Pro and cons of Fica no Coração – Viana do Castelo

Olá, obrigada and desculpe were the most used words during my stay in Portugal.

Main reason to choosing Portugal as destination was the fact that I wanted similar whether than in Portorož but I didn’t want to choose Spain. I found that we have contract with 3 faculties. My first choice at first was the faculty in Estoril but then I got the information that they have classes in Portuguese, the third one was the same so my only choice left in Portugal was here in Viana do Castelo. One more decision why I choose Portugal is that I wanted to learn new language and if I continue to learn and practice it I think I will become good in it.

FACULTY

Before classes started we heard that the classes will be in Portuguese but luckily they were in English. Only one class we still had in Portuguese but others were either mix of English and Portuguese or we had special meetings with teachers. Teachers were really nice and friendly, and they have also really personal relationship with students. Another good thing is that you can do every subject during the semester by doing smaller exams and tasks – usually we had one written exam (50% of final mark) and one or two tasks for together 50%.

I believe this is really good option and can motivate students to finish subject before exam period. And the same was with me. I did all my classes like this and it was better because we didn’t get much information about exams. And some results from this smaller works were still not published when exam period started which was the bad thing.

CULTURE

The most unusual thin is how they greet and still after 5 months here I forgot every time. Instead of handshake they kiss on the cheek and hug each other. People are really nice and friendly but unfortunately not a lot of them can speak English (not just older people but also students).

PLACES & ACTIVITIES

Around Erasmus residency you have shopping centre and under it bus station. Close to it is also train station. In other direction you have gym (25€ per month), they also offer half month pass for 15€. There are 2 laundries one is close to the residence, its 3€ for washing and drying but you have to have your own soap and the other is closer to faculty and its bigger (8€). On the hill above the city is big church called Santa Lucia and behind it a hotel. From there you have a beautiful view over the city. There are also 2 beaches one next to faculty and not so good for swimming and the other appx 4 km from residence. There is also surf school.

CULINARY & STUDENT MEALS

 

Student meals were available only in faculties but the menus were in Portuguese. The prices were between 2,50 and 3,10€. One unusual thing it was that they combined rice and French fries at the same time in the meal. One of the famous dishes that you should try is Franchenzinha. In small shop called Natario is special sweet called Bola de belim and if you go there at 5 o’clock you can get it still warm. Patel de nata or Pastel de Belem is another sweet which is the best in the shop in Belem next to Lisbon but you can also get it in Natario. 

ACCOMMODATION

They offer you accommodation when you apply for faculty. You have many different options. You can choose Erasmus or normal dormitory or private apartment. I chose Erasmus dormitory because almost all Erasmus students stay here. Sometimes can be really noise, especially if you stay in the room next to the kitchen. For double room you have to pay 100,50€ and we have cleaning of the room once a week. There is also possibility to give your clothes for cleaning and ironing but it cost 4€ per kilo, so it is better to go in one of the laundries where you pay 3 or 8€ for washing and drying for 7/8kg.

Rooms usually have shared bathroom with the room next to you. You can also have triple or single room.

NIGHTLIFE

Students usually go for two clubs. They are both less than 10 minutes by walk from the residence. No ID is needed in both of them. Entrance in club called Cento is free, except in case of special events. Second one is more popular on Fridays, because is Girls night. Entrance is 5€, but girls on Friday gets 10 drinks. Music is mostly Latino. There is also Irish pub with live music.

TRANSPORT

You don’t need any transport around Viana. Residence is from ESTG appx. 25 minutes by walk. But if you go for some trip you can go with bus or train. With both you can use student discount if you are under 25 years old. One way to Porto is appx 5,9€ with train. There is also bus transfer to airport for 8€.

COSTS

I would say that costs of living are more or less similar to the one in Portorož. Food was maybe a little bit cheaper. My scholarship was enough for living there but it didn’t cover all trips I made.

PROS AND CONS

I really enjoyed my time in Viana and if I could I would gladly go again. They have a lot interesting subjects that you can learn a lot from it. Only thing I regret is that I didn’t decide to go for two semesters because I could choose some other subjects. In my opinion I gained a lot from this experience and I would recommend everybody to go to Erasmus exchange.  Probably the biggest con was language. Most of people didn’t know how to speak English or they were just not enough self-confident to try.

Anita Zupančič