If someone from Iceland, Ghana, or Oman were to visit you in the States, wouldn’t you want them to understand some things about your culture before they arrived?

From popular culture, movies, YouTube videos, articles, blog posts, and travel guides, we can derive culture, cultural context and clues. We encourage you to do this as you prepare to visit someone else’s home country! Here’s a list of resources that may help you understand your host culture and ease the transition between home and host countries:

Recommended Books and Guides:
Lonely Planet – France
Diversity Abroad
Travel and Leisure
CIA Factbook
Trip Advisor #CISabroadtip: check out their smartphone app too!
Vayama

Recommended News Resources:

Le Monde

Recommended Videos and Movies:

Rick Steves France YouTube Channel

Cliche! Funny French Stereotypes

Language Resources:

Word Reference
Google Translate
Word Lens
Mango Languages
iTranslate
Learn a language for free: the five best websites
Living Language
Duolingo