Emily Falge, International Internship Program: Paris Summer 2023
During my time in the International Internship: Paris program, I am living with a French host family which consists of a mother, her two children, and their cat. Her son is 23 years old, and only comes to the apartment on certain weekends, while her daughter is my age (20 years old). However, she recently moved to another city to start a job, so it is currently just me and my host mother in the apartment.
I live in the 20th arrondissement (district) of Paris, which is on the eastern end of the city. Unlike many of the other arrondissements, the 20th does not have many well-known tourist attractions, which means that there tend to be much fewer tourists in the neighborhood than there are closer to the city center. I appreciate this, as it really allows me to have a more ‘authentic’ experience of French life, rather than spend my days surrounded by other foreigners. It is also an area where many immigrants live, so I have had the chance to speak with several other people who are learning French like me. In many ways, this makes me a lot more comfortable to practice my French, as I am a bit less intimidated when I know that we are both learning. However, I would say the one major downside to living in the 20th is its lack of centrality. All of the students in my program live in different areas of the city, and when we meet up, we tend to opt for places in pretty central locations. While this is walking distance for some, I often find myself having to take a 30 to 40-minute metro ride. This can be inconvenient, especially when we are out late at night and the metros begin to close.
Personally, I see living with a host family as a great benefit of this program. I have the opportunity to practice the language practically 24/7, learn more colloquial expressions, and share meals with them. With this learning, however, there are some challenges. After speaking French at work all day, I sometimes find myself very mentally tired and wanting to speak English with somebody. It is difficult to express oneself fully in another language, so when I need to decompress after a hard day, I cannot truly do so. In addition, while some of the other students’ host families have some members that speak English, mine does not. Therefore, when I need to ask how something works, I sometimes have to rely on Google Translate if I am not sure about a vocabulary word. Aside from this mental challenge, there have also been a few differences between the US and France that I have had to adapt to. For one, air conditioning is not very common in French homes, so that is a luxury that I have had to learn how to live without. In addition, due to a lack of space, the apartment does not have a dryer, so when washing my clothes, I have to hang them to dry.
Ultimately, I believe that living with a host family is the ideal way to maximize immersion in a foreign culture. While it does come with more uncomfortable situations than living with other Americans, it is these challenges that truly push me to move beyond my own culture and familiar comforts to learn about my new environment.
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