PARIS I

My life in Paris is different in many ways to my life in Austria and in Vorarlberg. The biggest difference is that in Paris I am nearly never alone. Whether I am at the university, in a park or in town, there are always people everywhere. Even at home, I am nearly never alone either, due to fact that it is common to share a flat with a friend or a stranger, there is always someone around. Having a flat alone is not popular for students, because the rent in cities like Paris is extremely high and not affordable for a student on his/her own. Because of this students normally share a flat with one or two people, depending on rent and location of the apartment. Additionally, it is very convenient to have someone to talk to or explore the city if you move to an alien town. Another reason why I am rarely on my own is that friends from Austria and other countries often visite me and stay in my flat which I share with another person; or I go and visit friends in Paris and elsewhere and stay over in their flats.

Furthermore, I do spend a lot of time at the university, but when I am there, it is always quite crowded. The same happens in the city center: As Paris is one of the most touristic cities in Europe, there is no place in the center where you could be on your own. A possibility to see a little bit of the nature and to relax is to go to one of the many parks, which are not difficult to find in Paris. But there as well, you will not be alone enjoying nature, there will be some people jogging, taking their dog for a walk and so on, because the number of parks is limited.

Arriving from Austria, I could never have imagined that I would be able to live in the same flat with a person I do not really know well. At home I was quite accustomed to have a lot of time for myself, staying alone in my room or share a whole house with my family. At home I did not do the washing or go grocery shopping regularly. But now I am living alone and have to do all these things on my own, which scared me a bit in the beginning. Nevertheless, I managed to accomplish all these things without any bigger problems.

However, I must admit that it is a lot easier to live alone in a flat than I thought before, although it was not at all familiar to me.

Coming from a small village in Austria, this is my first long-term experience living in a city as big and as pulsating as Paris. Although I first had to get used to the fact that a real city is always in motion, now walking through crowded places in the city is nothing special anymore. Another thing which is quite related to the many people I met here in Paris and which was also new to me was that every day there was something to do and people who wanted to meet you. I had to plan when I wanted to stay at home and relax. It was not always easy to say “No” to leisure time activities and set priorities.

When I will be back home, I guess it will be very different for me again. It will be a lot calmer, but probably also less interesting. One thing I know for sure is that I will miss my life in Paris and all the friends and people I met there, but I will never forget what it felt like to live there and be a part of the French culture.