Moving to a different country

It has been over three months since I have packed my bags, decided to called it a day, and move to Paris. Firstly let me explain in an non self-righteous way why this was kind of a big fucking deal.

Although I had lived in the Netherlands for the previous six months on a study abroad programme, this was different. I was going to this country where people only 34% of the population can speak English well, and I could speak French well enough to know the basic phrases. I was in a solid merde situation.

As soon as I got there I knew that my French would not cut it. I could ask for directions but was that really a question that would come in handy when trying to make friends?

Anyway everywhere around me was a mass of French conversation, not a word of which I could fucking understand. Do you see my frustration now? 

A 20 year old, with a suitcase of stuff, a wage that only really covered the price of rent in Paris, and not a single friend in Paris. It was scary. Moving to a different country is always scary, but more so when it's fabulous Paris, a place I had only dreamt of but never thought I could move to.

With it's well dressed women, and even better dressed men. The place where I would be comparable to a ragamuffin. 

(All the French be like what is she even doing here)

Even after three months the pangs of fear come and go about how I am not nearly as good at French as I aimed to be, or how I have nothing chic to wear. But like I said it comes and goes. Because I have made Paris my home for now which means less regular posts, and more regular shopping trips. 

Any city can become your home if you spend enough time embracing it and finding all the little quirks.

More on my adventures coming soon. 

Big news

It has been WAY too long since the last French post so watch this space because there will be a post on French words trés trés soon. 

I do not know if I have mentioned this before but I'm MOVING TO PARIS!

It was so last minute, only confirmed last month but paperwork is still dragging along. I am now taking a year out of university, and working in Paris for the next year starting from September. I decided that learning French in a classroom was too slow of a way to learn French for me, so I signed up for a scheme  (http://www.britishcouncil.org/language-assistants) where you can teach English in France.

After a taste of living abroad on my ERASMUS in the Netherlands I decided I hadn't quite gotten enough. I am super nervous, because I don't know anyone in Paris, my French is extremely poor right now Paris is hella expensive and I haven't even found anywhere to live yet! But life is an adventure and each new big experience that puts me out of my comfort zone is almost an adrenalin rush for me. 

Here's to making it through 9 months in Paris. 

Cheap travel

When you're in your late teens and early twenties, there has never been a better time to go out there and explore the world. You're at university or school, things aren't quite that serious with life, you're not held back by much at this point in your life.

Even as a young graduate you're not weighed down by other priorities such as children, or family commitments, or a promotion that you have to get. In other words, why not pack a bag, book a flight, and spend a month or two having the time of your life?

After spending four heavenly months in Maastricht on an exchange programme I visited: 6 cities, a handful of towns and villages, and 4 countries. All whilst studying full time and paying rent for my room at my home university as well as my room in Maastricht. I was worse off than almost everyone I knew which meant I had to be very careful about any costs. Yet I managed to do all of this. So if I can do it on such a tight budget whilst paying rent in two places I'm sure you can as well!

Here is my advice to you buttercup! I hope it helps you and does not seem excessively obvious.

This might not count as a tip for you, but it shall be mentioned anyway. Make sure you have a little bit of money saved. For Europe I would say have about 600 euros saved up (for a month of travelling), more if you are planning on living in a city. 

Secondly, and I cannot stress this enough, choose a city or town to stay in for a month which is close to a lot of borders! It can be your hub for the next month, or couple of weeks. Maastricht was ideal, because it was close to the borders of Germany and Belgium, and of course it was a beautiful town. You could have spent a week happily exploring Maastricht and had a good time. Anyway, choose a town that you will quite like, make it your hub for as long as you want, and use the transport links there to make trips to other cities.

It is better to live in a city or town for a month and travel every couple of days because you will get a sense of the place. Buying an interrailing pass can be a little too hectic because you would be spending a few days in different cities for a month but not really appreciating the true feel of a city. You do not get to discover a hidden little bar, a great view, or a nice restaurant. 

My next tip, use a site like this to find a place to stay. 

It is cheaper than staying in a hotel, and if you look hard enough it can be nicer than staying in a hostel. Although be careful and always make sure you are being safe when renting online.

Try and find somewhere self-catered as you will save a lot of money from not eating out as many tourists do. Try to buy food for lunch from supermarkets rather than eating in a restaurant.

Alrighty, my next website is skyscanner.net. It's great because you can load up a chart where it tells you which days are the cheapest for you to fly in or out of your chosen airport. 

Now if you're in a country like the Netherlands, as a holiday activity you can rent out bikes fairly cheap and spend the day exploring! It'd be a great day and it wouldn't cost you very much at all. 

This post is long enough already so maybe more tips another time, fellow travel enthusiast. Feel free to leave a comment for any questions and I will try my best to help you. Happy adventures!