Università degli Studi di Pavia

There are quite a few different halls in Pavia. I was in Golgi, where i had a single, en-suite room. There was a kitchen per floor (per 12 rooms) with full oven and hob, fridge, freezer. Bedding is provided for erasmus students and the communal areas are cleaned daily. The one thing it lacked was a decent social area.

Pavia is pretty small but it has a few decent bars - Nice One (great cocktails), Marecchaira (even better cocktails!), Irish Pub, and Dublino's are all cool. When I was there Pavia had one club - Ombellico's, but a new club has opended since. Student night's on Wednesday. STEP is the International student organisation and put on weekly events from meals and nights out to weekend trips away to Florence, Venice, and local attractions. And if all else fails, Milan is only a 20 min train ride away!

Although Pavia is a small town, there's plenty do do and see around and about and with it being on the main train line through northern italy, travelling is really easy. Make sure you get your accomodation application in on time, and don't forget the medical certificate from your doctor at home (which MUST be translated into Italian) as they won't even look at your application without it.

The Italian burocracy is a nightmare - attempting to get the Permesso del Soggiorno in Pavia is a nightmare but be persistant and you'll get there in the end. One tip - go in a big group and try to get an appointment. it might take some persuasion but it'll pay off in the end as it'll save you hours or even days or queuing.

Provided that you get out there and make the effort to speak the language locals tend to be really accomodating.