New Life in a New City: First Impressions of Linguistic Immersion and Cultural Adjustment

Meghan Brulé
Alonzo Lagrange

After being here in Rennes for two weeks now, we looked back at some our first impressions concerning the language, the people, and the city itself and find that despite all of the adjustment and culture shock, Rennes is a very beautiful and special place. It can be jarring living somewhere foreign, even if for just a month, especially when you may not fully grasp the language the way the locals do. The normal background chatter you encounter everyday has a different volume, people are speaking at different speeds and with different inflections, and it can quickly become very overwhelming. We have found here that one of the most intimidating parts about French is that it is a language that capitalizes on flow and command. When you falter on any of these aspects, it is usually a clear give away that you are a foreigner. On one hand, if you ask someone to speak a little slower, they tend to simply break up their sentences into easier to understand phrases rather than speaking each individual word with emphasis as we would in English. On the other hand, people will sometimes just switch to English if they know any, which can at times be frustrating when trying to learn.

With our host families, we have also noticed that listening to children or teenagers speak French so fluently to their parents and friends can be quite daunting, but at the same time absolutely fascinating because they pull it off so effortlessly. A few of us have said that when we are around French speaking kids in our host families, we often feel more like children than they are because we're still very much in the early stages of grasping familial language and having speed the way they already do. It is awkward to have to sometimes ask a child to repeat what he or she said, or ask the parents for clarification. In fact, it is sometimes even harder speak and listen to them because they murmur and enmesh their words due to their fluency. To make us feel a little better though, there have been multiple times that our host families have said they feel the same way about English speakers!

Outside the home, we also found out quickly that people in Rennes are very nice and accommodating. Everywhere we have gone, we have spoken French as much as possible, and most of the restaurants, bars, and shops have been patient and sometimes even offered to clarify the meaning of something in English if necessary. Like many Americans, we had heard the unfortunate American stereotype that French people might be "rude" to American tourists. We have found that at the worst, people might seem reserved or indifferent, but usually, this is not the case. The general air is very comforting and it’s not very hard to interact with people in Rennes. Even our first taxi ride into the city was pleasant and our driver very talkative.

Needless to say, Rennes is absolutely beautiful. The structure of the streets in the historic center is not based on a grid, but rather streets just wind here and there in curving motions that simply feel natural. Unfortunately, this does sometimes make it very easy to get lost, but most of the people are friendly enough to help point you in the right direction if you know how to ask. Additionally, there is a plethora of absolutely dazzling sights just around the city center, ranging from medieval construction of French houses and restaurants to enormous parks, like our favorite, le Parc du Thabor.

Rose Garden, Parc du Thabor 

We find that the one-line metro system is extremely efficient, and that most of the system seems to run based on being efficient and quick when it comes to public transportation. In addition, there are many events, music festivals held in the streets, and a beautiful market that happens every Saturday called the Marché des Lices. The first Saturday we were here a bunch of us bumped into each other with our host families there because it is a must for locals to frequent. No matter what time of day it is, Rennes always feels like it has a very vibrant and postive energy and I think it shows through everything that goes on here. The sun around here does not set until about 11:00 at night, which is a major adjustment, but we don’t think this is necessarily a downside simply because it means you can look around this beautiful city for just that much longer. 

Centre Ville on a busy day 

Finally, we think one of the most surprising parts of coming to Rennes has been the feeling of familiarity we have found in looking at the French graffiti and street art, which though are in foreign language feel strangely familiar. It is amazing how something so random, can still make you feeling connected to home.

Street Art in the Portes Mordelaises, centre ville, Rennes