Знакомство с Иннополисом

The brightest day of my exchange program was the day of Remembering Ataturk on 10th November at 9:05 AM when I met many people outside in a crowded street to see how the nation respects its father.

I chose METU for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it had the best-matched courses with my program at IU. Secondly, the climate is nice. Due to the pandemic, the Fall semester started on the 10th of October, and at that time the sea temperature and the weather could allow you to swim for around an hour in water and sunbathe after that. The sunshine gives you so much energy for routine things. 99% of the time in Ankara you have sunny weather.

The assignee from the international cooperation office keeps in touch with you throughout the whole period of your exchange. They take care of all the administrative issues and give comprehensive instructions on how to live in their country, how to obtain a residence permit (which is a must to stay) etc.

I had a chance to dive into the history of the foreign country. During the exchange, I lived with friends and one of them was Turkish. This guy showed the key places in Ankara and gave a short review of modern Turkish history.  The brightest day of my exchange program was the day of Remembering Ataturk on 10th November at 9:05 AM when I met many people outside in a crowded street to see how the nation respects its father.

Because of the pandemic, I could not interact with students. Most of the places were closed. 

The things I would advise one to be familiar with before visiting Turkey: to know about major historical facts of the Turkish nation and national holidays; to learn about Çiğ köfte and Pekmez, try them.