Living with a French Family

During my stay here in Paris I am living with my host Nadia, who is an English teacher, and her adorable 14-year-old daughter Clara. Her apartment is in the 13th arrondissement (district), not centrally located but near by the Institut Curie where I work. The apartment is medium size but is decorated nicely and with my first glance at it I could feel the coziness. Nadia became close to both me and Sophie in a fairly short time and I find that I am incredibly comfortable spending time at her place. It’s such a pleasure to hear her talking about her life experience, random anecdotes, or just daily news. For several nights she had guests coming over to her house for dinner. Most of them spoke very little English, but throughout the entire time Nadia was so energetic and engaging as she spoke that there has never been a single awkward situation for me due to the language barrier.

Besides being a fabulous storyteller, she is an amazing cook. Neither Sophie nor I are allergic to any particular food, so we were just so prepared to try as many new kinds of food as possible. Even though our meals are casual (or more of a family style), Nadia has always maintained the delicacy of typical French dinners. She organizes the dinnerware neatly on the table and she would also do some decorations if it is a special occasion. Normally the dinner starts with an “entrée” (appetizer), which can be some sort of vegetable salad with a home-made, unique “vinaigrette” (dressing). Then she would serve us “le plat principal” (main dish) which varies every day. All her foods are freshly cooked. The best part for me is the dessert that comes after. Yesterday we had apple compote (applesauce) which I found to be delicious. As for Clara, Sophie and Tory (another student from Yale who stays here), their favorite is definitely the “les fromages” when Nadia brings out a plate of different cheeses (Camembert, Roquefort, blue cheese, etc.) with a baguette.  Below are some photos to give you an idea of our typical "dîners français".


I’m very thankful for this opportunity and to have the experience of living with a local French family. My stay here with Nadia has been far more amazing than I ever expected. And I’m excited to discover more things to come.


- Joanna Xu