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#Gained the courage to take on challenges and became more positive #Precious connections with people who have diverse values #Courage for a new beginning and healing after leaving my job
I quit my job and went to Paris to break free from the daily grind at work! While living in Paris for a month, I met some really great people and enjoyed leisurely time, I was able to recharge my energy, and hearing different people''s values gave me the courage to take on new challenges!
Bonjour! One-month living project in Paris, France! Park Hyun-seon, gap-year participant (gapper), 28
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# Having lived so frantically that I didn''t know how to rest, I went to Paris, France to make the vaguely dreamed-of things come true.
Hello!I''m Park Hyun-seon, and I''ve returned after completing a one-month gap-year living project in Paris, France!
I had worked as a three-shift nurse at a university hospital for 3 years and 7 months. Wanting to escape the hamster-wheel life, I bravely but nervously tendered my resignation.
As the saying goes that humans are creatures of regret, the thought that I''d regret it whether I stayed or quit kept lingering in my head, but nowI felt I might die if I didn''t quit, so I liberatingly cast off the label ''nurse.''
And then what?
At some point I began to miss the life of a theater artist I had vaguely dreamed of since high school. I heard that friends I had briefly met in a college club had formed an arts group and, wanting to join on a whim, I expressed my intention to participate and became a member. I wanted to do theater so badly that, though I wasn''t fully prepared, we somehow pushed each other and barely put on a three-day performance, and once again a question stood before me.
What''s next?
Having been running headlong and not knowing how to rest, Ithought that while I had the time, I should do the things I had vaguely dreamed of.
A round-the-world trip.
* For Park Hyun-seon, who wanted new experiences and a relaxed rest,daily tailored 1:1 personal missions to contemplate life''s direction and to experience new things and leisurely time were provided, and a gap-year notebook to reflect and make plans was also given.
# If I quit my job and traveled! I thought a month in Paris would be a meaningful way to relax!
Actually''a world trip''Contrary to the grand ambition of a ''world trip'', I lacked foreign language skills, had no experience traveling alone, and had never traveled long-term, so a world trip felt like a dream that would be quickly discarded. So what else was left? A trip to Europe? Would I have the stamina for that?Even though I had quit, my body had never properly rested, so my energy was nearly exhausted.Then, I happened to read a post on the Korea Gap Year blog.
In that blog I read"Gap-year project: One month living in Paris, France"It was an article about that.
The city called Paris, and the country France, vaguely made me feel romantic. The city of art, the city of freedom, the city of love — Paris! And the Eiffel Tower! Can you really live here for a month for only 820,000 won?The first encounter between me and the gap year project came from a bit of bravado: ''If I quit my job and travel, wouldn''t spending a month in Paris feel impressive?''
# I decided to travel Europe for a total of three months, including living in Paris, France for a month.
While preparing to live in Paris for a month, I wondered when I''d have such a long stretch of time again, and since I''d already flown all the way to Europe, shouldn''t I see other places too? After pondering this,I decided to travel Europe for three months in total: one month before the Paris month and one month after.
While preparing, I didn''t even properly know which countries make up Europe, what route I should take, what the Schengen Agreement was, how much money I''d need, that pickpocketing was common, or what a Eurail pass was.
In the end I booked my plane tickets and accommodation all at once, and after deciding to go to Europe I finished all preparations within three months.
# April! Finally I started living in Paris for a month!
I began my 90-day journey in March 2019 and took the long-awaited first step.
Everything about my European trip was a first. It was my first time taking a long-haul flight with a foreign carrier and with layovers, my first time checking into an Airbnb alone, my first time hauling a suitcase on public transport instead of a taxi, my first time flying many foreign low-cost carriers. Above all, it was my first time being alone in countries where I couldn''t communicate.All of these small things were a challenge for me.
So March passed, andApril! I finally started the ''One-month living in Paris, France'' travel project!
A staff member from the accommodation provided by the gap year team was the first person I spoke with in Paris. It was a simple conversation, but just being able to communicate made me very happy and I felt welcomed by Paris and the local guesthouse.
After thatMinAt the guesthouse, thanks to the free night view tour offered to those coming through the gap year project, I met great people, andWe saw the Eiffel Tower lit up, went to pubs for drinks, visited jazz bars and live pubs, were invited to a jazz party, went to Auvers-sur-Oise and Disneyland, and so on — creating unforgettable memories.
# The experiences I had while living in Paris for a month were truly novel to me!
For nearly four years I was tormented by all kinds of people and came to hate meeting new people, butBefore starting the one-month stay in Paris, the three-week Europe trip — almost like a period of silent training — was enough to make me a sociable person in Paris.
On weekends during my month in Paris, going on trips to nearby areas with fellow residents, we began to share a close bond of living away from home and being long-term travelers.Especially, thanks to friends'' advice that in April you must go cherry blossom hunting in Paris, the picnics we had together at Fontainebleau, So Park, and the Tuileries Garden are unforgettable.
For me, who had lived life as a good daughter without major upheavals,the experiences at the guesthouse where I stayed during my month in Paris were truly new.
At the accommodation I met friends who boldly came to Paris at a young age for their dreams, friends who came to Paris for a new dream completely different from the path they were on, and friends who came to Paris briefly for their future dreams, andI really came to realize and learn that people live more in the direction they want their lives to go than I had thought.
# I felt and learned a lot from the people I met while living in Paris for a month.
In my late twenties I was full of thoughts like “what am I going to do from now on?” In the past, people I met mostly talked about job stability, marriage, kids, and retirement. When I thought about taking on something new, my first thought was, “If you take a different path from others, can you really succeed?” Without realizing it, I used to make hasty generalizations and became a sort of young, old-fashioned person.
My friends of various ages whom I met at the accommodation in Paris all said the same thing.
“You’re still young.”
Film directors, architects, photographers, film critics, world travelers, dancers—people with many different jobs and many different dreams.Each friend, through their own efforts, gave me strength and courage. They asked, what’s wrong with taking on a challenge?
In Korea it would have been hard to hang out like real friends with such diverse ages, but they accepted me as a friend and treated me as an equal rather than someone older, which made my month-long stay much more meaningful.
When I jokingly said, “If you’re my age then I’d be 35,” some friends told me they still consider 35 young; others told me not to act older than I am when I’m not that old; and some—perhaps flattering me—said I didn’t seem 28 but more like 20. Thanks to those friends...Although I still don’t know what I’ll do after resigning, I gained a lot of courage that even if I start something new, it isn’t too late.
# Finishing my one-month stay in Paris!
On the last weekend before leaving France, renting a car with special people and visiting Mont Saint-Michel became an unforgettable, very special memory.
We woke up early, stopped by the supermarket together to buy snacks, rented a car at Orly Airport, and drove along the exciting Paris highways to Korean music. It was very cold, but we kept each other warm, stubbornly enjoyed the night view, and gently reminded each other not to drive drowsy while chatting that night. We arrived at 3 a.m., but we thanked each other for traveling together and went to sleep. Then the friends threw a small farewell party wishing me safe travels.
On the morning I left, the line of ten children seeing me off was an incredibly cute sight I will never forget. Carrying all the positive energy from a month in Paris, the remaining month in Europe was full of energetic days. I would tell people the memories I had in Paris and boast about how happy I’d been over the past month.Thanks to the very healing month in Paris, I couldn’t stop smiling and I was able to travel in a sociable and optimistic way every moment.
# With the confidence I gained from this month’s experience, I plan to keep challenging myself!
Now that I’ve finished three months of traveling around Europe and returned to Korea, I know it isn’t too late to do anything, and I’ve reaffirmed that I’m at an age when I should take on challenges. I’m still active with my arts group, and I’m going to try making a short film for the first time in my life.
If I hadn’t done the one-month stay in Paris, I probably would have returned home and tried to fit into the world’s stable categories. But Paris...Thanks to the valuable connections and their energy I gained during the month-long stay in Paris, I found the strength to keep challenging myself and decided to spend the rest of my twenties that way.
Even if the path I’m walking now turns out to be the wrong one, I already learned last year that you’ll have regrets no matter what you do,so I think it’s right to follow the path that makes me happy now.
Paris was wonderful, but the month was even better because of the people I met there. Paris became such a precious place to me.
# My one-month Paris gap year TIPS!
- Language
: Knowing just a few French greetings is enough. You can communicate in English as well, so there’s no need to be afraid of the language.
- Accommodation
: My accommodation experience in Paris as part of a gap year project was really good. It was a dormitory room, but it was a fresh new experience for someone like me who used to insist on single or double rooms because it gave me the chance to meet many people at once, and I enjoyed it very much!
- Meals
: I was happy that they served delicious Korean-style breakfasts and dinners. People say you lose weight when traveling in Europe, but I actually gained weight. You can eat as much as you want—some friends ate three bowls—because it was that tasty.
- What to bring
: For my first trip to Europe I brought everything I had and realized many things weren’t necessary. There was a hairdryer and hangers, so you don’t need to bring those; instead, pack towels and toiletries. In particular, Paris has hard water that can damage your hair, so I immediately felt the need for treatments, hair packs, and hair essences and bought them at the supermarket. Filtered water is provided, so a thermos is handy for carrying water but not strictly necessary.
My gap year
Experience ★★★★★
: Thanks to the friends I met at the local accommodation in Paris, I spent a month there and had an invaluable experience I will never have again.
Learning ★★★★
: Because the accommodation gathered people from many different backgrounds, I realized there are many kinds of lives with diverse values, and that people live the way they want more than I expected.
Environment ★★★★
: Overall it was great except that it was a dormitory!
Safety ★★★★★
: The accommodation had direct access to the city via Line 7, which was great, and the neighborhood was a residential area with schools nearby, so it felt safe at night.
Leisure ★★★★★
: It''s full of happy memories shared with people — Fontainebleau, Parc de Sceaux, the Tuileries Garden, Mont Saint-Michel, and more.
Visited by Hyunseon Park France — One-Month Stay in Paris ProjectWant to know more??
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