Editor’s note: Miriam Makhyoun is a student at Tuscola High School in Haywood County.

Earlier this spring, 19 students from Tuscola High School boarded a plane from Charlotte to Paris. The trip was led by our teacher, Mary Alice Lodico, and two other foreign language teachers, Laura Rogers and Dr. Larry Fox. While other students headed to the beach for spring break amusement, we immersed ourselves for 12 days in the French culture we had been studying. Our French correspondents had stayed with us in October, and we were eager to reunite with the friends we had kept in touch with by email. After the four-hour TGV ride, “Train de Grand Vitesse,” from Paris to Nantes, we headed for the homes of our respective students.

My student friend, Julie-Anne, a fiery redhead, lived in the center of Nantes, where fortunately everything was only a brisk walk away. Her mother was a fabulous cook preparing filet mignon and other such dishes nightly.

The meals were often five-course. One begins with hors-d’oeuvres, then the appetizers or “entrées” such as soup or salad. Then comes the main course or “plat principale,” which may be followed by a cheese platter or fresh fruit, and finally coffee and dessert. The French value three large meals a day as opposed to the “a little here, a little there” method we Americans sometimes adhere to.

“Everything tasted so much better there,” said Sara Richards, one of the Tuscola students who spent her spring break with a French family. “I keep telling my parents how I miss the French food.”

The American students were able to spend two half-days at school with their French correspondents. The high schools of France divide their students into forms based on their strongest subjects. The forms are E for Economics, L for Literature, and S for Science. Unlike high school in the United States where students mix with their classmates as they go from class to class, the students at Lycée Notre Dame go to class only with the students in their form, and the teachers change classrooms. At times the atmosphere was university-like. Due to the varied daily schedules, there were times when a student has a free hour and could go to a nearby café between classes to play pool and fooze-ball, what the French call “baby-foot.”

While the students are given the liberty of an hour and a half for lunch (compared to our 30 minutes), as well as a 15-minute respite simply to talk or study, the teachers strictly enforce the “no gum, food, or drink” rule. Our American teachers had the fortune of fine dining in the teachers’ dining room at the school where they were waited on daily.

It was incredible to watch ourselves improve linguistically during our stay. The majority of us spoke French throughout our stay in Nantes. As we challenged ourselves to become fluent, we bonded with our new friends and learned French expressions and “false-friends” (words that are the same in French and English but have different meanings).

“It was great practice having someone there to share with and to seek help from,” said Tuscola student Amanda Clark.

In French, the word for “traffic light” translates to “fire” in English. When giving directions, my student, Julie-Anne, advised me to turn right at the “fire.” I explained to her that we call it “traffic light” in English. Another exchange student habitually replaced “funny” for “fun.”

“My confidence in speaking, as well as my accent, improved greatly during the trip,” said Tuscola student Danielle Wingate.

“When you hear nothing but French for so long, you begin to think in French and become more fluent,” said another Tuscola student, Emily Burrus.

This was definitely more than the typical tourist’s view. Romances formed and picky eaters found themselves trying “escargots.”

Looking back on the trip conjures a montage of sights. In an enormous modern stadium, we watched a professional soccer game.

“Allez les verts!” (Go Greens!)

There were no cheerleaders, but the crowd roared and sang cheers and were on their feet most of the time. On one of the two-day trips, we visited the salt marshes and Saint Malo, a fisherman’s village located on the beautiful seaside with numerous boutiques. We picnicked by the sea.

Mt. Saint Michel was also a marvel that left us breathless and awestruck because of its countless stairs and exceptional view.

“It’s just so neat to see a functional monastery when at the same time there are all these tourists,” said Tuscola student Amy Wyatt.

St. Michel founded the cathedral and on the steeple sits a golden sculpture of the Saint with a bow and arrow. The legend as told to us by Professor Guinard, one of the school teachers from our corresponding French group, is that the Saint shoots dragons. Another legendary trademark of this extraordinary sight is the quicksand on the coast.

“The tide comes in like galloping horses and the quicksand is faster than you can imagine,” Guinard explained.

In our travels by bus from Nantes to Paris, we visited Chartres Cathedral, constructed using flying buttresses, which elevate the structure with strategic arches. Though it was built in 1015, only the Western quarter of the cathedral survived the numerous fires. The architecture of Chartres evolves from Romanesque to Gothic, which the trained eye can see by studying more than 150 stained glass windows, all of which tell a story, as well as the countless sculptures varying from sullen to jubilant in their moods. By good fortune we happened to see a wedding uniting an American woman and a French man — quite fitting as we, too, were forming a unity with France.

The first image that comes to mind when someone speaks of Paris is that of the Eiffel Tower. Our teacher, Laura Rogers, quoted a critic of the late 19th Century in stating: “The only place I can enjoy in Paris is on top of the Eiffel Tower, for it’s the only place I can’t see that eyesore.”

The structure itself was not so popular when it first appeared at a World’s Fair a century ago, but it has since become one of the most widely recognized monuments in the world.

Exchange programs are possibly one of the most fulfilling experiences available to high school students. In the words of Mark Twain, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” Moreover, being multilingual is becoming vital in almost every career. There will always be situations where knowledge of another language is a necessity, and the best way to fully comprehend the language and culture of the country is by visiting it.

“It’s definitely the best to visit another country through an exchange,” said Tuscola student Daniel Baker. “You get to see what’s really going on with the lifestyles and the differences and really experience and live in another country. I can’t wait to get back.”

Even after the trip had come to a close, many of us continue corresponding with the students of Lycée Notre Dame. Perhaps one day there will be a reunion, but even if we never meet again, the camaraderie amongst the Americans will live on with the cherished memories of our stay in France.

 

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