Author Archives: Emily Margaret Roberts

Paris, je t’aime <3

Bonjour mes amis!

Paris, the city of love, romance, and currently pollution! Thankfully I missed the bulk of it during my trip and I got to enjoy amazing weather. Beaucoup de soleil toute la semaine! Sun sun sun!

This was my second time visiting Paris so I had already seen the main touristy spots. I had to go again though just to make sure nothing had changed. First things first eiffel tower and all it’s glory. The line was too long to go up to the top so we saved it for another day. Then off to le Louvre. Mona Lisa was still there hanging out or as the French say la Joconde. After touring the museum for a bout three hours and only visiting maybe 1/10 of it we needed to make time for the one and only Starbucks. One of my favorite things Paris has to offer considering there aren’t any in Montpellier! A venti White Mocha for 5.50 euro (about $7.50) never tasted so good.

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Then to our hostel for a good night’s sleep, which was actually really great! It was located in Montmartre, next to Sacr� Coeur. So the next morning we woke up to a pretty decent breakfast including; un pain au chocolat, une baguette, un caf� au lait et une verre de jus d’orange, then we walked up to Sacr� Coeur. We had to create a game plan to get past the dozen men who try to sell you yarn bracelets.They will stop at anything to put a pice of string on your wrist and make you pay 5 euro for it. So the four of us basically charged through them and we successfully made it through.

The top of Sacr� Coeur is my favorite view of Paris. A beautiful skyline showing the outline of the city including the Eiffel Tower. It’s unreal.

IMG_1388.JPGMoments like these really make me appreciate having the chance to study in France and visit these amazing cities some people only dream about.

After a beautiful day in Montmartre I went to meet up with some friends I haven’t seen in over a year. It was a great reunion! I was staying with my friend Anas so it was great to meet his friends and see how the Parisians enjoy their life in Paris. Also a good opportunity to try out some of my new French considering the last time I was with them I didn’t know any French. However it was always easier to resort back to English, considering my French is at about kindergarden level.

I got to go back to the Eiffel Tower when the weather was nicer so we obviously had an awesome photo shoot.

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We got to go all the way to the top! First we climbed to the second level then took an insanely crowded elevator to the top (not recommended if you are claustrophobic or afraid of heights). We finished the day with a visit to le Jardin des Tuileries, where we saw Elizabeth Berkley. Don’t know who that is? Do the names Zach, Jessie, A.C. Slater, Lisa, Kelly Kapowski and Screech ring a bell?.. no pun intended. Yes we successfully stalked Jessie from Saved by the Bell, her nanny and her infant son for a good hour. We decided not to intrude on her vacation with her son so we just watched her from afar. It was a beautiful day! 
Friday we went to Moulin Rouge, Notre Dame, and le Jardin du Luxembourg. Another gorgeous day, and another gorgeous Starbucks. This time a caramel frap. Miam! We also saw the famous le Pont de l’amour (the bride with all the locks). The tradition is to lock a lock on the bridge and throw the key into la seine so your love will stay in Paris forever. Lovers of all ages and nationalities come to this bridge to declare their love. A tradition I’ve always adored.
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The beautiful weather continued into the weekend. We went to le Jardin des Tuileries where we enjoyed some cheap wine and lots of snacks in the sun. We topped off the day with a  delicious Moroccan dinner at fine lalla? (where’s grandma?). Then to a French house party and a cab ride home in a jaguar accompanied with candy. I love Paris!
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Some beautiful people on a beautiful day! Sunday we went back to Tuileries to do same thing all over again.
Monday I went back to Montpellier to cram for my five exams. So cruel to have them right after break.
Paris, Je reviens!
Emily

Location: Paris, France

Arles et Avignon

Salut!

So I visited the lovely cities of Arles and Avignon the weekend of March 1st and 2nd.
They were pretty close to Montpellier just an hour and a half by train.This was my first experience using the train station so I was a little unsure of myself. It was so easy, and they never even checked my ticket! Our first city was Arles. We stayed there for one night and in the morning went to Avignon, just about 20 minutes away.
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Here is the well known Les Ar�nes d’Arles. It was built in 90 AD. It was awesome to visit, there was so much history in this little city.
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  Arles is where Vincent Van Gogh lived for a little while as a patient. Apparently it is where he cut off his ear, but I’m not 100% sure. This is a picture from l’Espace Van Gogh, it is the garden in the center of the hospital Van Gogh stayed in. Van Gogh was also famous for a particular drink, that is not very common in the states, but is very well known for it’s magical effects (cough cough absinthe cough cough). It was in gift shops everywhere. I asked the salesman what would happen if I drank it expecting to hear stories of hallucinations, but to my surprise he said nothing out of ordinary, just typical effects of alcohol. He said some people even drink a little with dinner… what?
We were able to see a lot in Arles. The arena, the theater, churches, the cryptoportiques, and even an awesome flea market where we got some delicious goat cheese and I found a homemade pillow for 2euro. After a long day of sight seeing we snuggled into our hostel. This was my first hostel stay so I didn’t know what to expect. I’m glad I didn’t have high expecations. We stayed in a small room with 4 prison like beds.
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At least breakfast was included.
The next day we went to a wine festival we were enjoyed endless tastings of wines, fresh macaroons and of course cheese! Miam! 
Next stop the the train to Avignon. I have to say I liked Arles more than Avignon because I think there was a lot more history there and things to do. Avignon was fun though. We visited the famous Pont d’Avignon where we sang the song:

Sur le pont d’Avignon,

On y danse, on y danse,

Sur le pont d’ Avignon,

On y danse tout en rond.

Sur le Pont d’Avignon Here is the link if you want to want to hear a french lady sing it in a soothing voice while cartoon characters dance. 

We then visited a beautiful garden with a lovely view of the city and ate a delicious dinner followed by some tasty ice cream. It was only 6pm and our train tickets weren’t until 8pm. Thankfully we went to the train station earlier, and an employee said we could just hop on an earlier train. That was easy! After a long weekend I had one day to rest then off to Paris on Tuesday!
� tout � l’heure!
Emily

Location: Arles, France

Coucou!

Salut tout le monde!

I know it has been awhile since I have blogged. It’s easy to get wrapped up in studying abroad. Traveling a lot, social events and the occasional exams you tend to loose track of time. I can’t believe it’s March 23rd! Since my last blog post I have done a lot and gone to a lot of places! Arles, Avignon, and Paris. As soon as I got back I was bombarded with four exams on one day and one the following week. The French don’t think is more convenient to mash all the exams together in one day… good idea. 
Also I haven’t been too motivated to blog about my experience. I think I caught a little bit of culture shock. Living in France for 2 months you start to miss little things from home. For example going for a run and not getting weird looks like you’re from a different planet or being able to go the grocery store on Sundays. I really miss the grading structure of American Universities too. I like to be able to check my progress in classes.  I miss you ANGEL! Right now I honestly have no idea how my grades are going to go… but that’s not what studying abroad is about. It’s about the experience! Before I came here I thought I would be speaking french all the time and I would be going to this amazing university built in the 1200’s where my professors would be helpful and excited to make our foreign experience a time to remeber. Unfortunately this is not the case. I speak English the majority of the time, the school is known for being one of the worst ones in Montpellier, and my teachers like to point out your faults and disregard your accomplishments. It’s quite obvious I get a better education in the states, but I do pay for it.
Even with all my unfortunate surprises, the hard days I face here in France and the fact that sometimes I just miss the comfort of America, I am so happy and grateful I have the opportunity to study in another country and experience a new life for a semester.
Stay tuned for separate blog posts of the places I’ve traveled and my experiences! 
� tout!
Emily

Location: Montpellier, France

Sans Titre

I’m not sure what to title this entry, therefore it is untitled. My week has been quite eventful with various unfortunate events. However I’m still in France so how bad can life be? 

Unfortunate event #1
At the beginning of the week I had used up all my credit on my prepaid phone which was supposed to last 2 months, not 3 weeks. Then I discovered “unlimited texting” is only unlimited nights and weekends. Whaaaaaaat? At this rate I’d be spending 25 euro every 3 weeks… not cool. I discovered a new phone plan that is only 2 euro a month plus a 10euro SIM card. SCORE! However I had to go 5 days without being to contact people, so that was a little hard, but totally worth it.
Unfortunate event #2
Living in an apartment that was here during WWI is pretty cool, except the faulty electricity. We had been living without the main lights for about a week, which was manageable because we had lamps, wifi and all of our main appliances. Then suddenly all of our electricity goes out. So we had a big german man named Lutz come fix our electric, which he did… for a couple hours. Then it all goes out again. So throughout the week we were dealing with electricity that would only work when it was in the mood too. So that meant our wifi would go out a lot, meaning no contact with the outside world. Not having a working cell phone didn’t help the situation.
Unfortunate event #3
I wonder, how do we get hot water? Well it must have something to do with electricity because we ran out of hot water. Even though I live in the south of France, it is definitely not warm enough here for a freezing cold shower. So without faulty electric and hot water, I was unable to shower and do my laundry. Thankfully I have kind enough friends to let me shower at their place. I really didn’t want to prove the stereotype true that French people don’t shower.
On the brighter side…
There is always something to be happy about when your living in Monpellier. First the weather! It was gorgeous this week in the high 50s. 
On Tuesday I met with my contact family for dinner. It was great! I met Corinne and she showed me around the school where she is La Directrice. A pretty important job, especially since she is the first woman to hold this position. It was a catholic school for boys and girls. I can’t remember when it was built, but it’s pretty old.
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This is the courtyard where they can play outside for recess. We also toured other parts of the school. She even showed me vocal practice for a group of kids about 5 or 6. The teacher was playing the piano and they were singing.
After that she drove me back to her house where I met her husband and two sons. She has a lovely home! It has a real modern feel, somewhat similar to the interior styles of the U.S. I helped her prepare dinner. I helped her cut the calamari. It was kind of gross feeling, but it was delicious! I also tried some bread with this olive spread and a tomato basil spread as well. Olives are very popular close to the mediterranean. We enjoyed a delicious meal with calamari, 

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clams, linguini, and bread of course. After that a cheese plate with my favorite roquefort. Dessert was great! It was le galette de rois, but special to Montpellier. It is a cake with a little toy inside “le f�ve” they used to use a bean, but now it’s a little toy so you can collect them. They showed me their collection of f�ves. There was Winnie the Pooh and Draco Malfoy. If you get the f�ve in your piece of cake you’re the king and you get to wear a crown. I found the f�ve so I was the king! My f�ve was one of wise-men, I kinda wish it was Draco Malfoy though haha. It was a great night and a great chance for me to practice my french. The family was so nice and welcoming I can’t wait to spend more time more them!
The rest of the week was kind of mellow considering I was living in darkness and I wasn’t feeling too hot. Probably because my diet consists of bread, cheese and nutella. Going to class was a little rougher than usual, but I managed to survive.
On Saturday we went to Marseille. It is the second most populated city in France, but twice the size of Paris. It was beautiful but kind of boring. We took a tour of the museum where we saw a guillotine among other things. After that we had free time, where I had the most amazing d�jeuner. Mussels stuffed with escargot, followed by the traditional dish of bouillabaisse and a chocolate pie for dessert. Top if off with free pink champagne from out waiter. Miam!
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Yes I ate everything, basically the entire Mediterranean sea, and it was amazing!  After that meal we took another tour around the city to explore some important buildings and boating docks. It was a lot of fun, but I wish I had more time to explore on my own. Like visit Notre-Dame de la Garde and go inside the cathedral. I still had a wonderful visit and the food was definitely worth it! IMG_1018.JPG
Today, Lutz came back today with Christoph, our landlord, to fix our electricity and hot water. Yey! Now everything seems to be working and I hope it stays like this. I was able to finish all my homework for this week because I had no netflix to distract me so now I have a lot of free time. Time to explore, my mission is to find the best baguette of Montpellier. Challenge accepted! 
I have also been craving a big venti iced latte from Starbucks. I know there are Starbucks in France somewhere.  I will find you and I will buy you.

Location: Montpellier, France

C’est genial!

I can’t believe I’ve been here for over 3 weeks already! This is crazy. This past week was a little bit more relax then the weeks before. My classes have been fairly easy, they are super long, but not too taxing. I decided to take Economy and Sociology and Culture and Heritage as my two optional courses. So I have no class Monday, class 8-12 on Tuesday, 9-11 Wednesday, 10:30 – 7:30 Thursday (disgusting, but I do have an hour break) and then 9-11 and 1:30-3 on Friday. So it’s not too bad but Thursdays are rough for me, really rough.

 I definitely think my French has improved! Especially my comprehension I just need to muster up the confidence to spit out a somewhat intelligent conversation with actual opinions not just:
“Bonjour”
“�a va?”
“�a va”
“Avoir”
“Bonne Journ�e”
I have gotten really good and ordering baguettes and croissants. I think I will survive. 
Last week I went to conversation night at a pub to talk with some of the French students. They talked in English and we spoke in French. Obviously I’m not fluent, but we had a solid discussion about the insane prices of tuition at universities in the states. The french students were amazed considering they only pay like 400 euro a year. 
Last weekend was a lot of fun! We started out Friday with Karaoke night at a bar where basically all abroad students in our group went. It was a lot of fun. A crowded bar filled with students screaming the lyrics to “Don’t Stop Believing” followed by numerous tracks of Adele. It was a great night besides the fact there wasn’t enough time for me to debut my rap skills by busting out Big Poppa by Biggie Smalls. I guess I’ll have to sign up a little earlier next karaoke night.
Right after karaoke I left will my friends to visit Corconne, a town (I guess?) in the countryside of Montpellier. So much fun! It was the same place I went to the first week where we toured the winery and ate diner my friend’s French family. It was great to spend the weekend there. We spent Saturday touring the winery, wine tasting, and a little hiking. We experienced a delicious french food “raclette”
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Miam miam! You melt the raclette cheese with these little frying pans and put it on meat and potatoes. The cheese on the potatoes was absolutely amazing! 
After a belly full of cheese, we ventured off for our hike. we even brought Luna, my friends dog.
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In France dogs can drive, but they need a license of course. Luna can even drive stick.






























Can you spot Luna?
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After a wonderful day hiking, eating and drinking wine we finished the day with pizza, beer and some Fifa. Perfect end to a perfect day.
The olympics have started! Too bad I don’t have a T.V. in my apartment to watch. Even though I’m in France I will always root for Ameirca. U.S.A.  U.S.A   U.S.A.
Here is a link to a short montage of my experience so far! Montpellier
� bient�t mes amis!

Location: Montpellier, France

Bonne Journée!

Salut 🙂

Usually when you leave a class, store or friend is accustomed to say “Bonne Journ�e” meaning “Have a good day!”.Today is such a good day! I had class this morning then I went to the office to fill out some papers and talk to one of the program assistants about a contact family. So I will have a family I can talk and chat with when they are avaiable. C’est genial! Then I got a membership at a gym “Keep Cool” where an adorable  young french man helped me and my friend purchase gym memberships. Later I did some shopping where I got a jacket 50% off from a popular French store “Etam”. After that I discovered this organic market, or Bio as they say in French. There I asked a nice old lady if there was vegetarian food, and yes there was! Plenty of soy burgers, tofu hot dogs and chick’n nuggets. Of course it was pretty expensive but I was happy to find it. It is so difficult to find these products in France. There is no gluten-free or organic isle like in American grocery stores. Plus the weather is great today, sunny and in the high 50’s, so I’m going to go for a run in the park by the mini Arc de Triumph. Tonight I’ll probably grab some drinks with some friends. I might do some homework at some point, but so far my teacher’s have yet to collect it or even ask for all of it. So I’m thinking it’s more of a “do it if you feel the need to” type of thing.
Bonne Journ�e!

Location: Montpellier, France

La semaine dernière

Salut tout le monde!

So this week has been quite busy for me. I started classes and went to a lot of awesome places! Last Saturday I went to a match du football (soccer game) Montpellier vs. Nice. It was a lot of fun! I went with a couple of my friends and one of them brought her host brother.  Of course Montpellier won! The stadium wasn’t very elaborate but the atmosphere was very similar to an American sporting event. There were groups banging drums, waving flags and yelling chants “Allez Montpellier!” the entire game. However it was weird that not many fans wore the Montpellier colors Blue and Orange. C’�tait genial! 
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On Sunday we went to the zoo and the best part was it was free! There were monkeys, snakes, rhinos, giraffes and my favorite, ostriches. There were so many families and little kids running around playing. It was a great way to spend a Sunday.

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After a great weekend we had to face the inevitable, classes. Unfortunately studying abroad means you actually have to study. We got our results from our placement test on Monday. I placed in B1. Most students place in A2 or B1. I was surprised to be placed in the higher group considering my lack of French courses, but I was a little excited to get started. My courses are mostly language and grammar, but we can also take two optional courses. I think I am going to choose Economy and Sociology and either Theater or Culture and Heritage.Good news is I don’t have class on Mondays. Bad news is I have class until 7:30pm on Thursdays and each of my classes are an hour to two hours long. I am really not used to this and I am not liking it! 
Our classes are with other foreign students as well. I made friends with a Belgian girl, a Norwegian girl and a guy from Columbia. I love the diversity. However we all speak English so we rarely use French for communication, which I think is a little upsetting because I was hoping to utilize my French more than I currently am. That being said I feel I definitely am missing out not living with a host family. The apartment is nice because you are independent, but at this point I feel my French has barely improved and I am not experiencing real French life. The program does offer the opportunity to contact French families just to meet and converse, something I am planning on doing. 
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My diet so far has been a lot a lot a lot and even more bread. I’ve had many croissants and baguettes and also plenty of cheese and wine. Of course it is delicious, but I am getting a little tired of all the carbs. I plan on going to grocery store and incorporating some fresh fruits and vegetables back into my life. 
Finally to end my week, a ski trip to the French Alps! It was a really great experience. I may not be the best skier, but it was a weekend I will never forget. About 50 students from our program went. We stayed in a lodge where we enjoyed each other’s company, some great food and of course a ski adventure! On Saturday I took a lesson to brush up on my skills. I have skied before, but I am not that coordinated. After feeling somewhat confident I decided to go up the mountain to a blue slope. To my surprise it was so much more difficult than the slopes I am used to. I fell countless times and really strugled. After managing to survive I think I had had enough for the day. On Sunday it was back to the slopes where I was determined to redeem myself. I went down the mountain again, after an intense photoshoot at the top of course, and had a blast! I didn’t fall as much and I really felt I was getting better. 
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It was shocking to see all the young children skiing who were so much better than I was. Skiing seems to be not just a past time, but a passion in France. 
I am looking forward to creating more incredible memories like this in the weeks to come! Until the next adventure.
� bient�t!
Emily

Location: Montpellier, France

C’est Bizarre!

Since I’ve been in France I have realized several things that are very different than America.

  1. They are very eco- friendly. You have to use reusable bags at the grocery store and you are rarely given plastic bags at small stores.
  2. Smoking is very sociably acceptable. People smoke all the time everywhere.
  3. Makeup and beauty products are a lot more expensive. O.P.I. nail polish was 14€, and I though $7 was expensive!
  4. You can stay in a restaurant for awhile, they won’t rush you like in America.
  5. Dogs are everywhere! In the mall, in the streets and even on the tram, but I’m not sure if that was allowed.
  6. People don’t grocery shop once every two weeks like in America. They buy things when they need them. Food is a lot more fresh!
  7. Electricity is a lot more expensive, so people rarely leave lights on when not needed.
  8. Public bathrooms are very rare and if you find one it is most likely very disgusting.
  9. Not everyone is mean! The French have a reputation of being snooty and rude, but actually some people are very willing to help you out. I even got a random compliment from a French woman. You just have to know the people to talk to.
  10. Despite the stereotype, not all French people wear berets. However they all seem to wear leather jackets.
  11. Almost everyone speaks or knows a little English. When someone says something that I don’t understand I say “Pardon?” and they may repeat themselves in English.  It is nice to be able to communicate, but it makes it harder to learn French.
  12. Clothes are made for smaller people. In America I am usually an XS or S, but in France I’m either a S or M. Talk about a blow to your self-esteem.
  13. Cars are also a lot smaller and they all look very similar. People also seem to park in very obscure spots. They also for most part just drive stick, so I’m sure I won’t be doing any driving in France.
I’m sure I will discover a lot more differences during my time abroad. Everyday I discover something new. I am starting to feel a little less out of place and a little more at home each day!

À Bientôt!
Emily

Location: Montpellier, France

Bienvenue!

Sal�t tout le monde!
So I’ve been in Montpellier for about 5 days now and I love it! We arrived here on Monday after a long flight to Paris and finally to Montpellier after a 6 hour layover. There are 15 students in my program. A lot are from University of Minnesota.There are also some from Penn State and other universities such as Boston College and Purdue.
The first night we stayed in a lovely hotel near Place de la Com�die. As soon as we arrived in Montpellier we explored the city!. We went to a small caf�, Brioche Dor�e where I got a sandwich with salmon and vegetables. Then we went to a restaurant to meet up with the rest of our group who hadn’t eaten yet. Of course we got a bottle of wine.
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The second day we went to our housing assignments. Mine got changed and now I will be living in an apartment. I’m a little upset I won’t have a close relationship with a French family, but I love my apartment. It is right on Place de la Com�die! It is so close to everything it’s perfect. 
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This is the inside of my apartment. It’s on the ground floor so it’s easy to get to, but not much sunlight get’s in which is a little upsetting. There is a little balcony outside where I have a view of a small garden and other apartments. It’s very french I think! I have one other roommate, Courtney. She goes to Penn State as well. It doesn’t feel quite like I’m living here yet. I’m sure it will take awhile to get used to it. Especially our bathroom which is very french, it even has a bidet. I highly doubt I will be using it for it’s intended purpose

Right outside my apartment is Trois Gr�ces, it is a famous fountain that a lot of people use as a meeting spot. 

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Tuesday night we went to the “country side” of Montpellier. My friend here has a close friend who lives in Montpellier. We were able to tour the winery where we works and have a typical French dinner with his family. His family only spoke French so it was a great opportunity for us to practice. There were a lot of courses! First some ap�ritifs when we were chatting, then we sat and the table for our main course. First was a salad then the main dish followed by a cheese plate and of course desert! Top it off with a small espresso. Yum, I could get used to French food.
On Wednesday we had our placement tests. It was so difficult! There was a writing and oral part of the exam. I’m sure I will placed pretty low considering I have only been studying French for two semesters, but I know I will get better. The instructor of the oral exam said I definitely need to practice my french, but I have a good accent and it’s only a little American. I’m trying to have a positive outlook on the language barrier. People talk so fast here it’s hard to understand exactly what they are saying. I am proud of myself for my french so far. I have been able to order my food at restaurants, visit shops, purchase my tram pass and have very small simple conversations all in French.  It’s bit scary using a new language in normal situations, but I’m feeling more accustomed to it already.
Fun fact, there are a lot of dogs here. They are everywhere! If homeless people have dogs they can’t get arrested. It’s kind of weird to get used to.
� bient�t!
Emily

Location: Montpellier, France

Bon Voyage!

Bonjour!

     It’s getting closer and closer to my departure date, January 19th! My excitement and nerves are building up immensely. Soon I will be on my way to France for a four month adventure in Montpellier. On my way there I will take a brief stop in Paris which I wish could be longer, but I’ll make sure to visit the capital during my stay. I also plan to travel around the country as well as Europe during my abroad experience. I already registered for a ski trip to the Alps! 

    Thankfully this won’t be my first trip to France. I was actually in Paris this time last year! I had a great trip, but I am excited to return to the country as a student, not just a tourist. I received my housing assignment a few weeks ago. I’ll be staying with an older French couple in downtown Montpellier. They have a son in law school and a small dog. I am thrilled to be staying in a homestay. It is a great opportunity to practice my French and really experience a life in the south of France. I am going to bring them small gifts to show my appreciation, one from Penn State and one from my hometown in Maryland. However, I am a little worried considered I have only had 2 semesters of French. I have been practicing my writing and speaking skills, but I’m hoping they know a little English to help me out if I need it. My main concern is I will be perceived as rude or inconsiderate considering I don’t know the cultural norms. Hopefully they will be understanding of my American tendencies. Worst case scenario, I can always befriend the dog. No language barrier there!

     As for packing, I have yet to start. I’m just trying to wrap my mind around the concept of putting a semester’s worth of clothes into a suitcase. It seems like an impossible feat, but I’m sure I will manage. Plus, if I forget anything it’s just an excuse to go shopping in France! 


I can’t wait to post pictures and videos of my experiences abroad! My next post will be in France!
� bient�t!
Emily

Location: Eldersburg, MD