Sitting on the train last summer heading into Aix-En-Provence to meet my host family, my nerves were higher than I think they’d ever been. The last few days had been spent in Paris, exploring the history and culture of the city entirely in French, and I was not ready to leave the relative comfort of my fellow students and teachers to stay with a French family I had only communicated with online. But I took the plunge and can honestly say I’ve never had such an enriching experience in such a short amount of time.
Coline was my sister, a girl a year younger than me with whom I had been talking since March of that year. Unlike some of my friends in the program, she and I didn’t instantly spark; we definitely didn’t dislike each other, but we weren’t best friends either, which I think ended up working nicely. We got along really well without me being overly attached or dependent, and I was able to experience her city and life through my eyes, not hers.
I spent the majority of the week with her and her mom, Nathalie, who has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I’ve met. They made sure I got to see all different aspects of their region, from a day at the beach in Marseille to shopping at the open-air market in Aix to a dance at Coline’s school to eating delicious regional food until I was stuffed. I was welcomed as part of the family by everyone I met and treated as such within the family as well (even by the older brothers who I was terrified of at first). Some of the simplest family moments were the ones I found the most rewarding. I kept up a journal during the trip, and I’m so glad I did because the memories never fail to make me smile and laugh. These people who had been strangers a week before had become my second family, and they learned as much about me and my life as I had about them and theirs.
All too soon, it was time to move on. Coline came to the meeting point to say goodbye wearing the Cardinals t-shirt I gave her. After many tears, les bises, and a hug or two, I was on the bus, heading off to my last few days in France, and even sooner after that I was back in the United States.
When we landed in Atlanta I called my mom in tears, not ready to accept that I had actually left and that the people and places I loved so much were over 4,000 miles away from me. However, while this is where the story comes to a crawl for most people, a whole new chapter began in mine. By some miracle, both Coline and her two older brothers would be in the United States for the whole year; Coline in a host program in Minneapolis and both of her brothers at a university 30 minutes from where I live. As school began for all of us, it was hard to keep in regular contact, but we kept up with each other through social media. In March I got an unexpected message from Nathalie; she and her husband would be in town in April, and would our family want to meet up somewhere? Without hesitating I said yes.
Unfortunately Coline was still in school at the time, but even just one night of helping my two families meet and interact was as rewarding as the homestay itself. I told my French family about my plans for college, and my interest in studying abroad at L’Institut d’Études Politiques in Aix-en-Provence, and they immediately offered for me to live with them for that entire year. Their generosity and kindness rivals that of people I’ve known my whole life, and while part of that is who they are, it also stems from the nature of the homestay and the deep connections you’re able to make in a short amount of time. I’m so grateful for the time I’ve spent with them, and cannot wait to see them and France again.
Annabel is a recent graduate of Kirkwood High School in St. Louis, MO. She travelled to France with Xperitas in 2015.
These people who had been strangers a week before had become my second family, and they learned as much about me and my life as I had about them and theirs.
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