Camille en Californie

Six weeks later, eh oui, my trip is now coming to an end and even if I’m somewhat sad , I am also thrilled, knowing that I will finally get to see my hubby (other than on facetime of course !)

Though at this point I'm under the impression that the past six weeks flied, I feel this short but memorable californian adventure truly changed my life.

Now, in order to close this beautiful trip and life altering experience, I would like to conclude with a little analysis of my stay in the city of angels and trips to southwest america (Or should I say Amuurriikka lol) First and foremost, I managed to learn a lot about myself ! One example; I really tought it would be much harder for me to spend six week without my boyfriend, family and pets but the reality is that I just haven’t got the time to miss anyone (sorry my loves) ! Crazy, right ?

As the complete opposite of my boring roomates, I basically came here with two major goals in mind and they are very simple; 1- improving my english 2- enjoy every single minute of my trip.

And Lord knows, that’s exactly what I did!

Another thing i'm equally greatful for is the enormous chance i've had to meet such amazing and intriguing individuals from all over the world, many of whom I can presently proudly call friends. People who were as excited as I was to be there and came with the common goal of taking advantage of their trip in the Eldorado state .

One major detail that was bothering me at first was the idea of having to share a room (as big as a wardrobe) with two complete strangers from a totally different background and culture! Oh and lets not forget that we had to share bathrooms with aproximetely a hundred students (all the ladies floor) ! Honestly though, I surprised myself once again by realizing that afterall I didn’t really give a damn. No but for real, i learned alot in Cali! For instance, I now know that I can sleep with noise, opened lights and hyperactive neighbours acting a fool all night !

I realise I've done so much stuff, without being alone for more than 30 minutes ! Always surrounded, I guess it's gonna feel pretty strange to finally have some private space, back in hometown Montreal ! On a positive note though, the good thing is that I am pretty used to do a lot of stuff even when I am back home as well. I guess another thing I've got to discover about myself is that capacity to adapt to various people, regardless of the environment I am in.

ENGLISH Ok now, let's keep it real amigos & amigas. If you've evolved in the french school system in Quebec, chances are that you never really had decent english classes. Therefore, the fact that I managed to to get this far and enhance my english skills so fast is almost a miracle … My studies in UCLA made me a lot more comfortable and confident in english!!

From now on, I know that I can achieve anything, despite what some people might think about me! Comprehension-wise I think I am very close to fluent now. My talking and reading pretty good and my writting much better ! Actually, neva mind humility. This trip really improved my english writting skills in a huge way (as you can see). Since I have never really written in the language of Shakespeare before coming to America it made a gigantic difference ! In this intensive program, the main advantage is that teachers force us to write essays everyday and whether I liked it or not, it truly worked. On another hand, I am aware that in order to implicitly master the language as well as native speakers like Yannick and Miriam, it will require years of practiss. Nonetheless, I am not ready to give up the battle !! I will continue learning and one day I will write a book in english and speak like I was born in LA ! (watch me Yannichou !!)

My love for the magical state of California is indescribable . This extraordinary corner of the continent is simply so unique ! You basically have everything in this one singular state ! From the desert to the beach, from the mountains to the landmarks , from the numerous beaches to the distinctive municipalities…During this escape from this chilly Montreal summer, I had the chance to visit the following areas ; Los Angeles ( It would take years to enumerate every attraction in that city but I did a lot), San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon and ended with amazing San Diego. My verdict; loved them all with the exception of Las Vegas. Must be cause it’s not part of California (LOL).

Trafic, rich people, liberal democrats, surfers, Mexicans, students (USC, UCLA, UC…), stereotypical american families, granos, black people… These are some of the local groups who make this state so special. Unlike what many in Canada believe, one other thing I noticed is how nice people are here . I can’t count how many times people just came to us in the bus or in the streets to instinctively offer their help (I guess we were looking lost sometimes…lol) Some people have a bad impression of Los Angeles due to all the gang history and the negative media coverage in the 90s, but i have never felt endangered. Not once. Not even at night. Crime and gangbangin' seems to be limited to a small amount of neighboorhoods but overall the city is very safe ! The only thing I'd like to add is that Downtown L.A. is not the most welcoming place (which is strange, usually downtown of most cities in the world are safe ) !

But, I can't deny that our neighbor to the south are far for perfect. To begin with, there's the obvious gap between the rich and the poor. One sad thing about America is that there is poor people everywhere all over the place and a lot ! The lack of public ressources compare to home is really heartbreaking. I saw a man sitting like a dog beside garbages and eating some dirty fries on the ground. I felt so bad… Believe me if it would have been a dog, it would have taken 2 minutes and someone would have offered some kind of help ! I am not saying that dogs should be treated with less importance than human, but how about equally ! During my trip, I saw several billboards from organisations fighting child homelessness which gave me a little sense of the challenges the U.S is still facing! The mentality in the states basically seem to amount to this: No money = you are nobody. In Quebec for example you would never EVER see a kid selling stuff on a street corner (put aside lemonade )! I can assure you that It would take less than minute before the cops would take that kid to youth protection! That lack of social justice made me realize the important role goverment should play in every society and the relevance of the Quebec model. In my opinion, we are a great model for other countries especially America. A truly progressive tax system, affordable healthcare and education ! I have never been so proud of my country Le QUEBEC. It takes alot of wisdom to be as open minded as we are on issues like ; same-sex marriage, gun control, the environment, the death penalty( can you believe they still apply that barbaric practice in California ?!), againts nuclear (their have been problems in California), I’m also very happy about the fact that our laws are not as ridiculously weird! Especially, regarding the legal drinking age (21), legal gun ownership age(16) and legal sex consenting age (18). I am also ( as funny as it might sound coming from a christian), very happy that religion has no real influence in our culture and politics. Can't say the same thing about the states ! It seems omnipresent. Even in a traditionally democratic state like California. As far as I'm concerned, Religion should be a private matter.

Basically, like everywhere else there is some pros and cons. I love California for aspects that Quebec dont have and I love Quebec for other aspect... But I can say that I would definitly live in Venice Beach, San Francisco and San Diego anytime ! I also want to rectify that prejudice leading many people to assume that California is everything but a cultural place. That presumption is everything but true! It’s an amazing and engaging destination. Whether your looking for cultural events or great museums like the ones I had the chance to visit ! I'd like to end this post by manifesting my unequivocal appreciation for this amazing experience. Honestly, it wouldn’t have been possible without certain people so I would like I to thank the people that made this trip possible : Daddy, Miriam, mommy and Yannick. Without you, I would’nt have been able to realize this longtime dream of mine. Words can't even express how thanful I am ! Love you all. xxx