Megan

March 23, 2007

We have just about hit the middle of our time here in France, which is unbelievable to us! I guess what they say is true – time flies when you’re having fun.

This past week, we had a lot of free time to get in smaller groups and explore Paris. Despite the rain, some of our many activities included tea at the Mosque and visits to the Père Lachaise Cemetery, La Maison du Chocolat (it tastes as good as it sounds!), the Shakespeare and Company Bookstore, the Paris Zoo, and La Cité des Sciences, where there is an interactive sculpture park for kids…and college students, too! Even though we are in Paris for the majority of our time here in France, we sometimes still feel there is not enough time to see everything we want to!

Thursday, we spend most of the afternoon at Versailles. For me, it was my first visit to the famous chateau after years of studying in it French class. I finally got to see it! The sun even came out in the afternoon, making perfect weather for exploring the extensive grounds. A group favorite was Marie Antoinette’s petit hameau, or little hamlet – basically, a small village with sheep, horses, chickens, and swans. We were even taken back to our time in the Alsace region when we saw a few maisons à colombage!

Today we arrived in Caen, where we will be for the next six days. It is refreshing to be in a smaller town after a few weeks in Paris! Tomorrow, we are free to explore, and then we will be visiting sights such as Mont Saint-Michel, the Bayeux Tapestry, and a few of the D-Day beaches.