OFII appointment - Part I

So finally, after my 3 months in paris i am due to my appointment with OFII
which is the office of immigration and integration
an appointment to wlcome and help foreigners
who may be here for work, studies and spouses

a week before my appointment
i decided to google on any info of the OFII appointment
which i got a shock on the information provided
a) most information will be provided in french
b) there will be a test on french to decide the no of free french classes provided
c) need to be half naked for the xray with no gown provided & can be a male nurse
these provided enough stress for me for the week

anyway, i arrived at 7.30am for my 8am appointment
and was surprised that i wasnt the earliest
and a queue started at about 745am

While queuing,
a lady from china came to me
and asked me whether this is the place for medical check
as her accent was so strong, i took awhile to understand her chinese and replied her
i think she tried to make some small talk
and asked me what book im reading and that it must be a languag from my country
so i just replied short that is an English novel
and she went awy

the start was relatively easy
just to show the letter and passport
thereafter before to go to the waiting room
a lady was there to identify the language preferred
probably because there are not many singaporeans undergoing this process

The conversation happened: (in french)
me: English
lady: Chinese?
me: no, English
lady: Chinese?
me: I am from Singapore, I speak English
lady: Oh Singapore, yes its English, Sorry..

Well, since the lady was really nice and smily
I didnt feel offended for thinking i am from China
i guess they see more from China than Singapore

Then we were put in a waiting room
another lady ask for our language spoken
and provided us a audioguide to be used for the video
i read in forum that in some offices they provide translators instead
which ended up watching the videos many times till your language translator's turn
so its lucky that paris has more advanced technology

The lady started to welcome us
She was really nice and i noticed that she tried to spoke in simple french
although i got lost at times
i guess she was explaining the programme for the day
based on the forum i read

We watched a 15mins video on life in france
basically a brief video about a few major themes of france
felt like a documentary on france in discovery channel

the lady returned after the video
went through a few slides on the topics shown on the video
when i say went through, she was basically reading word by word off the slides
there were some additional information which i didnt understand
but i gathered from the forum that it was about upcoming stuffs eg french classes, visas, lectures

a lady came after
and she seemed to be in a foul mood
i guess most people are on holiday after the national day on 14 July
and she definitely suffers from post-holiday blues
anyway she frown at any noise made
stare and said "PLEASE (in french)" to anyone making a noise  
Eg the lady from china took something from her plastic bag and got this treatment

The lady just went on speaking in fast french for 10mins
from the few words i understand i guess she is talking about some public assistance for lodging and job
but anyway, she just finished her stuff and left

I went to the toilet and met the lady from China again
trying to be nice, i made some small talk with her
about where we were from and purpose in france
when it was my turn to use the cubicle
i heard my name being called
but since i was going in, i decided they will call for me again
suddenly, the lady from china rushed out of the toilet
i assumed that her name was called after me
anyway, we were the only 2 chinese females in the room

Thereafter, it was a long wait for me in the waiting room
so i end up reading my book
finally after 30mins, i was called to an office
feeling nervous that they will test my french
i practiced my self-introduction with husband for days
but apparently, its still bad french in their view
actually, i didnt have chance to speak french
as she conversed with me in English
and before i spoke french, she asked whether im taking french classes
when the answer is no, she immediately informed that she will refer me for french classes
so i guess all the practices wasnt useful
anyway, the french language assessment for the no of hours required will be done in the school
in my september appointment with them

She passed me my medical certificate
and i informed her that i have not done my medical test
then a nurse came to the room, and insisted that im not CYS
i insisted i am and she left
so i guess the lady from china must had went for my medical assessment when i was in toilet
we continued our conversation about signing a contract for integration, lectures to attend
I was supposed to attend 2 full days lectures on civics and life in france
but the lady gave me an option to skip the life in france option
i guessed because i married a french

then a doctor came to the office and insisted im not CYS
and I insisted I am
It came to a point where it become funny to keep insisting who i am
thereafter, i was sent to the medical test
each nurse/ doctor will verified my name and address twice before anything
I went for weight, height and eye test
and sent to the room for xray

so it was like a small changing room
that i was reminded to lock the door that i came in
after undressing, another door opened to the xray room
thank goodness that it was a female nurse,  no walking required and she spoke perfect english
Read on forum that sometimes it can be male nurse, there may be a long corridor to walk from the changing room
or full instructions in french
so, i am really counting my blessings

later, i met another doctor to check xray, my blood pressure and medical history
started with the same verifying my name and address twice
i was a little worried about this
as i have no memory on vaccinations
i should have brought along the old health booklet from primary school
i think its really important to keep record of vaccinations as adults
i should be very overdue on my hep B vaccination
anyway, when the doctor asked me about vaccinations
before i answered
she answered with " Singapore should be very updated with vaccinations, so you dont need any follow up"
So much for my anxiety about not remembering my vaccinations

Then it was done for the morning....