Originally Posted by
allatp
Hi.
How safe is Istanbul nowadays?, regarding being right next to Siria. Any terrorism threats?
Thanks.
AA
If you’re talking about İstanbul being right next to Syria I would like to state that you are very wrong. It’s at the far end opposite side of the country. And Turkey is big enough for me to say that the southeast of the country and the northwest are two different worlds.
Will you see a lot of refugees in Istanbul though? Hell yes. Just like in Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Italy etcetera etcetera. It is a huge city that attracts all kind of people. Good and bad.
The locals complain more about the country’s politics than they do about something else. For them that’s the real danger.
For anyone considering moving to İstanbul: please understand that it can be tough to live/work there. Do not get me wrong it really is a beautiful and interesting place but living there is a whole other thing. Which makes it a love/hate story for a lot of people. Students, workers, daydreamers... Istanbul is actually a very big factor to consider as potential future employee of Turkish. (For many a huge negative factor).
In this city the flame can jump into the pan very quickly for expats and it can become very unpleasant. (Can you imagine the problems locals experience and just make that x2 for expats). Even though it is full with tourists and they are used to foreigners please understand that they can still be very intolerant to an outsider. Consider traffic rants, dealing with cab drivers, bureaucracy and all those things.
Something else to consider: To buy a car it is damn expensive. To own one and keep up with the gasoline is damn expensive. To use the public transportation is a problem. To deal with those cabdrivers: likewise.
I just wanted to share some things that can only be told and said by someone who actually lived there and knows the culture. As people will share mostly something about the company itself I wanted to pass on my knowledge about the city.
Mind you I am not trying to avoid someone from getting in. On the contrary, if you feel good about it go and try it for a couple of years. You will for sure have amazing moments and experiences in Istanbul and it is just a matter of having more positive sides than the negative. You just have to go with the flow and dynamics of İstanbul.
Cheers,
LW