Day 1 - Somewhere in a Far-away Land

Being submerged in a story is nothing like being submerged in a new culture. There is nothing to prepare you for the shock, and the inevitable flabbergasted moments that happen more frequently than anyone would want them to. This blog depicts my journey from a wide-eyed, excited student I was, to what I will hopefully become as I hop, skip and jump through two months of French exchange. The journey begins with the 26 hour journey from Melbourne to Lyon, which is the biggest town near the village I now call home. After all of the usual struggles that come with travelling, including but not limited to massive sleep deprivation, force-feeding of bad food, and annoying plane neighbours, I was anything but ready when I stepped off the last plane, and had a sudden moment of clarity.

Yes, I was now in France. Yes, a majority of people were speaking French. And finally, YES, what do French people do in France? Well,it does so happen that a majority, if not all French citizens speak FRENCH. Unfortunately for me, that small fact had failed to be recognised earlier in the journey. And there I found my self, nearly two hours later, sitting in an impeccably decorated lounge room, drinking carbonated orange juice and listening to rapid French conversation I was struggling to understand after being kindly re-assured that I was indeed above the average for students my age learning another language, and that surely, I would improve overtime. What a way to start my first day.