New student in host family - Birthday party / August

By Emily

I have a new student living with me now. She is from England and is a lot of fun. I gave her a tour of Montpellier.

I bought a new CD. It is of a French singer and I love it. I have done a lot of shopping this week! I would like to buy more souvenirs to my family and friends though.

Tomorrow I will bike to the beach. I love all the beaches here in Montpellier. Maybe before I go to the beach I can do some more shopping.

By Dustin

This week was a lot of fun. Everyone from my host family’s family came because it was my host mom’s birthday. They all spoke English because they are British so I got to relax and converse in English which was really comforting.

The sad part was when everyone left. I realized I only have two more weeks left. I am excited about going back to school and seeing my American friends but still I don’t want to leave here and all my new friends.

By Dustin

"Birthday time"

This week was a lot of fun. Everyone from my host family’s family came because it was my host mom’s birthday. They all spoke English because they are British so I got to relax and converse in English which was really comforting.

The sad part was when everyone left. I realized I only have two more weeks left. I am excited about going back to school and seeing my American friends but still I don’t want to leave here and all my new friends.

New class - August

By Emily

I started my new class this week. I like my teachers and there are a lot of new students. I hope this month goes as well as last month.

Last weekend I went to Berlin and Geneva. Geneva was very pretty with a lot of gardens and a big fountain. I ate a lot of Swiss chocolate there. I love Swiss chocolate J !

In Berlin, I saw the Berlin wall. I was very sad when I thought of the holocaust. But I spent a good day in Berlin.

I am sad because a girl who lives with me is leaving tomorrow. At the same time I am happy because there is a new student who is coming here in a couple of days also. I am happy because Ryoko will be coming back to my house in 3 days!

By Dustin

School just started back up. I really don’t like the teachers but the new kids are all nice. My host brother and I have become really good friends and we go out every week-end. Also we just got another student from Canada who speaks English and French very well.

End of classes in July

By Emily

This week I finished my first course at Paul Valéry. I am happy there is a break, but also I’m sad. I like it here in Montpellier but I miss my boyfriend, friends and parents also. I have 4 more weeks and would like to have a lot of fun during them.

This week-end I went to Geneva and Berlin. Geneva is the prettiest city. It has a lot of gardens, and flowers and a fountain in the lake. Everyone in Geneva speaks French so it was easier for me than the other cities I visited.

Next I took a train to Berlin. I saw the Berlin wall. I was sad when I thought about the holocaust and all the people who died there.

I came back late Sunday night because Ashley had a flight the next morning to the US. After she left, I went shopping because all the stores are on sale. I begin school Wednesday.

By Dustin

It was the week-end right after the first month of school. I met so many people and was a bit sad that a lot of people were leaving, but we all made plans to go to Barcelona together. That trip was the most fun of my life.

There we saw Park Guëll and also just walked around town together and had a blast. One of the girls left from Barcelona to continue and travel the rest of Europe

My vacations in France – Avignon, Nîmes, Paris

By Emily - July 2008

This week I went to Avignon for the theater festival with my host family. We drove there Tuesday afternoon. I saw le Palais des papes and it was very pretty. It is very interesting that a pope lived in Avignon. I saw a lot of small performances. My favourite were dancers. They danced well and I like their music.

Friday I went to Nîmes for the Tour de France. I took a train and got there at 3 pm. My friends and I looked through the city. We took pictures of the arena, a big church and other little things. At 5:30, the Tour de France arrived to the city and we cheered for all the bikers. After I went home.

Saturday, I went to Paris for the weekend. I saw many things like the Eiffel Tower. I climbed it by foot and the city was very beautiful so high.

Hooray for excursions!

My stay to Montpellier was the best thing to do to immerse into French culture. The language courses at the university have been very helpful. It seems to me that my language skills are improving day by day. Working as a volunteer has also helped me a lot because it has given me the opportunity to practise my French but most of all to be a right citizen. Finally I have been able to participate in excursions and thank God there have been plenty of them. Last week I went to Aigues-Mortes, Nice et Monaco avec Jean Paul but this week my friends from the university and I went to Nîmes for the "Tour de France". The "Tour de France" is an annual cycle race in France which can take up to three weeks and which is very popular all around the world. Taking advantage of our location, we saw the "Arènes" and the "chapelle". On Sunday the 20th I took part in an excursion in Avignon which was organised by Oculture. During the sightseeing we contemplated the "Pont d' Avignon",the church of "Notre-Dame", the Palace of the Popes and the Art Museum. After that we took advantage of the time left to take a walk in the beautiful gardens , to attend the Avignon Festival where there where many artists, to taste the wine and to grab a bite.

Working as a volunteer

Par Pauline

One of the reasons that made me choose the IMLS Institute for my study abroad program was the fact that it included community service in its program. The school gave me the opportunity to work in retirement homes, in hospitals and in rehabilitation centers. Since I have always been interested in teaching after finishing my undergraduate, I thought that it would be a good idea to work with adolescences as a volunteer in order to get some expérience. As a result I decided to organize educational and recreational activities twice a week for the children of the Saint Pierre Institute. On Tuesday, the 16th I spent my day trying to help in the organization of next week's festivities and the decoration of the hospital. I involved myself deeply in it, especially because it had to do with "Ancient Grece", my home country.

Apart from the children at the hospital, I also agreed to work with Fedoua, once a week. Fedoua is a paralyzed person but she' s autonomous. She even has her own appartement. At our first appointment I was really surprised to see how independent she was. She' s so brave! She hasn't given up. She has taken her life into hands and she's able to take care of herself. I am really proud and happy to have met her.

Barcelona: a big city with many colours

By Emily Schultz

Last weekend I went to Barcelona with Ashley. Saturday, after school, we took the tram at the "Sabines" tram stop and then a bus to Barcelona. It took us longer than by car but we talked along the way and the journey went well.

When we got there, we arranged to meet with a friend from the United States. We stayed with her at the hotel.

On Sunday, Ashley and I walked around the city. We saw the Barcelona Cathedral, the Guell Park, the "Sagrada familia", many churches and the Triumphal Arch. Everything was beautiful and interesting. In the evening we went shopping and we tasted the Spanish food.

On Monday, July 14th, since we didn't have any class that day, we stayed at Barcelona. We spent the afternoon at the Barceloneta beach. At 17:30 we came back to Montpellier.