Alba's Erasmus Experience in Münster, Germany

Why did you choose to go to Münster, Germany?

I picked Münster a bit at random to be honest as I wasn't sure where I wanted to go. I just typed in "Münster" on Google and saw that it has a beautiful lake, a botanical garden and a very strong university surrounded by a star-shaped river and so I though it seemed a good choice. Besides, my Erasmus coordinator told me that they speak a very correct form of German in the city, that it was a university town with 400,000 inhabitants and that students who had gone there in the past had thoroughly enjoyed it.

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

If my memory serves me, the grant lasts 10 months and they give it to you around October/November time. You receive €250 a month although they pay you all in one go.

What's student life like in Münster?

It's incredible. It truly is a university city, wherever you go you will find students around and a nice atmosphere. Students are everywhere and the university carries out events practically every week, so at times I'm spoilt for choice on where to go. They organise so many interesting events that in the end you can't end up going to all of them. Each faculty organises parties, Tandem exchanges, Stammtisch (get togethers) every week, as well as excursions at the weekends, film screenings, theatre trips, meetings covering different topics and bike rides. Also, another cool event is international meals where each person brings a dish from their own country and so you have the opportunity to try foods from the different countries of your fellow students. Also pub crawls, where your supervisor (who tend to be the same age as you) takes you to a string of pubs where you have to complete a series of tasks, etc.

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

Definitely. It's a city which when you need to study can be very calm, and crazy when you want to party, especially in shared flats and student halls of residence. I think these facets combine to create the perfect university environment, I have no complaints whatsoever.

What's the food like?

It's quite good. In Münster across various points of the city, there are "Mensas", canteens always close to faculty buildings which are essentially student restaurants. It is very cheap, each dish costs between €1-4 and the food is very good. Each day there is different food and they tend to have themed days after a certain country as well as typical food from the region. Furthermore, vegetarian and vegan food is also available.

If you want to eat typical food in another place, I recommend going to a bakery as pastries and breads are very popular in Germany. I also recommend the market put up on Wednesdays and Saturday mornings in Domplatz or the street food in Hauptbahnhof where you can eat sausages (see photo), currywurst and french fries.

At Christmas time Münster fills up with Christmas markets where you can find all sorts of typical food. In total there are 5 street markets. I recommend trying Glühwein (mulled wine), Spekulatius biscuits (made of cinnamon and tend to come free when you buy wine), chocolate-covered fruit, potatoes, etc. Germany is the country of Christmas, sweets and beer so one must make the most of the opportunity.

Was it hard to find accommodation in Münster?

Truthfully, yes. I sent in a residence application on the website studentenwerk around March time and didn't have any accommodation secured until the 28th of June. But in the end, everybody gets a room. The problem is that until the people currently living in the rooms don't leave, you are on the waiting list and nothing happens. Some people even arrived without a house, but as there were so many of us Spanish people, we gave them a place to stay until they found a flat or a residence. In the end everybody finds something although it may take up to a month of you being in the city to do so. It's normally easier to find a halls of residence rather than a flat, although finding a flat once you're in the city is more straightforward as there are loads of adverts especially in the newspaper "na dann" which people give out on the street on Wednesdays. So, if you don't find accommodation, no need to panic, you will always end up finding something in the end. Besides, you can always survive for a time couch surfing in Spanish students' houses or in the hostel in Bismarckalle which is quite new and modern and has views of the lake.

The most central halls are Bismarckallee y Coerdehof. Wilhelmskamp is also good and is always full of Spanish people. Although it can be a bit chaotic at times as 15 people have to share a kitchen and things tend to get stolen quite a bit, but there are a lot of parties there and it's one of the most lively halls. Gescherweg y Lilienthalweg halls are also well known and there are lots of parties there as well as a lovely, family atmosphere between students. However, Lilienthalweg is quite far from the centre. It's not really a halls of residence, more a neighbourhood full of shared student houses with a lovely garden ideal to do barbecues, something very German.

What's more, the halls are quite affordable, costing between €200-300 a month more or less, depending on each one. Wilhemskamp residence, for example, costs €220 and Bismarckallee, if you pick an 11 metres squared bedroom, costs around €280 but it's a completely new build and modern building which comes with a cleaner. The neighbourhood is lovely and relaxed and you share a kitchen and bathroom with 6 or 7 people, instead of 15.

How much does it cost to live in Münster?

In my halls I pay €280 a month, as Bismarckallee is one of the best in the whole city and it includes wifi and a cleaner who cleans the shared areas. Apart from that I spend around €10 a week on food. The rest depends very much upon the lifestyle that one chooses as entering a club costs €5, you can buy beer in the supermarket for €1 per bottle, etc. So if you're a relaxed person and not a party animal then life here won't be very expensive. Of course you have to spend more during the first month as you have to buy a bike, bed sheets, etc. You also have to buy the Semesterticket which you pay for once a semester and costs €260. With it you have access to unlimited travel on bus, metro and train all over the North Rhine-Westphalia region as well as the village of Enschede in Holland where you can go and visit coffee shops. With the ticket you can also almost always attend events like theatre plays for free and you can enjoy special discounts in places like the cinema and cafes. Being a student in Münster has plenty of advantages.

How's the language? Did you go to any language classes?

In general, German is spoken very correctly here so it's relatively easy to understand Germans if you speak a bit of the language. They're not very pedantic about making a mistake or pronouncing a word wrong. Besides, all the Germans here speak English and as it's a university city and the majority are students, so even if you don't know German no problem. You are going to speak more English than German. And yes, I did go to German classes and I speak it as well as I do English so I have no problem in that respect. The university offers free courses in both German and English as well as many other languages and you can obtain credits for subjects in Spanish. All the information is included in the meetings held by the university but if you want to look something up beforehand, here is the website through which the university offers its courses: http://spz.uni-muenster.de/. You can translate the page into English by clicking the "EN" button in the top right hand side of the page.

What's the cheapest way to get to Münster from your city?

I took a flight from Spain to Cologne and from there to Münster I got a train. You can book the train ticket in advance through the website Deutsche Bahn. Again, you can translate the page into English by clicking the "GB" button in the top right hand side of the page. But there are also stalls just before the platform in the airport where you can buy a ticket. The ticket would be from Cologne/Bonn Flughafen (Cologne Bonn airport) to Münster (West) Hauptbahnhof. The train ticket will cost you approximately €20-30 and you will probably have to change at Cologne central station (Köln Hauptbahnhof) or at Köln Messe Deutz. The train journey lasts roughly 2 and a half hours and you only pay for the train the first time you arrive in Münster as once you have your Semesterticket it is free to travel to the airport.

What places would you recommend for a night out in Münster?

It depends on the kind of music you like. If you're a fan of reggaeton, I recommend Cuba Nova, the venue for a lot of university parties. It has three rooms, although they usually only open two, one for reggaeton and the other for mainstream music. Heaven is also a good club and is close to Club Nova, right next to the port. During the summer they open up a terrace with sand and a swimming pool where you can spend the whole day, sunbathing and lying down on the hammocks and listening to music whilst watching Germans dance to techno. Schwarzes Schaf is also popular as is Amt, Gazelle and Baracke. The area of bars on Hafen street is also good fun, rammed with students bar hopping or who are drinking beer from stalls, etc.

Is it good to eat out in Münster? Can you tell us your favourite spots?

I normally eat at home as I enjoy cooking but if I had to go out to eat, for affordability and quality I would go to Mensa am Aasee which is just in front of the lake on Bismarckallee street, or in any of the Mensas The kebabs are very good value. There is a Spanish tapas bar called "Besitos", a pizzeria called Vapiano and for lovers of Mexican food and culture you have Taco Heroes (on Tuesdays tacos are only €1), etc.

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

Münster is a medieval city which has conserved a lot of its history. It has various churches with a significant past, like the one on the most medieval street in Münster, also where the town hall is. This church (see photo) has three cages as well as a lit candle in each of them to commemorate the Protestant leaders who died in each one during the middle ages. The three leaders were held in the cages and then hung from the top of the church until they died as Münster was, and still is, a Catholic city and in those times they did such things over religion. The city also has a castle which was destroyed during the Second World War and subsequently reconstructed in accordance to its original form. Nowadays, this is part of the university. Inside it they give classes and the castle's garden is now a botanical garden, where biology students tend to spend their time. Münster also has a zoo, various museums like the Pablo Picasso Museum, the Westphalian State Museum of Art and Cultural History, etc. It has many building and streets which are worth a visit, so many that I still haven't seen all of them.

What advice would you give future students heading to Münster?

Buy a bicycle as soon as you can and an "Erasmus box", from any old Erasmus student you may know. However, don't worry if you don't manage to buy a bike before getting to Münster, there is a bike market in the port once a month. Having a bike is non-negotiable, it's absolutely necessary. I thought that I wouldn't need one and so I didn't buy one but by my second day here I realised how necessary they are and I bought one off a girl on Facebook on a website for Münster Erasmus students.

I would advise all Spanish people to get in contact with each other and create a WhatsApp group chat before arriving in case you may need to help each other out if you have any problems or doubts. It's also important that you apply for residency as soon as you arrive as the waiting list can last between 3 to 12 months, so best not to leave things last minute.

Münster is one of Germany's nicest, most peaceful and safest university cities so I'm sure you won't regret choosing it. Good luck, future Erasmus students!