19 Mar Ask an Au Pair: Verena knows how to enjoy Paris all by herself
This week, we asked Verena, a 19-year old from Ohio. She lives with her host family in the 15th arrondissement. Here are excerpts from her responses:
What inspires you about Paris?
The history and the food. Its an amazing city to just wander around in and get lost. You’ll never get bored just walking around, or at least I don’t.
What is the best way to meet Parisians?
I’ve actually met most Parisians through friends who have been here for longer. But I’ve heard that a language exchange is a good way to meet Parisians. You can also go to your local Mairie (Mayor’s office in each arrondissement) and look for dance or fun classes.
How do you improve or master your French language skills?
I always speak French with my host family. When I’m out in Paris and need to talk to someone on the street like for directions I use as much French as possible. I also try to watch movies and read the news in French.
What is your favorite neighborhood?
Le Marais and Montmartre
What is your favorite café and/or the best meal you’ve had in Paris so far?
Le Loire dans la Théière has the most amazing pies (lemon meringue) and its a really cute café. Holybelly in the 10th has really good brunches. Just be careful with the queues to get into both places they can get pretty busy!
What is your favorite museum?
L’Orangerie and D’Orsay
What is your favorite secret Paris spot?
Buttes Chaumont
What do you dislike most about living in Paris?
The noise and the smells. Coming from a small town it took a while to get used to the noise but I don’t mind it so much. The smells can either be really good (from bakeries etc) or really bad.
What advice would you give to incoming au pairs?
Don’t be afraid to ask your host parents questions! They’re more than happy to help out. Also don’t be afraid to go out and explore by yourself. I used to hate being alone but here I love to go out and go to a museum or just walk around, because it’s nice to have time to yourself and enjoy Paris by yourself.
ASK AN AU PAIR SERIES
Get to know Paris, from an au pair’s perspective. Our “Ask an Au Pair” series was so popular that we’ve decided to continue it with our next round of au pairs! We pose a dozen questions about the City of Light to those who are seeing it with fresh eyes and learning all of its wonderful intricacies. And, we decided to expand this series by adding a question about adapting to life in Paris after the 2015 terrorist attacks.
Read more from the Ask an Au Pair series