Ava’s Leaving Cert Preparation Course in Nice

Bonjour from Nice!

Hi, my name is Ava, and I am a 5th year student from Clare. I have just come home from my two-week stay in Nice taking part in the leaving cert preparation course in Nice, France, where I attended language school while staying with a host. I embarked on this journey with Honor, a friend from school, both of us wanting to improve our spoken French before the Leaving Cert, and of course, there is no better place to do that than in France itself. The opportunity to learn while experiencing the French culture first hand was certainly exciting.

🏡 Our Home Away from Home

After a transfer from the airport arranged for us by the team at Tribe, Honor and I arrived at our host’s residence. We stayed in a beautiful apartment in the centre of Nice. Location-wise, it was perfect, 10 minutes from the beach, 5 from the train station and only 2 from our school. Our host was a very nice and inviting woman named Suzanne.

🥐 French Food & Speaking French

One of my favourite things about staying with a host family was mealtimes. Firstly, our host was an incredible cook and the meals we received during our stay were top-notch, but secondly, this gave me an opportunity to practise my French outside of school, in a more casual setting. Talking with Suzanne about the little things like what we had done or what we had planned for the next day was a huge help when becoming more used to speaking and having a flow of conversation in French.

📚 Learning French in France

Initially, I had some nerves about school in France, my ability to engage through French and what the class atmosphere would be, but I’m glad to say in reality there was nothing to worry about. Everyone I met at the language school was incredibly friendly and welcoming, both teachers and students. In class, we were given every opportunity to speak and give our opinion and were encouraged even if we could not fully articulate what it was we were trying to say. These classes consisted of oral discussions, short worksheets and also a wide range of fun activities, for example, group story writing, charades in French, and a debate.

🚆 Exploring the French Riviera

Although language school was incredibly enjoyable, the highlights of my trip, without a doubt, were our day trips. Over the course of our two weeks, Honor and I visited almost every place there was to visit. Nice acted as a perfect base in the center of many exciting towns such as Monaco, Menton, Antibes and even a small town in Italy called Ventimiglia. Out of the eight or nine places we saw during our stay, Eze was my personal favourite. We took this trip on our first weekend. The two-hour hike proved a challenge; however, the beautiful village at the end was well worth the struggle. The exotic garden is a sight I hope never to forget, and the shops in the village, selling everything from jewelry to olive oil, were absolutely beautiful and very inviting.

✨ Memories to Take Home

Overall, this experience was once in a lifetime, and I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. Not only do I feel my spoken French has improved, but I’m also more confident in using it. Another huge positive impact of this trip was how it inspired me to travel more and showed me the importance of experiencing other cultures. This course has definitely some pressure for exams next year & I now full much better prepared for the Leaving Cert Exams!