Amazing opportunity for cultural exchange in France!

I spent an unforgettable month in the Loire Valley with a wonderful host family. They were so welcoming from the start and I was included in daily life as well as the events and parties that were happening while I was there. They introduced me to French culture as well as helping me to organise some tourist visits in my spare time. I even had the opportunity to travel to the coast with them for July 14 celebrations.

I was teaching English to a mid teen - there were ups and downs, and obviously it was difficult to motivate a teenager to study English during school holidays, but I was able to discover ways to keep it interesting by using games and popular music in English. Conversing in 'franglais' was also a great way to improve both of our respective vocabularies.

Aside from helping the family with English, I drastically improved my French comprehension and speaking (the first week is the toughest). It's incredible how much you absorb after a month of being immersed in the country. I would definitely recommend having basic French language skills before you sign up as a placement outside of a major city will mean (at least in my case) limited to no English outside of tourist sites.

The team at Aliore are professional and helpful. They did an excellent job at matching my interests and expectations to a family and were easily contactable by phone or email throughout my stay. If you're on the fence about doing this program, just go for it!