Seventeen-year-old Camille Mallat of Paris expected to see plenty of "sun and blue sky" during her first visit to California.

But when she flew into Sacramento two weeks ago, the sky was filled with soot and ugly gray smoke that blotted out the sun.

Despite the bad air generated by wildfires, Mallat was glad to be in California. She came with more than 100 other youths from Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Hong Kong for a 27-day visit to explore American culture.

"I feel great to be in California," Mallat said. "It's so good, that even in French I can't express how happy I am."

She and the other visitors, ages 13 to 20, were brought here by the Education First Educational Homestay Program, a nonprofit that seeks to break barriers among cultures.

Though some already speak English, all the students are bused to Sierra Oaks School in the Arden area for English-as-a-second language courses, along with American culture classes.

The students also take field trips to destinations like the state Capitol, Sacramento City Hall, Folsom Lake, Old Sacramento and Sacramento Superior Court.

"I feel good to be part of the program, because I can interact with loads of new people and see lots of new stuff I never saw," said Billy Tsai, 16, of Hong Kong, who speaks English, French and three Chinese dialects.

During last week's visit to the courthouse, Tsai played the role of a prosecutor during a mock trial overseen by Judge Brian R. Van Camp. Julien Coustans, 17, of France, assumed the defendant's role.

A day before the mock trial, Tsai, who is staying with a Roseville family, said he was eager to see San Francisco on an upcoming field trip. He was not alone, said Emily Sheldon, a program leader and chaperone with Education First.

"Many students are excited about the trips we'll be making to San Francisco and Los Angeles," Sheldon said. "Those are the cities they see in the movies, and that they learn about in their countries.

"The students are excited to see the Golden Gate Bridge and Disneyland."

The Homestay Program was founded in Sweden by a man who felt that non-English speakers should visit English-speaking nations to learn the "universal language," said Dee Dee Baker, the program's Sacramento site director. She said one of the program's goals is to foster better relations among people of different countries. This is the third year the program has brought students to Sacramento.

To help pay expenses, each student's family pays a fee to the program, whose North American headquarters are in Cambridge, Mass., Baker said.

Equally vital are the host families, who, according to a program handbook, "are expected to treat a student more like a family member than a guest."

The students are staying with host families throughout the Sacramento region.

"Without our host families, this program would not be possible," Baker said.

After arriving at City Hall on July 14, the students were welcomed by Mayor Heather Fargo. Then they attended a conference on global warming in City Council chambers. Hosted by Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails, the conference gave students an opportunity to meet members of the organization's Youth Advisory Board and to hear a presentation by Doug Grandt of the Climate Project, a nonprofit founded in 2006 to call attention to the world's climate crisis.

Breathe California of Sacramento- Emigrant Trails – www.sacbreathe.org – is a nonprofit that promotes cleaner air, healthier lungs and a tobacco-free tomorrow.

Cleaner air is something the students didn't see during their first couple of days in Sacramento. Mallat said her host family in Sacramento prepared her for the unsightly conditions.

"My host family had warned me in advance about the air," Mallat said. "By e-mail, they told me there was some fire and a lot of smoke."

To host a student next year, call (916) 612-3784.

Call The Bee's Edgar Sanchez, (916) 321-1088.