Istanbul: Travel guide, prices and free housing · 2026

AZAray Zhanzhigitzhanzhigitovaaa · Jan 9, 2023Read

Zhanzhigit Aray Almaty My life is my story Life is so interesting, sometimes complicated, incomprehensible, and absolutely unexplored for every person. It is one thing to learn and take examples from others, and quite another to live your own life. After all, everyone's life is their own and very important to each of us. Our life is shorter than we think, isn't it? It is fleeting, so much so that sometimes you don't realize how everything has changed. And yet, life is a series of events, both good and bad, happy and unfair moments. But each of them teaches us to be grateful, strong, and resilient. Thanks to such moments, a person grows, gains wisdom, and most importantly, experience. It is important to say that for a person—even if not for everyone, then for me—a large part of the life lessons I received came from good events. The emotions and sensations they gifted me are never forgotten and remain a great life experience. Since my first trip abroad, travel has become one of the best memories for me. I am a girl from a very ordinary family, where my mother worked as a teacher and my father as a driver. I lived an average life, if you think about it, but thanks to the love and care of my parents and sisters, I felt we were very rich. But I turned thirteen, and my life turned upside down. Losing the pillar of the family and the person I loved most was not one of the easy moments of my life. My inner little girl faded, thinking about my mother who was left alone at home while her daughter studied at a boarding school. I became too withdrawn, shy, completely different from who I was before. And then, at the end of 2019, finding out that my uncle and his family were flying to Istanbul, my mother gathered her money and sent me with them. I was very pleased; I was so looking forward to this trip, which lived up to my expectations one hundred percent. A city that included both culture and modernity, kind and sincere people, made me feel a new, yet unexplored feeling. This trip changed my life. Yes, just one trip that influenced my life so much that my soul now strived to know what lies ahead. I knew there was still more I had to see. After all, in the last decade, there have been a myriad of opportunities for students and schoolchildren to gain experience abroad. The number of summer camps that send students to different countries to learn languages and get acquainted with new cultures has started to grow. But there are requirements here, such as expenses, which are fully paid by the student and their parents. Unfortunately, not all parents can afford such tours and camps. But in such cases, there are many programs that help with financial issues. Even if you couldn't go abroad upon finishing school, there are many opportunities to study abroad for a certain time through programs of various universities, states, or well-known programs (Erasmus+, Erasmus Mundus, Mevlana), which in turn are famous for their generous sponsorship conditions. If you look, a multitude of opportunities open up for students. And it is not for nothing that they say, "The 21st century is the century of opportunities, unlimited choice, and the realization of potential." Having finished 11th grade, I desperately wanted to go abroad, but in my heart, I couldn't leave my mother alone, so I gave up the opportunity to fly to Turkey and stayed in Almaty. At the university, I wanted to study languages, as I linked my future to them. I spent the entire first year of university studying at home, in front of a laptop. I started to get tired of this, and I began looking for opportunities to step out of my comfort zone. That same day, as if Instagram heard me, the first ad that popped up was about Work and Travel. At that moment, I remembered a moment from my childhood when my sister came home with gifts given to her by a friend who had recently returned from the USA. I had completely forgotten about it, as there is a big age gap between my sister and me, and this story wa

ASAlisher Seitzhaparovdota_alisher · Dec 13, 2022Read

Travel as a Meaning of Life 1. Introduction In the age of digital technology, we have the opportunity to find anything we can think of. Thanks to the internet, we can also travel abroad and discover new horizons. There is so much information online about student exchanges and working abroad. The goal of student exchange programs is cultural exchange. And, of course, those who participate in such programs gain invaluable experience. In the first months of this year (2022), I was looking for programs where I could go abroad for the summer and work at the same time. Thus, I found so many programs with the opportunity to go to countries in Europe, America, New Zealand, Turkey, and more! My name is Alisher, and I am a participant in the Work and Travel 2023 program. Since I was finishing my second year of university in May, I chose seasonal work in Bulgaria for the 3 summer months. Enjoy reading, everyone. Let's get started! 2. My First Trip. I went abroad for the first time. Starting my journey on June 23rd from the city of Khromtau, I traveled by train to Astana for a day. Upon arriving in the capital, I had to get to the hostel. There, for the first time, I met people from other countries. I spoke with one of them in English in person, which was a great experience for me. I spent the rest of the day walking around the city until late at night. The next day, I went to the airport well before my flight time (it was my first time flying on a plane). After sorting everything out, I was ready to depart. But the plane didn't take off due to technical issues. I found people who were flying to Bulgaria to work just like me, and we all started thinking about what to do next. Eventually, after a few hours, our tickets were rebooked, and we were supposed to fly out in 2 days. But the question of where to sleep remained open. We gathered together and went to ask this question to the company through which we were supposed to fly. After talking to them, they offered us a 3-star hotel on the right bank of Astana with 3 meals a day for two days. The next day, we went for a walk around the city. Getting to know our new acquaintances better, we had a great time in the capital. After 2 days, we finally flew out. I don't know how flights work, but first, we flew from Astana to Shymkent and from there to Istanbul, one of the largest cities in Turkey. Upon arriving in Turkey, I felt a bit unwell. Because it was my first time flying, I had ear pain. At the airport, the most difficult part at that moment began. Some of us (including me) went to look for a bus to the bus station (Bayrampasa). As soon as we finally found it, we went back to tell the others. But something went wrong. We couldn't get in because they wouldn't let us through. The person who wouldn't let us in didn't even listen to us, and since we didn't have a connection, we couldn't call and tell them the whole situation. A couple of hours later, they came out themselves, and we finally moved on. We arrived at the bus station late at night. Some of us (especially me) managed to sleep for 2-3 hours on the seats before our departure. By the way, my ear pain was still bothering me :( At 9 a.m., we successfully boarded the bus and headed towards Bulgaria. During the 10 hours on the road, I tried not to fall asleep and to look at the cities, villages, and nature. I tried not to fall asleep until the moment we were supposed to leave Istanbul, but I couldn't 😐, the city is too big, and I fell asleep without waiting for that moment. When I woke up, I saw so many villages where things were very bad; the locals lived in very poor conditions, which was a shock to me. Entering Bulgaria after checking documents, I immediately noticed that the local nature is very beautiful and mesmerizing. Forests, hills, and mountains. I also noticed many buildings from the USSR era. I also want to add a couple of words about the bus we were traveling in. Despite the fact that we were on the road for a long 10 hours,

ANAlesia Nikifaravaalesya_marakami · Nov 26, 2015Read

Ultimately, I love my American room, my Russian accent, and my American friends so much. Pretty dramatic to imagine the winds of change. (c) Twitter post. I worked in a small town called Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. In the morning I was a housekeeper, in the evening – a waitron. It was a resort with expensive yachts, endless miles of golf courses, and a lake that would rage from time to time. Every week, dozens of American families would arrive, and we became a part of them. My supervisor, Petty, once said: “Our job is to make these families feel cared for.” Everything I did was care. I cared for money, for huge tips that often reached one or two hundred dollars. Isn't that enough to sound like a summer that can make a person insanely happy? International students were given houses right on the resort grounds – spacious (two-story) wooden dwellings, affectionately called cabins. Semih, Luliu, Deniz, Berkay, Yazan, Winni, Fariza, Ola, Alexandru, Luby, Anel, Madina – this list could go on forever, as our Fair Hills family consisted of fifty people. We lived together, worked together. Together we made plans for the future. One day in the kitchen, making me jump slightly, Deniz flew up to me – a bold Turkish girl with jet-black hair and purple lipstick. With her black jeans, black t-shirt, and dark skin, she didn't fit into the colorful madness of the kitchen shelves at all. She didn't speak English well, but we often sat lazily (in some blissful half-slumber) on the balcony of her cabin, like masters of our American lives, crossing off another Minnesota day from our American calendar. We looked at the resort streets, which, according to Deniz, looked so much like the winding streets of Istanbul, while I compared the rows of houses to the star-like rays of the straight streets of Paris. The thought of Parisian boulevards with bridges also often came to mind. Well, flying up to me in the kitchen, Deniz suggested we ride our bikes to a Mexican diner that was forty minutes away down the highway. I knew how it would be: in the evening I would wait for her, she would come, she would talk, I would listen, her arrival would smell of tobacco, and she, coughing, would tell, tell, tell me about how she is not like a decent Muslim girl and how Susan's pies remind her of her grandmother's buns (I even remember that her grandmother had a huge warm knitted cardigan, which, as Deniz claimed, would suit me very well). Everything happened not according to the planned scenario at all: Otgoo tagged along with me, and Deniz brought her friend – the same dark Turkish Berkay. We entered the Mexican diner as a group of four. We sat at the bar, watched TV, and ate pizza in the dim light of the walls covered in photos, while everyone was interested in who we were, what our names meant in our native language, and how we liked America. Oh, we liked it very much! What else did I like that evening? Well, for example, Berkay (I suppose it's all because he accepted all the crazy ideas that permeated the subconscious of my brain; during the conversation, he liked to repeat “look me in the eyes” or conversely “come on, don't just stand there and look at me so confusedly”; he was insanely fearless, and so fearless that, surely, only fools can be; he wore glasses; one night we were lying on the golf course and didn't even move when a thunderstorm gathered and the grass, on which dying shadows fell, became wet). No stars, no laughter, no peace. From here, my advice flows smoothly again: 1. This world is quite spoiled; it is full of enmity, cruelty, and meaningless tragedy. In America, you will meet people who are completely opposite to you. Enjoy it. Do not resist and do not be afraid to change. 2. This is not just a summer spent abroad. Thanks to my Arab friends, I have changed my life at the root: I started learning Turkish, dived headfirst into Arabic literature, and even read the Quran out of interest – calmly, yes, I am that strange! And I will be celebrating this

ASAlisher Seitzhaparovdota_alisher · Dec 13, 2022Read

Travel as the Meaning of Life 1. Introduction In the age of digital technology we have the opportunity to find everything that comes to mind. Thanks to the Internet we can also travel abroad and discover new horizons. There is so much information online about student exchange and working abroad. The goal of student exchange programs is cultural exchange. And of course those who participate in such programs gain invaluable experience. In the first months of this year (2022) I was looking for programs where I could go abroad for the summer and at the same time work there. Thus I found so many programs that offer the opportunity to go to countries in Europe, America, New Zealand, Turkey and more! My name is Alisher; I am a participant in the Work and Travel 2023 program. Since I was finishing my second year of university in May, I chose seasonal work in Bulgaria for 3 summer months. Enjoy your reading. Let's get started! 2. My First Trip. I went abroad for the first time. Starting my journey on June 23 from the city of Khromtau, I traveled by train to Astana for one day. Upon arrival in the capital I had to get to the hostel. There I met people from other countries for the first time. And I spoke with one of them in English face-to-face, which was a big experience for me. I spent the rest of the day walking around the city until late at night. The next day I went to the airport much earlier than my departure time (it was my first time flying by plane). After sorting everything out, I was ready to depart. But the plane did not take off due to technical problems. I found people who, like me, were flying to Bulgaria to work, and we all began to think about what to do next. In the end, after a few hours our tickets were rebooked and we were to fly in 2 days. But the question of where to stay for the night remained open. Gathering together we went to ask the company through which we were supposed to fly. After talking with them they offered us a three-star hotel on the right bank of Astana with three meals a day for two nights. The next day we went for a walk around the city. Having gotten to know my new acquaintances better, we had a great time in the capital. After 2 days we finally flew. I don't know how flights work but first we flew from Astana to Shymkent and from there to Istanbul, to one of the largest cities in Turkey. Upon arrival in Turkey I felt a little unwell. Because it was my first flight, I had ear pain. The most difficult part at that moment began at the airport. Some of us (including me) went to look for a bus to the coach station (Bayrampaşa). When we finally found it, we went back to tell the others. But something went wrong. We could not get in because we were not being allowed through. The person who was not letting us in did not even listen to us; since we had no connection we could not call and explain the whole situation. After a couple of hours they came out on their own and finally we continued. We arrived at the coach station late at night. Some of us (especially me) managed to sleep 2–3 hours on the seats before our departure. By the way, my ear pain was still bothering me :( At 9 a.m. we successfully boarded the bus and headed toward Bulgaria. During the 10-hour journey I tried not to fall asleep and looked at towns, villages and nature. I tried not to fall asleep until the moment we were supposed to leave Istanbul but I couldn't 😐, the city is too big and I still fell asleep without waiting for that moment. When I woke up, I saw so many villages that were in very poor condition; the locals lived in very bad conditions, which was a shock to me. After entering Bulgaria and having our documents checked I immediately noticed that the local nature was very beautiful and mesmerizing. Forests, hills and mountains. I also noticed many buildings from the Soviet era. I also want to add a few words about the bus we traveled in. Despite the long 10-hour journey, it had everything for comfort: we were offered coffe