BY YAREN SAĞLIK (TRIN/IV)
Name: Nurmuhammet Satlykov
Department: MBG
Country of Origin: Turkmenistan
What do you like best about Turkey?
The best thing about Turkey is the cuisine. It’s enormous.
Are there any similarities between Turkey and your home country?
I think the thing that’s the most similar is the people. People are very friendly and kind in both countries.
What will you miss most about Bilkent/Turkey?
I believe I won’t miss Bilkent or Turkey. However, I think I’ll miss the friends I made over the course of four years.
What’s your favorite place on campus, and why?
My favorite place on campus is Skatepark and the nearest parking lot. It’s mostly empty, and I like to skate during my free time.
What’s your favorite Turkish food and/or favorite part of Turkish culture?
İskender kebap has a special place among my favorite dishes. It’s the first food I tried after coming to Turkey, and to me it’s the best one by far.
Where do you expect to see yourself 10 years from now?
I think I’ll be doing postdoctoral fellowship studies somewhere in the US, hopefully. However, if things get turned upside down, I might stop pursuing a career in academics and start playing video games for living (lol).
What’s the hardest challenge you’ve handled in Turkey?
I won’t call it the hardest, because I think I’ve never had any hard things to handle; however, the process of renting a house and moving into it was exhausting.
What cities have you visited in Turkey, and which one is your favorite?
I don’t remember the exact cities, but I’ve visited the Cappadocia region. I’m not much of a travel person if there’s no one to gear me up for it. So, I think Cappadocia is my favorite region in Turkey by far.
What’s an interesting question or comment you hear frequently about Bilkent/Turkey?
I think the most frequent questions I hear from a lot of my friends are “What’s wrong with Bilkent? Why are your professors so strict? Why Bilkent can’t function like other universities?” And my reply is “Because we’re the best university in Turkey, and we need discipline, which will help us to be an even better university and climb up the rankings.” And then I wake up, frightened.
Describe yourself in three words.
Funny, calm, adaptable.