ERASMUS, an experience you should live
By Eduardo Eiora (ESI student – UCLM)
One of the advantages of being European is the freedom of movement between the countries that are part of the Union, which combined with the monetary unification under the euro and the standardization of English as a universal language create an immeasurable range of options. If you are European and you have the fortune to study at university, then you can choose to enjoy the Erasmus + scholarships. I did it during my studies at the Escuela Superior de Informática de Ciudad Real, and the experience was very rewarding.
The beginning was not easy; Without a doubt, the least attractive and tedious part of the experience was the bureaucratic process of validation, selection of subjects, credits, learning agreement, letters of acceptance and company. From here everything would go smoothly, or so I thought.
Personally, I had to face different situations that, initially, were not pleasant, but they contributed to my personal development. In September 2019 I landed in Krakow, Poland. The first days I lived in an environment in which I felt like an intruder; people acted differently, the food smelled strange and the maximum temperature was 15ºC. One of my first interactions in the city was with a shopkeeper who didn't speak a lick of English, I was trying to buy some beers and chips. When it was time to pay, I stared at those unknown coins and counted them one by one while the queue behind me grew longer (and visibly more annoyed at my clumsiness). I finally left the money on the counter, the cashier looked me in the eye, without speaking a word she counted the zloty, he put his share back in the box and handed the rest back to me.
A few days later, I stood up in the wrong class. It took me almost 15 minutes to figure it out, by which time I was obviously late for my class, but I raised my hand and asked for help. Not only did they tell me where to go, but they also walked me to the classroom.
Two things became clear:
1. Dummies exist everywhere.
2. We all like to be of help to those who need it and appreciate it.
As the months passed I discovered that in Poland the sun disappears at three in the afternoon in winter, the shops close at six in the evening and I also discovered that it was worthless to know how to ask: “How much is this worth?”, without knowing not even how to count to ten...
I was locked in an elevator at the university, which I got out of by repeatedly pressing the emergency button and answering “Nie mówię po polsku” (I don't speak Polish) to whatever they said to me. To which we must add that I ended up in a military hospital for a fish bone, while I was talking to the embassy on the phone to try to understand how Polish healthcare works.
I spent February 2020 in a deserted Venice due to COVID. I must be one of the few people who have seen the city with only a few dozen passersby. I visited Prague on a weekend with a bus trip that only cost €20, and accommodation cost €40. I met people from different cultures: Turks, Estonians, Lithuanians, Poles, French, Iranians... friendships that I classify, without fear of being wrong, as lifelong, and I also took away unique lessons and experiences.
The sum of all this has made the past fear of looking for a job abroad, today disappear and become something mundane.
Academically, my level of English improved, I learned as much as I needed from the subjects I was enrolled in. The teachers were always willing to help us and were fully aware that being an Erasmus student brings some difficulties. And the most important; I got rid of many social awkwardness and the fear of situations that were out of my control.
The classes were quite small with a couple of exceptions, and the subjects in general had fewer ECTS credits than at UCLM. It was not uncommon to take 3-credit subjects in which there was no final exam and the grade was based on practices + tests taken in class. The few ordinary exams that I had to take left a curious anecdote that is worth mentioning: Polish students attend ordinary exams dressed in suits. As you read it, dressed in a jacket, tie, shoes and suit pants, at least in the AGH in Krakow. I am not one to go in a tracksuit, I was wearing jeans and a sweater. It was quite out of tune with the bulk of the attendees, even so, the teachers did not give it any importance since they did not say anything to those of us who did not comply with the etiquette.
In short, from Poland I brought friends, knowledge and interests and a thousand anecdotes to tell. Luckily I forgot a suitcase full of doubts, fears and shame. The Erasmus experience broadened my goals, and made me understand that no matter how different cultures are, there is always someone to laugh with. In the end, in a world where limits are increasingly non-existent, the important thing is not to limit yourself.
