The Fay France Trip

Last March, roughly thirty students from Fay embarked on an adventure through the extraordinary country of France. Between conversing with locals, shopping, and visiting impressive landmarks, each day was packed with new experiences. During this ten day trip, we visited Paris, Versailles, St. Malo, and Normandy.

Here are some of the highlights:

Paris:

Paris, familiarly known as the ‘City of Light’, did not leave us disappointed. As we walked through bustling streets, we could see the influence of French culture in nearly everythingx we saw. We were quite impressed by the elegant and sturdy structure of the Arc de Triomphe. In addition, we were left dumbfounded by the view from the top of the Eiffel Tower. Besides this, we also visited a wide variety of art museums. Places of note that we visited included Musee d’Orsay, Musée L’Orangerie, Les Invalides, and The Louvre.

Versailles:

Upon saying our goodbyes to Paris, we piled onto a bus and traveled south toward Versailles. There we visited the luxurious palaces of the French King Louis XIV in Versailles. As we walked the halls, not only did we see some beautiful artwork, but we also got a good scoop of the history leading up to the French Revolution. Later, we were privileged enough to go on a bike ride through the gardens.

St. Malo:

St. Malo was one of the group’s favorite towns by far. Besides the abundant amount of historical implications, the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. We had a wonderful time as we walked along the city’s tall stone walls and looked over onto the beach and watched the waves as they crashed along the rocky shoreline. I personally felt like it was something out of a movie! Later, when we had the opportunity to explore more of the city by ourselves, we found several outstanding restaurants. After we had eaten, we continued to look around until it was (sadly) time to return to the hotel.

Normandy:

The atmosphere on the beaches of Normandy demanded respect. As we walked through the D-day landing sites, we were only able to get a snippet of what it was like to be an Allied soldier that day. The steep cliffs that surrounded us were only made more ominous by the craters left behind by artillery fire. After an extensive day of learning, we visited the Arromanches 360 degree theater. There, we saw a movie that detailed the Allies’ progress as they battled through Europe in order to defeat the Axis. Lastly, we were taken to the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. We were able to roam the neatly kept grounds and thank those who had died for our country.

And that’s it! I would recommend this trip to nearly anyone. It was incredibly fun and had a profound effect on the way I thought about France!

Au Revoir!

Andrew ‘18

Edited by Derek ‘17

All images taken by Andrew '18