Hosting Anatole!

For the past week, I have been hosting Anatole in my house! Anatole (15) is a french student from the Victor-Duruy school in Paris. He likes tennis, Fortnite, music, used to play guitar, and get this... he raps! Now he raps in French, so I can't honestly tell you what he raps about, but he sounds awesome! Anat, as everyone calls him, and I had a ton of fun together.

I kind of threw Anat right into my life, and I think it worked out really nicely. The night he arrived, he wasn't too tired or nervous, so Miles and I took him to hang out with a couple of our friends. We made some excellent pasta and watched part of Despicable Me. My friends absolutely loved Anat and proceeded to make a group chat with all of us (including Anat) that they called "Oui Oui." Because Anat had so much fun meeting them, we hung out with them once more during the week and the  night before Anat left. I think that jumping right in and having him meet people before he could think too much about the situation and become nervous was a really great idea. 

Over the rest of the weekend, we went to the Grammy Museum, where we listened to a ton of music and even got to play some electronic instruments they had in an exhibit, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where we watched the famous Metropolis go round and round. We ate In 'n' Out, tried Korean BBQ straight out of a food truck, and listened to a ton of music. It was a great way to start off the week. 

On Monday, Anat came to school with me. He visited a couple French classes and came to my International Relations course at the end of the day, which I think he enjoyed. The potluck on Monday night was super fun, and the Keating's house was stunning. On Tuesday the French students went on a walking tour of downtown Los Angeles while us hosts went to school (bleh). Unfortunately, the rest of the week I got pretty sick, so the rest of the week my family or I would drop Anat off in the morning and pick him up in the afternoon, but I couldn't spend too much time with him because I didn't want to make him sick. On the week nights, we brought Anat bowling, at sushi, and played some Playstation. Although I wanted to do more exciting things, it seemed like Anat was pretty happy with this, because the day trips the group went on were very long and draining. 

Hosting Anat was incredible, but I wish I knew some French. Going to Argentina was a life changing experience, and being able to speak in a different language and really connect with kids my age from different backgrounds was unforgettable. I wish Anat and I were able to connect on that level, but unfortunately there was a bit of a language barrier. His English was great, but I could tell that speaking English all of the time was very tiring for him, and I wish I knew a little French to supplement. 

This July I am going to Paris, and Anat and I have agreed that, if he's in town, we will meet and hang out! I'm so thankful for a week of great, new, enriching experiences, and I'm so thankful for my new lifelong friend. :) See you soon, Anat!