Internship/Erasmus Experience in Nicosia, Cyprus by Nacho

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

Actually, I'm not doing an Erasmus program so I don't get paid.

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What is the student lifestyle like in Nicosia?

I'm working in the Embassy of Spain as an intern but I'm living an Erasmus experience. The student life is not bad but the problem is the transportation. My problem is that I'm living in Strovolos so I can only go by foot everywhere. However, you will be able to visit other cities by bus. The frequency is so but but it works. Moreover, with your student card, you can take a both way ticket for 4. 50€ so it is pretty cheap.

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

Although I'm not a student in Nicosia, I know pretty good the situation. As I said before, the transportation is awful so going to class is a pity. Anyway, there are 2 campus and the new one is very modern with good installations. Furthermore, they have very good lectures and conferences so you can learn a lot.

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About the city, Nicosia is ugly but it has its charm. The political situation makes Cyprus such an interesting city to study. You can go to the other side by crossing Ledra Street only by showing your ID Card. The good thing is that Cyprus is not that big so you can travel by buses to the majority of the cities and in 2 hours you can be in Paphos.

However, the North doesn't have good buses so if you want to visit this side, you should rent a car.

What is the food like?

Cyprus is a multicultural country. It's in a strategic point of the Mediterranean Sea so near from Africa and Middle East. For this reason, you will have cheap Souvláki wherever you want and so many cuisines to choose from Greek one, who is the most popular in the island, to Lebanese food.

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You must know that Nicosia is an expensive city above all the supermarket so bakeries like Pandora is going to be your paradise.

Did it cost you to find your accommodation in Nicosia?

The best point of Nicosia is the accommodation. Here is very cheap. For example, one big erasmus house (15 students live there) costs 300€ per month. Nevertheless, the electricity is the most expensive expense of the house so take care turning on the heater.

How much does it cost to live in Nicosia?

Sincerely, life in Nicosia is not cheap. The supermarket is very expensive (half-dozen eggs are 6€) and taxis as well.

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

Here everybody speaks English fluently but a lot of professors teach in Greek. I don't know if you have ever listened to Greek but the sound is similar to Spanish but it's very difficult to understand. They write so weird with different alphabet so if you decide to come to Cyprus, first thing you have to learn is how to read things because the streets are in this kind of writing.

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

Actually, I don't know because I have only traveled to come to Cyprus and back to my country. But normally, people usually go via Athens. It costs 250€ only one way with Aegean Airlines.

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

The first thing you have to do when you arrive to Nicosia is sign up in ESN (Erasmus Student Network) Nicosia. You are going to meet with all erasmus people (there are a lot of foreign students) and they are organizing a lot of activities: carnival, visit villages, parties...

Partying at night, erasmus people meet all Wednesdays in Ithaki. I like it there because they play famous music and you know almost everybody there.

The rest of the week, we meet in different erasmus houses where there is music and your own alcohol. Really we are talking and taking photos in this parties.

Anyway, if you want go clubbing, you can go to many places. I'm pretty bad with names so I can't remember but if you ask another students, they are going to help you for sure. Honestly, I don't like so much Hashtag for example but it's my own opinion.

An advice: alcohol in the North is cheaper so cross Ledra Street and buy tobacco and alcohol cheaper than in the South

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

You must visit the typical cities: Limassol, Paphos and Larnaka. Moreover, you should cross to the North because it's totally different and you are going to enjoy so much (Kyrennia for example).

In summer, Limassol has very good beach parties and Agia Napa and Famagusta have the best beaches. Agia Napa is like Magalluf in Mallorca but its beach is wonderful. However, Agia Napa bus has the worst frequency I've never seen. The last bus comes at 16. 00

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

You should live in the center, trust me. Ledra Street and Solomon Square are the center points in Nicosia so look for apartments near there.

Airport taxis are expensive (about 40/50€) so take the Kapnos Airport Shuttle to go. It's only 8€.

About the supermarket, try to always go to Carrefour or Lidl. They are cheaper but the location is pretty far away so take a big suitcase, go to the supermarket by bus and then come back home by taxi, it's my best advice hahaha. By the way, milk gets bad so fast and yogurts are fantastic.