March 24: Rouen

Rouen- A Medieval City

 by Estefany

 

 

Medieval cities had a lot of color!

Tower where Joan of Arc was imprisioned.

 

Joan d' Arc

A Medieval (Gothic) Cathedral

In the morning, the Roadrunners went to the train station to go to Rouen. We went to the Jean d' Arc museum to learn about her history. We enjoyed looking around and seeing the old buildings. There were many houses with wood beams and many are still standing from the Medieval times.

The houses are supported by beams built inside the walls and you can see them from the outside. We were fascinated with them.

The Eiffel tower with Belgian colors

 

Yummy dinner!

After Rouen, we went back for our last night in Paris. We went to see the Eiffel tower at night and we saw the Belgian flag colors on the Eiffel tower.

To end our visit in Paris and France, we went to another French restaurant and had French Raclette and Fondue. The food was delightful. Some of us ate delicious crepes because today is the last day for us. We will be driving through Luxembourg and Germany for 8 hours tomorrow. After this, we will arrive in The Netherlands (Holland). We are looking forward to the trip and seeing the different countries and experiencing more!

March 23: Paris

A Day in Paris

by Vergena

What a cool car!

Paris at night is beautiful.

Gorgeous architecture everywhere!

Since we had to change plans and not go to Belgium, we had to move to a different hotel. Luckily, we were able to find a place nearby and in the same area (Les Goblens) which was good because we know the area very well.

Laundry Day!

We went to the Sacre Coeur and explored the streets and did some shopping. We got back to do our laundry. Scott and Joi made a decision that we were going to a French restaurant for dinner to try some real French food including snails (escargots)!

Mmmm.. Escargots!

 

All of us at dinner

 

 

I asked the group their opinion about the French restaurant.

Alex: It tasted okay.

Margaret: The French restaurant is different and the food tasted different.

Lucille: It's very delicious!

Vergena: It is my opinion that snails taste like chicken but I was too excited because of the new food.

Estefany: It is my opinion that the snails were delicious. I thought it would taste awful because of my imagination but at least I did try the food and I thought it was great.

We got back to the hotel and got ready for our day trip to Rouen.

March 22: Paris-Versailles

Versailles & The Deaf School

by Estefany

In the morning, the Roadrunner group was so excited to go see Versailles "The King's Home." We got on the train and it took us 30 minutes out of Paris. The group saw the shiny, beautiful and enormous Versailles when we arrived. There were many crowds and many people in lines because Versailles was closed due to a protest. There were two women from Germany who we recognized from the Eiffel tower the day before. They explained to us what was happening and helped find more information. Versailles was finally open two hours past it's normal hours.

We looked around to see different rooms that were huge. We could not believe how big the rooms were and how fancy everything was including a gold bed and wallpaper. We learned a lot of fascinating pieces of information about the royal history of France.

The school for the Deaf in Paris. This is where Laurent Clerc studied and went to the United States to establish the first School for the Deaf in the USA (American School for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut).

After Versailles, we rushed to the Institut National de Jeunes Sourds (School for the Deaf). We had a tour with a Deaf guide, Henri, who explained to us about the history of Deaf education in France. We looked at different places, the garden, and the dorms at the school.

I asked our group to share comments about today:

Alex: I saw many beautiful paintings and statues in Versailles.  Many walls have gold which fascinated me. I thought the king and queen were very greedy with money, places and food and they always had someone to do their hair, dress them, and everything!

Vergena: I thought the king and queen of France was very egoistical. They were selfish and owned a large palace with huge gardens, many big rooms and gold on the walls.

Margaret: I am fascinated with the huge old piano from the past. I thought the king was very selfish to own a big palace while his people were poor.

Lucille: I was really fascinated with Queen Marie's room and bedchambers.

Estefany: I did not realize that the French king used to own that big palace. I thought it would be much smaller. It was huge and luxurious. Gold on the walls, gold doors and the painting on the walls were exquisite.

Due to the recent events in Belgium, we will not be going to Belgium for safety reasons. Our sponsors Joi and Scott is working with us in changing our plans. We will stay in Paris for two more nights and go to the Netherlands on Friday.