Accommodation and food

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Students live in very pleasant studio accommodation, 3-4 students to each studio.  They have: a kitchen area with refrigerator, hob and sink; a bathroom with shower, basin and toilet; air conditioning; an outside balcony or terrace.  The rooms are cleaned daily and laundered bedsheets and towels regularly provided.  We rent a whole block of studios, set in its own garden/yard area, in the small village of Livadi which is very close to the main town of Astypalaia.  Livadi has a nice beach, two supermarkets and a range of cafes and restaurants.  There is a 30 minute walk to work each day but Livadi provides a good base for students and staff.

On work days (6 days a week) we provide breakfast and lunch in the laboratory, ranging from fruit, cereal, salad, toast and sandwiches, to pies and pizzas.  We also provide bottled water, coffee, tea as wanted.  On work day evenings, a  restaurant supplies a cooked meal which is delivered to our studios, where we eat together in the garden area (picture below).  We also go together for a meal out at one of the local restaurants, one work day evening per week.  Over the years we have become very experienced at providing for a range of dietary requirements including vegetarian, particular meat preferences, fish/non-fish and so on, but please email us in advance if you have very strict requirements such as vegan, kosher or halal food because we may not be able to find what you need.  We get one rest day per week, on which students make their own arrangements for meals, which are not provided by the project.  

Project staff work hard to support students during their stay on Astypalaia.  We have many years' experience of travel in Greece and the eastern Mediterranean, so we are able to offer advice on travel plans although students make their own arrangements.  We meet all students at the island's small airport or ferry port and provide transfers to our accommodations in Livadi.  Each student gets to know their supervisor well and each year we aim to build a strong group in which everyone is mutually supported.  We have first aiders on the staff and there is a health clinic and paramedic service on the island, but we do need to have detailed information on any medical conditions or medications in advance.  Most food and toiletries can be bought in Livadi, and the island's town has clothes, shoes, pharmacy and touristy shops as well as a small bank and several ATMs.  There is not a huge choice in the shops but students do have fun and at least small disasters like missing luggage or broken shoes can be coped with pretty well.