Community

Read regular guest posts about a Kiwi living abroad in a non-English speaking country.

I’ve found that it’s important for me to feel like I’m part of a community, whether in New Zealand or overseas. There were times in New Zealand when I looked around me and felt like everyone was a stranger and wrapped up in their own little worlds. Sometimes I felt like I wasn’t part of the community that surrounded me.

When I came to Saint-Nazaire I knew I wanted to make an effort to find my place in the community. In a way I was lucky because I had a few communities “ready made” for me. I live in a youth residence where I only have to pop outside my door to see a familiar face, and many of the residents eat their meals in the food hall, passing a cheery “Bon appetit” to their neighbours as they take their place to eat.  In the schools where I work there is also a feeling of community, whether it be huddled around the coffee pot at break time or at the end of semester dinner at a restaurant. 

It can be hard to search out ways to become part of your community, especially if the first people you stumble upon aren’t warm and welcoming straight away.  But I would have missed out on some great and funny memories if I hadn’t looked for ways to become part of the wider Saint-Nazaire community.  I’m part of a running club now, and once a week I join them to make a tour of the park and the waterfront. I have a true feeling of community as I huff my way past the lights lining the waterfront and the gleaming dark sea, smack in the middle of a group of keen French runners speaking out-of-breath French in my ear. Last weekend we did a long run in the country and after running for over an hour, with aching legs and cold hands, a sliced, buttery cake was produced which we devoured with hot, sweet tea. Never again will I settle for water and a banana after a run!

I also took another step out of my comfort zone – but, hopefully, another step into my community – when I went to a free tango class at the Saint-Nazaire submarine base (built by the Germans in World War Two and never destroyed, it’s now used to hold shows, concerts and other public events – handy!). Two other residents, Dimitri and Cynthia, gamely came with me. At the beginning of the class the teacher had all the men and women line up on opposite sides of the room and walk towards each other, then stop. “Turn left,” she said “and you’ve found your partner!” I wound up next to an older, tall man and Cynthia (who is a good few inches shorter than me) next to an older, shorter (and rounder) man. My partner summed it up in a few words: “La vie est bien faite.” Indeed!

Mihiata  – St Nazaire, France