- \n
- It\u2019s the 4th<\/sup> biggest city in France.<\/li>\n
- It\u2019s known as La ville rose<\/em> \u2013 \u201cThe Pink city\u201d and that is due to the red brick that you literally cannot miss, as it\u2019s everywhere you go. Some may argue that its a red city rather than pink, but I guess you must remember that the French like to make everything sound a little more romantique!<\/li>\n
![\"toulouse\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/toulouse.jpg\")
![\"toulouse\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/toulouse1.jpg\")
<\/li>\n- The Toulousains<\/strong> say \u201cchocolatine\u201d<\/strong><\/em> instead of \u201cpain au chocolat\u201d. After years of saying \u201cpain au chocolat\u201d, coming to Toulouse and being told by the boulangerie lady that \u201cici on dit chocolatine\u201d<\/em><\/strong> was a surprise. But, I must say that \u201cchocolatine\u201d has become part of my daily vocabulary and I much prefer the sound of it now. It always makes me feel like a true Toulousain when I say it!<\/li>\n
- This region of France also has their own regional language: l\u2019Occitain<\/em>, which is a romance language spoken mainly in the south of France and you\u2019ll always hear it on the metro and see it on every street sign. It\u2019s quite similar to Catalan.<\/li>\n
![\"toulouse2\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/toulouse2.jpg\")
<\/li>\n- It\u2019s a rugby city! As a student from Cardiff, this made me feel at home! Supporting the Toulousains has been one of my favourite things to do in Toulouse! I absolutely love screaming \u201cALLEZ TOULOUSE!<\/em><\/strong>\u201d in a rugby match!<\/li>\n
![\"toulouseeee\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/toulouseeee.jpg\")
![\"toulouse-6\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/toulouse-6-450x338.jpg\")
<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nAnother thing that has made Toulouse feel like a second home, is the people that I have met. French, German, Colombian, Madagascan, American and Egyptian are just a few of the nationalities I have encountered.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m currently living in a flat with other five colocataires<\/em><\/strong>, between us there are 5 nationalities: Portuguese, German, French, English and Egyptian. This has shown me that studying abroad is not just about studying and immersing yourself in the culture of the country. From my experience, it has also been about learning about other cultures. For example, I was never very keen on learning German but since living with two Germans, I\u2019ve found myself learning quite a few phrases and German is now on my list of another language to learn once I\u2019ve mastered French\u2026<\/p>\n
![\"Mes](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/sss.jpg\")
Mes colocataires<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n ![\"Mes](\"http:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2016\/12\/ddd.jpg\")
Mes colocataires<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Another factor that I love about living in France is their street fashion. When we think France, we tend to think chic and fashion.\u00a0 I knew once I moved to France I would be daily inspired by their style. They did not fail to impress. Two of the main things that have caught my eye are the very long manteaux <\/strong>and swanky glasses! However, I don\u2019t feel as if I need to dress like them to fit in. \u00a0Il n\u2019y a pas de pression de groupe!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n
For some of you, the thought of spending a year abroad may sound exciting and to others it may seem terrifying.\u00a0 I felt both ways as I got on my plane to Toulouse, just me and my suitcase. \u00a0As scary as it may sound, looking back at my first week here, I can honestly tell you that just from four months here I have become more confident and much more independent, as I have managed to find a part-time job in another country, dealt with the very complicated French administration, opened a bank account, and faced many other challenges- all in French of course! Those were all things that I worried about before I got here, but surprisingly once here, you just take one day at the time, and things fall into place.<\/p>\n
In terms of feeling home-sick, there are days where all I want is a Sunday dinner and cwtches with my sisters, but facetime and a chat with the family now and then fixes everything. I do think being abroad for such long time, does make you appreciate your family more.<\/p>\n
Luckily for me, through the babysitting agency that I am working with, the family that I have been matched with invite me for dinners at their house, which by the way last about three hours in France since everyone arrives 15 minutes late, then there is the ap\u00e9ro<\/em><\/strong>, a starter, the actual dinner, the dessert, some sort of liqueur that helps with digestion, coffee and then you just talk and talk.<\/p>\n
These dinners and moments spent with friends here, make me feel very grateful for everyone that I have met in France, and a little happy-sad as I have met amazing people. But a little sad, as the last four months have flown by\u2026And my time in France is nearly up! Also, I have met people from all around, and Toulouse is a city where there is always something to do and see, which is the perfect remedy for homesickness. It also makes me realize how fortunate I am to be taking part in this incredible Erasmus experience and to be living in such beautiful place.<\/p>\n
I also feel as if France has prepared me for the next chapter of my year abroad, after all the challenges faced here I am ready to take on Granada at the end of January.<\/p>\n
However, France is not quite over for me as the lovely family that I work with, have recently offered me a job in Toulouse as an Au Pair for the summer. This means that I will have an extra month in France, indulging on chocolatines<\/em> and cheese for breakfast! Living with a French family for a whole month, after a few months in Spain will be perfect for my French before returning to Cardiff.<\/p>\n
These last four months have been challenging, but so so rewarding!!!<\/p>\n
As a little challenge for you all, there are a few words and phrases in bold\u2026 try and find their meaning!<\/p>\n
Joyeux No\u0117l \u00e0 tous !<\/p>\n
Until the next post,<\/p>\n
Melissa Tavares<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello everyone! I hope you\u2019ve all had a great term!\u00a0 Today\u2019s topic is \u201cSelf and other\u2019s\u201d which is perfect as I just got home from my first semester abroad […]","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[268],"tags":[42,249,75,216,90,215],"class_list":["post-1581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-europe","tag-erasmus","tag-europe","tag-france","tag-routesintolanguages","tag-studying","tag-toulouse"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4QQbz-pv","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1694,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/lingomap-mon-temps-libre-dans-la-ville-rose\/","url_meta":{"origin":1581,"position":0},"title":"LingoMap: Mon temps libre dans la ville rose","author":"Melissa Tavares","date":"January 28, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Happy New Year everyone! Hope you\u2019ve all had a lovely break and that the new term is going well.\u00a0 As for me, I\u2019ve just moved to Granada (literally three days ago) so I\u2019m adapting to another beautiful culture and my brain keeps mixing both languages, I keep saying \u201cPardon\u201d instead\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "European Placements"","block_context":{"text":"European Placements","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/category\/europe\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"14305366_1290427014343043_270014807435105946_o - Copy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2017\/01\/14305366_1290427014343043_270014807435105946_o-Copy-450x209.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3272,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/3272-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":1581,"position":1},"title":"An environmental PARadISe?","author":"Rosalind Farr","date":"May 9, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 Salut! \u00c7a va? Les deux mois que j'ai d\u00e9j\u00e0 pass\u00e9 \u00e0 Paris ont \u00e9t\u00e9 fantastiques. C'est une ville magnifique et il y a beaucoup \u00e0 faire ici. Je suis toujours tr\u00e8s occup\u00e9e soit en travaillant \u00e0 l'\u00e9cole ou en explorant la ville, mais je ne changerais pas cela!\u00a0Le\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "European Placements"","block_context":{"text":"European Placements","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/category\/europe\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/281\/2018\/04\/french-flag-450x299.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4415,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cardiff.ac.uk\/globetrotters\/tomos-morris\/","url_meta":{"origin":1581,"position":2},"title":"Tomos Morris","author":"GO Student Ambassadors","date":"January 15, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"School of Law and Politics Erasmus+ study placement Where did you go? 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- It\u2019s known as La ville rose<\/em> \u2013 \u201cThe Pink city\u201d and that is due to the red brick that you literally cannot miss, as it\u2019s everywhere you go. Some may argue that its a red city rather than pink, but I guess you must remember that the French like to make everything sound a little more romantique!<\/li>\n