I did indeed make it to Paris, and the past two weeks have been amazing! I kicked it off by going to the Fête de l'Humanité (essentially a big communist festival [I am so tempted to say party!] with some great concerts, including big names like The Kooks), then went to Sicily where it downpoured before giving way to clear skies for the rest of my all-too-short visit. (But with all that fried food, perhaps it was for the best.)
Other than that, I have mostly been calling landlords nonstop. The Paris housing market is a bitch--there's no other way to put it--and after going to a few visits with unreasonably large amounts of people and being flat-out rejected for either not making enough money or not staying for a long enough time, I decided to go to an agency. And now I have an apartment! It's a studio in the 11ème, pretty snazzy and otherwise decked out, with a nice view and a bed which pulls out from a platform. I find that beyond cool.
But of course, as with everything in France, there is a ton of paperwork. Thankfully, I had most of it already from my scramble to throw together a dossier, but I still had to call the rectorat to get a specially issued document which shows how much money I'll be making.
Which is, thankfully, slightly more than anticipated due to my new job at the Vision Lab at Réné Descartes. I'm looking forward to working in this lab; I've now visited twice and I get a really positive vibe. I'm also in an excellent position where I am in contact with many people who are temporarily in Paris and wish they were making more money (other assistants, Erasmus students [thanks again, StudiVZ!]).
All in all, it's shaping up to be a great year--I just hope I don't get too lonely in my studio. I've never lived this alone before. And oh, how I will miss the delicious French dishes my friend's parents have been making for me...:)
A bientôt !
