Adjusting to Life, Food and the French Language

Time in France goes by SO fast. I have been here for two weeks and I have no idea where all the days went. Six months sounds like a lot, but it is going to fly by for me.

I’m still getting used to how different everything is. The culture is just so strong-and it’s not at all what I had imagined it to be. Before I came here, people had told me French food was VERY different, French boys were VERY straightforward, and that French people hated tourists who couldn’t speak their language.

The only true statement in that is that French food is different. It is SO different. I’ve been here two weeks and I’ve already eaten sardines, oysters, snails, and a number of fruits that I had never even seen. The way they eat is different-eating one course at a time. And there are so many different types of cheeses here. The French know their food.  But as for the other stereotypes-boys here are just like boys in the U.S.A. and with all the difficulties I’ve had speaking the language, not one person has been impatient or demanding.

Not only am I learning about France but I’ve met so many people from other countries as well. At the school I’m attending there are 11 foreign exchange students from all over the world. There were so many of us a journalist came and wrote an article for the local newspaper. It’s very interesting to know not only how different things are in France but in other countries as well. I think that for students in the U.S.A. it’s very common to think that everywhere is the same, but it really just isn’t.

The only thing I’ve been disappointed with so far is how little I feel like I’ve improved in my French. I can have conversations, but they are very limited because of my lack of vocabulary. It’s frustrating not being able to express a feeling or ask a simple question, but I’ll get the hang of it soon.