How do you say...

Last night I was invited to dine with a prospective host family.  My contact here decided it would help my French to live with a French family, nevermind the awkwardness of actually living with a French family.  So my prospective host dad, Gilles, and his 6 year old son Maxime, picked me up at 5:30 for dinner.  He was kind enough to speak French as slowly as possible while I answered in English.  He explained to me that they lived in a flat on the fourth floor (already a bad sign) and that I would meet his wife and his 4 year old daughter Juliette.

You know that moment when you enter someone's home and whether you know them or not, it's immediately awkward?  Then comes questions like "where do I put my bag and should I take my shoes off too or do I wait in the foyer until they invite me to sit?"  Well, in a French home where the customs are already foreign, it is 10 times worse.  Children always know how to cast aside the awkward.  Juliette with wide, beautiful brown eyes gave me a gift and invited me in. 

After sitting with the family and being introduced to the butterfly prince and princess of the Barbie Kingdom, I set the table and watched as Gilles' wife prepared dinner.  They asked me to describe popular Louisiana cuisine and I chose crawfish, which is impossible to describe.  (Everyone in France seems to think that Louisiana is more French that it really is--a bank clerk asked me today if we speak a little French in Louisiana...um not so much).  Dinner consisted of an entree of melon and tomatoes, a premier plat of delicious potatoes and roast, and a dessert of glace (try explaining the phrase I scream for ice scream--"you scream when you're afraid, yes"... or for ice cream)

During dinner, I played English tutor to Gilles and his children:

Maxime "Comment a dit anniversaire en anglais"
-Birthday
Juliette "Comment a dit tomates en anglais"
-Tomatoes
Maxime "Comment a dit Maxime en anglais"
-Maxime
Juliette "Comment a dit Leslie en anglais"
-Leslie

This went on for quite some time, but it was adorable. I hope the kids I teach this year will be just as curious and cute.

After dinner, Gilles and his wife offered me a room--their daughters room to be exact--and although they were quite generous I've decided to make my life a little more difficult and live with the other assistants in a dorm room.  Studying French has become my most time consuming hobby it seems.

I will plan on my life abroad becoming more interesting in the coming weeks.

A Bientot for now