The good thing about being a foreigner in a French family is that they do everything to give you the true French experience.My family could not control the weather - it was cold and there was hail that spring - but they did make Easter special!Traditionally, children are sent out into the garden with baskets to hunt for Easter eggs hidden for them.Even though I was 24 (and not quite a child), my family wanted it to happen. But it was too cold. The garden was wet and not very clean. So they did the modern commercial version of the event for me. They bought chocolate bunnies and hens, and packets of Easter eggs that we could find quickly without getting too wet and too cold. As soon as I woke up and went downstairs on Easter Sunday, they told me what I was supposed to do. Shivering with cold and excitement, I went out and happily collected my eggs and bunny. They had even marked my … [Read more...]
Ramayan in French
My association with France began with a French exchange programme in 2004. I was vegetarian, I barely spoke French, I had never heard the French accent, I was to live with a French family for three weeks and I was to attend French school in that time. And because I was 17, I was not scared, I was excited.I remember the first day vividly. I remember all the attempts everyone made at making conversation. We talked about the world wars. We talked about food. We talked about India. We talked about France. I understood about five per cent of the conversation.And then, one thing led to another, and my sister and I started talking about the Ramayana. In English, it's a beautiful, complex story that I enjoy telling. In French especially back then, I was comfortable only with present tense. That's all very well for regular story-telling, but if you forget that one little episode, you're … [Read more...]