An interview with me!

Hi everyone!

If you've ever wanted to know more about how and why I moved to France and my experience there and much more, please head over to ExpatFocus. I was recently interviewed by them after receiving their top blog award! 

I also wanted to take this opportunity to say a BIG thank you to everyone who reads this blog and to all the really nice emails I receive from people who say the blog has helped them. You don't know how happy that makes me! 

Love,

Cora

Cora: I'm famous in France!

Before arriving in France, my brother and I were chilling one night and I was playing around with Siri on my iPhone asking it silly questions. In anticipation of my departure, I had changed my phone language to French so I could immerse myself in it as much as I could before I left. After telling me to leave him alone, "French" Siri pronounced my name with a French accent which included some heavy 'r' action that is notoriously hard for English speakers. Hating the way French sounds, my brother proceeded to mock me for the next two weeks, mimicking Siri.

It was on this particular night that I realised something:

"When I introduce myself do I have to say it the "French way?Omg! I'm not going to be able to say my own name properly because I suck at doing the French 'r'."

When I finally got to France, I was in for one big surprise! Not only did everyone say it Siri's way (while I struggled...) but the name "Cora" is known everywhere across Northern France because it is a big supermarket chain. For the first time in my life everyone knew my name. Back home most conversations go like this:

"Did you say your name was Laura... Cara?" 

"No, Cora."

"Cora? Wow, that's unusual! How do you spell that? K-O-R-A?"

"Nah, with a C."

Despite being teased by students and other people I met for being named after a supermarket, I must admit that it has been pretty cool seeing my name plastered on food, ads and billboards. I've taken a private satisfaction in buying my 'own' brand in yoghurt, cereal and rice. One day, I was out grocery shopping with my friend Sue (who you've seen in previous vlogs here and here) and she was trying to find good coffee. As part of an ongoing joke, I offered her 'my' brand with a flourish and she was like "Haha, no way! Your coffee sucks!" All I could do was laugh and say "sorry about that." Just us being silly!

Have any of you had funny moments with the French language or with your name in France? Let me know in the comments below. I would love to hear them!

The end of my TAPIF journey

Last week I left my schools for the last time. After 7 months of teaching it is all over. My time in France has come to a close and trying to describe the mixed emotions I've been feeling is hard. I've had my moments in the past few weeks where I was glad to be finished teaching, happy to be moving on to what I really love doing which is travelling. But, I've really come to like teaching too and living in France.

My whole French life packed into one little suitcase

The only way I can describe my time here is that it's felt really fast and really slow at the same time, which I know will probably make no sense at all. I look back to when I first arrived in September- when I started the administrative process, found an apartment and settled into my job- and it feels like an eternity ago. I think back to when I was last at home in Australia and my memory is a little fuzzy. At the same time though, I can still picture myself in my bedroom back in Australia before I left, spending long hours reading about anything to do with TAPIF, imagining what it would be like for me. What would my French life be like? My time here has absolutely flown by.

Now, I feel like I have two places that exist in my heart but neither of them is really, perfectly 'home' anymore. The thought of going back to Australia is actually a little scary. I'm scared I'll get there and not connect to it all, but I know I'll have my family and friends. But here in France, I've put together a life. I love that I work and pay for everything myself. I have my own apartment and my friends. I love my freedom and independence. And being able to travel at the drop of a hat. I love day to day life. But, it will never be home because it's not Australia, it's not family, it's not English.

I never really thought I would feel as French as I do, but while writing this in Ireland, there's this connection with the place that I don't think will ever leave me. Like the homely feeling you get when you hear French spoken on the street, or cravings for baguette, or wearing all black and thinking nothing of it. I feel like it's changed me in ways I don't fully know yet. The hardest part has been saying good bye to my closest friends and doing all the 'lasts'...taking my last walk around town, having that last delicious daim mcflurry at McDonalds, taking that last look at my empty apartment, having that last dinner at your favourite restaurant... all the little things. I'm really going to miss it here. As much as I hated it at times, there's never been even a second where I've regretted coming. 

Au revoir, France! Thank you for letting me be part of your history for the past 7 and a half amazing months!