Not content with speaking just German and English, Christiane Piepel spent time in Lisbon perfecting her Portuguese, her skills in international relations, and her suntan

I decided to go to Lisbon even though I have never been there. I had previously been to Brazil, where I started to learn Portuguese, and I really enjoyed the language. Going abroad would give me the chance to get to know another country, improve my language skills, and experience a different way of studying medicine.

Well so I said. But in truth, I wanted to go south, to be able to go to the beach, and to have a holiday. I was horrified by the thought my life would only consist of school, university, work, and more work.

The day after my last exam in Germany, I boarded the plane and jetted off to Porto, Portugal's second city, where I took part in a language course for one month at the Fernando Pessoa University.

Learning a new language with people from all over Europe was great fun, albeit demanding. It was amazing to watch an Estonian explaining the nuances of Portuguese grammar to a Hungarian and an East German in Russian.

The course

The course was not all hard work. In between sessions, the course organisers arranged trips to the environs of the city to enable us to discover Portuguese culture, wines, beaches, and bus stop queues. I had never imagined that people would queue at a bus stop in the rain and wind, even though the bus had not arrived.

But after the gentle introduction, it suddenly became scarier. I crammed my belongings back into my suitcase and was sent out alone to face the confusing Portuguese bureaucracy and student antics at my own university. My destination was Santa Maria Hospital in Lisbon--a huge labyrinth of floors, units, nurses, patients, students, and doctors.

The "praxe"

The school year started with a "praxe"--a Portuguese tradition to introduce the freshers to university. The older students dress up in suits and then put black robes adorned with ornaments of their home cities and friends over the top. They organise different activities for the freshers--games, parties, and pub crawls through Lisbon. Occasionally, a few older students get carried away--they throw younger students into rivers, undress them, paint them, and give them stupid tasks to do.

Language

Initially the language was difficult and people might as well have been speaking Chinese for all I understood. But after the first couple of weeks everything became a lot easier and when I was really struggling, I was able to speak in English, as most people in Portugal seemed to speak it. This even extended to examinations. Although all the lessons were in Portuguese, the faculty gave me the opportunity to take my exams orally and in English in case I had too many problems with the language.

Working life

I soon became adjusted to the new life and the different methods of study at university. Medical practice took place between 9 am (or closer to 10 am accounting for Portuguese punctuality) and 1 pm. In the afternoons, we had some lectures, but no one ever knew where they were and so students bought summarised versions in the copy shop.

As a result, I had free time in the afternoon and the weekends to explore Lisbon and its nightlife, flea markets, parks, and lookouts. It also gave me time to visit the other exchange students, who were based in beautiful little towns all over Portugal.

Holiday for all

At the beginning of May, the faculty booked a whole resort hotel for four days in the Algarve, Portugal's southernmost province and holiday haven. Nine hundred medics descended on the town for the Medical Olympics, which for some meant competing in a variety of sports, but for others it was an opportunity to lie on the beach and then party all night and morning. The occasion provided an excellent chance to get to know some of the faces I saw at the hospital, but never found the time to talk to.

This made up for the fact that most students still live with their parents and even those who don't live at home go home every weekend. When the students socialise, they tend to go out for dinner with friends or visit one of their friend's beach houses.

And finally

My time in Lisbon has been fascinating and I was sad to leave the country, its people, its language, and my friends. People are probably the most important aspect of visiting a country; I met so many friendly people there, and everybody tried to be helpful. I am glad that I decided to go for a year and not for a shorter period. To be able to build up more intense friendships, to have time to learn the language, to travel, and to experience the different seasons are important in making the most of an exchange. It is a great experience to learn about all these little differences and similarities that make each country special.