ERASMUS EXPERIENCE 9 MONTHS IN BESANON

On 7 September, 2009 I got on a plane with final destination France. After two and a half hours late, I arrived on the Saint Exupery Airport in Lyon, the second biggest French city. Then I took the train for Besanon, the small and cute city where I was to spend the next 9 months, as an Erasmus student. Luckily, we were a group of 5 girls, all coming from the same city in Romania, so this short trip was quite a delight. After arriving at the train station in Besanon, we had to take the bus to get to the students campus, the place which would accommodate us until 31 May, 2010. I then had the first direct contact with the French language, implicitly with the bus driver, whom I asked for directions, in order not to lose our bearings. To my surprise, he was so kind and spoke with a friendly voice, as he realized we were foreign students. This friendly attitude towards the foreign people asking for information surprised me in a positive way, as I had the impression that French people are arrogant and reluctant to speaking to people of different nationalities, especially the Romanian ones. During all my stay there, my impression of French people considerably changed, as I now think of France as a friendly country, with good infrastructure and a deep concern for ecology. That is why all the buses in Besanon use ecological gas, as their own motto state it: For everyones good, this bus uses only natural gas. (Personal translation) As Erasmus students, we participated at a reunion organized by the Association des tudiants Internationaux Besanon at the beginning of the first semester and had the change to meet the other Erasmus students and also to ask for more information regarding the Universit de Franche-Comts regulation, as now we were officially registered as students of the French university. However, the Romanian group had a special status, as we were registered as students at the Institut Universitaire de Technologie de Besanon, because our Faculty of Letters in Romania had no direct agreement signed with the Facult de Lettres. This turned out to be a little difficult, both for us and for the teachers at the Facult de Lettres, because we had to take courses which would be graded with passing notes when we return, without taking the whole unit for certain specializations. Continuing the description of the French learning system, it is necessary to state that they have various tests during the whole semester and the final grade is calculated as an average of

all the notes accumulated. I found this extremely attractive, as I believe that French students are more privileged than the Romanians. However, the French do not appreciate all the advantages they have when it comes to learning: technological equipments at their disposal, separate rooms for studying, varied libraries. Therefore, they are not good at languages and feel somehow threatened by the foreigners who have this skill. Moreover, they speak and read other foreign languages la franaise. Theres no wonder they do not give up their well known accent, as here all foreign movies are displayed in French. Despite these bad points which characterize the French nation, they are still some good ones. For example, they do know how to party, especially in the company of the Erasmus students. For that reason, each Tuesday night, at the Bar de lUniversit, there was the weekly meeting of all Erasmus students in Besanon. Up until midnight, all students had extreme fun. Dancing and drinking various drinks was the main attraction, alongside socializing with other French students. The variety of nationalities attending these events was even more excited when parties entitled Fiesta del Sol were organized, the Latino music being on the top of the list. In addition, each important holiday was celebrated with great joy. Firstly, there was the Halloween party, organized in a small reception room, where everyone wore a hilarious Halloween costume and danced all night long. There was a costume-competition and the most attractive ones won prizes. Afterwards, there was the Christmas party and each participant had to bring a small gift which was put in Santas bag. At the end, a gift was handed to each student by Santa Claus. The atmosphere was incredible and everyone had fun. In March, a carnival was organized and all the Erasmus students who participated really enjoyed it. The most appreciated costumes were also awarded. All these events were organized by the association I mentioned before and were primary addressed to the Erasmus students who were members of the association but everyone was invited, but had to pay a fee if they had no membership. For Easter we organized a little party at the Institut Universitaire de Technologie, as the teacher of the foreign students wanting to improve their French was extremely fond of organizing such kind of events. It was fun because here we met other students than the ones we used to talk to at the Bar de lUniversit, who were mostly Erasmus students at the Facult des Lettres. Concerning life standards, I could say that the Erasmus students in Besanon would have no economic difficulties, as long as the scholarship amount is acceptable. The rent in the campus

area is considerably smaller than in the centre. However, depending on the type of room you choose in the campus, which is always a single-room, you may not have the same facilities as a person living in the city centre. Regarding food, in the campus there is a students cafeteria, with acceptable prices and tasty food, relatively varied. For the ones not having the time to eat there, the best solution is the Lidl supermarket, the cheapest in town. Still, students have some advantages, as certain stores offer them discounts, when presenting the students card. All in all, the Erasmus adventure is a life-changing experience I will never ever forget. Good or bad, these memories are unforgettable and will remind me of the chance I had to meet other cultures, other nationalities, other places, things I would probably would had never known otherwise. From now on, I will think of the French as a friendly nation, always nationalists and proud of all that France means. I believe they are more civilized and more open-minded than we are. They do not criticize; they just ignore what they do not like. Nevertheless, you can gain their respect and admiration if you behave properly and intend to blend in, as they are a little bit shy and like when the other person starts the conversation. They are more like the observing- type. Thats why when they meet, they talk rather than dance, but they sure do like to drink. I believe I was lucky to know them and that is why I strongly recommend students to make the most of this experience, no matter the country they go to.