Phoebe Tyszkiewicz - QLD to France v.2

Tue 09 Oct 2007

Phoebe Tyszkiewicz, from Moreton Bay College in QLD, is currently in France having won a Student Exchange Australia Language Scholarship. Here is her latest news.

An exchange to France- a few pointless words but to some, but to others, it can be a life-changing phrase. If there is one thing that I will never doubt in my life, it is that I made the right decision to go on an exchange to France. France is like the stereotypes- a country of love and passion. From the beginning it has been a fairytale, although a fairytale of an average person, experiencing amazing things.

Out of all the things all the things I have done in France; I have a small list of my ‘special highlights.’ The first, and most important is the food in France. While my mother in Australia cooks her meals with love, I have to admit that nothing can compare with the food here. Although there can be a few exceptions, the frogs legs, snails…and the kangaroo, I was served at my school cafeteria; every meal is delicious.

Secondly, my summer holidays have been really fun. As the ‘French’ summer holidays are for three months, this has given me a chance to get to know France so much better.

In the first week of the holidays, I went to Brest, in the north of France. I got a chance to visit a marine park- Oceanopolis, Camaret (A small beach place) and to try all the new Breton foods.

The next two weeks, I visited a new department (Lozère) with my host family. In the first week, I stayed at a farm in the mountains. I will never forget our room. There were two lights, five beds for six people, the oven did not work and the drains were blocked! With all our problems we were given a free ‘Country Dinner’ and a walk with goats.

After the farm, my family and I went camping. This was a great experience for me because I have never been camping before. We had a large lake near us, so we went swimming and canoeing.

Thirdly and lastly, learning French has also been another special highlight. By learning a new language, not only have I discovered the culture in France, but I also have met some really interesting people. For me, learning French means that I have 65 million more people I can talk to and share my life with (and that is just French population alone!) Learning a foreign language is so much fun. It’s a great chance to get to know ourselves better.

For me, this year would definitely be the greatest year of my life. OF COURSE it has been hard sometimes, not just on me but it has also been hard on my natural family. Life isn’t always perfect! “An exchange will be the best and hardest year of your life”. I heard this expression a million times before I went on my exchange. This is so true except, the hard parts last for minutes and the best parts last for months. An exchange is truly the best opportunity of a lifetime. Make the most of it.

Phoebe