Today marks the end of my first full week in France, also the week anniversary of me crying in the middle of the Gare du Nord when my family (brutally) left me there. Those of you who know me will know that I am not a cryer, I was simply overwhelmed.
Despite that slight initial wobble, I am quite obsessed with my life here. Last weekend I let out my full on British touristy self, grabbed my socks and sandals (not really) and might as well have worked my way through TripAdvisor’s ‘Top Ten Things to do in Paris’. My family were here so it was only polite of me to show them my new hometown, right?
For the first day or two I was slightly worried that I might turn into ‘Loner Lauren’. The student residence I stay in are single rooms, and since I work in the language hub by myself I contemplated whether or not I would actually be able to meet literally anyone at all. Low and behold, everyone her is freakin’ lovely. During student inductions to the language hub people were so chatty, and one night at the pub later we had lists of plans for our next year in the big city.
A student scavenger hunt on Friday morning both gave me some more friends and an insight into how stunning Rueil-Malmaison is. The busy-ness of this first week has been rather large, limiting my exploration of the place I’m actually living. However, running through the parks and squares with fountains to find clues made me so so excited to explore more. I am going to start buying croissants in one of the many cute bakeries on a Saturday morning wearing a striped t-shirt and a beret and carrying onions around my neck.
From Thursday onwards I had a trio of pretty dreamy evenings. Firstly, all students and staff were invited to none other than the mayor’s crib for wine and nibbles. When in Paris, eh? On Friday I went to a party on a boat which was docked beside the Notre Dame, then on Saturday night a group of my newfound friends and I bought up a picnic and ate it on the grass in front of the Eiffel Tower as the sun went down. We ate baguettes, pate and cheese, and drank good wine from corked bottles.
I thought of this night as somewhat of a christening of myself into a real Parisian. Walking down the Champs-Élysées swinging my punnet of grapes, I felt in my element.
Best wishes from Paris x
Lauren Robertson 