Life Updates, reflections

Life Update #5: Heading Back to France!

Bonjour, tout le monde!

I admit, it’s been over three months since my last “Life Update” post— in fact, I haven’t updated since returning to the United States after my second year of TAPIF, and here I am, about to head back to France once more! Really, where did the time go? I can’t complain, though…while I had a great summer, I’m also excited to return abroad.

For many of you who’ve been reading my blog for some time, you might know that I was recently accepted for a third, consecutive year as an assistante de langue in France. However, I’ve since withdrawn from the program– thing is, a couple of weeks after returning home in May, I received an interview, then an offer, from a French university for a lectrice d’anglais position, which I accepted. That said, I’m going to be a lectrice d’anglais this year! I’m absolutely elated– I’ve already done the paperwork/VISA appointment, and will be heading out in a couple of days to begin my new job teaching English to university-level students. Surely, it’ll be a very different experience compared to what I’ve been doing these past two years, but I’m ready to face it head-on.

Getting this lectrice job was something that I didn’t expected to get, especially after having a rough time last year trying to get a position, which nearly ruined my chances of returning to France in the first place. I’ll be honest and say that getting a lectrice position is HARD: you wouldn’t believe how many places turned me down, even with a Master’s (M1 equivalent) that I spent this past year working on. Really, I was set on giving up and accepting my third year as an assistante (which I wouldn’t have mind doing, but much preferred something else instead). That said, after struggling to become a lectrice, it makes this soon-to-be position so rewarding.

Any case, I’ll be teaching in the Lyon region (although not Lyon proper), and it’ll certainly be a great change from what I’ve been used to living and teaching in northern France (Normandy region) these past two years. I’ve never been to the city in which I’ll be teaching, which will require some getting used to. This will also be the first time I’ll need to find housing on my own, unlike being provided them by schools during my time as an assistante. Standards of teaching and conducting myself as an actual teacher will be higher, and while the thought makes me nervous, I’m sure that I’ll go forth with it and it’ll turn out all right in the end– after all, it has to!

Lectrice news aside, I had a pleasant summer this year. Not so eventful compared with past ones, but all the same, it has been a mix of relaxing and trying new things that I’d otherwise never would’ve tried out. Here are a few, bullet list-style:

  • Participated in my local summer reading program AND
  • …subsequently read more books from the last two years put together (classics like My Antonia and Lolita to plenty of fluffy YA novels #don’tjudge).
  • Got a henna tattoo.
  • Attended local events in my hometown, including a visit to the LACMA and the Greek Festival.
  • Tried more “cultural” food trends of Los Angeles, e.g. Ethiopian food, Hawaiian poke, and Thai rolled ice cream.
  • Started learning German and Italian via Mango Languages, free through my local library (a plus!).
  • Brushed up on my Chinese via Mango Languages as well.

…that said, I found this summer to be more productive compared with last year’s. Taking on several projects (e.g. language learning, connecting with the community) has helped me use my time more wisely– otherwise, I would’ve merely vegged out for the entire summer.

Travel-wise, I didn’t make a big trip this summer: I spent one week road-tripping along the Pacific Northwest with my family in June, and that was about it. The trip was a good time, as I got to explore a bit more of the natural beauty that my home country has to offer. I’ve yet to write about my adventures on this blog, which will come in due time (I promise!).

Summer has been great this year, and I’ll be *slightly* sad for it to leave. Again, though, I’m looking forward to returning to France for another year, seeing what it’ll bring for me. In terms of goals, I do hope to travel some more: I have an ever-growing list of places that I’m determined to see this year, and time will tell if I can make it over (top priorities: Iceland, the Balkans, northern Spain, more of the Bavarian region in Germany). We shall see!

There’s still a lot of packing to do, and I’ll definitely keep you updated once I arrive and get settled in France. Expect the next few posts to be scheduled for your pleasure while I’m away, as I brave through French administration once more. I’m looking forward to what this year in France will bring, whether good or bad, and here’s to more adventures very soon! À bientôt.

 

— Rebecca

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Published by Rebecca

Blogger, world traveler, poet, foodie, part-time penguin. Welcome!

19 thoughts on “Life Update #5: Heading Back to France!”

  1. Congrats on the lectrice position, Rebecca! Where in the Lyon region will you be? Excited to hear more about your experiences teaching abroad and all the adventures to come 🙂

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  2. Félicitations on the lectrice position! After all the stress last time, you must be over the moon that things have all gone to plan this year 🙂 When I moved to Lyon, it was my first time finding housing by myself – all I’d say is use sites like leboncoin, roomlala and appartager with some caution as there can be a few dodgy listings. No harm in asking colleagues too, as they may have friends of friends looking to let out rooms and such. I’ve got a couple of lectrice-related posts coming up soon which may be of use to you 🙂

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    1. Merci beaucoup, Rosie! Certainly to say that I’m over the moon about getting this position; I’m sure things will turn out well with housing, as I’ll be staying with a colleague when I arrive and until I find something. Will keep you updated on the progress, and I look forward to your lectrice posts– any advice is welcome!

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      1. That’s a relief on the housing front then – always nice to have a bit of time to settle in and figure out where in the town/city you want to live. Hope the flight over goes smoothly!

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  4. Congrats on the lectrice position!! I’ve had to find housing myslef as an assistant, and I can say that I do think it’ll be easier for you, because you’ll have that increase in pay. The websites I’ve had the most luck with are leboncoin and La Carte des Colocs (for apartments with roommates only). Also, maybe you can reach out to the previous lecteur to see what they did? Hope you love being a lectrice again this year! I’m going to be a second year assistant, but I hope to either be a lectrice of a student in Didactique des langues next year. 🙂

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    1. Thank you! Yes, I’ve reached out to the former lectrices at my university and they’ve been helpful answering my questions on housing and teaching. It’ll be my first year as a lectrice, and I’m hoping it’ll be a good experience. Hope you can achieve your goals after this second year as an assistante!

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  5. Ugh so excited for you! I hope working with the uni students is more rewarding. Here’s to hoping the administration and housing hunt are smooth and relatively stress free! Keep us updated, bon courage!

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    1. Thanks, Destiny! Will definitely keep you updated with the lectrice job; it’ll be interesting to see how different it is compared to work as an assistante.

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  6. wow, awesome! Congratulations Rebecca! I can imagine how rewarding it feels to finally get this position! and you totally deserve it! all the best of luck! i am so looking forward to reading about your experience this year!

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