Easter Sunday & Monday

After a full day of touring D-Day my parents and I took no time to recuperate. We had so many other things to see in the north of France! As we were staying in Bayeux, our first stop was the Bayeux tapestry, an embroidered cloth that depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England. Eri and I studied it during our art history class freshman year, and it was so much more impressive than I thought it would be. While walking the 70m length I came to the realization that this tapestry could be an entire course, not just one week!

We then headed up to Saint-Malo, a walled-port city in Brittany, where Jacque Cartier, who is credited with discovering Canada, sailed from. The Old Town was originally built on a rocky island, giving the inhabitants control of both the sea and the trade route. This strategic position gave rise to pirates and in the 17 & 18th centuries piracy grew rampant as the King of France allowed the pirates to go after enemy ships in return for a percent of the profit. Saint-Malo was heavily bombed and destroyed during WWII but during the post war years it was painstakingly reconstructed to an exact replica of its pre-war construction.

On the walls of Saint-Malo

After lunch at Saint-Malo, we drove back into Normandy to visit Mont Saint-Michel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Mont Saint-Michel is a Gothic style Benedictine abbey dedicated to Saint Michael and a small village that was built around it. The entire abbey is located on a small island around 600 meters from the shore and its surrounding bay is home to the highest tides in Europe. The tides would help protect the abbey during times of invasion as the enemy would get caught during the tides and would be brought out to sea. Mont-Saint Michel was my favorite stop on Sunday and although cloudy and overcast, it was absolutely stunning and a huge architectural feat.

Saint-Michel from the shore looking up

I had Easter Monday off since it is a national holiday here, which allowed us to explore some more of Northern France. We started by driving up the coast and stopped at Honfleur, a beautiful little port city. The buildings lining the port were either painted in different colors or covered in slate shingles. While exploring the port area we stumbled upon a plaque in honor of Samuel de Champlain who sailed from Honfleur on his exhibitions to North America and Canada!

Honfleur Port

Our last stop before I headed home was Étretat, famous for its cliffs. Two cliffs with naturally made arches bookend the town. Falaise d'Aval, is the larger of the two and Falaise d'Amont. Falaise d'Aval (which kind of looks like an elephant's trunk!) was made famous by Monet who painted the cliff more than once. After walking on the rocky beach my parents and I climbed the steep stairs to get to the top of the Falaise d'Amont cliff. The top provided great views of the two Falaises and the sea. It was the perfect end to our weekend!

With Falaise d'Aval behind us

On top of a cliff with Falaise d'Amont

This is D-Day, This is the Day. The Invasion has begun!

Saturday my parents and I headed out with a guide to tour Normandy. I knew the day would be long and physically tiring but what I didn't expect was being so emotionally worn out.

Our guide, Geert, met us early Saturday and we headed to The American Cemetery of Normandy for the 9am opening. We were the first ones there and other than 1 or 2 other families by the end of our visit, we were the only ones. We were able to watch them raise the two American flags and really take in the cemetery. 9,387 soldiers are buried there and 307 of them are unidentified. The stark white crosses against the green grass seem to go on forever.

Normandy American Cemetery

When you enter the cemetery you pass the memorial. A large bronze statue symbolizing "American Youth Rising from the Waves" faces the cemetery. If you walk behind the memorial, you enter the Garden of the Missing, which lists the 1,157 men that have never been found. A large majority of the men were from the 66th division, who's boat was torpedoed on Christmas eve. A few of the names have small rosettes engraved next to them, symbolizing that they have since been found.

The American Cemetery, the reflective pool
an unknown soldier and the memorial

The weather at the cemetery was perfect, it was clear skies, sunny and peaceful. Geert brought us to the grave of Theodore Mister, who was killed on June 13 and who's path we would be tracing.

We then headed to Omaha Beach, which was the deadliest assault of D-Day, with around a 90% casualty rate in the first hour. The men left England for Omaha on July 4th and were dropped 10 miles off shore to take the landing boats in the rest of the way. The soldiers had to land at low tide and farther out from the shore then expected. They had to wade through the water to the beach and sand dunes hidden below the water were unanticipated and deadly. If a soldier stepped off the sand dune he would drown due to the heavy equipment. Once the men made it to the shore they had to sprint across the beach for cover, passing a wide open area, where many were shot down. Many of the men listed on the wall of the Garden of the Missing are presumed to have been washed out to sea.

On Omaha Beach

From there we headed inland tracing Mister's steps. We passed the Church of Trevieres located in the first town that many soldier's saw as they went inland. The 377th Infantry division's mission was to take back Trevieres. Upon entering they saw the church was badly bombed needed repair. They started a collection to help repair it and after the war they sent the collected money back, which would help replace the stained-glass windows. To thank the men, the town dedicated a special stained glass window on the altar in their honor.

Bottom of the stained glass window

Before lunch we went to the battle field where Theodore Mister was killed and learned his story. The Germans and Americans were fighting over a small yet strategic area. The Americans had to cross a valley with no shelter and forge up a hill directly into enemy fire. The Americans got caught in the valley and it seemed as though they would have to retreat. Mister, only a scout, ran across the valley and charged up the hill. While on the hill he turned and yelled, "Come on, follow me!" and was shot and killed. It was his bravery that gave his fellow soldiers a second wind and they were able to overcome and win the battle.

On Utah Beach

After lunch, we headed to Utah Beach, the western most beach of the 5 landing areas which had a much higher success rate than Omaha. Before the invasion, units of the 82nd and 101st airborne divisions were airdropped inland and suffered many casualties. However, they succeeded in isolating the soldiers landing on the beach from the Germans. One of the parachuters, John Steele, got stuck on a Sainte-Mère-Église steeple while landing and was taken prisoner. He escaped three days later and lived to tell the tale!

John Steele replica on Sainte-Mère-Église, a statue to remember the arrival of the airborne units & a memorial plaque

Our last stop was Pointe du Hoc, a cliff located west of Omaha beach that provides great views of Omaha and Utah beaches. The Germans had set up a lookout point with cannons and trenches to patrol the coastline providing the possibility of large scale damage to the D-Day invasion. In an attempt to decrease the carnage of D-Day, Pointe du Hoc was heavily bombed in the days leading to the invasion and today massive shell craters still pepper the surface. Due to its steep drop off, the Germans believed it would be impossible to scale and prepared for an inland invasion, however, the Army attacked from the coast by scaling the cliffs and after a 2 day siege took Pointe du Hoc.

At the bottom of a shell crater

Touring Normandy was an experience that I will never forget. It was a very powerful day and I am truly grateful that I was able to see it.

*Title quote from The Diary of Anne Frank quoted from the BBC

Jardin du Luxembourg

Well hello, it's been a while! Between French classes and work and weekend outings I haven't had a second to blog! It's been so nice these past few weekends that I have spent my weekends wandering around and wasting the days away in this beautiful city! One of my favorite places is Jardin du Luxembourg. It has been a staple in my running route, as I incorporate it in every run. Although the winter months don't allow for flowers, the paths were still beautiful and it was great for people watching. However, the park is now in spring mode with all the flowers in bloom.

Pretty Park Flowers

In 1610 Queen Marie de Medici purchased the land to build a garden and palace for a new residence after the death of her husband. Her new residence, the Palais du Luxembourg and its surrounding gardens were modeled after the Pitti Palace and the Boboli Gardens in Florence, where she spent her childhood. She commissioned the architect, Salomon de Brosse, to design the Palace and it was completed 16 years later. Although the two have some decorative similarities de Brosse did not replicate the Pitti Palace exactly as the palace plan is French. This mix of the two styles creates an architectural transition piece between the Renaissance and classical period. The gardens, which were inspired by the Boboli gardens in Florence were quite small, only 8 hectares, due to the Carthusians Monastery located nearby. However, over time the garden was expanded to its current size of 55.5 acres, making it the second largest park in Paris

Palais du Luxembourg peaking out behind flowers in bloom

In front of the Palace is the octagonal Grand Bassin pond. Jardin du Luxembourg is a very popular place for people to come and relax, with many chairs and benches available for reading, enjoying the sun and picnicking. One of the more popular places is the pond. Here the kids are able to rent toy wooden boats to sail as parents nearby. Anywhere around the pond is great as you either have a view of the Palace or the vast gardens that surround it. Here it is if you are in a little green oasis.

Boats sailing on the pond

Wandering through the park, you'll pass a plethora of statues. I never thought much of it until I found out there are 106 statues scattered throughout as well as the Medici Fountain! Queen Marie de Medici originally had a grotto designed for the garden. Many years and slight alterations later, it was moved and changed into a fountain. Today, a new facade and marble and bronze statue representing a Greek myth are at the forefront. Acis & Galatea lie under a rock on top of which stands Polyphemus who is preparing to throw a stone at his rival.

Medici Fountain

Jardin du Luxembourg is my favorite garden. I love running there on weekend mornings or just going to enjoy the day. As the weather gets nicer and the gardens fill in more, I am looking forward to spending a lot more time there enjoying Paris in the Spring time!

Mom & Janine Visit

Every time I've been abroad, be it study abroad, my masters and now Paris, my mom and Janine have taken a long weekend trip to come visit me. When I was studying abroad we had the most amazing time in Milan. We went for a repeat trip when I was getting my masters but instead I got the flu when they came, so I spent most of my time in the hotel. Luckily, they were able to come visit me in Paris and everything was perfect! The food, the wine, the shopping, the company and to top it all off, the weather- blue skies, sunny and warm!

Out to dinner :)

They arrived Thursday morning and after work, I met them for dinner at a cute restaurant across the street from my apartment. Instead of a wine list, they have a wine cellar, so you climb down this really small staircase and choose your wine from the racks and boxes piled high.

Friday, while I was at work, Janine and my mom walked around, saw some sites, and did some shopping. I met them after work for some wine and cheese before our delicious dinner at Un Dimanche à Paris, or as I refer to it...the chocolate restaurant. The founder, Pierre Cluizel, son of the founder of Cluizel chocolates, created the restaurant because of his love for chocolate. The food was absolutely delicious and the desserts were out of this world (we ordered one dessert that won best dessert in 2010). I highly recommend this restaurant and will definitely be back before I leave.

Delicious desserts at Un dimanche

Saturday we had the whole day to spend together. We started with a traditional French breakfast at a café: coffee and a croissant (and some fresh squeezed orange juice). After, we headed in the direction of lunch and meandered through the streets of Paris enjoying the weather and walking in and out of some stores. For lunch, we headed to my favorite crepe place to have traditional lunch galettes and cidre and then a crepe (my favorite is lemon and sugar).

Mom and me enjoying the beautiful weather

After lunch we took a little stroll along the Seine back to their hotel and then headed to the Champs-Élysées and spent some time walking around. After an afternoon stroll, we headed back to the hotel for a little and then it was time for dinner. We went to Le Christine, a petit restaurant in the 6th and it was the perfect restaurant to end their trip with. We ended our night on a river cruise that meandered down the Seine. It was really nice to see Paris from the water and we learned some fun facts that I wouldn't have known otherwise...like the Eiffel Tower weighs around 7,000 tons...which is the equivalent of around 1200 elephants!

Views from the boat and Janine & I after our cruise

Janine and my mom left early Sunday morning. Although the trip was quick, it was an amazing weekend. I loved having them here, as we always have such a good time when we're together.

Heir to the Cluizel chocolate dynasty, Pierre Cluizel decided to open a two-level pastry boutique, restaurant, chocolate shop, hot-chocolate salon and bar that spans nearly half a city block. Not only will it blow your mind, but the pastries, as crafted by Michelin three-star veteran and current captain of France’s 2012 Pastry World Cup Team, Quentin Bailly, are sure to delight you. - See more at: http://girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/top-10-pastry-shops-in-paris-review/#sthash.EltTkuPz.dpufPi

Heir to the Cluizel chocolate dynasty, Pierre Cluizel decided to open a two-level pastry boutique, restaurant, chocolate shop, hot-chocolate salon and bar that spans nearly half a city block. Not only will it blow your mind, but the pastries, as crafted by Michelin three-star veteran and current captain of France’s 2012 Pastry World Cup Team, Quentin Bailly, are sure to delight you. - See more at: http://girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/top-10-pastry-shops-in-paris-review/#sthash.EltTkuPz.dpu

I gotta run!

This morning I ran the Semi-Marathon de Paris! 

This was my second half marathon, I ran my first one last year with Jeannie in Edinburgh. This year, I didn't have much time to train, just a little over a month and with work and French classes it was hard to find the time to add in runs. However, when there's a will there's a way!

The race began at Château de Vincennes, in the east of Paris. Sunday morning at 8:30 I headed to Metro line 1 and made my way over. The metro was packed! It was similar to rush hour morning when one of the lines is slower than usual. This time, we were all huddled in the metro with our running sneakers and iPods instead of dress shoes and newspapers. The weather for the race was perfect, the sun was shining, the sky was blue and it was around the low 40s when I started. I couldn't have asked for better weather!

Château de Vincennes

The race didn't start until 10am, which was nice, as it allowed more time in the morning to get ready. A little after 10am I was penned in with the other thousands of people in my time group getting ready to start. We were off a little after 10:30!

The race went through the Bois de Vincennes, up past the Bastille and to Notre Dame/Hôtel de Ville. It then circled back around bringing us through the Marais, back past the Bastille and into the Bois de Vincennes to finish. I thought the course was nice. I hadn't run in that area yet, so it was totally new. The Paris Semi-Marathon is large, this year they reached their threshold of 40,000 people! On the one hand, it is great to be a part of something this caliber, however, I spent the entire race dodging people and squeezing by to pass them. It was as if the bottleneck at the beginning of the race never ended. As the race wore on it got rather warm and I was very thankful for the water breaks at every 5k. The last 5k was a struggle. I had a time goal in mind, under 2 hours, and I knew I would be able to break it if I kept pushing myself. Once I saw the finish line I mustered up all of my energy and sprinted towards it. I finished the Semi-Marathon de Paris in 1 hour and 57 minutes, a new PR!

My T-shirt, bib and medal!

Rome Sweet Home

Oh, Rome, what a city. I've been to Rome twice, once in 2001 with my family and again in 2010 with one of my best friends from college, Emily. I was lucky enough to go again, with work, at the beginning of this past week. I was so excited for this trip, as I love the city, but it started off a little shaky. After a nice long run on Sunday I returned home and started packing. Around 4 pm a fever hit that stayed with me all Sunday night and throughout Monday. Luckily, by Tuesday morning I was feeling so much better.

Emily & Me in Rome 2010

For lunch Tuesday, we went to a small Taverna near the center. Walking to lunch we passed the Fontana di Trevi, which is the largest Baroque fountain in Rome. The fountain is over 85 feet tall and 160 feet large and each day 2,824,800 cubic feet of water spills into the fountain! The location of Fontana di Trevi marks the end of one of the Roman Aqueducts. Beginning in the early Renaissance, Popes began to build extravagantly decorated fountains at the end of the aqueducts they restored. In the 1730s, Nicola Salvi, an architect, designed the fountain and construction soon began. Years later, on Sunday May 22, 1762 it was officially completed and inaugurated. Today, tradition states that if a visitor throws a coin into the fountain they will one day return.

Fontana di Trevi

From the fountain we passed the Pantheon. The Roman Temple, built between A.D. 118 and 125, is dedicated to all of the Gods of pagan Rome. The Pantheon's architecture is amazing. The Pantheon is composed of a series of interesecting arches which rest on 8 piers. The Pantheon's 43 meter high dome is supported by a second set of arches that run horizontally. The Romans had perfected the use of arches and often used them to support their buildings. They also decreased the width of the Pantheon and used lighter building materials towards the top in order to relieve the building of large amounts of weight and stress.

The Pantheon

Lastly, no stop in Italy would be complete without gelato! Gelato is made with milk, cream and sugar and is absolutely delicious. Gelato is different than ice cream: it is made with less butterfat and has a higher density than ice cream due to the small amount of air added during the production process. My favorite flavor is Stracciatella, but this time I decided to go with fragola...and it was delicious!

Enjoying my gelato

Taylor Institute Alumna Spotlight

*This article comes from the alumni spotlight in my graduate university's monthly publication, which was sent out this week! 

 

Mapping Out a Marketing Career – Taylor Institute Alumna Clare Z. MS ’13

 

Lugano 2010. Photo by Justin :)

"In choosing a graduate program, Clare Z, '13, wanted an international business degree that incorporated real world experience. She spent a semester abroad at Franklin College and cherishes this experience. "I fell in love with Lugano and really enjoyed my time at Franklin and met some of my best friends. During this time, I heard about the Taylor Institute’s Master of Science in International Management and it seemed to be the perfect program for me."

Clare believes that the skills she learned in the MS in International Management program, prepared her for her current work at Saint-Gobain in Paris, France. "The Taylor Institute was the ideal way to transition into the business world. It prepared me by giving me access to the business concepts and know-how that I sought. Most importantly, I got to experience living abroad and learning how to adapt to a new culture. My undergraduate degree from Colgate and the Taylor Institute gave me the tools I needed to start my career and with the proper guidance and support, I was able to use them successfully."

Clare’s position at Saint-Gobain entails multi-faceted work with the Marketing and Communications team. She’s responsible for the company's global Social Media and News publications and is working on their large bi-annual event, the Saint-Gobain International Gypsum Trophy, the largest event of its kind. Clare has previous work and internship experience.  She worked at Lucky Magazine, conducted field studies in El Yunque National Rain Forest in Puerto Rico, and is qualified in GIS (Geographic Information System). "So you can see that I had a varied work experience," Clare says, "But all those internships in one way or another have helped mold me and gave me the tools and experience to help get me to where I am today. Every new job and internship teaches you new skills that you will continue to use and build on in the future."

Clare fondly remembers her Academic Travel course to the UAE and Malaysia, and the opportunities for independent trips to places like Singapore. She also values her coursework with Professor Adams. "She was extremely influential regarding what I wanted to do and worked with me and pushed me to succeed. When I expressed my interest in entering the marketing field she assisted me in my everyday marketing classes. One of the topics that we studied was digital marketing. My interest was sparked and I ended up researching and writing my thesis on Behavioral Targeting, entitled, 'The Online Advertisement, a Privacy Issue? It was a study of Internet advertising and how the internet and social media are changing the future of advertising and marketing for corporations. Professor Adams became my thesis advisor and helped guide me through the process of securing my internship. Without her support I may not have been on the path that I am today." Through her hard work and multifarious abilities, Clare has certainly mapped out an exciting career path that she is eager to continue following."