As my time in France has come to a close, I’ve started looking back on the last 8 months of my life, reliving, rehashing, remembering, and reminiscing. As any stay in France is bound to unfold, I’ve had a large portion of amazing memories and experiences, a dash of utterly ridiculous encounters with the French way of life, and a few helpings of cultural exchange that have left me with a new perspective in many cases. As I’ve pondered the time passed, I’ve compiled a list of things I will and won’t miss from my time in France. The following are the won’ts, followed by the wills of the Assistant experience:
Won’t Miss-
-The school administration. Self-explanatory, especially if you have ever taught in or worked with a school.
-Navigating through grève days on my way to work. The French national sport is, of course, going on strike. Having worked in a town that was a train ride away from Montpellier, figuring out which trains I would have to take, arriving at the train station and finding out they were cancelled anyways, and dodging ticket-takers while riding without a ticket is something I won’t miss, but also won’t look back on without laughing.
-Seeing the “Ass Anglais” label on my cubby in the teacher’s lounge. This one might require a little explanation. My official title while in France is “English Assistant” or in French, “Assistant Anglais.” The day I received my cubby from the school secretary, he decided to use the abbreviated version, which may not be the friendliest thing to greet a native English speaker each morning.
Will Miss-
-Eating lunch in Les Jardins de la Fontaine. Up the avenue from my school is a large garden with a natural spring that dates back to the time of the Roman occupation. There are stone ruins that cover the entire park, as well as trees, flowers, and paths to follow all around. If I ever had a long lunch and it was nice out, I would bring my food up to the garden, eat it while people watching, and sometimes take a nap on one of the benches.
-The kids. Whether for the ridiculous things they say (see “Lessons from Scattergories” post) or for the unexpected, awesome things they do (baking me desserts “because it was Thanksgiving yesterday” or staying up all night to watch the Superbowl because I taught them the rules to American football), the kids I taught this year were great. With the number of students I worked with, sometimes up to 15 alone with me, I rarely ever had trouble with them.
-Traveling. Being able to travel to another country, see a different culture, and experience a different way of life all at a moment's notice is one of the most exciting parts about having lived abroad for the year. No matter how much I saw, there was always something else out there to see and I definitely can't wait to make my next trip.
-Meeting people from all over. No matter what new nationalities I came across, meeting people from around the world never got old. Talking with them and finding out how similar we actually all were was great, and I'm sure I've made lasting friendships with some great people from around the globe.
That just about wraps up My Year in the Merde. I hope everyone reading this will someday have their own experience in the merde, be it in France, another foreign country, or even right here in the United States. Traveling can be some of the best, or at the very least most memorable times, so never stop exploring because as Russell so wisely declared in Up, "Adventure is out there."
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