Toulouse, as a city

[CapitanPelusa]

Hi guys,

I've recently been accepted to Toulouse's M1 program (and would want to stay on through the phd), and I was wondering if anyone who goes there (or has lived/traveled there) could give me an idea of what the culture is like there. Everything I've found online has been pretty vague, or just gives basic demographic information. Is it more socially conservative or liberal? Are they a more urban living type of people, or do they like to get outdoors? How welcoming are they of foreigners (and especially Americans)? Are people there generally warm or more guarded? And of course, any other info you might have would be great, too!

Sorry its not specifically a question about the school, but I've got to consider everything if I'm going to move half way around the world! Thanks in advance, guys!

[philecon]

A friend of mine is currently doing her M2 in Toulouse, and she told me that you'll need a basic grasp of French to survive. And she said it's quite lonely there, although it might be her opinion of things. I wouldn't mind studying in Toulouse, if I applied there.

[CapitanPelusa]

she told me that you'll need a basic grasp of French to survive. And she said it's quite lonely there

I wonder how much of it is just being new and not able to speak the language, and how much of it is a reflection of the city. Is she an American doing her first long-term stay abroad? Oh, and thanks for the reply!

[postgradecon]

According to Wikipedia, there are almost 100,000 students in Toulouse, making it one of the largest student population in France (the total population of the agglomeration is about a million). I don't see how you could get lonely there more than in any other town, if you do speak the language. Not speaking French will probably be problematic, but you can learn it!

I have never been to Toulouse, but I did travel in France (north and south) a couple of times. I speak French, so my experience could be completely different from other people, but I found most people welcoming and the atmosphere quite pleasant. I would definitely not say that people are generally "guarded": if they don't like you you'll know. However, as it's the case everywhere else, it depends on the people you meet!

In cities I've visited, they had an efficient public transportation system, and probably a more urban than suburban (in the american style) lifestyle. Toulouse is a big city, so don't expect an "outdoors-y" town, but you have access to the rest of the country with more rural places or the mountains in the Alps.

Hope this helps a bit.

[juliep]

I should be able to say more given I was born in TOulouse (!!!) and that my sister has been living there for the past 20 years... But I left (well, my parents left ;-) when I was 3 year old and it was always my sister visiting us and not the contrary.... I have been there just one week end since I left as a baby. But I heard my sister speaking about it, my niece (20 year old now), and a friend currently studying at TSE.

First everybody says it's beautiful (speaking about the city), climate is warm so you have thousands (ok maybe not thousands ;-) but a lot) of little outdoor terrraces to have a coffee, a drink, walking in the center. This is known as "the pink city" which is actually a compliment, yes, speaking about the color of stones used in buildings.

Speaking about the ambiance: that is the part I am less aware and I mostly speak from what I heard. Yes it is full of French people ;-) and yes I guess it will be easier speaking some French but you will learn it very quicly that is for sure, best solution for learning a language is total immersion. Common opinions I have heard about French people is that it MAY be more difficult to speak to them compared with some other nationalities who will at once ask you a lot of questions about yourself knowing that you are a foreigner, maybe there is more distance at first, but I also think it is much more easier to get friends, real friends, in France that in other places, quickly you'll be invited to have dinner with groups of friends who will really want to know you and have activities with you. Of course it is generalisation and I really welcome anybody who disagrees with me but to resort to an image I have come across a lot during my different stays (I mean real stays, not hollidays) in various countries (5 up to now + France), with French people it is more difficult to reach the first layer of the onion, but much easier to get to know the other layers eventually.

Besides, Toulouse (as mentionned earlier) is full of students. This is the main point, full of students, full of activities, full of young people, from every corner of France but also... of Europe. With ERASMUS programs, student exchanges between European countries have sensibly risen. So if you dont get along with French people ;-) you will find students from everywhere.

Speaking about outdoor activities, ok this is a city but you are very close to the Atlantic ocean, great great beaches in "les landes", less crowded than the ones from the Mediterranean coast, with a lot of young people, lots of surfing (supposedly the biggest waves in Europe? especially in BIarritz a little bit South), you are very close to "pais vasco" I don't know how to say this in English but you'll find wonderful landscapes. This is the best region for food in France I think, with "foie gras", "salade landaise", "magret de canard" and so much more that I don't know very well, well I let you discover on your own. Also very close to big mountains for skiing during the winter (the "Pyrenneans") and of course Spain!!! So as far as location is concerned this is a top top top destination.

Ok it is a bit mixed I hope it helps

[econornot]

I'm from TSE and have been in Toulouse for some time now. Toulouse as a place to stay is amazing to me so I don't really understand why philecon's friend said she felt lonely there (I suspect it has a lot to do with her being in the M2 currently and the environment is class is kind of competitive in M2). It is definitely not the type of student town (like the well-known Oxford or Cambridge) where the place exists only because of the university so you get most of the things you tend to see in a city, but there are also a lot of students around so you get to meet a lot of young people. People here are generally nice (but it also depends on who you meet of course) and apart from the bureaucratic inefficiency and the occassional strikes that is rather common in Europe (but you will get used to it after a while), I have only good things to say about the city of Toulouse and I can safely say that it will be the case for all my friends here as well.

Language wise, if you don't speak French, it's definitely going to be quite a problem. Nothing is written in English here and even the people in the banks or government agencies that you might have to deal with do not speak English so it might get rather problematic when you need to fulfill some administrative issues... but then, the language barrier should never be a binding constraint in your decision to come to TSE or not. I would say at least half of the entering class of M1 and M2 each year do not speak enough French to even make a basic conversation, and another 25% speaks probably just speak enough to get by (like buy food, ask for directions, etc), so you are definitely not alone when comes to having the language barrier problem. I was able to speak French (though not fluently at first) when I first came so I cannot say I understood how it felt not knowing French in France but I believe there will definitely be people in your class who are able and are willing to help you get by (at least initially). I have never heard of anybody running into serious problems because of the language issue (but there were of course quite a number of hilarious incidents!) but if you are staying for the Phd, you will have to learn to speak French eventually (though I know of someone in the jobmarket this year who still cannot speak proper French!). Most people do not worry about learning the language during the M1 and M2 phase because you would have no time for other things outside school but come after it, most who do not speak French enroll in some night courses in the Alliance Francaise here... and learning French in France itself is accelerated... most of the people are able to speak French rather fluently after just around 6 months. Without going further on some old granny stories, the bottom line is that coming to France without knowing French is definitely going to give you quite a bit of problem but it should not deter you from coming because you will definitely be able to get sufficient help to get by well, comfortably and happily.