Culture Shock

Before I left the United States for France, I made sure I read the entire IUHPFL manual. In said manual, there was a section all about culture shock, which it defined as "the disorientation that every student experiences to some degree when spending extended time abroad". Symptoms include feeling homesick, trouble sleeping, irritability, and general fatigue. I read that and thought to myself, pshh, I'll be fineee; France isn't that different from the US! 
Well, it turns out I was a tad bit wrong!
I mean, it's certainly great to be studying in France, and I'm tremendously grateful for this opportunity! Nothing is seriously wrong, but I can tell that after a week living in this new country, I'm just a little overwhelmed. After looking at the manual again a couple nights ago, I realized that the listed stages of culture shock were present in my experiences.
The first stage is Initial Euphoria; or ohmygoshFRANCEeverythingissocoolaghhhh! It's pretty clear from my post "First Few Days in France" that I experienced this stage haha! The first few days felt like a vacation; everything seemed new and spectacular, and I felt like I was a guest in this beautiful and foreign place.

I mean, there are french cats here! How could I not be euphoric?!

The second stage is Irritation and Hostility. The manual says "the focus changes from the similarities between cultures to the differences, and the differences become irritating and frustrating". I think that I'm in between stage one and stage two. I still see beauty in the people and places here everyday, but I'm also beginning to feel a little out of place. If I'm with only french people, I feel like I'm the dumbest person in the room; even if I do understand what someone is asking me, I might not be able to find the french words to respond, so I come across completely clueless. I often resign myself to nodding and saying "Ah, je comprends maintenant, merci" (Ah, I understand now, thanks) because it can be too embarrassing to have to ask for someone to repeat a sentence time after time.
A lot of times, my family and I will get in the car and I'll have no idea where we're going, but I just have to go with it. For instance, this past weekend, my host mom took me to see un spectaculaire, and to my surprise, it was a large metal, um, thing. I really can't describe it; all I know about the experience is that I spent three hours in the sun with about two hundred europeans watching this huge vehicle move at 5 miles an hour. I gotta say, it was impressive, but I was thoroughly confused.

????

?? Anybody know what this is haha?

Even though I'm frequently confused and wishing I could be back with all the familiar faces and places of the United States, I do think I'm beginning to adjust to French culture. It doesn't feel too weird to faire la bise when I meet new people, my french skills have already improved vastly (I think and dream in french a lot and that makes me really happy!!), and it isn't hard at all to make myself eat the delicious new french food! 

I also think I'm beginning to feel a bit more apart of my host family; Emeline and I have fun jumping on the trampoline and playing with Asanga, Rozenn helps me with my homework, and Alexandre and Emmanuel show me french music and help me when I can't find the words to explain something. Jean-Pierre spends most of the week at his work in Rennes, but on the weekends he is most helpful and kind!

Like I said in my pre departure post, I just need to take a deep breath. This is a journey that will just keep improving! My french skills and my relationships will continue to get better, I have fun and educational excursions to look forward to (tomorrow we're going to Dinan, Dinard, and St-Malo!!), and as the manual says, I have the third and fourth stages of culture shock to look forward to: Gradual Adjustment and Adaptation and Biculturalism.

I miss you all in the United States so very much, but know that I'm learning and experiencing so many great things with so many great people! 

Avec amour,

Grace