The warping of value that comes with living in Paris..

At the start of last week, I went to the Erasmus to sign up for my Monde en huit club card, which is basically a card which is for foreign students and gives a few discounts at club nights etc...

Heres a brief extract from conversation

Erasmus guy(mosse):Tu vient d'ou will?
Where do you come from will?

Me:Angleterre, pres de Londres!
England, Near London

M: ahh mon dieu! J'adore Londres. mes chassures vient de Londres!! et a boots, il y a le 3 for 2 sur lynx. c'est fantastique!
oh my god! i love london! my shoes come from london!! and at boots, they do 3 for 2 on lynx, its fantastic

Me: (laughing) oui, lynx est tres cher ici!
yer, lynx is well expensive here

Erasmus leader girl(Dahbia): Oui, et primark. j'adore vraiment primark.
yer, and primark!! i really love Primark!!


Now, ive seen girls go gaga for Primark before. And as I think I pointed out at the time, practically my whole outfit that day had been bought at the Spanish retailer.
But such excitement I have never seen for the boots 3 for 2 offer.

However, this young man is Parisien, and I completely understand him getting so excited over cheap deodorant.

In years gone by, Paris was expensive, some years ago I bought my girlfriend of the time and I a hotdog each and a coke in the shadow of the eiffel tower. Thats right... I know how to treat a lady...



It totalled over £25..



Now however, you have to practically sell your kidneys to afford to live here; that same bill would have probably now totalled over £35 due to the hellish exchange rate. You find yourself as a Brit practically willing the Greek economy to collapse as the fall out is likely to affect the Euro much more than the pound. (Greece I love you.. but you know.. I also love my internal organs...)


During the week, the socialites of the newly formed Southampton a Paris group met to take on the happy hours of Les Halles(and in Charlottes case... lose), and I found myself practically wetting myself at the prospect of a pint of beer for under 5 euros.
I almost had a heart attack when i saw a pint for 3,90(about £3.40).




At the trusty old Mitre back on the seedy streets of Portswood you can get a pint of Carlsberg for £2.29. In the sick filled cesspit that is Jesters such a thing would cost you just 50p on a Monday evening.

Girls on your year abroad you were told to be very careful about the length of skirts etc when out in Paris. I have the opposite advice, get them as short as possible, and flirt your ass off for drinks. It will save you a fortune...Either that, or do what Miss Osborne did on wednesday, which was forget to eat and get hammered off one drink...

But as I say, my sense of value, has literally been completely warped. To the the point where I was delighted to pay 6,50 for my KFC meal the other day, only to realise I had paid almost double what the equivalent would have cost in England.

Paris, you are a pain in the ass. x