Our day starts early here in France. I suppose it's because it gets dark outside by 6pm so people start the day earlier than we do in the Philippines.
We were picked up from the flat by the lovely Valerie on our first day to work. Valerie is the office manager of Lawson in Nantes. Lawson-Nantes is composed of 35 people. Most of the time they are in client sites so the office itself will have 10 or less people everyday.
I cannot imagine Lawson-PSSC being that empty. Our local HR department will pitch a fit and fire us all!
Everyone we've met at the office for the last three days were very welcoming. Some of them even help me with my atrocious French pronunciation. No one cringes or laughs when I try to say a word in French. They are simply glad I'm making an effort to learn their language.
So, as I've said, everyone has been very friendly. Surprisingly so. And not just our colleagues. Even the ones we encounter in restaurants and markets have been cordial. I'm now wondering where the stories of snotty French people came from. Perhaps people in Nantes are just more polite than the people in Paris? Hm.
It is perfectly OK to ask for someone to speak in English. Just do it politely. Don't be haughty about it and make sure to greet them with a simple "bonjour" beforehand. Say "merci" afterwards.
We didn't feel the cold much during the first day. Mostly because we were driven almost everywhere we went to. The second and third day though was a bitch. It was COLD. As in "mother fucker! it's freezing!" kind of cold. I could literally feel the blood on my face freeze. I was forced to buy another coat and some camisoles so I won't freeze to death when commuting to and fro the office.
Aside from the cold, which I do not believe I will ever get used to, their vegetables are limited. In the Philippines you can spend an entire day choosing what vegetable to cook. Here my choices are limited to: cabbages, potatoes, lettuces, carrots, potatoes, red radishes, tomatoes and potatoes. Did I mention potatoes? I didn't even see any other types of pepper aside from the bell peppers. Haaah, the cooking will be harder and more limited than I thought.
Shopping is an odd experience here. Almost everything is much more expensive. There are a few things I found to be a bit funny: L'Oreal, Schwarzkopf and Sunsilk costs the same in here. Those who live in the Philippines will attest that the former two are much, much more expensive than the last one. Pantene, on the other hand, is twice the price of all three. The Promod clothing brand is cheaper here while Mango is thrice the price. Esprit and Benetton are the same.
And to those who are used to skyscrapers, you won't find any in here. The tallest building I've seen is only 15 floors high. They seem to prefer long and wide structures instead of tall ones. Perhaps it is to preserve the "old European" feel of the city? Again, maybe it's different in Paris.
There are two things I really do not like at all. The dog poo on the streets. UGH. They are present even in the town center and main streets. In the Philippines, if you want to walk your dog, you gotta clean up after it and I don't have to worry about dog poo unless I'm in a less savory part of the city. And secondly... there are no English shows on TV. And my hotel's ISP blocks torrents! WAH! Six months of no TV? However will I survive?!
Overall, it's been a good week. It will be much, much better once I figure out how I can get my weekly dose of anime and CSI. A bientôt!
