Category: France: IAU College

I have been back in the U.S for almost a week, and its funny to me that I have to adjust back to the place I grew ups and have been so accustomed to my whole life. Going to live in France for almost four months has been the craziest and most amazing experience of…

When I first came to France, I wasn’t certain how much culture shock I would feel. My time in France has been amazing, exciting, and at times, a bit overwhelming. I have enjoyed immersing myself in a new culture, city, and family. Since being in France, some of the challenges I struggled with were things…

Studying abroad here in Aix-en- Provence has been a formative experience for me and I have enjoyed every moment of it thus far. Since being in France, one of the aspects of daily life that I found hard to adjust to at first was the lack of air conditioning. I remember the first night I…

Being placed in France has been one of my best life experiences so far. I have no regrets about studying abroad and although I have faced confrontational moments; such encounters have taught me life lessons and have strengthened my development of character. My biggest struggle so far has occurred during the weekends. I normally dislike…

It is crazy to think we are already half way through the semester, as just last week I recognized that I finally felt 100% adjusted to Aix. Moving here, I definitely confronted several cultural differences that took time to get used to. Being in south France, it was extremely hot during the month of September….

The biggest cultural confrontation that I experienced when I first arrived in France was the lack of air conditioning. Being in the south of France at the end of August and September, it was very hot and slightly humid, but going inside did not help as much because there was no a/c. In order to…

Instances in which I experienced cultural confrontation, were when I was told by several people in France that a friendly, polite smile to someone on the street could be viewed as flirtation and that consent was not as important of a concept in France as it is the U.S. It is not that the people…

Sports in the United States play a large part in American society and culture. From American football, baseball, soccer, tennis, etc. America presents a large variety of sports captured from all over the world. Sports are entertaining and extremely popular, however, they also correspond with numerous community values and morals including teamwork, justice, and leadership. …

Individualism is often brought up in discussions of American culture. This means that Americans view themselves as their own person, independent, separate from any group. A collectivist culture on the other hand, relies on the sense of community and close intragroup connection and views all individuals as part of the group. In sharing my judgment…

While preparing to go abroad for the semester, it is only natural to feel slightly anxious and nervous. Exciting nerves have been coursing through my body since the beginning of August. I have never been to Europe, even with the comforts of friends and family, so this is an entirely novel experience for me. I…