Jane Landrum at the Sacre Coeur
Author: Jane Landrum | Major: Earth Science, Anthropology | Semester: Fall 2023
Like many others, I grew up watching movies that took place in Paris, hearing French phrases such as “je t’aime” or “c’est la vie”. There is an undoubtable charm to Paris that made me dream of one day seeing the city. I studied French in high school and continued in college, but largely for the reason that I enjoy the difference of learning a language compared to my other studies. Studying abroad is something that I have aspired to do, and doing so in France would allow me to improve on a language, to be truly immersed.
It is a widely spread rumor that the French do not like Americans. It is also a widely known fact that the French bureaucracy is among the more difficult worldwide to work with. I learned the trueness of one of these before even leaving the United States. Obtaining a French visa taught me a great deal about patience, filing paperwork, and problem solving as an adult. I naively thought, once I received my French visa, that all would be smooth sailing. I was wrong the moment my train from London arrived at Gare du Nord. I had never been abroad before this, and it was shock hearing conversations in so many languages, none of which I understood, at once. At the same time, I fell in love with the Hausman architecture, my little Parisian apartment in the Marais. The first day of school posed another challenge. I studied at a division of the Sorbonne in Paris, the Cours de Civilisation Française, an immersive language school. I had two hours of grammar daily, one hour of phonetics, and five lecture courses each week specializing in the history, art, and culture of France. I feel that my French has greatly improved, though I am by no means fluent, but one of the largest benefits of living in a foreign country has been gaining the ability to use what I do know, instead of what I do not, to navigate daily life.
Though Paris is so known by the rest of the world, often described as the New York of Europe, I found so much to be different. Many of my European classmates were surprised when I spoke of driving a car to school, paying large medical bills, or living in a relatively rural state, given the population density is so much greater. I feel that I’ve gained a much larger sense of the world, having spent a semester living in a different country, and I am excited to apply what I’ve learned to future jobs, education, and life. All that being said, I have missed being able to send emails in English, make jokes with strangers in coffee shops or restaurants, and spending time alone, away from masses of people. I loved this program and would absolutely recommend it to students studying French, although I would advise taking into consideration whether living in a big city is the right move. Each region of France, just as in most countries, is different and the people are different. Paris was a headfirst dive into French culture, and I am so grateful for the experience.