Italy 2010

While Spring Break may have been a time of recovery and recuperation for most of Berwick Academy’s student body, for ten students plus two teachers it was a time of exploration and art appreciation. Promptly after C Period on the Friday before vacation these twelve pilgrims took buses down to the Logan Airport and after a seven hour plane ride arrived in the heart of Italy.

These ten students were Taylor and Abby Scanlon, Katie Gill, Whitney Pasternack, Alex Zannos, George Horrocks, Amy Stedman, Stephanie Staples, Hannah Unger, yours truly,  and our two proctors Mrs. Russell and Mrs. Wildnauer. We all stayed in a beautiful villa in the town of Montevarchi, and from this home base of ours we traveled to many destinations in the surrounding Tuscan country. Some of these destinations were Cortona, Florence, Montepuliciano, Siena, and Arrezo. At some of these locations we witnessed breathtaking feats of architecture, while at others we walked through extensive galleries filled with incredible works of art. Among some of the art we saw was the David, The Birth of Venus, and the Primavera. Another significant part of our journey was in the food we ate at each destination. Everyone sampled the best of Tuscany, from its pizza to chingale (wild boar, no joke).

During our free time while hanging out at the villa, we enjoyed making art, playing music, taking hikes in the surrounding hills, playing Frisbee, putting on fashion shows (don’t ask) and discussing art history with Mrs. Russell or Mrs. Wildnauer.

All around, this was an excellent trip, and it was made even better by the fact that we were surrounded by good friends every step of the way.  I would recommend this trip for any art enthusiast who wishes to understand at a greater level the artistic heritage Italy has to offer.

By Connor Haley

Paris Trip 2010

The Eiffel Tower

I was lucky enough to join a group of 15 wonderful individuals (13 students, and two teachers) on a ten day trip of a lifetime to Paris during March break 2010. This group consisted of Abby Thayer, Jessica Murray, Erin Trainor, Molly Mugford, Sophie Merrow, Hannah Katz-Barfield, Kristin Van Dissel, Jo Fletcher, Tyler McFarland, Phil Hahn, Annie McGuigan, Chelsea Vanderlinde, and me.  We and Ms. Melhorn hopped on a plane Wednesday, March 10^th at 5:20pm at Logan Airport and arrived at Charles de Gaulle Thursday, March 11^th at 6:00am just across the pond where we met Madame Clinton.

Day one (actually lasting 48+ hours) comprised of arriving to our petit hotel, Hotel Sunny, in the midst of the city and eating our first Parisian meal at Au Café Vieux Chatelet.  After an unfortunately too short nap time we bussed over to la Tour Eiffel in time for some fresh nutella crepes and a ride on a carousel overlooking the Seine.

Day two was less blurry and it started with a petit dejeuner of a personal platter of croissant, pain au chocolat, or roll and a choice of tea, hot chocolate, or café. This feast commenced each day delivered by a team of two adorable and very kind French ladies who became our good friends. We tackled the Museum of Invalides and Napoleon’s tomb (for such a tiny man you would never tell). For lunch we tried French Chinese food which is actually quite different from American Chinese cuisine. Phil ordered frogs’ legs which we were sorry to say were not as glorious as they had initially sounded. After, we visited the Rodin Museum, seeing many sculptures including “The Thinker” and “The Gates of Hell”.

Day three was flashy-embellished-lavish-building day. The Sainte Chapelle in the morning was built by Louis VIX to house the crown of thrones brought back on the first crusade. We also saw the Conciergerie which was once a palace that transformed into the prison during the French Revolution. We took the RER train out to see Versailles, the great palace of Louis XIV, personally seeing the Hall of Mirrors, beautiful grounds, and the queen’s private Hamlet. Pictures just don’t do this place justice. It is mind boggling, so lavish it’s only fit for a king. For dinner we stopped by Crêpe à GoGo, a real crêperie, with almost any combination possible. I had the Monteguard-buckwheat crêpe with bacon, onions, and potatoes. Dessert wasn’t too shabby either. The Bananarama-chocolate, vanilla, and coconut ice cream, a banana, nutella, and whipped cream—or if that doesn’t sound appealing order the Bananarama sans banana, basically an ice cream sundae. ­Not joking, this actually happened more than once during the trip. Let’s just say we were sufficiently stuffed that night.

Day four we went to the Louvre Museum, home of the glass pyramids and the original Mona Lisa or Joconde by Leo Da Vinci. This building is truly humungous. My group got lost multiple times spending our free time finding our way back. The Tuileries Gardens, although not quite in bloom, were still very pretty and bustling with life. We even hiked up L’Arc de Triomphe and took in the majestic views of Paris. Next we went to the movies on the Champs Elysées and saw “Men who Stare at Goats”-very funny-followed by a nutella party in the hotel room. Goes to show nutella is not very common or popular in the country of France.

Day five was beautiful. Sunny and warmer; it was a good change. We explored l’Ile de la Cité seeing Notre Dame and the Holocaust memorial located at the very tip of the island. We even found time to play at the local park which had three attractions we found quite amusing as I am sure the observers did too. After lunch we did a little shopping and went to the Musée de Cluny a medieval museum built on top of Roman Baths. Dinner was raclette meal, a French specialty kind of fondue, but different. We melted the cheese on a cooker and poured it over potatoes and cold meats. Some of Madame’s friends joined us which was nice and helped us interact with people who only spoke French.

Day six was the LOIRE VALLEY! We left very early and drove out of Paris into the country through quaint French villages and vineyards to the first of two Chateaus. The Chateau Chambord was the hunting lodge of King Francois Premier of France. We had a fixed lunch in a town comprising of four courses-an interesting experience- and then continued on to our next stop, Chateau Chenonceaux on a river, definitely my favorite. The drive back took a while as we hit some rush hour traffic but we enjoyed ourselves watching French people drive in their little smart cars. Dinner was Italian at Pizza Pino very good and very large.

Day seven we returned to Notre Dame and climbed its tower up 250+ spirally stairs. After, we visited the Musée d’Orsay which is an old train station which houses impressionism paintings and other artworks from the 19^th century. Then we took the subway out to La Defense and experienced the largest mall in Europe. Dinner was at eight o’clock at La Coupla a fancy establishment with amazing food. Madame’s friends AnneMarie and Philip joined us again.

Day eight, our last day came all too quickly and we spent it walking through the local market and stopping by a fancy chocolate store to fill up on our souvenirs. We then went to Père Lachaise Cemetery to experience a French graveyard. We saw Jim Morrison’s grave, which was watched by two guards as well as Oscar Wilde’s which was adorned with kisses. Later we visited Montmartre, got some caricatures and observed some pick pockets. Sacré Coeur was also beautiful but we had to return to our hotel to get ready for our final night in Paris. There was a river cruise on the Seine followed by a fancy, interesting, and very French dinner at the Eiffel Tower.

Overall the trip was amazing. It was a great experience and we made a good dent in a pretty dense city. A couple of conclusions were established however in even a small amount of time. Paris truly is the city of love-lots of PDA everywhere. Portions are not small- we did not eat any meal that was smaller than the average American course. The French are not the biggest fans of Americans. There are no rules of the road. French people do not live in a personal bubble as shown with congested rides of subways and busses during rush hour. Finally, Paris is a fantastic city and I strongly encourage anyone who can, at some point in their lives, to go see for themselves.

By Alanna Wittet