Erasmus Experience in Brest, France by Eva

Why did you choose to go to Brest, France?

I didn't know anything about Brest until a few months before I decided to apply to Erasmus and it was mainly because a friend of mine wanted to come here as well that I chose it. She didn't get it, but I decided to leave it as my first choice mainly because I wanted to experience something new. I'm the first from my uni who has come here and I'd also never been anywhere on the north of Europe so it was a nice chance to discover it, and it was also the fact that it's relatively close to the UK that I chose to come here. Also, it was the cheapest option.

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How long is the scholarship? How much money do you receive to help you with living costs?

It's been three months that I'm here and I still haven't had to ask my parents for any material help, which I'm really happy about, and I think the money I receive will keep me up until the end of my exchange time. I pay my room in the dorm 150€ which is not expensive at all when compared to other cities, and it leaves me enough money to even do a bit of shopping and travelling, which is great.

What is the student lifestyle like in Brest?

It is quite good. There are many students here, and young people in general. You can get student discounts on many things, such as cinema tickets, books, museums etc. Moreover, when you're a foreign student, I think the student life is even better because there are quite a few things organized especially for the foreigners. Also, if you want to do sports, you only have to pay 25€ once to use all the facilities (and there are many) whenever you want throughout the whole year (but if you want to do sailing or surfing you have to pay additional 20€).

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Would you recommend the city and the University of Brest to other students?

It depends on what you search for in a city. Brest is far from being the prettiest city in the world, but if that is not that important to you, you can have a great time. I would recommend it to people wanting to explore something not many people want or have the chance to explore. As for the University itself, it also depends on what you want, but in general I feel good studying here. The people are open, extremely nice and helpful and the courses are not too hard, but still require some work, which is a nice balance if you wish to learn your stuff and have fun outside the uni at the same time.

What is the food like?

I think French food might be one of my favourite things in the world. It's definitely not the cheapest, but it's very good. There are many crêperies, bakeries, and at some places you can even get meals late in the evening. I mainly eat at the resto U though, and I buy stuff in the supermarkets. Not really French, but as I said, it's not the cheapest food in the world. Still in the supermarkets you can find a lot of interesting things, and I think even the lowest quality French food is still better than normal quality food back where I live.

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Brest?

No, I was given a dorm application form while I was still in Croatia so I didn' have to look for anything else.

How much does it cost to live in Brest?

It depends on what you do. It was the cheapest option on the list I had, but it's still France which can be quite expensive. For example, the cheapest beer is around 2, 5€. Say you go out every three days, drink two beers - you make the count. Then you have to eat, (5€ every day + all the times you will go out for dinners or a kebab), go to the cinema and concerts (5€), travel, buy things like plates and spoons once you realize you need them...

Is the language easy to get to grips with? Are there language courses available at the University?

If you can communicate even a bit in French, it should be alright. People here are not the biggest fans of English, but they won't make you feel bad when they realize you're a stranger - I've always had nice experience when it came to communications problems. If you don't know French... well you'll get by, I know many people who barely speak a few words in French and they still have the time of their lives. It's only scary before you come here, once it begins you realize you only have to keep a smile and be open about it all.

What's the easiest or most economical way to travel to Brest from your city?

Coming to Brest is quite expensive. I went by train from Venice, Italy to Paris (cost me more than a 100€), and then from Paris to Brest by TGV. Usually the daily tickets Paris-Brest are around 60€ in one way, but you can find night trains for 30€ or even less (I recommend you take that whenever possible). If you can find cheap flights to Paris, that would be the best way to go to Paris or a nearby city.

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Where would you recommend to go on a night out in Brest?

There are many Irish bars which are really nice. There's this bar called Tara Inn where they play live Breton and Irish music every Monday and there's always a lot of people and everyone dances; it's one of my favourite places in the world. You have various other pubs to go for a drink or dance a little, but they all close at 1 a. m. If you want to go to a club afterwards, you'll have to pay around 10-14€; there's only one club (Arizona) which takes only 2€ for your coats but that means it's always overcrowded. The clubs aren't that good anyway, but it's ok to go there once with the whole crew just to see what it's like.

And for eating? Can you recommend some good restaurants in Brest?

There's a crêperie in the center at the Place de la Liberté where we often go. It's good and not too expensive. We don't usually go to other restaurants, mostly we just go for a kebab or sth like that (the best one's in the center as well).

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What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Brest was completely ruined during WWII so there aren't many historical sights. There's the castle/museum in the harbor which everbody says is really nice but I still haven't been there. There are nice churches, but if you really want nice city sights typical for Brittany, it's probably the best to go visit other towns and cities. Britanny is extremely beautiful and the towns are very special.

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Is there any other advice that you could give to students going to Brest in the future?

Just don't think about the negative stuff you hear, concentrate on all the stuff that you like and that's it. Hang out with people a lot (an unnecessary advice but there you go), go to parties and try to meet young French people, not just Erasmus or other exchange students. Calculate what you want to spend your money on, but don't let it limit you too much. Take every opportunity to travel (I'll be honest and say Brest is the least pretty place in Brittany so take those chances), try many different things at least once. And bring waterproof shoes!