WELCOME TO LONDRINA - PR
The IFLMS-UEL committee is glad to receive you in our city and we
hope you enjoy being here! This booklet was written to help you make
the most of your exchange program at our university. It covers general
information on money, food, transportation, personal safety, tips and
contacts to help you out and enjoy your staying!
About the city
Londrina is almost 80 years old. It was born with the plantation
of coffee which brought to the city the richness and technologies.
Nowadays, it is the third biggest city of the south of Brazil. Here
live a little over 500.000 inhabitants which are Japanese, Portuguese,
Italian and Germany immigrants and their descendents.
The city’s climate is humid subtropical: rain throughout the
year, especially in summer and the medium temperature is 21ºC but can
reach 36ºC. In winter it rarely falls to 8ºC. Its ground is rich for
the farming one, being known as “terra roxa”. Its main products are
soy, maize, wheat, coffee, cotton, among others. It still has great
bovine flocks.
Here you’ll find good places for tourism and walk, as shopping centers
(malls), theaters, museums, discos, gyms, pubs, bars, restaurants and
our lake, Lago Igapó, where people go for running, drinking Coconut
Water, waving a great view and a good time!
THE MEDICAL SCHOOL
Our University is one of the most important in Brazil. Medicine
takes place at the campus with the Clinical Hospital (HC) and at the
University Hospital and Maternity (HU), both are teaching-hospitals.
Our University Hospital is the most important in the area (it attends
about 250 cities around Londrina) and receives about 20.000 people
every month. The Clinical Hospital provides clinical care, and many
patients came for accompanying.
To check the campus map (Portuguese): http://www.uel.br/proplan/mapa-uel/
The Clerkship/Research Exchange
You will be assisted by the professor responsible for the department in
which you have been placed.
The student should bring a stethoscope and a white coat. Don’t forget
your student card (International)! Don’t forget your happiness and your
wishes too, because you’ll be in Londrina and have one of the best
times of your life!!!
Social ProgramOur Committee organizes all year social
programs which includes sightseeing, eating at typical places, walking
by the lake, parties, concerts, shows, sporting. But we can also do
particular things, if the students wants to. Everything to have a
really good time!
USEFUL INFORMATION
It’s very easy to arrive in Londrina. First you get to Brazil by São
Paulo. From São Paulo’s International Airport (located in the city of
Guarulhos) to here you can chose one of these two options: by airplane,
which is not too expansive if you include it with your international
passage (it’s an one hour trip), or by bus, which takes approximately 8
hours to Londrina.
If you chose the bus, first of all you will have to get to the
Barra Funda Bus Station, in São Paulo. From São Paulo’s International
Airport (“Cumbica”) you have three choices: the first one, is to go
directly to Barra Funda by a special bus; the second, uses an urban bus
and the subway; the hird choice is by cab.
If you chose:
- Option Number Two
Urban Bus Lines 257 or 299 to Tatuapé District. From there you’ll
have to take the subway, going to Barra Funda (it’s the west red line
of the subway). Check the subway map on-line (in Portuguese): http://www.metro.sp.gov.br/redes/mapa.pdf
Price: bus ticket R$3,65
Subway ticket R$ 2,55
In Barra Funda, we recommend the company Garcia (http://www.viacaogarcia.com.br
– page in Portuguese). Normally, there are buses on different times of
the day. The ticket to Londrina costs R$ 78,00 (regular sites).
- Option Number Three
Go by Cab! As you know the way you’ll get to Londrina, we would be
glad to pick you up and take you to your host student. Then, if you let
us know earlier as possible, we’d really appreciate it.
- Money
We have a lot of points to you change your money, but as all places,
in Brazil you must have reais when you come because we don’t accept
euros or dollars here. Some banks in city: HSBC, BRADESCO, BANCO DO
BRASIL, ITAÚ, REAL. Also we have several points to withdrawal by VISA,
MASTERCARD or others credit card brand. You have remind that here banks
open at 10 am and close at 16 pm.
- Transportation in Londrina
The Local Committee will help you with this but most of the times it has to be done by bus, which is not a problem.
The students will have all the meals for free at the hospital
(sometimes, the breakfast will be given at the students home).
Therefore we guarantee at least one meal per day.
The accommodation is offered by a local student, who may lives with his
family, with other students or by himself. The person who does the
accommodation is a volunteer and doesn’t receive any payment. He has
only the obligation to be your host.
To make a call from any city in Brazil to Londrina, you must dial 0
21 43 + the phone number. To call abroad from Brazil you must dial 00
21 + country code + area code + the phone number.
THE LOCAL COMMITTEE
The International Federation of Londrina Medical Students was born
here, in 1991. For some time we weren’t in activity, but at the last
few years the Local Committee has grown (up to 16 officers)and now we
are working in different projects in Professional Exchange,
Reproductive Health and AIDS, Public Health and Human Rights and Peace.