Oui, Oui Nantes

Bonjour, this time I’m checking in from Nantes, France. Just a heads up it is pronounced Nante (without the s sound.) It has officially been a week since I arrived. Traveling to France with COVID-19 still in the mix could have caused some issues but I was lucky because it was not a problem for me. Yes, you have to wear a surgical mask when flying internationally. It would depend on the airline but to be safe I wore this.

I left the US on Friday, from Chicago O’Hare International Airport. My Pops and Barb were kind enough to drive me up and drop me off. Those goodbyes are the worst. Let me just tell you. I flew from Chicago to Dublin. This is where the drama starts... The plane was 45 minutes late leaving Chicago which then led to me missing my connection in Dublin. This is probably the most stressful airport situation I have ever been in. Yes, I did cry. So, it’s 1:30 am back home and everyone is trying to sleep and here I am calling them emotionally & mentally drained from the situation. My family is awesome and I got to speak with most of them and my Mom facetimed me for almost 2 hours during that just so I would not be alone. So sweet.

My team manager was awesome and able to book me a new flight that had a connection in Frankfurt, Germany and then flew me to Nantes. I waited about 3.5 hours until that flight and then I had a really short connection, barely making it through customs & finally to my gate as people were already boarding. I was so happy to make my LAST flight. I landed in Nantes and all of my bags were there, thank the lord.

I arrived and our team manager, Sylvain, was there to pick me up. He took me to my apartment. I live alone but 5 of my teammates live in the same building so it is a really nice place to live because it is close for training but not too far from the city center. I live in a hotel which is nice for security so there are apartments and hotel rooms in the same building. I thought this was a little odd but apparently that is a normal thing in France. Everything is very up to date and minimal. In Europe you have the space you need and not a lot of extra living space. It is perfect for me because I have my own space to do with what I like.

With all of those problems I did encounter I felt so grateful to still have an “easier” flight experience. I did not have any issues with my work visa or my negative results. Going through customs in 3 countries and no issues. It was great!

I know the question everyone is asking while reading this is “did you have to get vaccinated.” The French president changed some rules at the beginning of August, stating that if you did not have to have a negative test within 72 hours or proof of vaccination you could not do anything. (Eat at a restaurant, go to events, bars, movies, etc.)

The simplest answer is no I did not have to get vaccinated but I chose to get the vaccine so I could enjoy my experience outside of volleyball while in France.

On another note, in France you have to get a QR code that has all your vaccine information on it because that is what all the businesses check. So, our CDC vaccination card is valid but we will have to go get a QR code this week. It is kind of annoying how the US is different than Europe. Of course. Lol.

My first week of pre-season training is over. It’s crazy to think I have already been here for a week. We have 2-a-days. Weight/strength training in the mornings and then practices in the afternoon. During preseason we do a bit more conditioning to prepare us for the long season ahead. The first few days felt so long but after that my body had already adjusted to this new schedule. The time change was not to bad I did not have much jet leg. Some of my teammates did have jet lag which I know can be terrible.

We got almost all of our gear on Friday, and wow did we get a lot. This year we have to match for every training which means we got more goodies. It reminds me of college when we would get all of our gear during preseason and it was like Christmas in the fall.

Some of my teammates and I are planning multiple trips for the year. So, this is just a real quick update on our first week in France. Volleyball takes me to amazing places and lets me meet people from all over the world. It is also crazy to think how small the volleyball world is, I already had connections with the women on my team based on past experiences. So cool.

Also, I am going to be getting a French phone number so if you would like to contact me, please use a messenger app (like Facebook or Instagram or What’s App.) Or reach out to me if you have an iPhone an I will send you my new number :)

Stay tuned for a recap of my crazy summer! Believe it or not we are headed to our first adventure this weekend! So excited to travel!!

Oh, I am also currently trying to learn French...wish me luck.

Photos include pictures from practice (our team photographers are already amazing if you cannot tell) and exploring the great food here on the first week.

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until next time,

Jaelyn