University of Wroclaw / Poland, Hassan Habeeb Mohammad

I am Hassan Habeeb. I am a graduate of Political Science and International Relations, and I went on Erasmus in February, the second semester of 2018. I am so glad I went; thanks to Erasmus I had the chance to travel to 12 countries. I had the opportunity to gain a completely different experience through a new culture and a new education system. If I had the chance to go on Erasmus again, I would do it without a second thought. With this piece I wanted to share my own experience and the opportunities I gained with you.

Wroclaw is one of those cities you can comfortably explore on foot, and it is a bicycle-friendly city. There are places to rent a bicycle in almost every part of the city. Since the city is flat, cycling was a real pleasure. In my opinion, you absolutely must discover Wroclaw by bicycle. What is more, the public transport system is organised and works properly; the trams and buses arrive exactly on time, without even a minute's delay.

• First of all, you need to register on this website: https://wroclawskirower.pl/en/
• Fill in the form, read the rules, pay the registration fee by entering your credit card details and activate your account.
• Once registration is complete, a confirmation message and a PIN code will be sent to your phone and e-mail address.
• You need to place a deposit of at least 10 zloty in your account.
• After completing this step, go to the nearest bicycle terminal.
• Press the Rent button on the screen and enter your mobile phone number, your PIN code and the number of the bicycle you want to rent.
• Once you have done this, the bicycle you have rented will be unlocked automatically.
• When you have finished with the bicycle, return to a bicycle terminal and leave the bicycle where you picked it up. If you have left it in the right place, you will hear a beep. There is nothing else you need to do.

Note: the bicycle service only operates during the autumn and summer seasons.

• With your student card you can benefit from student discounts on public transport and at museums and historical sites. If you have a student card from any European country, you can benefit from student discounts in other European countries as well.

• Poland and other European countries offer students the opportunity to work part-time. During my Erasmus period I had classes two days a week, and to make use of the other days I worked part-time at a company. In fact, my Erasmus was rather like Work and Travel, because the grant received from Erasmus was not enough for travelling. I made a plan for myself and worked, and with those earnings I had the chance to travel to 12 countries. In the meantime, I would like to share my own travel plan with you. If you enjoy travelling, when you go to Poland with Erasmus you should definitely not fly directly; take a connecting flight through another country, visit that country and then continue on to Poland. I travelled via a connection in Athens, Greece, and had a 16-hour layover, which gave me the chance to see Athens. Also, when applying for your visa, ask for one month more than your study period, so that you can set off travelling as soon as school ends and return to Türkiye from wherever your money runs out.