Un Jeudi À Vannes

Cet après midi, ma famille et moi sont allés à Vannes à rendre visite des amis. C'etait FORMIDABLE :)

Le Match de Stade Rennais F.C.!

C'est mon premier match du foot à l'EUROPE!!

(Rennes contre Valenciennes)

2-2

TRAVERSEE DE LA BAIE DU MONT SAINT-MICHEL

Nous avons traversé la baie du mont Saint Michel aujourd'hui à travers la boue et les pierres! 

Looking To Rennes

The summer is drifting away and the countdown now narrows down to 10 days before I depart to Rennes, France. I am so excited to meet the new students and to experience this year. Recently, I have been puzzled about how many students that go to SYA overcome the language barrier in a matter of months. It seems like an insurmountable hump to overcome looking at these students from a distance but soon I will be dropped into a different culture. The task may be hard to tackle but as said in the video attached, there are fabulous people to help you along the way. Here are some students' accounts from last year about their first months.

Who Am 'EYE'?… Je m'appelle John Anthony Bowllan

(Picture came via SYA website)

My name is John Anthony Bowllan. I completed my sophomore year at Deerfield Academy in Massachussetts this past year and will be traveling overseas to Rennes, France for my junior year! Over a year ago, I never would have thought that I would be a high school student traveling the world. But the opportunity presented itself. During my freshman year at Deerfield, a representative from SYA came to a school meeting to give us something to chew on: "Do you want to experience a school year abroad around the world?" The slideshow described the schools in China, Spain, Italy, and France but really presented a plethora of different aspects of the different cultures primarily with pictures of students having a blast. I was fixed on the presentation for the whole 15 minutes and imagined myself living in France for one whole year completely immersed in the language and culture. But I was not allowed to go because it is a program for juniors and seniors. My sophomore year rolled in and so did the presentation again. It was harder to consider going to France because of what I would be getting myself into but also what I would be leaving behind:
1) Why leave when I am already set up at my school?
2) What happens if I leave my friends?
3) Why not take the opportunity to go abroad when it's presented?
It was a tough decision to make for me even after talking with my advisor, parents, and friends. Originally, I declined the offer after being accepted. But it really did not feel right. Why would I pass up the opportunity to go abroad to become fluent in another language, learn a new culture, and get a new perspective of the world? I accepted the offer and I could not be happier to push my comfort zone. It's an enormous challenge to drop into a new country at first but it will all be worth it!