Second Post

I am about to embark upon my course required year abroad and have opted for the Erasmus option.  I shall be spending my summer working in a cafe near to the university I shall be studying at (Lyon) for the year.  I thought it would give me a headstart and also mean that I get to speak French for the year rather than English to all other Erasmus students.  Are there any other Erasmus people one here?  Or people who have completed their year with perhaps some pearls of wisdom?

I am not an ex Erasmus student but I did have a year abroad as part of my course.  I studied both French and German, so it meant I had to divide my time between the two places.  As a result, I opted to spend the minimal requirement - a summer in France and the rest in Germany.  I don't regret this decision, though my French ability did not improve as a result. If anything it dwindled.  My summer in France was great fun.  I worked in a bar and immersed myself in the night life, but not the language.  It was very easy to meet other English folk doing the same thing with their summer.  It meant I avoided French at all costs.  Determined not to make the same mistake in Germany, where I was a language assistant I imeeditaely ditched the majority of the language crew on arrival in Hamburg.  I stayed friends with a select few, who shared a passion for finding German friends as opposed to hanging out in the local Irish Pub and speaking English with the resident ex-pats.  I signed up for a language partner at the university and instantly made a friend, one day we'd speak English and the next German.  Through her I ended up in several situations which took me out of my comfortable language zone.  I returned totally enammered with the German language and Germany as a whole.  I would recommend to make the most of your year, you do the summer before and avoid the easy option. Find a local bar and insist on speaking French.  Your language skills will improve no end.  Most of all enjoy it!