Paris

 

Bonjour! For the second optional trip of the semester, an energetic group of students joined Ms. DeeMac and Ms. Curtin on a three day visit to Paris! The city of lights is rich in art, culture, architecture and food, and the group spent three days soaking in as much of the Parisian lifestyle as possible.

The first evening was spent getting to know the subway system and climbing Paris' most iconic structure, the Eiffel Tower, to enjoy a spectacular view of the city lit up at night.

An enthusiastic group also decided to ride the carousel near its base!

The next day we got an early start and climbed the towers of Notre-Dame cathedral. Notre-Dame is a magnificent gothic building whose construction began in 1163. The towers offer both an amazing view of the city and a chance to get a close look at the gargoyles that guard the cathedral.

From there we walked towards the Louvre and popped into Sainte Chapelle – a stunning chapel that houses one of the most extensive collections of 13^th century stained glass in the world.

The next stop was the Louvre, where we visited the Mona Lisa as well as some of the most incredible art in the world. It is an intimidatingly huge museum!

For the rest of the afternoon, students were free to explore Montmartre. While this neighbourhood is primarily recognized by Sacre Coeur cathedral sitting atop a hill, it is an incredibly vibrant and artsy section of the city. Many famous artists had studios in the area including Salvador Dali, Claude Monet, and Vincent Van Gogh.

Sunday morning was a change of pace from art and architecture as the group checked Cite des Sciences et de l'Industrie, which is Europe's largest science museum. Students explored at their leisure for a couple of hours, and then we checked out a space documentary in the museum's IMAX theatre located in the big silver dome.

After a break for lunch, we visited Centre Pompidou to learn about some modern art. This was a nice contrast to what we saw at the Louvre the day before and everyone enjoyed sharing pieces that they found interesting.

Our final stop of the trip was to l'Arc de Triomphe – an incredible and familiar structure that sits on a roundabout with streets radiating out from it. We climbed its 284 steps and got one last look at the city before having to say goodbye and return to Lanciano.

It was an incredible weekend!

I wish to thank Ms. Curtin and Ms. DeeMac for leading such a wonderful trip for our students and for writing this blog. Also, thank you to all of the students who provided these gorgeous photographs. Merci beaucoup!