P - Practice - As I am a French major, this trip was especially important for me. I wanted to leave the trip with a better understanding of the language and the nuances of the culture. So, I decided that I would practice my French as much as possible. There were only about four of us on the trip who were French majors, so during our group outings I did need to speak English with them. However, during class and when out shopping or in museums I made sure I used my skills in the language. It seemed silly to me why anyone who knows the language wouldn't try to use it as much as possible.
A - Americanizing - I had a really unique experience one day when I was at a department store. A lady came up to me asking about the check-out lines. She could obviously tell that I was not a native French speaker, so she asked where I was from, how long I have been studying French ... etc. After I responded to her questions, she said that she was glad I was trying to speak the native language of her country. She said that the real France is getting lost because all of the tourists come to Paris expecting everyone to speak and understand English, so they bother not trying to learn the language. I thought this was really interesting and what she said made me want to use and practice my French more and more!
R - Regrets are not an option - When a student goes on a Term III travel trip, it is important that they realize the opportunities that lay ahead of them. I know for myself, I spent a lot of my own money to go to Paris for five weeks and I was crazy if I wasn't going to do everything that I wanted to do on that trip. So I made it my mission to do two things: Go to Disneyland Paris and go to an interesting museum. So, I did just that, we set a date to go to Disneyland and it was so much fun! I rode the Tower of Terror and felt like I was going to die while doing it, but, at least I went on it! I met Micky Mouse, Cinderella, Aurora, Prince Charming, and Snow White, and I took a ride on Aladdin's magic carpet! It was so much fun to spend the day with the girls on the trip and just revel in our childhood of Disney Princesses and the Lion King! For the museum, I chose to go to the Museum of Decorative Arts on the Free Museum Sunday. We got passes for the major art museums in Paris (the Louvre and the Orsay Museum) so I wanted to go to this one when I didn't have to pay for my entrance. This museum was WONDERFUL! I say that because there was so much to see and look at. They had antique jewelry exhibits, old-school furniture, and my favorite, a LOUIS VUITTON and MARC JACOBS exhibit! If I could have spent all day in that exhibit, I probably would have. It showed the progression from LV's designer luggage to the more modern doctor satchel and his fabulous shoes as designed by Marc Jacobs. It was so amazing to see how this man who originally started out making little hat boxes became the name-brand designer that he is known for now! I did everything I wanted to do on this trip and more because I looked at where I was and there was nothing that I could not accomplish in the city of lights and love!
I - Immersion - As I stated above in the Introduction, we took immersion classes for four of those weeks that we were in Paris. These classes were very helpful because everything was taught in French. But, what I especially liked about these classes was that it wasn't a class just filled with Americans, people of other nationalities were there too. In my class, we had students from Angola, Israel, Spain, Mexico, China, Romania, so many places and we got to learn about the French language, the French culture, and all of the fellow students' cultures. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life being in those classes with people who cared about growing in the language and who wanted to participate and practice.
S - Self-Reflection - Spending five weeks in an unfamiliar country, without your family, without your best friends, without the comfort of fried chicken and macaroni and cheese can be pretty intense for people. I will not lie, my first few days were rough, I was incredibly homesick for my Homeland, but when I finally relaxed and was able to look at the bright spots of the trip, I enjoyed my time and I learned a lot about myself in the process. It showed that, I did not need to be defined with the adjectives that would normally define me while in America; Conservative, Upperclassman, Student ... etc. In Paris, I was the definition of myself. The people I met did not care that I was from the United States, they did not care that I was staying in Saint Denis, and they certainly did not care that I was a student at a private college in Upstate New York. What they cared most about was the way I acted towards them and how I carried myself. All they wanted to do was have a good time and learn, just like myself and I think that that is what I love most about Parisians, they always want to learn and they always want to have a good and enjoyable time with their family and friends. This is what I have taken most out of this trip: a new sense of self.
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