Where I live and work

Six girls - in our variety of nationalities - have slowly arrived to live in the internat (boarding house) where we thankfully have our own corridor, separate from the kids. After a slight hitch trying to access the internet and get past the child-block (no Facebook?!) we've settled in, ready to start work tomorrow. A shared kitchen and lounge area and individual ensuites (not to mention the €40 monthly rent!) make for ideal communal living conditions. Even though everyone speaks English (most of us better than French) we're all speaking French in the flat, so hopefully we will all improve together... or pick up each others' bad habits.

It's raining in France, too.

Before...

...after

'La cuisine'

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go.

After a 5.30am start, a 2 hour long flight, two trains and and hour's time difference I finally arrived in Bourg en Bresse at 2.30pm to a very Welsh welcome of torrential rain. I'm still not entirely sure as to whether this made me feel more at home, or more shit because, you know, it's rain.
The journey went pretty smoothly, other than one small hitch in the form of my first big cultural error on the train from Lyon. When the conductor came round he looked at my ticket and told me should have 'composté'. Cue the classic 'je ne comprends pas' look of the unseasoned tourist which I had hoped never to adorn my (actually fairly well travelled) face.
"Err, where I'm from, composting means letting it rot and growing plants in it," ...is what I should have said, but instead I faltered at 'err' and mumbled something sorry-like. Next time I'll prepare a better retort.. or perhaps I'll just learn how to compost the damn thing by stalking someone who looks like they know what they're doing. Hopefully they won't lead me to a nearby garden centre. 

Train and rain

My life in 20kg

Sixteen posts in and I finally come to you from across the pond. I've moved in, and finally have the internet sorted, but firstly let me back track a little to the arduous process of fitting a year's worth of stuff (not exactly, as my parents are coming to visit in the holidays with another suitcase, but allow the hyperbole) around Easyjet regulations.

What I brought:
Clothes (an obvious one, but remember to think about things which are appropriate for work!)
Handbags
Jewellery
Make-up
Perfume
Documents
Gadgets: laptop, iPod, kindle, phone +CHARGERS!
A book of Italian Arias (insert accessory to your hobby here)
Pencil case
Sentimental and decorative stuff (postcards, pages from my yearbook, photos, a panda hat and two packets of penguin bars..)
Lots of DVDs (obviously out of the cases to save space)
Drugs (a good idea when travelling to Europe if you don't like the idea of suppositories..!)

What I left behind to buy in France:
Towels
Most toiletries
Bed linen

What I should have done differently:
I stocked up on a few things like tights and makeup, afraid that things would be different in France, but in a large supermarket you can find all the hosiery and toiletries you could ask for. In a scan through the local Intermarché I noticed familiar brands such as Maybelline, L'Oreal, Dove, Nivea, Always and Radox, to name (or recall...) but a few.
I should, however, have brought a duvet cover since they are sparse and expensive here. I might manage with the blanket until the elder Dakins arrive...

Au revoir to my home town

Cardiff, je t'aime.