Erasmus Experience in Ferrara, Italy by José Antonio

Why did you choose to go to Ferrara, Italy?

It was one of the Italian cities offered by my university. I chose 4 Italian destinations and one in the Czech Republic.

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How long was the grant for? How much financial aid did you receive?

It depends on the destination, each city has a different agreement with your university. For Ferrara, it lasted for six months.

I got €2, 520 over those six months.

What is the student lifestyle like in Ferrara?

It's really good, Italians are very serious about their studies. But at the end of the day, it depends on you, there are Erasmus students that take a lot of subjects and others who focus on other things (there's time to study and to have fun).

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

Absolutely. It's a medieval city, it has a lot of history and the architecture has been really well preserved (despite the earthquakes they have had there in the last few years). The people are friendly, if a bit reserved.

The university is pretty good. You're treated in a correct, friendly manner.

I studied in the architecture faculty, the atmosphere is really good there. The professors range between being friendly and nice to being apathetic and uncompromising with the foreign students.

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What is the food like there?

If you like pasta, you're going to like it there. They have all kinds, even strange kinds of pasta that I'd never seen before. They have lots of different kinds of breads and, more than anything, you'll eat a lot of vegetables.

Things like meats, cold meats, fish and cheese are a bit more expensive than they are in Spain. You'll do a lot of cooking with the oven (pizzas, vegetables, desserts, etc. ).

The things I ate most were pizza, pasta, rice and salad.

Was it difficult to find accommodation in Ferrara?

It's best to look for an apartment when you're there, so you won't have any surprises that could arise by booking online (bear in mind that you're going to spend 6 to 9 months in the house and it's best to find somewhere that you actually like).

I stayed in the Dársena residence for the first month. I spent this time looking for a house with Italians so I would be able to learn Italian.

The resources available to visit the houses were: the office that helps students find accommodation; making direct calls to advertisement on posters in the university and faculty; and a Facebook group of students from Ferrara who advertise free rooms in shared flats.

Before I chose the house I stayed in, I visited 9 places, but they were far away from my faculty and I wasn't taken with them.

My house was near to the city centre and to my faculty, on a cul-de-sac (so it was very quiet). I had a huge room (around 20 m²), I had the cheapest accommodation out of all of my friends there and I lived with two super friendly Italian students.

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How much does it cost to live in Ferrara?

I paid about €190 a month for rent.

On food, about €40-50 a week.

The WiFi bill was €19 every two months.

Water was €8 every two months.

Electricity was €140 for the whole stay.

Gas (for the heating) about €200 for the whole area.

€950 (accommodation) + €800 (food) + €50 (internet) + €25 (water) + €140 (electricity) + €200 (gas) = €2165 (for the whole 5 months).

I didn't have a rental contract, but the other people living there had been doing so for a long time and had a good relationship with the owners.

The last month was paid for with the deposit.

Remember that the expenses I gave do not include the first month I was there, as I stayed in the residence, which cost about €300 not including food).

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

I studied a bit of Italian on my own before I went. I didn't go on any Italian courses that the university put on, because the classes clashed with my classes at my faculty.

I knew a bit of basic Italian, but I began to be able to speak it by talking to my flatmates by chatting over coffee (because yes, you'll get used to drinking espressos).

One piece of advice to help you come back speaking Italian: go to Italian groups and try to speak it at all times (in the house, at your faculty, with your professors, with your friends).

Italian is very similar to Spanish, it's easy for us (Spanish people) to learn this language, but you have to pay special attention to the conjugation of verbs and words in the local dialect (every region and different cities speak dialects, each with their own words).

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

I travelled from Sevilla to Bologna for €54 with Ryanair. Then I took a train from Bologna to Ferrara for €4. 40.

Where would you recommend for a night out in Ferrara?

There aren't may options insofar as clubs are concerned, but there are some pubs and bars for aperitivi (aperitivo, having tapas at around 19:30).

Aperitivi: Archi Bolognes, Brindisi, Siciliano (close to the Duomo), Piazza Ariostea, Via de la Volta,....

Clubs: Colegge (really good), Archi Bolognes (alternative/hippie/underground/funky), Renfe (pretty shabby), there's one that is close to the train station with a terrace, which is really cool but I don't remember what it's called.

Piazza Ariostea, the city centre, Duomo (cathedral), flat parties (in winter), the city park (in summer), Piazza Castello (for concerts in summer), etc.

And to eat in Ferrara? What are some of your favourite places to go?

Going to aperitivos is the cheapest way to go out ot eat: Archi, Siciliano, centro, Via Manzini, Via Garivaldi, Piazza Ariostea, Via de la Volta, Via Carlo Myer, etc.

Eat in any of the pizza places that you'll find in the streets, my favourites are: Pizzeria Montebello, Sebastian (a restaurant on a boat on the river), Pizzeria da Pippo (Via della Paglia), La Brasiliana (Via Porta San Pietro).

There are also a lot of kebab places all over the city.

On my route home after a night out I would often stop at Piadinabus (piadinas are like sandwiches, which are rolled in a kind of tortilla) (Piazza del Travaglio), it's open until 5 in the morning.

There's a McDonald's near the Duomo in the city centre.

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What good cultural sites are there to visit?

The archaeological museum, the Casa Romei (one of the many palacial houses in the city), Il Castello (there's a castle in the centre of the city), Le Mura Di Ferrara (there's a medieval wall around the city, it's great for running along or riding around on a bike), the Hebrew cemetery, everything in the city centre is wonderful (Duomo, Castello, Piazza Municipale, Palazio di Diamanti, etc. ).

You can also visit the neighbouring cities (going by train is a good option): Bologna, Florence, Padova, Venice, Ravenna, Verona, Modena, Milan, etc.

Do you have any advice for future students in Ferrara?

Don't reject the scholarship, take advantage of it to have a great experience.

Get informed about how things work before you visit somewhere new.

If you have the opportunity, work before you go for some extra money. In my case I worked for two months before leaving, so I was able to enjoy the extra money to travel and to be able to live more comfortably.