Every other year, students enrolled in French classes have the opportunity to learn outside the classroom.

“The trip made me realize that I wasn’t as good at French as I thought I was, and it really motivated to improve in my French when I got back home! It was also really beneficial to immerse yourself in another culture and see how different things are in other countries,” said senior Mareliz Gallogo.

This year, the students spent nine days in France. To begin their trip, the students arrived in Paris, where they stayed with a host family for three days.

“The most interesting part of the house I was in was that there were two separate bathrooms, one bathroom with nothing but a toilet and another bathroom with a shower and sink,” said freshman Josh Einbinder.

The host families helped the students improve their French.

“At first it was really scary since our host mom Natalie didn’t speak any English, but as the days went by, we started to get more and more comfortable. I personally thought that it was super beneficial to live with a host family since we got to see that there are way more similarities than differences between American and French culture,” Gallogo said.

While out of the country, there were many opportunities to learn about French culture. For example, the group went to Galleries Lafayette, a large shopping area in the center of the city.

“We went shopping on Galleries Lafayette, which is a very expensive shopping center in Paris,” said French teacher Dorota Trybula.

On Wednesday of the trip, the group went to Versailles, the famous city from history. This meant they were no longer in Paris.

“We went on a bike ride in the Versailles’ gardens, along with the Chateau De Versailles and the Jardins De Versailles,” Trybula said.

According to travelers, the food was an interesting concept.

“French cuisine is very different from American meals. Everything is made from scratch with fresh products. They don’t use processed food and usually buy their groceries at a market,” Trybula said.

Each student had their own favorite part.

“I loved exploring Versailles and Avignon! Both are beautiful old places with so much life and new experiences,” said senior Emilee Gossell.

The trip also had benefits beyond the cultural experience.

“I was able to apply all the vocabulary that I learned. I also appplied some behavorial rules I learned in French class like the proper way to greet someone and say goodbye,” said junior AnneMarie Seminary.