Time was running out. If Rachel didn’t find an apartment by the end of the week, she would be out on the streets in France.
After hatching an escape plan, she finally mustered the courage to break free from a controlling, dead-end relationship. The only problem was now she was going to be homeless overseas. Although that still sounded better than having someone control what you eat and what you wear, you can’t stay on a work visa and live on the streets. If she didn’t find a place to live soon, her time in France might be up.
One drunken night out with her colleagues, one of my best friends Rachel ended up spilling the tea to them about her situation and how desperate she was to get out but had nowhere to live. They immediately offered her to stay at their apartment while she looked for a place to live on her own which isn’t easy on a crappy part-time teacher salary. Week after week, she searched for anything she could afford to no avail. And now, two months had gone by.
Luckily, I was traveling through France for my birthday with my travel buddy Alex. So when Rachel told me about her situation, Alex and I insisted that she come from Marseille to meet us in Nice for a nice weekend getaway to de-stress and she was happy to get away. A few days in the French Riviera could only help! I hadn’t seen her face in a few years and we were so happy to be in France together for the first time, but things were still tense in her life and she was stressed. She said that if she couldn’t find a place to live by the end of the week, she was going to have to pull the trigger and arrange to go home, ending her dream of living in France.
We walked through a flea market in Old Town and visited the Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Nice which is a UNESCO site where we lit prayer candles. The next day, we took the train to Monaco for the day. On our last day in Nice, we had breakfast together where she had been collecting a few mini-Nutella jars from the buffet each morning to bring home to help feed herself.
After breakfast, we all boarded the train together to Marseille for my birthday where we took a boat ride and had one last dinner together on my birthday. This was it. Once we left Rachel in Marseille in the morning, she only had about 7 days to find a place to live. With great hope that she would indeed find a place in time, we told her we’d buy her a train ticket that coming weekend to come be with us in Paris and tell us all about it before we flew home.
She said she wanted to see us again before we left the country, but we all knew – if she doesn’t find a place to live, she probably won’t come see us in Paris.
I said goodbye to my friend and Alex and I headed on to Lyon for a few days where I visited the Cathedral of Lyon and lit more prayer candles for my friend. I am sure each of us were praying each day for her to find a place. For those few days in Lyon, I waited and waited to hear from my friend. I was worried things weren’t working out. When the time came for Alex and I to head on to Paris, I sent her a text. Instead of asking her if she had actually found an apartment, I simply texted asking if we could still buy her a train ticket to come to Paris to which she responded yes. She was obviously busy all week so we didn’t talk again until she knocked on our door in Paris. Time to head down to the bar to hear the scoop and take in the view!
As soon as we were seated, I blurted out: “So did you find an apartment?!” And Rachel whips out a silver skeleton key to her very own first apartment!
This calls for a celebration! We’re in the bar at Hyatt Regency where there’s floor-to-ceiling glass around the entire room overlooking all of Paris with the classic Eiffel Tower out in the distance. We see a woman walking around the room pouring champagne for guests and we decided this would be a perfect time to have some. Moët! Rachel and I each order a glass and Alex orders Coke Zero. It was so delicious, Rachel and I decide to order a 2nd glass… Garçon! .. and then a third because why not, right? Wine is generally cheaper in Europe and Moët is French. So since we’re in Paris, it can’t be that expensive, right? WRONG!
When we finish celebrating, we go to pay the tab and the man said $130! Alex said, “Damn. I only ordered a Coke!” We all had a good laugh but we thought it was worth it for the good time and good memories we had been spending together and for Rachel’s good fortune. We all went to Versailles together the next day and got to see the beautiful gardens and fountain show. On our last night together in Paris, she and I walked out to l’Arc de Triomphe because we had never been to the center of the Arch and we wanted to see the Eternal Flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which has been continuously lit since 1923.
Since Alex and I had to head to the airport around 7am, we told Rachel to sleep in, have breakfast, and check out whenever she was ready to go. But she insisted on having breakfast with us at 6:30am and seeing us off before a morning nap. The next morning, we met in the hallway and all went down to breakfast together. As usual, Rachel was sneaking off with the mini-Nutella jars and collecting them to take home. She had little handfuls to put in her tote bag to have in her new apartment.
As we were finishing up our nice breakfast, Rachel scanned the room before stealthily sliding a clean set of silverware into her tote bag. She looked at me and coyly said with a smile, “Now I have my first set of silverware for my new apartment!” I just belly laughed at the table and congratulated my friend again. You go, girl! She started from the bottom and has been slowly working her way up and is now getting married to a wonderful Frenchman.
Things like this are why I love this person. She does what she needs to get by and tries her best to live life on her own terms. She is who she is and does what she wants, but underneath it all is one of the kindest and most caring souls on the planet. From now on, if I ever drink Moët, I will always be sure to tip my glass to friendship and to chasing your dreams. Cheers, Rachel & Alex.
