Wondering what life is like in Brazil's capital? Here at Master ALPI, students are required to take part in a student exchange during their final semester, one of the destinations being Brazil. Here we take a look at one of our former ALPI Master students, Thimothée, who tells us about his experience in Brazil, where he did his university exchange in Brasília and found two internships there, at the UN and the French Embassy.
How to manage top concerns
Safety and security
It's normal to worry about safety in Latin America. This was also the case for Timothée before his departure for Brasilia. He saw that Brazil is a dangerous country, where you could be attacked at any second. Fortunately, during Timothée's stay in Brasilia, nothing dangerous happened to him. “That's true, but it really depends on what you're doing there. Knowing the risks helps you avoid them. I've never been attacked during my year, unlike other colleagues. I find Brasília a particularly safe city compared to Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo.” The moral of the story is that wherever you go during your mobility, you need to be aware of your surroundings and take the necessary precautions. Hanging out in groups, especially with people who speak the local language, is an excellent safety measure.
“A word of advice to future ALPI students: don't hesitate to venture out into the city. Although distances on foot can quickly seem prohibitive, there are buses and bicycle stands to get you around. The parks (chapada in Portuguese) around Brasília are well worth a visit, especially the Chapada dos Viadeiros.”
Money
Economic factors are always a concern during student exchanges. And before Timothée left, he noticed that there was high inflation in Brazil in 2017 (and now, after the 2020 pandemic, inflation has risen again). In Thimothée's mind, he thought it would be better to have a reserve of money in another currency (euro). He remarked: “There is inflation, but not as much as in other Latin American countries. During my year, the value of the real against the euro varied from 4.2 to 3.5, which is relatively unnoticeable on a day-to-day basis, but you realize it over the long term. A word of advice for future students abroad: a euro reserve can be useful in case you lose your credit card.
It's worth noting that the cost of living in Brasilia is lower than in Rio and São Paulo, but still high for Brazil. I would say that the cost of living in Brasília is comparable to that of Rennes. I found my accommodation via a Facebook group “Brasilia dividir aluguel . It wasn't difficult as I booked it remotely, although I later regretted settling a bit far from the university.”
The language
As language learners, we're aware that every country has its own accent, its own slang and its own rules. Thimotée was aware that Brazilian Portuguese is constantly evolving and has its own vocabulary, and he feared that the Portuguese he had learned was nothing like Portuguese in Portugal. But once there, he was pleasantly surprised to discover that the language wasn't as complicated as he'd thought. “While Brazilian Portuguese does have its own specificities and slang, it still has a good deal in common with Portuguese from Portugal. And contrary to what I thought, if you understand one you'll understand the other, although it may take a while to adapt.” As Timothy mentions, time is the key! Push yourself to speak to others while you're abroad, and your ear will naturally adapt to the accent over time.
The atmosphere
From the outset, Timothée wasn't thrilled with the atmosphere in Brasilia, thinking that Brasília seemed artificial, recent and a little dead. But after a while, he changed his perception of the city, even if he still had problems with public transport. “The artificial city is the first thing that strikes you when you arrive in the city, despite this, once you've spent a few months in the city, you acquire new habits, you start to know where to go out, you realize that the city's breakdown system makes it very easy to find your way around and you enjoy the city.”
“Finally, the city of Brasília is extremely exotic, it has nothing in common with a traditional city, everything is very spaced out, the roads are disproportionate, you constantly have the impression of being on the outskirts even though you're in the heart of the city. But... what surprised me most was that the city was designed solely for cars, and when you're a pedestrian you sometimes feel like an intruder... There are a few initiatives to improve the city, but they're clearly not enough.”
About the University of Brasilia
Many things about Brazil made an impression on Timothée, including the university. The University of Brasília is like the city itself, very surprising. First of all, at the university, I was quite surprised by the dynamism of the students and the rather informal relationship they have with their professors. I recommend only taking courses at Darcy Ribeiro, as the other campuses are far too far away. RU is not very varied but very inexpensive (R$ 3 per meal). There's a long building, 1000m long, which they call the Minhoca (earth glass in Portuguese) for its S shape. The spaces are a bit excessive in the university too.
Timothée also told us what his daily life was like as an exchange student. A typical day that could describe my daily life at the beginning of the year would be: Take the bus, cross the whole north wing to go to the university, do 3 or 4 hours of classes, eat at the RU, take the bus again, cross the whole north wing again to go to my internship, work for 3 or 4 hours then come back home before taking the bus again to go out with friends. I wasn't very well placed in the city at first, but I think the bus is unavoidable.
Last thoughts
Before leaving for his trip, Timothée didn't think he was going to have any fun on his student exchange. However, he enjoyed his stay so much that he stayed on for his internship! Needless to say, his experience was full of surprises. “The size of the country is a shock. Even if you expect it before you leave, once you've flown long distances to get from town to town, you really realize. I have a very good view of the country, despite the economic and political problems, and I remain convinced that Brazilian culture has a lot to offer. I loved the variety of landscapes in Brazil. In Brasília, I loved spending days at the Parc Agua Mineral on the outskirts of the city, where there's a very large natural swimming pool and a protected park giving a good overview of the Cerrado. I also spent many evenings in quadras 408 and 410, which are extremely popular with students.”
Want to find out more about our student exchanges?
Si la lecture du voyage de Timothée à Brasilia vous a donné envie d'en savoir plus sur nos échanges d'étudiants, consultez la page de nos universités partenaires ! Vous y trouverez des informations sur leur localisation et l'histoire de l'université. Vous pourrez également lire des témoignages d'anciens étudiants sur leurs mobilisations à travers l'Europe et l'Amérique latine.
Nous avons également une page dédiée où les anciens étudiants de l'ALPI parlent de leurs expériences tout au long du programme de master ! Si vous avez des questions, n'hésitez pas à nous contacter.
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