Bonjour From Bondues

Over the past two weeks of my exchange experience, I’ve learned many cultural differences of France and America. For example, the school day in France is from 8am-5pm. The lunch period is 2 hours long from 12-2. Students can leave school to eat lunch or eat in the cafeteria. On Wednesdays, school is only half a day, from 8am-12pm. There is also a 2 hour gym period once a week where students play a range of sports, such as soccer and badminton.

I attended Sarah’s (my exchange host) school for two weeks. The classes were an hour long, and technology is not allowed at all. Due to the school year coming to an end, there was little to no homework. On Wednesdays, Sarah and I went to Lille, which is 15 minutes away from her town. Lille has a huge shopping center, much like the Stanford Mall, and has many restaurants, like downtown Palo Alto. Lille has a Grand Plaza area with intricately decorated buildings, a clock tower, and an opera house.

Over the first weekend, my host family and I travelled to Paris, which is a 3 hour long drive from Lille. We visited the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, and the Sacre Coeur Church on Montmartre. I was able to taste one of the best macarons in Paris from Laduree, a well-known patisserie. It was truly a memorable weekend! During the second week, my friend Katie, who went on exchange the same time I did, her host Elise, Sarah, and I went to a famous theme park near Paris called Parc Asterix. It is a theme park dedicated to the French comic Asterix. It was really interesting to see a whole amusement park decorated with comic book characters.

For the second weekend, my host family and I traveled to Mont-Saint-Michel, an island off the coast of Normandy (the northwestern part of France). It was also my birthday that weekend, so my host family and I celebrated with dinner, a cake, and touring the abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel. As my last week of exchange approaches, I’m excited to continuously experience the French culture as well as continuously practicing my French. Sarah and I communicate in French as much as possible. My host family has been understanding about helping me speak French, which I truly appreciate.