My first strike, among other things

Bonjour mes amis!

Nothing too exciting has happened here in Nevers since I posted on Sunday, but I do have a few updates to share! First of all, I read in the paper yesterday morning that the guy I saw stuck under the bus did survive – he was wearing a helmet, which saved his life! Also, apparently the bus didn’t hit him – it seems he lost control of his motorcycle and flew off the bike and under the bus.

There are a good number of administrative details that have to be taken care of in order to live and work in France for 7 months, so yesterday I ran some of those errands. It only took about 45 minutes for me to open my bank account, which was kind of a nice surprise – I was expecting it to take much longer! I did have to initial about 35 pages worth of documents, however, and it’s a very involved process. Now that I have a bank account already, this means that I can apply for my salary advance at the end of October, rather than having to wait until the end of November to get paid!

Any long-term visitor to France has to have a medical visit in order to be approved for a “carte de séjour,” (which allows you to access the French social security system, among other things), and to schedule this visit you have to mail a form to the French Office of Immigration in your region. As I was paying for the postage on the envelope at the post office, the man behind the counter asked me, “So when does this need to get there?? They’re on strike today…” I’ve only been here 5 days and I’ve already experienced my first strike! Apparently the letter carriers are striking to oppose a possible privatization of the postal service; I actually saw them demonstrating in town yesterday. I think they might have better luck getting their way if they didn't play such AWFUL music during their demonstrations! Imagine, if you will, the most stereotypical Euro techno music you can... Then make it worse! That's what it sounded like.

Yesterday afternoon my mom and I went to see if we could find one of the schools I’ll be working at – it is NOT close! I did get to see some of the other parts of town, though, as well as the Loire River, which was lovely. It’s about a 45-minute walk, but maybe I’ll be able to figure out how to get there on the bus… On the plus side, I’ll be getting all sorts of exercise!

Mom left to go back home at 7 this morning, and I don’t think either of the other English assistants is coming until Friday, so my plan is to take a little day-trip to Vichy tomorrow. While it was originally famous for its hot springs, most people now associate the town with the Nazi-controlled collaborationist regime led by Philippe Pétain during WWII. (Yes, I am kind of a history nerd.) It’s only an hour from Nevers by train, and it should make for an interesting little trip.

I also bought my SNCF Carte 12-25 this morning, which is a card offered by the French national rail service to give you a discount if you’re between the ages of 12 and 25… So I’m ready for discount travel now!

Hope all is well with all of you!