Aysun spent a term in Paris, France, studying through the MICEFA program (Mission Interuniversitaire de Coodrination des Échanges Franco-Américains).
For my birthday this year my closest friends and I spent a weekend away at this tiny village called Etretat in the Normandy region, situated on the English Channel. The whole village was lined with these beautiful white cliffs, and the one behind me in this picture was famously painted by Monet!
Dom Luis bridge in Porto, Portugal connecting it to Gaia. This bridge was designed by Gustave Eiffel the architect who created… yep, you guessed it, The Eiffel Tower!
This was Paris’ first beautiful day of spring and what better way to spend it than going to the Eiffel tower.
I was lucky enough to go to a few professional ‘futbol’ games while in France. This one was at Stade du France for a friendly match between France and Columbia, unfortunately, we lost but it was an amazing display of the sport!
This is at Guell Park in Barcelona. Some of Gaudi’s famous works are on display in this park and it’s a beautiful place to walk around and discover different viewpoints of the city.
I spent my 4B term abroad in Paris, France. Paris was not my top choice for an exchange destination. It wasn’t even on my initial list. However, after finding myself with a list of options (Paris being one of them) I could not be happier about my final decision! My exchange was facilitate by MICEFA, an exchange program between North America and France. This program provided me with the opportunity to enrol in the French university system, giving me the full experience of being a student in Paris. I was fully immersed in the school system, giving me the opportunity to improve my French language skills while earning credits toward my degree. With this opportunity came so many obstacles, as I hadn’t studied French in over eight years prior to coming to France; but the MICEFA administration did everything they could to help and placed me with students with similar language skills.
As I have grown up in Waterloo and now attend university there as well, moving to big city Paris was an adjustment! It’s impossible to be bored in a city with so much culture and history; you never run out of museums to visit, parks to see or restaurants to eat at. However, when I did need a break from big-city life, I would take day trips to surrounding towns outside of Paris, which were never disappointing!
I took advantage of the geographical location of my host institution and explored Europe, including multiple cities in Spain, Portugal, Belgium and, of course, as much of France as I’ve been able to! Every city has its own beauty and specialities to offer. I often travelled by myself since many of my friends didn’t have the same class schedule as me. Traveling by myself has become second nature for me and one of my favourite ways to discover a city. My advice to anyone considering an exchange experience is ‘Do Not Be Afraid’. If you’re considering approaching those strangers to introduce yourself, do it! That’s how I met my best friends in Paris. If you want to see a city but can’t find anyone to go with you, book a flight and just go! Some of my favourite experiences happened while travelling on my own. Try all of the food, go to all of the museums, attend all of the events, even if they start at midnight and go until 6 am. One of the promises I made to myself upon arrival was to stop saying no and to stop making excuses. This has allowed me to experience opportunities I might have sabotaged myself into missing. With that being said, I may not have gotten a lot of sleep, and I may have spent a little more money than originally planned, but the memories and bonds I’ve created are going to stick with me for the rest of my life. If you’d like to see more of my journey or have any questions you can visit my Instagram @VanillaAys_