Erasmus Experience in Lisbon, Portugal, by Bruno

Why did you choose to go to Lisbon, Portugal?

Because it was the only place that had double degree with my university for the master's I am taking.

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

I do not get anything to help me, and I will be staying for a year.

Source

What is the student lifestyle like in Lisbon?

It depends on which kind of student you want to be. If you like studying, depending on your uni, they stay open 24hrs everyday. If you like partying, it will depend on what kind of music and party style you like.

You will not see a strong electronic scene with psytrance, minimal, and more underground sounds around. However, if you are looking for Brazilian music, commercial electronic, Portuguese music, and this sort of music, you should be fine.

If you are into sports and nature, than its really interesting to be around. You have a huge park right across Nova SBE (one of the universities here) that is about 10% of Lisbon's size (massive), with places to run, cycle, make a barbecue, whatever you like. In addition, there are cycle lanes, and space for runners to go right beside Tejo river.

Thus, it only depends on what kind of student you want to be.

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

The one that I am studying, Nova SBE, I would recommend. Professors are good (some pedantic, and others with poor English vocabulary, but in general they know a lot about what they are teaching), the university has a fine infrastructure, and the locality is easy to reach. Near parks, although all Lisbon is near parks haha, near the subway, markets and all the stuff you might need.

What is the food like?

Food is cheaper than other places in Europe, but more expensive than south-east Asian (obviously) and Latin American countries (except Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro).

You can get anything with good quality. Nepalese, Indian, Chinese, Brazilian, Portuguese (why not), Italian, and so on. The only two I could not find were Ethiopian and Mexican (I know there are places, but I haven't looked around). I even ate amazing Iranian food!

Source

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Lisbon?

No, it was really easy, used this website and was quite fast.

How much does it cost to live in Lisbon?

I am spending around 650 euros a month, with all included. Less than spend back home (Sao Paulo, Brazil), but my life is quite frugal around here. I do not go out much, and spend most of the time studying, running, or hanging out with my roommates back at home, or some cheap cool Chinese or Nepalese restaurant.

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

It's my mother tongue, so...

There are courses at Nova, but they are pretty basic, I reckon they go up to level 2 or 3 at Portuguese (although I would recommend you to learn Brazilian Portuguese and not the one from here haha)

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

Plane, the only way.

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

Depends on which kind of music you like, and place you like. My opinion: bars with live Brazilian music!

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

No specific names, but any Nepalese, Iranian, Indian or Chinese should do the trick.

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Belem Tower, Se Cathedral, Eduardo VII park, there might be other places, but I am not really into museums or churches (too many when I visited Europe back in the days).

Source

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

In my situation, I am really happy I can walk to my university, back in Sao Paulo I have to use public transport, my own motorbike, or bike, otherwise it would take me around 3 hours to reach the uni, and my old job.

Besides, in the weekends, try to go to Arrabida or Cascais (beaches near Lisbon), also, rent a car and go to the country side enjoy some good wines (you can buy them quite cheap in Lisbon as well, less than 3 euros you get fair quality).