1
Lisa was slim, with long, light, wavyhair and unusual blue eyes. Many people called her a princess. She thought of herself a bit of a Cinderellawhile sheironedT-shirts for her host family.
Being an au pair wasn‘t a dream job, especially for a young girl of twenty-two years, just having graduated from university with a degree as a teacher of foreign languages. Lisa could easily find a job in her quiet, little home town, but the soul of a romantic and naïve girl craved something other than certainty and routine.
Lisa was not raised with a silver spoon. She lived in a modest apartment with a loving family. She was deprived of her happiness and carefree childhood when she was six-years-old. To help pay off her family‘s debts, she and her little brother had to sell products at the local market from their parent‘s factory, as well as vegetables and fruits grown in their summer garden. The factory her parents worked for went bankrupt and instead of getting a salary, they received flour as payment. However in her spare time from selling apples, Lisa studied very hard and finished from one of the best schools in her small town. Having successfully passed the exams for entering the university, she received a scholarship at the age of eighteen, and became almost independent from her parents.
Now, she was twenty-two with a teaching diploma in foreign languages. Her life seemed to be laid out in advance. After university, she would take a low-paid teaching job with naughty children at school or kindergarten, or she could work in a small company in her provincial town. Then she could start her own family and a vacation once a year at the nearest lake. Everyone in her small town lived like this. It was an endless circle from which it was impossible to escape, the circle of routine, more routine, and a simple provincial life.
The world seemed so enormous, interesting, unknown, alluring and frightening to Lisa. Studying foreign languages and looking at exciting pictures of distant countries left her dreaming of adventures and journeys to distant lands. Lisa dreamed of traveling, and seeing something completely unknown to her.
The dream of travelling solidified within her from year-to-year, more and more. She eagerly learned foreign languages at school. Like many other young people of her age, full of energy, enthusiasm and illusions of youth, her dearest wish was to travel around the world. But how could it be possible to undertake such a journey for a young graduate with no money or connections?
The dreams would have remained dreams, except on one ordinary day, Lisa stood in the hallway near the office waiting for the next seminar in her university. Accidentally distracted from her homework, which, as a good student, she had been painstakingly writing all night long, Lisa saw a little a small ad hanging on the wall among other advertisements and schedules. According to the ad, young people with an education could try their luck and submit a resume to spend a year helping families with childcare and housework.
The name of this service was a beautiful and romantic French name: au pair, which meant "„equal“.
Lisa read the following definition of au pairs: An au pair is an unmarried young adult aged eighteen to thirty years, who has no children and travels to a foreign country for a defined period of time to live with a host family. The au pair is considered as a full member of the family during the entire stay. As such, he or she helps the family with childcare and can be asked to assume some light household tasks. In return, the host family provides free board and lodging, as well as pocket money. However, the au pair is neither a housekeeper, nor a nanny.
The main purpose of the au pair placementis a cultural exchange, which gives the the au pair an opportunity to improve his or her language skills. For this reason, child minding in your own country doesn't count as an au pair stay. The au pair should also attend a language coursein the host country. He or she should, however, have some basic language skillsbeforehand. Whether it is the au pair or the host family who pays for the language course depends on the prevailing practice of the relevant host country. The same applies to the cost of traveland insurance.
Sounds great, Lisa thought.
Thinking about travelling to distant countries made Lisa‘s heart beat faster. It seemed like a fairy tale, the place where wishes can come true, where people have everything except for problems, where people are always happy, or perhaps where a Prince Charming was living. It wasso far away and mysterious, that she certainly wanted to spend a year in this fabulous place, and improve and practice her knowledge of a foreign language. Even though she was a teacher of foreign languages, according to her diploma, for which she spent dozens of sleepless nights, attending lectures and writing hundreds of thousands of pages of term sheets, living with a host family seemed to be the smartest and cheapest way of travelling abroad.
After reading the ad, Lisa decided to try her luck and send her resume for the job of a babysitter. It was quite easy to apply as an au pair. She simply had to register on a website and fill out a questionnaire and upload a photo. Her friends at the university said,
"Don’t put a pretty picture of you. Otherwise your host family will think that you want to get married."
Lisa found a photo that was taken during a walk in the forest. Her hair was slightly disheveled, and there was no makeup on her face. With this, she certainly would not attract anyone.
Then Lisa wrote a short application:
Dear host family,
My name is Lisa. I am twenty-two years old. I am a language teacher and I have a lot of experience in international communication. I love working with children. I can give your children a lot of new knowledge (teaching foreign languages, playing the piano, etc.). I also think that I can help you with your household. I like cooking.
In participating in this program, I see a chance for me to improve my foreign language skills.
I hope that I will be a good au pair for your family.
Kind regards,
Lisa
She filled out the questionaire on her skills:
Have you ever been an au pair abroad? No.
Do you have experience in childcare? Yes.
Do you have experience with babies? Some.
Have you attended a first aid course? Yes.
Do you have a driver's license? No.
Do you have experience in your household? Yes.
Can you cook? Yes.
Can you brush? Yes.
Can you iron? Yes.
Can you sew? A bit.
Are you into sports? A bit.
Can you ride a bike? Yes.
Can you ride? A bit.
Can you swim? A bit.
Do you play an instrument? Yes.