The first couple days here have been magnificent! Going into this, I had no idea what to expect from the dorms, the classes, the people, everything. But I’m glad to say that so far my journey has been beyond great!
My dorm is small but has everything I need! My own shower, bathroom, mini fridge, and a bed that’s slightly bigger than an army cot and slightly softer than some concrete! There’s Wi-Fi and it’s so close to the dining halls and the classrooms.
The weather here has been crazy! One minute it’ll be pouring rain but then five minutes later I’ll be taking off my sweatshirt because the sun came out and I’m sweating! It’s kind of humid sometimes, kind of not other times. And the wind here could put Chicago to shame.
So my average day consists of three hours of French language class in the mornings with a 15 minute break half way through the three hours (they provide snacks too!!!). That’s mostly the typical French class structure, grammar and vocab and stuff like that. Then we get an hour and a half for lunch (because in France, meals are supposed to be enjoyed slowly) and there is a cafeteria on campus for 6 euros I can get more than enough food and dessert! Then in the afternoon is my History of the Battle of Normandy class, which is either about an hour and a half of lecture or a fun field trip!
Yesterday my History class went to a D-Day museum and it was really incredible. The French perspective of WWII is nothing like what they teach us in American history classes. I thought I knew a lot about WWII, but I only knew one side of the story. Being occupied for so long and having the fighting on their own soil of course left the French with a different way of looking at the past. I thought it was really interesting, if not absolutely heart-breaking.
But today! Oh today! It’s a Saturday so a group of my new friends and I took the train a town over to Bayeux! The big draw to this town is the Bayeux Tapestry (which I had absolutely no idea what that was before going to see it!). It’s an incredible 230-foot-long embroidered tapestry made in the 11th century that tells the story of William the Conqueror (who was the duke of Normandy) and how he became King of England. It made me think of my cousin Julian because he has a talent for embroidery.
However, that’s not all Bayeux had to offer. The church Notre Dame de Bayeux was one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen, and in my opinion, is on par with Notre Dame de Paris.
Really the whole town just had an air of joy and peace to it that I have never seen anywhere else. The streets were small, the houses were gorgeous chateaus, the shops were quaint and the people were friendly.
We passed by the past residence of some famous French lady (whose name I forget) but the house had been turned into apartments! We were all just standing outside the gate, taking pictures and admiring the building when the nicest little French grandmother comes out and strikes up a conversation with us. She lives in one of the apartments and actually lets us in and shows us the grounds (with incredible gardens) and even invites us into her own home. She loved talking with us and she told us that we had to fix the mess that her generation left the world in and she just was so happy that we were visiting her. We took a photo with her and promised to send it to her (which we did!) and couldn’t thank her enough for showing us around. I think she lived alone and was kind of lonely, and I think we made her day just as much as she made ours.
Bayeux gave me some history, some personal stories, some great memories, and excellent food! 10/10 recommend if you’re ever in Normandy, visit this small little town, you won’t be disappointed! (Oh and below, the Hotel a Abeilles is a little "bee hotel" they collect honey from the bees and plant lots of lavender around them it's very cute!)