In order to be fully covered, we recommend the insurance of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), which is also recommended by the FHDW. This could also be taken out very easily via the DAAD website, where payment and all changes can also be made. If you don’t already have international insurance through other channels, it’s a good, all-inclusive insurance package. Some of us took out Allianz international health insurance, as other important things (liability insurance, accident insurance) were already covered by our parents.

When planning our semester abroad, we were all faced with the choice of whether to live in the Turība University hall of residence or rent an apartment. As not everyone knew each other before the semester abroad, Martin, Emil and Niklas; Melina and Denise; and Jannik and Carlo decided to rent an apartment in Riga. Henry booked a bed in a twin room in the Turība hall of residence. One reason for the decision to rent their own apartment was the experience of the alumni from last year. The dormitory was quarantined several times in 2020 due to corona.

We all searched for and found our shared flat via Airbnb. Our apartments were either right in the city center (Melina and Denise) or 15 minutes away from the city center. The apartments had everything we needed for our four-month stay, except for an oven in Martin & Co’s shared apartment. The first email from Turība was also a positive surprise, drawing our attention to an organization day and offering to pick us up from the airport free of charge.

At the end of August / beginning of September 2021, we finally set off for Riga. We arrived in Riga by plane from Cologne / Bonn, Dortmund or even France. When we arrived at the airport, a cab ordered by Turība took us to our accommodation. We spent the first few days in Riga sightseeing and doing leisure activities such as going to the movies and bowling. Our university phase began on 03.09.2021 with the orientation day at Turība. The orientation day was very helpful in getting to know the university and was livened up with games. In the evening, we got to know the club scene for the first time with a visit to “The Sinner Club” organized by the university. For some of our group, the Riga adventure only began the next day with the ESN Riga welcome party.

The following week, our first lectures began at the Turība Universitywhich, to our delight, were all held in person (at least at the beginning). We attended various courses in Riga, all of which focused on business administration, including Production and Service Operation Planning, E-Commerce, Financial Management and Business Ethics and Business Communication. In addition, depending on the study specialization, courses had to be completed at the FHDW, as not all of the modules required for the semester could be covered in Riga.

In addition, some of us attended a Latvian course at Turība to familiarize ourselves with the language of the host country. For the most part, the courses were exciting. It is important to know that at Turība, depending on the ECTS value of a course, there are also tests or presentations during the lectures (e.g. 3 ECTS 1 test + exam). The tests are included in the overall grade for the module. Another plus point was the hybrid lectures at the university (as long as an attendance phase was possible). In other words, it was possible to take part in the lecture in person or online.

Booking a room in advance was very unbureaucratic via the student residence administration, as all documents and the rent only had to be signed and paid on site. Henry shared a twin room with another Erasmus student. As all Erasmus students live together on one floor, it was very easy to get connected. If you’re not looking for complete peace and quiet or want to live alone with your group of friends, the hall of residence is the best decision you can make. You are right at the source of the action, learn to live with other cultures and are housed right next to the university. You get used to the shared bathrooms and kitchen relatively quickly, washing machines and dryers are one floor up and if you don’t want to cook, the canteen and café in the university building provide meals during the week.

There are several stores in the vicinity of Turība. The train station, which is 5 minutes away from the main Turība building, and several bus stops mean that Turība is well connected to the main train station in Riga. Traveling by train is very cheap compared to Germany, depending on the zone you travel to, you pay between €0.86 and €3.33 for a journey. You can even travel by bus, streetcar and trolley bus for €0.30 per hour with a student ticket.

In Riga, most of the action takes place in the Old Town, as this is where most of the restaurants, clubs and bars are concentrated. Also popular with Latvians are large shopping centers, of which there are many in Riga, including in the city center (e.g. Akropole, Alfa, Galleria Riga and Galerija Centrs). The outlet center Via Jurmala is also highly recommended, especially during Black Friday week. In their free time, young Latvians like to party. The possibilities are almost endless in the city center.

The food culture in Riga is very international, from pizza to tacos, you can eat almost anything. The typical Latvian food culture was very much shaped by the German and Russian occupation. For example, there is sauerkraut, potatoes, sausage and meatballs as well as kvass and pelmeni. It is also worth visiting several museums in Riga, e.g. the Museum in the Powder Tower (war museum, free admission) and the KGB Museum (free admission, different costs for a guided tour). The typical Latvian liqueur “Riga Balzam”, which was used as a medicine by Catherine the Great, took some getting used to.

There are a large number of Russian-speaking citizens in Riga. You often hear Russian on the street, but Latvians are still proud of their language and culture. In addition to the Russian population, there is regularly a large Erasmus community in Riga, so you won’t get bored and there are all kinds of events. These include various parties, excursions or even games evenings or a “Language Cafe”, where students from different countries teach others a few words of their language. Riga also has a lot to offer in terms of history. While the old town is full of Art Nouveau buildings, there are also buildings from the Soviet era outside and from time to time you can also see the German influence.

We can recommend the CityTrip Riga travel guide from Reise Know-How Verlag to anyone who would like information about Riga. It gave Niklas and the rest of us good tips during our stay abroad and was definitely worth the money. We also recommend using the Bolt and Yandex Go app for Riga. You can use these apps to order cheap cab rides. For ordering food, we recommend Bolt Food and Wolt. So that you can also buy your train tickets cheaply, you should install the Vilciens app to get a small discount on the purchase of train tickets. Special feature in Latvia: There are ticket inspectors on every train. This means that you can buy your ticket from the conductor on the train. Another popular means of transportation in Riga are scooters, which are widely available and can be used at a reasonable price. To keep up to date with all events, it’s worth following the Turiba Student Council and ESN Riga on their social media channels.

The expenses for the entire semester abroad differed for each of us, as we moved into different apartments and also spent our free time on different activities. Niklas spent around €4,200 including a trip to Lapland (around €700) and a visit to Estonia, Lithuania and Poland (together around €500). The costs also include restaurant visits, movies, parties, bus and train costs. The rental costs of around €1,400 for the rented apartment are also included. We financed our stay abroad through the Erasmus+ grant (approx. €1,200) and our salary from the dual study program. If you want to spend a little less, the costs can be significantly reduced by booking a bed in the Turība Student Hostel. Henry had to pay €135 per month for his bed in a twin room, and for a bed in a four-bed room you currently pay €67 per month.

In general, food in Latvia is somewhat more expensive than in German discount stores. We recommend that you visit the central market for fresh food, where local and international products of good quality are offered at low prices. If you’re homesick, it’s also worth visiting one of the many LIDL stores in Riga. Apart from our families and friends, what we missed most in Riga was German bread, a good draught beer, the manta ray platter and the highway. Sometimes you have to go abroad to realize how German you really are. :-)

During our semester abroad, we all experienced a lot and got to know many nice people and made new friends. At Turība University, Martin and Niklas were involved in the Student Council (International Cooperation department). Carlo, Melina and Niklas were also involved in ESN Riga. It was fun to organize events for the other students. Others from our group played soccer in the sports club in their free time or danced in the dance studio, for example hip-hop.

There are many beautiful places to visit in and around Riga. We can particularly recommend the following: Majori in summer, Sigulda in summer/autumn, the White Dune and Ķemeri National Park. Café Leningrad is a good place for a cheap meal, while the Skyline Bar in the Radisson Blu offers a good view of the city. Other highlights for most of us were the trips to Vilnius (Lithuania) and Tallinn (Estonia) as well as a day trip to Helsinki. It was well worth visiting these beautiful cities in Latvia’s neighboring countries. Travel is easy and inexpensive, for example with Luxexpress. There are also often cheap flights from Riga to various destinations.

A special highlight at the end of the semester for Melina, Denise and Niklas was the trip to Lapland. This trip to snowy Saariselkä in Lapland/Finland, organized by Timetravels, had a lot to offer with a husky tour, a visit to a sauna in Norway followed by ice bathing and other activities. If you are interested in the trip, you should check the provider’s website as soon as possible after your semester abroad has started. Places usually sell out very quickly.