Hello friends! Yet again, I went on a little trip somewhere!
(Modeling seems to be good for that..) This time though, it wasn’t to work!
Last week I found out my temporary work Visa was expiring, and I had to leave
England for 24 hours in order to get an extension, since I’m scheduled to be
here for longer. One of my agents suggested going to Paris on the train, and I
thought: why not?
I speak French and I had never been to Paris before. Also,
I’m not yet represented in Paris so I also contacted my mother agency and got
them to set up appointments for me with agencies there who wanted to see me. So
I made sure I was being productive while being there as well!
Unfortunately I have to say I didn’t have the best time in
Paris but it wasn’t for lack of things to do. Hmm..how do I explain? Okay let’s
just start at the beginning. I left for Paris at 4:00am from London, so I was
already pretty exhausted. I expected the train there to be nice, with wifi and
power outlets, since I heard that it was mostly used for business. But no, it
had nothing LOL. So I mostly slept the way there. I was surprised to find that
getting around on the metro was quite easy, there are signs everywhere and it’s
colour coded so I didn’t really get lost.
I got into Paris around 9:15 and had appointments starting
at 10:30, so I had to get going and find my way around. As soon as I got off
the first metro and started walking around I saw it. The Eiffel Tower. Just like
the movies and shows I’d seen. It was far away but it was marvelous and put a
smile on my face, reminding me of how lucky I was to be there.
I went to see the agencies and well, I guess that’s where it
started going a little downhill. For the most part they were nice, but in true
Parisian fashion, I definitely did experience some snobby attitudes, which made
me sad – because I was really hoping that was just a stereotype! Anyways,
getting through all those appointments was okay, just from metro to metro, I
was pretty proud of myself too for finding my way around without google maps on
my phone!
My overall impression was that well, at least they were
honest. They pretty much told me that it’s hard enough to make it as a short
model in Paris (yes I’m considered short at 5’8 ½), but it’s even harder to
make it as a coloured model when you’re short. This is because (as they so
honestly told me) Paris is a very high fashion, not-so-commercial and difficult
market to break into. They were also quite honest that it’s a pretty racist
industry in Paris, and that’s why models like Naomi Campbell are taking a stand
and trying to make a difference. Out of the many agencies in Paris I only saw
7, so I know there are more I could be seeing, but maybe they’re right and it
just isn’t my market. Which is fine, you can’t work everywhere and I get that!
To top it off, it was FREEZING cold with wind and rain, so
that also soured my mood a bit. I had to buy new flats because I didn’t bring
my rainboots (big mistake), my TOMS were soaked!
I can honestly say though, it’s even more beautiful than the
movies. The streets are so tiny, and I love how all the shops are just right
beside each other on these tiny streets!
Then when they aren’t small, they’re HUGE! The Opéra
building is beautiful and MASSIVE, and I saw a couple other beautiful large
buildings while walking around there as well. It makes me want to go back for a
longer time so I can do somet real exploring.
FINALLY, I got to my hotel, into the SMALLEST ELEVATOR OF
LIFE. That’s another thing, all of the elevators are BEYOND small. Here’s a pic
of me in one, literally smaller than a bathroom stall – I don’t know how people
do it I’m so claustrophobic! The room was super tiny too, but it made sense for
what I paid for it. I think I slept over 10 hours that night because I was so
exhausted from leaving at 4:00am and then walking around all day.
To be continued...
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