La Rentrée? ...holidays, for me!

So I haven’t been keeping up with this blog at all like I’d planned! So, I’ll get back to the swing of things soon, I hope! I’ve been laying low, working on a few projects (both personal and professional) that I don’t want to talk about just yet (superstituos…). Summer is finally over, and La Rentrée is in full swing. And what does that mean? That it’s time to get out of town! So, in traditional September fashion: the holidays are finally getting started for me! I’m off to Milan tomorrow to hang out, eat some good food, and to see a high school friend. Photos and details will be posted as soon as I return!

Back in action

My adventures in Paris began what now seems like ages ago! So, I’ll give a little background to hopefully explain what a 26 year old girl from Detroit is still doing in Paris, almost 7 years after beginning a 10-month study abroad program in 2004.

One of the first questions people ask when meeting me is “What made you move to Paris/France?” which is a completely justified interrogation. This is probably the case for most Americans living here, and I often wonder what everyone’s reasons are (or really, if other people actually manage to find reasons!). Unable to really pinpoint what brought me here, I often respond simply that it seemed normal. I studied French in High School for a few years, came to Paris for 10 days on holiday with a friend from High School after graduation. The “seed” was planted, and I came back to Paris for study abroad for the 2004-2005 academic year (my junior year abroad).

I moved back to East Lansing to finish my studies (which I didn’t end up actually doing…) at Michigan State University, and immediately started planning a way to return. I ended up sacrificing a lot more than I realized at the time when I made the decision to return to Paris for the 2006-2007 school year, but I suppose everything happened as it was meant to. So, I moved back to Paris as an “Assistante d’anglais” in the Académie de Versailles. I also started a License at Paris Assas studying Law in parallel.

The plan was to return to the U.S. after this academic year, but things didn’t really go as planned. Life changed, rather dramatically, and I ended up staying in Paris to continue my studies. I was also working part-time in a language school, which helped pay the bills. This is what I call the “Poor, barely getting by, but having an amazing time” phase of my life so far. I had roommates, met tons of people, travelled, and generally loved my life in Paris. After working in this language school until July 2008 as an “Assistante de Direction” I somehow managed to get a dream job working for a fabulous company in Paris. And I’ve been working in IT in the finance industry at the same company since then (3-year anniversary here coming up soon!). I’m on my 6th carte de séjour. I’m on Phase III of my life in Paris.

I managed a blog for a few years that I stopped a bit suddenly several years ago. I stopped because I simply didn’t have the energy and motivation anymore. Things are different now, and my reasons for stopping my blog at the time, bizarrely enough, make me want to start again. So, here I go: Veronica in Paris, Part Trois.