America may be generally regarded as the Land of Opportunities, and that is something which it should be proud of. Turkey is also the land of 'self-made man' (Istanbul is rated fourth worldwide with his billionaires) and at this moment even Europeans without Turkish roots are moving to Turkey to try their luck. Why?
The tremendous opportunities offered by both countries originate, in my eyes, in unequalled flexibility. Both in Turkey and the US you can experience this in all aspects of everyday life. Take traffic, for instance. Since I moved to Austin, I’ve become a frequent bus traveler. To go to the University (where I teach) I can take two buses - 1L and 101 - which both have their own itinerary and stops. The 1L line stops right across the street from where I am teaching, bus 101 stops further down the block. Sometimes I take the wrong bus, but when I ask the 101 driver to make an extra stop so I can get off where I want, that’s never a problem. Neither is it a problem when I take my coffee on the bus – officially it’s not allowed to take drinks or food in public transport, but nobody seems to care! In Turkey, you can experience the same. During a bus trip you can just ask the driver to stop wherever you want to get out, even if it’s not an official bus stop. Just a small example, but it illustrates the flexibility – or rather adaptability – that opens the way to great opportunities. I experienced another example of this flexibility when I rented my apartment. I was allowed to move in the day that I got in Austin, instead of having to pay from the first day of the month. As soon as I had my furniture installed, I called Time Warner Cable to ask them to connect me to cable and internet. They responded immediately and put me on-line the day after I called – even though this was a Sunday!
All this might seem insignificant, but the difference with many other countries is striking. In the Netherlands, where I lived before coming to the US, rules are much more adhered to – without exceptions! – and almost everything has to go according to a predefined plan. This inflexibility inevitably has an effect on the general mentality of people, blocking the way for opportunities and closing peoples’ eyes instead of opening them.
As migrants come from a total different structure, they are 'shocked' with this totally organized sytem in the Western European countries. It takes much more time to 'switch the button'.
The tremendous opportunities offered by both countries originate, in my eyes, in unequalled flexibility. Both in Turkey and the US you can experience this in all aspects of everyday life. Take traffic, for instance. Since I moved to Austin, I’ve become a frequent bus traveler. To go to the University (where I teach) I can take two buses - 1L and 101 - which both have their own itinerary and stops. The 1L line stops right across the street from where I am teaching, bus 101 stops further down the block. Sometimes I take the wrong bus, but when I ask the 101 driver to make an extra stop so I can get off where I want, that’s never a problem. Neither is it a problem when I take my coffee on the bus – officially it’s not allowed to take drinks or food in public transport, but nobody seems to care! In Turkey, you can experience the same. During a bus trip you can just ask the driver to stop wherever you want to get out, even if it’s not an official bus stop. Just a small example, but it illustrates the flexibility – or rather adaptability – that opens the way to great opportunities. I experienced another example of this flexibility when I rented my apartment. I was allowed to move in the day that I got in Austin, instead of having to pay from the first day of the month. As soon as I had my furniture installed, I called Time Warner Cable to ask them to connect me to cable and internet. They responded immediately and put me on-line the day after I called – even though this was a Sunday!
All this might seem insignificant, but the difference with many other countries is striking. In the Netherlands, where I lived before coming to the US, rules are much more adhered to – without exceptions! – and almost everything has to go according to a predefined plan. This inflexibility inevitably has an effect on the general mentality of people, blocking the way for opportunities and closing peoples’ eyes instead of opening them.
As migrants come from a total different structure, they are 'shocked' with this totally organized sytem in the Western European countries. It takes much more time to 'switch the button'.
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