Montpellier
I had mixed feelings about this job interview in Montpellier. I was excited at the prospect of living and working in a town which has a reputation as being “the most seductive city in the French south”. It has been described as “elegant, cultured and tolerant, with Mediterranean blood coursing through its veins and dynamism to spare”.
I arrive in Montpellier and am greeted by a vibrant and attractive town (population of roughly 260,000 inhabitants, but who would know as the French don’t count the number of illegal immigrants streaming into the country!) When I arrive, it seems like the whole of France’s youth is here in a town the size of a postage stamp. After wandering around for a couple of hours, I have pretty much covered most of the inner Montpellier, which is really the only part worth seeing. Like many French cities, once you leave the inner sanctum or tourist districts, you are confronted by the legacy of 1960s architecture and social experimentation - not an attractive sight!
The first thing which strikes me about Montpellier is its beauty. Filled with old buildings and quaint streets, there is no doubt that this is a gorgeous city.
There is also little doubt that this is a party town. The average age of the population looks to be about 15! The sun is shining and the whole town seems to be making the most of the weather by sitting at the numerous outdoor bars and cafes or just wandering the streets. I am starting to feel positively geriatric! Is there no one over 25 here?
My job interview is at 3.00pm. After a mediocre lunch at one of the aforementioned outdoor cafes, I head off to my prospective place of employment. It is located outside of the yellow area of Montpellier on the map, which means it is outside of the tourist district. The tone changes dramatically. The area is seedy and depressing. Only minutes from the vibrant district, the city becomes something ugly and oppressive. Ugly, graffitied buildings line the streets. The beggars increase from 1 per every 100 metres to 1 every 10 metres. A feeling of panic overwhelms me. The thought of spending another 24 hours in this place depresses me no end. I feel quite ill at the thought.
I arrive for my interview at the language school. The school is located in a building which looks like a very old and run down youth hostel, minus the beds. The interview goes well and I think the owner is going to offer me the job. How to tell her I do not want it? Usually honesty is the best policy, but should I tell her that I don’t want to work for a measly 1000 euros a month working from 9 to 7 everyday (albeit with a 2 hour lunch)? Or should I say that I don’t really enjoy teaching young children and teenagers, which is the reason I went into ESL teaching in the first place? Or maybe, I should tell her that I didn’t come to France to work in a less-than-salubrious language school where I would be expected to be a combination of receptionist, PA, sales representation and nanny with a bit of online (call centre) teaching thrown in.
I return to my hotel room after getting lost in the labyrinth of streets. This place is paradoxically extremely noisy and incredibly quiet and eerie. Some streets are so noisy as to give me a headache, yet if you continue a bit further on, you find yourself in the most deserted areas, with streets which almost seem abandoned.
Late at night (1.00am) I listen to the parade of people passing outside my window singing and laughing.
Later still, I am woken by what sounds like a gang of marauding youths smashing up cars (I could be wrong). How do people get any sleep around here? I miss Lyon!!!!