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Bonjour à tous. As my first semester in France begins to wind down, I have been spending more and more time in Dijon, appreciating the city and des gens (the people) that I have come to know in the past couple of months. After all of my crazy trips, and oftentimes misfortunate traveling scenarios, I am always relieved to come back to the one city in Europe where I know that I belong. Since my last blogpost about Dijon in September, I have met so many new people and discovered much more of what Dijon has to offer and I cant wait to share about it all with you!

For starters, I am pretty engrossed in my classes à la Fac (at the university) now. Now don’t get me wrong, I have had my fair share of blunders à la Fac: sitting for 10 minutes in a German class that wasn’t mine, waiting outside of classrooms for courses that either hadn’t started yet or were canceled without notification, or simply not having an answer when asked about my opinion on America’s latest des impôts agricoles (farm taxes) in my Econ class. Yet overall, classes have been going surprisingly well, considering the fact that not a single word of English is spoken in any of them.

Since my last post about Dijon, I have also started mon boulot (my job) as an English Foreign Language Assistant at a local collège (middle school). Between Thursday and Friday, I have four conversation classes with 15 students each ranging from ten to thirteen years old. For a majority of mes élèves (my students), I am the first American that they have ever met. So, naturally I was bombarded with questions about common American stereotypes  on my first day. Its funny how foreign the American way of life is to the French people. My students were repulsed by the ideas of eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and taking a bright yellow bus to school every day. I am excited to keep sharing my culture with mes élèves so that when they visit America they will be able to make connections as I did when I came to France, thanks to my French FLAs at Holy Cross.

Although I have deeply enjoyed my time in Dijon so far, the most difficult part is la solitude (the loneliness) that I have encountered when faced with the fact that I am the only Holy Cross student in my city. Not having HC friends to eat lunch or explore the city with is tough, and it’s difficult to find the motivation to be social when none of the faces around you are remotely familiar, but luckily my solitude has forced me to go out and meet new people in Dijon. While there are a few other American students who are also in Dijon, its very rare to come across one, due to the fact that they all take similar classes outside of the university and don’t interact with anyone but each other. Heureusement  (fortunately), I have met few British and Irish students through various ERASMUS events (ERASMUS is Europe’s version of study abroad) that I really enjoy being around. And while we all speak the same language, it is clearly evident that their cultures are similar to each others’ and quite different from my own. One minute I’ll be fully engaged in a conversation with a group of them, but as soon as slang is used like “ey-up” or “quid,” and references from shows like “Coronation Street” and “the Inbetweeners” are made, it’s like I’m listening to another foreign language.  If I have learned anything while abroad, it’s that smiling and nodding with a simple “ouais” or “yeah” thrown in there can get you through most conversations in most circumstances, but not all. 

À bientôt!

-Sean

Maxime du jour: c’est du chinois pour moi ” its all Chinese for me”- the French version of “it’s all Greek to me”

If you know me, then you know that I have dreamed of traveling to Italy my entire life. Hearing my grandparents’ stories of their times abroad in Italy is what sparked my interest in des cultures étrangères (foreign cultures) in the first place. With this in mind, when I realized that I would have a week long break from classes for Toussaints (All Saints Day), booking an extended trip to la mère patrie (the mother country) with a few friends was a no brainer. Once booked, it finally dawned on me that I would finally be completing one of the top goals of my study abroad experience, and of my life in general, which caused major excitement to commence.

The first stop on our tour was Venice, a city that was unlike anything I had ever seen before. There is no other place in the world that I can compare it to. Its one thing to see pictures of des ponts (the bridges) and the gondolas, but to actually walk along the pavements of the city with water next to me instead of paved roads was truly a captivating experience. Although we went during tourist low season, the small city pathways were still crowded with people. I couldn’t imagine visiting during the peak summer months when its even more jam packed. Néanmoins (nonetheless), Venice’s  unique way of living and scenic views truly lived up to my expectations, which causes me to firmly attest the fact that Venice is a city that every person must see in their lifetime.

Next on the list was Florence. Florence was the quintessential Italian experience that I had always dreamed of. The pasta was to die for, the people talked with les mains (their hands), and there were old men playing accordions on the streets. The first thing on our to do list while in the Tuscan region was to travel to Pisa for obvious reasons. After somewhat of an underwhelming trip, the leaning tower of Pisa is much smaller and not as tilted as you would expect, we went back to the birthplace of the Renaissance to be cultured by des musées d’art (some art museums). Walking into Academia and seeing the statue of David was actually breathtaking. I have never had a real reaction from seeing art before, but the statue of David actually took my breath away. In this singular masterpiece of a sculpture, I came to understand the rebirth of culture that came about during the Renaissance and gained a much deeper respect for artists of the day, especially after our great tourguide (Stasie) told us that David was meant to represent Florence battling the Goliath, who represented Rome. After soaking up as much culture as humanly possible, my friends and I met up with some of the Holy Cross kids who are currently studying in Florence. I was beyond jealous of them for being able to live in such an amazing city, but it was clear that their lives in such a famous city had some cons as well. English could be heard almost as much as Italian in the city due to the immense American study abroad population. After a few amazing nights in Florence, my friends and I had to trek across the city to the bus station in the pouring rain in order to catch our bus at 5am, which turned out to be an hour late.

After finally reaching Rome, we headed straight to the Vatican where we were able to catch a glimpse of Pope Francis celebrating All Saints Day Mass. The Vatican was yet another place that I’ve always wanted to visit, and the grandiose church that is St. Peters Basilica definitely did not disappoint. Then, after une longe sieste ( a long nap), the group and I did some sight seeing of the rest of the city. Seeing the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon all lit up at night was magical to say the least. Being able to put a face to the name of what was the capital city of one of the most dominant empires in history was incredible to say the least. Its crazy to think how rich in culture and history just one country is. By the last few days of the trip I was épuisé (exhausted), and I sadly found myself not appreciating as much of Rome as I should have. Luckily, I have another semester to go back and revisit!

Au total (All in all), I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Italy. It was amazing to experience all the sights and sounds that I have dreamed about for so long. In the past, when asked for my life long ambitions, my answer would always be “to travel to Italy,” and I am so grateful that studying abroad has given me the opportunity to achieve this goal. The only problem is, now I need to find new  goal in life to set. So, I’ll let you know as soon as I think of one.

À plus tard!

-Sean

Leçon du jour: faites ce que les romains font “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”- a saying that I find myself repeating a lot while trying to assimilate to life in Europe

Coucou! (Hey!) Now I know that these blog entires might make it seem like I’m rarely in France, but I swear, I spend a majority of my time in Dijon, speaking and learning French. Understandably, the stories that I have recently found the most worthy of blogging about do not come from my 6 hours of one-on-one French classes, or from mes conversations du dîner (my diner conversations) with my host family, but rather from my travel experiences. So let me fill you in on my most recent trip to Madrid, Spain!

Le week-end dernier, I traveled to Spain to meet up with two of my best friends from Holy Cross, Matt and Jason. Unlike in Munich, there was no main event taking place in Madrid to occupy our weekend, so we were able to leisurely explore, which I have come to realize is the best way to experience a city. While touring Madrid, I found myself making many comparisons between Spain’s culture and France’s. Although the spoken language was incomprehensible to me, I could, for the most part, read signs and make inferences with my knowledge of other romance languages. Since Madrid is easily walkable, my two friends and I were able to see so much of the city in the three days that we were there. The Spanish Royal Palace, the Prado Art Museum, and Plaza Mayor were just some of the must-sees on our tour. Madrid is also well known for its night life. Donc (so), my friends and I went to a seven story tall discoteca that we were told would give us an accurate feel of what Madrid’s night life is like, and all I can say on this blog is that the discoteca did not disappoint. I had been warned that the Spanish stay up well into the early hours of the morning, but I did not realize the accuracy until I fell asleep on the wooden floor of our Airbnb as soon as i walked through the door at 4am. Overall, I genuinely loved Madrid. The city helped me cross items off my bucket list and gave me the opportunity to catch up with one of the people that I’ve missed the most from home. Sightseeing and the disctoeca were très amusant (very fun), but the best part of the whole trip was spending Saturday night watching dumb youtube videos and laughing about inside jokes with my friends, just like we did back on the Hill.

Leaving the high that was Madrid and being forced to say goodbye to some of my best friends really sent me on a downwards spiral while waiting for my train in Charles de Gaulle Airport. I would confidently say that this was my first severe case of homesickness. While in CDG, having nothing to do but get lost in thought, the pain of missing my friends and family really got to me. Coincidentally, my other friend Jullia was also in CDG at the same time as I was, so we were able to meet up, which ended up only spiraling me down further in to my homesickness after she left.  At this point, it really struck me that I was alone in a foreign country yet again. While listening to “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel on a hard cement bench in the train station, I couldn’t help but question all of my recent life choices. “Why did I choose to leave HC, somewhere that makes me so happy?,” “why did I choose to study abroad for a year?,” and “how am I going to make it the next seven months without my friends by my side?,” were all questions that I was asking myself while waiting for the train. After finally getting into my bed after the long weekend, still sulking, I remembered reading this article on a former HC study abroad blog when I was researching where to study. This article provides the stages of living abroad, and gives reasons for commonly felt emotions. It’s effrayant (scary) how accurate it is. I am definitely in the second stage at the moment. After the flashbacks of the easiness of living in America, it really hit me how much I missed it and how far out of my comfort zone I truly am each and every day I am here. After feeling emotions that I never have really felt before, it was comforting to know that what I was going through was a normal part of the study abroad experience, and that it will get better…. eventually.

C’est tout pour l’instant

-Sean

Leçon du jour: On n’a rien sans rien , no pain no gain

-HC’s frank response to culture shock and homesickness

Slaut à tous! It has been quite a while since my last post, and I have SO much to fill you in on, so lets jump right in!

La semaine dernière (last week) was my long anticipated trip to Munich, Germany for the world famous Oktoberfest. It was decided weeks ago that I would take the same bus out of Strasbourg with the other HC kids headed to Munich, which gave me the perfect excuse to come visit all the other French kids a day early. To be honest, I was un peu nerveux (a bit nervous) to visit Strasbourg, due to the fact that it’s the “what could have been” of my study abroad experience. I couldn’t help but think to myself on the train, “what if I actually like Strasbourg better than Dijon, with its giant cathedrals, scenic bridges over the Rhine, and 11 other Holy Cross kids??” How would I be able to stay in Dijon if i found out that life in a bigger city was a better fit for me? Regardless, when I arrived in the Strasbourg I was met by none other than my old French FLA Élise! Finally seeing the person who I’ve had countless conversations about France with, in France, was surreal. Élise showed me around her city and we reminisced about all the good times we had on the Hill last year, just like we said we would do while in 301 level  French practicum. After our tour, we met up with the other old FLA, Mathias, and the rest of the Holy Cross students at a local restaurant. Upon sitting down at our table, I realized that this was my first time being face to face with other Americans ALL MONTH. I loved catching up with all my fellow Frenchies’ adventures and relaying my own. While walking the streets of Strasbourg after finishing at the restaurant, I came to conclusion that Strasbourg really was not for me, and that I am beyond happy with where I am in Dijon. From what I gathered, Strasbourg is a totally different experience than Dijon, it’s much more of a city vibe and I really could not see myself living there without feeling overwhelmed. I love Dijon and its warm small city feel, and I guess it’s where I was always meant to be.

Now, after that boring introspective discourse, back to mon histoire (my story). Following a small passport dilemma and a five hour bus ride Friday morning, the France gang finally arrived in Munich.  Right after getting off the bus, we all went out in the city center to buy our drindls and lederhosen for the fest. Once equipped, we split up to go to our respective locations, mine being an Airbnb with six of mes amis (my friends) from other study abroad locations. Meeting up with friends who have been in (des différents pays ) different countries, such as Spain and Ireland, was by far the best part of the whole trip. I loved being able to compare my many stories and hear the different experiences of whole new audience of friends. Saturday morning, at the ripe hour of 6 am, my friends and I left to get a good spot on* line. Unfortunately, the Munich public transportation system is not the easiest to navigate when you don’t understand German,  so our 25 minute commute turned into hour long odyssey after ending up on the complete opposite side of the Munich from where we planned and then having to turn back around.  Once on the camp groups, American college students could be seen for kilometers lined up at the gates. After the clock hit 9:00, the gates opened and there was a mad dash for the tents in order to reserve tables. Luckily, Holy Cross students are good sprinters, and we were able to secure three tables in the Hofbräu tent, also known as “the American tent.” Although I probably did not get the most authentic Oktoberfest experience, it was fun to be just like every other American student for the weekend. Speaking a language that I missed, and seeing faces that I missed even more, definitely made all the hassle of the trip worth it. 

All in all, I really enjoyed my time in Munich. It was really strange experiencing a foreign country other than France for the first time. I found myself having the impulse to use je vais prendre (i’ll have) and merci (thank you) when attempting ordering pretzels and potatoes. Being in Germany definitely made me appreciate France and being able to speak French a whole lot more. While leaving Germany, I kept thinking to myself how excited I was to get back to Dijon that Sunday night. I wanted nothing more than to be in mon lit(my bed), in ma maison(my house), in ma ville(my city), but that was before I missed the last train to Dijon from Strasbourg, forcing me to wait nine hours for the next one. 

Expression du jour: French: Je comprends seulement “la gare” // German: Ich verstehe nur “Bahnhof.”// English: I only understand “train station.”- a common German expression that means “I don’t understand this foreign language.”

À bientôt!

-Sean