Erasmus experience in Salvador de la Bahía, Brazil, by Alvaro

Why did you choose Salvador de la Bahía, Brazil?

I always wanted to go to a tropical place, a place with a beach.

How much is the scholarship? How much money do you receive?

Depending on your scholarship it will have a length in time, and the quantity will depend on that too.

How is the student lifestyle in Salvador de la Bahía?

It's okay, people are really nice and they are always available to make plans and take you to places.

Would you recommend the city and the university of Salvador de la Bahía to other students?

I would recommend it for some reasons but I also have reasons to not recommend it, the city is not really nice itself, it's dirty but you have a lot of places you can go that are nicer, for example the islands. I like the university, you have a lot of activities you can do for free or really cheap, professors are really nice and comprehensive, also the other students. I didn't have any problem with this.

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What about the national food?

You have to adapt to the food, they have a strong Dende oil with a really hard smell that they often use for cooking, at the beginning when I arrived I couldn't deal with that smell in the streets (at the markets) but now I don't even notice it. They also have food which is sold at the street, but I recommend to eat at restaurants and not to buy food to a seller in the street. There are restaurants where food is sold depending on the kilograms you want to buy, you just pick the food you want and you pay just for the kilograms of the food you want, and you have cheaper items or the more expensive ones. I also like to go to the university canteen, food is not really good but it just costs 80 cents, €2. 50 for real, so it's a good deal.

Was it difficult to find accommodation in Salvador de la Bahía?

When looking for accommodation...it depends if you go alone or with more people, usually if you are looking for a 2, 3 person apartment is easier than if you're just looking for a single apartment. At the vice chancellor's office there are a lot of apartments and rooms advertisements. Also, there are a lot at the street and at the polytechnic university but the best you can do is to have contacts. I didn't walk around a lot, I just met people who knew people and practically without doing anything and using internet I found some good places.

How much does it costs to live in Salvador de la Bahía?

This place is not cheap, things have the same price they would have in Spain, so if you think that just because it's Latin America everything is going to be cheaper it's not true. There are cheap stuff of course but in general, to live here is the same as living in Spain.

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How is the language? Did you have any course at you university?

No, I didn't do any course at university, I studied a little from the internet and that's all. The best way to learn is talking with everyone. The first days there, I stayed in a lodge (Che Lagarto) where I spoke to everyone I could, also at the bus stations, etc...In addition, my faculty offers a Portuguese course for foreigners, well is not that good, but is a good way to meet people just like you and spend some nice time.

Which is the most economic way to go to Salvador de la Bahía?

What I did was taking a plane from Málaga to Salvador with just one scale in Madrid, it was a little expensive than just go directly from Madrid, l but in this way you don't have to spend 5 hours in a bus.

Which places would you recommend for a night out in Salvador de la Bahía?

In Salvador you can normally go out on Tuesday nights to Pelourihno where there are a lot of movement, concerts and music, the rest of the days there is folkloric dance and people say it's really good. On Thursdays and Fridays there are a lot of entertainment in Rio Vermelho which is a zone full of bars where many students go. As soon as you're living here, you will start knowing where to go, and which places you like the most. Besides, there is always a special event, for example I went to a spring festival in Morro de Sao Paulo, but there were also another concerts, etc... That depends on which season you will stay here, you will be informed by Facebook and other websites.

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And for eating? Could you mention your favorite spots?

Normally I eat at my place in order to not waste a lot of money, I recommend buying your basic food in Bompreço, and fruits in Vitoria, Casa da fruta or maybe in Sao Joaquin or Amaralina (this is a market that is further) but if you want really good and expensive fruit then you have to take the bus Santa Cruz and get off at the last stop, but the best is if you go with someone who knows the area.

And what about a cultural visit?

I haven't toured the city a lot to be honest, Pelourinho is the historic part of the city and it's full of churches to see but I didn't see them all. If you want to really learn the culture just mix with the people, you will know more.

Is there any other advice you could give to other students who will go to Salvador de la Bahía?

I'm sure you know about typical advice, you could have heard that is dangerous, and well, don't stress about that. Just dress with normal clothes and act normal, don't wear golden clocks but don't do that in any place. Just walk like if you were a local, and try to dress similarly to the people here, normally people realize that you are a foreigner (gringo) when you talk or because of your clothes but for any other reason you can appear more "normal". In my case, I'm blonde with blue eyes so that's a big deal for me but it's possible. Don't be scared, be relaxed, nothing is going to happen, just be careful. I was in very dangerous places and here I am, but because I went to those places with local people and noticing who I can trust in. The majority of my friends are people who I met at the bus stations, friends that I would never have made if I was just scared and if I was that kind of person who never trust anyone. Usually, people judge without knowledge, just because they heard something I would recommend to forget a little about those pieces of advice and live your own experience. If you don't trust anyone you wouldn't go so far in any country.

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Another advice I want to you is to surround yourself with local people, don't come here with someone and avoid socializing with other people, if you do that at the end you will just spending your time with exchange people talking your own language without achieving anything useful from your experience except of 4 parties with the same people as always but in a different place. If you don't want to come alone because you're scared that's normal, come with someone but try to find local people to live with, or maybe just meet people from this country and don't be shy. Tell them to take you to places. When you just have made the most difficult movement, taking the plane I don't think fight your shyness is going to be a big deal.

Another thing I could add here, TRAVEL, visit the islands, there are some which are more relaxing and others for partying you just have to choose what you like more. To go to the islands you have to go to Sao Joaquin market and take a boat, these are very cheap and you could be in an island in one hour, so it's okay even to go and spend the day. Look for flights to other places, like Foz de Iguazú, Manaus, Río de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, it depends on what you like and the place you can't miss is Bahia Chapada Diamantina, 7 hours far by bus but you can sleep in the bus at night.

The last thing is that the change will be hard, you will find yourself alone in a country that you don't know and surrounded by people you don't know (I tried to look for local people who live here or work here in order to have contacts if anything happens and I can tell you that if you look for them you will find them). I was surprised to discover how many people I had next to me in a city that I didn't know. You will be a little depressed sometimes, specially if you come alone and you don't make friends early. A very good way of making friends is looking for activities, such as: dance lessons, capoeira, and things like these. Is really good because you will meet people who won't be just from your university. And don't be shy, tell them about going out for a drink. At the end, you will adapt and you will finish with such good memories even if sometimes you think about coming back home. Just relax, don't think too much and let it be.

P. S: The females mannequins at the clothing shops are spectacular, you will see.