Bonjour! Hello!
My name is Gerard, and I'm so excited to share one of my favorite countries with you: France! For the next several months, I'll be living in the French capital of Paris. Together we'll be exploring not just the City of Lights, but wherever my travels take me.
I study linguistics (the study of language) at California State University at Fullerton. I love languages, and I can probably talk for hours about what makes human communication so fascinating. I'm also majoring in French studies, which is why I'm here in France right now!
I'm 26 years old, and I'm originally from Manila in the Philippines. I had no idea while growing up that I would one day move to California and become an American, but that's exactly what happened. I took that long flight across the Pacific Ocean in 2010 with my whole family, which includes my parents and my five younger siblings. We now live in Anaheim, just a few minutes away from Disneyland. Life in Orange County is very different from life in Manila, but I've learned that anywhere can be home as long as the people you love are right there with you.
Moving away from my family and friends (and my cats!) has been one of the most difficult parts of studying abroad, I admit. But hopefully I'll make some friends here, and I'll soon learn to call Paris home, too. It is, after all, the City of Love. Ready to go?
