Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Greater Geraldton - Issue No.: 780 Issue Date: 15 Apr, 2024

Hi everyone!

Day to day life has been pretty busy at the moment. I've been spending time with my french friends, family as well as my rotary club.

Last Saturday I got to go to Verdun with my rotary club for the day. It was a 3/4 hour journey and we met a rotary club from Germany there as well to spend the day with. We visited some very interesting places involving the battle of Verdun where there were 130 000 people who died. I even saw their graves at the memorial. It was quite heartbreaking for me looking over the field, with countless soldiers bodies laying beneath the surface, some graves containing up to 10 soldiers. I was shocked even further when I looked through the little windows that show beneath the memorial building to see the dissembled skeletons of more soldiers who's bodies were blown to pieces. Sorry for the image- but I have to explain why it was such a heartbreaking day. Yet, amongst all of that, it was a very enjoyable day, despite the history the french and the germans were the best of friends, we ate lunch together, walked together, laughed together whilst learning about the battle in which they were enemies. I am extremely grateful for my rotary club giving me this opportunity, I learned so much I had no idea about in relation to the war. 

Also a surreal moment I'd like to share with you- on the day I befriended a German mother, and a Polish 20 year old. It was incredible because even though our first languages aren't the same, we could communicate in French, none of our mother tongues. 

School has been even more enjoyable lately, I even had my show with my theatre class that I was in, and I think I absolutely smashed the two sentences I had to say!

This weekend has been especially great, I spent Friday afternoon in Lille with my host sister which was a great time for us to bond, and Saturday I caught up with my exchange friends for the afternoon, and now Sunday is usually the chilled day in the household where we all relax, watch a movie, read a book etc.. 

And a "what a small world" moment which seems to happen all the time on exchange. Friday I went to an op shop style sale in Lille and I met a girl from Esperance who seemed really familiar. Then I remembered, I have met her before- in Australia! We both went to the ATAR seminars in Perth and stayed at the same accomodation and one night we talked about exchange because I knew I was going to France but she had no idea where she was going- and we ended up in the same city in France! Such a small world!

I really think I am starting to settle into my life here, everything seems to be going really well. Although next week will be so sad because it is the last 2 days with our "oldies" exchange students before they all start to head back to their countries, but on the bright side we are spending the day at Disneyland together so that's not too shabby if you ask me!

Until the next report!
Rachel