Tomorrow will be exactly two weeks since I have left for France. It’s crazy how fast it is going by but I also feel like I’ve been here for months. I’m in love with this city and am starting to assimilate more and more each day. My French is steadily improving, especially my oral French since I was only able to use it in class (my parents have never even heard me speak it really!)
My class situation has been difficult here though. My program has put me in a level that is far beneath what I am capable of and they said I cannot take a literature class (which I need for Salve) unless I’m in the level C1. In Europe they use levels or “niveaux” which consist of A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2. However, I have already completed a French literature class at Salve and did well in there. So on Friday I’m going to bring my transcript to the “secretariat” or the Registrar to show I am capable of being in a higher level and fight for my case! Fingers crossed that it will work 🙂
Other than my class level my program is really awesome. I love most of the teachers. The male professor I had today was absolutely awesome! He really cares about us improving and is not afraid to correct us and have us read the sentence over again if we do not pronounce it correctly until we do. In my opinion those are the things that are going to be most beneficial to us. It was actually funny because my other teacher I had this morning told us that if we are really tired lately that it was completely normal since we are listening, processing, and speaking another language most of the time so our brain was in overdrive. I didn’t even really think of that so it put me at ease because I was honestly starting to think I was getting mono or something! Also, there are a bunch of trips my programs offers which include Florence and Paris. When we pay for the trip we are paying for transportation, the hotel, and the meals which is an awesome deal! I’m looking forward to doing one or a couple of those. Since my program is all about learning French the students that are in it all from all of the world. There are students from China, Japan, Venezuela, Spain, Armenia, Iran, and many more. There aren’t as many Americans as I expected but I have met a few 🙂
I know it has only been two weeks and it will take about a month to really get settled so I’m hoping that all of the kinks will work itself out soon. But for now I have a host family that is super nice and is doing more than I could ask for. Especially catering to my eating habits which is hard to do since I’m so picky! My host mom was talking to me tonight about how it must be difficult for my mother to try and make something that my sister, my brother, and I will all like and I told her that my mom is an awesome cook and it has always been that we either eat the meal she is making or we make something ourselves (which I’ve never complained about because I love to cook!) and I told her she could do the same 🙂 I’m very lucky to be in such a beautiful city and have such a nice host family! I’ll will try to keep everyone updated!
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