As I landed in Charles de Gaulle, the strongest emotion I felt was tiredness. I had not slept at all on the plane; moreover, I was hauling around a broken suitcase and carry-on luggage. I was overwhelmed on the bus ride home but as my new host “mom” welcomed me to Tours, France, I was reassured and excited to be situated in my new home.
On my first impression, I found the city adorable. Tours is a smaller French city, notable for its white historic buildings, greenery, and quaint medieval downtown dubbed Place Plumereau. I thoroughly appreciated the plentiful amount of coffee shops here, although I did have to adjust to the fact that iced coffee is not common in France. I was shocked by how fresh and healthy all the food was at restaurants, cafés, and the meals that my host family made me. I also appreciated how accessible public transportation is: I take the train to school every day and can visit nearby cities easily with a 2-day train pass. All the people in Tours are accepting of others, and willing to speak French with you if you engage in conversation. Quickly, I became close with the people on my program. We bonded over all our new experiences abroad and had frequent rendezvous between classes to meet up for lunch.
In my classes, there is a diverse range of students. There are students from all over the world in my class and from all different age groups. Additionally, my campus is comprised of three buildings—a big difference from the sprawling UA campus. We have class until noon 2 days a week, and then on days we do not have afternoon class, we go on excursions to cultural hotspots near Tours. My favorite excursion so far was Mont Saint-Michel: an island with a small village and monastery as well as an amazing view of the ocean.
The most challenging part of my trip has been putting myself out there when speaking French. It is intimidating to speak in a second language to locals in the area; however, most of them are very welcoming and will help you learn. I visited a shoe store after class one day and talked to the owner about my studies. Although I may have made a couple of grammatical mistakes, the experience was valuable. My best advice to get over this barrier is to be unafraid of messing up. I have accepted that my French will not always be perfect, and that has helped me be more outgoing duirng my time abroad.
As I prepare to return home, I am torn between my love for my home abroad and missing my friends back home. I know my return will be bittersweet, but right now I am focused on trying as many things as I can before I leave.