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Lifestyle & Commentary

That Pink Elephant Mystique: A Celebration of International Women’s Day, in...

“Silence is the worst. Whenever a thick cloud of silence descends, the yapping voices inside me become all the more audible, rising to the...

Outstanding Jazz Songs from Turkey in the 2010s

From the Istanbul Jazz Festival comes a playlist of 100 jazz tracks which shined out in Turkey’s jazz scene through the 2010s. The playlist...

STD & STI Testing In Turkey: Tips and Advice

Turkey is one of the few countries in the world where the rate of HIV/AIDS cases has been increasing in the past decade. Despite...

Arrested as a Spy, Caught in a Major Earthquake, & More:...

We've all been there, haven't we? You are in a foreign country and some strangers approach you. You immediately think: "Whatever they are they selling,...

Fig Season

My favorite season in Istanbul is fig season. Never having seen or eaten a fresh fig in my life, I was fascinated by this...

Ten Things I Have (and Have Not) Gotten Used to about...

I have been living in Istanbul for four years. Just writing that sentence makes me dizzy. As a Spanish expat living in this amazing city,...

Coming to your senses: The Olfactor

“At no other time (than autumn) does the earth let itself be inhaled in one smell, the ripe earth; in a smell that is...

The Art of Solitude

It comes on suddenly. One moment you’re experiencing an exciting roller coaster of new experiences, emotions, thoughts, and people. You’re learning to become more...

Istanbul Welcomes the Yellow Bouncy Castle

Istanbul attracts all sorts of heroes and magnificent freaks. And I am not talking about Sean Connery or Liam Neeson. Meet Thomas, who calls himself...

Eton Academy: The Gateway for Accredited Homeschooling by Cambridge Assessment

Your child deserves a better future, and nothing can help them change and improve quite like a high quality education that meets international standards....

Tale from Istanbul’s New Normal

Friday night. A few minutes before midnight. April 20th, 2020. Kaan is in the CCTV room of the luxurious hotel where he works as...

166 Reasons Not to Leave Istanbul

These last months have not been easy. Our hearts ache for the country that has been a welcoming home away from home for so many of us....

Top 10 Best Things About Living in Taksim

I lived in Mecidiyeköy for my first few months in Istanbul. That part of town is interesting in its own right, and it was...

Expat Life: Why I chose to give birth in Turkey

Finding out that I was pregnant came as a complete surprise, my husband actually found out before I did, but that's a whole other...

The Struggles of a New Yabancı in Turkey

Moving to Istanbul was an exciting thought. I get to live in a new country, surrounded by people of a different culture. Oh, the...

Shopping for Unmentionables: Buying Underwear in Turkey

As a young teenager I was a tomboy, so getting my first bra wasn’t something I looked forward to. When the fateful day came...

Organization Profile: Jasmine Baladi

Editor's Note: Jasmine Baladi is one of the organizations at this year's We Are All Refugees event. Jasmine Baladi is a Syrian run, non-profit organization...

Real Student Comments

In all facets of daily, human life, the divide between what is expressed to others and what is in truth thought in one’s own,...

Reflections: Travelling Round Istanbul – Then and Now

These days travelling around Istanbul has become an anonymous experience for me, the way you would get around any other major city like London....

2018 Resolutions for the Common Yabancı in Istanbul

Old-school followers of Yabangee will likely have noted that we love starting the year off with resolutions (How to Stop Being Such a Yabancı:...

How to Stop Being Such a Yabancı: 23 Resolutions for 2015

Stop ordering on YemekSepeti cause you’re too scared to order over the phone in Turkish. Stop forcing your friends to call you cause you forgot...

Exploring Istanbul’s Not So Obvious Metrobüs Etiquette

If you ever feel like having a quick tour of Istanbul from the Asian to the European side (or vice versa), just buy an...

TIYYD: Building a Better Tomorrow for Refugees

What’s left behind becomes a faded memory, one that will be carried long distances no matter how tough it gets. Life becomes what’s packed...

Seven Challenges for 2020

New years are always a good time to forget the past and start with something new, like pursuing goals and adopting changes. As my...