The travelling side of my Erasmus experience

Among the expectations of an international student in general, and of an Erasmus student in particular, is to travel quite a lot. Being in a new country, meeting a new culture and making friends from almost every part of the world comes along with the desire to explore as much of new places around you as possible.

Traveling is high on my priorities when going abroad, but I did not take this aspect into consideration when I chose Greece. I was really lucky. My Erasmus was in Athens, Greece, filled with a lot of sun, warmth and good people. There are more Erasmus students who say that they meet reverse cultural shock than those who meet the cultural one. I could NOT believe that the same was with me. I’m back to my home country for already 1 month and wish to go back again.

My studies were in Athens University of Economics and Business. All students have a possibility to have breakfast, lunch and dinner for free in the university’s canteen. The food was tasty, and the people working there took care for us. First days in Greece were not hard for me, because I was living in the house of a friend's family and they told me about a lot of things in Greece. But after 10 days I moved to my apartment in the city center, in a nice neighborhood, near the metro station and my university. The first thing I liked in Athens was the tasty food, especially gyros/souvlaki and coffee/Frappe.

During my stay in Athens I enjoyed the city, visited museums and a lot of beautiful streets, filled with the smell of fresh-baked sweets and cakes, lots of ice-cream shops and restaurants with a magic atmosphere.

I got my Student ID from the department of my studies: Business Administration. The Student ID is giving all students, both Greek and International, free entrances to the museums and also 50% discount on all kinds of tickets.

Transportation in Athens was quite good. And soon all the Erasmus students here in Athens, myself included, started to plan some trips by buses, ferries and planes to visit the cities and the islands around.

The first visit with the ID was to the Acropolis of Athens, which is probably the most famous and most visited monument in the world from the Antiquity times. It is the symbol of Athens and is the most famous landmark in the city. For students, the entrance of both the museum and Parthenon is free. From the Acropolis it was seen the city all covered in white and at the same time with the warm orange color of the sun. But apart from Parthenon there is another point in the city: the highest hill named Lycabettus. It is hard to climb because of the hot climate, but it is worth going there.

On the other hand, regarding with my student life, it was quite cool too because the ESN of the AUEB organized lots of events and activities designed for the Erasmus students. For example, one of the activities we performed was the “Walk the dogs” event. We, as students, had to choose a dog from the animal shelter and walk, play or relax with them. Quite an experience.

So… Let’s go to the big trips!

• Rhodes:

Personally, I decided to start with Rhodes, the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of land area and also the island group’s historical capital. It is a very beautiful and calm island, the people are very warm and hospitable. I was staying at a small room-house on the 1st floor. The door was wooden and one morning I found out that the door was not locked the whole night, so it was the safest place in Greece, I guess. Besides, Rhodes is very far from Athens, so I chose flying with Ryanair: the cheapest way to fly inside Europe.

From the highest point of the island was seen Turkey so there were a lot of Turks living or just visiting the island. Rhodes has a lot of historical places to visit, museums, beautiful landscapes and beaches. There were also many shopping streets, from where people can get real Greek souvenirs.

Truth be told, Rhodes has very nice scenery, but its strength lies in its calmness. You could sit and watch this for hours. Rhodes was a real fairy tale.



• Meteora:

Next in line was Meteora. Serene, spiritual, magical, mystical, extraordinary, breathtaking, immense, inspiring, impressive. These are only some of the words people very often use in an effort to describe the Meteora phenomenon. And I agree with them. Everybody needs to see this beauty for once in their lives.

Travelling to Meteora means a 6-7 hour bus ride for the people living in Athens, but I have to admit that the charm of this place is worth it.



• Mykonos:

Next on my list is Mykonos. First, want to talk about the people. After the plane’s landing the housekeeper of the hostel came to take me and my friends to the hostel, which was far from the city center. When she saw us, she offered us to stay in her house located inside the city with the same price, but with a big difference between the hostel and this house. What can I say about the 2-floor house? Per-fect! We even had a great balcony!

So I started my day at Mykonos from sightseeing. The first place I went was Little Venice, I heard a lot about it. Near the beach I also saw Chora windmills: the windmills are a defining feature of the Mykonian landscape.

The next step was seeing the famous Pelican of Mykonos. The Pelican called Petros is an integral part of the island of Mykonos and rightfully it has become the mascot of the island. I have met him too!

Mykonos is also famous for its clean beaches. The whole town looked much alike, the white and blue colors all over the doors and windows. But as an addition to the city, people living there are very creative and cheerful, in my opinion.

To sum up, Mykonos is a perfect island for a good holiday, but not for the summer months: there are a lot of tourists in Mykonos from May to August. Anyway, if going, just don’t forget to sit near Little Venice and look at the sunset.

One of the first things students think when they go to study abroad is to go and travel around countries near the one you are visiting. Well, one of the things I decided to do since I got to be in Greece was to visit Italy, because I always wanted to see the beautiful Rome and Vatican. I took a Ryanair plane again. For your information, Ryanair has a contract with Erasmus, so Erasmus students have a discount on tickets.

• Italy:

The first thing I saw near the airport was a street sign "Str. L. da Vinci". You know you are in Italy, when you see Da Vinci everywhere around. The airport was far from Rome, in Ciampino city. So I took a bus from the airport to the city center of Rome.

On the first day I had lunch in a beautiful street somewhere in Rome and I also tried my first real Italian pizza. I realized that Rome is a place for everybody and that it is an open-air museum because of the picturesque buildings and sculptures are everywhere. It's a city so full with landmarks and monuments it’s often impossible to know where to start. Nevertheless, because the city is famous for its historic monuments, I would say these are the true places to start exploring.

What was good about Rome, was that the metro stations were very close to each other and also the bus stops. So the sightseeing in the city was very easy. But I recommend walking just for 2 reasons. First you’ll discover the true Rome by getting lost in the back streets away from these icons. And the good thing is that I saw locals rather than the thousands of tourists. The second reason to walk is to make up for all the delicious Pizza, pasta and Panini you undoubtedly consume during your time in Rome, not even talking about Gelato.

Summing up, I would encourage you to start your journey in Rome from The Coliseum, Fontane di Roma, Vatican and Museums, after that, the city will be opening to you.

My Mykonos and Italy trips were during Easter holidays, so straight after Italy I started my studies. I enjoyed them, because they were more practical than theoretical. But at that point, my main trips by plane had ended. However, I was looking forward to visiting the islands of Greece and enjoying Athens.

• Athens:

Athens was great in April and May, but the summer months were very hot and sunny. Athens is famous for its white buildings and the innumerable graffities on them. You can get to all the main sites on your own, but if you have a limited amount of time and want to see everything in one day, book a tour! But as I was in Athens for around 6 months, I had an opportunity to visit the places worth seeing. I had an absolutely amazing experience and I’d 100% do it again in a heartbeat. I cannot recommend it enough!

The Next experience in Athens was the celebration of my 20th birthday. Greeks are known for their tasty food and sweets, so on my birthday I tried real Greek dessert: “loukoumádes”, a special kind of one-bite fried dough glazed with honey.

But before my birthday, I visited the island Aegina, which is not far from Athens. This was my first trip by ferry. It took 2 hours to get there, and was a very big ferry.

• Aegina:

I am excited to introduce you to the magic Aegina! The first thing I thought about the island is that it still looks very Greek and not spoiled by mass tourism. And I'll give you a piece of advice, if you are traveling to Athens, don’t forget to visit this island, you won’t regret. In my opinion it is a good mixture of Greek islands, where you can find everything and warm and kind people around.

After I got to the port, there were lots of people offering pistachios from Aegina. The funny part was that I had my breakfast for free: all the way around people offering a free trial of sweets and butters made of pistachio, not forgetting about salty and creamy pistachios.

The next step was going to the island’s Acropolis. I expected to see a big and beautiful landscape like in Athens, but I was wrong. There were only 3 or 4 stones left from the building. Whatever, the scenery from the Acropolis was something perfect. A perfect day trip!

There is a quote that I liked for a long time: "Some journeys in life can only be traveled alone". Having this idea on my mind I wanted to have the experience of travelling alone, and I did it! My solo travel was to Hydra, another amazing island not so far from Athens.

• Hydra:

For this time the ferry was superfast. I got there at 9 AM, in 40 minutes. Comparing to Aegina, which is closer to Athens, it was too fast and I even felt sick. But my mood was on its high point when I got to the port. Moreover, I found a mesmerizing view!

I spent 12 hours on this beautiful island and I did everything to bring the beauty and calmness to Athens with me. Actually, Hydra is not a big island.

Hydra was not less picturesque compared to Aegina when talking about its nature. Besides, it has good scenery of the main town near the port. And in my opinion, Hydra was a way better place for a good holiday.

During these 12 hours I met a lot of Greeks who could not understand English. In the university as a 5th course I chose Greek language, so my knowledge in Greek was basic, but still, we could communicate.

The Island is a very entertaining place, so when going there, it’s better to be with friends, and don’t forget your swimwear: the water is always very clean and warm.

I will always keep the magic of Hydra in my Heart and one day I will definitely visit it again!

After my exams ended, I enjoyed my last days in Athens by just going to the beach every day. If you’re interested what beach to go, I’ll definitely say Kalamaki beach to go with family, friends or even alone, water is always warm, sometimes even hot.

Greece: I hope to visit you soon and be sure that I will miss you a lot!