Days since last round up: 22
Miles from Munich: 426
Firsts: first travel to Europe with a visa, first flight of 2021, first (and second!) COVID test, first ever Deliveroo (see upcoming favourite finds)
Reading: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Bouvard et Pécuchet by Gustave Flaubert
Weather: rain, more rain, and finally snow
Estimated percentage fluency: let’s go with 50% - it’s reassuring how quickly you get back into it, but I still feel a desire to apologise when talking to real French people to apologise for butchering their language
The move to Paris had been a long time coming. It was the first part of my year abroad that I decided for certain, and once I’d finalised things during my time in Germany, it was always in the back of my mind to look forward to. Add on to that the various Brexit and COVID related factors that made getting out of England more difficult than initially imagined, and I couldn’t quite believe it when I was actually sitting on a plane headed to France, visa in hand, one PCR test down and another to come after the obligatory isolation period. After the logistical difficulties of getting to this stage, the final few steps ran relatively smoothly and before I knew it I was pulling up in a taxi outside my home for the next 6-ish months (a tiny attic room in the 9th arrondissement, 5 minutes from the Moulin Rouge) ready to start my Parisian adventure. The room I’m staying in is known as a ‘chambre de bonne’, old servants quarters up in the eves cleverly transformed into cosy but tiny studio apartments, and it’s being rented for me by the family I’m working for as an au pair. It might be small but it has everything I need: a skylight window with a Parisian rooftop view, a comfy bed, minimal kitchen, now equipped (as a matter of urgency), with a kettle.
There isn’t much to report from my first few days, because new COVID restrictions require non-EU arrivals to quarantine, except a lovely reception by the mum of my host family, who met me at the apartment and had stocked it out with some thoughtful essentials. The time cooped-up actually proved quite useful for working my way through the not-overly-simple process that is signing up for classes as an Erasmus student at the Sorbonne, but with support from other Oxford students going through the same process, I think I’ve mostly worked it out and am beginning to get excited about some of the modules I’ll be taking. We have a lot of free choice to design our own timetable, so I can pick and choose quite a range of options.
Once free from quarantine, though, I quickly got to know the surrounding neighbourhood, up to Place de Clichy and Pigalle, and beyond to Montmartre in one direction, and down to St Lazare station and the Opéra in the other. As soon as I open my door, I feel the buzz of the city, and am in a good location to be able to walk towards the major sights.
The family are living in the same arrondissement, about a 15 minute walk from my apartment, and this weekend was the first time getting to know them and spending some time there. I was already so chuffed with the set-up in my little studio and how nice they had been so far that I was expecting good things, and I wasn’t disappointed. There are four kids, so things are quite full on, but the parents are very organised, and during the week there is another nanny, so I don’t think things will be too intense, and the kids really are lovely. Their apartment is Haussmanian-style and absolutely beautiful, quintessentially Parisian, and the 9th arrondissement is proving very attractive for me, with authentic Parisians-living-their-daily-life vibes, rather than the touristy-draw of some of the more well-known areas. Walking between the two apartments, it really is bustling despite COVID, with flower shops, boutique clothes shops, wine, cheese, bakeries and patisseries all over the place.
France’s COVID profile is quite significantly better than the UK’s, and Paris is now not one of the worst affected areas, so things really don’t feel too restricted here, apart from the 6pm curfew, which won’t be a problem when I’m working because I’ll be heading home later anyway, but on my first few days after isolation, it was strange to be in a new city and not be able to go out after dark. With less chance to visit restaurants and cafes, though, I’ve been enjoying walking around the city, which still feels quite busy during the day. It’s not original, I know, but the sweeping boulevards, grand buildings and Seine riverbanks really do have a charm that makes being in Paris an experience unlike any other city I’ve been in.
Alongside the university bureaucracy and COVID procedure, other Year Abroad Challenges have included teething problems with hot water, and a leaky roof leading to some great French practise with a very friendly plumber. I’m lucky in this respect though, because when there’s a problem I can go straight to the host family, rather than dealing with scary French landlords directly, potentially the biggest benefit of choosing to au pair! There’s still lots to be discovered - I’ve only been out of isolation for a few days - and I haven’t actually had my first week working with the family yet, but for now all indicators are good, I’m starting to feel settled, and have absolutely no doubts that Paris was definitely, as they say, a good idea.
Zaz tunes in Paris room!