THE ACCOUNTS OF SOME ERASMUS STUDENTS

500 European students every year in Turin
Every year they come from all over Europe. They choose Turin and come here to study for a period which goes from 3 to 9 months. They are the Erasmus students: Turinese by adoption, having a special point of view on the city. And now that Turin will be under the European spotlights, listening also to their opinions is more interesting than ever.

Turin before their Erasmus period
The most used adjective is "mysterious", not to say unknown, perhaps. Someone bashfully dares add "Juve, Fiat and industry", but nothing else.
"Suma bin ciapà" (things really go wrong), a true-born Turinese would say, thinking of the fact that this was what the Erasmus students knew of the city before coming here to study. Not a good start, but there's some prospect of improvement.

Turin during their Erasmus period
"Beautiful", "friendly", "wonderful" and "with a strong personality" are the most frequent definitions the "adopted" students use to describe the Savoy capital when they go back home. The city amazes, surprises, impresses you. Many young people leave their heart here for the unexpected number of things to see and the extraordinary nightlife. This is what Melanie, Karolina, Michael, Barbara and Kenza think. Five twenty-year-old students who have fallen in love with the city during their year's stay. People from five different corners of the world who meet under the Mole.

The most loved places
What does an Erasmus student do in Turin? The passwords are "party", "culture", "study" and "relaxation". The city reveals itself unexpectedly rich and appealing and the Turinese monuments become familiar to the young foreign students. Piazza Castello, in particular, with Palazzo Madama and the Royal Palace. But also the less central attractions of Superga and Venaria, or the less known church of San Lorenzo. Then also the Egyptian Museum and the Mole Antonelliana, of course. An unforgettable touch of class. Barbara speaks enthusiastically about the city (as if she were praising the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower of her city, Paris) and seems even more competent than many Turinese. Maybe because the city where you decide to go stirs up your curiosity and interest, or maybe because Turin itself silently puts a spell on you. The calmness of the city, its "savoir vivre" and its strong will to preserve its natural balance in spite of its industrial vocation are some of the things that most impress foreign students.
So spending the afternoons at Valentino and going for a run in the city parks are the top favourite pastimes of the new temporary Turinese who come either from Morocco, like Kenza, or from Denmark, like Melanie, or from somewhere else. Everything is a discovery, a revelation. And even more so this happens in a fascinating city like Turin, whose past history as the first Italian capital and whose mysteries connected to black magic soon become familiar.
The city, to the eyes of the Erasmus students, keeps its balance between the city where the Turinese live and the city which unveils itself to its visitors.

The ritual of the aperitif and the Erasmus parties
Meeting before dinner to have something to eat and drink. The aperitif is a weird habit, but it has an immediate tasty appeal. Michael and Karolina, for example, have soon become its victims due to the fact that they were spoilt for the choice of the places where you can fill yourself up with appetizers and their very good value, granted by this kind of experience.
As time goes by and they get to know more Turinese, the list of the places they attend gets longer and the tricks to improve this ritual get more sophisticated. The best time according to the place, the most strategic seats to check the arrival of the food, the most favourable evenings to match food binging and courtship. From this point of view piazza Vittorio is the best for its offer. But this is obvious! If the Erasmus evening starts with an aperitif, it will probably end up dancing and having a lot of fun and the square opposite the Gran Madre can offer both. The word Murazzi is on all the interviewees' lips as soon as they start speaking about fun.And everybody knows the Erasmus students are real experts in this field. A list of places, such as Lapsus, Giancarlo, Cacao, Club21, Xò, Caffè del Progresso, Millionaire, Life, La Gare, is easily reeled off like a jingle with the accuracy of a local guide. It's here that the Erasmus Turin throbs with life and the love for the city is born, a love which will last after the students have gone back home.

THE PEACEFUL EUROPEAN INVASION

They were 546 in 2008, mainly Spanish, in fact 25% of the arrivals were from Spain. Then the Portuguese (67), the French (64), the British (28), the Rumanians (23) and, unexpectedly, the Turks (21) followed. But every country has its representatives: from Poland to Taiwan, from Liechtenstein to Canada.
All in Turin, where the University is supposed to be of high-quality.
According to the statistics, most of them are psychologists and humanists, but there are also scientists and mathematicians. Turin's appeal, a both technological and artistic city at the same time, doesn't really spare anyone.

SOME USEFUL ADDRESSES...

The office in charge of the Erasmus students (about to come or about to leave) is at no. 31, via Po (visiting hours by appointment only, tel. 011/6704425); a lot of useful information about the Erasmus project can be found on the website www.unito.it/programma_ llp.htm. Moreover there are two interesting sites about the non-academic life of the Erasmus students: www.erasmuspoint.altervista.org and www.erasmustorino.com.