By Patrick Lucas
Staff Writer
On the 2016 Mira Costa spring break France trip, French teacher and France trip organizer Lauri Resnikoff implemented some precautionary measures in light of recent terror attacks in Brussels and Paris
Because the attacks in Brussels were on public transportation, that was a primary concern. However some changes were made to the free day in Paris. These changes included limiting the students to designated areas within the city and discouraging the use of public transportation.
“Limiting the use of public transportation was an easy change to make thanks to the level of support we have from the American Council for International Studies, the company we’ve traveled with for over 20 years,” Resnikoff said. “We talked about limiting free time in Paris and/or assigning chaperones to small groups but when we got there we felt safe so we limited students to the right bank on one day and the left bank on the other day. Usually they have free reign all over the city. Also, we would finish our visiting before dinner so we weren’t out late at night in Paris. These changes allowed us to simplify the number of variables while still giving students plenty of free time and all the cultural experiences they signed up for.”
With public transportation being a fundamental part of life in urban France, some students like Costa junior and France trip attendee Maggie Heatherton felt that they were missing out on an opportunity to explore this part of French culture and move freely around the city.
“I think it would have been easier to use the metro as a group because the traffic in Paris is so horrible and we either walked or were driven in a bus so I think if we used the metro we would have had more time and it would have added to the city experience.” Heatherton said.
The Brussels attacks also affected the trip because it’s attendees experienced a heightened police presence. Police officers roamed the streets with large automatic weapons. This could give travelers a sense of security or it may add an element of danger, Heatherton said.
“Seeing that the police were there actually made me feel much more safe,” Heatherton said. “It didn’t really scare me, but it caught me off guard to see the men with machine guns in the street.”
One of the more high-risk parts of the trip was air travel. While for the most part the flight ran smoothly, there were some minor issues at the airport, Resnikoff said.
“I was not pleased with Air France’s security on the way home.” Resnikoff said. “There was not one person working the check-in line to get boarding passes and check luggage and I ended up checking my own students in and putting their luggage on the scale and sending it through! No one asked us any security questions in line either. That was the only time I didn’t feel safe.”
In spite of the recent terror attacks in Europe, for the most part, the trip ran smoothly and it was another good year to add on to the trip’s continuous success.
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