Alexia Giavroutas

Alexia Giavroutas
Major: Psychology 

Testimonial

Click on the tabs below to find out what she thought about the experience!

What was your most memorable experience while in Nantes?

My most memorable experience was living and travelling alone. I had never lived alone in all my 21 years of living prior to moving to Nantes. So, living alone for the first time in a different country/continent as well as travelling alone was a super memorable experience as I learned so much about myself and learned a lot about different cultures.

In what ways did your French improve while abroad?

My French improved in every way! I haven’t spoken French since grade 12 of high school, so being able to be fully immersed in French was awesome! It forced me to so speak French every day which always makes you improve your French. Being in four French classes also improved my speaking, listening, writing and reading. Listening to our professors speak in French during lectures helped my listening skills. Reading in French allowed me to practice my reading of course. And the in-class activities helped my writing. And having a host family helped me practice casual conversations.

What was your favourite place to travel to and why?

Greece. 100%. The people are so welcoming and friendly, and so happy. The food is delicious! The beaches are so stunning, the water is clear, and the weather was awesome. The architecture is so detailed and there is so much history in Greece (we also talked about Greek philosophy in class, so it was cool that I saw what we were talking about in person). I went to two different islands while abroad, but in total, I have been to about 6 islands, so if you need recommendations, I would be happy to talk about the places I have been to in Greece, or the other 9 countries I visited while living abroad!

What is one piece of advice you would give to future Nantes goers and why?

Do it. Have fun and do things that are out of your comfort zone. You only regret the things you don’t do, so try to do as many things as you can when the opportunity presents itself, make memories, be safe, and take in every minute because it goes by so fast!

How did you enjoy school in Nantes compared to Trent? What were the differences between the two?

I loved it! To be honest, I enjoyed going to school in Nantes a lot more than Trent. It was very different, especially for me because I live at home so living on campus was a whole new experience as well. But being able to meet up with the other Trent students, and all go to school together was awesome! I loved going to school with them every morning. The classes were also very different, since there were just 5 of us in each class, it was a very personal experience and was able to build a bond with our professors.

What was the biggest difference you found between France and Canada?

The two biggest things is the way of life and the cost of travelling. The way of living is so different, going to the little supermarket by our residence every 1-2 days is so much different (and less wasteful) than getting your groceries for the week like we do in Canada. There was also an amazing market beside our residence every Tuesday where you can get fresh produce, fish, cheese, etc., which was such a fun little activity to do every week. Also, being able to take the tram instead of driving everywhere was awesome! And as for the travelling, being able to go to a whole new country for 4 days for the price of hotel in Toronto for 2 nights just blows my mind. I loved being able to travel to 10 different countries around Europe and I am so grateful I got to experience so many different cultures and see so much of Europe in a short amount of time.

How was the food?

The food was good! There was a bunch of different cuisines. The French food was awesome, we also ate at a Lebanese restaurant which was really good, and there was a Chinese restaurant that was so delicious. There was also uber eats, we used it for one of the student’s birthdays when we ordered pizza to the residence. And the supermarkets have everything you need!

How was the transportation?

Amazing! Super cheap, easy to use and navigate. I relied heavily on my phone, changing my apple maps from driving to transit and then just typing in where you want to go was so easy, it tells you exactly where to go, which bus/tram to get on! This is probably old news for everyone else, but I had never used public transit prior to moving to France so it was life changing to me haha. But yes, super easy and most of the time it was reliable and was always on time. Also, transportation from the Nantes airport- getting back to residence was super easy and useful!

How were the residences? 

Awesome! Very quiet at night, and the kitchens were clean. There are lots of kitchens, so you’ll always be able to find an empty one if you want to cook alone, or a full one if you want to make friends! There is always someone at the front desk during the day, paying rent was really easy, you just have to go down and pay with cash or with credit card.

How were the people?

Everyone was so nice and understanding when speaking French in the supermarkets or in stores. When I first got to Nantes, I hadn’t spoken French since grade 12 of high school so I was extremely nervous for interactions at the supermarket or stores, but everyone was so patient and understanding! Even in class, the professors were very patient and understanding that French is not my first language.

Would you go back to Nantes? Why?

I would definitely go back to Nantes with my family to show them where I lived and show them around. There is so much to see in Nantes, and a lot to do, especially around the holidays and Christmas time. I would also love to visit my host family so it would be nice to go back and see them.