I have been in Europe for almost seven weeks now and I have spent five full weeks in Besancon.  I have been here long enough that this city is beginning to feel like a home.  Here is a brief overview of the routine I have gotten into:

            7:30: Wake up and get ready for class

            8:00: Leave house to take the bus

            8:30: Begin class at the CLA

11:30: Walk into Centre Ville (downtown) to get lunch at one of the

restaurants (can be as cheap as 4 euros)

            1:30:  M, F – go for another two hours of class.

                     W – go on a sortie pedagogique (field trip) to a neighboring French town

         T, Th – go to Atelier (an elective class).  For June I did French Songs, 

                   and in July I did French Cinema.

            3:30: Finish class and hang out/explore downtown

            7:30: Get back for dinner at my house

            9:30: Finish dinner and talking with my host mom, and relax or do homework

before going to sleep

 

The first few weeks of such a packed schedule were exhausting, especially when it was paired with adjusting to a different lifestyle and being away from my friends and family.  However, now it has become easy to manage such long days and I would not have it any other way.  I just wish I would have known these few things before embarking on my trip:

1. The internet is slow.  Every host family is required to provide internet to their students and while it gets the job done, it might mean that your Skype calls get dropped and your movie on Netflix will have to wait until you get back home.  The Internet and Wi-Fi in hostels and hotels are always gambles, too.

2. The toilets are not free.  While you may find free bathrooms sprinkled around a city, those in malls and train stations will require 5 to 50 centimes, and most times they will need exact change.  Also, you will always need to buy something to use a restaurant’s bathroom.  Remember to always carry a little bit of change with you!

3. Restaurants and cafes move a lot slower in Europe than they do in the USA.  Sometimes you will have to go find your waiter if you want to order or get your check and make sure you put in enough time for eating if you are on a tight schedule.  Speaking of restaurants, make sure you know the tipping customs of the country you are in.

4. Everything is closed on Sundays.  Seriously.  Except movie theatres.  So if you need to pick something up, definitely do it on Saturday.  Stores also close after 7 P.M. and they can have funky hours, like being closed during lunch or on random week-days.  So do your research before you walk across town to go to a museum that is closed on Tuesdays.

5.  You probably know that Europe has a great railway system connecting major cities, but small cities and towns can get… tricky.  Sometimes it can mean many stops and connections.  To find the best rates, you should either get a Eurail pass or a Carte Jeune (a student discount card).  Also, going to the SNCF store and asking the vendor what trains to take based on your schedule is a great way to simply find the cost when the websites get complicated.  They are super friendly there, too.  On another note, airfare can be super cheap within Europe, so always consider flying an option.

6. Dinner is later.  In the U.S. oftentimes families eat dinner around 6 or 7, but it is not rare in France to have dinner at 8 or even 9 at night.  This might work well for some people but I know that I get hungry around 4 or 5 so I would always eat a little snack.

In the beginning it is easier to notice a country’s differences and define it by what sets them apart from our own country.  But, I realized that people are just people. Just because we do a few things differently does not mean we are all that different and it should not distract from all the things we have in common and do the same.

Location: Besancon, France