So the school took a trip to Paris and, of course, it was beautiful and wonderful and exciting. Especially since we weren’t immediately judged as tourists—more like tourists who can speak French. The trip was designed wonderfully well because there was a list of certain monuments at which teachers would meet students who had previously signed up for seeing. It was the perfect way to have a no-whining mix of structure and freedom. We chose where we wanted to go, when we wanted to go and how we wanted to get there. The school gave us a day pass to the metro each morning after breakfast with a reminder about the scheduled visits that day and we were off!
I have to say that while the Louvre was très intéressant, the old palace was a bit large for a pleasant stroll—it was more like a forced march to try and see the top things on my list. I did however immensely enjoy seeing the many works of art that we have studied all throughout this year in art history. It was quite gratifying to know that all the time we spent memorizing the styles of Delacroix and Watteau were not in vain! Of course, the Mona Lisa was on my list, but much like many other people I know, I believe the painting is beautiful but there were many other paintings that had more of a pull on me than her smile.
Now, Le Musée d’Orsay—that’s a different story. I had idyllic visions of this museum before arriving that upon arrival completely lived up to my standards. The beautiful old train station was a wonderful piece of art in itself with its diffused light and gilded moldings, let alone the fact that it holds within the best impressionist paintings and sculptures. Having just studied the top seven most famous impressionist painters closely in art history, the whole school was quite excited to finally be able to examine Cézanne’s brushstroke technique up close and to see Monet’s “Water Lilies” in real life. The whole experience was just as cliché and magical as one could hope for.
The Eiffel Tour was, as expected, magnificent. I didn’t climb up, however, because I hadn’t properly dressed for the cold temperature at the top. I will just use that as an excuse to get to Paris on the weekend sometime this spring!
There is of course Versailles, Le Sacre-Coeur, La Comédie-Française, Le Centre Pompidou, La Madeleine, etc. There is so much more still to talk about, but nagging school work is taking precedence....
I would have to say that the greatest memory from Paris was the general feeling that I had while in the city—a feeling that I (sufficiently) know the language to go anywhere and speak with any Parisian who I came across. Well, that memory and also the inevitably weird metro happenings that one experiences in a large city like Paris.
