By Alec Lautanen
Executive Opinion Editor
On March 27, 44 Mira Costa students and four teacher chaperones departed for Costa’s annual France trip. The journey, which lasted from March 27 to April 8, took students though various regions of the European country, allowing them to explore the culture and history of France.
Throughout the trip, students experienced France through a combination of guided, group tours and individual exploration in the six different cities that they stayed at. The first stop, Nice, exposed students to the city for two nights, where they toured the Fragonard perfume factory and the costal settlement of Eze.
After Nice, students traveled north to the region of Provence, where they stopped in the ancient Roman city of Arles and visited its stone arena. Later, they spent the night in the walled city of Avignon and toured its Papal Palace, seat of the Roman Catholic Pope during the 14th century.
“Singing in the Papal Palace was an absolutely wonderful experience,” senior Aurora Foster said. “Not only those in our group gathered around to listen to us but other tourists did as well.”
Later that week, the group visited the medieval castle city of Carcassonne and the Roman aqueduct of Pont du Gard situated by the city of Nimes. That night, students traveled to the Renaissance city of Sarlat where they experienced the early cave paintings of Lascaux and Rouffignac nearby, home to the earliest known artwork in human history.
The following attractions presented students with a combination of World War II-era French history with the martyred city of Oradour-sur-Glane and French royalty with the Chateau of Chenonceau. Oradour-sur-Glane, which some students described as the most striking part of the trip, was the site of a 1944 massacre by Nazi Germany.
“They just preserved the city exactly how it was when it was destroyed seventy years ago; it was haunting, but an interesting experience nonetheless,” junior Braden Currey said.
The group traveled farther north to France’s Brittany region, site of the ancient walled city of St. Malo. During their two-night stay there, students visited the surrounding Normandy beaches and the island of Mont Saint Michel.
The trip concluded in Paris shortly with a tour of the Eiffel Tower and Monet’s Garden in Giverney. During their three days in Paris, students were given free time to explore the city on their own as well.
“France was an amazing experience,” senior Carley MacPherson said. “It’s a trip that I’ll never forget, and we got to see so many cool places with friends and amazing chaperones, that made the trip 10 times better.”
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