Family Stay
Each student was asked to write about their experience during the family stay. We suggested that they include each of the following:
1 – something that was really fun
2 – something that was surprising or shocking
3 – something that was difficult
4 – something that was different
Here are the responses that we received:
I was always very surprised when everyone would give me a kiss on the cheek. When I had never even seen them before. It was so natural to them though.
6/27/06 Tuesday
I was always very surprised when everyone would give me a kiss on the cheek. When I had never even seen them before. It was so natural to them though.
In France, they don’t use bread plates, so the table gets very messy. My family would cut and eat all the bread, cheese, and salami directly on the table. It was very different because in my real family, the goal is to keep the table as clean as possible!
The most difficult thing for me while staying with my family was understanding what they said, though it became a little easier eventually as I got used to it. They sympathized with me though, telling me that Bretagne is known for incredibly fast accents.
Though everything we did was really fun, I would have to say that the most unique thing I always enjoyed was spending time with the four girls before dinner, either playing outside or sometimes watching the world cupt. The family lived in a forest, so their backyard was essentially a huge field with a gorgeous view. I especially liked playing badminton with the little ones.
Overall, this was a fantastic experience that I will never forget. It has made me think a lot, and I will miss them very much!
- Julia W.
Living with a French family was a completely new experience for me. I was shocked to realize how similar their families were to ours, though there were also very distinct differences.
For example, when one person sees a friend or meets a new person, they are given two kisses, one on each cheek. I’ve always been more of a shaking hands and hugging person, but I thought it was a good way to introduce oneself. I found it exceedingly difficult at first to get past the language barrier, but as the week went on, it became increasingly easier until I was almost unaware of a language barrier. It was also hard to know if my manners were correct and if my actions were acceptable in a French home. I think everyone found that they were really well matched, and that their correspondent was a good fit for them. Needless to say, there were quite a few tears when it came time to say goodbye to the host families. It is difficult to choose what was the most fun, because everything we did was new and exciting. From our first metro ride to meeting people we couldn’t communicate with nearly as easily as we were used to. Parents, I’m sure your children will be thanking you for this trip for years to come.
-Kiley K.
The family stay has been the best part of my trip to France so far.
I was most surprised by the way that Aurore’s, my sister, friends acted towards me. Before I arrived, I thought that they would be very judgemental of me. But by the first day that we were there, I was soon proved wrong. We all seemed to bond extremely well, and stayed close the entire time. I was also surprised at how different their meals were. We always had enormous lunches which were very hard to get used to. Also, it was very difficult to get past the language barrier on the first night. But, by the second night, there was almost no language barrier. This led to the best part of my stay with my family which were the nights that Aurore and I spent together. By overcoming the language barrier, we were able to spend almost every single night talking and laughing together. I am very glad that we did the family stay, because it was one of the best experiences of my life.
- Beth L.
June 27, 2006 – Tuesday
Dear Readers –
Today we woke up and left our families :( It was extremely difficult for some of us (Yes...I cried.).
It was all worthwhile. I think we all LOVED it. I’d have to say the most shocking thing was breakfast. Okay... who has hot chocolate every morning for breakfast? I was in love. Other than that the other shocking thing was giving kisses on the cheek to everyone you know or meet. Not at all a bad thing (especially if you’re meeting a cute boy :) ). I see a new trend for Minnesota once the Frenchies (us) get back. A different thing I noticed was they ALWAYS wore their shoes in the house. If I was at home I could hear my mom saying “Hey, why don’t you take off your shoes and stay awhile?” The most difficult thing for me was hot knowing whether my natural actions were insulting to them. Like, taking a long shower, or not eating all my food. It was really hard to decipher. All in all it was extremley fun. I felt as if I was paired with the perfect girl =:) I loved how her friends planned the days out so we wouldn’t be bored. It was spectacular and it truly showed us what French teenagers do. It was AMAZING. To all you parents – seriously – thank you. This is the best summer a lot of us could ask for. We all appreciate it.
Thanks and ciao!!
- Nina J.
Blog – Family Stay – Rachel T.
The family stay was actually enjoyable despite my preconceived notions.
Marion (my fost sister) turned out to be really nice and fun. During the stay, I actually saw most of my friends everyday and I loved meeting everyone’s correspondents, they were so French and cute and nice. After all the hype about table manners it was shocking that the family was so casual about dinner. The most different part of the whole family stay was their eeating habits because they eat later than us for every meal. I enjoyed shopping in Rennes with everyone and their correspondents. The most difficult thing was to speak French the entire time. By the end though, I got used to it.
Hey mom and dad!
Looooove,
Rachel
Blog- Family Stay – Nancy D.
The most shcoking thing about the family stay was how small the language barrier was.
Between my French, Cécile’s small amount of English, and some acting, we all understood one another. One of the most different things was the meal schedule – late large lunch and late small dinner. The food was mostly good except for a tomatoy/fishy muffin thing. I loved getting to know my girl and her friends and family. As the stay progressed it became very easy to speak and understand French. I learned more about the culture too. At the Fête de la Musique, I asked one of Cécile’s friends if this boy next to Cécile was her boyfriend, and the friend burst out laughing. It turns out the boy was her cousin. The hardest thing was becoming comfortable with a family of strangers.
Family Stay Blog Entry – Hannah T.
1) Somthing that shocked me during the family stay was ...
the tradition of kisses. I never always knew the amount to give and it was a constant surprise. Is it 4? 2? 1? or even 3? This was a shock.
2) The most different thing was the amount they ate! They ate so many courses and I realized that I was barely ever hungry.
3) My correspondant took me to her friend’s birthday party. It was so much fun! We played games and had a water fight. It totally reminded me that body language is a key component in communication. It was so much fun!
4) Talking in French constantly was really difficult to adjust to. They spoke really fast and I didn’t always know all the words.
Blog – Andrew Ch:
The most surprising thing was how warm everyone was.
They all welcomed me. The most difficult was understanding people at school. The most different was that they were almost never home. The most fun was playing soccer with the family.
When I arrived I was nervous about how I would be accepted by my family. I did not need to worry because they were nice. They were actually very similar to my family. The most shocking thing was the number of youths who smoked and drank. The most enjoyable thing was the appreciation of football. The food was different but better than in the U.S. The stay was a great experience and I wish I could haved stayed longer.
unsigned
Blog post of ?? Anna ??:
Overall, my family stay was a great experience and I really learned a lot.
At first I was rather shy and very unsure of myself whenever I said anything. As the days progressed I learned many new words and was able to understand more of what they said. Cassandie, my buddy, was very nice and we did a lot of fund things together. We shopped, talked, learned about each others cultures, met new people, went to the night club and watched French movies and ate. When I first got there I was expecting everything to be different but I was shocked to find that their lifestyle was very similar to mine and nothing they did really shocked me. The most difficult thing that I had to do was constantly speak and comprehend French. It was tiring and sometimes frustrating. The thing that was most different was the method of transportation they used. First there was the tiny cars, then the metro which is very practival and nice. The best thing was going to the night club and seeing how different it is compared to the U. S. I loved my family stay and I became close with my family and their friends. It was very fun and interesting to learn such new things and see everything from a different point of view.
unsigned
Family stay blog entry
At first the family stay was very akward and nerve racking, but gradually we both (the family and I) got used to each other and loosened up.
One thing that shocked me was at the first dinner, (and at all the meals) the family was very casual. My host girl, Mrise, had one hand in her lap, the entire meal. That was refreshing and relaxing after all the hype about having perfect manners. At first almost everything they said was complete gibberish, but every day I gradually picked up more and more and by the end of my stay I could understand most of what they said. the most rewarding part of my experience was probably bonding with my family and understanding more of their culture. One thing that was really different was how the bathroom and toilet were separate rooms. Another thing was my family seemed to have shortage trash recepticles. The most difficult thing was trying to speak to them, an analogy that I thought of was that speaking to them was much like playing the game taboo. For those who don’t know, in the game Taboo, one has to convey a certain word to the members of one’s team (or their host family) without using a certain list of words, because of this, one ends up describing things like one’s nose as “the protuberance on one’s face” – explaining things in ridiculous ways, in a desperate attempt to get the point across. Speaking French to my host family was much like that, especially because they did not speak any English.
Shock – one thing that shocked me at the family stay was the community and informal feel of the extended family in the village.
One difference was the amount and frequency of home-cooked meals served.
I really enjoyed the music festival and meeting all of the friends of my correspondant.
It was difficult to adjust to speaking French at all times. Expressing strong emotions is always challenging in a foreign language.
It was shocking that in order to go swimming you have to wear a speedo. It was different that the toilets and showers were in different rooms. It is difficult to understand what people are saying. It is fun to eat the different desserts.
Blog post de Megan W.
Hi Mom & Dad!
The family stay was better than I expected.
We had each day planned out for us, which was unexpected, but welcome because I was worried that we might be searching for things to do . We went to the beach, pool, went to a movie, a concert, shopping, a modern dance show and a few French festivals. The most shocking thing for me was that they wore the same clothes most of the time. What was the most different thing was that eating habits because they eat a lot in the afternoon and morning and we eat a lot at night. Plus we eat an earlier meal rather than a later one. The whole stay was fun, but it was really difficult to speak in French all the time though it was fun seeing them try to speak English.
Bye!
Megan
Blogfest of Andrew Co:
The family stay was really fun and I enjoyed myself immensely. It was fun.
I played golf, soccer with Briac’s friends, and I played gamecube with Antoine and Briace. The most difficult thing and the most shocking thing was trying to understand them because they talked so fast. I went to the market with them and it was totally different from Cub foods in the U.S.
My family stay was one of the best experiences in my entire life.
Of course, the first night with them was extremely nerve racking but we managed to open up to each other (Aurélie and I). I would say my favorite part of the stay was when my family and I sat down for dinner each night. It was at that time each day that we got to just bond with each other and talk about our lives. Each dinner was tons of fun (and delicious). The most difficult thing was the language barrier. I was still able to communicate, though. I learned so much French from my family. The most shocking ... about my stay in ... was probably the .... It was this ... in the small ... stayed in. They roasted two whole pigs over an open fire and then served them to the hundreds of people gathered there. It was really doog, but the process seemed so barbaric. It was a lot of fun, though. There are so many differences between the French and Americans, but one of the most interesting ones is the gas price. We think we have it bad, but here the price is about $1.50 per liter. My family has a small fiat sedan, and a tank of gas cost them over $65.00.
Please note that Joshua's entry was submitted on a torn piece of paper. The "..." represent parts of the entry that were missing.
The most fun experience I had would be the wedding. It was very interesting to hear a French band sing “Sweet Home Alabama.”
Seeing this drunk dude take off his shirt and air guitaring to the guitar solo of “Sweet Home Alabama” at the wedding
The wedding ceremony was very different. They crammed us in a small room, and the bride, groom, and the witnesses signed their papers. They kissed and we left.
The most difficult part of my family was definitely the language barrier. Even though I learned a ton I did not speak fluent French.
I really enjoyed my family stay. It was a great experience and a ton of fun. The car ride to the house was a little nerve-racking but we opened up to each other by the next day. The second day of my family stay was a blast. Pauline, the French girl I stayed with, and I met some of her friends in Rennes. The next day we woke up early and drove about 3 hours to a wedding. The ceremony was different. It was help in a public office and only lasted about 10 minutes. After the ceremony we went to the reception dinner. The dinner lasted about 5 hours. After the dinner the band came and there was a dance. It was a lot of fun. The third day we drove back to Rennes. During the car ride back I learned a ton by Pauline giving me a sentence in English and telling me to try and translate it into French. The final night of my family stay we had a fantastic dinner. We had a gallette for the main course and crêpes for dessert. It was terrific. My family stay was an experience I will never forget.
Hotels in France
June 20-21
Caen- Hôtel Otelinn
http://www.eztrip.com/220552.html
Avenue du Maréchal Montgomery
F-14000 Caen
Tel: 011-33-2-31-44-34-20
Fax: 011-33-1-31-44-63-80
June 21-22 (this is a change from an earlier list)
St. Malo- Hôtel Mascotte
76, Chaussée du Sillon
F-35400 St Malo
Tel: 011-33-2-99-40-36-36
Fax: 011-33-2-99-40-18-78
June 22-27 Family Stays
Hotel Des Lices (Teachers only)
7, Place des Lices
F-35000 Rennes
Tel: 011-33-2-99-79-14-81
Fax: 011-33-2-99-79-35-44
June 27-28
Tours- Hôtel Criden
http://www.hotel-rates.com/france/tours/criden.html
65, Bd Heureloup
F-37000 Tours
Tel: 011-33-2-47-20-81-14
Fax: 011-33-2-47-05-61-65
June 28 – July 2
Paris- Hôtel Antin Trinité
http://www.france-hotel-guide.com/h75009antin.htm
74, rue de Provence
F-75009 Paris
Tel: 011-33-1-48-74-29-07
Fax: 011-33-1-42-80-26-68
We made it safe and sound. Apparently there was some excitement at the airport just prior to our arrival, but we made it safe and sound.
We made it safe and sound. Apparently there was some excitement at the airport just prior to our arrival, but we made it safe and sound.
Believe it or not our flights were very nice. The service on Continental was the kind of service most of us haven't seen for 10 or more years. We had a long layover in Newark, but that gave us some time to get a bite to eat and plenty of water to drink.
The flight to Paris was fast and fun. Everybody had their own personal entertainment system. Several of the students took advantage of the flight to warm up their French skills. Andrew C. were two stellar examples of this Andrew B. Andrew C., Andrew B., Kathryn A., and Nancy D. were our first four students to go most of the day using French almost exclusively.
After the airport, we boarded the bus (which was a long hike from the terminal due to the morning excitement) and headed to Normandie. We stopped at Giverny: the gardens and home of Claude Monet. Beth L. was the first student to report on her research. She found out that Monet had lived at Giverny for over 40 years. He was known as one of the founders of the impressionist movement. He did a lot of paintings of flowers, turkeys, girls, haystacks, waterlillys, a Japanese bridge and other subjects.
We stopped at a rest stop - not what you think - for lunch. From there we headed deeper into Normandie - straight to Caen to see the chateau of Guillaume le Conquerant. Juila W. shared her information on the city. Caen was the ducal seat of normandie and one of Guillaume's favorite cities. The chateau that we visited is one of the largest fortifications in Europe. We toured the musée de Normandie and learned a lot about the history of the land and it's people, going back thousands of years.
We had our first group meal. We sat down at 7:00 and left the table just after 9:00. Everyone is very tired and most of the students are already asleep.
Tomorrow we will visit the Mémorial, a museum to peace, the D-Day beaches, the American Cemetary and then it will be off to Brittany.
I'll try to get our group picture posted tomorrow.
Here is our basic itinerary:
Arrive in Paris
Giverny - Monet's gardens
Caen - William the Conqueror's home town
Le Mémorial - The Peace Memorial
Saint Mâlo - the port from which the French left to settle Canada
Mont Saint Michel - One of the wonders of the world
Rennes - In the heart of Brittany we'll find our host families
Tours - City on the Loire, the center of the land of châteaux
Paris - Ville Lumière
Read the rest for a few more specifics.
MPA FRENCH TRIP ITINERARY
June 19 Monday – Depart Minneapolis/St Paul
June 20 Tuesday – Arrive in Paris: travel to Caen, visit Giverny on the way, and William the Conqueror’s Castle in Cean.
June 21 Wednesday – Visit The Mémorial de la Paix, drive to the D-day beaches, the American cemetery, and we continue to St Malo.
June 22 Thursday – Visit St Malo in the morning, en route to Mont St Michel for the afternoon, and we travel to Rennes to start our family stay.
June 23 – June 26 – Family stay
June 27 - Tuesday – We travel to Tours via Azay-le-Rideau & Chenonceau castles. We are in the Loire Valley.
June 28 Wednesday – We travel to Paris via Chambord castle & the cathedral of Chartres.
June 29 – July 2 – Paris with visits of the Latin Quarter, Versailles on Friday morning, The Louvre museum, The St. Chapelle and Notre Dame, and much more (including shopping).
July 2 Sunday – Transfer to airport: flight to Minneapolis.
CO #11 Paris CDG 2A - Houston 12:55pm - 4:30pm
CO 616 Houston - MSP 7:04 pm - 9:59 pm
Return flight info:
July 2 Sunday – Transfer to airport: flight to Minneapolis.
CO #11 Paris CDG 2A - Houston 12:55pm - 4:30pm
CO 616 Houston - MSP 7:04 pm - 9:59 pm