Day 7

dimanche, le 14 juin

We started our day with seeing what might be the most famous museum in the world, the Louvre. On the way we were able to walk through our local flea market and even picked up a few things. The students saw many works of art at the museum, from the Winged Victory, the Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa. Dane and Avery told me they were abke to see the The Code of Hammurabi, something they had learned about in their English class this year. 

What amazing connections the students are able to make all the while practicing their French. It was a magical start to the day! I think they were impressed with the collection and the sheer size of the museum. The students learned very quickly that most stores and shops are closed Sunday with the exception of highly touristic places.

Garnier Opera House

We briefly took a photo of the Opéra Garnier House, which is famous for its ballets. The students were in awe of the beautiful gilded architecture and its "grandeur".

Paris Metro

We hopped on the metro and headed to the Arc de Triomphe.  The students took pictures and remarked on the 12 point roundabout. I explained that when you enter, your insurance on your vehicle is no longer valid and any accidents are considered 50/50. We decided that it would be best never to drive here! 

Under the Arc, the students viewed the names of battle victories of Napoleon I depicted on the arch and the eternal flame of the unknown French solider from WWI. We had a mini history lesson on the importance of Charles de Gaulle marching through the arch and down the Champs-Elysées after the liberation from Nazi occupation in 1944.

We then had some free time to stroll the Champs-Elysées and do a little shopping. The kids noted the highly manicured trees that line the grand boulevard and envisioned what it may be like to capture a view from the side as the bicyclists of the Tour de France race up to the finish line.

We decided to lunch in the famously chic Marais district. So we hopped back on the metro and zipped on the line 1 to City Hall. 

Lunch in the Marais

We ate with views of French families out for a Sunday stroll and Sunday shoppers buying up fashionable items. The Marais is known for being one of the trendiest places to shop, with unique boutiques and the hottest Parisian trends...and is open on Sundays! We walked down the famous Rue des Rosiers that has a highly concentrated population of Jewish citizens. There, they saw people milling about with falafels and delicious looking desserts.

We returned back to the hotel to rest and pack up a bit before our fancy dinner. After, we hit the streets to head towards our dinner for the night at Le Procope. ACIS again provided meal vouchers so we could have this special treat. The students loved our tour manager so much that they insisted that she join us for the evening. It was exquisite!  

Le Procope dinner in the Benjamin Franklin room

The interior was gold gilded and "typiquement français". The students learned of the history that took place there. It is called the "oldest restaurant in Paris" and was established in 1686. Famous people both French and American, drank coffee and dined to share gossip and political views. It was said that Voltaire drank 40 cups of coffee a day at the restaurant, at the time the drink was exotic novelty. Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin both convened there to draw up ideas and notes for our country's Constitution. Later during France's revolution, Danton and Robespierre used the café as a meeting place. 

After our lovely dinner, we went to one of my favorite crepe stands nearby. Here we enjoyed our last French crepe with homemade chocolate. The students were in heaven! 

At the L'Avant Comptoire for dessert!

Tomorrow we leave this beautiful place behind, with amazing memories. I am so truly grateful for the parents of these students, for raising such amazing and wonderful children. They behaved and acted flawlessly.  My French friends and our tour manager, Marie-Helene, were thoroughly impressed by their manners and said "on se voit qu'ils sont bien élèvés!" Or.."one can see that they have been well brought up!". Truly a compliment of the highest coming from the French. 

I feel deep gratitude to ACIS, my students, and their parents for making this happen and having such tremendous support in this endeavor. The students have been given an unforgettable opportunity and experience in their journey of France and its culture.

So I sign off for the last time saying "à demain", meaning see you tomorrow! 

A demain!

-Mademoiselle Sadler

Day 6

samedi, le 13 juin

The kids all started the day happy as we were able to sleep in until 7:45! Woopie! We headed to St. Chapelle built by Louis the IX on the island of Cité. The kids explored the private chapel of the king and took in the beautiful stained glass windows that were shimmering like jewels from the morning sun. Our lovely guide, Marie-Hélène, took a moment to explain how the chapel was built using the students to recreate the construction of a "chapel". One of the photos below shows the students learning this. The Prefecture de la Ville, the headquarters of the police, was located right next door...I jokingly threatened to send them there if anyone misbehaved!

At St. Chapelle

Then we took an inner urban train from Cité to the grand chateau de Versailles. Some kids took a moment to snooze on the RER as true Parisians. The formidable chateau was bigger than they imagined! They walked through the famous Hall of Mirrors and had a glimpse of what life was like for the King of France. Louis XIV really did have exquisite taste! We then strolled through his gardens that Marie-Antoinette once meandered, settling on a perfect location to eat lunch amongst the trees in an outdoor café.

Le Chateau de Versailles

  Lunching in the Garden of Versailles

We then headed back to Paris to do a little more souvenir shopping at St. Michel and ice cream while walking in the Luxembourg Gardens, admiring the Palace of Luxembourg built in Italian renaissance style. The chateau was a gift for Marie de Medici because she was missing her motherland of Italy.

Luxembourg Gardens

We then took a brief moment to rest our feet and get ready for dinner with some friends at a North African restaurant, The King of Couscous. We met up with Peggy (my French friend), her husband and daughter, and two other students that graduated from LCHS that happened to be in Paris for the weekend. ACIS was great and provided us with meal vouchers that allowed us to pick our own restaurants. What a treat!

Couscous Dinner at Le Roi du Couscous

Tomorrow the students will take in the art at the Louvre and see the famous works such as the Mona Lisa and Winged Victory. Afterwards they will have free time. I will take the students to walk a bit of the iconic Champs-Elysées and have lunch at the famous Marais district. Later that night we will have our last dinner in Paris at the famous Le Procope where Benjamin Franklin crafted part of the U.S. Constitution and was once his favorite restaurant in Paris.

Day 5

vendredi, le 12 juin

We started our day early by saying "Au revoir!" to our temporary home of Caen. It was a wet morning, but c'est la vie en France! We traveled the countryside for about two hours, heading towards Giverny. I'm pretty sure the kiddos slept part of the way. France has been keeping them up at night and waking them early! The tradeoff for this early morning was the decadent croissants waiting for us.

Giverny Gardens

Claude Monet's famous Japanese Bridge in Monet's Garden

The quaint town of Giverny is so small and in the blink of an eye you could easily pass it you're not paying attention. We discovered how the celebrated artist Claude Monet lived and viewed some of his work. We then strolled through the gardens that were fresh and still dew covered from the morning rains. It made the colors of the flowers more vibrant, we could feel the breath of the trees and it amplified the lushness of the lily pads. It was easy to see why Monet felt the need and desire to try to capture such natural beauty. 

We then took off for Paris and dropped off our bags at our hotel near Montparnasse. This area of Paris is quite bustling, with streets lined with cafés, restaurants, brasseries, big and small boutiques. The students took some time to go shopping on "Rue de Rennes" in search of souvenirs from France from the likes of H&M, Mango and Kookaï. We grabbed a café to rest our feet from all that "souvenir" shopping before heading off to dinner at Chez Clement, a charming and stereotypical French restaurant that ACIS hand selected for us.

After dining, we set out determined to make it up the Eiffel Tower before nightfall. We waited a good while in line before taking the elevators up to the second floor. We tried to identify the various monuments from the view that layed before us, spotting the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, the Pantheon and Sacre Coeur Basilica atop the hill of St. Denis.

Heading to the Eiffel Tower

Exhausted from the day's sightseeing and travels, we headed back to hotel. Tomorrow we will start our day by visiting St. Chapelle followed by a tour of Versailles. Dinner that evening will be spent at a restaurant specializing in North African cuisine and meeting up with my dear friend, Peggy, and her husband and daughter. Peggy is the daughter of the family that hosted our dessert tasting, Annick and Jean-Luc Bouton.

Until tomorrow!  À bientôt!

-Mademoiselle Sadler

Day 2

mardi, le 9 juin

We have joined with two girls from a high school in Corona, CA and two boys from Alabama. They are lovely!

We started early (and everyone on time!) with an informative tour of Paris, by bus. We saw famous sites such as Champs-Elysées, went in circles at the Arc de Triomphe, visited and lunched in the busy and lively Latin Quarter. On our tour, we discovered the Sorbonne University, which is truly a sight to see as the second oldest in Europe. We visited the Pantheon and then the picturesque Luxembourg gardens and St. Sulpice, the home of the Rose Line. 

                                       Stopped for a quick photo!

We drove down the beautiful Boulevard St. Germain where Hemingway hung out, which inspired him to write his famous work “A Moveable Feast. We then traveled past the Louvre, Musée d'Orsay and the Academie Française, an institution, created in 1635 to protect the French language. We stopped for a moment to have a wonderful history lesson on the French Revolution at the Place de la Concorde.

Dane and Avery at the Catacombs

 We scared ourselves at the famous catacombs, where piles upon piles of bones lay stacked the ceiling, all hidden away under the streets of Paris. To top off these exciting past few days, tonight we have plans to go to dinner next to the Tuilerie Gardens followed by a trip to the top of the EiffelTower! Talk about a lot of amazing things that ACIS has planned for this educational journey.

Tomorrow morning we part for Normandie!

                                                      Selfie! <3

Day 1

lundi, le 8 juin

We made it safe and sound!! 

Landing in Paris <3

The kids have already experienced their first Parisian crêpe! 

       1st taste of Parisian crepes! 

We walked by Notre Dame, the Bastille, small outdoor flower markets and walked the old streets of Ile St. Louis. The students visited my old stomping grounds on the island. We visited La Vigie, the dorm that I lived in during my study abroad. The students were able to catch a glimpse of what life in Paris would be like.  

We are getting ready for dinner and pulling an “all-nighter” (and avoiding jet lag) in hopes of enjoying an evening cruise on the Seine. 

   Waiting to catch our boat

Our boat ride passing the Musée d'Orsay

Seeing the Eiffel Tower from our boat!

          The kids are excited to see what ACIS has in store for them!