By Driss
from Casablanca, Morocco
Usually, when we go to a country for an Erasmus, we arrive with our very own bundle of stereotypes, and sometimes, if not often, we take them back with us…
At the end, the only way to leave your bundle beside the road is to keep your experience forever with you, no matter where you are, and this is not the task of your memory, but that of your friends, and that’s what Erasmus is all about.
I was standing with my mom at Ataturk International Airport at 4am waiting for my flight to Madrid from Istanbul. I was overexcited since I was travelling to my dream country to live for 6 months! I love Spain, Spanish culture, language, Spanish men, and the architecture, that’s why I chose Madrid for my Erasmus experience.
Do you remember this well-known French film which staged the cultural dialogue and the festive atmosphere associated with the Erasmus student exchange program? Twelve years ago, “L’Auberge espagnole” popularized what millions of young students in various countries of Europe (and even beyond the borders of the EU) have known now for over 25 years. Although the famous European program encourages student and professional mobility within the Union, a genuine cultural diversity and the development of a sense of European citizenship, it is now necessary to go further so that the Europe of tomorrow is not just for the few.
Ever wondered what you sound like to a foreigner who cannot speak your mother tongue?
I had the chance to spend my Erasmus in Belgium and Germany, one semester in each country. This was due to the fact I was doing French and German at university. The experience itself was definitely invaluable and both locations proved to be quite different for many reasons, however equally enriching.
Erasmus and student mobility across borders is not only the prospect of higher employability, meeting people from all over the globe or learning a new language. It is also the chance to meet your future partner! 27% of Erasmus alumni met their life partner during their stay abroad. Erasmus couples have produced nearly 1 million new babies since its implementation in 1987.
