Welcome, mes chers amis, to my little nook in the expansive cyberworld.
Porquoi en français? One week from today, I embark on the journey of a lifetime, going on yet another international flight, but this time, across the Atlantic, not the Pacific. Yes, Paris, the City of Light, I’m coming for you! A new adventure calls for a fresh start, so here I am, figuring out the world of WordPress as I go, crossing my fingers and hoping for the best.
Of course, I would never venture alone, so I’m bringing all of you with me! You get all the fun, minus the studying, so follow along as I stutter my way through France for five weeks. I will be joining the UCLA French Language Travel Study Program, taking two courses in intermediate French over the one month program (and I thought quarter system was fast paced!). Students on this program are set up with host families for the full effect of being submerged in French culture. My trip has been sponsored by UCLA International Education Office. As a Travel Study Program Correspondent, I will be documenting my experience here on this blog as well as afterwards in the form of an informational magazine to help future students get a better idea of what they’re in for!
This is a summer full of firsts: my first study abroad experience, my first trip to Europe and my first experience with a host family in a country where I have limited language skills. Right now, I’m undergoing a severe case of pre-departure anxiety. I feel excited, nervous, scared and inspired. As the day of departure comes closer, the emotional roller coaster becomes ever more convoluted. I can’t wait to be safely landed in Charles De Gaulle. Even more so, I can’t wait to be at my host family home, taking a deep breath and unpacking.
Right now, so much is up in the air. There is so much of the unknown, quite terrifying for a rather obsessive planner like myself. However, I know that in a few short weeks, those foreign streets, currently no more than figments of my imagination, will become a familiar reality. And I know that before I know it, I’ll be back in Los Angeles, the whole experience will feel like a rosy ephemeral reverie, l’été sera comme un rêve éphémère. So for now, I’ll sit, wait, and pack. And when I’m there, I’ll live every minute to the fullest!
Voir la vie en rose means to see the world for its beauty–through rose-colored lenses. I hope that as the streets become familiar, I will be able to see past the sparkly façade and appreciate the little things–to stop and smell the roses.
I invite you to come aboard as I go abroad, for 38 jours à Paris!
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