Monday, October 19, 2015

Living Local in France

          I know that living in France will be different from how I live my life here in the United States in many ways. I will be living in a new city and in a new country all while learning a new language. I know that I am a fairly shy and quiet person, so I know that I will have to get out of my comfort zone to make friends and get involved with the community. It is easiest for me to make friends when I join groups, clubs or sports teams, so I am planning on trying to join a club or two at the university to meet more local students. I play soccer here at Maryville, so it would be an interesting experience if I could play for some team in France! Playing soccer is how I have made a lot of friends here in the United States. Doing volunteer work would also be a good opportunity to be involved and meet new people, so if I can find something like that to do in France that would be amazing. 
            I want to make the most of my experience studying in France, and I know that the best way to accomplish this is to live like a local. I can learn this best by observing locals and integrating myself into the French society. For example, when I eat with friends or other locals, I want to try local foods that I wouldn’t normally find here in the U.S. 
            One of my main goals is to learn French and become as fluent as I can within the five short months that I am there, so I will try to speak as little English as I can. I know that the locals will appreciate that I am trying my hardest to speak and learn French; therefore I am not worried about messing up grammar or forgetting vocabulary. Getting involved and living like a local in France is important and I hope to gain many insights on how to communicate with different people and learn about the southern French culture.


-Janelle Calhoun

No comments:

Post a Comment