Eric Anderson's Journal
September/October 2001
Well, it's kind of hard to know where to start. First, I'll introduce myself. I'm 21 and a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I am majoring in French and Broadcast Journalism. I am an English assistant in the town of Vire, France, which is in the region of Basse Normandie about 30 miles southwest of the city of Caen. There's just so much to tell. I guess it would be best to start with what to do before leaving. Before I left for France, I had several meetings with my French professors which were incredibly helpful and informative. I had prepared some lesson plans in advance, and that made me feel more confident about leaving. Before I left, I got pictures some pictures of myself from a photo booth. Months before leaving, I drove to the French consulate in downtown Chicago to get my three-month visa. That was quite easy. I just had to show them my arrêté de nomination. Also, I brought maps of my city, state, and the U.S. I also brought newspapers, magazines, stickers, brochures of tourist places, comic books, a book about the U.S. Presidents, some pamphlets about severe weather in the U.S., a calendar (they're different in France), a cassette with lots of different children's songs (like the Hokey-Pokey), and a video with some TV shows taped on it. I taped some game shows, a couple of sitcoms, a news broadcast, etc. I didn't bring any movies, but I wish I would have. As it turns out, American VHS tapes work fine in French VCRs. Before I left, some people told me they worked, some people said they didn't work. But my experience has been that American videotapes work, so I am going to bring back a movie with me when I go home for Christmas. I also brought some gel pens and pads to give to the students as prizes. I think I brought the right amount of teaching material. However, I brought way too many clothes. It was so hard to decide to know what to pack since I was going to be gone for seven months. Looking back, I packed too many pairs of pants and too many short-sleeved shirts. It never was hot. Also, I was quite unsure what to wear as an assistant in the classroom. The teachers wear quite a variety of clothes. Some are quite dressed up in suits or dresses or skirts, and then others are in jeans or a sweater. So what you wear isn't that big of a deal, as long as it's not something inappropriate.
I flew into London from Chicago on Virgin Atlantic airlines for only $320. That was about $1,000 cheaper than flying into Paris at the end of September. I stayed one night at a youth hostel in London and did a little bit of sight-seeing in London. The next day I took the Eurostar train under the English Channel to Paris for only $80. Unfortunately, before I left London, I had to buy another train ticket to Paris, because my train ticket had the wrong date on it. So that is something that is very important to do. Make sure all your tickets are correct before you leave the U.S. After getting into Paris, I had less than an hour to switch train stations to catch my train for Caen. That was very hectic! Lugging suitcases around is one of the hardest things I had to do when I first arrived. Escalators are not too common, but there were so many nice people that helped me with my suitcases. I had two suitcases, plus a backpack. On the train rides when you first get to Europe, I tried not to sleep as much as possible, even though I really wanted to, so that I could more quickly overcome my jet lag. I just relaxed and looked out the window at the countryside.
I arrived in Caen, which was where my orientation was to occur. Right now there is so much construction in Caen, so all the bus stops had been moved. One thing I learned quickly is that I could NOT be afraid to ask for help. So I just asked some strangers standing near the train station if they could tell me how to get to the university, which was where I was expected. It was raining as well, so that just added to the stress. A teenage boy told me, and then offered to help me with one of my suitcases. He walked me to the correct bus stop, waited with me in the rain for the bus, got on the bus with me, paid for my bus ticket, told me when to get off the bus for the university, and then walked all over asking people for me where the certain building was that I needed to get to. It took us about an hour to find the building, and by that time it was pouring out, and we were both soaked. He had carried one of my suitcases the entire time. So once we found my building, he just left. It was incredible how much of a help he was! Ever since then, I've always asked for help or directions, even if I'm pretty sure I know.
One thing to bring is a water bottle. I was so thirsty because of jet lag and lugging suitcases everywhere. I bought a water bottle once I got to Europe and then just kept reusing it. But I wish I would have packed it, because I couldn't buy it right away. Another important thing that many assistants forgot to bring is an alarm clock. Also, make photocopies of all your tickets, your passport, and all your important papers and put the copies in every suitcase. Before I left the states, I got an official translation of my birth certificate, which is necessary, but not always easy to get done. Make sure you have medical insurance before you leave the U.S., either under your parents or your own. Also, get an ISIC card from your university. They save you so much money! Once I had found my building and my room in Caen, I went and talked with the other assistants there. It was so good to connect myself with the other assistants at the beginning. That night we met the lady in charge of us and her name is Jane Elliott. She is from England, and so she speaks in English all the time, which was so nice to hear, being so worn out from traveling and from jet lag. One thing that's really important is to attend ALL orientation meetings, even if you're incredibly tired and jet-lagged. The meetings are just vital and so very informative.
The next day, we had a very big day of meetings and getting told about everything we'd need to do in the next couple of weeks. It was unbelievably overwhelming, but it all worked out eventually. We had the meetings at a World War II museum, which was quite nice. Then at the end of the day, an English teacher from my collège came and picked me up. She was quite nice and took me to her house for supper. Unfortunately, I left all my important papers at the museum including my plane tickets for coming home for Christmas, my arrêté de nomination, my original and translated birth certificates, etc. The lesson I learned at that moment was: don't put all your important forms and papers in one place. So the next day I had to take a bus back to the museum, not knowing how to get anywhere. Again, being fearless about asking for help was the key to success. I got to the museum and asked so many people if they had seen my papers, but no one had. After going round and round the museum for almost an hour, I was getting quite desperate and ready to just give up. But I didn't give up and I just tried calling some phone numbers that I had been given and that led me to Jane Elliott who gave me the idea of searching for myself in the room. So I asked if I could have a look myself, and I went in the room where I had last seen them, and there they were. So that was so incredibly relieving!
I work six hours a week at a collège, and six hours a week shared amongst three different primary schools. However, I live at a lycée. The rent for living at the lycée is only 250 francs per month, which will turn into around 38 euros per month. The lycée has many computers connected to the Internet, plus the assistants have their own kitchen with a refrigerator, a stove, and a small oven. In my room there is a wardrode, a bathroom with a sink and shower, two desks, a chair, a bed with a pillow and the bedding, and a TV. Plus, there is a cafeteria that serves lunch and supper during the week for only 13 francs (2 euros) per meal.
I met the teacher who is in charge of me in Vire for the primary schools. Her name is Béatrice Bachelot, and she is incredibly helpful. She helped me plan all my lessons for the first three weeks. I also met the English teachers at the collège, who are quite nice as well. I have been invited to many teacher's homes for meals. It has been unbelievable how welcoming they have been. One teacher even took me on a bike ride in the countryside after eating lunch at his house. That was wonderful. I had to sign all sorts of forms, but Jane Elliott had given me a pamphlet of all the things I needed to do. First, get your attestation de logement from your landlord or from the secretary of the school you 'live in'. Second, get your procès verbal d'installation from the secretary at the school where you teach. Those are both very easy to get. Also, ask the secretary at the school where you teach for a carte professionnelle which will give you free access to lots of museums in France. Then open your bank account bringing those papers and your passport and arrêté. It shouldn't be too hard to open a bank account, although it's difficult to understand some of the bank terminology. I went to the bank called BNP, because the VISA type card is free for the first year.
I received a summons to go to Paris for a required medical exam, which everyone must go to who lives in a country that is not part of the European Union. Directions were sent of how to get to the medical exam, but it wasn't easy. The medical exam itself wasn't that bad, but very impersonal. They checked my eyes, weighed me, measured me, took an x-ray of my lungs, took a urine test, and listened to my heart and my lungs, along with asking a few questions to see if I needed a psychiatrist. I passed the exam, so that was good. Then I went to the sous-préfecture in Vire with all my papers, photos, passport, everything important that I had I brought. I was told I would have to go to Caen to the main Préfecture, but that information was incorrect. The sous-préfecture in Vire had never dealt with an American, so I actually had to help them, because they had no idea what they were doing. They kept giving me forms as though I was a part of the E.U. I had to go to the sous-préfecture about four times and keep telling them that I was an American and therefore not part of the E.U. Eventually they figured out what to do, and about two weeks later I received my récipissé. This is a temporary document that I got which said I was legal until my carte de séjour arrived. And finally about two weeks after that my carte de séjour arrived. At the end of October I was paid 80% of my salary directly into my bank account.
During October, the teaching went amazingly smooth. The kids were all well behaved and the teachers were quite helpful. In the collège, I have half the class for half an hour and then the other half for the other half hour in my own classroom. In the primary schools, I have each class for about 45 minutes and the teacher is always in the classroom with me. In the middle of October I had a teacher training session in Caen with Jane Elliott for teaching in the collège which was quite helpful. There are two assistants from England, one from Germany, and one from Mexico and we all live in the same hall. So we're all becoming friends, which is quite nice. Every year this is five assistants, so it makes things much less lonely. On the weekends we do things together and go on little trips visiting areas near Vire like Caen and Granville (a beautiful city on the ocean). Vire is completely shut on Sundays and it also shuts down between 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. on weekdays, so that is something that I've had to get used to. I bought a railcard called a carte 12-25. It gives me 50% off any train tickets that I buy in France and it only cost 283 francs (about 44 euros). I think that's about it for the first month of my time as an assistant here in France.