Hi Guys,
Two days ago I had the opportunity to chat with a guy named Eugene. He did a 10 month Belgium exchange last year and as such is a very valuable resource to this year's outgoing students. Over the course of our 1 hour chat I was able to glean quite a bit of information from his experiences. Eugene designed his exchange to be entirely travel oriented. In the span of 2 semesters he managed to travel to 20 different countries in Europe and racked up an $18 000 travel bill - not including tuition at ULg. Although I definitely want to travel as much as possible, I will definitely not be Eugene level extreme. He ended up skipping most of his classes and doing a lot of travel alone as all the other students opted out of a lot of his trips. Imagine that. To be fair though, Belgian classes often have one component, such as an assignment or exam, that make up almost 100% of your mark. As long as you do well on that one thing, you're set.
To summarize the conversation in list form:
1) Set up a bank account while there, pay the one time transfer fee to transfer all your money, and use a European debit card.
2) Flights are really cheap so don't settle for cheap by Canadian standards. From Belgium to Poland (round trip) cost Eugene 40€. When he paid 75€ for flights to Rome he was later told by Belgians that they would never pay that much.
3) There is a fantastic fresh food farmer's market along the river every Sunday, year round, from 8:00 am - 1:00 pm that is relatively inexpensive. The only issue is most things are sold in bulk and fridge space tends to be limited.
4) Some bus passes and rail passes are specifically for tourists who don't know better. Eugene had a bus pass that made every bus ride equivalent to 30 cents. The tourist pass made each bus trip several dollars.
5) Travel in groups at night and always keep your eye on your stuff.
6) Www.couchsurfing.com is the way to go if you want to stay cheaply in the comfort of someone's home instead of an overcrowded hostel
7) Insist that a woman named Amanda is your exchange advisor. A woman named Joan caused some real issues for Eugene.
8) Belgium is colder than you'd think because of the humidity. Eugene is from northern BC and said he'd never been colder in his life. Minus 5 degrees Celsius in Belgium feels like our minus 20.
9) Be spontaneous. Make friends with locals. Use the opportunity to learn as much French as possible.
What fascinates me is that Eugene is now super involved with the U of L International Center and has learned proper French from that. He said most of his French has developed from hooking up Belgian exchange students with places to stay in Lethbridge and from hanging around with them here. Also interesting, he said that of the people he knew who lived in City Living Student Hotel, most came away with more Spanish or Italian than French. The international students that stay there are predominantly from Spain or Italy and as such, Canadians don't get much opportunity to practice their French.
Another thing that Eugene threw out there was that he wished he'd spent more time exploring Belgium. As great as it was to visit tons of countries, he would've liked to have gotten to know the host country more thoroughly. Also, because of all his international travels, he didn't fall in love with Liege until the very end. I think those comments have really helped to shape in my mind what sort of exchange I want to have. While I will take as many opportunities as possible to travel internationally, I want to really delve into the Liege and Belgian communities and establish a friend base.
All my best,
Jacqueline
Friday, 1 April 2011
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Accommodations
Hi Crew,
I am presently going through the process of trying to find accomodations for next year. I have four options available to me:
1) University Residence
2) Private Accommodation AKA Kot
3) City Living Student Hotel
4) Self Initiative Search
The university residence isn't really an option. All the descriptions I've read and people I've talked to have said that although the price is attractive, the location is isolated and undesirable. It is located on the campus of Sart-Tilman which is actually outside of town. Buses stop running at about 11:00 pm which can make getting home difficult. No thank you.
The private accommodations option definitely shows some potential. ULg has what is called the "International Exchange Student Network" (ESN) which is a student association that among other things will locate and negotiate the terms of a lease for incoming international students. The average price of housing found through the ESN is 300€ monthly and the administration fee for finding a place and working out the details for you is relatively low at 20€. I have filled out the registration form and submitted it so hopefully I hear back relatively soon.
The City Living Student Hotel is a neat concept. It is a complex that house about 150 students and is 10 minutes away from the downtown ULg campus. A full time building manager is always floating around and the complex is extremely secure and is know for being a safe place. There are four different room types that range from basic to over abundance. The room I am considering is the most basic bedroom. Consisting of simple furniture and a bathroom with stand up shower, the cost for the "standard" level rooms are about 460€ a month with utilities not included. The more advanced rooms have more space, double beds, full bathrooms, and full kitchens if you are willing to pay for them. There is one common room and study area for the building but full kitchens on each floor. The kitchens have locking cupboards for each resident. I think that is a brilliant idea. Another nice thing about City Living, although again expensive, is that they sell basic linen and kitchen packages that have all the basics you need. It would be nice if these were provided but I can't imagine it would be too hard to buy a set of an outgoing student for relatively cheap. My only hesitation with City Living at this moment in time is one or two of the contract clauses. Before I apply I will definitely be consulting with someone who is wiser than I.
My last resort is trying to find something on my own. This may prove rather difficult from Canada but I'm sure I could dig something up.
Tomorrow I have a meeting set up with a former Liege exchange student named Eugene. He did a double semester 10 month exchange and lived one semester in residence and one semester in a Kot. Hopefully he will be able to provide some insight.
153ish days until take off!
- Jacqueline
I am presently going through the process of trying to find accomodations for next year. I have four options available to me:
1) University Residence
2) Private Accommodation AKA Kot
3) City Living Student Hotel
4) Self Initiative Search
The university residence isn't really an option. All the descriptions I've read and people I've talked to have said that although the price is attractive, the location is isolated and undesirable. It is located on the campus of Sart-Tilman which is actually outside of town. Buses stop running at about 11:00 pm which can make getting home difficult. No thank you.
The private accommodations option definitely shows some potential. ULg has what is called the "International Exchange Student Network" (ESN) which is a student association that among other things will locate and negotiate the terms of a lease for incoming international students. The average price of housing found through the ESN is 300€ monthly and the administration fee for finding a place and working out the details for you is relatively low at 20€. I have filled out the registration form and submitted it so hopefully I hear back relatively soon.
The City Living Student Hotel is a neat concept. It is a complex that house about 150 students and is 10 minutes away from the downtown ULg campus. A full time building manager is always floating around and the complex is extremely secure and is know for being a safe place. There are four different room types that range from basic to over abundance. The room I am considering is the most basic bedroom. Consisting of simple furniture and a bathroom with stand up shower, the cost for the "standard" level rooms are about 460€ a month with utilities not included. The more advanced rooms have more space, double beds, full bathrooms, and full kitchens if you are willing to pay for them. There is one common room and study area for the building but full kitchens on each floor. The kitchens have locking cupboards for each resident. I think that is a brilliant idea. Another nice thing about City Living, although again expensive, is that they sell basic linen and kitchen packages that have all the basics you need. It would be nice if these were provided but I can't imagine it would be too hard to buy a set of an outgoing student for relatively cheap. My only hesitation with City Living at this moment in time is one or two of the contract clauses. Before I apply I will definitely be consulting with someone who is wiser than I.
My last resort is trying to find something on my own. This may prove rather difficult from Canada but I'm sure I could dig something up.
Tomorrow I have a meeting set up with a former Liege exchange student named Eugene. He did a double semester 10 month exchange and lived one semester in residence and one semester in a Kot. Hopefully he will be able to provide some insight.
153ish days until take off!
- Jacqueline
Sunday, 27 March 2011
Up and Running
Hi Crew,
Although I don't leave for another five months, I figured it would be best to get the blog up and running before I leave. Besides taking the time to tinker away on small details like colour schemes, I will also post on what it takes to get set up for a trip like the one I am taking. For those who don't know, I am embarking on an international exchange through the University of Lethbridge's (U of L) Faculty of Management to Liege, Belgium from September 2011 - June 2012. During these 10 months, I will be studying at the University of Liege (ULg) at the HEC Management School. Although I will receive credit for the courses I take, let's be honest. I am Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science major going on an international management exchange. My actual goals are as follows:
1) Learn how to survive on my own in a foreign country
2) Become fluent in French
3) Travel as often and as broadly as possible
4) Seduce a handsome Belgian Prince and create a Canada/Belgium mega-nation
In actuality, I will serve as a convenient excuse for any friends and/or family that have always wanted to explore Europe to finally jump on a plane. That being said, you are all highly encouraged to come visit me.
In the mean time, I am going through the process of applications to ULg, acquiring a student visa, filling out all the fun liability forms the Faculty of Management requires, and attending information sessions and meetings. Last Friday we had a meeting that was Culture Shock and Risk Management. Instead of scaring me with all the things that could possibly go wrong, it only served to build my excitement as we talked about little customs that are intimate to the Belgian culture. For example, when invited to a house, bring flowers or fine chocolates for the hostess. If you bring flowers, they cannot be chrysanthemums (which symbolize death) and they must be in an odd number but not 13. Exposure to these culture differences, no matter how small and specific, is exactly why I'm going.
I am fortunate in that I have another student going on exchange with me to the same school for the fall semester. Her name is Chelsa. She is a third year management major and wants to travel as much as possible during her single semester exchange. We are extremely fortunate to be able to plan together for housing, flights, rail passes, etc. Unfortunately, as I mentioned, she is only going to be in Belgium from September to December. As such, I will be on my own for the second semester unless another handful of students from U of L arrive for the spring semester. Being on my own is a relative term though. ULg has an absolutely enormous international student population.
Cheers,
Jacqueline
PS: The name of this blog is a reference to a friend from Lethbridge. Having spent 7 months in Tanzania prior to when we met, he would often start his stories with, "This one time in Tanzania...". After I called him out on overusing that line, he told me my karma for teasing him would be finding myself constantly starting all my future stories with, "This one time in Belgium...".
Although I don't leave for another five months, I figured it would be best to get the blog up and running before I leave. Besides taking the time to tinker away on small details like colour schemes, I will also post on what it takes to get set up for a trip like the one I am taking. For those who don't know, I am embarking on an international exchange through the University of Lethbridge's (U of L) Faculty of Management to Liege, Belgium from September 2011 - June 2012. During these 10 months, I will be studying at the University of Liege (ULg) at the HEC Management School. Although I will receive credit for the courses I take, let's be honest. I am Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science major going on an international management exchange. My actual goals are as follows:
1) Learn how to survive on my own in a foreign country
2) Become fluent in French
3) Travel as often and as broadly as possible
4) Seduce a handsome Belgian Prince and create a Canada/Belgium mega-nation
In actuality, I will serve as a convenient excuse for any friends and/or family that have always wanted to explore Europe to finally jump on a plane. That being said, you are all highly encouraged to come visit me.
In the mean time, I am going through the process of applications to ULg, acquiring a student visa, filling out all the fun liability forms the Faculty of Management requires, and attending information sessions and meetings. Last Friday we had a meeting that was Culture Shock and Risk Management. Instead of scaring me with all the things that could possibly go wrong, it only served to build my excitement as we talked about little customs that are intimate to the Belgian culture. For example, when invited to a house, bring flowers or fine chocolates for the hostess. If you bring flowers, they cannot be chrysanthemums (which symbolize death) and they must be in an odd number but not 13. Exposure to these culture differences, no matter how small and specific, is exactly why I'm going.
I am fortunate in that I have another student going on exchange with me to the same school for the fall semester. Her name is Chelsa. She is a third year management major and wants to travel as much as possible during her single semester exchange. We are extremely fortunate to be able to plan together for housing, flights, rail passes, etc. Unfortunately, as I mentioned, she is only going to be in Belgium from September to December. As such, I will be on my own for the second semester unless another handful of students from U of L arrive for the spring semester. Being on my own is a relative term though. ULg has an absolutely enormous international student population.
Cheers,
Jacqueline
PS: The name of this blog is a reference to a friend from Lethbridge. Having spent 7 months in Tanzania prior to when we met, he would often start his stories with, "This one time in Tanzania...". After I called him out on overusing that line, he told me my karma for teasing him would be finding myself constantly starting all my future stories with, "This one time in Belgium...".
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