3 years...
On Nov. 13th, 2002 I embarked on the greatest and worst experience of my life.
My month long visit to France as part of my schools French Exchange. It had always been a dream of mine to go to Europe, especially France. I wasn't sure at first when I signed up, because it required staying with a french family for 2 weeks, but I decided to take the risk and go. I was warned beforehand that I may not be able to fully open up to the french family, but I decided to not worry about it too much. So, today was the day we left. I hadn't been on a plane since like 10 years before that, so I was excited enough to even be flying on a plane. They were nice planes too, big, had TV's on the seats in front. The flight across the Atlantic was fun, I didn't get much sleep, but it was still fun. The hotel wasn't too bad, it was different, kind of small, but not that bad. We visited Notre Dame and St. Chappille Cathedral that day. I walked up many winding staircases to get up in Notre Dame and look out at the city below. It was an amazing view. I also happened to be sick or something during this time, but the thing is that I never felt sick. I had a cough, but I never felt sick through the entire thing. Very odd. They made me get medicine, I didn't want to take it, but I had no choice. We spend the next 5 days in Paris. It was great, it was the real reason I went on the trip. We saw the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, all the big stops. We visited a dance club and a jazz club, the jazz club was especially fun. I went to a Piano thing, which turned out to be kind of boring and I nearly slept through the entire thing. Still, it was an amazing time. Then we had to leave on the 19th for Le Mans, where the french families were. We stopped at Versailles and Chartres before we went there, those were also really fun. Then we made it to Le Mans and the part I had been dreading the whole time. I didn't have time to think about what was going on when I stepped off the bus, I stepped off, my name was called and I was handed off to a family of strangers. The Car ride was mostly silent, despite the fact that they told us to talk a lot during it. Looking back, that's kind of an omen. Don't get me wrong, the Family that I stayed with was very, very nice. They were very kind and I like them all. But with how I am, and how I work. It just didn't work. I tried to open up, I tried to get to know them. I tried to make sure I looked like I was having fun. Which I was at times. But I'm not a very expressive person and towards the end they thought I wasn't expressing a lot of emotion, like I wasn't having a lot of fun. Not to mention, i wasn't speaking a lot of french. I tried to, but they all spoke it so fast. It just didn't work out, but I still thought that afterwards the guy that I stayed with would come back to America and stay with me. But that's for later. I did have fun with them, They took me to this place with all these weird interactive rides. It was really interesting. They bought me little presents, I got a CD and a dog statue from then, and also when I first got their they had a bag full of little treats. It was very nice. I thought I had expressed enough emotion, I thought I had made it clear that I really appreciated all that they did for me. I guess not. Afterwards I find they thought I hadn't shown enough appreciation, enough emotion, I didn't open up to them. Just as the teacher warned me. So the kid I stayed with wanted to stay with someone else. Of course, they know this right after I leave. I don't find out until a month before they are suppose to come that next april, and on my birthday no less. So that's where they worst experience of my life comes from. I had never felt that kind of rejection before, I felt like they had rejected my entire being. I tried to rectify it by sending emails to the kid, telling him my side of the story. How I really did appreciate everything, and etc. We reached a compromise, he would stay with someone else, but he would spend one night at my house. It was nice, he came over, he brought us more gifts. I think he had fun, I don't know. But it was still nice. Though, even today I still harbor some anger towards him for rejecting me like that. I knew we didn't get along perfectly in France, but I wanted to change that in America. Oh well. If you have read all of this, then I must congratulate you. And this isn't even the whole story, I left out the parts of where I visit Normandy and Mont. St. Michel and St. Malo. Also all the little things with people in my group, the teacher in charge.
They say that what you remember of an event 3 years later will be what you remember for the rest of your life. Well, with all that I remember after writing this little piece, I'd say that I have enough to satisfy me though out my life. Yep, my many memories and the 330 photos that I took while there. I was a little shutterbug and I had to take a picture of everything because I didn't trust my memory enough to remember every little detail, though I'm seeing now that it has. Oh well, Its still nice to have pictures. You don't have to comment if you don't want to. I just felt the need to mark this little event. :)
My month long visit to France as part of my schools French Exchange. It had always been a dream of mine to go to Europe, especially France. I wasn't sure at first when I signed up, because it required staying with a french family for 2 weeks, but I decided to take the risk and go. I was warned beforehand that I may not be able to fully open up to the french family, but I decided to not worry about it too much. So, today was the day we left. I hadn't been on a plane since like 10 years before that, so I was excited enough to even be flying on a plane. They were nice planes too, big, had TV's on the seats in front. The flight across the Atlantic was fun, I didn't get much sleep, but it was still fun. The hotel wasn't too bad, it was different, kind of small, but not that bad. We visited Notre Dame and St. Chappille Cathedral that day. I walked up many winding staircases to get up in Notre Dame and look out at the city below. It was an amazing view. I also happened to be sick or something during this time, but the thing is that I never felt sick. I had a cough, but I never felt sick through the entire thing. Very odd. They made me get medicine, I didn't want to take it, but I had no choice. We spend the next 5 days in Paris. It was great, it was the real reason I went on the trip. We saw the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, all the big stops. We visited a dance club and a jazz club, the jazz club was especially fun. I went to a Piano thing, which turned out to be kind of boring and I nearly slept through the entire thing. Still, it was an amazing time. Then we had to leave on the 19th for Le Mans, where the french families were. We stopped at Versailles and Chartres before we went there, those were also really fun. Then we made it to Le Mans and the part I had been dreading the whole time. I didn't have time to think about what was going on when I stepped off the bus, I stepped off, my name was called and I was handed off to a family of strangers. The Car ride was mostly silent, despite the fact that they told us to talk a lot during it. Looking back, that's kind of an omen. Don't get me wrong, the Family that I stayed with was very, very nice. They were very kind and I like them all. But with how I am, and how I work. It just didn't work. I tried to open up, I tried to get to know them. I tried to make sure I looked like I was having fun. Which I was at times. But I'm not a very expressive person and towards the end they thought I wasn't expressing a lot of emotion, like I wasn't having a lot of fun. Not to mention, i wasn't speaking a lot of french. I tried to, but they all spoke it so fast. It just didn't work out, but I still thought that afterwards the guy that I stayed with would come back to America and stay with me. But that's for later. I did have fun with them, They took me to this place with all these weird interactive rides. It was really interesting. They bought me little presents, I got a CD and a dog statue from then, and also when I first got their they had a bag full of little treats. It was very nice. I thought I had expressed enough emotion, I thought I had made it clear that I really appreciated all that they did for me. I guess not. Afterwards I find they thought I hadn't shown enough appreciation, enough emotion, I didn't open up to them. Just as the teacher warned me. So the kid I stayed with wanted to stay with someone else. Of course, they know this right after I leave. I don't find out until a month before they are suppose to come that next april, and on my birthday no less. So that's where they worst experience of my life comes from. I had never felt that kind of rejection before, I felt like they had rejected my entire being. I tried to rectify it by sending emails to the kid, telling him my side of the story. How I really did appreciate everything, and etc. We reached a compromise, he would stay with someone else, but he would spend one night at my house. It was nice, he came over, he brought us more gifts. I think he had fun, I don't know. But it was still nice. Though, even today I still harbor some anger towards him for rejecting me like that. I knew we didn't get along perfectly in France, but I wanted to change that in America. Oh well. If you have read all of this, then I must congratulate you. And this isn't even the whole story, I left out the parts of where I visit Normandy and Mont. St. Michel and St. Malo. Also all the little things with people in my group, the teacher in charge.
They say that what you remember of an event 3 years later will be what you remember for the rest of your life. Well, with all that I remember after writing this little piece, I'd say that I have enough to satisfy me though out my life. Yep, my many memories and the 330 photos that I took while there. I was a little shutterbug and I had to take a picture of everything because I didn't trust my memory enough to remember every little detail, though I'm seeing now that it has. Oh well, Its still nice to have pictures. You don't have to comment if you don't want to. I just felt the need to mark this little event. :)