Crossways General Meeting 2008 - St Andrews

We have the confirmation from the Mundus coordinating team that funding is available for the event (specifically for accommodation). We are organising a three-day (two nights) event -- big thanks to Elisa, Delphine, Natalya and Izabela for the suggestions and tips about St Andrews. A *very* special thanks to Alessandra who has been just wonderfully helpful.

You can find an initial draft of the event's schedule attached. Of course it is provisional and can be changed, according to your suggestions and will. What we have for sure is:

* Room at the university booked - Friday from 1 to 4pm

* Lunch provided by the University of St Andrews on Friday

* Confirmation of funds for one-night accommodation in a hostel

So, the next step is to fill the registration form at

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=or4LIuwcekTBuoz9Mqg4Xw_3d_3d

if you are sure you are going. You should be aware that if you wish to participate on the 3 days, one night of accommodation will be at your expense (one night in the hostel costs about 18€/15£) as well as travel costs.

Please make sure you the chart below before registering.

The deadline for registration is Wednesday, 15 October (people who are now living in St Andrews also need to register if they wish to attend the event). Of course you should feel free to join later, but I have to stress it should be very difficult to organise accommodation because there is only one hostel in town. So, if you want to make sure you will have a place to stay, please let us know *now*.

If you are going to register, perhaps you should be considering buying the tickets. You should know that it takes

- approximately 2.5 hours from Edinburgh airport

- approximately 3.5 hours from Glasgow - Prestwick airport

- approximately 20 minutes from Leuchars train station (if you're coming by train from the UK, you should buy the ticket to Leuchars)

For details on how to get there, please click here.

Once we know for sure who is going to participate, we can start organising the seminars and improving the schedule.

I will be looking forward to seeing you all there!

All the best,

Roberta Gregoli

Crossways students' representative 2008-2009

How to get to St Andrews

       by Alessandra Gallerano

TRAVEL INFORMATION* - Arriving in St. Andrews 

 

By Plane: 

 

From Edinburgh Airport 

Either 

 Bus Airlink 100 (leaving from terminal forecourt, outside the main entrance, every 10 min) to Edinburgh Heymarket Train Station > Train to Leuchars > Bus to St Andrews ( n. 99, 99A, 99B, 96) > get off at St Andrews main bus station > the hostel is at less than 5 min walk from  there! (see directions below)  

• Fares: Airlink 100 : 3£ single; 5£ return   

          train to Leuchars :  6-11£ single (depending on available online offers) 

 local bus to St Andrews: 2.25£  

• Journey Time: 20 min (Airlink bus) + 1h (train) + 20min (bus to St Andrews) + waiting times  

Or 

 Bus AirDirect 747 (from terminal forecourt, outside the main entrance, every 20-30 min) to Ferry-  Toll Park & Ride Bus Station > direct Stagecoach Bus  to St. Andrews ( X59-60) > get off at St Andrews main bus station > the hostel is at less than 5 min walk from there! 

• Fares: AirDirect 747 £4.50 single or day return; 

               Bus to St Andrews: £8 single; 10£ return 

• Journey Time: 25-30 min ( AirDirect 747) + 1.45h (bus to St Andrews) + waiting times 

 

From Glasgow International Airport 

 Bus 757 - AirLink Direct Express to Glasgow City Centre > direct StageCoach  bus to St Andrews (X24;X26;X27)   OR  > Train to Leuchars (change in Edinburgh) 

 

• Fares: 757 AirLink: £2.90 single 

  StageCoach bus: £ 8 single; £10 return 

  Train: 17.50 £ single (fares can change depending on available online offers) 

• Journey Time: 30 min (AirLink) + 2:30-45h (StageCoach bus) OR 2.15h ( train to Leuchars) + waiting times 

 

From Glasgow Prestwick Airport 

Train to Glasgow Central (£3.5o by showing flight ticket; 1 hour journey) Train to Leuchars OR Stagecoach Bus to St Andrews (you will have to walk from Glasgow Central Station to Glasgow main Bus Station-15 min walk)   

 

By Train:   

Train to Leuchars > Bus to St Andrews  ( see above for detailed information)  

 

By Coach:   

Coach-rides from (more or less) everywhere in the UK to Edinburgh or Dundee are run by MegaBus; CityCoach or National Express.  

 

From Edinburgh: 

See above for detailed information 

From Dundee:    

Bus n. 99 or 96 to St Andrews (about 45min. ride; fares: 2.45-4.50£,single, depending on the bus) > get off at St Andrews main Bus Station.  

 

Useful Links:  

For info regarding:  

- AirLink 100 and AirDirect 747

- AirLink 757

- Trains from Glasgow Prestwick Airport

- Trains to/from Leuchars

- StageCoach and local busses to St Andrews (the best way of looking up timetables is searching by service number – on the centre-left, in the above indicated website) 

- Other Coach services: 

http://www.megabus.com/uk/     

www.citylink.co.uk  

www.nationalexpress.com/coach/index.cfm  

 

DIRECTIONS to St Andrews Travel Hostel (provided by the hostel) 

The Hostel is located in ST MARYS PLACE only 5 mins from the BUS STATION above the restaurant called the GRILL HOUSE. You turn right when you leave the bus station cross the road and then turn left into ST MARYS PLACE walk 100 meters up the street and the Hostel is on your Right. 

* The Stagecoach buses fare prices are last year’s. It might have changed, although no information is available on their website. 

Lisbon Guide (7 of 9): Visas

LISBOA

An informal guide by & for Erasmus Mundus students

Collaborators: Alessandra Gallerano

Becky Chen

Izabela Araújo

Lorenza Tiberi

VISAS

If you are not European, chances are you will need a visa to come live in Portugal. If that is the case there are steps to be taken before and after you arrive.

Before you arrive

Ask for a student’s visa at the Portuguese Consulate or Embassy in your country. Check which documents you will need in order to start the process. You should arrive to Portugal with a visa.

After you arrive

Even though you have a visa, you will notice that it will probably expire before you leave Portugal. If that is the case, here is what you have to do:

@ Call SEF-Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras at 808 202 653 and schedule an interview to renew your visa. You will have to hold on the phone for a really long time, so the best to do is to try to call either in the morning, when they open at 8h or in the evening, when they are about to close at 19h. Your call is more likely to be taken at these times.

@ After you schedule your interview (probably in a month’s time) you will need to gather the documents they ask for you to renew your visa, which will probably be:

- Application form, signed (available at www.sef.pt).

- Valid passport

- Proof of funding: will be stated by the university in a letter.

- Proof of accommodation:

If you live at Lumiar: this will be included in the letter from the university.

If you don’t live at Lumiar: you will need to go to Junta de Freguesia (which is a kind of city hall of each neighbourhood) and ask for a comprovativo de morada. That might be a little complicated given that at Junta de Freguesia they will ask for two witnesses to confirm that you really live wherever you say you live. It’s certainly a good way to practice your Portuguese! If you have received any commercial letters, i.e. bank, newsletters, at your Lisbon address, I believe that might work as well. You should find that out. Here http://www.cm- lisboa.pt/?id_categoria=6 you can find a list of all the Juntas de Freguesia of Lisbon.

- Police registration (Registo Criminal) in case you renew for more than 90 days. You can get this document from the Police Office at Loja do Cidadão either in Restauradores (M: blue line, Restauradores) or at Laranjeiras (M: blue line, Laranjeiras).

- Transportation ticket that ensures return in case you renew for less than 90 days.

- 2 passport photographs

- Health insurance: show your card and any other documents that prove that we are covered by the Erasmus Mundus health insurance.

- Letter from the university stating the period you need to stay in Portugal. Ask for this letter at the Erasmus Office (7th floor, right hand side, Torre A). Please note that you will have to pay to get the comprovativo de morada, the police registration, and the visa itself. DO NOT GO TO SEF BASED ON THIS LIST ONLY. Ensure that these are all the documents you need before you go; things change and this list might be out-of-date by the time you arrive in Lisbon.

After you gather all these documents you go to SEF, wait for many hours (even though you have scheduled an interview), and pay. Then you receive a receipt that you MUST keep, for this will be the only proof that you have renewed your visa. Give one to two months for your visa card to be finally ready. You might even have left Lisbon when your card finally arrives!

For the Guide's next section, please click here.