Discover the World: France

Notre Dame, Paris

Bonjour! Greetings from Paris! I’m in the last rotation of my program and it’s crazy how much time has flown by. It is unimaginable to me that in a few days, I’ll be flying back to NY. Putting this bittersweet feeling aside, I have to admit, I had one of the best experiences of my life.

In Paris, I’ve had the opportunity to do more academic-service learning with high school students. I went to a nearby high school to assist a teacher in an intermediate English course that focused on topics such as sports, technology, war and more. I was placed in a class with 11^th graders who all wanted to study computer science and engineering. The most memorable part of being in the classroom was surprisingly my relationship with the teacher. She told me ahead of time that I would be with all male students and they are extremely shy. She wanted to make me feel comfortable with them. After class, she took some time to sit down with me and talk about my experience in Paris and throughout Europe. It was nice being able to have a brief chat with her about what I think about Paris from observing that many people travel alone and take time out of their days to sit in the park and have lunch or that all the outdoor seating in restaurants face the streets. People sit side by side which I found interesting. There are so many things that I’ve observed in France, as an American, that I’ve never seen in American culture and I definitely like it!

Eiffel Tower, Paris

After my day at the high school, four students came to the St. John’s University Paris campus and we sat in the cafeteria for a language exchange. We talked about my volunteering at their high school and their classes. They have a full month of preparation for exams and take their exams for the year next week. After we talked for an hour, myself and two other students invited them to stay for dinner. What I forgot was that most Europeans eat very late compared to Americans. They have dinner around 9-10pm instead of 7pm that a lot of Americans follow. The language exchange was really difficult for me. I don’t know any French and only one of the four students I was with knew enough English to have an ongoing conversation. It was a lot of translation between the one French student and the two other American students who are studying in Paris for the semester. While the language exchange didn’t go as planned, I’m glad I got to meet the students I taught earlier in the day!

At the Top of the Acropolis, Athens, Greece

While my journey studying abroad is coming to an end, I have to say, I’ve had the experience of a lifetime. I’m proud to say while I did study in three cities in three different countries, I’ve also had the chance to visit some of my dream cities such as Athens, Barcelona and Fatima! I can finally say that I’ve learned to appreciate the world around me. Before attending Manhattan College, I never stepped foot outside the United States and I wanted to make the most of my time in college by experiencing things that I didn’t think were imaginable for me to obtain. I remember thinking during my freshman year of high school that I want to do amazing things one day. I want to experience something that I can’t do from the comfort of New York. I worked 5 days a week, giving up most of my high school experience thinking that it will pay off someday; and it did. I finally got to travel, experience my dream, relax and read a book in the park and walk around countless cities exploring and wondering how I got here.

Valencia, Portugal 

Thank you for such an unforgettable experience, Europe! This won’t be the last time I visit!