Christmas in France with My Host Family

We finally finished loading the back of the van with tote bags overflowing with gifts. Though the wrapping paper and shiny bows seemed obvious, none of the girls noticed the commotion, too busy singing their own renditions of

Petit Papa Noël

at the tops of their lungs. My host dad, Fabrice, slammed the trunk, I jumped in the back with the kids, and my host mom, Magalie, ran down the stairs with all the last minute items. I breathed a sigh of relief. We were ready to hit the road after a hectic early morning of packing and sleepy eyes. We were traveling from Saint-Étienne to Thonon-les-Bains to spend Christmas with Magalie’s family, a three-hour drive that would take us over winding roads in the foothills of the Alps, to the valley surrounding Lake Geneva or

Lac Léman

in the Haute-Savoie region bordering Switzerland.

C’est parti mon kiki!

This was to be my first Christmas away from home, and I was nervous. I was four-months into my first year in France, and though I was beginning to feel at home with my host family, I wasn’t sure I was ready to face all the cousins and aunts and nephews and grandparents. Christmas back home was small and quiet, and I wasn’t sure what to expect.

As we pulled into the driveway of Magalie’s childhood home, Mamie Sissi, came running to greet us with an onslaught of

bisous

. We walked inside to find a spread of

foie-gras

and oysters—

huîtres.

Before I knew it, everyone was offering me new foods to try, making sure

l’américaine

felt welcome. Over the course of the next few days, we feasted:

Mont-d’or

cheese melted over potatoes,

fondue savoyarde

saucisson, la tartiflette, coquilles saint-jacques

. Somehow there was still room for a decadent

bûche de noël

and Swiss chocolates!

On Christmas eve, my host family made sure we stopped in

Évian-les-Bains

to visit

Le Village des Flottins.

Each year artists gather driftwood from the banks of Lac Léman to construct an entire village of dream-like creatures. According to legend, these creatures,

les flottins et les flottines,

rescued

Le Pêre Noël

when his sleigh crashed into the lake one winter.

On Christmas day, my host family asked what I missed most about the holidays in Minnesota. The answer was easy…I missed snow! Thankfully, snow was not far away. A quick drive into the mountains and we were surrounded by heaps of fluffy white

neige

. We hiked up Mont Bénand and saw breathtaking views of the lake and drank hot chocolate in a little mountain châlet.

I welcomed this opportunity to learn and participate in new traditions. Have you ever spent an important event or holiday away from your usual surroundings? What did you observe and learn?

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worldwide.

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