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Lübnan'da da bir iki sene geçirmeyi, San Fransisco'da ve<br />
New York'ta da yaflamay›, ‹talya'ya kesinlikle geri dönmeyi,<br />
birkaç senemi Fransa'da geçirmeyi ve tabii ki en sonunda<br />
‹stanbul'a dönmeyi planl›yorum cevab› kimseye tatmin edici<br />
gelmiyor. Halbuki gerçek bu.<br />
Bu durum üzerinde çok düflündüm. Henüz ‹ngiltere'de master<br />
yapaca¤›m belli olmadan önce bu görünüflte maymun<br />
ifltahl›l›¤›m gelece¤im konusunda ad›m atmam›<br />
Around the world<br />
I went to college in the United States. I spent a semester of my junior year of<br />
college in Italy. Last summer I did an internship in Jordan and this year I am<br />
preparing to go to the United Kingdom for a master's degree. As a result of all<br />
of these choices, it is immensely difficult for me to make a decision as to where<br />
I want to spend the rest of my life. And for all that I blame my Koç education!<br />
It is a fact that what caused my dilemma is my Koç education. The first time<br />
I went abroad was when I went to Hungary with the Koç Elementary School<br />
choir. Following that, I attended many Model United Nations conferences in<br />
countries such as France, the Netherlands, and Egypt. I took part in showing<br />
Istanbul around to foreign students who visited Koç as a part of a CAS conference.<br />
In addition to my direct contact with countries abroad, thanks to my education<br />
at Koç, I got to know cultures other than mine. Whether it be through movies<br />
or through literature, Koç prepared me well to spend four years in the United<br />
States, a place to which I had not been before. For years I had been taught that<br />
I should be open minded and more importantly interested an curious to learn,<br />
I had absolutely no difficulty in leaving behind a familiar environment and<br />
starting my life in a new one. However, the ease with which I adapted made<br />
me even more curious to get to know other countries and other life styles, helped<br />
me learn five languages and gradually increased the number of cities I would<br />
like to live in.<br />
When I was in Italy I recorded a duet with an artists. In Jordan, while commuting<br />
to work with Iraqi, Somali and Sudanese refugees, I found myself discussing<br />
in Arabic the Turkish soap opera “Gümüfl” with taxi drivers. In Nashville in the<br />
US, I randomly ended up attending mass in a megachurch to hear a speech<br />
by Mike Huckabee, a politician whose views differ widely from mine. I had<br />
started to slowly understand what the Spanish speaking family was saying,<br />
during my stay with them in Ecuador and during all this, having difficulties<br />
was out of the question. Now, however, I know that I have friends, important<br />
pieces of my life, all around the world and I am clueless as to near which one<br />
I should go, or whether I should embark on a new journey and go somewhere<br />
completely foreign to me. I also know that I am not the only Koç graduate in<br />
zorlaflt›r›yordu. Fakat iyice düflündükten sonra bunun<br />
maymun ifltahl›l›k ya da karars›zl›l›k de¤il, tam tersine<br />
dünyadaki tüm ilginç fleyleri deneyimleme iste¤i oldu¤una<br />
kani oldum. Böyle bir iste¤in hayat›m› yönlendirmesi,<br />
yabanc›l›k hissinin ya da evinin bir yerde oldu¤u düflüncesinin<br />
yönlendirmesindense tercihimdir. Koç e¤itimim sayesinde<br />
bu istekleri gerçeklefltirmekten korkmad›¤›m ve üstüne üstlük<br />
ayn› yolu izleyen arkadafllar›m›n da ilginç hikayelerini<br />
dinleyebildi¤im için oldukça mutluyum.<br />
I plan to spend a couple of years in Lebanon,<br />
definitely live in San Francisco and New York,<br />
certainly go back to Italy, and spend a few years<br />
in France… And for all that I blame my<br />
Koç education!<br />
this very situation. When I speak to friends of mine, either classmates or older<br />
alumni, I hear their similar stories. I have yet to meet a Koç graduate who is<br />
discontent with having the world at their feet or one who does not take advantage<br />
of this situation.<br />
I think that the circumstances that have led me to indecision are a result of my<br />
Koç education. This indecision makes it impossible for me to answer to questions<br />
such as “What will you do after your master's degree?” or comments similar<br />
to “You surely won't come back to Turkey.” I can offer an “I want to go to Buenos<br />
Aires and learn Spanish” as an answer. Admitting that I plan to spend a couple<br />
years in Lebanon, definitely live in San Francisco and New York, certainly go<br />
back to Italy, and spend a few years in France does not suffice as a response.<br />
However, this is the truth.<br />
I have thought about this situation a lot. Before I had decided to get a master's<br />
degree in the UK, this condition of being greedy to do it all made it quite difficult<br />
for me to take a step forward in terms of my future plans. However, after giving<br />
it enough though, I realized that this isn't about being greedy or indecision, on<br />
the contrary, it is about wanting to experience all things interesting in the world.<br />
I prefer such a desire to lead my life, than a feeling of homesickness or difficulty<br />
in adapting. I'm quite pleased that I am able to actualize these whims, thanks<br />
to Koç, and also to hear similar stories from my friends.<br />
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