Erasmus student exchange in Porto part 2

It has been more than two months since I wrote my last report. Life started rolling on in it's normal way. Only while writing this blog I regain the feeling that nothing is actually normal. Everything is refreshingly different from home, but it was due time for me to get used to it.
I still live alone in two-bed room, but I was told that one student is coming in June to the residence and that they will put him with me in the room.
One piece of information: the protocol for downloading torrents is blocked from university network. I tried a lot of workaround, and managed to get some download but it was very rare and the speed was awful.

Life is Porto is very relaxed. People here are immune to stress. Whether it is a positive or a negative one, they don't tolerate it. Everything can wait. That is most evident in Portuguese administration. I have three friends already complaining how Portuguese administration managed to make their lives very complicated. Two friends waited for several months for their grants to be paid in full. This could all be some coincidence if I didn't personally know a girl who is also on exchange and works in the International Office at the Rectorate of University of Porto. She explained to me in details how student e-mails stay unread for several days and unanswered for several weeks without any cause other than the people there don't feel like working.


FC Porto
(recapture your love for football)
Porto's finest football team enjoys a great fame and united support of all its citizens. And rightfully so, considering that despite Benfica (Lisbon) having better predispositions for football success (bigger city, better financial background), Porto still year after year demonstrates domination not only in Portugal but also in European championships. I've actually met Slovakian students on Erasmus that have been living here for an entire year. They started visiting Porto home matches within months after they moved here and they were really passionate about it.

Futsal is also very popular in Porto. For me it is actually one of rare occasions to speak and interact with Portuguese people over longer period of time. Neighbourhood's futsal playground is the place where I learnt most of the Portuguese language I speak.

In May, there is a traditional celebration called Queima das Fitas which lasts one week. All students walk around the town yelling and wearing black harry potter outfits with funny cylinder hats and sticks in various colours. They are often kicking each other on the head with a stick, so probably the purpose the hats is also to protect the head. Only the senior students who are finishing college get hit on the head because it is actually something like a knighting ceremony here. Only difference is that here everyone is drunk. In Matosinhos there is a big area surrounded by fences, where concerts are being held all week. Inside that area, every faculty has its own stand where they sell alcohol. Every stand has its own theme and its own music. Each year, a lot of even internationally famous singers, DJs and music groups make an appearence on this annual Portuguese festival.

Sea is very cold. Temperature of the sea can go up to 18°C. Higher than that maybe in extremely rare occasions. Surfing is very popular in Porto. For Erasmus students there is a special discount on surfing courses and a lot of students use it. I went surfing only once and it was great. I always forget to go to ESN office to apply for some more surfing classes.

Another great thing about Porto is that it's very well connected to other European cities via low-cost flights. RyanAir, Transavia, and probably many other companies travel to Porto. It is normal to find a return flight to Barcelona, Madrid, Paris for no more than 30€.

Food here is slightly different than what I was used to. Portuguese people eat a lot of fish especially Bachalau. They have a lot of different recipes for this fish and it is considered traditional food here. Other characterstic dish is Francesinha. I tried it in couple of places and the taste was very different, so if you don't like it the first time, you should try some other place, every restaurant has different recipe. Near the river, there is one restaurant called "Verso em Pedra" which has a special "Mega Francesinha" in the offer. This is sort of a competition, because whoever successfully eats a mega francesinha alone within one hour, recieves a prize: an electric guitar. I forgot the brand of the guitar but I know it is very high quality. It should be, because nobody has ever won the prize. I would say it's close to impossible because I actually saw that meal. They say it's 3kg, but i think it's even more. The price of mega francesinha is 35€ so it could be a good idea to order it regardless of the competition for 7 or more people to eat. A normal meal to order if you are hungry and don't want to experiment much is "prego em prato". That's a steak with egg and potatoes. Pastel de nata is my desert of choice. It's so creamy and delicious and you can buy it almost anywhere, including in supermarkets.