Day 8: Paris

For our final day in Paris, we took a more in depth look at arts and culture (including many traditional French culinary experiences).  Our feet may be worn out, but every step was worth it.  Read more about our busy day from Sophia, Braeden, and Anton.

Today was eventful and amazing. We started off the day with going to the Louvre where we saw many of the pieces that related to AP Euro such as Liberty Leading the People and the Mona Lisa. After lunch, we were able to choose whether we wanted to go to an artists neighborhood or another art museum. I chose to go to the artists neighborhood. The neighborhood was crowded, however, my group was able to make it out safely. After dinner we went on a river cruise on the Seine River and we got to see many of Parisian monuments and landmarks. Afterwards, everyone went to get crepes which made us all happy. 

- Sophia

Our final day in Paris was incredible to say the least! In the morning we set out for the Louvre Museum, where we toured a featured exhibition on Eugene Delacroix before splitting up to look at art in our own groups. Of course the must-see at the Louvre is the Mona Lisa, but all the groups also managed to see some really cool art. My personal favorite was the Coronation of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis David, which is discussed pretty heavily in the AP Euro curriculum and is also physically massive, taking up almost an entire wall. After the Louvre, we got lunch near the Saint Michel plaza before my group visited the Montmartre neighborhood in the north of the city. Montmartre is an artists’ neighborhood, and music seemed to flow from every corner of every street. In the main square you could see tons of artists selling their work and even working in real time. We also visited the Sacre-Couer church in that neighborhood, which is both beautiful on the inside and offers a spectacular view of Paris. After our visit to Montmartre, we had dinner near Notre Dame, before taking a river cruise around the city and finally finishing the day eating crepes in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower; a fitting end to an excellent stay in Paris!

-Braeden

On June 7, 2018, the group visited the Louvre, a massive and beautiful museum in Paris, most infamously known for containing the Mona Lisa. In the Louvre, we saw a collection of Eugene Delacroix’s paintings as a big group, then we split up into smaller groups. In those smaller groups, we walked around the Louvre, and recreated pictures by posing the same way, which was a lot of fun. After the Louvre, we went to a nearby area which contained a lot of restaurants. We had more time than usual, and that allowed us to sit down at a restaurant and eat. After lunch, we went to Montmartre, an amazing part of Paris which contained a beautiful cathedral, an amazing view of Paris on a neat garden, and a stunning market of very skilled artists and painters showing off their work. Some time after Montmartre, we went to eat dinner, which was entertaining. We then went on a boat ride on the Seine, which provided both beautiful views and a great experience. It was a lot of fun to be on there and see the beauty of Paris first-hand. We later went near the beautiful lit up Eiffel Tower to eat some delicious crêpes, ending an absolutely amazing day in Paris. 

- Anton