Hi,<BR><BR>I am planning to spend 3 weeks this summer at a language school in France. I have identified 3 schools that sound good, although I am still researching and considering other schools. The schools are (1) IS in Aix-en-Provence, (2) Centre International in Antibes (CIA) and (3) BLS in Bordeaux. <BR><BR>I would appreciate any thoughts about these schools and/or whether these regions would be enjoyable places to spend 3 weeks. (I have seen positive info on this board about schools in Paris, but don't want to do a school in Paris as I'll be spending time there later in the summer.)<BR><BR>FYI - I am a 29 year old woman and enjoy locations that involve a mix of attractions/museums etc. and plenty of cafes/shops/neat streets to explore and relax in. Also, I would hope to do some nearby travelling on the weekends. <BR><BR>

Hi<BR><BR>All of these regions are interesting.<BR><BR>Just to complicate things, have you thought of Montpellier ?<BR>Capital of the departement and region, with 80,000 students, it is a vibrant city. The medieval centre contrasts with a stunning new city, both being served by a tram system. It is 6 km from the Mediterranean coast. You can look at the main square via webcam here : http://www.midilibre.com/miditv/webcam/index.php<BR><BR>You can read about the 17 language schools here : http://www.1stop-language.com/france/languedocr.htm<BR><BR>Bon chance<BR><BR>Peter<BR>http://tlp.netfirms.com<BR>

I attended the Centre Liguistique pour Etrangers (CLE) in Tours a few years ago. It is located in a lively part of Tours, which is an historical city and in the heart of the chateau country of the Loire valley. It is privately owned and run by a youngish couple. There were classes for 7 different levels of proficiency (determined by placement tests on first day of class), and class enrollment was limited to 8. Folks from all over the world attend CLE and for varied reasons. Many were there for extended stays as part of their employment, but a handful of us were mainly interested in improving our French just for the &quot;fun of it&quot;.<BR> It was a wonderful experience and social groups were formed around levels of proficiency, rather than nationality or age. I was in my 50ies, and I ate lunch/hung out on weekends with an 18 yr old from Belgium, two 20-something Swiss, and an Englishman my age or older. A friend from home and I had gone together, but we were housed with families across town from each other, and we were in different classes, so we rarely saw each other, and when we did we spoke in French! <BR><BR>I had read of CLE in a much earlier article in NYT about language schools in France. I think your time frame of 3 weeks is perfect, for a short sejour; I only went for 2, and I just felt acclimated when it was time to go home. I've been trying to get better at French off and on since hs and college, and this 2 weeks of total immersion was by far the most helpful. Heartily recommend CLE, less than 2 hrs. from Paris by TGV! Enjoy, wherever you go!

Thanks for your input, Peter and Grandmere. Tours and Montpellier were 2 other towns I was considering, so I will continue to look into those.<BR><BR>Any other comments about schools/towns are greatly appreciated!

I am also looking into the same thing for my husband and I this summer.<BR><BR>I studied French to university level (I did a joint French and History degree at Warwick in the UK in 1994) and my French now is what some would consider fluent but I know myself that it's incredibly poor compared to what it once was. My husband doesn't speak any French at all. He dropped studying it at the age of 13.<BR><BR>We're intending to go for 2 weeks as, being self employed (and therefore not paid for time not working) it's hard for us to justify taking more than that. Perhaps we'd do another session the following year.<BR><BR>Currently we're looking at the following options:<BR><BR><BR>Universite de Nancy 2 (Summer courses): <BR><BR>Back when I was still a student, in the summer of 1992, I spent 3 weeks attending the summer school in Nancy. I recall that there were older students there too, so hopefully wouldn't feel too old to attend now! The lessons were great and so were the excursions. I loved Nancy itself. But the accommodation and food choices seem limited according to the site.<BR><BR><BR>BLS in Bordeaux:<BR><BR>This looks lovely - and prices are good. But we want to drive (from UK via Calais) and this is a long way down. We'd have to make the trip 2.5 weeks and add some nights on the way down and back up. <BR><BR>CLE in Tours.<BR><BR>Also looks great and easier to get to from UK in our own car. We did spend a lovely week in the Loire valley, based in Saumurs, in 1999 and it might be nice to return to the area.<BR><BR>Ecole des Trois Ponts (North of Lyon)<BR><BR>Can combine cooking with language but the website is so horrendous I worry about the school itself.<BR><BR>Coeur de France (Sancerre)<BR><BR>Also looks interesting, though again I am not sure whether it's properly accredited...<BR><BR><BR>Any input on these options would be great!<BR><BR>Kavey

PS We're 31... so looking for a school which tends to attract a mixed age group...<BR><BR>Intending to go in June or July.

Kavey, at CLE there were students from ~18 up to ~65. I'd guess the majority were &quot;30 somehings&quot;, so I think you would find lots in common with many of those attending. And also, as I mentioned, age did not seem to be a factor in the informal social groupings.

Thank you!

Grandmere<BR>Hope this catches your eye.<BR>Would you have any accommodation recommendations close to Tours school site and of a nice standard?<BR>We thought we'd settled on Bordeaux but the choice was so close between there and Tours that when I learnt that Bordeaux town centre has a great deal of road works and disruption currently, as they are building a tram system, I thought perhaps Tours would be better after all.<BR>Kavey

Sorry, Kavey, but since I lived with a family I didn't pay much attention to the hotels,etc., in town. However, CLE itself can help you find a family, an apartment, or a hotel. <BR><BR>I'll be eager to hear about your experience when you get back!

Forgot to mention that the Chateau Belmont (Relais et Chateaux), outskirts of town, is a lovely place for a special dinner. Chef Jean Bardet is highly acclaimed and justly so. It is a hotel, too, of course; not sure how pricey lodging is.

Thank you!<BR>I have indeed written to the school asking whether any of their host families happen to be able to offer a spacious double room with private bathroom.<BR>Will see if they can accommodate.<BR>We'd also prefer not to have every dinner included as we'd like to eat out at local restaurants so have asked whether we can have a price based on breakfast every day but only 3 or 4 dinners a week.<BR>Waiting for response.

I don't know, but I'd be surprised if they'd permit you to subtract for the dinners you miss. I can't remember what it cost, but the price for staying with a family was very reasonable. I enjoyed chatting with the family and the two other students over dinner. CLE arranged a large group dinner for whoever wanted to come at the above mentioned Jean Bardet's one evening, and I believe that was the only night I did not eat with the family.<BR><BR>CLE is in the old section of town near a big square with lots of cafes where students from the local university eat, and where we ate lunch everyday in our &quot;self-selected by proficiency in French&quot; groups.

Can I offer another suggestion? I spent two weeks last July in Strasbourg at CIEL de Strasbourg. Here's the link:<BR>http://www.ciel-strasbourg.org/<BR><BR>It's a school run by the Chamber of Commerce, and I was very impressed with the quality of the program, the instructors, etc. I did a specialized course in Business French at a high intermediate level, but they have regular courses at all levels. I seem to recall that the course prices were quite reasonable, too - perhaps because of the Chamber of Commerce affiliation. The age range seemed to be generally early 20s to early 30s (my course was a little older - mid-30s to mid-40s).<BR><BR>While the school is in a relatively modern (and somewhat characterless area) - in a brand new, very functional building - it's only a 10 minute tram ride from the old city, which is beautiful, with great architecture and history. Strasbourg and the Alsace region are terrific for food, culture, etc. Also, one of the reasons I picked this school was that it was well-situated for weekend travel in the Alsace region, Germany (eg Heidelberg) and Switzerland. The temperature was quite warm (and sunny most days) but not uncomfortably hot. If you prefer something warmer, your other schools might be a better choice - but I was very happy with this school and with Strasbourg. Easy ways to get to Strasbourg are via Frankfurt and Basel.<BR><BR>If you end up choosing BLS, please post a post-trip note. Bordeaux is my next choice for a French language holiday.

Thanks Kate...<BR>Whichever school we book I will post about it, we're hoping to go in June or July.<BR>Kavey

Looking at that site, Kate, their prices are cheaper because their classes are twice the size of those elsewhere. <BR>This may be a consideration for us as I want to get as much out of the class as possible and have always preferred small class sizes.<BR>Thanks for the suggestion though. Much appreciated.<BR>Kavey

My specialized class had only 6 people in it (and 3 instructors who taught different subjects, depending on the speciality). I'm less familiar with the general classes. Your comment is a good reminder, though, to check with schools about actual average class size, versus maximum size, and to consider your particular needs. The kind of program that suits one person might not suit another. (I'd also mention that I had a somewhat disappointing experience with a very small class in Spain. There were only three of us, and one of us was a not-very-bright and very unmotivated 18 year old. He really dragged us down. In a somewhat larger group, eg of 6-10, he would have had less of an impact.

Just for follow up - we decided to stick with the Bordeaux school - and I never did receive a response to any of the emails I sent CLE.<BR><BR>We'll be going for a couple of weeks and I will report back when we return. We're booked for this summer.<BR><BR>Kavey

Grandmere
As I think I mentioned, we decided to book into the Bordeaux school, and after thought, also decided to stay with a host family instead of in a hotel.
I have a question for you.
Did you take any gifts for your host family? If so what did you take and did you give them your gifts on arrival or departure?
Many thanks for your input,
Kavey

Please email me directly for further feedback on BLS.
Kavey