Several lucky Baldwin High School students took the trip of a lifetime over Spring Break with BHS French teacher Karen Moreau.

Moreau has had plenty of experience taking students abroad.

“I have been doing student trips since 1989,” Moreau said.

The students toured several well-known cities of France.

“We visited the castle region, Loire Valley, and saw the castles of Amboise and Chaumont and toured the castles of Blois and Chenonceau,” Moreau said. “We went to the walled port city of Saint Malo on the English Channel. We had fun walking around this old pirates’ city, shopping, and eating crepes. We took a train to Paris for the last three days of the trip.”

The group also got the opportunity to visit a handful of historic French cites.

“While there, we took a boat ride on the Seine, visited Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre and Orsay museums, saw the ‘Phantom of’ the Opera House and the Conciergerie, where Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette were imprisoned before their beheadings,” Moreau said. “We went up the Eiffel Tower, shopped and ate in the University section, the Latin Quarter, and visited the Pantheon and the Luxembourg Gardens. We also took a commuter train out to the Palace of Versailles.”

The students who had the opportunity to go on the trip had a wonderful experience.

“The French trip was incredible,” senior Sammie Weiss said. “I’m so glad that I was able to go. The whole group was so much fun to hang out with, and I loved my family stay.”

There were several new experiences for students throughout the trip.

“My favorite part was definitely Paris. I have never really been to a big city before, so this was a big jump, but it was so cool,” senior Audrey Osborn said.

Students had the opportunity to immerse themselves in a new culture but also saw hints of American culture while they were in France.

“It was interesting to find out that they listen to a ton of American music and watch our TV shows,” Osborn said. “This made my family stay easier because we would have something in common to talk about.”

The French class and Spanish alternate taking trips over spring break every other year, next year students in Spanish will be taking a trip to Panama.