….and so it was that fate led me to apply for a PhD position in France. A series of incidents led me to it, although the subject of the PhD is not at all what I have been trained for.
Interestingly, of the 190 candidates that applied, I happened to get an invitation for joining 24 other candidates for an interview. I had less than two weeks to get my visa to head into the Station de Biologique, Roscoff, situated in Brittany, the north of France. This I succeeded in getting within a matter of days, unlike the cumbersome and lengthy process that is associated with British visa applications.
Very conveniently for me, Roscoff is situated right across the English channel and can be reached from Plymouth by a six hour ferry ride. However the overnight ferry takes a bit longer to allow for a relaxed sleep. When I mention ferry, it might bring to you thoughts of the local ferries in India - small boats modified to carry vehicles across rivers….be assured this was far from small….and it was no river we were crossing; It was the English channel. This ferry, named Pont L'Abbé is a ship, which could easily carry 470 and 1120 passengers, has 2 cinemas, two bars, a restaurant and a coffee shop besides 284 cabins.
I spent a while admiring the comforts of the ship, and traversing the decks in the moonlight, before heading into my cabin to experience the comforts of a cabin.I was woken the next morning at six by the clanging of an annoying bell, rung to awaken us passengers as we headed into Roscoff. I had been told that Roscoff was not very different from Plymouth….
But I was to be pleasantly surprised as I alighted and was exposed to a little touristy village town.Roscoff is actually a little fishing village situated in the Breton province of France, which has developed in terms of tourism, but has yet managed to maintain its strong French character. The seaside town is clustered around a small bay, with 16th-century granite houses, little shops, and bars and restaurants, hugging the shoreline. I was about to spend the next three days discovering the joys of French life!
Frankly, I expected to spend all the days cooped up in my room, preparing for the interview, but all that soon changed as I bumped into my first co.applicant, Stephen who incidentally travelled on the same ferry as me.
With our rooms not yet ready in the institute’s hotel, Stephen and I had plenty of time wandering around the tiny town and noting the several marked differences from a typical English coastal city such as Plymouth. It was a while before we met all the 20 or so applicants but it didn’t take long to bond between us. There were 5-6 Germans, 2 Portuguese, two Italians, a Canadian, two British, two Indians, and a Chinese in the group that we formed. What I was expecting to be a tense interview atmosphere soon turned into one of merry making.
When a day of interview session came to an end, we followed it up by a round of drinks at a local pub over a game of world cup football. The camaraderie was enhanced when we all decided to head out and have dinner at a common restaurant.
I must mention, that the French attitude to food is much more welcome than the “boil/bake it and eat it attitude” of the English. Over my 3 days of stay in Roscoff, I have not just come to love the French food, but also detest the English sense of cuisine. I could not remember the names of the French dishes if I tried, but I do know that the Salidou crepe that I tried,in one of the many creperies there, briefly took me to heaven! Crepes are a speciality of the French.
Simply put a crepe is a pancake made of wheat, originally originating from Brittany When eaten as a desert, it is filled with a sweet filling, in mine it was homemade melted toffee and butter…mmm..i can hardly get the taste out of my mouth even now.
When done with the crepes, we walked around the entire town enjoying a cold evening breeze and catching up on each others stories. I must admit it felt great to be a part of this crowd. However the reality was that only 9 of us would return to Roscoff, when the results were announced, to be a part of the locality for the next 4 years. I wondered who among us would be the lucky ones.
One of my interviews was a disaster, as it was an entirely new topic for me, but the final interview did go on well. However my competitors are well established in the field and I don’t expect to be called back for selection. After the interviews we had lunch in the institutes own hotel with my interviewers and prospective supervisor.
I realised that would be my last taste of the fabulous French food that I had been enjoying for the past few days…..To top it of, we had a desert made from sweetened white cheese (Fromage Blanc).In the few remaining hours we had, we walked around and caught the final glimpses of this wonderful French fishing town. We also bought a copy of the local newspaper, in which a photo of us with the director was published.
Finally, after bidding emotional farewells to everyone, I headed to the ferry port to return to Plymouth.
As I said before, I don’t expect be called for the job, but this trip has given me not just a unique glimpse into the French way of life, but also an experience which I will treasure in terms of the people I met. Once again I believe fate has in store for me , something specific and perhaps this trip is just a preparatory experience along the way!
