France: French Immersion Adventure

I went on a 3 Global Works Trip this summer to France and it was truly such a remarkable experience. I learned so much about french culture and about myself, met so many life changing people, and tried things I never would have expected. I started learning french last year in 9th Grade, and I can say that my french improved without a doubt. The amazing trip leaders (Gabi, Mohammed, and Lena) gave us many recommendations on how we can grow our french, and I wrote down 10 new french words a day in my journal.

Not only did I learn more french, I learned more about myself and become much more of an open minded person after this experience. I did not come with any friends, and I am grateful for that beginning struggle because I met people from all over the world (USA, France, Denmark, Spain) and learned about people with completely different life experiences.

My two favorite parts were the hike, which I hiked to the summit, because of the strong encouragement of my friends and the trip leaders. I also really enjoyed my home stay in Carcassonne with two french grandparents, where I got to celebrate La fête nationale. La grand mère would stay up with me late at night practicing my french pronunciations and spelling which I am so grateful for.

Overall, I could not recommend this experience more. If you decide to embark on a Global Works Trip, you will discover so much about yourself and the world around you, learn a language, and complete service work that is actually meaningful to the community.

My Global Works trip to France was genuinely one of the best experiences of my summer. I’m French and have spent a lot of time in France, so I wondered going into the program whether I would still feel like I was discovering something new. I absolutely did. The trip showed me parts of the country, its communities, and its culture in a completely different way, and made me appreciate a place I already loved even more.
There was such an incredible variety of experiences. We hiked through the Alps and made it all the way to the summit of Mas de la Grave, did trail restoration and other community service, went rafting and kayaking, explored Grenoble and Provence, visited Avignon and Carcassonne, swam in the Mediterranean, and ended the trip back in Paris and Versailles. Some of my favorite memories, though, were the smaller ones: speaking French with locals, watching the World Cup together, sharing meals, laughing on long bus rides, and becoming genuinely close with people I had only just met.
The homestay was another highlight. Staying with a local family near Carcassonne made the experience feel much more personal than simply traveling through France as a tourist. I loved getting to know our hosts, celebrating and eating together, and experiencing everyday life with them.
Most importantly, the leaders were phenomenal. They created an environment where I felt supported enough to challenge myself while still having an incredible amount of fun. I went into the Alps nervous about the hiking and came away incredibly proud that I had pushed myself and made it to the summit. The leaders made the group feel like a real community and were kind, funny, encouraging, and genuinely invested in all of us.
I came home with new friendships, memories I’ll keep forever, and a new appreciation for France despite already considering it home. I would absolutely recommend Global Works to anyone who wants a summer that combines travel, culture, service, adventure, and meaningful connections. It really was the perfect summer.

My child stated they actually spent 90% of this trip talking in English which was unfortunate since the teens discussions were in their home language which made up most of the great majority of the communication during the trip. It also seemed in this particular group- many of the participants were self absorbed rich kids there for the wrong reasons- which unfortunately can happen with expensive programs like these. The managers of the program do their best and kudos to the staff for having a VERY difficult job. Creating "groups of 3" to do projects certainly didn't work well in this case as social scheme which occurs in high school also occured here with "popular kids" shutting out quiter kids that didn't bow to the Queen Bees of the group. I just wish it had been a better experience. We have done Outward Bound in the past and team inner workings and group dynamics were better managed.

Sitting in school, I've got a sticker on my laptop. Well, I've got a lot of stickers. But the most prominent one reads like this. "Global Works: Travel With Purpose". Most of the time, it goes unnoticed by everyone but me. I go about my day without anyone taking the time to notice those stickers I've collected. Every once and a while, however, someone notices. Maybe it's just a passing comment. But more often, it's a question of "what's that one for?", or "where'd you get that?", and this big white and orange sticker, right in the dead center of the case, just below the apple logo, is a pretty easy target to ask about.
Hidden within that sticker are incredible memories. Ones that, if nobody had ever asked, might have existed nowhere but within my own mind. I remember long bus rides full of music and conversation, hiking through the alps of southern France, working with the most genuine and kind french people I've ever met, meeting my incredibly generous host family, and relaxing in Paris. I remember learning that french isn't just wrote grammar, repetitive sentences, and ask and answer projects in a classroom. It's an expressive, emotional, and entertaining language that millions of people around the world all use and share.
Getting back to school the next year, I surprised even my fluent french teacher with terms, phrases, and accent tips that I'd learned over my three weeks abroad. I met people over that summer that I still keep in touch with and that live all over the United States, in Qatar, and, obviously, in France. And I have that sticker on my laptop as a touchstone to it all, which is what I tell any curious victim that happens to stumble upon said sticker before I close my laptop and explain how much I enjoyed going on this trip with Global Works.

Travelling with Global Works to France was an immensely gratifying and enjoyable experience that introduced me to French culture and helped me to improve my conversational skills. I couldn't have asked for better group leaders; both of them were responsible, very fun to be around, and genuinely cared about our well being. In the beginning of the trip, when nobody knew each other, their activities allowed us to quickly acclimate to each other and the language. When a few of the students unfortunately stepped on sea urchins at the beach, the leaders responded professionally and made sure the injured were well taken care of.

The volunteer opportunities, which included the restoration of the ancient canals of Cabrespine during our home stay and working with children in Versailles, were very fruitful experiences. They reminded me that the purpose of the trip was not just a selfish one; that we were helping the community in a way that could not have happened if it weren't for volunteer groups such as ours.

Probably the best part of the trip was the home stay. Our family was very caring and considerate of the challenges of an immersion environment; they knew to speak more slowly and clearly so that we could understand and helped us if we were having trouble finding the right word. Our family made an effort to make the stay exiting and comfortable, with many sight-seeing trips to the town, and a memorable soccer match between France and Portugal. Through the home stay, I was able to practice French with real French people and further my comprehension and learn language skills that cannot be learned in a classroom.

Through the four weeks our group spent traveling through France, I never stopped learning. Whether it was about French culture, language, or about myself, I am confident I now know more than I did before embarking on the trip. The entire group of students and leaders were excellent at supporting each other and making even the most difficult of unexpected times on the trip amazing. Although I was upset for the trip to end, I am excited to apply what I have learned at home.

The service work done was surprisingly fun - lifting rocks and building walls with people you met two days ago is a great bonding experience! - and I really felt like I was making a difference, not just doing stuff to do stuff.
The hike up the mountain was definitely not the most enjoyable part of the trip, because I'm not terribly athletic, but the mountain guides were understanding and let us stop when necessary to catch our breath/refill water bottle/etc.
The food at all three hostels was fantastic - typically, the meals reflected the region we were in and were always delicious, without exception. They were also all very accommodating in terms of dietary issues.
The best part of the entire trip, however, was the homestay - my family had three kids (a 16-year-old, an 11-year-old, and an 8-year-old) and we all got on very well. My French definitely improved, and my mère d'acceuil taught me how to make crêpes one morning, which was really fun.

This was a really fantastic trip and a great way to experience France, a country I'd been wanting to travel to for many years. All the French people we got to interact with, including our guides in the mountains, people we worked with on community service projects, and especially my homestay family, were incredible people. They were completely welcoming and, when applicable, very grateful for our help. My homestay family was really amazing -- the kids were super friendly and the parents did everything they could to make our stay as good as it could be, so that I really didn't want to leave by the end of it.

The four trip leaders were also consistently focused on making sure that everyone was enjoying the trip and getting what they wanted out of it. They had regular one-on-one talks with everyone on the trip to make sure there were no problems and to help people who were having any kind of trouble. I didn't have any real concerns but I'm sure this was very helpful for some people.

One complaint with this trip is that with regards to learning French, although I certainly made a lot of progress and built up a lot of confidence in conversational French, it was not really an immersion experience. All the kids spoke English so while the trip leaders spoke mostly in French to us, the vast majority of the interactions I had on the trip were in English with my tripmates. In addition, since there was such a wide spread of French proficiency and I was one of the more advanced French speakers, I didn't get as much out of the language learning activities as some of the other people did. In terms of visiting France, seeing the country and meeting wonderful French people, this trip is really excellent. However, it's not perfect for someone who really wants to get a French immersion experience and learn the language as fast as possible.