A year in Prague

During my second year at Sciences Po Grenoble, I did an international mobility period in the city of Prague, in the Czech Republic. I started preparing far in advance for my trip - I was only 17 at the time and this made the process for setting off abroad all the more complicated. My parents and I had to go through the proceedings of a judge emancipating me as a minor to allow me to sign all my contracts and other papers for myself once I arrived. In this blog will talk about lots of practical points I learned from my Erasmus life.

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In terms of accommodation, there were lots of options available to me, but I found a shared apartment via an online agency. My flatmates were all students: others on Erasmus, interns, or young graduates. People came and went between the first and second semesters, so I mixed with lots of people of different nationalities, including Spanish, Dutch, German, Kurdish and also other French people. Other Erasmus students chose to live in one of the many halls of residence suggested by Charles University but lots of them quickly chose to move to a shared apartment too. As for me, I wanted to be sure to have accommodation when I got there on the 1st of September, but I think if I had searched more once I arrived, I could have avoided the agencies and spent less by dealing directly with private landlords. I paid 10 000 Czech Crowns a month, the equivalent of around 390€/month, or £350/month. That's a normal price in France, but quite high for a city like Prague. I had to pay a deposit, which, by the way, still has not been given back to me; the agency I went through was slightly incompetent. This was really the only negative aspect of my year, although it was only a minor problem in the end. The agency didn't really take care of anything, and we couldn't count on them when there was a problem. But since there were 5 of us in the apartment, we came up with solutions quickly. I lived on the top floor of an apartment building in the neighbourhood of Andel, in the Prague 5 district.

With regards to money, I needed a bit of time to adapt, because the Czech Republic is not part of the Euro Zone. The Czech Crown is still used, and one euro equals around 26 crowns. As a totally new expat, this meant that I spent a lot of time on my phone's calculator in the supermarket or other shops. That said, I appreciated the change of currency making me feel like I really was abroad. You also have to take into account the fact that in France, we pay a great deal by bank card, which is not necessarily the case everywhere. In Prague, lots of bars and other places do not accept card, and so you have to take cash out a lot to be able to pay for things. The majority of students or expats in general open a Czech bank account, to make transactions easier. The international options my French bank offered already allowed me to take money out a certain number of times without extra fees, so I was happy with that.

In terms of health, nothing much happened to me but some friends had to go and see a doctor, and you absolutely must have the European Health Insurance Card. As in all European countries, it makes the reimbursements and administrative paperwork much easier.

As for telecommunications, there are quite a few packages available. Charles University had a partnership with Vodafone offering a student package. It didn't have exactly what I wanted, but I was able to find another package, also with Vodafone, for around 22€/month, or roughly £19. 70/month, with internet, international calls, etc. Online payment could only be done from a Czech bank account, but there was a Vodafone shop just next to my apartment in the Smichov shopping centre, so I could go there every month to pay my bill. I used Skype and WhatsApp a lot anyway to talk to my family or my friends in other countries.

University life was a lot less intense than it was at Sciences Po. One module was worth a lot more ECTS than in France, so I had very few contact hours, which I managed to arrange into two weekdays, giving me long weekends to organise myself. All the same, the work to do at home was more important, with hundreds of pages to read every week, presentations, etc. That said, I don't have trouble organising myself to submit everything on time and pass my exams, whilst also enjoying student life to the max. The relationship with the teachers is different too, because I didn't have any lectures, only small seminar groups of 5 to 20 people. It obviously also depends a lot on the teachers themselves. But in general, the atmosphere was relaxed and friendly. Everything is done online at Charles University, from module choices to exam results, which I think is a much more practical system. On my part I chose modules in political sciences, sociology, and anthropology, but also introduction to defence strategies, etc. The variety of modules available gives you access to so many different subjects, almost all of which were interesting too. I also had quite a few essays to hand in at the end of the semester, but not many written final exams.

As for day-to-day life, let's start with the only negative aspect. The Czechs are not the most cheerful and warm people in the world. It has to be said that every tourist or expat has often been taken by surprise by this. This is down to the communist past of the country, but the new generations are changing things bit by bit. There are also a lot of Slovaks in the Czech Republic, since the two nations were combined as a single country for 30 years. As for other aspects, the town has really good transport links, with metro lines, buses, trams and even night trams 24 hours a day. The town itself is magnificent - each building is beautiful, old and majestic to look at. Just one stroll around the centre is enough to fall in love with this small town so full of history. Be especially sure not to miss the Old Town Square, Charles Bridge, Petrin Hill, The Old Jewish Cemetery, or also The Castle. Culture also has an enormous role here, with lots of operas, all spectacular, with very reasonable student discounts. The night life is amazing: there are bars every two metres, catering for all tastes. Some are more classically designed, but there are also some underground, on outdoor patios, on rooftops, or even in apartments on the top floor of high buildings. There are nightclubs too, including a club famous for being the biggest in Central Europe, with a grand total of 5 floors. That said, the Czech culture is more inclined towards spending an evening in a bar with friends than in a club, which is understandable when you realise that a pint costs 1€20, or around £1. Beer is the national drink, and in a restaurant it is even cheaper than water (no, it's not a myth). Trying traditional dishes like fried cheese, goulash, trdlnik etc is also a must. Slovak dishes are delicious and I strongly recommend the bryndzové halusky.

I also travelled loads with my savings, probably more than I'll ever do again in a year. Mostly I went to go and see friends who were also doing a stretch of time on international mobility, but it was also for fun. I went to Brno, Bratislava, London, Venice, Budapest, Wroclaw, Madrid, Brussels, Edinburgh, Berlin... and a three-week road trip to Cambodia and Vietnam.

In short, this year has probably been the best of my young life. Being an independent person, I organised everything myself, but I think it's important to see to things in advance, and to prepare yourself just as much psychologically as for the practical aspects. Leaving for a year abroad is not to be underestimated and cannot be planned at the last minute. You have to contact people who have been before you, be unafraid to ask questions and most of all, avoid putting pressure on yourself. Encounters with people from an incredible variety of nationalities are so enriching, and my English improved a lot. I have only one wish now, and that's to go back. So I hope to go back to Prague for a weekend very soon.