When I was 14 I took part in a school foreign exchange programme with a school in Avignon, France. You would think that it was a marvellous opportunity to learn about amazing french cuisine and taste some new foods.  Unfortunately you would be wrong.  My hosts didn’t seem to eat a lot of French food, and got take out like pizza and chinese most nights.  When our exchange students stayed with us my mother went out of her way to cook up dishes that she thought they would like and also ones that gave them a taste of Ireland.