Aero: Amanda Vitale – France 2018 – Family Life

Posted by LEAF Architect on Tuesday, September 11, 2018 · Leave a Comment

Aero: Amanda Vitale – France 2018 – Family Life

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Amanda Vitale

Before traveling, the thought of staying with another family for a week seemed terrifying. I was mainly scared that my host family may not be able to speak or understand English well. I was also nervous to speak in French, knowing that I’d stumble or say something incorrect, especially since I only know the very basics of the French language. The last time I studied French was three years ago in high school. Therefore, I was kind of panicking about staying with a French family. Thankfully, my host family knew quite some English when I arrived. The mother and father were recalling most of their English from what they learned, many years ago, in school. The parents had a daughter and a son. The daughter, Ilanna, was 16 years old, while the son, Louca, was 10. Ilanna knew English very well. In school, they learn a different language very young. Louca was learning the basics and read the alphabet in English to me, along with a few sentences. I was surprised that they learn another language so young. Back home, I wasn’t allowed to learn another language in my school until I was 12.

I noticed that the parents work schedules were both shorter than many work schedules are in the United States. I learned that most people in France don’t work over 35 hours a week. This was shocking to me. To compare this with home, my dad typically works 50 to 60 hours a week. I also found out that Ilanna couldn’t work because in France one has to be 18 to start a job. She also couldn’t drive yet because one also has to be 18 to get a license in France. I believe she got to spend more time with her family because of these restrictions. I think this may also cause better relationships between parents and teenagers in French families, along with teenagers having more dependency on their parents. In America, I believe teenagers and young adults are more independent compared to what I noticed in France.

The house was a little smaller than what I’m used to, which was expected of a French home. It was smaller, yet very comfortable. Their home was very calm and quiet. I grew up with a larger family, which was a bit more chaotic. I have four very loud sisters so staying with this French family was a nice break from the noise. I also noticed right away that my host family was super friendly. They had a few neighbors come over occasionally throughout the week. My family back home is similar in this way. At home, my family invites neighbors and friends into our home often. It was nice to see that similarity in friendliness.

Eating dinner together as a family seemed like a very big deal in my host family. The food was amazing every night. My host family had a good relationship with each other and I believe eating as a family kept it strong. This is different from my family back home. We don’t eat together for dinner anymore due to conflicting work schedules. We ate dinner around 9pm which was very difficult for me. Back home, I’m used to eating dinner around 6pm. I believe the wait for food was definitely worth it though. I also had a 3-course meal every night, which was a normal thing for my host family. This, however, was not the usual for me. I’m used to having 1 course for dinner, which is sometimes followed by a late-night snack. My host family also had a fireplace right next to the dinner table, which they would light at dinner every night. I feel as if this emphasized the importance of dinner, while bringing in more comfort. For an example of dinner, one night we had homemade pizza for the first course, a cheese plater with bread for the second, and fresh macaroons for dessert. My host family noticed that the cheese plater and bread was my favorite course so we continued to have cheese for our second course every night, which was absolutely amazing. The food I ate within the home was more natural than what I’m used to in America. I didn’t see anything in the home that stood out as processed food. My French family also never touched their food. For example, one night we had some sort of grilled sandwich for dinner, which would be considered normal to pick up to eat in America. Instead, my host family cut it up with a fork and knife to eat it so I followed.

The day we had to leave our host families was very upsetting to me. I did not expect to have such a connection with a family I’ve only known for about a week, but I did. They were super kind to me the whole time. During my stay with them, I needed two lunches packed for two separate occasions. Each time, the mom packed these for me and left me a small note in each packed lunch, which I found to be very sweet of her. My birthday also passed when I was staying with them and they unexpectedly got me a gift with a card. They were beyond nice to me and I will never forget that.

Amanda Vitale
Study Abroad – France 2018 @ FLCC

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