Columbia Falls High School students went to Europe over spring break 2024 with a total of 16 students and 3 chaperones. This learning opportunity was open to all students in the high school, however every student had taken a World Language class. Students from each grade level at the high school were represented. The trip expanded the knowledge and experiences of students with interdisciplinary learning in multiple subject areas including history, art, architecture, geography, science, language, culture, and cuisine. The group started in Paris then went to southwest France and northern Spain, then east to Provence and concluded with Monaco and the French Riviera. The cultural immersion on the trip provided experiential learning that can only happen from firsthand experience. Students and parents noted how travelers experienced personal growth and developed global perspectives. Students were led by group leader Jeanette Price, French and English teacher, and chaperones Zulma Fernandez, Spanish teacher, and Willow Moran, English teacher.
An overview of the trip and explanations of the handout:
Students spent their first couple of days in Paris. As pictured in the handout, they visited Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Palais Royale gardens, and les Invalides (Napoleon’s Tomb). We did a walking tour of the center city where we saw the Latin Quarter. We also had an educational guided bus tour of the city learning about the sites along the way.
Students also spent an afternoon in Versailles, where they ate at a traditional French open air market. They took in the sights of the palace with an educational guided tour that included the famous Hall of Mirrors and the bedrooms of Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette. Students also spent free time in the Versailles gardens.
On our way to the Basque region we took a high speed train to Bordeaux then a bus that stopped at the Dune du Pilat, a natural phenomenon that has created the largest sand dune in Europe. Climbing to the top took effort, a few of the pictures in the final pages of the handout feature some sights from it. A few boys ventured down to the beach and found German bunkers from World War II.
Afterwards we traveled to the Basque region on the Atlantic coast in southern France that included a day trip to northern Spain. During free time in San Sebastian, a few students climbed to the top of the highest point to a famous statue in a local park where a student used Spanish to talk to an employee about it. Students ate a traditional pinxtos style Spanish lunch, then took in the seaside villa of St Jean de Luz where Napoleon III was married, and later saw the Virgin of the Rock in Biarritz. During some free time a few students enjoyed the Aquarium and others had a talk in French with a local man who happened to be married to a Canadian woman.
On our way to Provence we stopped at Carcassonne, a medieval fortified city and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It features a castle and a cathedral that dates to the 14th century.
In Provence we had a busy day seeing the Pont du Gard, previously a Roman aqueduct refashioned into a bridge. We also visited Avignon and the former Papal Palace. Later we went to Arles where we saw a Roman arena and enjoyed chicken cordon bleu for dinner.
The next day we stopped in Cassis and a few students with chaperones went to a Calanque, a seaside cliff that is the entrance to a French national park. Students enjoyed another traditional French market with fresh produce where they said the strawberries were the best they had ever tasted. That night for dinner they ate a quiche the region is known for with salad.
On the last day of our tour we stopped in Eze, where we visited a perfumery and learned about the history of perfume in the region. A few students with chaperones opted to hike to the main village that is only accessible by foot and features winding and narrow cobblestone streets where they experienced a botanical garden and cathedral. Afterwards we headed to Monaco where we saw the Prince’s Palace and saw the changing of the Prince’s royal guard. When we headed back to Nice we did an educational activity that got us speaking with locals and venturing to different sites. One group of students spoke in French with a street performer about his favorite part of what he does, another group went into a Rolex store where the staff played along and let them try on an expensive necklace, and yet another successfully got some locals to sing a traditional song from the region. Students enjoyed a dinner of a traditional salade niçoise and eggplant beignets while singing along to pop songs to conclude our last night of the trip.
The following day we left for our way home flying out of Nice but had a cancelled flight in Amsterdam. We learned to be flexible and how to handle unforeseen circ*mstances! The airline provided a hotel with a shuttle and we all enjoyed a free Dutch buffet for dinner and breakfast.
Our flights to the U.S. and Kalispell the next day went without a hitch. We were tired but happy to be home sweet home!
Thank you again for this opportunity!
