I'm not sure, but I think we've just been insulted.
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Posted on 01/19/2005 8:38:30 PM PST by Citizen James
(My emphasis added)
WILLOW GLEN, CA - They may be thousands of miles from their native land, but with the help of their host families, two French foreign exchange students are creating a home away from home in Willow Glen.
Through the Rotary Club's exchange student program, Pierre-Hugo Wadel and Delphine Poigny have the opportunity to experience American culture firsthand. They take classes at Willow Glen High School, play sports and visit California's landmarks with their host families. Although both say they appreciate the chance to be American teenagers for a year, their primary reason for coming to the United States was practical—they wanted to immerse themselves in the English speaking culture.
But hurling themselves into a new country, family and school was no small feat for Pierre and Delphine. The initial excitement of travelling to a distant country turned into anxiety as the date of departure neared. In their native tongue the teens would probably say, "Pas c'était de question rieuse" (It was no laughing matter).
Pierre, who is 16, says he felt nervous at first about experiencing a different life far away from his hometown of Toulouse, a village in the southwestern portion of France. But his pre-departure jitters proved to be unfounded; living with the Paines—parents Scott and Mary Kay and 15-year-old Robby—has worked out well.
For 18-year-old Delphine, departing France also meant leaving her loved ones—including twin sister, Anne.
"I was excited to leave, but also sad," she says. "I was leaving my friends and family. At the airport when I was leaving, it was very hard. I wondered if I was making the right decision."
As part of the Rotary Club exchange program, Pierre and Delphine communicated with their host families via email before they arrived in the United States. While their emails helped both sides get acquainted, nobody quite knew what to expect when they met in the flesh.
When Delphine had at finally made her way to Willow Glen, she experienced an unexpected surprise: Mon Dieu! The family with whom she was supposed to live already had another exchange student. At the last minute, she learned that she would be staying with a new family she knew nothing about—the Pfahnls of Willow Glen.
Despite the shakeup, things couldn't have worked out better for Delphine and her new host family. The Rotary's exchange students are supposed to reside with two different families during their stay, but the Pfahnls got along with Delphine so well they asked if she could live with them for the entire school year.
"After she was here one week, we told the exchange committee to forget about finding another home because we wanted her here," her host mother, Linda, says. "We get along well."
And 18-year-old Presentation High School student Julia, who is Delphine's host sister, says she enjoys living with another girl her age. Although the two teens attend different schools, they enjoy being together in their spare time.
École la vie
In fact, Pierre and Delphine say they have more free time studying in America than they did in France. School in the United States, they say, is far easier than the comparatively rigorous education they had in France, where school days last for eight hours.
"In France, you study at school, and then you go home and study some more," Delphine says.
Pierre agrees.
"School is much easier in America," he says. While improving his English skills, Pierre also helps Robby with his French homework.
"Pierre's really helped me with my French," Robby says. "He's always willing to help. My French has definitely improved since he arrived."
The exchange students are putting their free time to good use by playing on the school's soccer team—a luxury they didn't have in France.
"They don't have after-school sports in France," Pierre says. "You have to join clubs."
According to Delphine, soccer clubs are male-dominated in France and female soccer players are somewhat of a rarity. The former ballerina says she enjoys the opportunity to play team sports.
"It's good for me because I am learning to work in a group," Delphine says. "I want to go into advertising, and you need to learn how to communicate on a team. It's good for what I want to do later."
But playing sports isn't the only way Delphine is getting a jumpstart on her future career. Although she graduated from high school in Rouen, France and studied English for eight years, she is repeating her senior year in the United States to master the language.
"For advertising, you need English to do that," she says. "I thought coming here would be the best way to learn the language."
Pierre studied English for five years before he arrived in Willow Glen. And although he initially wanted to go to Australia, not the United States, his first priority was to live in an English-speaking country so he could hone his grammar and vocabulary skills.
"English is the international language," Pierre says. "Pretty much all through Europe, people speak English. If you speak English fluently, it really helps, especially when you want to get a job."
Mary Kay and Scott noticed his exuberance in tackling a new language.
"He delved right into it," Mary Kay says. "He really wanted to learn English."
However, after experiencing mostly the United Kingdom's dialect, both Pierre and Delphine had to acclimate to California's distinct brand of English. They acknowledge that the Golden State's inflections and vocabulary are quite unique. And the pair say they will return home with a particular Californian nuance—the vernacular use of the word "like."
California soleil
Although the state may be home to Valley Girl vernacular, Pierre and Delphine say they are excited to spend a school year in California.
"One of the best things I like about here is the sunshine," Pierre says. He even had the chance to take advantage of the Bay Area's temperate climate and go surfing in Santa Cruz.
"I really enjoy surfing, because in France, the winter is too cold for surfing," he says.
For Delphine, coming to California was a chance to turn fantasy into reality.
"In France, coming to California is a dream for us," she says. "It's everything we see on television."
Television shows depicting American life may be popular for French youth, but some aspects of the United States' culture have drawn heat from French government officials, especially in the wake of the war in Iraq.
Pierre says he perceives California as more liberal than the rest of the states, and was relieved to discover he would be coming here.
"In France, California is called the 'European part of America,' " he says. "It's known for its open minds."
And open minds and open arms, Pierre says, are all he has found in Willow Glen. He insists that he has faced no overt prejudice because of his nationality.
Delphine says she too has had a positive experience with Americans. But at first, she says, she was warned that coming to the United States may not be a smart choice.
"When I applied to be an exchange student, people told me that with Bush and Sept. 11, French are not welcome [in the United States]," she says. "I said, 'OK, if it's like that then I don't want to go.' "
Initially, Delphine was supposed to venture to Toronto. But when the exchange student program in her hometown couldn't find housing, they informed her she would be going to the United States. Although she was nervous at first, officials at the program reassured her that everything would be fine.
They were right. Delphine says she has felt welcomed by the community.
"The United States might have an opinion about the French government, but it isn't directed toward individuals," Linda says. "Some people might be mad at the government, but they aren't mad at Delphine."
Relations internationales
According to committee member Kathy Wiley, bridging gaps and fostering harmony between nations is one of the primary goals of the Rotary Club's exchange student program. Although Wiley is affiliated with Downtown Rotary—as are the Pfahnls and Paines—the program is international.
"One of our biggest goals is to make the students and families realize they are citizens of this world," she says. "It's the only way we can get over this craziness."
The Rotary Club sponsors incoming and outgoing high school students who wish to experience life in another country. Each year, committee members select students in the San Jose area who they think will thrive spending a year abroad.
"We look for students that can go overseas and make a good impression," she says.
The Rotary Club finds homes for the teens, and initiates communication between the students and host families before their arrival. Once the exchange students arrive, club members pay the students a monthly stipend and organize activities to bring the teens and families together.
"We try to get them involved in the American experience," Wiley says.
But acclimating to a new culture, she says, can be difficult at first. Students usually take three months to adjust to life in a new country.
"If we can get them through the holidays, time flies after that," Wiley says.
To ease the transition, the program matches students with a Rotary Club member who acts as a counselor.
Typically, each student stays with two families during their stay. Delphine and her family elected to remain together for the duration of her stay. Pierre, however, would like to stay with a different family next semester to broaden his experience in the United States. But he has been unable to find another home. Yet his time with the Paines has been positive. Wiley says locating families who are willing to take in an exchange student is one of the committee's biggest challenges.
"It's like having another child," Wiley says. "But once the family has a student, they often develop a bond that lasts for years."
Pierre and Robby would probably agree.
"We're like—" Robby says, looking for the proper word.
"Brothers," he and Pierre say together.
And learning to live far away from all that is familiar to them helps the students make the transition from teenagers to mature young men and women.
"It's an incredible opportunity for these kids," Wiley says. "They are never the same afterward."
Delphine says her experience as a foreign exchange student has broadened her understanding of herself and the world around her.
"It's been a very rich experience," she says. "I have learned about myself, and other people and cultures. Now, I see my past life in a different way. At the end of my time here, I am going to be proud of myself."
And when Delphine and Pierre head home they will gladly depart and say, "Vive Willow Glen."
I'm not sure, but I think we've just been insulted.
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General interest ping.
We have enough stinking DUmmies here as it is.....don't need any more Frogs.
Let's give them a dinner to make them feel like they're at home: French Fries! French Toast! French Dressing! (please see the movie "Better Off Dead" for a complete list of French-related food).
A mortal insult, IMHO.
Well, they do grow wine grapes in California.
They desperately need to visit the Midwest, where they can learn the word "squirrelly."
...and to drink - Peru!
LOL I was thinking of that same movie as I was reading this...the fat kid who snorted jello, and the poor French girl who pretended not to understand English.
"I think you mean tentacles."
"Oh, yes...."
L
Qui, they have no difficult studies such as math, english, or science -just social brainwashing and homosexual indoctrination...
Why do you guys have to be so damn negative? What happened to the good old American notion of hospitality, of extending welcome to a guest. So you don't like the French, but these these are KIDS. They have no responsibility or blame for the policies of their government. They are coming here because they are interested in learning more about us, good for them.
The more kind of student exchanges like this, the better in the long run for all of us. They'll go home and tell people about their experiences in the US and give a lot more realistic picture of Americans and American life than what they get on TV and movies.
Should have sent them to a real American family not to the land of fruits and nuts, they've already been brainwashed against the US enough.
You mean like the picture that "European-like" Californians are good but that the Americans in Conservative states are yahoos?
"Pierre says he perceives California as more liberal than the rest of the states, and was relieved to discover he would be coming here. In France, California is called the 'European part of America,' " he says. "It's known for its open minds."
"What happened to the good old American notion of hospitality, of extending welcome to a guest."
It went south. Of course it may return with the next million or so illegal "GUESTS" but then again, with me, it likely won't.
Maybe we just don't care to be Frances friends, and we don't care if they send their kids here. BIG DEAL!
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