Ma Première Semaine
Well I've been here a week now, I can’t tell if it has gone really fast or really slow. It was a little bit difficult in the first few days but now I'm having a really good time (even if I do have to go to work everyday).Things didn't started out the best as I managed to loose my wallet/have it pick pocketed on the metro within half an hour of being in the country. I was pretty upset and distressed at the time but now I'm just plain annoyed because I have to wait a whole another week before I get my bank card back. I have enough money to get by but this makes life a little difficult. Not the mention the “spot the ‘we accept American express’ sticker game” is so much harder in France.
I met a few of the other trainees over the weekend. I was invited to an informal Easter lunch with them and then a small party on Sunday night which was lots of fun. The party was in the nicest apartment, right downtown near the Hotel de Ville, really big and with a balcony. I was such a tease, I think it was the holy grail of Parisian apartments.
The best thing so far about being in Paris is seeing Nives and Olivier, two friends from my university exchange in Ottawa. They are kindly letting me stay with them until I find my own place. It is so fantastic to see them!!! I can’t believe it had been over a year since we parted ways in Canada, it felt like yesterday when I first saw them. I’m so excited about living in the same city as them again. And they are also helping me do all the things that my stuttering French needs help with like find an apartment, get a mobile number etc.
Work is….well actually looks like it could be quite a bit of work. I think it is going to be quite a challenge; there is a lot to learn about boring budget maintenance type stuff as well as all this telecommunications/information systems jargon. But there are a lot of other trainees and young people in the office, I think it is going to be a fun place to work. And Alcatel has its own big cafeteria with good inexpensive food where everyone eats together everyday. A billion times better than that tiny food cart that used to come around to Doubleday’s offices.
Other than that, Paris is gorgeous in the spring. Everything is turning green again, I can’t even imagine how pretty it will be in a month. It’s hard to be in a bad mood long here, all you have to do is go for a short walk and you’ll be amazed by something’s beauty.
When I first arrived I had what I guess I would call Australian withdrawal symptoms, everything was very overwhelming and I wasn’t sure I’d cope. But now that I’ve been here a week I’m feeling a lot more settled and I’m feeling quite grateful to be here. I just can’t wait to find my own place so I can finally unpack!!
posted by Gigi @ 5:30 am
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