I’ve told my manager at work, I’ve put an advance down on a flat-share, I’ve started trying to condense my belongings down to what I can realistically take with me. I’m moving to Paris.
This is the most exciting and terrifying thing I’ve done, by far. It’s not like I’m going it alone – I have a place at an English uni for French Studies, so I know there are plenty of people in the exact same boat. Student finance is going to cover my rent for the year, and I can hopefully do something like babysitting alongside to get a little more money for everyday stuff.
The hardest thing about this at the moment is the not-knowing. I have a tough time making decisions and worry about making the wrong choice a lot, and this is a pretty fucking big change. I know a lot of my friends are going to university this year as well so it’s not like we’d be able to see each other all the time anyway, but it’s still really scary to think about being away from home and almost everyone I know. This past year has been so good, with doing an art foundation year, meeting so many lovely people and starting at what is definitely the best job I’ve had so far, so I’m pretty sad about having to leave all that behind. We’ve been in this house since I was less than a year old so I’ve never had to go through the stress of moving house before, let alone completely uprooting and moving country.
I know it’s only for term time and it’s not that difficult to come back in between to see people, but it’s just such a big thing and I have pretty much no idea how it’s going to be for the first few weeks. I don’t know what to expect and it feels like I’m going it alone, even though I know I’m not. I know it’s not like the movies because I’ve been before, but the feeling I get when I’m there is what swayed the decision. As stupid as it sounds, Paris is a really special place for me. This is something I need to do and hey, if it all goes wrong I’ll get a few brushes, go hang out by the Sacré Coeur, and try selling a couple hundred sketches to tourists.
The next time I write on here will probably be when I’m in the middle of packing stress, AKA trying to restrain myself to only taking a reasonable amount of my belongings over for my first trip.
À plus tard!
Alice
Alice
