An unforgettable experience in Poitiers

"Gonna travel, gonna travel wild and free. I’m gonna pack my bags because this great big world is calling me" — Elvis Presley, "Harem Holiday"

If I had to describe my adventure, I would use these words.

My Erasmus experience has been incredible. It might sound trivial but, in the end, it was really like that. I did my Erasmus study in Poitiers, France. I didn’t know much about it other than the Battle of Poitiers and De André’s song “Carlo Martello”.

I decided to leave without too many expectations to make the most of this opportunity I had been given. For this reason, I left on September 5, 2018, at 2 a.m., with 2 suitcases, a backpack, and “a good luck” from my family.

As soon as I got there, after a long and exhausting journey, I realized from that day on I would live in a foreign country for the next six months. The next day, the first thing I did was to visit the city and meet the people I had added to the Erasmus group on Facebook. People with whom I still keep in touch and visited French cities, spent evenings eating "raclette" with good wine, went to parties, watched movies, laughed, joked, supported each other. In short, they had become my family. It is thanks to them that I fully enjoyed this experience because it is also the people you meet who make the difference.

However, when everyone hears the word "Erasmus", they only think of parties. But it is more than that. It's meeting other people. It's creating memories. It is finding yourself. And last, but not least, it is also studying. Yes, it is! I studied a lot to pass the exams and I met some of the best university professors, who gave me useful advice for my future.

At the end I enjoyed every single minute, sometimes I had bad moments, but this is also a part of this personal journey. Coping with myself, this is what I improved during those months. I grew emotionally and I became more responsible and more independent.

For this experience, I must thank the European Union, the people I met, my family and finally myself. I think that once you are an Erasmus, you will always be an Erasmus.

It simply can’t be forgotten because when you come back, you’re a completely different person.

Updated on péntek, 02/10/2020