I spent my program in Antibes, a beautiful little city in the French Riviera, not even 20 miles from Nice. I lived here with a host mom, Nicole, and her dog, Paco. She was incredibly welcoming and made her house my home for the month I was staying with her. She spoke no English, so I was fully immersed in the language and culture, forcing me to leave my comfort zone. Nicole loves to cook and very passionately taught me about French cuisine. We would sit outside in her backyard to have dinner together every evening and she would explain everything she made for the night. I took this opportunity every day to ask questions about the language and culture, or we would just casually chat about what we did or what we had planned for the week. I have never learned so much so quickly and while having fun!

Although I was able to improve my French and effectively communicate, it was not without a challenge. There were many times I struggled to understand what people were saying, and other times I struggled to find the words to express what I needed to, but the challenge is what I feel propelled my learning the most. It gave me the confidence to go out and speak to strangers in French, and from time to time, crack jokes as well. I’ve never had an experience like this one, and it paid off because my language skills have drastically improved; furthermore, experiencing the culture firsthand has taught me so much and expanded my knowledge in a variety of ways.

One of my favorite things I learned from my host mom was a random little cultural lesson about ladybugs. I noticed that she had little wooden ladybugs all over her walls, so I mentioned it in conversation. She told me she loves ladybugs, and they are known as “la bête à bon Dieu,” and they are a symbol of good luck. She explained that it’s good luck to find one on you, and told me that I should never kill them because of this. Now, every time that I see a ladybug, I think of my host mom and “la bête à bon Dieu.”

Now looking back at my time with her, it was very fitting that she loved ladybugs so much and decorated her house with them because I was lucky to have been placed with her. As I’ve mentioned, she taught me so much and was beyond hospitable to me, and I will never forget the time I spent with her. I am so grateful to have met her, and I like to think now that the ladybugs on her walls were a sign of the good luck I was going to receive staying with her. I have countless stories and lessons from this trip, but I feel as though the most important highlight was my host mom, Nicole.

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Learn more about this blogger’s study abroad program: French Language and Culture in Paris and the French Riviera