Erasmus Experience in Izmir, Turkey by David

Why did you choose to go to Izmir, Turkey?

First of all I chose Turkey because I was looking for something diferent ( culture, outside europe...) and within Turkey I chose Izmir due to its good location and its more openminded lifestyle

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

My scholarship was for one year, getting around 200 € per month, that wasn't enough to cover my living costs.

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

The city of Izmir have a large amount of universities placed in different areas within the city.I really happy about my decission to go there and totally recomend this city to future erasmus students.

What is the food like?

A lot of different kind of foods can be found there; from traditional turkish food ( kebab, kokoreç, etc) to european food or of course american fast food branches.

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Izmir?

I was looking for flat for a week before i found mine. Probably because I went there with two friends more and we were looking for something specific. Look for room in a shared flat should be easier.

How much does it cost to live in Izmir?

The answer to this question depends of course on you.It depends how many days you go out, whether you preffer go somewhere to eat or prepare your food....Main costs of living are not so much but the "extras" can be high.

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

I'm spanish and can say turkish language it's a difficult language when you don't know anything about it. Once you start to learn it's getting easy and kind of logic. But of course it needs a lot of dedication.

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

I live in Vigo, a city placed in the north-west of Spain. From my area the easy way now it's by flight from Santiago de Compostela directly to Istanbul and from there to Izmir.

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

The most famous place to go its around the neighborhood called Alsancak where most of the "going out" places are set.

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

There are plenty of good and inexpensive restaurants around Izmir; in every different area of the city there are a large amount of restaurants wainting to be discovered

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Around Izmir you have a lot of places to visit as: Efesus( ancient greek city), mountains that surround the city, Kulturpark ( just in the middel of alsancak)

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

Just enjoy your time there because will be unforgivable.