Oct 1, 2017
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| 17th of May (Birthday of Norway) My 3rd day since I arrived in Norway |
Have you ever heard of the term Au-pair? I guess most of us have no idea what does it mean. Well I can help you explain what is this all about and why I chose to be an Aupair in Norway.
An Au-Pair is a young person (18-29) willing to go abroad to spend a certain time with a local family. During this time he/she can learn or improve language skills and get to know their culture. The French term "au pair" translates as "on equal terms". Both parties share their responsibilities. This term has become the main idea of the program.
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| My Family Host except she's not the wife but his Mother. The Mother couldn't join us because she has to work. The other kid is the one taking the picture |
In exchange for being part of the family, Au Pair will take care of the children. The main task is to assist the family with some daily tasks related to childcare.This does not mean the Au Pair will become a full-time nanny or a cleaning lady. Aside from childcare Au pair has to do some light house works like tidying up the house. However it is not clear as to what is the light house works and what is not. But you can discuss it with your host family. Also there are some Au pair agency that discusses about that topic. You may want to check this out. (https://www.aupairworld.com/en/au_pair/housework) An Aupair works for 5 hours a day or not more than 30 hours a week and it should be followed. He/she is also entitled to 1 afternoon off and 1 day off a week. It has to be 1 sunday off per month. So if your host is letting you work more than that then you should consider finding a new host. Do not let them abuse you because you are not here to be their full-time maid. You have to know your rights as to what is enough and too much. Also an Aupair is not allowed to work to more than 1 family host.
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| She's the eldest daughter of my host. The one taking the picture on the previous photo. |
So why did I apply as an Au pair considering that I have a nice job in the Philippines and I'm earning more than what I'm getting as an Au pair? Well the main reason is that I am obsessed with the northern lights. I know it sounds crazy but yes I am here just to chase the aurora borealis. You might be wondering why not just come here in Norway as a tourist? Yes ofcourse I did that already twice but unfortunately I wasn't able to see it. Those times I was here, the northern lights are a bit shy i guess. So then I thought I need more time to be able to see it. My contract here is for 2 years, I think that is enough time to chase the northern lights.
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| My entire family host including the Sister of the kids Mother im looking after |
So far I haven't seen it yet. But I'm planning to travel up north soon to find the best spot where I can enjoy them dance at night.
I Will keep you posted once I'm able to witness it.
* Excuse the not so good quality of photos because I lost all my photos when my phone and laptop suddenly bid goodbye during my 2nd month here. I have so many not so good happenings that happened here. I'l tell you guys on my next blog.
