Hi! My name is Adelé Barberg and I’m 16 years old. I’m a junior at Fargo North High School, with an aspiring dream: to travel to France in 2026 as part of a two-week student trip.
This will be my first time ever leaving the U.S., and I’m incredibly grateful for the chance to visit a country so full of culture and history.
I’ve been studying French in school since 8th grade (almost four years now) and I’ve been learning it on my own for five years. Since I was 10, I’ve dreamed of seeing the Eiffel Tower — not realizing how this could possibly be achieved or how big of an opportunity it would be for my future.
I want to go to France not only to improve my speaking skills, but to experience daily life, meet new people, and see the major cultural differences.
French has become a passion of mine whether I’m learning it at school or practicing at home. I’ve done many projects on European customs and culture and now I can finally apply those in real life.
I hope to have a lifelong understanding of this language and to speak it fluently. There will be many learning aspects of the trip through language immersion, different food, new places, daily life, and history.
This trip is more than just a vacation or destination- it’s a huge step towards my future in art, independence, and language.
I’ll be staying with a host family in Bretagne and attending a high school during part of the trip. I’ll be speaking French all day, learning about family traditions and experiencing life as a teenager in another part of the world.
Throughout the trip we’ll visit museums, castles, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, and also the home of Leonardo da Vinci. I’ve always been inspired and interested in French art, design, and history and this trip brings all of those together.
The program is run through Language and Friendship which will be piecing the trip together and organizing all the costs.
All of the money donated and payment needed is going towards flights, transportation, hotels, dinners, entrance fees, and insurance.
This trip will help me gain real life experience using the language like ordering food, asking for directions, and building international friendships.
As someone who wants to study interior design and live or study abroad in my future, this trip is the perfect first step.
Every donation big or small brings me closer to this once in a lifetime opportunity! Paris isn't just a place I want to visit but it's been a dream of mine for years. I know this experience will shape how I see the world and I want to come home with new ideas, skills, and memories that I will carry with me through my life.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this! I’m very grateful to be taking this trip as my first abroad! If you can please share this with others it would mean a lot!
Trip dates: June 8-23, 2026
