A letter to my MP regarding Brexit

Below is a letter I wrote to my MP back in the UK regarding the UK referendum to leave the EU. It is the real letter, I really sent.

So long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu...

So the UK has voted to leave the European union.


I don't even know what more I can say.

I had a dream. Brexit viewed by a Brit in France.

Last week I had a dream

I dreamt that the UK voted to leave EU. I dreamt that the French Police National came to my house, demanded I pack my things, and escorted me to Gare du Nord where I was held with other "illegal immigrants" who had come to France under EU free movement. We were kept in pens as we waited for more and more British people to arrive from across France, and were guarded by Police 24/7 until the British Gov't could arrange for us to be deported back. It took forever because the system was backed up with all the retired Brits coming back from Spain, as well as the other 2 million british people living across the EU. We were not allowed out of the pens to buy food, and our bank accounts were suspended. All our employment had been terminated because we were now "illegal immigrants." Some were sick and pregnant and couldn't get treatment because we no longer qualified for French medical benefits and our EHICs were void. We were hungry, cold, and mocked or pitied by the French passing by.

Then I woke up, and realised it perhaps wasn't a dream...

European Flags Fly High

I know (/hope)that is not how it would go down if we left EU, but as an expat it was genuinely gut wrenching, and I woke up clammy and nauseous.

Full Warning - This blog is goign to get long, and involve discussions of EU law and politics. Not for the faint hearted. I promise a blog about face cream or museums soon. I'm so sorry.

L'As Du Fallafel

There are plenty of fancy restaurants in Paris, delightful cafés, and boulangeries where you can grab a lunchtime baguette the size of your arm. But sometimes you just want something a little different. The french may be renowned for their gastronomy, but there are two types of food that the Parisians do not handle so well - vegetarian food (or at least some form of it that does not involve cheese) and spicy food. After filling up my arteries with crêpe au fromage when I need a savoury hit on my touristy travels, I was aching for something with the crunch of vegetables. In addition to this, I was craving something with a bit of a kick.

So I headed to the historic Jewish district of Le Marais and joined the throngs of people queueing at L'As Du Fallafel.

T'aimes le flânerie?

The sun is shining over Paris today, for the second weekend in a row. That's it, I'm calling it. Spring is here, and it's the perfect time to learn a new french word.

flâneur

A flâneur is someone who strolls around, observing society and soaking up the atmosphere. Balzac described flânerie as "the gastronomy of the eye", and Baudelaire explained it thusly:

For the perfect flâneur, for the passionate spectator, it is an immense joy to set up house in the heart of the multitude, amid the ebb and flow of movement, in the midst of the fugitive and the infinite. To be away from home and yet to feel oneself everywhere at home; to see the world, to be at the centre of the world, and yet to remain hidden from the world...

— Charles Baudelaire, "The Painter of Modern Life" - Originally published in Le Figaro, in 1863. 

I'm an au pair, not a mother in training

What I am about to say may surprise you. It may even offend some of you. But I think it's worth being honest about, as it perhaps goes against many of the stereotypes of being an au pair.

I'm not really interested in being a mother. I'm not even that interested in children.

Ok, I can almost hear the gasps and angry comments being thrashed out on poor unsuspecting keyboards - let me explain.

I'm just looking forward to the day when my handbag isn't full of compote.

L' Éventail Bar-Restaurant

L' Éventail means two things in French. First of all it means a fan, the type you hold in your hand and use to stay cool. But it can also mean something else - the range, usually price range. So, cool and price range - something to consider when considering what may be one of my new favourite places to grab a bite to eat in Paris, L' Éventail Bar-Restaurant.

La Vie Est Belle: Avène Cleanance Range - The Secret of French Beauty Rituals

If you read some of my last posts (here) you will know that the kids have been giving me major stress lately. One of the side effects of all this stress has been that my skin is terrible! I have had break outs all over my face and neck, and they have lasted for weeks without calming down. I know things like the lack of sleep and the insane amount of chocolate I eat to stay sane contributed to that, but even though I've tried to clean up my act, my old La Roche Posay Effaclar (review here) just wasn't cutting it. My host mum swears by Avène products, so I thought I would try some too. But I wasn't just going to change face wash. I was going to start washing my face like a real Parisienne. I was going to start a full cleansing ritual with Avène's Cleanance range whilst on my holiday in the Alps, to make my pampering complete!

Nuxe Bio Beauté High Nutrition Body Lotion For Sensitive Skin

On my recent trip to the Alps, I made a promise. I was going to practice a little self care and try to repair a little of the damage that my body had undergone since coming back to au pairing in January. I went on a mini-pharmacy binge before jumping on the TGV and picked up a few treats to boost my apres ski regime. My first choice was this - Nuxe Bio Beauté High Nutrition Body Lotion For Sensitive Skin. After receiving an entire handful of free samples of this in a Monoprix para-pharmacy near Notre Dame, I decided to go out and buy the real deal.

An Au Pair Out And About Special- Haute-Savoie Region & Chamonix Valley

Winter in Paris has been cold and dry. The skies are grey, the rain comes down hard, and even the chicest Parisian is running into the nearest shop to protect their cashmere scarf. As I have mentioned before, things have been quite stressful with the family for a few weeks, and I needed a break. Luckily I had pre-arranged with the family to have a week off while the kids spent the first week of their holidays with Mamie and Pappie in Biarritz.

Many people would no doubt choose somewhere hot & sunny for a break away. Good choice. However I have always been a fan of cold weather holidays and I needed some physical exercise (there's only so much cardio running around after the kids can give you). So I headed south-east, for the fresh air and exercise capital that is the French Alps. Specifically I headed for the Chamonix Valley - home to the first Winter Olympics.

When things go wrong

If you read a lot of au pair blogs you may well have the impression that working as an au pair in France involves a lot of sitting in cafes, drinking cafés noisettes and occasionally swanning around a museum looking profound. Certainly, this is true to an extent, we do get to do this. But we also work really hard and, as far as jobs go, it can vary wildly from life enriching experience to a living nightmare. Just like any other job, how bad it gets will vary depending on your office (the house), your boss (the Host Parents), your coworkers (the kids), and your contract. However, suffice to say, when it gets bad it can get really bad.

You may have noticed that the blog has not been updated much recently. That is because my experience has been going through one of these difficult times. Consequently I have not felt motivated enough to write much and I have felt even less motivated to go out and experience things in a worth writing about. But this blog is meant to be an honest account of my time as an au pair, and I guess the best and most honest thing to do is tell you about how bad things have been.

Odyssey Salon de The and Crêperie

Take a walk under the gothic spires of Notre Dame, stroll along the banks of the Seine - how chic. How Parisian. But take a right, and head down Rue Dante, and suddenly everything changes. No more Gothic spires, no more chic designer shops - it's wall to wall nerd heaven. Bandes dessinées, les figurines, truc de cosplay - its all here. Since they released The Force Awakens, the world has gone Star Wars crazy and we have had about 3 months of Star Wars Mania. If you still haven't had enough Star Wars, Rue Dante is where you can go to get something to satisfy your hunger. Let's take a trip to a galaxy far, far away and Odyssey Salon de Thé & Crêperie

The best apps and podcasts to get you learning French.

So as part of my new year resolutions, I promised to put more effort into learning French. Perhaps it's because my family are fluent in English, but French does not seem to be progressing as quickly as other people's. So I have turned to technology to try and push my French forwards. Mostly because some days the only time I have to myself is the 20 mins on the metro.

Here are a few of my top picks of the best apps and podcasts out there to help improve your French. And I have to add - none of these app/podcast makers have paid me for these reviews, they are only my opinion.

Happy New Year

I hope you've all had a wonderful break over the Christmas period. For those of you who stayed withe your families I hope you had fun learning some new French Christmas Traditions. For those who did not have to stay with their host families, I hope you got to enjoy some peace and quiet!

Sadly the holiday is almost over, and soon it will be back to Work and School. But it's New Year's Day, so I'm going to recover from last night's celebrations and reflect upon what I learnt about being an au pair in 2015, and what I can do better in 2016.

Time for my Au Pair New Year's Resolutions...