Tara Dudley's ROSE Experience

Posted by Elizabeth Scott

This summer was an incredible experience. I learned a lot of French, a lot of the French culture, and most of all had some life experiences that I will carry with me throughout the challenges I will face. In France I stayed in the lovely countryside of Normandie in Mauves-sur-Huisne with the Suzannes and Anne Cecile, on their farm.

We visited old Catholic cathedrals, 16th century manors, beautiful Chenonceau which reminded me of a fairytale castle, Chambord, the castle who's double-helix staircase at it's heart and grandeur make it an architectural wonder, and of course, Versailles. I was able to tour Paris with my family for a day, went to the birthday party of a friend of Anne Cecile's, got to ride her horse Jeni, and saw Anne Cecile compete in the Championnats d'Equestre (the French Equestrian Championships). Back in Canada, we camped in Tofino and saw the magnificent sunsets, went to the Filburg arts festival in Comox, camped at Miracle Beach, where we saw the magnificent sand dollar beds, a huge red jellyfish and a an animal who looked like a mini-shark! We even got stuck on Vancouver Island because of the rock slide. We toured some of the Okanagan after driving up the breathtaking Duffy road, sunbathed on the Shuswap, hiked in the gorgeous alpine of Manning Park, and there watched the meteor shower in our sleeping bags. We also biked around Squamish, cooled off in Alice Lake, hiked the Chief and hiked to Garibaldi Lake. Both Anne Cecile and I learned a lot, and were able to achieve a lot through this exchange. Thank you!