May 18, 2010 Bayeux Normany.

Today we kicked off our day in the normal fashion on meeting for breakfast in the upstairs dining area. After downing our breakfast we headed off in our two vans to the famous Mont Saint Michel.

This occasion was exciting for our group because we had been studying the topic of Mont Saint Michel in class. The pictures we looked at online were amazing so we could only imagine how it would look in person. Luckily God blessed us with a beautiful day to explore the famous landmark. We were also blessed with Mr. Leers to take us step by step through the island with very useful information that helped to enhance our experience.

When arriving Mr. Leers explained the social classes of the Mountain. The people who lived on the very bottom of the mountain were the lowest of the social classes...the soldiers who fought in battle. The next layer up, the middle of the mountain, was the artisans. The people who made food, built and welded items and other everyday uses. These people were like the 2nd class citizens. The top layer was the finest of the social class...the monks and even higher...the nobles. These citizens lived in the church at the very top of the mountain. I found this social class to be interesting because the enormous and beautiful structure was literally constructed based on the layers of social class. I also found it interesting that the soldiers were the lowest of the social classes. Compared to today it is almost the complete opposite. Soldiers are very respected by our culture for the work they do to protect us and are showered with benefits for their courage.

Another thing I found interesting about Mont Saint Michel was the Cloister in the Church. This is an outside area of the church where the monks use to grow herbs of healing purposes. The reason I found this interesting was the halls surrounding the garden was beautifully decorated with very detailed columns and ornate realism sculpting at the top of every single column. All the sculptures and carvings were made to symbolize "new life". The images of new greenery and foliage, mixed with saints, animals, and living plants. This represent the purpose of the cloister, but also the story of Christ. All the carving were done around the year 1220 and the whole cloister only took 12 years to construct. The stone was even imported from England. Also all the columns were made out of a beautiful granite and all the carvings were done in soap stone...a much easier medium to work with. However, the outer walls of the cloister were done with much thinker stone to help support the structure. This whole area showed a time of a wealthy economy. This is also a reason why it only took 12 years to construct.

I personally enjoyed the rich historic beauty of Mont Saint Michel. It was a very surreal experience, and I think after visiting everyone took something away with them.

After Mont Saint Michel we then made our way to Granville. This is the birth place of the famous Christian Dior himself. No one from our group had ever been to his birthplace, which was made into his museum, so it was kind of an adventure to find it and see what it had to offer. I personally loved it. We pulled up to a beautiful, huge pink villa that was on a cliff overlooking the bay. There were flowers everywhere, which Dior himself spoke of his inspiration he got from his mothers gardens at the pink villa. I had studied a lot about Dior and had a very insightful time visiting his birth place. It was fantastic looking at all of his couture pieces. I really enjoyed looking the pieces in person. Text books and pictures do not do the his masterpieces justice. It was so surreal to literally look at his sketchings in person, I loved looking at the pieces and seeing the stitches and construction of each piece. It was also fun to see John Galliano's work for the House of Dior after he took the company over after Diors death. The two are both genius at what they do, but are so opposite in their styles. Dior was a classic man with classic taste (his favorite color was grey), and Galliano is all about exaggeration and embracing color and courage...however they both had the same motive...to bring out the beauty of every woman...the first part being confidence.

Dior paved the way for todays leading couture designers and brought light to a country in such a devastating time. His "New Look" goes down in history and this museum showcased his art in a very tasteful way. Fashion is a lifestyle, an art form that people wear their lives in...and Dior is a perfect example of an artist. I really enjoyed the environment of the museum and will remember seeing Christian Dior's pieces in person as a highlight of the trip.

Thanks to everyone who experienced this with me.

:)

Chelsea

Bayeux Tapestry and Eiffel Tower

Through a series of computer problems and very busy days, it is time to finally put the last blogs online [since it is our last night in Paris].

On May 19, last Wednesday, we woke up about our normal time [9:00 A.M.] and gathered our bags to head to our final destination ... PARIS! We got all of our stuff together and had some time to grab final souvenirs.

We all met at the Bayeux Tapestry at 10. The tapestry, which is actually an embroidery, is 70 meters linen cloth depicting the invasion and the conquest of the Normans in England. The revolves around William the Conqueror going after Harold Godwinson for the land that was promised to him after Edward the Confessor died. This dispute lead to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It has 600 people, 200 horses, more than 40 boats and hundreds of animals and mythological figures.

The opportunity to see this work, which is over 900 years old, was fantastic. We were given audio pieces which described the entire piece as we walked through the long hall in which it was displayed. We were able to take our time and get an explanation from panel to panel. They also had a separate section with artifacts and actual facts, including a cinema depicting the Battle of Hastings.

From there, we grabbed our luggage and headed to the train. We had a two hour ride into Paris and walked to the hotel room. I've had a great time with one broken wheel and dragging my 50 pound suitcase on the ground. But, I really can't complain, they warned me not to bring so much stuff.

We dropped our bags quickly and headed to the Eiffel Tower. We were lucky enough to have it paid for and got to ride the elevator all the way up. We took tons of pictures and the 12 of us had a blast. This is my first time in Europe and my entire room at home is decorated with the Eiffel Tower, so it was a very special moment for me.

After a long day of travel, there's nothing like hitting hotel beds to rest our feet for more walking the next day. Truly, we're leaving Europe very soon, but our experiences and the memories we've made together will always last.

Be home soon,

Kate

WWII Sites

Hello Readers-

We are now in Bayeux, France! While staying here we will be visiting many different areas around us in Normandy.

Yesterday, Monday May 17th, was our classes' day to visit WWII sites in the Normandy region. We started the day visiting German bunkers near the coast that were still intact. Many of them still had long range artillery too! The bunkers were built into small hills making them less visible to enemies. We also saw a few small bunkers that were completely underground and had large storage rooms.

Our next stop was the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial. This cemetery was located off of Omaha Beach, one of the beaches the America soldiers stormed on D-day. There were thousands of small white crosses, a few with the Star of David (for Jewish soldiers), and a wall with names of those who were never found after the war. Some of us walked down the cliffs on a path to the actual beach. One girl in our class, Becky, got to experience something really neat. Her grandfather's brother is buried here, and she was able to visit his grave. They gave her sand to put on the white cross (to see his name more clearly), two flags, and some information in a folder. It was really neat that she was able to experience this.

After the American cemetery we made our way toward Utah beach. On the way there we stopped at Sainte-Mere-Eglise, a small town not far from the beaches. Mr. Leers, our tour guide for this area, told us many small stories about what people living here experienced on D-day. The Germans were occupying the town at the time, and there was warfare right outside their homes! After our short stop there, we continued on to Utah Beach, another very famous beach that American troops liberated on June 6th, 1944. There were some memorials, a bunker, a tank, artillery, and a small ship used to reach the beaches. All of these were fun to explore and learn more about World War II. We all walked out onto the beach here too (which appeared larger than Omaha Beach to me) and had fun looking out at the view there. We even discovered what appeared to be a canon, still mostly submerged under the sand! There were so many things to look at here, and not enough time to see it all!

We made one last stop, this time at a German cemetery. It seemed a little strange to have a German cemetery in France, I mean Germany is so close! Clella & Syllvette explained that after the war though, Germany was so devestated that they couldn't even bring their deceased soldiers home, so they buried them closer to where they died. This cemetery was a LOT different than the American cemetery. It was really simple with one large monument in the middle on top of a hill. The grave stones were simple and made of concrete, and there were also small stubby crosses scattered around in clusters. On the other hand, I felt like the American cemetery was more ornate in statues and their crosses were more thin and a clean white. Although the German cemetery was less aesthetically pleasing to my eye, I though both cemeteries seemed to fit their cultures. I also noticed that the American cemetery was a lot more crowded and appeared to be visited more frequently.

After all of these wonderful WWII sites, we jumped back into out 2 vans and headed back to our hotel in Bayeux. We decided to all attend a dinner together, which was a regional specialty of Normandy. Our three course meal started with a salad that included apples, sausage, an apple vinegar dressing and a piece of toast with melted gouda. Our entree was a pork, french fries, yams, and green beans. And for dessert we were given fried apples with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream. It was an interesting assortment, but all very tasty!

As you can tell, we have been really busy here in Bayeux! More to come about our experiences later! Thanks for reading!!

-Stephanie Granger

P.S. HI FAMILY!!!

Rouen May 15th

Today's agenda consisted of visiting the Rouen Cathedral and the historic site where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. The discussion will mainly be on the cathedral since the story of Joan of Arc would take some time and the fact that we saw where she was killed is not exactly a pleasant topic.

The Rouen Cathedral was quite honestly an overwhelming sight to take in. Looking at the structure from outside, the cathedral seemed to stretch for over four city blocks in length and at least one block in width. Upon entering the Cathedral, we were greeted by many burning candles along with the natural light flowing in from the abundance of rose windows. As a typical male, I skipped the architecture and beautiful painting and headed towards the other side to find Richard the Lion Heart's Tomb. After this was accomplished I looked at the statues of biblical heroes and saints that the Cathedral chose to have installed. Although a few of them had been decapitated, it was a very enjoyable experience. Fact-- From 1876-1880 the Rouen Cathedral was the tallest building in the World (Enjoy that). Unfortunately, as I am currently in France I am unable to upload many of the pictures I took inside and outside the Cathedral. It should also be noted that if someone is standing in the doorway with a small plate asking for donations, they do not work for the church and may be arrested shortly after you enter for stealing.

Our hotel was literally less than 200 feet from the cathedral and the picture shown here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cathedrale_de_rouen.jpg

This was our view from outside our hotel room windows when we looked up. When we looked down from our rooms we looked upon three outdoor cafe's and a large courtyard in the middle of the city, our location was alright I guess.

Later on in the day some of us visited the Musee Le Secq Des Tournelles (iron museum) and marveled at the many iron keys, locked, gates, staircases and other pieces in the museum. The trip was literally a treat because on May 15th every Museum in Europe was open to the public for free!

Apart from this small excerpt from our day in Rouen, I would like to make a few personal comments on European culture that I would like to share.

--Eating Pizza, hot dogs, burgers and other dishes similar in nature with silverware is annoying, I prefer to eat like a caveman.
--Cobble stone streets are beautiful and canals running through town are great for canal tours.
--I have grown to appreciate how many shops close down early in the day so that the owners can spend time with family. Money isn't everything.
--I miss Taco Bell.
--The diversity and different groups of people is beautiful.
--Amsterdam smells like Pot.

Overall, this trip (so far) has been an excellent learning experience. Although we have dealt with many outrageously rude people, we have also met those fair and kind. Having friends not texting all the time on cell phones and being forced into community has been a great reminder of how marvelous God's creation truly is.

I have been asked to say hello to Samie's Grandma, so hello you.
I would also like to tell my parents that Stephanie and I are doing great and we miss you.

Have a nice day, and please smile at everyone you see since making direct eye contact and smiling in France isn't exactly appropriate ;)

Scotty Granger (1 out of 2 men on the trip)

May 12: Brugge

Groeninge Museum and Belfry

So far Brugge is definitely very different than Amsterdam. There are many kids, families and cars around in comparison. It’s hard to come here from Amsterdam when we finally acclimated to so many bicycles being around and the way things worked over there. But all in all Brugge is so beautiful and way less smoky. I feel a lot closer to finally getting a breath of fresh air, literally. Not to mention it is very chilly here and quite a bit colder than Amsterdam was. We even got our first real bit of rain today and had to layer up our clothes!

Today our schedule went a little like this: we woke up and went to the Groeninge Museum located along one of the canals. This was by far one of the most religious painting museums we have visited. The museum consists of Flemish primitive paintings, all of which are filled with beautiful colors with dark backgrounds. One of my personal favorites was “Last Judgment” by Pieter Pourbus, which was an oil-based painting. Kendyl pointed out that on the lower right part of the painting, the artist originally looked like he was going to draw a claw over a person's leg but changed his mind and the lines are left in blue and are very discreet. The theme of this painting was very deep and harsh, wrapping around the ideas of Heaven versus Hell and what Tribulation will look like.

Another painting I found interesting was a Gerard David painting of The Judgment of Cambyses. In it the Judge Cambyses was being skinned alive for his corrupt and unfair decisions as a town judge. One thing I felt was off was that all the people in the painting showed no emotion in this except a select few in the background. It shows the harshness of their feelings toward him to be able to skin him alive without showing any emotions of sorrow or pain for him. Overall, the museum consisted of many different versions of the Madonna, Last Judgment, and Christ’s Crucifixion. The different versions of these were fascinating because they were all so similar but so different at the same time.

Besides this, I learned the three main painting styles previewed in the museum were naturalism which reflects industrialization, impressionism most commonly connected with Frenchman Claude Monet, and Symbolism which shows spirituality and the mystery of the souls of people or objects.

After the Groeninge Museum we took a break for lunch and some of us then had delicious authentic Brugge food. Wanna guess where it was, yes you are correct, SUBWAY! After we ate we hiked up about 366 stairs to the top of the Belfry to overlook Brugge. It was absolutely gorgeous and definitely worth the workout. The view was perfect the day we went up because the sky wasn’t too cloudy and it was great for pictures. The Belfry tower is important because it is a 13th century medieval bell tower built in center of Brugge and is one of the symbols for the city. The tower was mainly used for a lookout and housed city treasures as well as archives. Some of these were seen on different levels of the tower which we were able to stop and look around at in a few different rooms. All I kept thinking as we were going up the stairs was that I couldn’t imagine how people did it back in the day with all of there heavy clothing on or if they had to run up and down there when being attacked. Must have been exhausting..

After the belfry we were released to have the rest of the day for free. Many of us went to take naps, get dinner, went shopping, and some even went to visit other museums for those who were not “museumed out” yet ;) Then many of us went to bed to prepare for the next morning's bike ride to the small town of Damme. We also had plans to go to The Procession of the Holy Blood later that afternoon. To see this you can go to youtube and look it up to get an idea of what it is like. Clella and Sylvette were able to get us practically front row seats to it!

Sorry it took so long to get our blog out on Brugge, hope you all are doing well and know we love and miss you all very much (as I am speaking for everyone to their families cause I know we all miss our lovely family and friends). Hope you enjoyed the update on Brugge as well as learned a little piece of what we are experiencing here on this blessed trip. ☺

-Jodi

Brugge- Chocolate anyone?

One of the things I was personally excited for on this trip was experiencing the world renowned Belgian chocolate. So when in Brugge, a group of us visited ChocoStory- the Chocolate Museum. Through the museum we followed the history of chocolate. Cocoa beans first began as an Aztec offering, and later was used a currency (10 beans= 1 rabbit), and was a liquid drink before it became a solid food. Chocolate drinks became such a craze throughout Europe that people would have their servants serve them chocolate during their church services, until the bishops became so tired of the distraction that it was banned from churches altogether. Chocolate was solidified in the early 20th century by a man named Neuhaus. We were actually able to visit the Neuhaus chocolate shop in town and purchase some of our own- 2 Euro for a small bar. So expensive, but so good. The museum also featured a life sized chocolate Obama, as well as other chocolate sculptures. Just before exiting the museum we were able to watch a live demonstration of chocolate squares being made and a free sample, which was delicious. The town of Brugge had small chocolate shops around every corner, so I hope that whoever you are reading this for brings some home to you to enjoy!

Morgan

a pause in blogging

Seems that there has been a haitus in blogging. We have had free Wi-Fi in our last two hotels, but not everyone has a computer, and coordinating the blogger's schedule with the owners of the computers has been somewhat challenging. We are all well (although Sylvette has the sniffles) and enjoying Europe. Stay posted.

Clella