An unforgettable year

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Why did you choose to go to Paris, France?

I had studied French a few years back, but had forgotten practically all of it, and I needed it for my job. Paris was also a city I didn't know very well, but which I'd always found attractive.

How long did your scholarship last? How much were you paid?

My exchange lasted for nine months. I think in total I received about 6, 000 euros for my grant, made up of public and private funding, but you receive this in installments. You'll need to make up for the lack of money in advance with your own funding or money from your parents.

What's the student life like in Paris?

Paris is an enormous city and there are lots of students there, but they don't come into contact with each other very much. I managed to make some French friends, who I'm still in contact with, but there are more opportunities to get to know other Erasmus students there. Despite this, Paris isn't an 'Erasmus city' like some of the smaller cities in France are, since it's just too big for it to work that way.

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

The city, definitely. Ernest Hemingway said that after he'd lived in Paris as a young man, the city followed him wherever he went. If you're from quite a big city originally, you shouldn't find it difficult to adapt to the Parisian lifestyle; I personally didn't find it too much of a challenge. Mind you, it makes everything easier if your university is actually in the city. I studied at the Paris-Sorbonne University, which is in Paris IV; personally, I have no complaints to make about the administrative staff, nor about the director of studies in my department, nor about the teachers. Paris and therefore France isn't like Spain or Italy, which are known for being countries where it's easy to pass your Erasmus course. It doesn't even depend on the university, it depends on each individual teachers. You get two months to try out classes and teachers though, and can change your timetable if you want to, although if you want to do this later on, the Erasmus co-ordinator at the university will have to give you the all clear to do so.

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What's the food like in Paris?

It depends. I actually just carried on eating Spanish food... lots of people mentioned the 'old Parisian' cuisine. The problem is that eating out in Paris is really expensive. You can do it once a month, or at a push, once a week. The rest of the time, you'll need to cook for yourself, or try out some of the paninis, crépes, kebabs, and pizzas on sale everywhere. There are CROUS university cafeterias which are very cheap, and the food there isn't bad either, though not as good as the food in university restaurants in Spain.

How did you find your accommodation?

This is definitely the biggest challenge for every Erasmus student who comes to Paris. It's extremely difficult to find somewhere to live, and it took me a long while to get somewhere. I would recommend looking at private residences, in the capital (though it's difficult to get anywhere here), or on the eastern or southern edges of the city. I was very privileged to be offered accommodation in the Spanish College, Paris, due to my academic record and since it was the final year of my degree, equivalent to a Masters year in France.

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How expensive is accommodation in Pairs? What are the costs of living like in general?

A room alone usually costs around 500 euros a month, not including water, electricity, internet (though fortunately, internet packages are very cheap in France, at least a third of what we pay in Spain and twice as fast... ), etc. The city itself is expensive, although a lot of this depends on what area you live in - there are some 'arrondissements' (districts) which are cheaper than others. Supermarket prices aren't that different to those in Spain (perhaps 50 cents more), but leisure activities are expensive, much more so than in Spain.

How are you finding the language? Have you signed up to a language class at the university?

One of the main reasons I decided to go to Paris was for the language. I went there with basic knowledge of French though, and I really think it's necessary to know a bit of French before you come to Paris, as if you don't it will be hell at first. The French (or rather, the Parisians) are very purist in terms of their language, and though they notice you're foreign, they don't speak any slower for your benefit. They only speak English in the most touristy places. You'll end up with a high intermediate level of French, and the best things to do to attain this are to spend time with other Erasmus students whom you can only talk to in French, spend time with French people, and immerse yourself in the everyday life of the city and in your studies at the university. If you do this, you'll definitely improve your language skills.

Paris IV offers beginners' courses in French for those who come with no knowledge of the language at all. Again though, if you come to Paris without knowing any French at all, it'll be hard to understand and speak the language. Reading it is easy as it's not that different to Spanish.

What's the cheapest way of getting to Paris from your home city?

Definitely by plane with a low-cost airline. I live in Madrid, and there are lots of airlines which fly to the French capital from Barajas. I've heard that getting the train there is quite expensive.

What are the best places for partying in Paris?

There aren't that many places for going out. There are two clubbing districts: Bastilla and Oberkampf. There are also two amazing places where Erasmus parties are held: on Tuesdays, Duplex club on Foch Avenue next to the Arc du Triomphe, and on Thursdays, Mix club, on Montparnasse. Both offer free entry up until a certain time.

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What about eating out in Paris? What are your favourite places?

Finding a good place to eat which is also cheap is difficult in Paris. The CROUS university cafeterias are the only cheap places which also serve decent food. The best ones in my opinion are the Mabillon and Port Royal ones. There's the Latino district, but it's best just to admire the look of the restaurants here, because none of them are cheap.

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What does Paris have to offer in terms of culture?

I could go on forever here... you could even ask, what isn't there to see in Paris?! The typical monuments are the Eiffel Tower, the Arc du Triomphe, the museums (the most important and attractive being the Louvre, the Orsay, the Pompidou... ), the Champs-Élysées, the Pantheon, the Montmartre (including the Sacred Heart Basilica), the cemeteries (Montparnasse and, above all, Père Lachaise, where lots of 'celebrities' are buried), followed by a very big etcetera!

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Do you have any advice for future students coming to Paris?

Nothing will be easy at first. Start looking for accommodation very early on, keep calm when trying to decide which classes to take, and do a bit of everything: study, have fun, explore the city (and travel: make sure you visit Mont Saint Michel, the Loira Castles, Belgium, which is very nearby, Strasbourg, Chartes, Rouen, Reims, the Normandy beaches... ). You'll definitely have the time of your life here. At the end of the day, as Henry IV of France said, 'Paris is worth a mass’.

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