotely in Russia open small businesses for their own: schools, kindergartens, conduct fitness training, etc.
It is difficult to find a job in Istanbul if you don't know the language, but if you have excellent Turkish and English, there will be no problems finding a job.1/1
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We entrusted the paperwork to the agency
We ourselves have just agreed with our landlord on the conclusion of a long-term lease. All translations, recordings and preparations were handled by managers, we just came with a package of documents at the appointed time to the migration center. The registration fee is 600 USD per person. Now I understand that we could arrange everything on our own and save money, there is no difficulty, but then it seemed to me that I could not cope and I needed the help of professionals.There are no complaints about their work, they really got rid of some fuss and competently advised on all issues.
Prices of living
I can paint approximate ones, since everyone has different requests. 500 USD goes to our apartment. It is spacious with two bedrooms and a living room with a kitchen and a real fireplace. For me, this is a separate joy, I really dreamed of a fireplace at home, for the New Year we hung socks on it, as the children dreamed.
Approximately 400–500 USD per month is spent on food. About 100 USD is spent on a taxi: although there is a simple transport system, it is often easier for me to take a taxi without transfers. 200 USD – a kindergarten for two children, plus about 100 USD – additional Turkish classes and all sorts of circles. I plan to send my children to a Turkish comprehensive school, so language classes are important. There are also small expenses, I can’t take everything into account, on average, about 2500 USD per family per month, about the same amount we spent in Moscow, only we didn’t rent an apartment.
What else to read on the topic
- 6 rules of etiquette in Germany that Russians who have moved constantly violate
- Moving to Istanbul: housing, prices, work, people
- Life here is not all tango: a story about moving to Argentina
