For this spring break, I went to Paris for a one unit study abroad class. I've always dreamed of going to Paris and finally, I was able to achieve it. And, although I wasn't able to attend any fashion events, it was still cool to be there at the same time as Paris Fashion Week. Side note: on the plane ride home I was actually sitting next to a freelance photographer who was editing photos from Fashion Week, so I got to talk to him about it for a bit. Aside from the minor travel trouble due to snowstorms and flight cancellations, I would consider this trip a success! (10 day vacation)
**Thank you from the bottom of my heart to my family, friends, and those who donated to my GoFundMe for helping me meet the financial requirements needed to make this trip happen**
I was running purely on adrenaline for this trip. I had a lot to cover in a few days. For the study abroad class requirements, we had to visit several museums and historically significant locations, so there was a lot of walking involved. We walked at least 5 miles everyday. After learning how to use the métro, I realized why everyone took the métro instead of taking an Uber or taxi. Once I got the hang of it, it became almost second nature. On one of our rides we also encountered a street performer rapping his original songs which was really cool. But I’m proud of myself for navigating our group around Paris with the small paper map from the hotel and my gut feeling. It took a bit of getting used to, but I was able to figure out the large, well-known streets and the left and right banks of the Seine River really quickly, and use those as reference points to help me figure out if we were going the right way.
A lot of people also asked me where I was from, commenting on my skin color and Filipino features. I wasn’t used to getting so much attention from strangers on the street, but everyone was polite about it, and I just took it as a chance to practice my French when people asked or tried to talk to us.
Beret & Purple Coat- Bought at a local Parisian shop
White Sweater- H&M (similar)
Purple Pants- Hand-me-down from my mom
Boots- Target
Purse- Kate Spade
Top photo: walking by the Louvre pyramid. Clockwise starting from top left: the morning sun shining through the stained glass windows at St. Chapelle, mirror selfie wearing my new coat (made out of recycled fabrics) that I bought at the thrift store, me looking out one of the windows in the Louvre, selfie with our girl, Mona Lisa. Bottom photo: escargot for dinner at Au Père Louis
Although it was a bit rainy, we bought tickets all the way to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I could see almost all of Paris and how the streets weaved together. It was such an amazing view especially after the sun came out. We ended this day with a boat ride on the Seine River. We also saw the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. It was so pretty, especially off of the reflection of the water.
Yellow Sweater- Hand-me-down from my mom
Belt- Thrifted
Jeans- Hollister (similar)
Top row (left to right): selfie with the Eiffel Tower, eating a Croqué-Madame for lunch at Café Primerose, the Eiffel Tower at night. Middle photo: you know that "I'm on top of the world!" feeling? That's what I felt in this moment at the Eiffel Tower. Bottom photo: posing as tourists for a local student's photography project
After a full day of walking around to the Musée de l'Armée and Arc de Triomphe, and shopping around Champs-Élysées, we stopped for a coffee break at Ladurée. We tried some of their macarons (salted caramel, rose, coffee, and pistachio), their rose and raspberry sorbet ice cream cup, a slice of their tiramisu dessert, and their coffee.
Orange Sweater- H&M (similar)
Printed Pants- Hand-me-down from my mom
Sneakers- Vans
Top row (left to right): pictures of the Arc de Triomphe before we found the underground tunnel to get to the center, action shot running up the steps at Musée de l'Armée, quick photo of the Musée de l'Armée before going through armed security. Bottom photo: sweet treat break at Ladurée
Left: posing with The Thinker at the Musee Rodin. Right: The Kiss by Rodin
The place I was most looking forward to was the Palace of Versailles. I was extremely excited walking up to the golden gates. After getting through security and lines, we were able to explore around the Palace, but it was extremely crowded with larger tour groups, which made it harder to enjoy. After the Palace of Versailles, we stopped at the Palais de Tokyo. This one turned out to be one of the best museums we went to. It was filled with modern and contemporary interactive art which was a lot different from all the other museums we went to. We had fun playing around and touching the art installations.
Top photo: the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles. Bottom row (left to right): outdoor courtyard at the Palace of Versailles, sitting on an interactive art installation at the Palais de Tokyo, dinner with my roommate
Black Turtle Neck- Hand-me-down from my grandma
Black Dress- Loft
Boots- Target
We also popped into Shakespeare and Company, a famous café and bookstore. It was a lot smaller than I expected, but it definitely had character. It wasn’t set up like a Barnes & Noble bookstore would be. It felt more like it was someone's personal home library that had different levels and small niche rooms. We also made friends with some other American study abroad students playing the piano upstairs.
Left: circular exhibition of Monet's Water Lilies at the Musée de l'Orangerie. Right: exploring in Shakespeare and Company café and bookstore
Green Anorak- Gap
White Sweater- H&M (similar)
Belt- Thrifted
Jeans- Hollister (similar)
Boots- Target
Purse- Kate Spade
I had such a great time exploring the city even if I was only there for a week. I tried to visit as many museums as I could in a day. I walked around and took the métro. I tried a lot of the local French dishes. I took tons of pictures and videos. I challenged myself to truly immerse into the French culture by navigating and conversing in French to get myself around the city. I pushed myself to try new things, be adventurous, meet new people, and to ask questions. It was a little uncomfortable at first talking to people in French, but as I kept trying it became easier to respond appropriately. I was able to translate menus, instructions, directions, and I even helped two American men find grape jam in the Monoprix (which was like a French Target). Although we weren't able to cover everything on our itinerary, we were still able to visit so many places in such a short amount of time. I’m so grateful that I was given an opportunity as amazing as this. I definitely want to come back to Paris soon with my family so I can show them around and share with them everything I’ve learned on this trip.
Special thanks to those who donated to my GoFundMe, Dominican University, and Prof. Dougherty & Prof. Bartolini for being our tour guides.
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