Nicole Keane’s French Adventure in High School Programme

Bonjour, my name is Nicole and I am a 16 year old TY student from county Clare. I chose to go on an high school programme in mid 2022 to experience French culture, improve my language fluency and meet new people. I am currently on my fourth week of a six week programme in Rennes France.

I arrived in France at the beginning of January 2023 and took the train from Paris to Rennes. I was met with my family on arrival and shortly after we went to play a handball tournament! Although I was tired from all the travelling, this was a great way to break the ice and I was starting to fit in already.

SETTLING INTO LIFE IN FRANCE

First of all, I go to an all girls school in Ireland, so being in a mixed school is a big change but since the beginning, all of my classmates have been very welcoming and I’ve had the chance to meet good friends. As well as this, the school hours are much longer in France than in Ireland. I start school at 8am every morning and some days I don’t finish until 17:40. The first few days, I was exhausted but as the weeks go by I can feel myself adjusting.

CELEBRATING FRENCH TRADITIONS

As I arrived in early January, I was just in time for “La Journée des Rois” which is celebrated on the first Sunday of January and it is a tradition in France to eat “La Galette des Rois”. This was a laugh as I never heard of the occasion before. One of my favourite parts of the day is before dinner when the whole family comes together in the living room for apéro. We usually play a board game or just unwind and talk about the day. We eat snacks like crisps, mushrooms, olives, nuts or radishes. This mostly only happens at the weekend when there is time.

ART & FRIENDSHIP IN PARIS

As part of my Art plastique class I do in school, a day trip to Paris was organised to go visit the musée d’Orsay and musée national d’art moderne. This was a challenge and I was nervous beforehand as my friends aren’t in that class and I didn’t really know anyone. But it turned out to be a great day and I made many new friends who find that being Irish is very interesting. (Although sometimes mistaken for Scottish).

GRATITUDE FOR A SURREAL EXPERIENCE

As of now I have two weeks left in France and not only has my French improved but I’ve also got the chance to meet many new lifelong friends and develop an amazing bond with my host family. I am very grateful to be able to take part in a programme like this. The whole experience has been surreal and I encourage everyone to do this if they get the chance.