Well, I am here! After a week in London and Geneva the hubs and I made our way to Paris. We arrived at my apartment and have been settling in ever since. The apartment itself is great! I found it on Airbnb (click here to get $25 off your first trip) a few months ago and every part of the transaction was smooth. Muriel, the owner, is so kind and has been awesome at communication. It is located in the 6th arrondissement – right next to the Seine! I really couldn’t ask for more!
The hubs, who is a native french speaker, has been helping me a TON! I am so beyond grateful he is here! I am actually so scared that he leaves in a day. He has been able to communicate to every waiter, sales clerk, teacher, taxi driver, and so on. He has made the entire transition really easy and I am terrified to have to figure it out on my own, although I know that is the point of this trip. That is actually something I didn’t expect to experience – this feeling of complete n ervousness. Up until this point I have been excited to be alone and explore a new city but now it is here and I am a bit panicky. I did have a moment earlier today where I looked at him and just teared up. I know it is a mixture of things: one that he is leaving and I am away from him for so long but also a realization that I am in a city that I don’t know and with a language I don’t speak. I could actually cry as I type this. What is my problem?
He keeps telling me that he has to leave for me to learn. He is actually “enabling me instead of helping me”. And I agree. I don’t want to agree, but I do. I am not being forced to speak the language or figure out the lay of the land. However, that doesn’t mean I am ready for him to go. I think everyone must have this moment when they are about to start a new journey which is out of their comfort zone. A moment of “oh my gosh, what the f&** did I sign up for?” I know I need to be patient with myself as I will be fine once I start my school and get a routine going but for now I am a bundle of nerves.
So there it is. I am not as brave or as adventurous as I projected in my previous posts. I am nervous to be alone, scared to not know people, and worried I will be the worst one in my class. Although in my gut I know this is right and I know it will all be okay, for now I can’t quite remember if I was of sound mind when I signed on for this.
As I document this journey I hope I can go back and re-read this post and laugh. That I will actually be able to say to myself, “wow, look how far you came. You now know the city, the language, and you really grew as a soul.” That will be the best feeling in the world! So here it is! The start of my very exciting and scary Paris journey! Stay tuned…
Hi,
My friend and I had this exact conversation last night regarding her daughter leaving for college,a freshman , in a few weeks. The excitement and preparation leading up to the event are exhilarating. really the best part in my opinion! Then you jump off into the reality,where you are in this post and the fear can be overwhelming and confusing and you ask yourself, ” wtf am I doing?” Then …hubby leaves and you are alone, but never so much in the present as now. And it all begins, just as everyone said. You make your daily routine and before you know it , you have a little life there Ina new city. Paris!!!!!! Holy moly!! It’s happening and it’s all good. Different,,but good. You are brave and doing what you are doing is wonderful. Many of us will follow your adventure .
How lovely. Reminds me of the movie “The Sound of Music”.
Beautiful photos.
Xx,
http://sacosha.blogspot.com
You’re going to have a fantastic time! I did a language immersion program in Grenoble and while it was scary at first, you pick up the language so quickly! And it will be an unforgettable experience. Enjoy!
Welcome girl! It’s sooo so so so so hot today, isn’t it? I’m seriously dying, sitting here in front of my fan and open window. You’re going to be absolutely fine, French is so scary in the beginning, and Paris seems so big, overwhelming, and promising with all those little cafes and sidestreets. Just work on getting your routine going, start babbling a bit, and the rest will all fall into place!
Bonne chance avec tous! 🙂
Julia
ExploresMore.com
You are so sweet! Thank you! Would love to meet up if you are around 🙂 xx
I’m so excited for you Mary and the journey that lies ahead of you will be such a memorable one. I can totally understand that nervous anxiousness but you will kill it! Enjoy every minute! I’ll be living vicariously through your adventures. Xo
D
You got this. 😉
Love your honesty, Mary. You are going to do great, though. We are headed there in 10 days and would love to see you! You’ll be so settled by then. You were made for a moment like this!
xo
Alicia
Mary-
Thinking of you and your journey. Stay strong and blog through it. You can do it.
Think of it as your Eat, Pray, Love project!
Miss you tons!
xoxo – Tanya 🙂
I’ve been following along on the adventure and have been so excited to read about your time in Paris! I love your honesty in this post. I think it’s totally understandable that you’d feel nervous and panicky. Even with all that, I still think you are brave and incredible for doing this for yourself! And I also think that, like you said, you’re going to look back at this post and smile. Just take it a day at a time. Pretty soon, a week will have gone by and I’m sure within only 7 days, you’ll look back and think, “I made it!” I’m so, so excited for you. Bon courage! (PS, for your class: WordReference.com and its forums are the shit!).
It’s totally okay and understandable to be nervous for such a big adventure! But like you said, you’re going to be so grateful and happy that you did once it’s over. Looking forward to following along!!
Lauren
http://oliverstwistblog.com
What an amazing journey!! My favorite Winnie the Pooh/A.A. Milne quote comes to mind after reading this post– “always remember… you are braver than you believe”
A few years ago, i had made plans to move to Korea to teach English, but chickened out at the last minute. It’s something I’ve always regretted, and I don’t think you will regret a second of your trip! Excited to live vicariously through you and your beautiful photos.