Then, the few photos I have of Versailles...
25 March, 2014
24 March, 2014
Photos d'Amanda: Life in St. Witz
My exchange partner Sophie's house.
One of her cats, Mewmew.
Her dog, Ucaya.
Her two cats are poking their noses in trouble...
The cat Miaou.
There is a jungle. In the middle of the school.
Seriously. A jungle.
Bérangère Batkin.
Sophie Gressens.
"Cover the walls with poetry!
Who has never been touched by a passage of poetry or of a song?
On the occasion of the spring of poets, let's put all our emotions in common!"
Back Home!
All are now home and trying to get back into the swing of things in Melrose! The weather is chilly, lunch is short, and the local Starbucks isn't down the street from the palace of Versailles ;-)
I plan to add additional photos and follow-up from our trip to the blog, so that everyone can see and read a bit more about our trip, and I invite everyone else to do the same with your own posts and comments. I also hope to link a separate site for more photo/video sharing from the trip, as the blog is not ideal for sharing lots of media files. Also, I'm eager to interview the Melrose participants - and even some willing parents - about the trip, in hopes of using the momentum of this experience to drive our upcoming two-way-exchange proposal and participation in it.
In the meantime, I'd like to thank many (many...many...) people who helped to make this trip possible:
The Melrose School Committee and Superintendent Taymore, who let us take this initial step toward a two-way France exchange.
Principal Marianne Farrell, Global Languages Chair Kim Talbot and my departmental colleagues who contributed so much to the planning and decision-making process of our trip.
Ms. Pari and her family for their efforts in allowing her to chaperone our trip and bring so much excitement to our group.
Mme Maliach and M. Carbonnier, for their planning work, generosity, dedication to the program and warm personal welcome of our group.
The Maliach family and Mme Phelizon and her family for going above and beyond in their hosting and chaperoning while we were in France.
All of the host students and families and the entire staff and community of the Lycee Leonard de Vinci for welcoming us, inviting us into their classes, taking our students on local trips, sharing lots of different cuisine, and making our stay and our excursions so pleasant. The tears shed at our departure are a reflection of your efforts and their effect on all of the students!
The Melrose parents, who have been a joy to work with and learn from, thanks to their many suggestions, questions and sharing.
The Melrose students, who (despite missing every deadline of the trip process in one way or another!) represented their school and community well and were very appreciative and respectful of their hosts and trip leaders, and who regularly showed maturity, a willingness to take on responsibility, and an engagement in things sometimes outside of their comfort zone.
My wife and daughter, who celebrated birthday number 2 and managed a hectic trip week (as well as many hours of planning and preparation time) without me.
All others who offered us support, resources, and encouragement!
I plan to add additional photos and follow-up from our trip to the blog, so that everyone can see and read a bit more about our trip, and I invite everyone else to do the same with your own posts and comments. I also hope to link a separate site for more photo/video sharing from the trip, as the blog is not ideal for sharing lots of media files. Also, I'm eager to interview the Melrose participants - and even some willing parents - about the trip, in hopes of using the momentum of this experience to drive our upcoming two-way-exchange proposal and participation in it.
In the meantime, I'd like to thank many (many...many...) people who helped to make this trip possible:
The Melrose School Committee and Superintendent Taymore, who let us take this initial step toward a two-way France exchange.
Principal Marianne Farrell, Global Languages Chair Kim Talbot and my departmental colleagues who contributed so much to the planning and decision-making process of our trip.
Ms. Pari and her family for their efforts in allowing her to chaperone our trip and bring so much excitement to our group.
Mme Maliach and M. Carbonnier, for their planning work, generosity, dedication to the program and warm personal welcome of our group.
The Maliach family and Mme Phelizon and her family for going above and beyond in their hosting and chaperoning while we were in France.
All of the host students and families and the entire staff and community of the Lycee Leonard de Vinci for welcoming us, inviting us into their classes, taking our students on local trips, sharing lots of different cuisine, and making our stay and our excursions so pleasant. The tears shed at our departure are a reflection of your efforts and their effect on all of the students!
The Melrose parents, who have been a joy to work with and learn from, thanks to their many suggestions, questions and sharing.
The Melrose students, who (despite missing every deadline of the trip process in one way or another!) represented their school and community well and were very appreciative and respectful of their hosts and trip leaders, and who regularly showed maturity, a willingness to take on responsibility, and an engagement in things sometimes outside of their comfort zone.
My wife and daughter, who celebrated birthday number 2 and managed a hectic trip week (as well as many hours of planning and preparation time) without me.
All others who offered us support, resources, and encouragement!
23 March, 2014
D-day in Normandy
20 March, 2014
Thursday 3/20
OK, a quick summary, as my alarm will ring in about 6.5 hours ;-) Today's school day was shorter than on Tuesday for most Melrose students, so it seemed a bit easier to get through. students were in Spanish and German classes, Physics, Life/Earth Science (A very detailed look at the chemical reactions involved in cellular photosynthesis and the French vocab involved, but our students were a rather overwhelmed trying to follow it!), Philosophy, and a number of English classes that included discussions about technology (and our dependence upon it) and follow-ups on Tuesday's debates, among other things. I was hearing that Melrose kids like more fast-food-oriented or American-style cuisine, as opposed to the cafeteria food at St-Witz, but Ms. Pari and I have very much enjoyed our French school lunches (and having the time to eat them). Many students got to listen to the music club play and sing at mid-day, with a mix of pop/rock in English, as they practiced and rehearsed for upcoming performance. James even joined in for a bit on bass and described his involvement this way: "That was pathetic!" I thought it was fine and loved his engagement with our French hosts! I think I made Gabby and Madeline's bellies hurt by keeping them laughing this afternoon, so i'll see if I can match that tomorrow ;-))
we're up very early tomorrow and home late (8:00), but it should be a very worthwhile trip to Normandy with a large group of French students. Then a final day on saturday (the palace of Versailles for many) as we begin to say goodbye to France!
we're up very early tomorrow and home late (8:00), but it should be a very worthwhile trip to Normandy with a large group of French students. Then a final day on saturday (the palace of Versailles for many) as we begin to say goodbye to France!
Set 1 from Wednesday: Centre Pompidou, fontaine de Wallace near Pompidou, part of the town hall facade, the Seine by the town hall, below the Louvre courtyard, looking toward the Montparnasse Tower with the Champ de Mars and Ecole Militaire in the foreground, and looking north toward Montmartre topped by the Sacred Heart Basilica.
Summary 3/19
Bonsoir, tout le monde!
A good day in Paris! We went by the Pompidou Centre and city hall this morning, while having some breakfast and buying souvenirs. Then we took the métro to the Louvre where most made a short visit for the obligatory Mona Lisa selfie and much shopping was done (sorry, parents!). Then it was over to the Eiffel Tower, where we skipped the long lines for the lift and walked up to the lower levels, and most then took the lift to the very top. We were also spoiled with delightful weather this afternoon, so it worked out great. Ms. Pari and Amanda opted to visit the Orsay Museum rather than the tower, and i understand they got a full serving of Van Gogh works, among others, at the Orsay :-)
Tomorrow we'll be back in classes, though we hope to break them up a bit to help the day go by a bit faster than it seemed to on Tuesday. Our French hosts are very happy to have us here and especially in their classes, so we'll be engaging in some additional debates tomorrow and the music club is going to share some tunes with some of our students. Then it's off to Normandy on Friday for a long but hopefully meaningful excursion. Bus stop at 7 AM! (Catch some extra zzzz on the bus!)
A good day in Paris! We went by the Pompidou Centre and city hall this morning, while having some breakfast and buying souvenirs. Then we took the métro to the Louvre where most made a short visit for the obligatory Mona Lisa selfie and much shopping was done (sorry, parents!). Then it was over to the Eiffel Tower, where we skipped the long lines for the lift and walked up to the lower levels, and most then took the lift to the very top. We were also spoiled with delightful weather this afternoon, so it worked out great. Ms. Pari and Amanda opted to visit the Orsay Museum rather than the tower, and i understand they got a full serving of Van Gogh works, among others, at the Orsay :-)
Tomorrow we'll be back in classes, though we hope to break them up a bit to help the day go by a bit faster than it seemed to on Tuesday. Our French hosts are very happy to have us here and especially in their classes, so we'll be engaging in some additional debates tomorrow and the music club is going to share some tunes with some of our students. Then it's off to Normandy on Friday for a long but hopefully meaningful excursion. Bus stop at 7 AM! (Catch some extra zzzz on the bus!)
19 March, 2014
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