Dear reader,
I’m writing to tell you about my life as a student abroad, in Paris. After spending four years at Cairo University, one can’t help but notice the differences, as well as the similarities between both capitals.
Look, your first real test is finding somewhere to stay. Easy, right? WRONG! So far, no challenge has been as tough, draining and exhausting as finding a place to call “home.” From endless no-reply emails, to phone calls that lead directly to voicemail and countless apartment visits, these are all elements that are capable of sucking all your optimistic vibes right out! The way Dementors extract your happy thoughts in Harry Potter. When the day comes and you finally find somewhere to stay, pray hard that it’s not far from your college because you may not have the luxury to be picky.
Now, this leads us to the commute part. For most of the day, Paris is actually very nice. The streets aren’t busy, the metro is great and buses aren’t full of smelly people. But during rush hour, all hell breaks loose. Streets around the Champs-Elysées are basically Salah Salem in its darkest hours, metro stations suddenly morph into El Sadat station, and if you close your eyes and take a deep breath while on a bus, you’d think you’re heading to Attaba.
I know, I know. I didn’t talk about the main idea, which is education. But honestly, you tend to forget why you’re here and need to remind yourself every now and then that you’re not on a year-long vacation.
Let’s start with the courses. Generally, they’re classes that you handpicked yourself, so it’s actually very interesting. You feel like you actually came all this way to learn something and you definitely are. Classes are mainly based on participation, group presentations and interaction between professors and students. This makes the experience a lot more lively, rather than having a two hour-long monologue that makes you regret your very own existence — like in the good old Cairo University days.
Then, there are other things, for example, such as administrative work. I don’t think anyone ever sits there reminiscing on sho2oun el talaba, right? Well, by the time you graduate, even from Paris, you won’t be reminiscing on les sho2oun des talaba either (no that’s not their name, yes I know it’s not funny). French bureaucracy isn’t much different, especially in Paris. It’s slow, it’s repetitive and sometimes they send you letters, like real letters, delivered by a postman, and you have to write back. It’s the 21st century France, keep up the pace!
Classes are cool, campuses are cleaner and you’d be amazed by the amount of student services around the city. From museum discounts, to cheaper photocopying, food, transportation; everything has a student fare, which makes life much easier and much cheaper.
But I have one personal problem, reader; classes here (or at least in my program) are three hours long. Every three hours is an eternity of its own. During my Cairo University days, if we left at 7 pm it would be an Instagramable event, where we’d go “woah! It’s 7 and we’re still on campus #OMG! Or we’d just pull the classic “can I go to the bathroom?” and spend the rest of the lecture with our buddies in the cafeteria. That’s not really the case here. On Mondays, I start at 9 am, and finish classes at 9 pm. 12 hours of pure joy.
Your classmates won’t be the same either, not the same 2alsh, not the same jokes you make about your professors, and definitely not the same eating schedule (we Egyptians tend to eat whenever our tummy says so and apparently in France they have fixed hours for food. Such a crazy country). They’re different, yes; and you finally get the chance to experience something new, with people from different backgrounds, and you yourself could embrace your own uniqueness. But honestly, sometimes they seem so goal-oriented that it makes you regret having the infamous Egyptian bahwa2a. They know that they want to graduate, work in a specific place in order to get this other job in four years, and you’re just standing there sipping coffee.
I know I’m making it sound like it’s tough and unenjoyable but it’s the complete opposite. You see, reader, whether you’re a student who wants to continue their studies abroad, whether you’re a parent who is looking for the best opportunities for your son/daughter, you have to realize that I’m enjoying every second of it (except the smelly metro rides, of course).
Yes, sometimes I crave our kebab, kofta, and koshari (which exists somewhere in Paris too, but it’s not the same) and I definitely can’t deny missing my family gatherings and my grandma’s cooking and having all of my friends around, but I’d do it over and over again. And just the thought of having loved ones back home (like the real home), is more than enough to make me want to go back.
Yes, living alone abroad changes you. You get bored, but you get more time for yourself. You realize that cooking takes so much time and eating takes so little. You understand how difficult it is to keep your place clean. Grocery shopping is fun but your whole life is a never ending shopping list and a series of “Ugh! I forgot to buy ___ .” It’s different, but it’s not shocking. It’s changing, yet eye-opening. It’s an experiment that you can control. It’s an experience that you would want to take.
I hope this letter makes it a bit clearer, my friend. See you around, reader
Sincerely,
A Student Abroad
