This semester, my favorite question to be asked was what my summer plans are because I knew I had such a great answer: spending 5 weeks in France! I’ve been talking about these plans for months, but now that I’m finally preparing for my trip it is all starting to become real. The guidebooks are piling up on my desk, I’m exchanging my Dollars for Euros, and the fasting has begun before the unavoidable overload of crèpes, croissants, and fois gras. I leave this Saturday, June 18th, for a week in Paris with my mom before the program starts, and I plan on using this short week to take in everything the City of Lights has to offer! Then I’m off to the South of France to study in Montpellier until late July.
Before I head out though, I would love to introduce myself and let you know why I am so interested in this French program. I am a rising junior at William and Mary with a major in Global Studies (with a European Concentration) and a Management minor in the Business School. At W&M, I work at the admissions office, I am in a social sorority, I am a tour guide, and next year I will be a part of the residence life staff as an HA. I started my education, from kindergarten through 8th grade, at a French immersion school in Chicago. That meant that all of my classes were in French until I reached high school. So I learned about right angles, but to me they were “angles droits”, and I learned about King Louis XIV at Versailles not Honest Abe in the White House. I have surrounded myself with the French culture and language for most of my life without ever getting to spend a substantial amount of time there… until now!
I can’t wait to continue updating you on all my French adventures, but until then… Gros Bisoux!
Sam Fansler