I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime. Of course, I am talking about this blog. I know that every thought, every word I type, shall enter the minds of the 6 people who actually take the time to read it. So I salute those 6 people and know, above everything else, I must not disappoint. That is why it is here and now, that I shall reminisce, in a nostalgic and slightly obnoxious way, about my time in France. Let’s dive in.

I have now spent 4 weeks in France. As I live amongst the bread enthusiasts and indulgent wine drinkers I have learned many lessons. A primary one being that French is hard. Like really hard. Couple that with the enormous complexities and gracious nuances I wish to express on a day-by-day basis, I find myself often enraged. I now see why the culture has breed such indulgent wine drinkers. It just makes sense. So lesson number one, french is hard. Another lesson I have learned is the value of a family dinner, lunch, breakfast, subtle snack, quick bite, or any other form of food intake. It must be with the family. More over, the table must be completely set and a certain substance, typically red or white and liquidy must be served. Alas, lesson number two, when you eat, it shall be with the family. The third and final lesson I have learned is that school must be a pleasant and caring learning environment. School here starts at casual 8 o’clock and finishes at the easy and pleasant hour of 5:30. You have 80 minutes for lunch however, the cafeteria only seats about 100-150 people and the school has roughly about 800. This means that unless your class gets out early, you must sprint as if there were a tiger behind you to the line that is already way to long. But fear not, because the line is full of lovely french school students ranging in age from 14-18 and as we know, nothing is nicer before a meal then hearing 14 to 18 year olds yell at each other in a language you don’t understand. As for the classes, they are 55 minutes long with 5 minutes to get your next class. Almost all of my classes are lecture style classes which means they are a mix between hearing someone talk, doodling on your paper, and sleeping. After school I walk up the main roads of Chateau-Gontier to my house where I learned my other two valuable lessons.

It is here that I conclude my first blog post and to the 5 people who actually made it to the end, I thank you.