Orientation Begins

Today was the first day of the orientation week. Needing to be in Avignon for 9.30, I studied the bus timetable carefully- I had the option of taking the 6.15 bus to Avignon to arrive for 8, or the 8 bus to arrive for 9.15. As there is quite a walk between the bus stop and the place I'm meant to be, Becca and I thought, best to take the early bus to avoid getting stuck in traffic and getting stressed- and then I could find a cafe for breakfast in Avignon in the hours wait. So my alarm went on for 5.30, and when it went off, startling me out of a very peaceful nights sleep, I did seriously debate taking the later bus, but I really did not want to be late on my first day, I'm not sure I even know how to say 'sorry I'm late'.
   

So I was out of the apartment early and walking in the dark through the city to the bus stop. Where I could see a 15,2 to Cavaillon, a 9,2 to Aix-en-Provence (both with the TransVaucluse logo on the side) and a plain white bus with the school logo on the front (the school bus- right?) So I wasn't worried, it was still five minutes early so I waited a while, and on the dot of 6,15 the 'school' bus pulled away, at which point I saw the piece of paper, stuck to the front of it on which was scrawled '15,1 Avignon.' It had gone without me. Trying not to melt down on the pavement, burst into tears and tear my hair out in, I smiled unconcernedly and turned to head back to the apartment. Having been wondering whether to sacrifice a more organised and relaxed commute for a longer lie in, or vice versa I was now dealing with a 5.30 start and no guarantee I would get there on time. I was wondering if it was going to be the start of a very bad day.

I was even more daunted, standing in the welcome hall, listening to the assistants on one side of me talking about the endless summers they have spent au pairing in Paris, and the assistants on the other side of me chatting easily in French, wondering if I was way out of my depth with the minimal French speaking practice I've done, and then I was called first to meet my conseilleur pedagogique. My knees were almost trembling but I need not have worried; she was so lovely, and easy to chat to and helped me fill in 'le dossier salaire', 'le dossier securité sociale' and sign up for liability insurance. The matter of not having got a certified translation of my birth certificate, which is a timely and costly process and seemed to be cropping up on all lists of documents required, not to mention I have been worrying about since the start of September, was dismissed with a wave of the hand. 'C'est pas grave!'. Thank god! Stumbling through the administrative process in french, while holding a conversation with Madame was not easy but she asked me at the end, where I learnt french, and when I explained somewhat apologetically about the french covered on our university course, she smiled and said, 'you speak french very well, très clairement!'. She might have been drunk but I don't care, I'll take that! 

The rest of the day I was walking on sunshine, or walking in sunshine, literally, because the sky looked like this

a cold drink before catching the bus back to Apt

This afternoon I have been reading, blogging and researching Marseille with Becca- because that is our next stop (tomorrow), for sea, sun and bouillabaisse!