Hi there! I am Dian from Indonesia. Since April 2005, I live in Alanya, Turkey. So, the now chapter of my life is a Long Vacation in Alanya.

1. Why did you move abroad?
Internet made my dream come true. Through internet, I met my soulmate. He is a Turk. He came to Indonesia to marry me and brought me here. We settle down in Alanya, his hometown.

2. How do you make a living?
I work from home. I am author, ghostwriter, blogger, and graphic & web designer. I do those jobs from home. Until now, I am writing books and my books are published in my home country. My published books are Muslimah Mompreneur, Womenpreneur Checklist, and Best of Turki (duet).

3. How often do you communicate with home and how?
I talk to my mom by phone. Sometimes we have video call by facebook or skype. This time social media is a great media for communication. I am as a user feeling lucky to live in this century. I use it for talking with my family and friends.

4. What's your favorite thing about being an expat in Turkey?
Alanya is a touristic place. Many foreigner come to Alanya, especially from Europe. Sometimes, I help my husband at shop. We have a clothes shop in centrum of Alanya. When tourist come to our shop, I like to have talking with them. We form a friendship with some of them.

5. What’s the worst thing about being an expat in Turkey?
Local people think I am Japanese. Some people don’t know about Indonesia. Where is Indonesia? They think Indonesia is somewhere in Africa.

6. What do you miss most?
Of course I miss my mom, my family in my hometown. I miss the food. Even now, I can cook Indonesian food, but it has different taste.

7. What did you do to meet people and integrate in your new home?
I learn Turkish language. I learn it by myself. The first to do is to learn the language. Because without it, we can not talk to others. It is rare to meet Turkish people who can speak English.

8. What custom/ habits do you find most strange about your adopted culture?
Local people don’t do bathing in the morning, they do it in the noon or night. In the morning, they only washing their face and then having breakfast. Back to my home country, we are having a bath every morning before doing activity and in the afternoon.

9. What is a myth about your adopted country?  
Many people think Turkish Language is Arabic. In the past, Turkish alphabet was lıke Arabic. But it was not Arabic, it was Ottoman Turkish. Since this country became Republic, the language was change. It is Turkish language.

10. Is the cost of living higher or lower than the last country you lived in and how has that made a difference in your life?
Cost of living in Turkey is expensive compared to my home country. I don’t think about it very much. I live here now. If I always compare the prices with my home country, then I can’t move on :D

11. What advice would you give other expats?
If you want to work or live in Turkey, you must learn Turkish language. It is basic need for expat.

12. When and why did you start your blog?
2007 is the first time I do blogging. It was my friend in UK who introduce me to Multiply. First time, only uploading pictures of my daughter in Multiply. Then I started writing my experience in Turkey. I sent to newspaper at my hometown for every article that I wrote in Multiply. They published my article every Sunday morning. My family read my written in that newspaper. Later, I have idea for sharing about living in Alanya. Then my other blog was born. 

Dian's blog,  Alanya, Turkish Riviera, Turkiye

To find out more about living in Turkey, refer to our

Guide to Istanbul

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