It’s the Indian summer here in Paris. I’ve stayed THREE weeks in the city without my long walks in the fields 40 km from it: it was raining, and I had to finish my dissertation and to send it to my professors. Yesterday, though, I went there. Coming back to the fields is like listening to eternity. Nothing changes, almost no movement, no people for sure. There’s a striking difference between urban noise and serenity of nature. You also can feel the purity of its air. And if your eyes get used to the beauty so that you are not able to amire it with the same intensity, silence is always a great and precious surprise for your years. You have to make breaks. Hear silence. This is our mental and bodily hygene.
This week I managed to spend 40 euros on food. That’s about 5 euros per day. My colleague asks me why I don’t eat with them at the restaurant. ‘Cause it’s expensive. – How much? – It’s not the question of ‘how much’, rather if it’s affordable for me. And it is not.
She shows her ‘deep concern’, but in fact I have an impression that she does not really realize what it means, the shortage of money. If she did, they would arrange a more flexible working hours for me at the library, so that I could also do some babysitting. But my actual schedule blocks everything, any additional ‘income’ is impossible, except of long quiet work over my thesis, which would be my symbolic capital in future.
I wonder how many people describe their everyday life in terms of survival in the megapolises. If you search for “Paris” on wordpress for instance, you’ll only find love and light, dreams and romanticism, only the “post-card” stories. It’s the only accepted way to represent your own life: to expose its “shadow” side and difficulties is almost obscene, you are only allowed to show success and happiness.
N.B. If you are planning your visit to Paris, remember that I would be glad to help you with arrival and to hang out with you in the city or even in the fields outside, if you’re walkers a little bit. There are châteaux / palaces in almost every village outside Paris, don’t be Versailles-addict! 🙂
How to survive in Paris 