Scarsdale Students Enjoy a Bon Voyage

From February 6 to February 21, while most Scarsdale High School students were sitting in French class, 25 students on the French exchange were living and attending school in France; indulging in baguettes, strolling through Nice and Monaco, and overloading on Cezanne paintings.

The lucky Scarsdale students ventured to Aix-en-Provence, armed only with the knowledge gathered from French class vocabulary lists or lectures, and attended school with a French teen while living with his or her family. The Americans in France was the second half of the bargain: The French students got to attend Scarsdale High School and live in the community for two weeks back in October.

The trip overall was perceived as being enriching – and scary. "This was a very good group because they were open to the different culture and language and they truly embraced everything," expressed Scarsdale French teacher and exchange trip advisor Sylvie Corten. Scarsdale students alternated every day between joining host students' classes and going on excursions, which included seeing the floats in Nice for Carnival, exploring Avignon, strolling through many art museums, and sightseeing in Monaco. "The whole experience was amazing and we did and saw so much," shared senior Matt Mandel. "It was a lot of fun building bonds with the French as well as the other American students."

Matching the American and French families was a long and meticulous process that involved extensive personality forms that each student had to fill out, which noted their interests, allergies, and other lifestyle choices. "We can't match everyone with their best friends because we have to take a lot into account, but we do our best," assured Corten.

Most students connected well with their host families and noted that there were not many differences between their French family and their own at home. "My host family was actually very nice and similar to my family – I definitely lucked out as I know some other kids had a hard time with their hosts," expressed senior Tomer Cherki.

In terms of differences between the cultures, other than the two-hour long lunch break French students get, "The only cultural difference that I noticed were small and generally shallow," added Mandel. Americans were, although, surprised about the casual cigarette culture in schools. "Kids of all ages smoke all the time there," observed Cherki. "They roll their own cigarettes in the middle of class and smoke in the school yard in between lectures."

Even with accommodating hosts, there's no denying that living in a different house in a foreign country can be difficult. "I would say that it's definitely a challenge and at times it feels as though you are intruding on someone's life and routine," shared French exchange officer and senior Sam Panken. "It's ultimately rewarding because you get to see exactly how their daily life works in a totally different cultural setting."

Students benefitted from many conversations with their host families about the recent conflicts in France involving Charlie Hebdo as well as other racial or anti-Semitic controversies. "We often discussed American and French politics, and it was interesting to learn that there was such widespread resentment towards their president and that they are definitely aware and worried about immigration and anti-Semitism," expressed Mandel.

The trip is generally regarded as being a success: Newly learned French curse words now ring through Scarsdale High School halls, advisor Corten swears this was the best exchange trip she's ever organized and been on, and, when asked about the infamous French cuisine, Cherki summed up most students' conclusions: "Crepes, all the time, of course."

Photo Credits: Matt Mandel and Sylvie Corten