I'm Stephanie. I'm a junior double majoring in French and political science at the University of South Carolina (go Gamecocks!) who will be spending the next semester in Mulhouse, France studying abroad at the Université de Haute-Alsace (henceforth known as UHA). I intend for this blog to be a place in which I can discuss where I'm going and what I'm doing while I'm in France, and also a place in which I can discuss the similarities and differences I see between the French and American cultures. I'll try to post an update once a week, but I won't hold myself to that since I will be very busy.
I leave for Mulhouse in exactly two weeks, on January 21st, and I'll arrive the next day. For those of you who don't know, Mulhouse is in the Alsace region of France, approximately 20 minutes drive from the German and Swiss borders and one hour from Strasbourg. I chose Mulhouse for several reasons, the two most important being: 1. It's not Paris. Paris is not the only city in France worth going to, and I wasn't interested in being in the environment of a large city. 2. Few, if any, other people from USC apply to go there. I didn't want to place myself in a situation in which I knew too many people. I know exactly one person in Mulhouse. In any other program run/accepted by USC, I was pretty much guaranteed to know at least five other people. I want to be as independent as possible so I am sure to meet and interact with more people than just my fellow exchange students. Those aren't the only two reasons I chose to study in Mulhouse, but those are the reasons I feel are most important.
Well, that's my first post. My next post will be right before I leave or within a couple days of my arrival in Mulhouse.
À bientôt!
