If you were to sit down and write a wish-list of characteristics you were looking for in a French language homestay host, we’re guessing that the Grigoriou-Gratton family, who have welcomed many Lingoo guests over the last few years, would tick every single one of your boxes.
We recently joined the family for dinner at their lovely home in downtown Bordeaux (incidentally Lonely Planet’s number one city to visit in 2017) to find out what makes them great hosts for young people seeking a language exchange or homestay experience.
Bienvenue! Meet the Family
You can tell from the outset that this is a host family who are used to welcoming visitors into the family fold and, as such, anyone who finds themselves the ‘plus 1’ at their table is immediately at ease. They’re already a large family: Mum: Laurence (works at home for an internet service provider), Dad: Jean-Michel (a journalist), son Télémaque (20) and three daughters Calixta (18), Soraya (16) and Azélia (11). Hopping by and completing the convivial family line-up, we also meet ‘Neige’, the family house-rabbit!
Tucking into a deliciously home-cooked Poulet Basquaise (a dish local to the Basque region a little further south), we learn more about the family. First-off, we discover that the children’s names are all decidedly un-French on account of the fact that Laurence’s father is Greek; in fact the family all go off to Greece as frequently as possible. This is the first of many clues to the emphasis this family places on travel and language learning. Soraya’s English, for example, is something to behold and she hopes to use her languages to travel and work across the world in her career dream: International Relations.
How Lingoo unlocked family language-learning adventures
The Grigoriou-Grattons are hugely enthusiastic and open-minded people and as such have always encouraged their children to pursue any extra-curricular learning opportunities on offer. School visits across Europe were initially high on their list of priorities but were hitting the family finances hard, so Laurence and Jean-Michel were therefore delighted to come across Lingoo, proving to be a more cost-effective and authentic way for the children to learn languages, see the world and welcome guests to their own home.
Four years later, there has been no looking back, with several Lingoo guests through their door (from Ireland, Italy, the UK and Spain) and several European adventures for their own children too; they have arranged exchanges with families in the UK and Spain. They struggle to think of a single negative Lingoo experience and this they put down to the fact that both parties can get to know each other through the on-line system before there’s any commitment.
So, what can you expect from your homestay chez Grigoriou-Gratton?
The spacious family townhouse is approximately 25 minutes’ walk from Bordeaux town-centre, so there is an endless list of things to see and do, right on the doorstep. They usually take guests to the charming Vieille Ville part of town and also on a boat-trip down the Garonne, one of the best ways to see the city. Depending on the time of year and the age of the guest, the agenda frequently features shopping, cycling, swimming at the lake or ice-skating. Further afield, Laurence never tires of taking guests to the coast to see the spectacular Dune du Pyla: Europe’s tallest sand dune. They’re keen to add that whatever they do, there’s usually une glace involved!
And from the language and culture aspect?
This is a family fiercely proud of its French culture (Jean-Michel in particular is very keen to share his knowledge on all things français: geography, food, literature, history, you name it!) and also inquisitive to find out as much as possible about their visitors’ cultures too. “Hosting is a great opportunity to meet new people and can be a great exchange of knowledge”, he explains.
Despite their international outlook (they speak an awe-inspiring five languages between them), they insist that only French is spoken when they have a homestay guest, and staying with such naturally engaging people, it’s little wonder guests make so much progress in vocabulary, accent and confidence by the end of the homestay! Jean-Michel puts this down to the fact that prior to the visit, the young guest has often learnt grammar at school but hasn’t fully understood the purpose of languages. “Coming to us, there is suddenly a social reason to speak another language: communication and friendship. At some point during the stay we see a developmental hurdle overcome, a déblocage. From that moment onwards, it’s progress all the way.”
What else? Here’s our Grigoriou fact file:
- - They have a dedicated guest room and host only one guest at a time.
- - Guests can stay for any length of time but the norm is anything from 1 to 3 weeks.
- - They welcome guests aged 9 to 18, both boys and girls.
- - Most of their guests come during the school holidays but guests can accompany their children to school if visitors prefer to come in French term time.
- - Laurence can offer French lessons during the stay if required.
- - For further information on the family, click here or search to see all Lingoo families in Bordeaux.
