“To decide to live abroad and to acculturate to a new environment is to accept to embark on a life-changing journey, requiring patience, motivation, and discipline. On the outside, we might think we are out of our depth, swimming in a new and frightening culture, startled by unfamiliar social customs. On the inside, we have to pro tempore suffer from “linguistic schizophrenia” and tortuously remodel our social self, turning the original “us” into a hermit. However, these phases are only the first steps of the journey.”  

          —Karim Rebiaï (MA French Literature 2015)