Finding a Residence in Lille

I wrote in my last post how my friend very graciously allowed me to stay with him in his Paris apartment for ten (yes ten!) whole days before I moved to a residence in Lille.  Honestly, I’m shocked he is still speaking to me!  I’m not sure if I could even live with myself after sharing a bedroom like that!  Anyways, I gave myself a 24-hour period upon arrival to not stress out about the fact that I still didn’t know where I was going to live.  Immediately following that 24-hour period, I entered near-meltdown-mode!

Shakka patiently helped me draft a 2-3 sentence message that I could send to potential leasors.  I contacted approximately 20 different people.  Once it was crunch time, I realized I had to drop my standards a bit to ensure that I wasn’t going to be homeless!  I’m semi-kidding.  I would never have ended up being truly homeless.  There were several back-up plans of course.  That being said… considering I had two suitcases weighing in at 30 kilos each, I was not trying to move all my crap more than once!

Anywho.  Out of the 20 apartment ads that I reached out to, I heard back from four potential leasors.  One apartment wasn’t available until the end of November apparently!  Down to three.  I went ahead and scheduled appointments to go tour the remaining three apartments that I had heard back from.  My first three days in Paris quickly revealed to me that I had lost almost any ability to speak French.  SO, riding a train to Lille by myself was a huge feat for me!  I was super proud of myself for being able to ask for directions and finding each apartment!  Speaking with the various landlords was a bit of a struggle but hey- I made it, right?

Pretty quickly, I determined that the price, landlords, location, and exterior of the first apartment I toured were all too great to pass up!  I moved in the following Sunday.  Full disclosure, I live in a SMALL room and I share a toilet with my next door neighbor.  Not a bathroom – a toilet.  My room has a sink and shower for myself.  But I love it!  It’s perfect for what I wanted and needed.

My landlords had me in for dinner in their apartment on my first evening in Lille.  I honestly think meeting them was my biggest selling point!  They’re an adorable older couple, who are beyond kind and helpful!  They don’t speak much English, but they try for me.  It’s better for me that they don’t because now I have to speak more French!

Lille is absolutely adorable!!  I feel very lucky to have been assigned to this region, even if it is cold and rainy!  More details to come regarding the city and work!

Xoxo!