After alerting the new Au Pairs about the BAD side of things, I MUST say something about the GOOD side of the program...
In my 2 years as an Au Pair I made friendships all over the world and I will cherish them for life! Some were my neighbors, some were my classmates, some were in my cluster and some I met along the way.
The friends you make are the most important part of our program, they will become your siblings and even your parents whichever the situation they are needed.
While being an Au Pair you get the chance to travel around the US and I must say, you will have a BLAST! I loved every single one of my trips with 'My Girls', memories for life... Even though flying is easier and faster, ROAD TRIPS are the BEST!!!
My family was the nicest family ever, all my friends loved them and everyone always wanted to spend the weekends at 'my house'. They really treated me as part of their family. If you are as lucky as I was, you will have a great experience.
Going to school can also be fun. If you feel like you already know everything they are teaching, go anyway! There's always something new to learn...
The Au Pair Cluster Meetings are also a very good and an important part of your experience (as long as you don't have any complaints or problems with your host family). It is a known FACT that the Local Coordinator will ALWAYS give the preference to the host family but, if you get a good LCC, she will at least 'hear your side of the story' (even though in the end the family will always be right). At the meetings you get to meet all the Au Pairs in your area and some outings are very nice, we always had fun at our cluster meetings.
PS: This post is 'under construction' and will be updated as often as I get feedback from former Au Pairs!
I would like to THANK some very SPECIAL girls in my life, you all made my experience AWESOME!
Soraya (Brasil), Daiana (Brasil), Leonore (Germany), Deborah (Germany), Neila (Brasil), Carolina (Brasil), Daniela (Brasil), Mariana (Brasil), Elaine (Brasil), Cynthia (France), Elise (France), Aline (France), Aline (Brasil), Michele (Brasil), Katrin (Austria), Fernanda (Brasil), Pamela (Chile), Rebeca (Brasil), Franciane (Brasil), Jana (Germany), Maira (Brasil), Tatjana (Austria) Marie (USA).
Fair enough!!! :) Thanks, you also made my year the best year...
ReplyDeleteDai, you were one of the TOP 2 who made my years as an Au Pair a lot more fun!!!
ReplyDeleteHi Isabella.
ReplyDeleteI'm a future au pair and I'm the process matching right now.
If you know a family, let me know, I'm available to go in January..
Thanks for the advices.
=)
Hi Luana, I'm glad you're enjoying the blog, I'll ask around here about the family and let you know.
ReplyDeleteDo I have to say how important you were in my au pair year? We did have a blast and I'm glad to have made such a special friend for life! Love you!
ReplyDeleteSo, I love you soooo much and I miss you every single day... I can't even begin to say how important you were (and still is) in my Au Pair years, so many memories... so much fun...
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you, Bel! The people you meet, the friends you make, and the places you go; are just the best part of this program.
ReplyDeleteThe first few months in a new country are definitely overwhelming. The cultural shock is just unavoidable. Everything is different (even though Americans are as westernized as we are), their English is different than what we learned (if you learned English from a Brazilian you know what I’m talking about; the accent is different), the food is just…well, let’s just say is a little hard to get used to, and their way to socialize is a little more “politically correct” than us.
Please! Take the time to learn about American culture or at least try it! That’s how you become more open minded and able to deal with people in general; don’t judge the book by its cover… You will have to adapt yourself to this new reality. Flexibility is the key ;)
I think that the best advice I can give to new Au Pairs is to take the most out of this unique experience. (You might ask yourself: Why is it so unique? ... Well, not many people have the guts hahah “courage” to get out of their comfort zone, leave everything and try something new… ) So, have fun! You will definitely encounter some challenges here (with your hostfamily, culture, driving… and so on), but you will also have the best time of your life. It all depends on you! Either way learn from your mistakes and success as well!
Fran :)
I couldn't have said it better Fran and I totally agree with every single word! Thanks for the great advice! Love ya :)
ReplyDelete