We had our last day of class yesterday and are all headed out of Paris in three days. I fear this means the end of our study abroad is here. I would like my last blog post to be somewhat of a post-mortem for this trip. I will give a list of some overall thoughts and things I’ve learned about myself and living in the city of Paris for a month. I will also show some pictures of my friends and me on this trip cause they are cool and it was super fun exploring France with them 🙂
- Travel anxiety is inevitable. There were times when I would feel really nervous about the number of people standing on top of me on the metro or the fact that my mom and cats were so far away. But honestly, in these moments I would remind myself that I was in France and to get over it. And it worked! We stayed so busy that there was not much time to feel nervous or homesick for very long.
- Mistakes happen! The train is late, your room keys don’t work, you get on the wrong train, you go out and stay up way too late the night before you have an early class… but there is always a solution. The French have an attitude that if something does not go your way or to plan, then oh well come up with a different plan. That has been a valuable lesson and really helped to keep the stress levels down. I hope I can take that mentality back to the States with me.
- I wish we were taxed more!! Honestly, all of the amazing parks, city maintenance, and accessible/usable transit here make me want to pay more taxes at home. Smith has said multiple times that in the US we have the means to make cities as productive and functional as Paris, but we don’t do it because we don’t want to spend the money. But if higher taxes mean a better lifestyle AND not having to calculate tax when buying food/clothes then I’m down for it.
- I still really love museums and learning about history. This was not something I really thought I would enjoy even more after this trip, but oh man has it affirmed my love for preserving all things old. We do not have as deep of a history or culture in the States as France since our country is relatively not that old. Learning about and seeing the history here made me realize how much more I could discover, explore, and preserve in other parts of the world and how important that is to me.
- People are nice! Not necessarily all the French people… some of them are pushy, shovey, judgy, and rude, but all the people I’m traveling with are nice! I did not really know anyone going on this trip, and I was nervous it would be weird or awkward. But from the second we were all at the airport waiting for our plane to Paris everyone was super friendly and fun to talk to. We have all had this shared experience and made so many memories and *not to get emotional here cause I am that mom friend who would* but I am just really grateful to have made some new friends and traveled around Paris with y’all :,)
















