The first month of studying abroad was nothing like I imagined it would be. I thought since I had a field study under my belt, I would be prepared for what was to come, but I could not have been more wrong.<\/p>\n
I was absolutely positive that culture shock would not get to me. One- I had been to Paris before. Two- France’s culture could not have been that different to the US, I studied in rural Africa for almost a month I could handle this with ease. Three- Immersing myself in France would be simple and I would be fluent within a week or two.<\/p>\n
Obviously since I am writing about this, it was not the case. The first week we spent in Normandy, which I did not see the point of before the trip, but I am so thankful for now. It gave us a chance to get slightly more familiar with the language and the culture before we were thrown into life in Paris. It was like we were in a bubble. We were still in France, but it was just dipping our toes in.<\/p>\n
When we returned to Paris, I could not figure out why I had a pit in my stomach. Everyone was nervous about meeting their host families, but I really hadn’t been. It only hit once I was getting off the bus, about to meet them. It turned out that my host family was running late so I stood on the side of the road for a bit. Eventually, my host mom came and I could not have possibly prepared myself.<\/p>\n
I knew my French needed work, but I had no idea that my oral comprehension was almost non existent. It made for a pretty quite car ride to my home for the next four months. Meeting the rest of my family was ahead, and I was not prepared.<\/p>\n
Something that I knew vaguely, but didn’t process was that the French kiss twice on the cheek when they say hello. My host mom was showing me around the apartment when we entered my host brothers room. I was greeted by both of the brothers in their underwear giving me kisses on the cheek. It was at that exact moment that I realized, culture shock would be very real.<\/p>\n
It turns out that the subtle differences make a much bigger impact than the huge ones. In Tanzania, I knew it was going to be different. I knew I would likely not be using a toilet for a month so when I used one, it was a nice surprise. Here, if you don’t say hello upon entering a store, no one will help you. That was something I wasn’t prepared for, and is not different enough from the US to be aware of.<\/p>\n
A month later, I am beginning to adjust to life in Paris. All my weird encounters are starting to make sense and become almost normal. When around Americans, I am actually starting to get offended by some of the things they do. I never thought anything like that would happen. It feels like everything is moving too fast. I have already been here for an entire month, and I have no interest in going home. Life in Paris has been so incredible and I don’t know how I will be able to adjust back to the US.<\/p>\n
C’est la vie I suppose.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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