SubmarineWasher
Member
My first post
Hello folks!
My first post, so please excuse the length / depth of it as I’ve been storing these issues at the back of my mind while I’ve been lurking on this forum for the past six months.
My visit background:
Came to Alanya 4 years ago for honeymoon to my now wife’s apartment. Loved it and been back 10 times since (with her!). First few trips, we ate out pretty much every meal. Now we spend time as part of our routine getting supplies from Migros / Kipa / Metro. We also know our apartment neighbours much better (more on that later). Now that our (each of our) kids are in uni, we can spend more time in Alanya and for longer.
My business:
Internet-based consultancy. Phone and email service.
I’ve sussed the telephony:
I leave my all-singing, all dancing UK smart phone on charge back in London.
I divert this to a traveltalksim.com sim. This has a 0044 7XXX XXX XXX format.
I take the TravelTalk sim in an unburstable £10 Nokia brick that I’ve owned for ten years now to Turkey.
OK, so the customer calls me on the mobile number on my website. My UK phone diverts to the Nokia Brick in my pocket in Alanya. I pay nothing to receive and the enquirer or customer doesn’t know that I’m in Turkey because he/she hears a UK ringtone.
When I dial out from traveltalk sim, it cost me 25p per minute. I top it up by PayPal.
Yes, I know that Skype is 15p per min, but I’m not gonna take no laptop and headset to the beach, the mountains, shopping, gym, etc.
So, all in all, I got the telephony sussed on the cheap.
Now, to high-quality broadband that I can run a business from:
I’ve read the thread “Broadband access in Mahmutlar” and decided that I, too, will buy a Turkcell dongle. That’s 69TL. The apartment management company inform me that fibre-optic cable is coming, but it could be a year. That means two years in real life.
Here are my questions:
1. 69TL 5 months a year is a lot of money. How much does it cost to get a broadband and fixed line phone package wired permanently into the apartment? Turkcell or whoever? Anybody got one?
2. Anybody know who will rent me a car for a longer-time, say a 3-month contract at a goodly discount? I’ve looked at the cost of second-hand cars and they’re just silly.
3. I start climbing the walls if I don’t eat curry every few days. A few trips ago, I went to a UK Indian shop and got all the necessary spices to start cooking in Alanya.
Smells wafted and our Norwegian / Swedish / Danish / Russian neighbours knocked on my door.
Neigbours: “Khello, I am Swen Pedersen (or Peder Swensson) from apartment A6. and what is thees khevenly aroma?”
Me: “Carry, innit, direct from the East End mate”
Neighbours: “Oh! Where is these East End place? You khev address? I drive there now. I cam back, then you tich me.”
Me: “Bit far to drive. Never mind. Come in. Eat”
Phone calls are made. More neighbours turn up to watch, most come with wine.
Tables are laid. Everyone contributes plates, serving bowls and cutlery.
I end up doing food for 70 people in the open space by the pool.
A few trips later, we got so many return invitations that we didn't dine out one single evening in 8 days.
Pfft! Maybe the Israelis and Arabs should make curry in Palestine.
4 weekly curry nights later, the neighbours bring a Turkish restaurant owner in. He wants me to 'tich' him. I get chatting. Turns out he pays TL 110,000 annual rent on Ataturk Blv opposite Kleo beach for his 60-seater. I was shocked cos that’s London rates. How do they make money? The food is cheap, so it must be the booze paying the bills.
Now I start to think: Hell, I’m not doing much. The internet consultancy biz can take a back seat. Why don’t I just open up for myself? I done it enough years in the UK. Left because I hated the traditional regimented servility of the 80’s style curry house, but Alanya’s a lot more informal.
Questions to you:
Who out of you lot eat curry?
Who of you lot comes to Alanya in the winter?
My Turkish lawyer says I need a Turkish business partner. Uh oh. I hate partnerships. This scares me.
Who of you lot has a Turkish business partner?
Again, apologies for such a long post.
My first post, so please excuse the length / depth of it as I’ve been storing these issues at the back of my mind while I’ve been lurking on this forum for the past six months.
My visit background:
Came to Alanya 4 years ago for honeymoon to my now wife’s apartment. Loved it and been back 10 times since (with her!). First few trips, we ate out pretty much every meal. Now we spend time as part of our routine getting supplies from Migros / Kipa / Metro. We also know our apartment neighbours much better (more on that later). Now that our (each of our) kids are in uni, we can spend more time in Alanya and for longer.
My business:
Internet-based consultancy. Phone and email service.
I’ve sussed the telephony:
I leave my all-singing, all dancing UK smart phone on charge back in London.
I divert this to a traveltalksim.com sim. This has a 0044 7XXX XXX XXX format.
I take the TravelTalk sim in an unburstable £10 Nokia brick that I’ve owned for ten years now to Turkey.
OK, so the customer calls me on the mobile number on my website. My UK phone diverts to the Nokia Brick in my pocket in Alanya. I pay nothing to receive and the enquirer or customer doesn’t know that I’m in Turkey because he/she hears a UK ringtone.
When I dial out from traveltalk sim, it cost me 25p per minute. I top it up by PayPal.
Yes, I know that Skype is 15p per min, but I’m not gonna take no laptop and headset to the beach, the mountains, shopping, gym, etc.
So, all in all, I got the telephony sussed on the cheap.
Now, to high-quality broadband that I can run a business from:
I’ve read the thread “Broadband access in Mahmutlar” and decided that I, too, will buy a Turkcell dongle. That’s 69TL. The apartment management company inform me that fibre-optic cable is coming, but it could be a year. That means two years in real life.
Here are my questions:
1. 69TL 5 months a year is a lot of money. How much does it cost to get a broadband and fixed line phone package wired permanently into the apartment? Turkcell or whoever? Anybody got one?
2. Anybody know who will rent me a car for a longer-time, say a 3-month contract at a goodly discount? I’ve looked at the cost of second-hand cars and they’re just silly.
3. I start climbing the walls if I don’t eat curry every few days. A few trips ago, I went to a UK Indian shop and got all the necessary spices to start cooking in Alanya.
Smells wafted and our Norwegian / Swedish / Danish / Russian neighbours knocked on my door.
Neigbours: “Khello, I am Swen Pedersen (or Peder Swensson) from apartment A6. and what is thees khevenly aroma?”
Me: “Carry, innit, direct from the East End mate”
Neighbours: “Oh! Where is these East End place? You khev address? I drive there now. I cam back, then you tich me.”
Me: “Bit far to drive. Never mind. Come in. Eat”
Phone calls are made. More neighbours turn up to watch, most come with wine.
Tables are laid. Everyone contributes plates, serving bowls and cutlery.
I end up doing food for 70 people in the open space by the pool.
A few trips later, we got so many return invitations that we didn't dine out one single evening in 8 days.
Pfft! Maybe the Israelis and Arabs should make curry in Palestine.
4 weekly curry nights later, the neighbours bring a Turkish restaurant owner in. He wants me to 'tich' him. I get chatting. Turns out he pays TL 110,000 annual rent on Ataturk Blv opposite Kleo beach for his 60-seater. I was shocked cos that’s London rates. How do they make money? The food is cheap, so it must be the booze paying the bills.
Now I start to think: Hell, I’m not doing much. The internet consultancy biz can take a back seat. Why don’t I just open up for myself? I done it enough years in the UK. Left because I hated the traditional regimented servility of the 80’s style curry house, but Alanya’s a lot more informal.
Questions to you:
Who out of you lot eat curry?
Who of you lot comes to Alanya in the winter?
My Turkish lawyer says I need a Turkish business partner. Uh oh. I hate partnerships. This scares me.
Who of you lot has a Turkish business partner?
Again, apologies for such a long post.
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