Today marks 31 full days in France...wow!
My exchange so far has been great, I love it here. The beautiful region where I live, my host family, school-locals.. life in France .Everyday I grow more grateful for all of the experiences I counter from everyday situations, at home or at school. Sometimes I still think to myself, I'm really here! It's a unrealistic feeling living a normal life in a country across the world, but it's also an extraordinary moment.
In my one month here I have learned a lot already but not just about the culture and language. My 2nd suitcase containing all of my clothing expect shoes and jackets (thank god), only arrived last Tuesday (22/09). I went basically 1 month without my clothes! Although its not as hard as you'd think, I really made peace with the fact that it was missing, I only started stressing towards the 3rd week because I had come to realize that if it was missing I had to get ready in the documentation field, to prove that all contents were there... dealing with airlines is not fun. I also started to miss my clothes, it's starting to get cold, I wanted more pants, long sleeves and well what belonged to me. On the bright side I got some compensation money! It's funny how good it felt just to see some old clothes again. I'm super lucky that my host mom helped me so much, with lending and buying clothes- she's the reason why I was in such good hands. Some other difficulties have been spiders, waking up early and minor issue in the beginning was school.
I wake up everyday around 6am in order to be ready for the mini bus that comes at 6:45am. This bus comes to pick the students from their house to take them to the bigger bus, in Villenueve. There's usually no more than 6 of us, it's all the students just in this area. I live in Septfonds which only 4km from Villenueve, in total i'm 15km away from my school Lycee Saint Joseph in Villefranche de Rouergue. The bus from Villenueve leaves at 7:05am and we usually arrive in Villefranche de R. around 7:20am BUT school doesn't not start until 8am, and on Mondays at 9! Despite the wait, I love my mornings; It's one of my favorite parts of the day. Sitting at the Notre Dame Place, eating a croissant or sitting in a cafe... love it! A normal day at school goes from 8:00am -5:30pm.. The bus only leaves at 6:05 pm from Villefranche de Rourgue, so I'm usually not home until 6:45pm- 12 hours of day! I'm lucky on Wednesday's school finishes at 12pm!!!!
School has definitely changed since the first week, I like it a lot more! In the beginning it was hard... language barrier, younger students, different learning methods/subjects, and just in general. With time everything has improved. Everything is something new and I'm slowly starting to adjust. My French has improved dramatically since I've arrived, in the language department I'm succeeding rather well! My comprehension is great but I need to work on my pronunciation and grammar , chaque chose en son temps. I really feel myself starting to immerse in the culture and language- I find myself having full conversation with peers and I don't struggle with language when I'm by myself!
That's Saint Joseph!! A high school, middle school and hotel school!! I go to the high school but as you saw above on my time table I actually have to classes with "5eme" which is equivalent to Grade 7's. I just changed my whole time table and classrooms for my own benefit. In my my first class that I was in for the first 3 weeks, 2A; I was together with 2 other exchange students. Justin from U.S.A and Paddy from Ireland, this was good because all of us had someone to talk to and express mutual feelings but this was not good for the improvement of the French language or culture. I felt like it was necessary for me to do something about it! There's a lady that plans out all of the timetables for students and teachers and more! She's awesome and very kind, she resolved all of the issues with me and the other exchange students! Now i'm in 2B and have German and French with grade 7's, it's definitely a challenging experience... On the first day it was rather funny than strange borrowing notes from a 12 year old or having them assist you through all class...! I'm slowly getting to know bit by bits of the school, I look forward to after Christmas where I may move up to my own grade and maybe even terminale which is equivalent to Grade 12, there I get to help with English Literature!! I'm excited about spending my year at Saint Joseph, I am even proud to say that I have made some friends to hang out during lunch, day by day things are getting easier!
My exchange so far has been great, I love it here. The beautiful region where I live, my host family, school-locals.. life in France .Everyday I grow more grateful for all of the experiences I counter from everyday situations, at home or at school. Sometimes I still think to myself, I'm really here! It's a unrealistic feeling living a normal life in a country across the world, but it's also an extraordinary moment.
In my one month here I have learned a lot already but not just about the culture and language. My 2nd suitcase containing all of my clothing expect shoes and jackets (thank god), only arrived last Tuesday (22/09). I went basically 1 month without my clothes! Although its not as hard as you'd think, I really made peace with the fact that it was missing, I only started stressing towards the 3rd week because I had come to realize that if it was missing I had to get ready in the documentation field, to prove that all contents were there... dealing with airlines is not fun. I also started to miss my clothes, it's starting to get cold, I wanted more pants, long sleeves and well what belonged to me. On the bright side I got some compensation money! It's funny how good it felt just to see some old clothes again. I'm super lucky that my host mom helped me so much, with lending and buying clothes- she's the reason why I was in such good hands. Some other difficulties have been spiders, waking up early and minor issue in the beginning was school.
I wake up everyday around 6am in order to be ready for the mini bus that comes at 6:45am. This bus comes to pick the students from their house to take them to the bigger bus, in Villenueve. There's usually no more than 6 of us, it's all the students just in this area. I live in Septfonds which only 4km from Villenueve, in total i'm 15km away from my school Lycee Saint Joseph in Villefranche de Rouergue. The bus from Villenueve leaves at 7:05am and we usually arrive in Villefranche de R. around 7:20am BUT school doesn't not start until 8am, and on Mondays at 9! Despite the wait, I love my mornings; It's one of my favorite parts of the day. Sitting at the Notre Dame Place, eating a croissant or sitting in a cafe... love it! A normal day at school goes from 8:00am -5:30pm.. The bus only leaves at 6:05 pm from Villefranche de Rourgue, so I'm usually not home until 6:45pm- 12 hours of day! I'm lucky on Wednesday's school finishes at 12pm!!!!
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| Current Time Table |
School has definitely changed since the first week, I like it a lot more! In the beginning it was hard... language barrier, younger students, different learning methods/subjects, and just in general. With time everything has improved. Everything is something new and I'm slowly starting to adjust. My French has improved dramatically since I've arrived, in the language department I'm succeeding rather well! My comprehension is great but I need to work on my pronunciation and grammar , chaque chose en son temps. I really feel myself starting to immerse in the culture and language- I find myself having full conversation with peers and I don't struggle with language when I'm by myself!
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| The Hotelier School section , and a bit of the Cafeteria |
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| Waking down into School |
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| Foyer, Room for students to hang out.. especially when it is cold! |
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| Office(s), more classrroms |
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| Library, and classrooms |
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| Garden Area with Science Classrooms and Gym around the corner |
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| Recreation Area |
That's Saint Joseph!! A high school, middle school and hotel school!! I go to the high school but as you saw above on my time table I actually have to classes with "5eme" which is equivalent to Grade 7's. I just changed my whole time table and classrooms for my own benefit. In my my first class that I was in for the first 3 weeks, 2A; I was together with 2 other exchange students. Justin from U.S.A and Paddy from Ireland, this was good because all of us had someone to talk to and express mutual feelings but this was not good for the improvement of the French language or culture. I felt like it was necessary for me to do something about it! There's a lady that plans out all of the timetables for students and teachers and more! She's awesome and very kind, she resolved all of the issues with me and the other exchange students! Now i'm in 2B and have German and French with grade 7's, it's definitely a challenging experience... On the first day it was rather funny than strange borrowing notes from a 12 year old or having them assist you through all class...! I'm slowly getting to know bit by bits of the school, I look forward to after Christmas where I may move up to my own grade and maybe even terminale which is equivalent to Grade 12, there I get to help with English Literature!! I'm excited about spending my year at Saint Joseph, I am even proud to say that I have made some friends to hang out during lunch, day by day things are getting easier!
In theory everything is wonderful, my host family, school, and life! I'm really looking forward to the next 3 weekends! Next I may visit Najac, area close by with a beautiful castle. October 9-11 is the 2nd Rotex, the following weekend my host family and are going on a little road trip to Italy!
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| C'est la vie, c'est mon vie francaise. Tout a 'heure! |
