French Immersion

In June 2023, I traveled to France as part of an exchange program through Saint Ursula Academy and got to spend five days with a family. I was extremely nervous going into this experience because while I was mostly confident in my ability to understand French, I wasn’t sure how well I would be able to speak it to them. I expected the biggest takeaway from this program to be an improvement in my French speaking skills, and although it was, there were so many other cultural differences that were fascinating to learn about. To start off, while I was visiting, my host sister’s school was still in session and would be for almost a month still. This meant that for three of the days I was there, I got to attend French high school. One of the main differences I first got to experience was transportation to school. In my experience, the only two options have always been to ride a school bus or to drive.

Going to school, the first day we rode the school bus, but coming back home and the following days, our mode of transportation varied. One day, we took public transportation, and one afternoon, we walked halfway home before finding a city bus. There were also students being driven, biking, and riding the train. Another main difference in the school day was how late it ran. The first class began at 8:30, similar to Saint Ursula, but the day lasted until 6:00 that evening. There were also no sports or extracurriculars through school, it was all through separate organizations. Another difference overall was how little many people used their cars. My host family, who had five people in it, only had one car because of how much they utilized public transportation and biking. That Saturday, we biked to the farmers' market where they did most of their shopping. Most farmers' markets that I have been to have been smaller and had less than 100 tents, but this one spanned multiple blocks and took us almost 30 minutes to walk from one end to the other. Although there are many cultural differences that I experienced on this exchange, it also made me reflect on the similarities. Even though France is more than an entire ocean away from Cincinnati, there were so many aspects of life that were the same. Even though the school day was longer and transportation was different, my host sister still ate lunch and hung out with her friends throughout the day and many of the classes were the same as at Saint Ursula. Weekends were still for family time, grocery shopping, and taking a break from school and work. Despite the many differences I experienced, all of these similarities gave me comfort in knowing that even if there was a language barrier and varying cultural practices, when it came down to it, my host family and I weren’t as different as it might appear. I think that even after over two years have passed since this experience, I still bring this realization into my everyday life, helping me to connect at an even deeper level when I meet or experience something new.