It's over.
My last day of teaching was April 20th. I'm sorry that my entries have been rather few and far between recently, but I'm not sorry for all the day trips, dinners, vacations, lesson plans (had to mention those somewhere in here), and screenwriting sessions I've been too busy enjoying to write down. Here are links to a few photo albums, to help fill the gaps:
Krakow (My last spring break stop after Budapest, which was very un-cosmopolitan, very historic, and thus very cool. Also, incredibly reasonably priced and full of more good, hearty, meat-and-potatoes kind of food. Also, though you won't find the pictures in the album, I visited Auschwitz.)
Tende (A small town near the French/Italian border (check it out) reached by the aptly named Train des Merveilles ('Train of Marvels'). Erika and I did a day trip up here and found some terrific hikes, cool winding walkways in town, and a terrific lunch at the lovely husband-and-wife restaurant Le Gourmand.)
I also spent a whirlwind week showing my buddy David Adler around Paris and the Riviera. And I just got back from 4 days in Bologna, Italia, where I got to spend time with the wonderful Giulia Petruzzelli.
I would be lying if I said that the end of my teaching wasn't emotional, and I'd be a liar-liar-pants-on-fire (I wonder how you say that in French...) if I didn't mention the outpouring of affection I got from the kids and my fellow teachers. But first, a few general sound bytes to shamelessly build suspense.
Andy: "Do you like pizza?"
Kid: "I love you, pizza!"
Andy: "How are you?"
Other Kid: "I am hot and happy!"
I worked at three schools, and two of them gave me wonderful sendoffs... The first gave me a huge box of local specialty food products (first photo in this oddball album) and came pouring into one of the classes I was teaching to throw me a going-away party with Orangina, cookies, candy (including chocolates from favorite chain Jeff de Bruges), and a lot of adorable, tearful young children.
The other school finished off my unit on food in the best way possible. American breakfast for my three classes. And there were t-shirts. I can't describe them, and a photo won't do them justice. Ask me in person sometime, and if I can, I'll show you.
It was wonderful. Nice to know I'll be missed and that I did okay at the job that had be quaking in my sneakers last September. I'll take that as an exit from Grasse.
Oh, that's right... the teaching is over, but the blog is not. A few other things.
I'm living in Cannes now (for the month) because my folks are coming over to Europe at the end of May to do some quality traveling (there's a cruise... and fjords).
But until then, I'm just looking forward to attending the Cannes Film Festival. I was awarded a pass to attend screenings at a few of the theatres (not the big ones, since I'm not a professional, although word is you can beg tickets off people if you look good and they have extras). I'm pretty pumped about it... I get free access to lots of (hopefully great) movies and I'll be surrounded by film industry. Sweet. It runs from May 16-27.
I'll try to blog a bit about Cannes if I can (pun!), but I predict those days will be a bit hectic, and I'm not sure what internet will be like on the boat. So, for reference, I'm in Cannes until May 29, traveling until June 15th, and chilling in DC for two whole days before starting work at the 'Center for Talented Youth' at Johns Hopkins on June 18 (through August 7). No idea if they're gonna' renew my contract for next year, and -- hooray for France -- they're almost certainly not gonna' tell me before July. I'm not too worried, though.
I'm too busy thinking about movies.
-Andy
Showing posts with label Apartment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Apartment. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Monday, September 26, 2011
Home on the Price Range
Mundane and not-specifically-European though they are, I would be remiss in not at least mentioning my recent efforts to find my first apartment. The following is basically my process of elimination:
1.) Don't spend more than 600 euro per month on anything, one-person or flatshare, because net monthly salary is about 780.
2.) Make plans to share a place with a fellow American teaching assistant from Idaho, who seems like a great future flatmate and helps you search for online listings from the U.S.
3.) Ignore anything connected to real estate agencies. They often insist on a fee equivalent to the first month's rent (that's before the equivalent deposit and rent itself through the landlord). They also want you to have a salary of at least three times the monthly rent (well, so do I, but...) and/or a French guarantor (which I can't get).
4.) Scan (hourly) a few trusty internet sites for listings direct from landlords, including BEP, the real estate agency for people who don't want to use real estate agencies. You pay them a one-time charge of 170 euros (which - in my token joke about how bad the exchange rate is - is about how much Obama proposes his new jobs plan will cost). In exchange, you get 5 months of access to regional ads from landlords who post on BEP's website about a week before they post anywhere else. After that, it's between you and the landlords BEP puts you in touch with.
5.) Through the various websites, arrange viewings for studios, because there are no 2- or 3-person apartments in Grasse. (Or, if there are, have fun wondering why the guy has time to re-post his ad every day to keep it on top of the list, but somehow can't manage to return a simple email requesting a visit.)
6.) Visit apartments, all of them one-person studios/multi-rooms. Decide that they could make okay backups, but are too expensive or don't come furnished, or have the inherent future problem of leaving you lonely in a small, quiet town after one month.
7.) After a week and a half of this, finally make contact with the Italian assistant assigned to a high school in Grasse. In addition to seeming very sweet and desirous to share a flat with other assistants (just like you, and by "you" I of course mean "me"), her high school has reserved for assistants the only 3-person apartment in all of southern France. It costs 400 euro per person per month. It is completely furnished (except sheets and plates), has a great big living room and kitchen, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a big balcony, a pool and tennis courts, top-notch security, a decent location (remember, Grasse's geography forbids any location from being actually convenient). It also offers this view (enlarge by left-clicking the image once, then again when it appears by itself on the screen):
...Aaaannnnd YOU'RE the next contestant on THE PRICE IS RIGHT!
-Andy
1.) Don't spend more than 600 euro per month on anything, one-person or flatshare, because net monthly salary is about 780.
2.) Make plans to share a place with a fellow American teaching assistant from Idaho, who seems like a great future flatmate and helps you search for online listings from the U.S.
3.) Ignore anything connected to real estate agencies. They often insist on a fee equivalent to the first month's rent (that's before the equivalent deposit and rent itself through the landlord). They also want you to have a salary of at least three times the monthly rent (well, so do I, but...) and/or a French guarantor (which I can't get).
4.) Scan (hourly) a few trusty internet sites for listings direct from landlords, including BEP, the real estate agency for people who don't want to use real estate agencies. You pay them a one-time charge of 170 euros (which - in my token joke about how bad the exchange rate is - is about how much Obama proposes his new jobs plan will cost). In exchange, you get 5 months of access to regional ads from landlords who post on BEP's website about a week before they post anywhere else. After that, it's between you and the landlords BEP puts you in touch with.
5.) Through the various websites, arrange viewings for studios, because there are no 2- or 3-person apartments in Grasse. (Or, if there are, have fun wondering why the guy has time to re-post his ad every day to keep it on top of the list, but somehow can't manage to return a simple email requesting a visit.)
6.) Visit apartments, all of them one-person studios/multi-rooms. Decide that they could make okay backups, but are too expensive or don't come furnished, or have the inherent future problem of leaving you lonely in a small, quiet town after one month.
7.) After a week and a half of this, finally make contact with the Italian assistant assigned to a high school in Grasse. In addition to seeming very sweet and desirous to share a flat with other assistants (just like you, and by "you" I of course mean "me"), her high school has reserved for assistants the only 3-person apartment in all of southern France. It costs 400 euro per person per month. It is completely furnished (except sheets and plates), has a great big living room and kitchen, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a big balcony, a pool and tennis courts, top-notch security, a decent location (remember, Grasse's geography forbids any location from being actually convenient). It also offers this view (enlarge by left-clicking the image once, then again when it appears by itself on the screen):
...Aaaannnnd YOU'RE the next contestant on THE PRICE IS RIGHT!
-Andy
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