Salut tout le monde!
It has been a while and as I'm sure everyone can imagine life has been
busy. The last 2 days I have attempted packing for the next 10 or so months of
my life. Difficult is an understatement. I have a lot of clothes, various
colours, and styles and for different occasions. How can I know what I'll need?
I knew this would be the hardest part of the "pre-departure" section
of this year abroad but it's not until you come down to it that the problems
really begin. 14 t-shirts? That's not too many for a year. I compromised and
left out my Parka coat in favour of my gilet and Ski jacket while 3 pairs of
Vans and 1 pair of smart shoes really aren't that much, are they? I also had to
take into account the time of year and while it'll be rather warm when I arrive
(therefore justifying the inclusion of shorts,) it'll soon become cold and so
thick winter jumpers are a necessity too. Despite writing a list, I hadn't been
too realistic. While my Dad and I managed to cram all of my clothing,
accessories, electrical and bathroom items into 1 large suitcase and a large
'sports' style bag, I could barely move them. Then of course I'd need my
rucksack for my tickets and other things I'd need to easily access, as well as
a few things for my overnight stay in London, I don't want to risk opening the
case and never closing it again. I chose to travel via train to avoid weight
limits but there is a limit as to how much I can physically move.
Further compromises were needed so I took our 1 pair of Vans and the
smart shoes, some tees,
pairs of shorts, a towel and my gilet. I tried to
compromise further. For instance, I was insistent on taking my denim jacket, so
I left my denim shirt behind. The case was re-crammed and I have a few things
to put into my backpack along with documents but hopefully it'll all fit. If
not, I will transfer backpack items to a small weekend bag which will still
allow me to move (I hope.) Thankfully Dad's packing skills have helped, though
how I'll pack to return I don't know. I'd quite like to try and fit a tennis
racket in but that's probably wishful thinking...
Left Out Of The Luggage :(
Packing sagas aside, there’s a lot more to tell. Two of my closest friends have already arrived at Chambéry, reporting back that the accommodation is very nice and the area looks wonderful, putting a few apprehensions at bay! I've also been in contact with 2 girls through Facebook. The first is a French student named Audrey who spent her Erasmus year abroad in Swansea last year. She studies at Chambéry and is returning to begin a Masters in English and coincidentally resides in the same accommodation that I'll be staying at during my time in France. She was interested in an exchange, practicing her English while I can improve my French and she has been invaluable in answering little questions and providing information that would be unavailable anywhere else. Secondly is Jess, a 2nd year French student who studies in Swansea and she too will be spending her year abroad in Chambéry. We've shared our packing woes and it's been good to talk to someone in the same situation as myself yet her perspective/information may be different to my own as we come from different Universities.
When I have not been in work, the majority of my free time has been
spent catching up with friends and saying goodbye. As I'll celebrate my 21st
Birthday during my second week in France, there have been catch up come goodbye
come birthday celebrations and I've received lots of cards and gifts. While
amazing, it hasn't helped with my packing woes but it'll be nice to have them
all up in my room come September 12th.
After three years of working at Animal, i said goodbye not to just colleagues but some truly close friends. It was evidently going to be sad but they gave me a huge Welsh flag upon which they'd written messages and that'll be taking pride of place in my new accommodation. I'm officially an unemployed student bum, but only for a day or so and I'll probably work a few shifts over the busy Christmas period and will hopefully return back when I begin my fourth year at Cardiff.
It's now 15.00 on Wednesday 29th August 2012 and I am hours away from
departure. I'm finding it quite difficult to comprehend that I'm about to move
to France. When you book a holiday, you perhaps have a long year to wait?
However it has taken 9 years of studying to reach this point. Even at the
beginning of the year or even at the start of summer, my departure seemed so
far away it wasn't even real. Now it's here. Tomorrow I leave for London and
will spend a night with a friend who lives there for University. After an early
start on Friday, my Eurostar will depart London at 8.30am to arrive into Paris
around 2h30 minutes later. I have an hour to travel from one train station to
another (whether it be Métro or Taxi is yet to be decided upon knowing how
easily I can move with my luggage) and then I'll have a 3 hour train journey to
Chambéry, arriving just before 4pm. I'll then collect my keys and probably fill
in an inventory form (how easy in French this will be I don't know..) and then
I'll try to find my friends who will have already arrived and begin the
settling in process.
This will be my final post
before I reach France. I hope I've packed everything, I hope I haven't
forgotten anything. Until I reach the continent, À bientôt!
(Picture courtesy of the ever-wondrous thirdyearabroad.com) :)
