I couldn’t resist poking a little fun with the title, considering the popularity of Emily in Paris (yes, I’ve watched it, and yes, I have a lot of thoughts). If Netflix wants to commission a show about what it’s actually like living in France, I’m definitely available 😉

I’ve been in France for a month now, so thought it was high time to start writing about my experience at the moment, especially since I’m already seeing so many differences between my current experience, and the one I had two years ago in Angers. We’re currently in the two week Toussaint break (I know, having two weeks off after barely working for two weeks seems unreal, but it’s like this every year), but it’s nice to have a somewhat introductory period before the “real” work begins at la rentrée. I figured I’d take advantage of my downtime, and write a little.

For so many reasons, I knew that coming to France this year wasn’t going to be a walk in the park, but as I’ve mentioned before, this month has definitely been tougher than I expected it to be. I’m sure I’m a bit biased because everything went *so* smoothly in Angers, that anything even the slightest bit off from that path would seem rough, but my experiences so far in comparison to Angers could not be more different from each other, and for more than just the obvious reasons. Without further ado, I present to you my first month in France with “the good, the bad, and the pandemic.”

The Good

Even though I’m struggling with a lot in Dijon, that doesn’t mean that there haven’t been good things about my month in France so far. Even though the housing provided for me by my lycée is very basic, I’ve been making it my own, and am appreciative of having my own space during a time when I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable sharing with others. I’ll admit that I wasn’t thrilled initially, but after that feeling of being completely overwhelmed by everything wore off, I’m less in a “I must leave now” kind of mood when it comes to my living accommodation. I’m sure part of it was that housing was *so* smooth and easy in Angers, and I didn’t have quite that experience moving into school housing in Dijon, or even looking for alternative options. I have my own bathroom, fridge, and microwave, and although I do have hot plates for cooking, they’re a bit too high for me to reach safely (being short always has some drawbacks). That being said, I can eat in the school cantine four nights a week for dinner because there are students who board at the school during the week. I’ve yet to take advantage of it because my French bank card still isn’t properly set up (more on that later), but hopefully I’ll be able to do that after the break.

My schools themselves have been lovely, and the whole process seems much more organized than it was when I was working in Angers. Perhaps it’s the fact that I’m working at the secondary level rather than primary, or perhaps it’s just the way things have played out this year compared to last time. Within a week of observing at the lycée, I was given my computer log in, copier codes, keys to classrooms (something I was never given last time), and I had submitted the necessary paperwork for my application to social security (the healthcare system in France), and transport reimbursement forms through the secretary at my school. The students I have are also all seemingly more excited about English than the primary kids I had in Angers (could be a factor of age), and I’m even getting to tackle some interesting subjects with them like political cartoons and their meanings, or even doing literary commentary on The Tempest to help the terminales (seniors) prepare for the oral commentary section of the BAC. I can definitely sense that I’ll be able to engage with the students on deeper material than I could with the primary students I had, and even though it’s slightly terrifying to have that much free reign during a class period (I’ve been told with many of my classes to do what I want with them), it’s exciting to know that I have so many possibilities of material to cover with them, and that they’re excited to speak the language.

I spend half of my time in the lycée and half of my time at a collège (middle school) about a 20 minute walk away. It’s interesting working with such a variety of levels (sixth to twelfth grade is a wide range of ages), but it’s also interesting to see how teaching English works for different classes. Sixth grade is when English classes start for all French students (anything before that in public school is not mandatory for the schools to implement), so I’m working with some students who are just beginning their journey with English, and some who have been working on it for almost six years. Both of my schools have an International section, and I work with classes in that section, but also classes outside of it, which can make for a cool glimpse into different spheres of French education. I’m very appreciative as well of all the teachers I’ve been assigned to work with as they are all very encouraging of helping me figure out what to do with the students, and very communicative about their goals of having a language assistant in their classroom.

The organization and positivity I get from my schools aren’t the only good things, I’ll admit. I’ve been able to do some exploring of Dijon itself over the past month, and I don’t think I’ll ever get over how cool it is to see old, half-timbered houses nestled in between modern buildings. A lot of Europe has the perfect blend of the old and the new, and Dijon definitely has that as well. You might say it’s Dijon-vu (sorry, I had to throw in a Dijon related pun somehow) to see that perfect blend of eras, but it’s hard to get over it when you come from the US. I obviously haven’t done everything there is to do in the city, but the things I have discovered have been super cool (for lack of a better word).

One of the better days I’ve had in Dijon was discovering the parcours de la chouette. This is a trail that goes through centre-ville, marked by little triangles on the ground with owls (a chouette is a kind of owl) that brings you to historic landmarks within the city. I bought a little booklet from the tourist office to give myself context of what I was looking at, and doing the whole pathway really brings you on a quasi journey through time. It’s called the parcours de la chouette because carved into the building of the Notre-Dame church (no, not the famous one), is a small sculpture of a chouette. You’re supposed to touch it when you go by for good luck! I found myself actually having fun trying to follow the owls on the ground and going on a scavenger hunt to find the next one when they seemingly disappeared. Part of the journey involves the Tour de Philippe de Bon, which is a tower you can climb (316 steps) to get a spectacular panoramic view of the city. It’s only 5€, but definitely worth the price of admission.

The Bad

As I’ve already said, it hasn’t been the smoothest of times adjusting to life in Dijon. Sometimes I wonder if my difficulties are stemming from the fact that everything seemed so much easier in Angers, but while I’m sure that’s part of it, I know it’s not the cause of every difficulty I’ve faced. Moving abroad is stressful enough without the added weight of a global health situation that you can’t forget is ongoing, and it was a big lifestyle change for me to go from being unemployed for six months to having a daily routine (in another country, no less). No experience is ever 100% positive, so I think it’s important to also touch on the less than fabulous things that happen when you move abroad (or do anything in life, really).

The main thing that’s been causing me problems this time around is my bank. Opening the account was painless and easy, but three weeks after getting my card, I still don’t have a PIN for it. This means, even after three weeks of having my card, I still can’t use it (in France, they mail you your PIN separately from your card). Every time I ask my bank why I don’t have it yet, they tell me they don’t know, and that it should’ve arrived by now. As such, I’m having to have them reorder it for me, and once again, hope it arrives through the mail. The one problem with this is since I live at my school, and we’re on les vacances, I won’t be getting mail during that time as there’s no one here other than myself and another assistant who also lives in the internat. I’m very grateful that I got a credit card over the summer with no foreign transaction fees as most businesses are asking for customers to use sans-contact methods of payment (France has contactless cards, but other than having to insert and then sign for everything, my card works just fine, thankfully). So although I have a French bank account set up, and have a card for it, I can’t actually use it, and who knows when I’ll be able to do so.

As much as I also really enjoy the classes with which I’ll be working, I am sad that I won’t be able to have the same “first-name” basis relationship I had with my students at the primary level. Although in some classes I work with half of the class at a time, or even the whole class at once, there are others where I see a group of six once between now and the December break at my lycée. I’ll probably be able to at least memorize the names of all of my middle school students (assuming that I can figure out who is who from just their eyes and hair – all of my students wear masks in the classroom), but that’ll be the case only for some of my high school level classes. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’ll just be a different experience with the students, and sometimes I miss the relationship I had with my students in Angers. That being said, it might be too early in the whole scheme of things to really be making any judgement calls on that particular aspect of things.

I figured I’d touch briefly on what makes my housing situation not the best, especially since having done the program before, I know how it’s not a guarantee to be offered school (and low cost) housing, so I do want to clarify that I’m immensely grateful for it, and I am super making do with what I have. Other than the hot plate situation being an unsafe one, the other issue for me is the lack of outlets in the space. There is ONE (1) outlet for the entire room where I live, and of course, it’s on the other side of the room from where my bed is! I brought an extension cord with me so that worked in my favor, but I still have a cord running through the center of my room (insert laughing emoji here). I know this is very much as 21st century problem, but here we are. There’s also the random thing that I can’t open my blinds for most of the day when school is in session because my window looks directly out onto the path the students walk to get into school. I live in the building where the students board, but luckily, I live on my own floor and only have to deal with the sound of the students entering and exiting in the evening and morning (they aren’t allowed in the building during the day).

Another bad thing? Spiders. I’m pretty positive I never saw a single spider in the entire time I lived in Angers, and yet, in Dijon, within four weeks I’ve dealt with three decently sized arachnids. I know, I shouldn’t be afraid of them, but I AM, and my room is not big enough to hide from them until they disappear. If anyone has any advice for ways to prevent spiders from entering your domicile, I am ALL EARS.

The Pandemic

I couldn’t go a blog post without mentioning this, unfortunately! It is absolutely a part of daily life in France, and especially in Dijon, considering it’s a metropole (and all of France is currently in an état d’urgence sanitaire). I find it fascinating how quickly my brain adapted from being in a situation where I only left the house for essential activities to one that involves leaving the house almost every day, but that also means that it’s super easy for your brain to forget what’s actually happening. Without everyone wearing masks in the street, it would be easy to go to centre-ville or the mall on a Saturday and think things were completely normal. I’ll be honest, I was massively disappointed in how many French people I see wearing their masks incorrectly, or just not wearing them at all. I also see so many French people dining en terrasse, and I know that’s a big part of French culture, but I know that I, personally, am still not comfortable doing that when it means removing your mask in close proximity to others, even when you’re outside. I know that a reconfinement is the last thing they want to have happen, but it seems like we’re inching closer and closer to that being a possibility as France’s numbers keep growing, and people seem to have taken a “let’s just live with it” mindset (this could be a gross generalization, I know, but is just what I’ve observed in Dijon). Coming from the US, it’s been super disheartening to see how the French government, and its citizens, are handling the current second wave, given that they did manage to have it under control by summer.

It’s also harder to justify going out for kicks and giggles when it’s technically not “safe” to do so, if that makes sense. Usually, I’d spend my free time going out and about, exploring Dijon, but as I’m trying to minimize my interactions with people that aren’t in my daily sphere of interactions, it does make that a little harder. This also extends to the breaks we get as teaching assistants. Usually, I’d be planning trips to other countries during my two weeks off, but given how quickly numbers and restrictions can change, that’s not really a feasible, or safe, course of action at the moment. Not to mention, even though I have enough masks, I’m always super aware of how many I have left before my next laundry day (I have to walk 15 minutes to the closest laverie, so I’m not doing laundry as often as I normally would do it). It can make the days where I don’t work a little longer and harder, if I’m honest, to have to weigh the risk of doing something versus staying indoors when I don’t absolutely have to be doing that activity. This has led me to go on walks in my neighborhood and discover where I’m living, but it’s not as interesting as everything in centre-ville (at least, to me).

For those of you who aren’t following what’s happening in France (which I understand, especially if you’re following what’s happening in the US), as of midnight on Friday, 23 October, 54 départements entered into having a couvre-feu, a curfew, that will last for at least the next six weeks. The département where I live is one of those 54. This means that between the hours of 21h (9pm) and 6h (6am), you aren’t allowed to be outside of your residence without an attestation. I figured it was coming for Dijon, but the step to make it for the whole département, and for so many of them, speaks volumes, unfortunately. It does feel like France is hurdling towards another lock down, but maybe these new restrictions will help minimize the chance of that happening.

That’s kind of what I’ve been up to and experiencing in the past month in France! It’s hard to think that I really haven’t been here that long, and yet, with everything that 2020 has thrown at us, it doesn’t seem that out of the ordinary for me (perhaps because I’ve been mentally planning on being in Europe in this time frame since April). I’m hoping to do some local day trips during the break, which I promise to write about if I go through with them (only if it is safe to do so), and really devote some time to planning class periods for my students, since I’m properly leading them this time around! I have a lot more free time than when I was in Angers due to the way I’m scheduled, so hopefully I’ll be able to update often (assuming I get up to interesting things), and keep this blog alive. For now, it’s back to the baguettes and being a flâneur (contrary to the belief spouted in Emily in Paris, this is not something that all French people are, and I am on les vacances, hence the flân-ing). À plus!