BY NAUSHERWAN AZIZ (MAN/II)
Name: Arba Hoxha
Department: CS/III
Country of Origin: Albania
What do you like best about Turkey?
The thing I like best about Turkey is the hospitality of Turkish people, the way they welcome others into their community.
Are there any similarities between Turkey and your home country?
There are many similarities between Turkey and Albania, starting from the mind-set of people toward our culture. Our cultural similarities involve some particular traditional foods and many words that are same in both languages. Also, related to what I mentioned before, one of the main resemblances is people’s hospitality, the warmth and welcome both countries give to any foreigner.
What will you miss most about Bilkent/Turkey?
I think that after I graduate, I’ll miss everything related to Bilkent, even the tiring assignments and the never-ending midterms.
What’s your favorite place on campus, and why?
My favorite place on campus is the grass area in front of Dorm 76. That was the first thing that impressed me when I came to Bilkent for the first time, and I had only one thought: “Yeah, this will be my special place.”
What’s your favorite Turkish food and/or favorite part of Turkish culture?
Turkish food and Albanian food are quite similar to each other, but our fast foods are completely different from the Turkish ones. That’s one of the things that I miss most from my country, although during my first year I started liking lahmacun, dürüm and İskender.
Where do you expect to see yourself 10 years from now?
I expect to see myself working in different parts of the world on diverse projects related to technology and at the same time doing volunteer work such as teaching in elementary schools or helping different communities.
What’s the hardest challenge you’ve handled in Turkey?
The hardest one was coming to terms with my choice of department – trying to understand whether it was actually something I wanted to do and whether I was capable of doing it.
What cities have you visited in Turkey, and which one is your favorite?
I’ve been to İstanbul and Bursa; my favorite is İstanbul. I think that it’s one of the most beautiful cities in the world and a must-see for everyone.
Do you have any hidden talents?
Dancing has always been a huge part of my life, but I can’t consider that a hidden talent. I guess my hidden talents are for writing and drawing.
What’s an interesting question or comment you hear frequently at Bilkent/in Turkey?
Mostly I’ve heard, “Oh, you’re not Turkish?” and “How did you learn to speak/understand Turkish?” After hearing these comments and questions many times, I started to get the feeling that I really did look like a Turkish person. 🙂
Describe yourself in three words.
Rebel, energetic, optimistic.
If you could master any skill, which one would you choose, and why?
I would definitely choose language learning. It would be great to be able to communicate with other people in their own language and at the same time it would be easier to travel around the world if you could master the art of learning any kind of language.