Meeting of the cultures

Few years ago, I spent ten days in the french ambiance. This staying was quite short, but I knew there french culture, I met there french character, french spirit.
My first contact was a little striking. When I met „my future family“, I tried to present me and I wanted to shake theirs hands. But my hand stopped in the air and I founded me in their armful, many times kissed on my cheeks. I turned completely red. I wasn´t used to behave so directly or cominus. I´m a person quite reserved and shy. Actually, my sister calls me „asocial“. She likes jokes from me as often as she can. But after few days, I vacated blushing, because they are kissing on cheeks almost all the time. Later, I founded this, for me anusual tradition jolly. Maybe, there is more cordiality in theirs relations.
What was absolutely strange for me, it was the view of their time. Every morning, I was sitting behind the table still looking on my watch. The time was running, but they were absolutely calm, even I could say sloppy. It feeded me into the madness.They „had“ time. They were proprietors of their own time. I don´t really understad, how they could feel so composedly, even though they have to be in the work or in the school in twenty minutes. „My“ familly lived quite far from the town, so, as I expected, we were sometimes late.
The food would be absolutely special chapiter of this work, but I´m sure, that everyone have ever heard about excellent french food. And I can set my seal to this fact. As a demonstration was, that I took on 3kg in one week.
Once, we had some meat for a dinner. It was very good meat, but I was full of hors d´oeuvre, which I mistaked for the main food. So I wanted to take a peace of this food to their dog, but the landlady forbided it to me. Their dog can eat „only“ food for dogs. In my mind, I commiserated with their dog. I´m sure, that the life of my dog is certainly more various.
In the morning, I´m not used to eat much, but at one o´clock I was hungry as an elephant. Fortunetly, the lunch used to come soon and the rest was long. They all went home from their work, even though they lived far.They are able to cross each other in the middle of the day. I admire this habit. It is something really strange for ours famillies.They used to dine from 8:00 p. m. and it took about two hours. I was allways sittng there absolutely tired, completely sleepy, with full stomach.
An other crazy thing was their sleep. In first night, they prepared me my bad, but the cover was put in the matress. I was prisonned in the bad, under their thin cover. After a little fight, I set me free.
My residence abroad let many memorable moments in my mind. Maybe I didn´t comprehended all their habits, but it was the best experience I´ve ever had.
meno a priezvisko: Monika Barošová
škola: Gymnázium Angely Merici, Trnava