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#I found myself reflecting a lot about who I am #Time for myself, experiences in Paris #The courage to confront fear, a space for healing
I clarified the goal of this gap year. I decided to think a lot about myself. What kind of person am I! If I know what kind of person I am before participating in the gap year, then after the gap year I will be able to see at a glance who I really am and what has changed!
- Paris, France, Gap Year Stay / Park Yeon-su, gap-year family gapper / 8-week gap year |
Currently, South Korea is,
each year 60,000 middle and high school students drop out, 346,000 people in their twenties are idling with no dreams, and the job turnover rate enters the 40% range within one year of employment,75% of university students are not satisfied with college life, and more than 80% of workers report not feeling happy.
Many people tell them to dream, but to solve this problem that lacks practical methods and support, in South Korea as wellwe want to introduce the ''gap year.''
''Gap year (Gapyear)''refers to taking a break from or balancing studies and work and, through various activities such as volunteering, traveling, internships, education, and starting a business,it is a period to set the direction for the future and is a culture encouraged in the United States, Europe, Japan, etc.
#A process to realign myself, the gap year
While studying French, the things I had planned weren''t working out, and I was in a mentally confused state.
At that time I saw the notice for the gap year program and applied with the thought of taking time for myself to realign myself.
My goal was to go to France to find out what kind of person I am.Among many gap year programs, the reason I chose the Paris gap year stay was because rather than improving my French, I wanted to live in Paris for two months and directly experience the country.
#In my own way, without losing myself!
The people who made my gap year enjoyable were the staff I worked with. At first I was assigned the afternoon shift. The afternoon shift involves finishing off the day at the guesthouse. If there hadn''t been staff working with me during the closing process, it would have been mentally and physically tough. I''m very grateful to the staff who helped me a lot.
I went through many difficulties early in the gap year. I wanted to guide guests better about Paris, but that wasn''t easy. The long-term resident sister at the guesthouse...The long-term resident sister told me, ''Don''t think, "I should do it like so-and-so..." and instead guide guests in your own way.''As we talked a lot, I often thought, ''Don''t lose myself!'' I''m very grateful to the long-term guest sister who helped me find myself!
#A gap year wholly for ''me'', thinking only about ''me''
Before participating in this program, it would be good to know a bit about travel information and the geography of Paris. Many guests seek Paris travel information from the staff. If you learn some travel information before joining the program, in Paris you can directly experience things and create your own travel routes to show guests around wonderfully!
Visiting tourist sites in Paris is of course great, but within thatI hope you find your own places and spend a valuable gap year.
As soon as I arrived in France I dropped my phone on the floor and it broke, so I had to rely solely on myself from Charles de Gaulle Airport to the accommodation. As a result, I arrived safely at the lodging, and I clarified the goal of this gap year.I decided to think a lot about myself.What kind of person am I! If you know what kind of person you are before participating in the gap year, then after the gap year you''ll be able to tell at a glance who you really are and what has changed!
#The gap year that made me grow
Many things happened while I was in Paris. Living at the guesthouse I met many travelers,Through the many conversations I had with them, I had an opportunity to think about with what mindset and heart I should live my life going forward.Also, outside of working hours I was able to have time just for myself and learn what kind of person I am. By discovering my strengths and weaknesses, I was able to grow.
Before participating, I used to package myself as a certain type of person and did not bring out my weaknesses. But through the gap year program...I became someone who takes out my weaknesses, fixes them, and tries to turn them into strengths.
If something scary seemed about to happen to me, I was always the kind of person who avoided it by any means, even if it was something I had to do. Through this gap year program, when such things came my way, I became someone who faces them confidently.
#Healing space, BERCY
If I were to pick a travel place filled with my memories, I would say BERCY without hesitation.
Recommended place: BERCY (Bercy)
Route: Line 6 BERCY → PARC DE BERCY → BERCY VILLAGE → Bibliothèque François→Mitterrand
PARC DE BERCY is divided into three sections. The first has a wide expanse of lawn. Two elderly gentlemen were playing ball there, students were volunteering from school and picking up trash, and there was a woman playing music and dancing while filming her own video! There was also a carousel, and children gathered around it.
The second is, simply put, an arboretum. There is also a small gardening school for children within the park. To get to the third park you have to cross a short bridge. After crossing there is a small pond where ducks live.People sit on benches reading or sleeping. Here you can feel a real sense of leisure that you can’t experience in central Paris.I recommend sitting on a bench with a baguette on a sunny day. Across the river is the Bibliothèque nationale François Mitterrand. Just by crossing one river you can see a city that feels completely different from Bercy!
To me, BERCY is a healing space.I stayed in Paris during the winter months of December, January, and February, so I couldn''t see Paris in its green season—not even at BERCY! Still, BERCY was such a wonderful place for me even without the greenery; there I did a lot of thinking about myself and planned for my future life.
My gap year is...
Experience★★★★★
By spending time with many people, I had an indescribably wonderful experience.
Learning★★★★
While doing staff work, I once again realized that I am no longer a child.
Environment★★★★☆
There was personal storage space and the bed was very comfortable!
Safety★★★★★
There were no particular hazards.
Leisure★★★★☆
In the beginning, there were many "keep" periods, so there wasn''t much free time.
