Lisbon:City of Youth Past Review
By Charity J (International Relations/History, Wellesley College) for
CIEE: Lisbon - Language and Culture
definitely worthwhile.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The workload was minimal and the caliber of the students were low. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Lisbon is a great city with a lot of activities for college aged students. However, the program was poorly organized and students were forced to go to programs not many people were interested in attending while we were never taken to major cultural spots in the city. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host family did not really talk to me very often. I was a guest for the semester. |
| * Food: |
The food was great! If you live with a host family you have space in the kitchen to store groceries and you can use their kitchen to prepare meals |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The program actually didn't organize my favorite activities but they are very easy to do on your own. A few friends and I went to visit the Portuguese island of Madeira for a weekend and it was beautiful! |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
|
| * Safety: |
Lisbon is a very safe city. The high amount of smokers was irritating though. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
|
Finances
|
* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
|
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I spent roughly 200 euros a week, maybe a little less but you can definitely cut back by eating more meals at home. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Lisbon is a very cheap city but the main way of socializing is going out to eat: coffee, drinks, dinner etc. so a lot of money is spent that way |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | none |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
|
| Language acquisition improvement? |
My teacher and locals I encountered on the street |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
|
A Look Back
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | A very easy going, well organized person would really enjoy this trip |
