Now I'm an Erasmus student in Ghent

Arriving at the halls of residence

When I arrived at University of Ghent office to pick up my room key, I finally knew which halls of residence I was going to be staying in. Given that it was the first flat, I thought I would be on the first floor, but actually, it was on the ground floor. I could literally shake hands with passers-by (if anyone walked by) from my window. Right in front of my window there are little houses, and that's the view I get.

The room

The room is big enough and it has everything you need. In fact, it seems a lot bigger than what I had initially expected. All the rooms are the same: when you go inside there's a small entrance, on one side you have the bathroom and when you go inside the door you find the bedroom itself. In the entrance there's a small fridge, which is very useful even if it doesn't have a freezer. In terms of the bathroom, it's not that it's very wide, but it's more than big enough and it has a sink, a toilet, a shower and a mirror over the sink. Going through to the bedroom, it comes equipped with a bed (a pillow, sheets and blankets are also included), a wardrobe, a bedside table with drawers, two shelves, and really large desk, two seats and a phone.

Image of part of the room with the bedding it came with

The bathroom

Does it really have everything I'm going to need for my stay in Ghent? To be honest it's not bad, but I recommend at least buying a good duvet to warm yourself up and a few hangers to hang your clothes in the wardrobe (there wasn't even one hanger for me). In addition, it's a good idea to get some more bed sheets so you can change your bedding from time to time and have one set as a spare. Ah! Don't forget to buy toilet roll, because I'm afraid you won't find any in the bathroom.

The kitchen

In terms of the kitchen, it's shared with the rest of the students on your floor. The kitchen is quite big, it has a couple of tables and twelve chairs and it's equipped with four fridges, two ovens and a microwave. Here, there are also some cupboards where everyone can put their things; every student gets two lockers, a big one and a smaller one, and you can only open it by introducing the code you receive upon arrival.

The kitchen

What's the bad news? In the kitchen you won't find any cooking utensils! You have to buy cutlery, a frying pan, a saucepan, a couple of plates and glasses or mugs... Of course, don't forget to put yourself up some Tupperware food, because it'll save your life if you come home from university one day and you find that you have food already made. You can buy all these things in Ikea, which is a little out of the city centre as I mentioned in another post of mine, but it only takes fifteen minutes to get there by tram (line 1). Another possible option is the buy all these things from the store called Hema, which is right in Korenmarkt, but the truth is you can find more things and for much cheaper in Ikea.

In any case, don't worry too much: sometimes students from previous years leave their old belongings in the kitchen cupboards, so if you're one of the first to arrive, you might be lucky and "inherit" a frying pan or a mug.

The cleaning

There are cleaning staff who come to clean the communal areas and the kitchen from Monday to Friday, but as you can imagine, they don't clean your room, or the utensils people use in the kitchen.

The Internet at the residence

There are different halls of residence in Ghent and a lot of them have free Wi-Fi, as is the case in the residence "Plato". However, I'm in a residence at the University of Ghent, I only have access to Wi-Fi in the common areas in the Canterbury residence (at least in the area of Kattenberg). To connect to it you have to key in your username and password and voila! The bad thing is that the common room closes at 11 at night and it's usually full of people, but it's true that the Wi-Fi works quite well. In any case, having access to the Internet is a good enough reason to put "Home Canterbury" as your first option when you're filling out the form and have to specify the order of preferences for the different residences which are offered by the UGent.

In terms of having access to the Internet in your room, it's only possible to have wired Internet, therefore I recommend you bringing a wire from home. It can be a bit tedious to get access, but honestly if you follow the instructions on the website step by step, a miracle will finally happen. It's necessary to go onto this page and download the VPN software from there. After that you'll have to restart your computer. Once you've restarted it, you'll see the VPN icon on the desktop bar, on the right: when clicking on it, it will ask you for your username and password, which you will be given when you register with the university. A piece of cake!

Registering, university card and residence card for students

One of the first things you have to do when you get to Ghent is register in the UFO, the university office. In this place, at 33 Sint-Pietersnieuw street, they'll give you your Ghent University student card. For that, you have to take your "Invitation Letter" from the university and your ID with you. Also, you can leave your "Certificate of Arrival" there, which must be collected a week later from the International Relations Office (IRO), in Het Pand, Onderbergen 1.

In case you want to sign up to a language course in the Language Centre at the UGent, you can also do that at the UFO... Sign up to the Dutch course for Erasmus students, it only costs 50 euros!

Another important matter is getting your residence card for students. Is it necessary to go to the Migration Office? For the moment, I have sent my details and a photocopy of my ID to the Migration Office and I'm still waiting for them to reply and to give me an appointment to go and collect it. You can find all the relative information about this here.

Applying for your ESN Card

Of course, if you want to make the most of your Erasmus experience, you have to get your ESN Card. You have to pay 10 euros to get your card and you can do it during one of the "Welcome Days" at the university. With this card, not only will you be able to enjoy discounts in restaurants and shops, but you'll also have special opportunities to share with other Erasmus students, like travelling to other cities at cheaper prices, participating in different tours and activities around the city and going to events organised for students.

In addition, the Ryanair airline has made a deal with the Erasmus Student Network organisation and offers a 15% discount on eight single flights (which are taken during the academic year) as well as a free hold case of twenty kilos to all students who have an ESN card. Doesn't that sound good?

Where to go out at night and where to eat in Ghent?

When I was going to go to Ghent and I knew how close my accommodation was to Overpoort street, I thought I was very lucky, but not because this street is the place to go for the best night out in Ghent. Let's just say that this is the area where most of the residences are and the street Overpoort is full of bars to suit all student needs. In any case, it's a fantastic place to buy pre-prepared food from a few bars and also to go out for a few beers, with the rest of the students, in the different bars which are there.

The most popular beer in the pub "Duelle Griet", in the centre of Ghent, and the famous Kwak beer glass which costs a fortune if you don't give it back to the waiter

In terms of restaurants, I still don't know that many. For fast food lovers, in Ghent, there is no Burger King and there's only one McDonald's (currently under work). The good news is that there's a bar called Quick with very similar menus to the other chains mentioned and at great prices. Another possible alternative is a restaurant which has a spare ribs buffet (it comes with a baked potato, and a salad, etc. ) for 17 euros. Here's the name of the place Amadeus. You have to pay for your drinks on top, but it'll only be 2 or 3 euros more.

Delicious ribs in the Amadeus restaurant

In terms of pubs, there are loads along Overpoort street, although I would recommend The Porter House and Twitch, because it's really lively and sometimes there are themed events there. Another good option is Cuba, although one of my favourite places without a doubt is the bowling alley on Overpoort. You can go bowling for five euros, play pool or simply go for a beer.

The weather in Ghent

If you decide to go on Erasmus to Ghent, you must be aware: don't go without a coat or scarf!

To be honest, at the moment I can't really complain, because we've had sunny days and it's even been a little hot too. But it seems like this week our luck has run out and we're going to have to take out our umbrellas... Welcome to Ghent!

A few Dutch expressions

It's been a few days since I started my Dutch classes. Therefore, I'm going to write a few expressions, so you'll be familiar with the language.

Yes = Ja

No = Nee

Hello = Dag

See you tomorrow = Tot morgen

How are you? = Hoe gaat het met jou?

Good = Goed

Thank you = Bedankt

Who are you? = Wie ben jij?

I'm Alba = Ik ben Alba

Nice to meet you = Aangenaam

What's your name? = Wat is jow naam?

My name is Alba = Mijn naam is Alba

Where are you from? = Waar kom jij vandaam?

I'm from Spain = Ik kom uit Spanje

Welcome to Belgium = Welkom in België

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