Learning French in France.

Finally the big day arrived. I was going on an exchange trip to stay with a French family. I was feeling nervous and excited because this was my first time on a plane and my first time travelling alone, without my parents. (1) _________________. We met Emily at the airport, a couple of hours before the flight.

The flight was fine, although it was strange seeing the city disappearing under me from so high up. The flight went by quickly because I was so busy chatting to Emily about our trip and how our different host families might be. During the flight, we decided that we shouldn’t spend time together speaking in English during our month abroad. (2)_______________. Despite our agreement, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to say much the whole time I was in France. However, when my host family met me, I knew from the mother’s warm smile that everything would be OK.

It was still a bit stressful at first, trying to understand and communicate, but after a couple of weeks it became easier. I spent a lot of time with the two teenagers in the family. (3) _________________. In fact, I learnt loads of interesting words from them, you know, the kind of things you don’t find in books! I had one embarrassing moment when I used the wrong word when I was talking to their grandmother, but she was very relaxed about it. (4) __________________. When the time came to say goodbye to my host family, I was very sad to leave. However, I have brought back some wonderful memories from this experience. The most important thing I’ve learnt is that if you’re open and positive about learning a language, then it’s much easier. (5) ____________________. I’ve even started watching a television series in French and I’m surprised to find that I can understand a lot more than before my stay in France.