Maxime in England: The Tapestry of a New Life

When the Mayor and Fruitloop called me to talk about my life in England, I knew immediately that this was not going to be a normal interview. With them, it is never just a list of questions. It is always a conversation that goes in many directions, with jokes, teasing, serious thoughts, strange comments, and sometimes even Alexa interrupting when nobody asked her anything.

The Mayor explained that they had prepared 120 questions for me, although he promised they were not going to ask all of them because Fruitloop had domestic situations to attend to. The questions were divided into categories, but the idea was simply to let the conversation flow. The Mayor said that the result would go into the Pineapple on Friday, and then zillions of people, extraterrestrials, and Martians would read it, and I would become famous.

That sounded very serious, obviously.

The Mayor asked whether people in England understood me. I said yes. Then he asked whether I understood them. That was a bit harder, but for common subjects, yes, I did not really have problems.

He told me he could already hear a difference in my English, even though I had only been in England for a month. I said I felt a bit more fluent, but I still made too much mistakes. Of course, he corrected me immediately: too many mistakes. But he also told me not to worry, because he and Fruitloop make mistakes too. He said that if I knew how many mistakes they made, I would be shocked. Mistakes are part of learning.

He was right.

Then came the big question: where the hell in England was I?

I told them I was just north of Birmingham. I work in Lichfield and live in Cannock. The Mayor immediately said no wonder I could not understand them. I had been to Birmingham, mostly because I do gymnastics there.

That was when they discovered that, of course, I had arrived in England and immediately found a gym.

At first, I had wanted to take a big rest of four months. I had not really taken a proper break for a long time. For the last two years, I had felt tired, and I thought it might be good to stop for a while. But when I found a club in Birmingham, it became impossible not to train. It may be one of the best clubs I have ever trained in.

The Mayor said he did not think I would ever be happy if I was not hanging upside down from the ceiling somewhere.

He is probably right.

When I thought back to my first few days in England, the strongest impression was driving on the left. It was really hard. On my first day, I drove a lot, and the roads shocked me. The roads are so bad in England, and there is so much dust on them. Driving on the left was difficult, and using tolls or payment points was also strange because everything is on the wrong side for a French car. The first time, I had to get out of the car. Later I realised that I could take another road and avoid that paying part completely.

The Mayor suggested that next time I should drive backwards into the payment point. Then he said that with a French licence plate, I had a licence to be a total idiot. It is a huge sign saying, “I’m not from here.” Fruitloop added, “Sorry, I’m French.”

In some ways, England felt new. In other ways, the situation felt familiar. It was not completely different from what I expected because I had already experienced leaving home when I went to Laval for my studies. I had also moved to the south of France for my second internship. Each time, it was the same basic experience: arriving in a new place, not knowing anyone, trying to make friends, trying to have social contact with people at work. So England was another new place, but the feeling of starting again was not new to me.

What has helped me feel at home most is the family I live with. They are really, really kind to me. They welcomed me almost like a new child. Because of that, I feel comfortable in the house and with the people I live with.

Fruitloop then asked what my days look like.

My routine is simple and full. I wake up early in the morning at 7. I go to work from 8 to 12. I have a pause from 12 to 1, then work again from 1 to 4:30. After that, I go to gymnastics. It takes around 35 to 40 minutes to drive from Lichfield to Birmingham. I train from 5:30 to 8:30, about three hours. Then I drive back to Cannock, another 30 or 35 minutes. I eat, and sometimes I work on the application I am developing. Sometimes I go for a little walk in the fresh air of the evening. Then it becomes night, and the same day begins again.

On weekends, I also train. I do gymnastics from 10 to 2, then I come back to Cannock and work on my application and develop my AI skills. So it is work, work, work, and then more work. I do not really take enough time to train my English, and I know I will have to make more time for that.

I told them that I am training with an Olympian. I train with six people who are in the top twenty in England. My coach is the person who won the most medals in one competition in England. He has a Wikipedia page.

I did not do anything magical. I searched on the web because I wanted to find a gymnastics club. There were not many around me, so I found one in Birmingham. I wrote an email. They replied and said I could come at a certain time to discuss what I wanted. When I arrived, I saw Luke Folwell, the coach, and all these gymnasts, and I realised it was a very big club. They welcomed me like any other gymnast and told me I could train as I wanted. That is it. Now I train with an Olympian.

Sometimes you just have to ask.

Fruitloop asked whether I had picked up any small everyday habits in England. I have not really picked up anything very different from France yet. Because it is summer, I work a lot in the evening when it is fresher, but that is not really because of England.

I have been to a pub, but with my parents. They came to visit me two weeks ago, and we went to different restaurants and pubs to eat and have a good time. That was fun.

Fruitloop asked whether I had discovered any local places, cafés, shops, or parks that had become part of my life. I do not really have time for that yet, but I have seen some very beautiful parks. Lichfield is a beautiful place, and the centre of Lichfield is very beautiful too, with a big park. But because I go to Lichfield every day from Monday to Friday for work, I do not really want to go there alone on the weekend. I prefer to visit other things.

Birmingham is a beautiful city too. It reminds me a little of Venice in Italy because there are small rivers, or canals, in the town. It is beautiful. I would like to hang out in Birmingham after training on a Saturday, but for the moment I have not taken the time. Fruitloop challenged me to do it next Saturday. He said the gym has a shower, so the problem is solved. Fruitloop told me to send pictures.

When Fruitloop asked about the food, I said it is different from France, but in reality it is good. Many people told me before I went that the food in England was terrible. But no, it is okay. It is not exactly the same, but we find meat, vegetables, pasta. The milk is a bit different, and I prefer the milk in France, but the roast is good and the local food is really nice.

My host does not cook for me every day, only sometimes, maybe once every two weeks. I cook for myself in the kitchen. For lunch, it depends. Sometimes I cook in the evening and take my plate with me for lunch. Sometimes, if I do not have anything, I walk to the supermarket near work with colleagues and buy something to eat. There are a lot of Tesco shops.

Fruitloop asked how people behave in public compared with what I am used to. I feel it is totally different. In England, people do not look at what you do in the same way. In France, people are always looking at you. Here, you can just do what you want, and people do not care. I think that is better.

The Mayor then asked about the multicultural side of England, especially around Birmingham. He mentioned Brexit, the European Union, and the fact that there are many people from Africa, India, Asia, and other places. I told him I had noticed many Indian people, and in Chinatown many Asian people. I did not notice so many African people, but definitely more Indian people.

It was different from what I knew in Alsace or Laval, but it did not shock me. I had expected it before coming to England, so I was prepared to see it.

Then the Mayor asked how many times I had said “I’m sorry” that day. I said I did not think I had said it at all. He explained that saying sorry all the time is very English. People almost apologise for being there. After he said it, I realised that yes, my colleagues do say it sometimes. But my level of English is not yet at the point where I always notice these details. Sometimes I am concentrating too much on the rest of the sentence to notice small cultural habits.

He told me that tomorrow, when I went into the office, I should walk through the door and say, “Oh, I’m sorry,” and see what happens.

When he asked about the biggest cultural difference, I first said I did not really know because people are like people in France. But then I realised something important: people are really kind here. There has been no animosity toward me because I am French or foreign. At home, at work, at gymnastics, people are kind and welcoming. They welcome me like any other person in England. They smile. That may be the biggest difference from France.

The Mayor asked whether I had noticed the hidden nuances of English. He gave an example: if he asks his wife how she is and she says “fine,” he knows she is not fine. Meaning is not always in the word itself but in the pronunciation, the tone, and the expression behind it. I have noticed this sometimes. I saw colleagues who were angry about a situation with another person, even though the words themselves were not direct. I do not have a big story yet, but I have started to feel that there is hidden meaning sometimes.

What I have learned so far about the English mentality is clearest in gymnastics. There is a huge difference between training in England and in France. In England, people enjoy what they do, and they always encourage each other, even when the moment is difficult. In France, sometimes the coach says, “Do this three times,” then leaves, and you do what you have to do on your side. In England, people say, “Go, go, go,” and ask whether everything is good. They encourage you all the time. It is much more positive.

It is the same at work and everywhere. The mindset feels more positive.

Fruitloop then moved the conversation to work. She asked what it was like stepping into a new work environment in England.

For me, it is totally different because it is my first time really working as an engineer. My previous internships were more as a mechanic, not really as an engineer. So this is my first real engineering experience, and it is in English. The first week was very hard because I did not have the technical vocabulary. It was hard to understand what people were explaining to me, and they did not really know my level of English. After a few days, and then after two or three weeks, it became better.

But after two weeks, there was a moment when it was a disaster. I lost all my words. I mixed French and English. I had a headache, and everything became difficult. The week after, it was better again.

Fruitloop asked what the first English word was that I learned there. I said that is the problem: I do not really feel I am learning many new words, except technical terms like screw, rotor, retainer, and words like that, which are not very interesting. I feel that I work too much to concentrate properly on my English. But I am in England for that too, so I need to work less on work and work even more on English. The Mayor said that did not make sense, which was probably true.

At work, people are formal, but when we speak about other things, like what we did during the weekend, they are kind. They do not seem stressed. They have a lot to do, and they do it quickly, but the atmosphere does not feel stressed.

I do not feel very stressed about English at work because I am comfortable with my colleagues. But I have noticed that when I feel comfortable with people, I can speak English much more fluently. The words come. When I do not know the person very well, it is different. I become a bit nervous, and I cannot find my words so easily. It also depends on the subject. If I know the vocabulary, I can speak fluently. If I do not have the vocabulary, I sometimes cannot say anything. Then I have to find another way to say it, which is something I learned from preparation with the Mayor and Fruitloop. But in a work environment, people do not always have an hour to listen while I search for another way to explain something.

When they asked what I found interesting about how people work, I said I do not notice a big difference yet because this is my first experience in an engineering service. I have not seen the same environment in France, so it is hard to compare. We work in an open space. There are maybe forty places, with twenty or twenty-five people working there. There are human resources, a director, and a big laboratory on the ground floor. I think it looks similar to what it might be in France.

But I do think people have learned from me. I work on projects they do not have time to do. Each time I finish a job, they learn something from that. They are confident with me.

I also noticed a very big problem in an Excel sheet they had used to develop different electric motors. There was a big mistake, and I fixed it. They had used that sheet for the last four years. That means they may have made the same mistake for four years.

That was surprising, especially because they create electric motors for Ferrari, Bugatti, Aston Martin Valkyrie, the Red Bull RB17, Audi, motorsport, Formula 1, Formula E, and other high-level projects. I looked at that and thought: how can you do that with this spreadsheet? It was just not possible.

.When the Mayor asked what I had learned about myself since being in England, I found it difficult to answer immediately. I said that sometimes I am still shy, and I have to push myself to ask something or to speak.

He helped me by asking whether I had become even more independent than I was in Laval. In some ways, yes and no. I do not have my family here. It is a new place. I cook for myself. I go to the supermarket. But in terms of independence, it is similar to Laval. The biggest difference is that in Laval I went to school, and now I go to work.

He then asked whether I had become more confident because I now have to do everything in English. I think yes. And I think that when I return to France, I will probably be more comfortable there because if I can do these things in English, in another language, with other people, I will be even more comfortable in French.

The thing I am most proud of since arriving is gymnastics. They tried to put gymnastics to one side, but that is the problem: gymnastics is the answer. Still, solving the Excel problem at work was also something to be proud of.

Then Fruitloop asked more about gymnastics and the coaching style.

It is so different. The last time I had a real coach like this was in Haguenau, eight years ago. In Birmingham, I have a real coach who takes care of me. He asks whether I need something. He comes to see what I am doing. He encourages me all the time and gives me new exercises. He always checks whether I need something.

In France, it was different. In Laval, I had a coach who is now a very good friend of mine, but he is too young and does not yet have huge experience. My other coaches in Alsace train young people, so they do not have the time to train me correctly. If I do not go to them and ask for something, they may never look at what I am doing. In Birmingham, I feel I have a real coach again, and a very good one with the best advice.

My ankles are better. I work on floor and vault again, which is nice.

My body has handled the change, but it is a bit harder because I only train gymnastics three times a week. I have one day on, one day off. I am used to training every day, three or four hours a day, so having a day off every two days is harder. Because of that, I have taken a subscription to a gym club in Cannock so I can do conditioning when I do not go to gymnastics.

Fruitloop asked whether I had brought the rings that I had in my room. I had, but they were not hanging yet because I do not have a bar. The Mayor said he was not sure a standard two-up, two-down house in the UK could handle rings hanging from the ceiling. It might be safer to go to the gymnastics club. I said maybe I could bring them to the gym club.

Near the end, the Mayor said I sounded very positive and excited. Then he asked me directly: am I happy?

Yes. I am happy.

Really, yes.

Everything is good. I do not have any problems. I learn a lot of new things. I do not have time to think too much because I am always busy doing things. So yes, I am happy.

The Mayor noticed that I had said I did not have any problems. He asked whether, in France or on the continent, we are too negative, always saying this is a problem, that is a problem, Macron is this, Le Pen is that. I said yes, directly. Yes.

But I also explained that maybe I do not yet understand everything people say in English, so I do not fully realise other people’s problems. I need to be more comfortable with the language and understand better what people say all the time before I can really see that.

He asked what English habit or custom I would bring back to France. I did not know how to answer. Then he said he thought he knew why. He said I was living it. He could see in me an excited, positive, bubbling personality, an optimistic future. He said I had that before, but now it was exponentiated.

I think part of it is simply the new experience. If I were in Italy or somewhere else in the world, maybe it would be the same because the important thing is the new experience. But England has given me that new experience in work, in life, and in gymnastics.

Fruitloop asked whether I miss France, university, or home.

School, no. I never really went there, so I do not miss that. Of course, I have friends at school, but the relationship is a little special. We know from the beginning that we are there for school and that later we will be around the world, everywhere in France or elsewhere. So I do not really miss them in the same way because we always knew it would be like that.

I miss my family and my parents, but that is normal. We can call each other every week or every two weeks by video, so that is okay.

What I miss more is having close friends nearby. In Laval, my coach was also a very close friend. We were together almost every day at the gymnastics club, and after training we went to different bars. I miss that. The gymnasts I train with now are very friendly, but for the moment we do not really have moments together in a pub or somewhere else. I miss that a little bit.

Maybe that is why I always work on my project. I do not have anything else to do.

Fruitloop and the Mayor both told me to go to a pub. They said it is the best place to meet people in England. I said I would try the gym club in Cannock first.

I will be in the UK until the end of September, so I have three more months. After that, I will go back to Schœnenbourg. I will be there for a year because I will return to Sébastien Loeb’s private team for a gap year. I have just finished my fourth year of study, and I will work with Sébastien Loeb’s private team and go to the Dakar in January. After that year, I have to finish my studies. Maybe I will return to Laval, but I would prefer to return to the UK, maybe Cranfield.

The Mayor said they would keep their fingers crossed for me because Cranfield is a very good place. He also joked that Ferrari was still a backup, especially the electric blue one.

At the end, the Mayor thanked me. He said that he had spent the last three weeks doing a lot of planning, process work, and structural work, driving poor Fruitloop crazy in the process. That day, he had found himself asking why he was doing it all. Then he said that the big takeaway from the conversation with me was that he knew why.

The world is big.

The world is actually a brilliant place to be in.

It is positive.

You just have to find the right people.

He thanked me for sending a positive spark from Birmingham to Cleebourg and South Africa.

I thanked him too. I told him that maybe if I had never taken the courses with him and Fruitloop, I could never be where I am now.

That is true.

Without that preparation, I might not have had the confidence to arrive in England, speak with people, ask questions, write to a gymnastics club, work in English, fix problems, and build this new life.

For now, my life in England is busy. It is work, gymnastics, driving, cooking, learning, training, building an application, developing AI skills, meeting people, making mistakes, fixing mistakes, discovering roads, parks, pubs, supermarkets, English kindness, technical vocabulary, Birmingham canals, and a gymnastics club where I train with an Olympian.

It is strange sometimes. It is tiring sometimes. It gives me headaches sometimes.

But it is also cool. Very cool.

And yes, I am happy.