Ma famille d'accueil!

Ma famille d'accueil... or my host family.

So much has happened since the last time I wrote that I don't even quite know where to begin. I have been busy every second with family life, school, friends and travels and have absolutely been having the time of my life! I have decided to use this post to talk about my host family here and will write about other things later.

It's already been almost a month now since being in Grenoble... I can't believe it! Time truly does fly when you're having fun. I arrived on January 14th to the Grenoble train station where my host mom, Marie-Pierre, picked me up. She greeted me with two quick kisses on the cheeks, the traditional French way of introducing oneself (rather than a handshake as we do at home). On the ride home, she immediately began telling me all about what it would be like for me here... and this was when I first realized that our resident directors had not been speaking real French to us, but our French. Yikes! I was able to pick up on key words and, for the most part, the general sense of what she was saying, but my ears were in shock! Dinner that evening with the family was a bit intimidating, as they all spoke so much and so fast... but already I am learning so much and although it is still my greatest challenge, it has gotten much better and I know it will only continue to get better the longer I am here.

As far as my family, I feel so blessed! Speaking with the other students on my trip, I know that I am in the family that is absolutely perfect just for me. My host mom, Marie-Pierre, is wonderful. Whenever I don't understand something, she is the first to slow down and rephrase/repeat it for me so that I know what is going on. She has helped me a lot with the practical things... bus schedules, shopping, where to find certain things, etc. She is also a wonderful cook! She makes dinner for all of us every night, and dinnertime with the whole family has become one of my favorite times of the day! She has made me feel so welcome and so at home. She goes out of her way to make sure I am comfortable and that I have everything I need and has been more than hospitable in making sure I have an easy adjustment.

My host dad, Thierry, is also very nice. However, he speaks SO quickly! It is just now that I am beginning to be able to converse with him although there are still many, many times a day when I must ask him to repeat what he has said. It is definitely slowly getting better though because at first, even the simplest of questions from him I wouldn't understand and Marie-Pierre would have to repeat them. However, the longer I am here, the easier it is becoming to talk with him. It was funny because last night we were all playing a game in the family room and he said something about his Jeep in the basement/garage. I couldn't believe he had a real one down there! Then he went on to tell me that he had told me that one of the first days I had been here... oops! :) We both laughed as we knew I hadn't understood a word he said when I first arrived. Anyways, I have learned in the past month that he loves American films (especially westerns) and American actors (such as Clint Eastwood and George Clooney), that he has a huge collection of comic books about American sheriffs and cowboys and that he also has collections of toy Jeeps and tons of books about them as well.

I also have six host siblings. The eldest, Sophie, is currently living at home for awhile. She is in her mid-late twenties and has been very helpful to me as she speaks English very well after studying in Finland during her time in university. However, at home we stick to French... it is usually just to help me understand or for a vocabulary word that she addresses me in English. The second oldest, Marie, lives in Lyon about an hour from Grenoble. I met her briefly last Sunday, but I have not spent a lot of time with her. Of the next two daughters, Caroline is currently studying in Australia and Alix is in India. Both are away as exchange students learning English, as most everyone here learns it/speaks it to some degree.

Then there is Louis-Marie, the only boy of the family. He is fourteen and lives here at home. He has been great to talk to and always is very helpful explaining things to me, giving me new vocabulary words, etc. He's my tv buddy! It's funny because television here is almost all American shows and movies that have been dubbed from their original versions into French. I have seen Harry Potter, Star Wars, Friends, Lost, Bones, The Breakup, etc... all in French! Anyways, although I can't understand a lot of what is going on, it is a great way for me to practice and a good way to interact with the family a little more.

And finally, Solenn. She is the youngest and is eleven years old... and has become my greatest help since being here. She is blond and ornery and loves to spend time with me in my room teasing me, in the family room playing games with me and trying to scare me by hiding behind corners and jumping out to say, "Boo!". I have a blast teasing her and having tickle wars... and I have learned more from her in my speaking than from anyone else. We also help each other with our homework... I help her with English and she helps me with French. It works out perfectly! It's just so much easier to talk to her because my fear of speaking seems to just disappear when we're chatting, and I know I can ask her any question without her thinking I'm stupid. In the past week or so, I've really seemed to connect with her... children are the BEST for learning another language! :)

And, of course, there is Carla, the other exchange student from Mexico who is here studying at the high school. She is great! She grew up going to bilingual school in Mexico, so her English is fantastic and very helpful for me (especially when I first got here!). She has French grandparents as well, so she speaks French practically fluently. She is such a sweetheart and has helped me adjust, answered my questions about Grenoble and about the family and has helped with everything else I have needed. She even invited me to go out with her friends the first weekend I was here because she knew I didn't know anyone yet. Anyways, it's been great getting to know her, and I'm so thankful to have someone who is here to help me learn the ropes of what it means to be living in someone's home for such a long time.

The d'Oléon family is Catholic and very à droite politically, meaning very conservative. They are what the French call Sarkozists, as the president of the Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, is quite conservative himself. We have had lots of discussions about the world and current political issues. I recently had to write a paper for class on the issue of burqas, and I was able to talk to them about how they felt about it. Apparently whether or not a law should be created banning the wearing of the burqa by Muslim women has been a big debate in France for some time now. It is interesting to hear their opinions on subjects such as these, as their outlook on these issues is so contextually different. Thierry has also asked me who I voted for in the last election, what I think about President Bush and the war in Iraq and other difficult questions like that. Although seemingly interesting conversation topics, it was actually quite intimidating as I was not able to fully express myself as to the why and the reasoning behind my choices with the language barrier. Needless to say, it has been interesting speaking with them, and I am learning so, so much about France, about the French people as a whole and about how culture and tradition affects one's opinions and outlook on life.

Dinnertime is one of the best times of the day! I learn more in that hour than in four hours of class. We all sit down together, and just observing how the family interacts, their conversations, etc. is so neat. It is still scary for me, because table French is very FAST and very colloquial. However, I get the chance to hear and talk about things you could never learn in the classroom. As far as food, it is always delicious! It always comes in courses as well. First, we start with a salad that is typically dark leafy lettuce and a vinaigrette, or soup that Marie-Pierre makes homemade in her soup machine with fresh vegetables and cream. Then, the main course is usually some sort of tart or souffle, with lots of vegetables. Meat is typically only served on the weekends, or if it is during the week, it is part of a stew or something of the sort. We, of course, have fresh baguette with every meal which has become one of my favorite things! And then dessert. There is always lots of fresh fruit and plain yogurt for dessert. On certain days, we have baguette and fresh cheese (there are always different yummy ones!). And sometimes, of course, we have something sweet such as chocolate mousse, chocolate cake, etc.

I spend a lot of time doing my homework in my room, but when I'm not doing that I am in the tv room watching French television for practice or talking with someone downstairs. Many evenings we play games together... a favorite of theirs is Yahtzee (or yams here)! We also watch the news together which is always interesting both for the actual news and for the language. Spending time hanging out with the d'Oléons has been one of my favorite parts of being here.

I have already learned to LOVE this family. One of their past exchange students, David, is here visiting this week, and he told me that they are truly unlike any other family he has met here in France. I am already learning this myself. They have been so hospitable, so helpful and so wonderful in making this experience great for me. I can't wait to get to know them even more over the next few months that I am here! I am so blessed to have been placed in such a wonderful home with a family who loves one another so much and who loves reaching out to students like me. It's been an incredible experience so far, and I know that it will only get better!

As for now, I must go because I leave today for southern France and Brussels for my February vacation from school. I promise to write again soon upon my return.

Thinking of and praying for my friends and family at home daily! Love you all...

Au revoir!