I chose the study abroad route of living with a host family. I am beyond grateful that I decided to, for many reasons. It can be an intimidating experience to live with strangers, in a new country, possibly not speaking the language at a high level. I had a decent foundation in French, but it was still nerve-wracking at first, to think about communication. They also trust you to live in their home, which is no small thing. My host parents were incredibly kind to me and we mutually wanted to get to know each other, which made it a wonderful experience for me. My French got better very fast because of my host parents. They were so patient with me and helped me feel comfortable to try to speak. I think a huge reason why my French improved so greatly is because of them. I learned grammar in school in France and that did aid my growth, but the biggest factor was talking with them each day, and the positive learning environment they created. It is such a unique experience, and one I will treasure forever. I never took it for granted, the opportunity to learn a language that way, it is such a privilege. They showed me movies, we took trips to neighboring cities, we played Scrabble almost nightly, I met their family, and they truly welcomed me into their lives with open arms. That isn’t to say that the experience of learning a new language doesn’t have ups and downs. Some of the time I felt I wasn’t making any improvement, but they reminded me that I had come such a long way from the first day I arrived. I would recommend this experience to anyone who wants to get to know the people they will live with and aims to improve their language skills when they travel abroad.