I have a lot of respect for those crazy enough to do a year long exchange

Oh wait, I'm crazy enough to do a year long exchange. Don't get me wrong, I love France. It's really amazing here, and I know my language skills are improving. I can follow adult conversations (because, unlike teens, they speak slower, don't use slang, and take turns talking) and I'm learning new words.

I am, however, really starting to miss the comfort of having a circle of friends who know everything about me and love me anyway. I know I can count on my new friends here to help me out, but I don't want to be burdensome or annoying. Also, when everyone around you is speaking in another language and giggling frequently, you can't help but fear that they're laughing at you.

Anyway, it helps to know that these feelings are natural, and not permanent, either, and I'm always finding some new activity or subject to learn about to keep myself occupied.

Stage à Voile

So the week long boating trip with my school has ended (sadly) but I've definitely learned a lot, like some slang French words for stomach, and how to sail a catamaran.

Monday morning, after school photos, the bus left, loaded up with all the Premiere class students (that's Juniors, in America). After a drive of about two hours, we reached Biscarosse, a lake town with a sailing school! I paired up with a friend, Francois, and we both decided to learn to sail catamaran, which was definitely a unique experience.

At first the week seemed really daunting. I mean, I was away from my host home, surrounded by dozens of kids who all spoke another language. Things got better, however, and I think the experience helped me to understand what people are saying, and follow conversations.

And did I mention I learned to sail? Oh yeah, I can set up the boat, steer, turn, adjust the sails for the direction of the wind, and even hang out over the water suspended by a wire attached to the mast, to maintain the equilibrium as the boat goes speeding across the water. I'm pretty pleased with myself.

And, on the bus ride back, I sat with Rafaele, who helped me learn some new vocabulary by teaching me the words of the bus, and then of course quizzing me on them later. Now I know all sorts of useful French words for net, ashtray, handle, and window. Hooray!

CHapter 6: In Which Some Stuff Happens

So, school is moving forward, and as time moves on, I've started to lose track of how long I've been here (two and a half weeks, but it feels much longer). I've been put into three different sixth grade French classes, because it's at an easier level and hopefully it will help me become fluent more quickly. If I want, I could drop these classes, but I think they're helping me right now. I'm still spending the bulk of my class time in what corresponds to the Junior year in the US anyway.

I have experienced a bit of a fright, however. One of the sixieme teachers is absolutely terrifying. We'll just leave it at that in case, by some horrific freak occurrence, she finds my blog. Part of me says I can drop the class if it's so terrible, but the kids! They are absolutely the sweetest kids I've ever met. I first met them when I asked which class they were, to make sure I was in the right place, and within seconds they were all crowded around me asking me where I was from, how old I was, how long I'd been here, how long I was staying, who was I staying with, did I have any pets back home, what were their names? They are all so sweet and friendly. It seems the grouchier their teacher is, the more friendly they become, and everyone who knows me should know how much I love children. They're so creative and intelligent and open! I feel I can't abandon them just like that.

Also, my host family basically owns a forest! I didn't know until today, when I decided to go for a little walk, and it turned into a full-out romp through the woods! The land is basically endless! Well, no, not endless, because I did reach the end, but nevertheless it's expansive, and I'm really looking forward to more exploring, provided I can avoid the snakes, because I guess the snakes here are pretty nasty.

Anyway, I'm leaving tomorrow morning for a boating week with the school. I still haven't decided whether I want to learn windsurfing, katmaran, or regular sailing. Tough decisions. I'll be sure to update on how it all goes as soon as I get back!

Pardon my French!

So I've been having a lot of fun picking up new words, especially those that are strange or sound funny. For example, the word for seal ("foque") sounds an awful lot like the F word. I just have to remind myself when I use it that it's French, and believe me, I've had to use it pretty frequently because people like to ask me about the marine life in California.

When my peers find out I'm from America, they always ask me if I've been to Las Vegas, not New York or LA, but always Las Vegas. French teenagers harbor a mild obsession for Las Vegas. I've also heard a lot of music in English. I'm absolutely sick of Viva la Vida and I Kissed a Girl; it seems like every time someone turns on the radio or TV, one of those songs is playing!

Speaking hasn't gotten much easier (that I can tell). People still have to speak slowly and ennunciate, and every now and then someone will ask me something and, even though I know the words, it just won't register, and I kind of stare at them stupidly until they explain. But people are understanding and friendly, and I know in a few months it will be no problem at all.

Hi, I'm Vicki, and I attend a Catholic school

That's right, I'm attending a Catholic school. I haven't noticed anything specifically Catholic about it yet, though, except for the chapel, and a priest. I assume he teaches religion classes, but I haven't had him yet. As for the other classes, it's really hard to keep up with what's going on, but the teachers are nice and understanding. I've only had two half days of school so far. On Wednesdays, school always gets out early, but don't be jealous my American pals back home, because school goes until six in the evening every other day.

I have two classes in English: English itself, and a geography history thing. I wish my old high school taught classes in other languages. It'd make studying French so much easier. Anyway, I'm not too worried about those classes, since last I checked I was fluent in English, but my other classes are going to be a lot more challenging. Everything's a bit overwhelming. Even the binder paper is different (it's thicker and has about a thousand more lines).

But sitting in a classroom listening to a teacher talk about "science de la vie" isn't nearly as hard as making friends. For the last two days I've just tagged along with my host sister Mathilde, but being around a group of French girls is difficult. They all talk fast, and at the same time, and sometimes break off into giggles. It's very hard for me to even understand what they're saying. But I did somewhat confidently answer some questions a boy posed to me today after school, and I felt good about that. My French may not be great, but at least I'm learning to communicate. And that's the entire reason I came, right?

The French can eat anything with chocolate

At least that's what I'm discovering. They have chocolate in their cereal; not chocolate flavored cereal, but actual pieces of chocolate in their cereal. And yogurt too. What we consider pudding, they consider chocolate yogurt. And you know how people say the French wo,en are skinny because they eat in small portions? Not true. They eat a ton. Every meal (even dinner, which, as Gilles told me, is a small meal) has three or four courses. I am going to get so fat.

I've been having a lot of adventures before school starts. Friday, Sylvie, Mathilde and I went to the beach, and I cut my poor foot up on some underwater rocks, but besides that it was oodles of fun. Oh, and women don't wear bathing suit tops if they don't want to. Definitely a sign of culture differences between here and the US, because Mathilde told me that there was a nudist beach a few kilometers over, indicating that this was not one.

Saturday, Gilles took Mathilde and I to Lourdes, a place where a few hundred years ago a shepherd saw a vision of the Virgin Mary. Now the town gets millions of pilgrims each year. The cathedrals there were enormous, and really ornate. It's hard to describe except to say that it's breathtaking. Unfortunately, my camera decided to stop working once we got to Lourdes. It's better now, but that was unfortunate.

School starts tomorrow, so there'll be a lot less of me romping around the countryside, but Sylvie has arranged for me to participate in drama, yes, drama, at the lycée. Which will no doubt be insanely difficult, but good for my language skills!