A Very Candid Post

Over this past weekend, I did some thinking about this blog and direction I want to go with it. I (with some very wise advice from a very smart person) decided that I want to chronicle exactly my feelings and experiences here in France. I don’t want to sugarcoat anything and I want everyone reading to get the best possible picture of my French life. Even if that means the occasional long, negative post.

Life in France is far from idealistic. It is incredibly different to live here than it is to study here. I often feel frustrated towards the people or “France” in general (probably because I am used to such efficiency in America) because of things here that just don’t compare to where I’m from. The people in Lunéville, and France in general, have been very nice to me, but there are clear cultural differences. The best way to describe it is as follows (thanks Cheryl): You can ask someone where the McDonald’s is, and they will tell you, but they won’t tell you that its closed that day. Any and every question that I have posed has been answered, but no one will just come out and tell you everything that you need to know without having to ask (whereas in America, I feel that we do go out of our way to help others). I feel like people sometimes expect me to know what to do and when to do it.

I am frustrated with the lack of organization at my school. I am very used to having everything planned out, with instructions, but here, I haven’t gotten that vibe yet. The administration doesn’t care as much here about the education of students, in regards to teaching English (I can’t comment on any other area because I haven’t observed other subjects being taught). I feel bad for the teachers because a lot of the students just don’t care, since they will likely be able to graduate/pass the BAC without having to succeed on the English portion. This causes a lot of bad behavior in classes. Today, Béatrice and I just sat in the room because the students were misbehaving and not putting forth any effort. She had had it with putting forth an unappreciated effort, and I really don’t blame her. Most of the other classes are better, but sometimes they just don’t care and there is nothing that can be done.

Finally, the novelty of my town has almost completely worn off. I am very grateful to be here and virtually be living for free while working 10ish hours a week, but Lunéville is small, with no one my age. I think the closest analogy that I can make is that it is Platteville without the university. It’s a great place for the elderly and families, but since I am neither old nor have a family, I am really starting to get bored on weekends. I like the town, but I really crave interaction with people my age (this is why I imagine that I miss family and friends in the US so much more than I did in my Paris program). I went to Nancy this past weekend and it was awesome. I saw young people! My own age! And while Lunéville is charming and cute, I really wish that I could find people my own age to hang out with…without having to go to Nancy every weekend. I would appreciate snail mail (hint, hint...ask me for my address, I'm not posting it online).

That all said, I just want to say that I really am enjoying my time here, so please don’t think that I’m miserable. I’m not unhappy by any means. I feel like my French is improving significantly and that the people are really kind. I do like France a lot, but the cultural differences have me currently feeling a bit frustrated (which I know is natural). I need to stop expecting France to be like America. It’s not. Nowhere is. The annoyances are just parts of French culture that don’t translate well to American culture. Are the French wrong? Are Americans right? I don’t think there is an answer, but it has been really challenging to adapt myself (I didn’t think the culture shock would be there severe). In the long run, I know I’m going to love being here, but there are some small things leaving me a bit bothered.