Erasmus Experience in Firenze, Italy by Sasquashe

Why did you choose to go to Florence, Italy?

I went to Italy to study art(that was in first place a suggestion of my mom), so I choose Florence because I thought it was one of the best options, and it was. Mainly referring to all the art pieces the street, the museums, the architecture in general... and because I found the school via internet.

What is the student lifestyle like in Florence?

Student lifestyle in Florence is very nice, and way more cheap than the tourist one. More than other transports, you walk to all the places but Florence is not that big and it's easy to walk. Lot of museums can help you with the study. Few places (in my case it was the art store) have student discounts (with a student card).. Of course everything with friends is enjoyable. And there are different houses of change, surrounding the center and banks.

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

Yes, I would recommend it. There are lots of experiences which can help other students in the future, specially if they come from a big city, the lifestyle is different, and they can learn much things... enjoy the culture and landscapes...

Particular for art and architecture students, I consider is one of the best options to have.

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What is the food like?

I would say the food is delicious all over the world, haha, but particularly in Italy and more european cities, the best part of the food, are the deserts. Talking about Florence, I wouldn't say there's nothing unknown about dishes from the rest of the world but everything tastes good. What I ate most, was the panini, a court of sandwich with different ingredients. Oh! and the ice creams.

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Florence?

No, Florence has lots of accommodations for students near the center of the city and in the outsides, of course the more far you are from the center, the more cheap it is. I lived in a student department with a single room. But there are many options of it, you can have a department with other students of the same school and a single room or a shared one, you can live single in an entire department or share with other students of other schools as well.

How much does it cost to live in Florence?

Depending on where are you from, the european lifestyle can be cheaper or expensive, there are many types of restaurants to go and the prices are variable, I didn't spend much money on food wether supermarket or eating outside. Although Florence is a very touristic place and of course, many stores and attractions cost lot of money for students. It's all about searching the right stores and look for student discounts.

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

Being a touristic city, Florence has lot of people speaking in different languages, specially english, spanish, japanese and obviously italian. In both schools, where I went and an other on a which mine has an agreement with, are italian courses in different levels. I communicated with the people mostly in english and italian.

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

I traveled from Mexico city, so the easiest way to get there, is by plane. And the best option we found is from Mexico city to Rome and from Rome to Florence with the airline Alitalia, which is very economic and nice.

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Lucca, Chianti and Cinque Terre are the best options I can think. Lucia has the two options of a modern town and an old medieval town divided by a wall, Chianti is the classy Tuscany landscape, quiet and peaceful and Cinque Terre is a marine port with five united towns.

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

The weather, haha, Traveled from the last days of September to the first of November and I got the chance of the heat summer and the cold of October, but in general it was fresh and sunny and you walk a lot so... to have comfortable clothing and shoes with some sunglasses and a good sweater is all you need. And for the ladies, beware of some italian guys in the streets.. they are very flirty.