Bonjour à tous de la France. You will have to forgive me as my blog posts become more and more French, but what can I say...I'm in the country where tout le monde parle la langue d'amour. For those of you that may be concerned about me having difficulties becoming acclimated to living in another country, (I'm talking to you mom and dad) you can rest assured, I'm already loving it here in France! The people are very friendly. The food is delicious. And the sights and scenes are priceless. But I think the one thing that I have learned to appreciate the most is that, with this program and the opportunity to study abroad for a summer while being immersed in another culture, I have been given an incredible opportunity that I will never be able to take for granted.
Une chose que j'ai trouvé très intéressant est à dimanche dernière, ma famille d'accueil, nous sommes allées à une église où ensemble, avec beaucoup d'autres personnes qui sont allées, nous avons loué le Dieu avec les chansons et les louanges. J'ai rappellé le Mexique bien lorsque j'étais suivre mon dernière année du lycèe où nous étions bondé dans une église mexicain et nous chantions la chanson <<Comment il nous aime>> et les mexicains chantaient en espagnol et nous chantions en anglais la même chanson ensemble. C'était très beau ça. Alors ce temps, c'était juste en français et les chansons étaient à jamais Dieu est fidèle (Forever by Chris Tomlin) et lumière du monde (Here I Am to Worship).
I really enjoyed after church when we went to a park in order to have a picnic with many of the other church attendees. We ate a nice picnic under the sun together and then after lunch played for a while. A man was playing his guitar and singing songs...in English! It turns out that many French people really appreciate American music, especially famous bands like Led Zeppelin or Simon & Garfunkel. He led me play his guitar afterwards and wanted to hear a song that I knew well. I played and afterwards, he clapped with a big smile on his face. After that, I went to play volleyball with the other French teenagers. But first, I couldn't miss the opportunity to play a board game or two with Axel (my host brother). And Grandma V, if you are reading this right now, yes I did in fact play Mille Bornes with actual French kids. I never thought I'd be able to say that.
This week so far has been indeed a new experience for me. From meeting all the other students in the program Monday afternoon, to learning the ins and outs of the Nice bus system (while making a few wrong turns along the way), I think that I am finally starting to become acclimated to the French way of life. I started my stage at l'Hôpital St. Roch. My specialty is la medècine d'urgences. There are several other students who work there, many of them far along in their medical track towards becoming doctors. I have observed the other students assisting the physician with giving the patient's orders while at the same time, learning about the patient's condition and what prognosis and treatment might be the best option. I have already been able to see how the French medical system is very different that the system in America. With all the other students in the program from all over the nation, the twenty-six of us take two classes together that will seek to teach us more about the history, establishment, and customs of the French medical system. There are several of us that hope to some day be future doctors and professors, and even some that wish to live in a foreign country or do research relating the French and American medical systems.
However, with all this busyness surrounding us with having to go to the hospital in the morning and class in the afternoon everyday during the week, we have definitely not forgotten to take some time to relax and enjoy the beautiful Niçois sun.
At a French restaurant near the shoreline of the Mediterranean Sea
Left to right: Emily, Caroline, me
