non-stop coimbra
i am positive that i wouldn't have had such a mad and fantastic time in coimbra if it wasn't for bernardo, who lives and has studied here in this lively and beautiful university town. before i go on i will warn you that this post may be a little bit disjointed as i am at the tail end of 3 allnighters here amongst the portuguese students; which was tagged onto a similarly lengthy night in salamanca which will not have the privilige of blog description unless i get seriously motivated to do some retrospective posting...
so it is safe to say that we haven't really seen much of coimbra by day, the exceptions being an afternoon on our second day here walking through the streets of the magnificent old town and up the hill to the university; the clock tower of which presides over the town and dominates the night skyline - very indicative of the atmosphere of the town which is literally taken over by students after dark. the erasmus party here lasts a week and involves partying all night long at the festival arena (comprised of a big-top tent and an indoor stadium). the arena hosts lots of different acts: including the local student 'tuna' acts which is a large ensemble of talanted and drunk musicians playing everything from 12string portuguese guitars, to violins, drums and dancing acrobatic tambourine-ers. the groups write their own music in the style of 'fado': a melancholic sing-along that involves the crowd of drunken fellow students. each faculty has their own tuna and there is much pride and competition between them, something akin to the 'review' culture in sydney.
it is important to make note at this point the extent of the slightly forced participation in the university. it is compulsary for every member of the 40,000 strong university population to purchase a traditional uniform (a 3-piece black suit with cape) that is worn on special occasions - the erasmus week being one of these. the antics that go on are very much in the vain of some of the college traditions in sydney, but the whole scene is that much less bizarre because the whole university participates. please don't ask me to explain the logic, but the fact that the street parade on the last day of the erasmus week involves the whole town says something about the inclusiveness of the institution. in the end it is just an excuse for a party, which i wasn't found objecting to in the slightest as is evidenced by my sleep deprived demeanour and hangover. it was brought to my attention by every random english speaking portuguese student (which happens to be a vast majority of people here because it is the official second language and taught througout school, not to mention the media industry/governments very good decision not to dub film and television) that this erasmus week is nothing compared to the end of semester festival the following may. essentially all i was seeing was the beginning of the year fresher-bash; indeed in may coimbra holds the guinness book of record title for the largest volume of alcohol consumed in one week - placing first ahead of october-fest in germany despite the fact that the german equivalent goes for 3 weeks and has about 15times the number of people attending.... not quite sure if i could handle that but we all know i'm a bit of a softy when it comes to week-long binges.
off to porto tonight and lucy and i will be sad not to spend more time with bernardo and his lovely family/food ; )
so it is safe to say that we haven't really seen much of coimbra by day, the exceptions being an afternoon on our second day here walking through the streets of the magnificent old town and up the hill to the university; the clock tower of which presides over the town and dominates the night skyline - very indicative of the atmosphere of the town which is literally taken over by students after dark. the erasmus party here lasts a week and involves partying all night long at the festival arena (comprised of a big-top tent and an indoor stadium). the arena hosts lots of different acts: including the local student 'tuna' acts which is a large ensemble of talanted and drunk musicians playing everything from 12string portuguese guitars, to violins, drums and dancing acrobatic tambourine-ers. the groups write their own music in the style of 'fado': a melancholic sing-along that involves the crowd of drunken fellow students. each faculty has their own tuna and there is much pride and competition between them, something akin to the 'review' culture in sydney.
it is important to make note at this point the extent of the slightly forced participation in the university. it is compulsary for every member of the 40,000 strong university population to purchase a traditional uniform (a 3-piece black suit with cape) that is worn on special occasions - the erasmus week being one of these. the antics that go on are very much in the vain of some of the college traditions in sydney, but the whole scene is that much less bizarre because the whole university participates. please don't ask me to explain the logic, but the fact that the street parade on the last day of the erasmus week involves the whole town says something about the inclusiveness of the institution. in the end it is just an excuse for a party, which i wasn't found objecting to in the slightest as is evidenced by my sleep deprived demeanour and hangover. it was brought to my attention by every random english speaking portuguese student (which happens to be a vast majority of people here because it is the official second language and taught througout school, not to mention the media industry/governments very good decision not to dub film and television) that this erasmus week is nothing compared to the end of semester festival the following may. essentially all i was seeing was the beginning of the year fresher-bash; indeed in may coimbra holds the guinness book of record title for the largest volume of alcohol consumed in one week - placing first ahead of october-fest in germany despite the fact that the german equivalent goes for 3 weeks and has about 15times the number of people attending.... not quite sure if i could handle that but we all know i'm a bit of a softy when it comes to week-long binges.
off to porto tonight and lucy and i will be sad not to spend more time with bernardo and his lovely family/food ; )
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