It’s been just over a month since I have moved to Tours after my small travel adventures in London and Paris. A lot has happened in that month. I moved into my residence, registered at my uni, started classes, already been on three weekend day trips to French castles (including the famous and absolutely beautiful château de Chambord. Just look at that photo below!), and met tonnes of other exchange students. I’ve got a lot of new friends from all different countries, but I’ve made my own little friend group with 3 girls from Canada and 1 from the USA (we have our own Facebook group chat so it’s legit!).
Classes are going okay. Sort of can’t understand what is going on, but I’ve been getting by (just). So far it hasn’t really felt like I’ve been studying, but now the harder assignments are creeping up like tests and presentations all in French, so it’s time to get a crack on. There have been some challenges with the language barrier which have been met with times of frustration. It doesn’t help that my friends and I only speak in English together, but slowly and surely I will get there and be a proper pro at French when I get back (well hopefully anyway).
I have dived into my fair share of crêpes while here because I just can’t resist! The French also have a day dedicated to eating crêpes on 2nd February called La Chandeleur, and I was more than happy to celebrate with them.
Next week is the winter break and I will be doing some travelling with two other Australians! We are going to Prague, Vienna and Budapest, and it will be awesome. The Aussies take on Eastern Europe, I can’t wait! I also have further weekend trips planned for the future, like London for St Patty’s day weekend, and Paris to go to Disneyland in April!
My next challenging mission is going to the hairdresser as I’m long overdue for a haircut. But I have been studying French vocab words on what to say. Wish me luck and pray I don’t walk out with uneven hair!
Melissa Sainsbury, Bachelor of Education (Primary R-7)/Bachelor of Arts, Semester 1 2017 exchange at Université François-Rabelais de Tours, France
- Reade Melissa’s 1st post here
