Hi everyone! This is Graecia and Eliot to tell you about a fun second day in Paris!
We began our second day in France with a quick breakfast at the hotel and then we were off to Mundolingua, a museum all about language. We got to see a display of the phonetic alphabet with a cross section model of the human head showing where each of the sounds were made. Our kiwi tour guide told us about how languages evolve as well as the speed at which we are losing languages. Later this week we’ll get the opportunity to witness one of France's efforts to prevent the loss of the Breton language, as they teach it in schools. One of my favorite displays in Mundolingua was about the way language has been used in espionage and during war times to determine where someone was from. It was interesting to hear about what constitutes as language, how culture and language intersect, and the differences in teaching a second language to students in France compared to the U.S and the rest of the world!
After the museum of language, we were off to the Jardin du Luxembourg. I spent some time people watching on a bench while it drizzled before heading over to the fountain to meet the rest of the group. The Jardin du Luxembourg was beautiful (not unlike most of everything else we’ve seen in France). There was tons of space to walk around and view nature, take pictures of the beautiful
architecture
, and you could
even see the top of the Eiffel Tower from afar!
Before leaving the garden we stopped by a sculpture commemorating the abolition of slavery and the end of the slave trade. This sculpture, Le Cri, L’écrit, pays hommage to the slaves of the French colonies battles for human rights.
For lunch, we got to walk along a street where there were a lot of boulangeries and fruit stands to buy food from! Some of us got fresh strawberries and raspberries (which tasted so sweet and delicious!), baguettes, cheese, and sandwiches.
While it was raining by the time we got to the Eiffel Tower, it fortunately cleared up by the time we finished eating our lunch. We all got tickets to climb up the stairs on the Eiffel Tower and the views definitely made up for the effort to reach the top. There were gift shops, bars, and even a place to sit down and eat in! A must-do experience when in Paris!
Here are some views from the second level of the Eiffel Tower!
At this point it had been a long day of walking, exploring, and sightseeing so we headed back to the hotel to rest up for a little bit. For dinner we planned to go to Ground Control that was very reminiscent of The High Line and Chelsea Market in Manhattan! There were a ton of vendors selling all kinds of cuisine, including Greek, Mexican, and Taiwanese food. Other than food, there were also some stores selling clothes and books.
The beauty of Ground Control was that there were food options for everyone in the group! While it was crowded, we got a good glimpse into the Parisian nightlife and it was so heartwarming seeing groups chatting, drinking, and eating yummy food. It was also a great change of pace after being out and about for the whole day, getting to continue getting to know one another as nighttime progressed.
side note: this picture was taken at 9:48pm!! Crazy how the sun doesn't set until well into 10pm!
While today was not as jam packed as yesterday, it was just as exciting! Getting to dig deep into language and learn more about the French education system, having the opportunity to go up the Eiffel Tower, and experience Parisian night life, it was a wonderful way to spend a second day in Paris!
Tomorrow, we will be heading to Nantes to do some informal touring of the area and begin visiting schools in France. It will be a slightly more relaxed day as we have travel to do, so hopefully we can catch up on sleep and rest our legs!
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