Submitted by Emilee Maull on the 2020 winter session program in Paris, France sponsored by the Department of Art and Design…
The month has flown by and I can’t believe my study abroad program is over! The last week flew by even faster than the other weeks and I’m so sad to be leaving a place I’ve grown to love so much! This past Monday, we took a day trip to Champagne, which is about two hours outside of Paris. We went to two different champagne houses and were able to tour the caves where the champagne matures. One of the champagne houses had different modern art exhibits in the caves which was amazing! There were different light shows, music, and physical exhibits such as a carousel. The second champagne house we went to was much smaller, but it was amazing to see how a smaller company can still produce large amounts of high quality champagne. At both locations, they explained the process of how they make their champagne.
This past week also included a lot of free time for us to work on our final photography project and explore Paris more before leaving. Tuesday some of us just walked around our area and then went to dinner at a really fun fondue restaurant. That night was definitely one of the highlights of the program! On Wednesday, we climbed up to the top of the Arc de Triomphe which has an amazing view of the city of Paris. We went in the evening so all the buildings were lit up and we even saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle while we were up there! Thursday morning, we had a macaroon cooking class, which was another favorite part of the program. We were able to take home about 20 macaroons each and I was so excited to share them with my family when I got home, they came out delicious! Friday was our last day as a group, we had our final project presentations in the morning and a group lunch around noon. Some friends and I did some shopping and sightseeing around the Pompidou before heading to the opera that night! We had such a great time that day, it was the perfect way to end the program. My last day mostly consisted of packing and getting last minute gifts for friends and family at home. I’m already missing Paris, but I’m so grateful for the opportunity I had to live in such a beautiful place for a month. I learned so much about different cultures in both France and Italy and cannot wait to come back to visit. As the French would say, au revoir!
