Erasmus Experience in Córdoba, Spain by Indre

Why did you choose to go to Córdoba, Spain?

Because I thought that Spain is a beautiful country. I thought that our program will be in English language, so there will be no problems in learning anything here.

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

I received 500 euros/per month for 5 months.

What is the student lifestyle like in Córdoba?

For an Erasmus student there is few things that I would like to mark:

1. The heat is horrible and there are many classrooms without air conditioner, which is awful. I had a heatstroke and I couldn't attend classes for a week.
2. Prices here are good and there are many shops where we can buy the things that we need for our life here in Cordoba.
3. There is a lack of things to do here, because as a University student I like to spend my free time in concerts or galleries or workshops of some kind, but here we were unable to find that (maybe it's due to the fact that we do not understand Spanish, I am not sure).
4. We found cockroaches here, which was extremely unpleasant but very funny.
5. There is no empathy and a lot of ignorance from some teachers here, which was very disappointing. One teacher told us more than three times to go home, because we did not understand Spanish, it was very insulting. Another teacher told us that we will get zero from her classwork, because we haven't been attending it (although when we started attending her lectures we told her that we have French at that time and that we would not be able to come and she understood it, but now she told us differently like we had no agreement) and when we asked her to get extra work she said that it was our problem although it is written in her moodle platform that for students like us she can give extra tests...
6. The staff in the cafeteria does not speak English, so we cannot order food properly, which is a problem.
7. What it is taught and what it is expected from a student to write on the exam are two completely different things. I had no idea of what I would have to write.
8. Even if you answer a question here you get zero, because you did not write useless information that is not related to the question. It doesn't matter that you answered it correctly. You have to write as much as you can, while you can write total nonsense and you will get a better mark (checked it personally), which is terribly disappointing.
9. There are few teachers here that are brilliant and interesting, I would like to take them to my country, but the system here is disappointing and the teachers that keep saying every single day "why did you not come to class today? " are killing me, this is not school and every time I feel bad. I do not feel the need to explain myself, I am a grown-up.
10. Other then the things I have just explained, there are very nice things here as well, for example the young staff here is very friendly (Erasmus coordinators) and helpful, they even helped us find a place to stay and explained us everything, therefore, we have a wonderful apartment (Thank you! ). The secretaries are very sweet women, I love the big library and the usage of books here (we mostly use computers in our University) and the librarians (of course! ).

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

I am sorry, but no. Unless they could only attend to "Últimas Literaturas de América y Africa or Historia de la lengua Inglesa", because other than these two lectures I find it a horrible experience. Being all the time humiliated and insulted, ignored and feeling worthless is what came of the studies in the University of Cordoba. It's not the feeling you want to bring home.

The city is lovely and most of the people we met here are great (Erasmus and Spanish students, some lovely teachers, some nice strangers), but it is only great exparience when you do not need to enrol in the University.

What is the food like?

I love food, especially fruits here! Amazing, such taste and smell, it feels as if they are full of everything, just mind-blowing. Vegetables and juice are terrific as well. Cheese and Jamon are both very tasty, oh, well, and wine is just something to die for. Other than that, I have a weak stomach for sea-food so I did not try it (Paella is still on the list), but maybe before I go back home I will try something extreme. I did try salmon here and it was great especially with lemon and orange juice on top of it, yummy!

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Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Córdoba?

No, we found accommodation for free, although we got help from the University, we did not need to pay anything, they were very nice students.

How much does it cost to live in Córdoba?

Not much, it would cost a lot more to live in our country, in a flat/apartment, everything here has very decent, tolerable prices.

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

Yes, I would say that it is easy to understand, maybe more difficult to speak. We had Spanish classes, but they suddenly ended, without any notice. We were told to do a test and when we came back after the holidays, there were no Spanish classes anymore. I'm not sure why, because I enjoyed them.

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

It would probably be by plane, double flight, because the direct flight cost very much, therefore we had to travel by two different planes.

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

That's the problem, I do not know. There is not much nightlife here, while in our country there are various concerts or workshops, here we couldn't find much. There was a very nice rock bar, kind of old-fashioned, but had good music and also this wine bar that we enjoyed with homemade wines that tasted fantastic, but other than some clubs, we couldn't find as much live music or some shows as we have expected. I did find some free yoga courses that I wanted to go, but they were Spanish.

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

"Red Onion" for long nights of studying, then there is a nice and cheap place (somewhere here Alcalde de la cruz ceballos) and some more, but we were mostly cooking our food, so I would say that you should just make your own salad and go to eat outside.

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What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Roman bridge at night is wonderful, square of Seneca, Zoo of Cordoba, Alley of Flowers, The Almodovar Gate and Cairuan street.

Is there any other advice that you could give to future students who are going to Córdoba?

Learn Spanish, prepare for war and believe in yourself, you can do it, even if no one else does here.