Nantes

It is impossible to walk far down the streets of Nantes with an empty stomach. Along with the normal forecast of cloudy skies and chilly temperatures you can be sure back-to-back cafes, restaurants, and boulangeries (bakeries) will emit wafts of freshly buttered bread, clouds of powdered sugar and the sharp cutting winds of cheese. All this will fill your nose and mouth with scents of delicious promises that you can’t ignore. It is no coincidence that the IES Abroad Nantes program focuses an entire course on French gastronomy theory, or that this course is one of the most in-demand courses among us students. France’s emphasis on meals makes learning more about French culture synonymous with sharing a scrumptious morsel of vegetable, cheese, and butter tart with my host family during our evening dinners. 

L’apéritif

My first bite into Nantes began on the very evening of my arrival, with l’apéro. I sat in the living room and watched, a little flustered, as all six members of my host family buzzed around me, gathering plates and various chips, cheese, and bread to be set on a small living room table. While preparing our first of many delicious shared meals, they explained to me their concept of l’apéritif (or l’apéro for short); basically, it is a drinking period that takes place before dinner, where the emphasis is placed on time and discussion shared with those around you. At their house, juices and snacks were also set out for the kids. Once we had started, though I was highly jet-lagged after 37 hours of travel time, I found the conversation stimulating and the snacks, in a word, delicious. My host family is experienced in l’apéro: everyone spoke effortlessly. Even the children, whether to politely ask me questions or talk about their own day, participated in the tradition. No one answered queries with short, easy answers like “it was good”, or “okay”, but instead gave detailed explanations and then proposed new questions that kept the discussion sailing despite my broken French. Thus, we continued talking late into the night as we moved onto the main dinner, and then the dessert. The memory of what I ate that first day escapes me, but I remember the aftertaste of contentment that lingered as I settled down to sleep.

Le petit déjeuner

The next morning, I stepped groggily out of my room into a whole new cultural lesson: breakfast. Since at home I can normally wolf down a large bowl of cereal, toast, and a banana for breakfast, I was surprised to find solely a bowl of bread on the table, along with an array of spreads such as jam, honey, butter, and fruit. After talking with other IES Abroad students, I found that they’ve had similar experiences. While my fear of going hungry prompted me to ask my host mother for a bowl of cereal instead (which she graciously provided) that first day, I have since then found that a couple of slices of fresh bread and a bit of jam is delicious enough to keep my stomach satisfied ‘til lunch.

Le déjeuner

If breakfast is a little small, lunch more than makes up for it. During my first free lunch period, I followed a group of others to a boulangerie nearby the IES Abroad center. I will admit it, my mouth watered as I surveyed in awe all the perfectly golden-brown topped pieces of bread, lightly dusted with white flour and cut in a way that enticingly revealed the soft-baked dough within. When I received my sandwich, the circles of cheese and sliced tomatoes proved to be just as fresh. I felt happy eating a sandwich that felt as loved and cared for by the earth that produced the ingredients as it was by the people that tenderly sliced and placed them together. Furthermore, the price was reasonable at around 4 euros for a long baguette, about 1 dollar less than a 6-inch subway sandwich where I’m from. And, don’t even get me started on the pain au chocolat I tried later: absolute pure bliss! With that first lunch came an epiphany; it seems that while the United States pushes for quantity and full-ness, France emphases quality and satisfaction with its food. Furthermore, in contrast to the US’s overpowering large chain stores, France has managed to keep its cuisine alive with its host of small boulangeries and other ethnic eateries, which I can’t restrain myself from going back to.

Le dîner

Since the first night, my host family and I haven’t shared another l’apéro, but the sharing-spirit of that first meal has settled over each dinner. The children take turns each day setting the table, and then when it’s time to eat, everyone takes the initiative to help serve each other. Slices of fabulous quiches, pizza, and baked pasta are balanced on silverware and distributed across the table. Once everyone is ready, with a knife and fork in hand (these utensils will likely remain in each hand for most of the dinner), a short word from the parents will signal us to start eating. Simultaneously, the conversation picks up speed. Normal conversations about each other’s day bring comforting reminders of my own family’s dinner traditions, but while at home our conversations normally die down after 30 minutes, my host family continues for up to an hour. At the end of dinner, each day is topped with a dessert or fruit, a nice sweetness that refreshes our palate for morning’s breakfast. 

I can’t believe that, after around two weeks of being in France, what I’ve tasted is still only the appetizer compared to the plethora of different flavors I will experience during the upcoming academic year. With each meal comes a new mouthful of diverse and exotic flavors, richness entrenched in tradition and custom, and a sweetness that brightens the day. I find myself always in anticipation of the next bite.

This is it, guys! In approximately one week, around 50 IES Abroad students, including myself, will be taking the leap out of the U.S. towards Nantes, France! Now that I’m so close, however, I’m almost terrified that something tragic is going to happen before I can get on that plane. Like a lost visa, or worse: my latest nightmare (this is real) comes true, and I wind up taking the wrong plane to my college in Ohio instead of the one to France! Ok, ok, that’s probably not going to happen. I know these fears are irrational, for the most part, but it’s going to be hard to get them to quiet down until I’m physically in France, living my dream. In the meantime, I’ve come up with a list of activities to help myself and others (if they are struggling with similar emotions), forget our pre-departure panic while simultaneously helping us get a bit more prepared before the big step. 

YouTube

The nature of YouTube makes it a great resource for language learners. First off, as Hugo Cotton states in his video Les films français... incompréhensibles?, it is hard to understand a new language if multiple people are talking, and YouTube videos normally only feature one or two speakers. Hugo also explains how it is easier to learn from people who we feel emotionally connected to; on YouTube, we can find like-minded people who upload videos regularly, allowing us to remain invested in their life events. Furthermore, the shortness of YouTube videos makes it easy to replay them over and over in order to translate the YouTuber’s dialogue. Finally, by translating each YouTuber's facial expressions and utilizing the images they use in their videos, language learners can understand their content without entirely understanding their speech. Subtitles are also available on some videos to turn on when needed.

Here are some of the YouTube channels I’ve been watching throughout the summer:

InnerFrench is the channel of Hugo Cotton. His videos and podcasts are focused on French instruction, but instead of explaining grammar topics he talks about relevant French cultural topics and world news at an intermediate French level that makes learning French fun. 

Cyprien is another native speaker. His channel features short, humorous videos and longer, thought-provoking court métrages. He is one of the most popular YouTubers in France with over 14 million subscribers.

DamonandJo is one of my favorite channels, featuring two American YouTubers who use their videos to inspire others to learn languages and explore the world. They are very entertaining and have videos in Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and yes—French!

Several other great channels include Easy Languages, which features interviews with everyday French passersby, and Patricia B, who does interesting America-France comparisons. 

If you already know a bit of your host country's language, watching some of its YouTubers may be a great way to improve your language skills and cultural knowledge.

Get Healthy

If, like me, you’ve always wanted to work out more but feet like things are too crazy with school, summer’s the perfect time to break out your running shoes or yoga mat. No one wants to deal with an unexpected health issue while abroad. We can do our best to prevent any problems by keeping up our fitness before and during the trip.

A nice side-effect of my weekly neighborhood runs has been being able to get quality time with my home town before leaving it for the whole academic year. The comfortingly familiar roads and the endorphin-releasing act of running have helped to calm my mind in the face of the widely unfamiliar aspects of the upcoming trip.

Furthermore, while running, it doesn’t hurt to listen to some upbeat French music! Any kind of auditory practice helps to improve French understanding.

Google Maps

Sometimes, the excitement to travel is too strong to be distracted by French YouTube videos or exercise. In that case, I break out the next best thing—virtual traveling! Simply look up Nantes on Google Maps, then lift and drag the small yellow human figure on the lower right-hand corner of the screen and drag it to your desired location. Voila! You can walk around the streets of Nantes weeks before even setting foot in the city. Even better, look up the IES Abroad Center address or the address of your host family in order to explore pathways to and from both locations. 

Learn about traveling in your host country

If you haven’t had much travel experience before, or just wish to hone your knowledge of your host country, there are many resources available. I, for one, could definitely benefit from travel tips surrounding, say, how to not embarrass myself when having dinner with my host family, what to wear so that my clothes don’t scream TOURIST, or what in the world to do during my horrifying 12-hour layover. Here are some of the places where I’ve found good information:

Public Libraries generally have a good collection of travel and language books. 

YouTube once again stands as an all-around great resource for travel information. Personally, I’ve been using the channel “Walter’sWorld” to access information on what to wear, how to act, and how to avoid boredom in France and at the airport. Walter breaks tips down simply and efficiently in each video.

IES Abroad Blogs are probably the best first-hand resources we will get for traveling to and around our host country as IES Abroad students. I’ve breezed through many of them already and have found that they have answered many of my questions on food choices and possible activities while abroad.

As time speeds up, I find that with each YouTube video I watch or travel book I read, I feel a little bit more confident and comfortable with the idea of traveling halfway across the globe. This feeling of preparedness is allowing me to relax, take deep breaths, and enjoy spending the next couple of weeks with my friends and family at home.