My experience in Breda – Netherlands

CFGS Comercio Internacional

Hi everyone, my name is Artur Martoyan, student of IES Clara del Rey. Before starting to tell about my Erasmus experience I want to recommend make Erasmus if you have that opportunity because is a big chance to meet yourself and improve as professional, also you will get unforgettable moments and experience, you will grow up as independence person and face to difficult moments.
My internship was in Breda (Netherlands) it a small city with more or less 250 000 habitats and a lot of students as there are 2 or 3 universities, I don’t know exactly. Why I choose Holland? Because is one of the best countries in Europe, for improve my English skills because everyone here speaks English without the accent, is not very expensive if you will live in a small city, of course, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam or Masstrich are more expensive. 
FIND A COMPANY. When you are new in Erasmus and you do not know how is working, also you must study while you are looking for a company, you leave the company searching for your professors. At least in my case, it was like that. To be honest, find a company is not difficult, it is as simple as getting registration in Linkedin and look for Internship offers. A lot of companies are looking for new students for making an Erasmus, mostly they are big international companies, then if you have a little bit time look for your company by yourself and choose the company what you really want.
FIND A ROOM. It was a little bit difficult but finally, everyone finds some room, so do not worry! For finding the room in Breda you have some webs where you must pay for registration, but leave that option for the last one, it much better look first at Facebook pages like Foreigners in Breda or Find a room in Breda, also you must pay attention to be the first to speak to the tenant and have more possibilities to get a room. Other option is contact with your company and asks for some help with the accommodation, all ways are good. Also, you can see the adverts of other students who are looking to share a house. All of these ways are good not for only find a room in Breda also is a good way to finding a room in other countries. When you rent a room is normal to see the room without furniture, try to find something with at least the bed, I was lucky and my tenant got me a table, bed, chair and other details. Be careful and do not pay before your arrival!
TRANSPORT AND SUPERMARKETS When I arrived in Holland all it was so strange: all the people moving in a bike( you can rent a bike by 30 euros a months or by some old bike is also good, maybe your tenant or your company can leave you one), other supermarkets ( if we speak about the quality the best one  is jumbo, second Albert Heijn, third Aldi. If we speak about the prices the cheapest one is Aldi, Albert Heijn is a medium price and Jumbo a little bit more than Albert Heijn). In the Albert Heijn, you cannot pay with Spanish debit card, in Aldi and Jumbo YES you can. For buy something for your home you can go to the Action or Hema. For the transport like bus, you must to get the OV- chipkaart card and charge at least 4 euros to use it. You can get that card in any station. For visit other cities you can buy a normal ticket for bus or train for a good price, Holland is small. The bus price is expensive, so everyone is moving by bike. If the police stop you with the phone in hands while you drive the bike you will pay 95 euros as punishment. 
PARTY, maybe you think that Erasmus is a lot of parties but sometimes is not like that, it depends of your ability to make friends, the time that you have if you living with other students or you are living with people who work. It is true that if you go to the centre of Breda you will find a lot of pubs and small discos with a lot of students. Make friends in Holland it not easy, they use to speak Dutch between Dutch people. It will depend of the details that I said before. If you go to the party to be careful with your bike because at 07.00 am all bikes in not permitted place for parking will be retired, so please leave your bike and safe place. In Breda all the weeks you go to find some festivals or interesting parties. Sometimes the alcohol is a little bit expensive, for example in the festivals.
BREDA The city of Breda is so nice place, with typical Dutch architecture. In general, Holland is a nice place, a lot of canals, all is green. Dutch people is friendly and always will help if you dont understand something. 
WORK. During your internship, you can find a job in some restaurant or some events, also in the gym like a trainer for part-time always. If you only have a permit of residence and work in Spain, you cannot work in Holland. You will need to contact your embassy and UWN( work permit) or IND ( Dutch immigration). If you are a citizen of the European Union is not a be a problem work in the Netherlands
COSTS in Breda and other places will depend of how much you go out or how much you pay for the room and other details, the basic cost in which I include the renting and food is 600 euros ( 350 my room and 250 for the food). As you understand is the basic cost per month that is not bad for students.
GYM, if you like to do sport you will have some places to do the workout, running ways, etc. If you want to go to the gym and you are looking for a cheap and good gym, Basic-fit (23 euros per month) is the solution, it is true that in some hours the gym is so busy, if you want another cheap solution Bress gym (100 euros per year, check the prices in the web site)  is a nice gym where you would enjoy also of the swimming pool and group sports, darts, futbolín, ping pong, basket and more. 
HAIRDRESSER , it was a really big problem to find a good hairdresser at a good price. Be ready to spend as less 20 euros in a hairdresser in Holland, in big cities 25 euros at least. In Breda, you can find the station hairdresser with low prices 10-15 euros and acceptable quality. But I recommend search and ask other students to find a good hairdresser.
If you need more information don’t hesitate in ask me in my email artur19971998@gmail.com. 
Enjoy your Erasmus experience !