Through My Eyes, In My Words:

Paris: An Introduction to the French Exception

Taught by Rose Marie L. Bukics, Thomas Roy and Lura Forrest Jones Professor of Economics and Business, and Christian Reyns-Chikuma, assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures

Andrew Forbes of Vienna, Va., an International Affairs major, has interned on Capitol Hill with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is a four-year member, and tri-captain this season, of the varsity lacrosse team and a member of Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity.

When we talk about the French exception, we talk about cultural foundations unique to France. We also talk about French industries and how they are reflective of the particular French culture. These are the issues that were discussed in our class. However, equally as important is another "French exception," that is, the unique sites and sounds France has to offer.

Imagine standing atop the Arc de Triomphe looking outward. In front of you is the Champs Elysees. One author called it France's Fifth Avenue, but it is much more than that. At the end of the avenue are the golden gates that lead into the home of the Mona Lisa and countless other famed art pieces of the Louvre. Forty-five degrees to the right is the Eiffel Tower, which peers down over all of Paris. Turn directly around and atop a hill you will see Sacre Coeur. Its bulbed domes stand out like a sore thumb among the neighborhoods of Montmartre. These are only a mere few of the sites this country has to offer.

We visited Notre Dame the first day we were in Paris. The beautiful cathedral was a short walk from our hotel. On one of our free days, we took a brief train ride to Versailles, the enormous home of Louis XIV. It is a palace that is said to be unmatched in size and beauty, and I do not doubt it. We visited Normandy and the sites of the D-Day invasion. While this experience was more spiritual and historic, we also had a more aesthetic experience on the other side of the country on the French Riviera. We stayed in Cannes, where the annual film festival is held and where casinos and mansions border the clear blue Mediterranean.

We studied the French exception so far as the French book industry, the film industry, and the culture, but we experienced much more. While engulfed in French culture, we did as the French do. The experiences, the rich history, and the sights left over are just as important as anything studied in a classroom. To have all these things at our disposal was what made this trip so great.