Erasmus Survival Guide - part 2/2

Memory lane

As i am watching the 2016 Rio Olimpic Games and cheering for Usain Bolt in the 100 meters final i felt into a path of memory lane and all of the sudden i remembered how it all started for me, the traveling, the Erasmus experiences, the friends i have made, the challenges and the moment in where i am now. Days, months and years have passed so fast, i remember i was 19 like yesterday when i started the journey of my life and now i am 27 and i am about to complete my final Erasmus experience, last one month left and all this adventure will end for good. No more university exchanges, no more internships, none of this. What will be after this? This is a question which i often ask myself lately.

How can i transition from Erasmus life into the real world?! Do i need a guide for learning how to do it or just simply follow the path, i know after studies is life goes ordinary and all the roads look the same, graduate, get a job, start a family. But is this what i really want or should i just keep on traveling some more. The only thing i did not experience in my university years is Work and Travel USA, this is the only thing that had slipped my fingers, don't get me wrong i applied for the last 3 years but it was always Erasmus getting in the way. Maybe this is the only last thing i have to do so i can cross the line once and for all!

More tips

But more about this later now as i reminiscing my past and future i gather more tips from my Erasmus experiences around the world, i also got a snap of my friend and Erasmus student Olghaz who is now doing his internship in Elazig same as me. As i told you in the first part i interviewed him about this topic so i can share for you guys the best tips and ideas so you are prepared for the Erasmus life.

So once again i appreciate the help and support and providing me some ideas for this particularly post. Olghaz is from Kazakhstan and he is a Electrical Engineering student in Riga.

Enough talking let's get it started, shall we?!

1. Always have your Embassy contact information saved

One thing i realized recently that is extremely important to have all the contact from your closest Embassy abroad, you never know lately what and where can a tragedy strike and this is the the most important person you can contact in case of emergency.

Olzhas he arrived to Turkey exactly in the moment of the bombing in the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, he was telling me that his plane landed and he was in the passport control area the moment that the bomb and the gunfire started. Just if he arrived 5 minutes earlier he would have been stuck in the middle of the chaos.

There is not a day without me reading the news and see another attack somewhere, so make sure you have the contact details saved in your phone and in case of emergency call that number because this is their job to help you and provide for you safety and all you need. Also of you plan to go with Erasmus in a country which was recently involved in terrorism make sure you let the Embassy know you are there and will stay for the period mentioned.

2. Keep yourself updated with the latest news

I always have an app on my phone with the BBC news which is the first thing i check every morning after i wake up. The fact that in our Erasmus apartments in Elazig we did not had TV in that time this is how i kept myself informed with the latest news. One month ago i experiences in person the 15th July coup attempt in Turkey and this app was extremely helpful, i was checking every minute for news and kept me safe in that night of terror.

3. Try not to travel in countries with high risk of attacks

Seriously now i don't even know which countries are safe anymore and who knows before going there that in the future something will happen or no. I did not knew that i will be coming to Turkey and so many attack recently and a major coup will happen. Of course i did not know, but how can i prevent this? Absolutely i cannot but what i can do is get informed about a country before traveling to it, there is the minister of external relations website where i always check the conditions and news about a country. You will find the latest information and if you can or cannot travel there. For example if i check now about Turkey they will say i cannot travel and if i am already here try to stay in the city i am do not travel or visit public places.

This is the world in which we are living now, nowhere is safe so i don't know what will be the future of Erasmus with so many bad things happening lately.

4. Respect the tradition and the culture

Another thing i learn lately was this, i mean i always knew how to behave in other countries especially if they are Muslim or very different from my home country but i guess i didn't realized until i came to this part of Turkey where everything and everybody seems so conservator and so in touch with their traditions. For example i knew that i cannot dress very indecent meaning no short pants and other clothing that will distract the people but during the Ramadan this year which happened for a whole month from June to July i learn something that is very important not for you but for other people to respect their customs and culture.

As an example during the Ramadan i was outside i guess going for shopping and weather as always it was around 37-40 degrees and for those who don't know during the feast, Muslim people they don't eat or drink nothing from the sunrise to sunset even if it's hot like hell. But i was outside and sun was so hot i got a bottle of water and started drinking in the street, all of the sudden people were staring at me like oh my God what i did, then i realized this people of course are hungry and thirsty but i cannot walk in front of them with the water, it's all about respect. So i did not do it after that, i drank when i arrived home.

5. Try the local cuisine

Always try the local cuisine even if you are picky as me and you don't eat many things. For sure you will find something that you can eat and is very important to do so, get out of your comfort zone for once and try to adapt to the country you are in. You will not regret it and maybe you will discover something you will like. For example in Malta i discovered their amazing bakery products which i became obsessed with, the chicken pie was amazing and i was eating it every day or in Turkey i ate for the first time in my life beef inside of a Lahmacun which is a traditional Turkish dish, at first i hated it but after i found myself craving for it and i ate this many times. So if i can do it for sure you can also, give it a try!

Turkish backlava

In Georgia eating Turkish food, even if was not so good we still give it a try.

6. Don't sit home all day

My best friend, during the Portugal Erasmus exchange, she was sitting all day inside watching her serials and in very rare cases she agreed to go out or some activity. I mean i understand i also have serials and movies i always watch and make a priority about this but whenever i am in another country i always want to be outside visit and discover places. Even if i am not a very social person or i am not a clubber i still pushed myself sometimes to attend parties and events, even if it was for an hour or so. My point is that it can be the only chance in trying to meet somebody and make friends, so absolutely go out and enjoy your time.

7. Keep in touch with the friends you have made.

You never know when you may need their help or viceversa. Many times it was so helpful for me to keep in touch with my Erasmus friends, either i needed an advise or help they always came throw and helped me with everything. I think you can make friends for a lifetime and why not after go visit them on holidays or without any reason.

I cannot tell you i have many friends but the ones i have are just from Erasmus experiences and they are the best, better than my hometown friends, so take my advise from the previous tip and don't stay at home all day and go make some friends.

From left to right Ariana from Italy, myself, Peter from Romania, my boyfriend Muhammet from Turkey and Cristina from Portugal. Muhammet was my best friend and now he is my boyfriend so things can happen in Erasmus, you never know!

8. Learn about yourself

This tip i think is the most precious you can get from this type of experiences. I can just tell you about myself how i was before started traveling with Erasmus. I was not to social, not so much outgoing and definitely not to open to new things, but there was only one thing i knew i wanted to go and that was travel the world. Once i did that this became my major hobby and with this all the other things came naturally and i did not try hard at all. Plus this experiences can teach you so many things about yourself you will be amazed, i was for sure troubled before but seeing so many cultures and customs i started to open my mind more and take any advise i can and apply it on myself.

In conclusion

For sure you can get a lot more tips of you just google it but in this two part posts i really wanted to tell you guys more about my experiences and add them as an example for the tips i provided. If only one person gets inspired or follow my tips it would make a difference for sure. People tell me often i am so good in giving advises but i realized how bad i am in applying my own advises to me, this is challenge i am working with everyday so always keep on working on yourselves and learn something everyday.

Stay safe!

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