My first problem, after the decision to go in Exchange to Berlin, was to find an accommodation. Furtunatly, I found some very clear and useful tips on the Distributed Campus that makes, at least for a student, very easy to find a place.
Through the ERG-Universitätsservice GmbH at Freie Universität Berlin, you can choose between a single room or a single occupancy apartment.
Otherwise, if you do not wish to stay in a student residence hall, you can try to find a room or an apartment on the private housing market. As the Distributed Campus says, "many students in Berlin live in shared apartments (WGs) and there is a relatively large supply of rooms. You find these offers on the internet (e.g., Studenten-WG or WG Company), and in various Berlin magazines"
Rents in Berlin normally start around 250 Euro, shared apartments tend to be less expensive. "On signing the lease your landlord will probably expect a deposit of three months, reimbursed with interest at the end of tenancy as long as nothing has been damaged."
If you need a cheap short term accommodation, maybe while looking for a definitive one, it could be great either a youth hostel (Jugendherberge), a guest house (Jugendgästehaus) or a backpacker hostel. All stuff that you can easly find with Google.
In the end, I took for rent a single apartment at Studentendorf Schlachtensee (Wasgenstr. 75, 14129 Berlin) from 1.10.2010 until 15.3.2011. The apartment is approximately 20 m2 big, furnished with a bed, desk, chair, wardrobe, bookshelf and lamps. Furthermore, I have my own bathroom and kitchenette. All this for 350€ per month.
What do you think, isn't it a good deal? Let's wait to see it, the first of October...
It's true, in this moment I'm still in Italy, still at Bocconi University, still at the third floor of the Velodromo building. But the people know. They are surprised of my presence. In their mind I should be somewhere else... I should be in BERLIN!
And, actually, I'll leave for Berlin the 1st of October. All the other collegues, the ones who are in Exchange, they left Italy in August. But Germany is different, Germans are different. In Germany the first semester begins in October and ends in March. This is what I have to tell to all the people asking me "shouldn't you be in Berlin?".
The people know, and ask. "I didn't know you speak German, did you?", well, actually I don't, I just speak a modest english and a very basic french. "Did you find any accomodation?", "How will you manage your travel?", "What will you do once there?", and so on, talking about the opportunities offered by Berlin, its cost of live, its culture, its food, its people..
The questions are many, but all summarizable in one: HOW TO LIVE IN BERLIN?
