France The Summer of Chocolate

Each student has a unique and individual experience on their Experiment program. The following essay is a single glimpse into a program from one student's perspective.

Ellen P

France (FRCH)

Even now that I am home from France, I still have not quite made the transition back to California. Mentally and emotionally I am still in France. I am still translating my sentences into French and still waking up expecting to see my group or my host family every morning. This has been the longest time I have spent away from my family, but after my summer in France, it began to feel more and more like a true home. It felt like a place where I belonged. I really didn't expect to leave this experience feeling so connected to, and intertwined with my group, the language, my host family, or even the French way of life. I now know that a summer really does have the ability to make a lasting impact and to give you a true sense of connection to new places and people.

I remember our first meal in Paris just a few hours after we arrived in Paris. We chose a quaint little café on the corner of a typical Parisian street, sat down and prepared to brave our language skills with the waiter. I remember a mix of feelings that I had at that moment. I remember feeling glad that there was something familiar on the menu (a chicken salad), scared about ordering with enough politeness, and excited about eating in a Parisian café. I remember feeling tired from the long flight and worried about fitting in with my group. I remember in the end I felt relieved by the realization that I could make it, with this group and through four unknown weeks in France. That was just the beginning of a full four day orientation in Paris where we did everything from seeing a ballet at the opera house to buying and tasting new cheeses and chocolates. We learned how to use the metro system and were able to see Paris from the Eiffel Tower at midnight. We experienced all of this and so much more in the truly beautiful city of light.

The train-ride to our next destination would bring us to what was for me, the most exciting and most anticipated part of the trip, the homestay. For most of my life I had imagined what a homestay would be like and dreamed of someday actually having the opportunity to live with a family in another country. When I stepped off the train and found my host mom and dad beaming at me from the platform, I knew that it would truly be as I had imagined; an amazing and unique experience. The next two weeks were quickly filled with activities, most of which I was asked to choose. We spent two afternoons at a beautiful lake, where we enjoyed swimming and relaxing in the sun. We went biking through the countryside full of sunflower fields. My host mom and I spent many mornings baking delicious meals and desserts as well as wandering around downtown for shopping and sightseeing. Out of all the wonderful activities we did, my fondest memories are of the moments my host family and I shared, talking or laughing, as we became more and more like a true family. Now, back home, I feel homesick for them as I would my own family.

Before the program began I had been imagining for months what we would be doing, what my group and host family would be like, what France would look like, how I would adapt to the new environments, and how I would handle each challenge that came up. And now as I look back to those months before July, I realize how completely different everything was from how I had pictured it. Every activity was different, more full, and more engaging than I could have imagined, every person became a closer friend than I had pictured, and each challenge and environment was newer and more real than could be predicted. There was no way I could have formulated an accurate picture of this trip before having experienced it. There is no way, even now, that I can give each sight, noise, taste, smell, thought, or feeling any justice. This summer is one that couldn't have been predicted, described or shown, but one that needed to be experienced. And now after having experienced a full and truly amazing summer in France, I dream of someday returning to my second home to continue the many discoveries I made and the friendships I formed in the land of chocolates, cheeses, baguettes, and beautiful accents.

My deepest appreciation to all those who made this unforgettable and greatly impacting trip possible for me. It was a gift of immeasurable value with reverberating effects that shall bring this world closer and closer to peace, one friendship at a time.