首先第一点留学法国教会我的第一件事就是独立。这个独立不仅仅是物质上的独立，我觉得更多的是心理还有人格上的独立。其实我出国之前真的是一个，以前就是连用电饭煲煮饭我都不会煮，番茄炒蛋要放番茄还是先放蛋我也不知道。甚至我可能连骑自行车我都骑不好，我急的我当时飞机才起飞，我的眼泪止不住的就在流。落地以后我就开始在日记本上倒数回家的日期，但后来我不得不自己去独自面对所有的事情。印象最深刻的应该就是，我那会去做一个牙齿上的手术，那个医生就有跟我说你有没有家人可以陪着你。是一个牙龈上的手术它没有拔牙手术那么简单，然后我就跟她说我没有啊我只能自己来。当时坐上那个手术台以后我真的，瞬间就觉得自己好像要更加强大，才能够帮助自己在这里更好的生活下去。因为你有了自己的独立性，不用去依靠别人所以你可以为自己的人生做主，你想买什么衣服就买什么衣服。我今天想跟你在一起我就跟你在一起我明天不想跟你在一起我就可以跟你说再见。就是这样的一种底气也是因为我们独立了以后才能获得的，也正是因为培养了我自己独立的这种个性。然后慢慢地我开始学会了享受孤独和自己独处。其实人的本质都是孤独的，无论是家人朋友伴侣没有任何一个人可以陪我们走到最后，最终都是要面对自己一个人的。我就突然想起我前段时间看到的一句话，大家在起的时候就可以在一起很开心的玩耍。然后分开的时候又可以独立地去做自己想做的事情。懒了，把自己在Quora上的回答搬过来，坐等各路神仙来拍砖...It's a pretty big question, and the answer depends enormously on the circumstances. Instead of answering directly to your question, I'll name some key factors that come up in my mind which affect greatly your experience.Your French. From what I lived, this is a ABSOLUTE prerequisite for your life to be truly French here. Yes, you do survive without speaking French (if you are in Paris of course; otherwise, not sure...), or with a limited level of French. If France and French culture is anther world as opposed to the English-speaking one, then your French is the KEY to the door of that world. I think we all know that...The community. When I was in Paris, I was lucky enough to attend a very French school where the majority are French. That has immediately two favorable results. One, I was surrounded by a very French community and therefore somewhat immersed in a pretty pure French ambiance, where you speak rarely English other than some *popular words. Two, you can quickly become interesting for them, as most of them are pretty curious about foreigners and know far less that you do. So, in order to have a great experience that is different from what you get as a tourist, you need to immerse yourself in a French community, and really make some close friends.Your origin. I also believe "Who you are and where you come from" are also two factors that differentiate the experience of people. Being an American, or a Chinese, a Japanese, an Albanian create different experiences, though I could only experience one of them. But clearly, different people have diverse geographical imagination for France, and French people have different stereotypes (neutral) for different people too. So that really depends. A short summary, as Hemingway put it:If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.}