"I miss the jasmine of Damascus."

Hailing from Damascus in Syria, where he worked as a lawyer, Michel arrived in France over a year ago. Specialized in business law, Michel chose this profession with the goal of helping others. Due to the present conflict, he decided to flee Syria to find refuge in Europe.

ICP Témoignage Michel ILCF

ICP Témoignage Michel ILCF

Voltaire, Rousseau, de Gaulle… back in Syria, Michel was already fascinated by French history and enjoyed learning basic French with the help of a dictionary. He wanted to come to France to improve and deepen his knowledge of the French language and culture.

Upon his arrival, Michel was welcomed by a friend who helped him find temporary lodging in a seminary. He then discovered L’Œuvre d’Orient, which helped him find a new place to live and above all facilitated his study of French.

Indeed, since September 2015, L’Œuvre d’Orient has partnered with ILCF to offer Michel French language courses. He daily thanks the staff and teachers for these classes and this precious assistance. Today, Michel has acquired a good level of competency in French and would like to further practice his oral language skills to facilitate his understanding of and communication with other French speakers.

At the end of this semester, Michel is determined to find a job so as to continue to live in France. Fully fluent in English, he would like to become an international lawyer based in Paris.

*On the photo, Michel has written “I miss the jasmine of Damascus”.

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