Universitat de Barcelona (UB)

Like most of the exchange students to the Universitat de Barcelona (UB), I was referred to HabitatgeJove for the difficult quest for accommodation. This doesn't have to be the best choice: While I was very lucky with my flat, I heard of other misfortunate students who only found housing in sleazy suburbian flats. Therefore it may be more advisable to engage into the tiring and sometimes frustrating search for flats yourself. Take a look at the blackboards in the Central University building of UB where usually a lot of flat ads can be found (watch out for dodgy ones, though!) and at newspaper stands for buy & sell journals.

The XAMPANYERÍA in C/ Reina Christina is not to miss: cheap, good-quality cava in a unique (over-crowded) atmosphere. SAGARDI in El Born for great Basque tapas (pinchos). CAFÉ MUEBLES NAVARRO in C/ Riera Alta for a great living-room atmosphere on old furniture. LA PALOMA in C/Tigre: club in old dance hall combined with house music (on Thursdays). CAFÉ ROYALE (C/ Nou de Zurbano) for easy listening and house music in cool lounge setting.

Be aware that there are a lot of pick-pockets running around BCN, especially at the touristy spots (Rambla, Pla. Catalunya, Pla. Reial etc.). Nearly everyone I knew had got robbed at least once. So leave your wallets and credit card collections at home and choose wisely what to take with you into the streets. A good idea is to replace your thick wallets by the slim plastic cases (estuches) of the Metro company (TMB) that can be obtained at the TMB offices. Placed into your pocket, their slimness makes them pretty insuspicious. Before arriving in BCN, consider that you most likely will be on the hunt for a flat at first. You therefore will be in need of a youth hostel for a few days. Book in advance! I forgot to do it, and it was hell finding a bed for a night. When arriving in BCN, usually a major concern is to stay connected or to be reachable for others. The best option is to buy a prepaid SIM card for your mobile phone (Amena, MoviStar, Airtel), e.g. at FNAC, El Corte Inglés or any mobile phone store. If possible, don't come by car! Parking is a big problem and a constant struggle in BCN, and even if you found a (legal!) parking space in the street, chances aren't too low you find your car broken up the next day. But after all: BCN is a wonderful, inspiring and international city that is going to absorbe you. Even if you are to encounter annoying problems occasionally, you'll still be in beautiful and charming BCN.

At the UB, both Catalan and Castellano are used as official languages, while Catalan is clearly preferred by most students and staff. It is claimed that every teacher and student would unhesitantly swap into Castellano if asked for that, but my experience was that many (by far not all) teachers ignored the presence of ERASMUS students and kept talking in Catalan, making classes impossible to follow. Of course, the bigger the number of exchange students present, the bigger the pressure for the teacher to stick to Castellano...

If you happen to be in possesion of a Deutsche Bank account, don't forget to take your ec card with you: There a heaps of Deutsche Bank ATMs throughout the city, offering you to withdraw money with no extra costs.