After having spent almost 5 months in Cardiff, I realised that there were a few things that would have made my life there a lot easier and less stressful if I had known them earlier, so I decided to share them with you !
1) Make a list of all the paperwork you need to get done during your time abroad, and get it done ASAP. You will think that the deadline is far away, and that you have plenty of time ahead, but trust me, time flies. You will find yourself incredibly busy very soon !
2) Go to your new city at least two weeks before the beginning of your classes or internship. Once again, when you arrive to new city, and especially in a new country, there are billions of things to do. If you arrive a bit sooner, it leaves you time to get use to the rhythm of the city, visit your neighbourhood, go to international events, meet new people, make some friends … you will wanna do that !
3) Don’t get offended easily. You are in a different country, and therefore surrounded by people with a different culture. Instead of turning your back on them, try to open up, and to learn more about their habits !
4) Smile. A lot. All the time. To everyone. I know that sounds quite basic, but I swear smiling can take you very far. In shops, cafés, libraries … even a quick smile can make the difference, and your adventure abroad will be much more pleasant ! I actually met two of my best friends here at an Erasmus gathering in September, just by smiling to them when I ran into them at the buffet ! And if you’re scared people are gonna think you’re a weirdo, well, better be a happy weirdo than a bitchy whinger !
5) Try to speak the country’s language. Even if you don’t speak it at all, learn the
basis ! Just say « Hello ! » when you enter a shop, try to order food in the national language, and almost every time the locals will appreciate your efforts, and they will make it easier for you to understand them. Even if your pronunciation is not correct, the point is to make an effort to adapt yourself to your new country !
6) Don’t freak out about making friends. You may have seen people posting pics or telling you about the amaaaaazing friends they met during their time abroad, and feel like you are not that close to the people you met. My advice is give it some time. When I arrived in Cardiff, I was really impatient to live « the full abroad experience », and felt like the first people I crossed path with were going to become friends for a lifetime, and was kind of disappointed when I realised it was not the case after three weeks. Actually, it just took a little more time, and after we’ve shared some experiences all the group really became closer !
7) Find a HQ bar (just like in Friends !). Once you’ve found it, no more hours long discussions about where to go tonight, you just need to set the time, and all of your crew can just meet there ! Also, at some point, the bartenders may recognise you and your group, which is always nice (and if you can get bargains on top of that, it’s even better !)
8) Pre-cooked meals seem great BUT IT’S A TRAP ! I know, throwing an Uncle Ben’s rice packet in the microwave and get a meal ready in 2min is extremely convenient. But when you start eating like that, it is really hard to start cooking healthy food again. I remember a point when all of my meals were composed of bread, cheese and biscuits for several days in a row, because of laziness really, I totally had time to cook I just lost the habit of it. Just try to stay as healthy as you can, you will feel a lot less tired, and ready to explore the city !
9) DO SPORTS ! Yeah, usually the type of tip everybody hates, but look, just like eating well, staying in good shape is pretty important if you want to keep up with the rhythm of foreign student ! If your body is used to practice sport at least once a week, then you will have much more energy to take part in all of the activities planned around you ! (And you will feel far less guilty about drinking all those beers).
10) Enjoy !! Just avoid overthinking everything (except from your paperwork, this you can never overthink too much !), go with the flow, and have as much fun as you can !
A French girl in Cardiff 