Ask an Expat: Ali Halabi

Meet Ali Halabi, a transplant from Beirut who came to Istanbul in 2012. Although currently preoccupied with his start-up Volt, a ride-sharing app, Ali also makes time for exploring the city, especially its spas. Read more about him below!

1. Why did you come to Istanbul?

I used to work for Procter & Gamble (P&G) in Beirut, Lebanon as a Regional Trade Marketing Manager. I met my lovely Turkish wife Burcu in a P&G training in Beirut in January 2010. It was love at first sight, however we couldn’t really kick off a long distance relationship until Pegasus started their very affordable flights to Beirut – those flights made our relationship possible. We got married in June 2011, and Burcu moved to Beirut for a year with P&G. One year later, I was assigned a regional marketing role out of Istanbul. We moved to the city of the Bosphorus in September 2012, and I have been here ever since.

2. What do you do here?

Well, after coming to Istanbul in the summer of 2012 with P&G, we had to live 35 km from my office as Burcu’s assignment was in Mahmutbey (while mine was in Bostancı). So we ended up living in Avrupa Konutları on TEM (GOP) which was pretty much the best mid-point. Before you know it, I was exposed to Istanbul’s traffic and guess what: I couldn’t take it. So I decided to do something about it – that is, to create a real-time in-city carpooling culture in Turkey. On October 25, 2013 I resigned from P&G and started my own company, Volt. It’s a social ride-sharing application that uses Facebook & Real Communities to connect drivers who have empty seats with passengers going in the same direction.

3. What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced here?

I’m trying to be less predictable, but I can’t find anything else other than what all expats face here – the language. I’m trying to learn it as fast as I can. However, between setting up a company and learning how to do start-ups right, it has been dragging a bit. Now I speak the bare minimum to survive on my own, but I’m definitely not satisfied yet. I’m hoping to get this challenge out of the way within the next 6 months.

4. What do you do for fun?

The classic Istanbul stuff. Breakfast by the Bosphorus on random sunny Sundays, an early morning run in the Belgrade Forest, usually on Saturdays, and casual drinks with friends in Beyoğlu on random weekdays. I’m also part of a few expat networking groups outside the start-up ecosystem, such as Internations. However, I’m mostly a domestic person so I’m happiest enjoying movies at home with family and friends.

5. Where do unwind/relax? Where is your favorite haunt?

I’m a massage addict and thus a regular spa goer. Burcu and I have tried almost all of Istanbul’s spas, and I can easily say that our favorite one (both in terms of setup and service) is the spa at Double Tree by Hilton in Moda, Kadıköy. Other than that, we are leveraging Istanbul’s great location by exploring not only all the great things Turkey has to offer (and there are a lot), but also all the neighboring areas like Greece, the Balkans, and of course Beirut and the rest of the Middle East.

6. What has been your biggest surprise about Istanbul?

Istanbul’s economy is larger than 127 countries! Also, coming from Beirut, a city of 1.5 million, I was pretty shocked with how big this city is both in terms of population and space. One day while I was on a ferryboat on my way to Büyükada, I looked back only to see that Istanbul was stretched along the whole 180 degrees of the horizon. I’m thrilled by the potential of this city.

7. Do you have any advice for other expats?

I have 3 pieces of advice, if I may:

1. Learn Turkish ASAP. It’s a beautiful and rich language that feels so good to speak. I just feel great whenever I put together a full sentence in Turkish.
2. Live close to work or else you will end up wasting easily 2 hours a day in commute that can be spent better. My 4 Turkish partners in Volt all live around Beyoğlu, within walking distance of the office. I envy their brilliance.
3. If you don’t succeed in the former, use Volt!

Ask an Expat is our new column aimed at shedding some light on how other expats do Istanbul. Enjoy!