Erasmus Experience in Irakleion, Greece by VIKTORIYA

Why did you choose to go to Irakleion, Greece?

I choose to go to Irakleion because there is operating one of the best research groups in my working field - lasers for Cultural Heritage, besides it was a dream come true to visit the island of Crete, and I saw the perfect opportunity to combine business with real pleasure.

What is the student lifestyle like in Irakleion?

This city becomes really hectic during the weekends in the summer. There are young people everywhere in the streets, in the parks, on the beach, in the bars.

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

I would strongly recommend the city. It has good infrastructure of the public transport, it is tourist friendly, everyone is helpful and speaks basic english, especially the drivers of the public busses. About the university I can't tell since I was in the Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH).

What is the food like?

The cretan food is very very delicious and, the most important, it is FRESH. They say that the cretan gold is their olive oil, and, indeed, it is really good, and the goat cheese, and the graviera (sort of yellow cheese). There is wide variety of local dishes, but mostly made of meat (I'm not sure of the type), the grilled fish is extremely delicious. The cretans have entire gastronomy culture. I strongly recommend to eat only local food.

How much does it cost to live in Irakleion?

The accommodation is around 300-350 euro (I found one in Ammoudara for 250 euro, with no electricity bill included, but it's cheap), monthly card for the public transport all lines is 65 euro (for student is a little bit cheaper), other costs - 300-400 euro (the cost living is not so expensive - 700 - 800 euro should be enough).

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

From Sofia, Bulgaria by bus to Thessaloniki (roundtrip 25 euro), by plane from Thessaloniki to Heraklion, otherwise by plane with Aegean lines. If one doesn't care about time saving, but money saving, he can choose the ferry lines (it is 6 or 8 hours from Athens).

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

There are plenty of restaurants in the center near Elefteria (Liberty) square, the Lions square. There is one place that I will Strongly recommend for local fish dish - Ippokambos, it is near the big Venetian Fortress (Koulles). It is not so expensive, the view is beautiful, especially during the sunset and the service is excellent - for dessert they serve you some little sweet with a little bottle of Raki (the local drink).

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

There are so many see sites that one should see. The municipality of Heraklion has developed an app for mobiles - city guide to Heraklion or something like that, that is perfect personal guide, and it works offline. It is worth to visit the palace of Knossos, to rent a bike for two hours that is free, and ride on the long venetian walls around the old city, to visit the Cretaquarium, the Natural History Museum, the Shipyards Arsenali, the Venetian Fortress Koulles, and so on (everything is in that app - it is really tourist friendly). And, of course there are many free wi-fi hot spots in the center of the city.

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

My advice is to explore the city from inside out and to taste the cretan life. Enjoy the atmosphere of ancient, medieval and contemporary.
Other thing is that the bus tickets from the drivers are with 50 euro cents more expensive than in the local store, there are interesting working time of the shops and super markets that are out of the touristic area - I'm not sure which days, but some of the days in the week they work from 09:00 to 14:30, and some from 09:00 to 14:30, then siesta, and then from 17:30 to 21:00h (this time table is valid for summer time, I'm not sure for the rest of the months).