Settled and Exploring!

We have had an exciting and amazing month of October. We started our toured city visits with Professor Kahan! Some sites included following the Paris Wall, Crypts at Notre Dame and Museum of Immigration. Our Human Resources class begun with Professor Jensen who truly motivated us to be ethical in the workplace and understand the way Human Resources work in the real world through company site visits such as Four Seasons and GE. This month we had the privilege of attending  an Opera and Ballet at the Palais Garnier, the Monet Exhibit, and Salon du Chocolat! After our Human Resources class we all took off towards new and exciting European cities! From Prague, London, Berlin to Madrid. Suffice it to say the GWSB Paris Studies Program is the perfect example of working hard and playing hard! 

AMARINO ICE-CREAM! They actually serve it like if it was a flower! Will be opening soon in NYC.

Nicole at the new Sciences Po library! 

Alex and Alyssa presenting  in our History of Paris Class

Professor Kahan touring us the Roman Baths in Paris

Florence (our "mother" in Paris) and Nicole at our HR Farewell Dinner!

Juliette infront of the Palais Garnier

French Immigration Museum Visit

Bob Sinclar at VIP Room in Paris!!!!

At the Salon du Chocolat

Models with clothes made out of chocolate!

Million of free samples!!!!!

WEEKEND IN NORMANDY WITH DEAN SINGLETON!

This past weekend we all went on a trip to NORMANDY! We visited the Memorial de Caen, where we saw all the exhibitions and saw a movie on D-Day. We all had lunch at a Pizzeria near the memorial. Later on in the afternoon, we visited D-Day beaches, the American Cemetery, La Pointe du Hoc, and Omaha Beach.  Around 6:00 PM we arrived at Mont Saint-Michel. We had a wonderful time eating dinner with everyone from the program! Then we decided to tour the island at night--- little scare here and there- but all in all a great views of the nocturnal side of the island! In the morning we woke up bright and early to have a guided visit of Mont Saint-Michel and Abbey. So beautiful! On our way home, we stopped by a fishing village-Honfleur for an early dinner. 

All of us in Omaha Beach!

Mont Saint-Michel

Overlooking Normandy

DEAN SINGLETON TOURING WITH US!

TOP OF Mont Saint-Michel

1st Break- Rome & Naples!

For my first break, I went to Italy with my boyfriend, Joe, who's also a GWSB student studying abroad in London. That's one of the cools things about studying abroad in Paris, or Europe in general - it's really easy to coordinate trips with people who aren't in your program.

I left Paris early that Thursday morning on a 2-hour flight to Rome. But once I landed on Italian soil, it was so nice to enjoy 80 degree weather instead of the 60's in Paris. We immediately went sight-seeing to the Coliseum, Roman Forums, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps (Place d'Espagna, I believe it's called?), Pantheon, etc. The nice thing about Rome is that it is an absolutely beautiful city but all the major sites are next door to each other so you really get to see everything in a day. The next day, we took the metro to the Vatican. The line was an hour wait because President Sarkozy also decided to visit the Vatican... but it was great. Absolutely amazing. If you go to the tombs under the Vatican (which is all, by the way, for free), you can see the tomb and burial area for Saint Peter. After that, we went to the Sistine Chapel which is a part of a larger museum called "musei Vatican". They take you through many long chambers of rooms adorned with gold, intricate tapestries, and just beautiful art. This trip will take a true traveler about 3 hours - but we cut ours down to 1 hour, rushing to see the Michelangelo. The Sistine Chapel is much smaller than one would imagine, and its kept with very dim lighting as to preserve the art. Though no pictures were allowed, it was nice to just stand in the midst of this great art and take it all in. After that trip, Joe's family from Naples picked us up and drove us to Southern Italy! The next day, we went to the beaches in Naples: Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi Coast and really got a chance to overlook the coasts. It was so warm that we actually got to SWIM in the water! Never would I have thought I'd be swimming in October, but it happened. :) The rest of the days, we spent a lot of time with Joe's family. It was nice to be in a real Italian town and getting to really know the people - definitely a good contrast to the sightseeing in Rome. I had an EasyJet flight to Paris late Sunday evening and was back in time, ready to tackle my next business course.

Overall, Italy was absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to go back! Perhaps sometimes this semester? Who knows :)

COLISEUM!

Trevi Fountain

The Vatican - did you know it was it's own "state"? Fun fact for y'all

Mount Vesuvius in the background! Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to visit Pompei but it's definitely at the top of my list for my next visit to Naples :)

Sorrento - the city is absolutely beautiful, I've never seen anything like it

Warm sunlight, clear blue water - nothing better than Southern Italy

First Break: Geneva Switzerland

I went to Geneva, Switzerland with three other girls over the first break. We arrived very early in Geneva and got the chance to see the beautiful mountains and the sunrise. The first day of break we got to explore the city and visit the old town of Geneva. The next day we embarked on a 9 hour wine, cheese and chocolate tour. The first stop of our culinary tour was the Calier chocolate factory. The tour took us through nine interactive rooms explaining the history of chocolate. The tour ended with a all you can eat chocolate room. The next stop on the tour was a cheese maker in the middle of the swiss alps. We learned to make fondue with garlic, white wine and cheese and even got to taste some. After our cheese tasting we got to visit the small town of Gruyere where we bought cheese and cow bells. The final leg of our trip was a panoramic train ride to the wine country of Switzerland. The tour concluded with a glass of wine overlooking Lake Geneva. The last day of the trip we visited the Natural History Museum of Geneva where we met Janus the two headed turtle. We also explored a market on the way to the Patek Phillipe watch museum. The trip was a great break from the hustle and bustle of Paris but we looked forward to returning to Paris and all of our friends in the program. Next stop Vienna and Prague!

1st Break- Madrid, Barcelona & Milan

During my first break I decided to travel to Madrid, Barcelona, and Milan! I had so much fun spending time with my family in Madrid. On Friday,  about eight of us decided to book an overnight train to barcelona and unfortunately, had noooo sleep! They didn't turn the lights off throughout the night and we arrived sore & sleepless to barcelona Saturday morning. The best part of the trip- 43 EU compared to 135 EU for a 3 hour train! Once we arrive at Barcelona, we did the hop on & hop off tour bus and finished with some drinks at the beach. At night we joined other GWSB students at Chupitos, a local shots bar, and ended at a night club. Three of us ran to the airport around 4 am to catch a flight to Milan. We spent the day eating gelato and touristing the city. Late at night we arrived home in Paris ready for our HR class to begin first thing in the morning. Suffice it to say, it was an incredible break!

Paris Program During September

The GWSB students have had an exciting and enjoyable month of September! After finishing our orientation, we jumped right into Marketing. Our Professor, Professor Maddox, is an incredible teacher who has pushed us and taught us a great deal. We divided into teams for our Marketing class and had the challenge of marketing French products to the United States. Every team did a great job as we all put a lot of effort into the project. Highlights of September include our GW Alumni Reception, a Visit to Monet's house in Giverny and working at Paris Fashion Week! We had amazing Site Visits every Friday during Marketing which included; Moet & Chandon, TBWA and Ferrero. When not working on the projects, we all took time exploring everything Paris has to offer! Once finishing our Marketing class, we all spent the first break traveling to other countries in Europe including; Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and Italy. We are all really looking forward to our Human Resource Class and trip to Normandy this weekend with Dean Singleton!

Please enjoy the pictures below!