These are the problems I have at the moment:
First of all money, of course!
The apartment I share has 3 bedrooms.
My ev sahibi, Margaret has one, her mother, Bernadette has another and I have the third.
Although the situation is MUCH better now the crazy Irish cousin, Christine has moved out, my arrangement with Margaret is that I don’t pay rent but get beer and cigarettes for her every day.
This costs me about £70.00 (200 Lira) every week. This is still a VERY good deal askim because rents in London are fantastically high. In another house like this, I would be paying double this money and here, I get my clothes washed and I have become like part of the family, which is nice.
I don’t drink now myself. It’s too expensive and when I drink, it’s usually too much anyway. Better to just stop. I had a little problem with my blood test and the doctor says a few beers only every week, no vodka for now.
I take 150 Lira from the government every week but I spend all of this on food etc.
The other money I get is from Jim for my time in the office but its unofficial, not much and nothing that the consular in Ankara will impressed with unfortunately.
When I take the driving licence, I can expect to earn 1000 Lira each week.
I must pay for insurance: 80 Lira
Petrol: 200 Lira
Margaret: 200 Lira
If I have 500 Lira each week left over, this will be very good.
BUT, I must pay back my mum for the car: 1000 Lira.
I must pay back your mum for our borrowing: 2000 Lira.
The Settlement Visa will cost 1500 Lira.
AND there is another thing. The notes on the Consular web site say that I must provide a home for both of us with NOBODY else living there.
This means that I might have to find another apartment before you can apply for the visa.
Sometimes you can find something cheap through contact with friends but if I went out tomorrow and looked for somewhere for us, I would have to pay 2 or 3 months deposit which could be as much as 4000 – 5000 Lira. And that is only to move in!
I can lie about the apartment and take the risk they don’t check but the money coming into the bank at the moment is simply not enough to support both of us in London. This is the main problem.
Obviously I am thinking of all these things every day. I will see an immigration advokat next week and ask if we have a chance the way things are at the moment.
As you can imagine, it all leaves me a little depressed!
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