Adventures through Europe and the city of Love

After leaving Sydney some 6 weeks ago, I have been on the adventure of a lifetime! Leaving with a little bit of nerves and oh so excited I headed off, towards my exchange destination – PARIS! After flying together with a lovely girl I had met on my stopover in Seoul, I arrived dazed and ready to find my hotel. While initially travelling alone, this allowed me to meet some amazing people that I never would have met otherwise. From chatting to the American girl at the train station to inviting myself to join other sole travellers for dinner. From Paris I headed to a small village outside of Vienna where a friend of of mine lives, meeting up with two more friends, here we relaxed by the pool, and attended a traditional Austrian party.

From Vienna our travels lead us through Salzburg, an incredibly beautiful place that you should definitely add to your list of places you should visit. On from here we explored Prague, enjoying the delightful meals, at affordable prices and exploring the incredible castle.

While I was also lucky enough to visit a few more wonderful European destinations I will now explain my Parisian experience so far. After returning a few days ago to beautiful Paris, I was delighted to finally be reunited with my other suitcase, a shining beacon of light! Finally I had a choice of what to wear greater then the few clothes I had for the past 6 weeks, which was further governed by what was clean ! My advice for travelling is to search out where you can wash and perhaps cook as this can make your time a lot easier. Dressed up in slightly nicer clothes I went exploring, as we are staying in the Latin Quarter a casual walk becomes quite the sight seeing adventure. Sipping my coffee and munching on my beautiful rouge tart from the local boulangerie, we sat in a rose garden overlooking Notre Dame, a very short stroll to the Seine and through to the Marais. Walking through the Latin Quarter you pass numerous landmarks, from the Sorbonne university to the Jardin du Luxembourg, Pantheon and only a metro ride away from the Eiffel Tower!

There are four of us going on exchange to Université Paris Dauphine, a lovely group, willing to help each other out. All staying in different areas of Paris, we met this morning filled with delight, for a fun filled brunch in the markets. Following our brunch, of quiche, pastries and fresh fruit we continued back for a glass of rose at one of the girls beautiful apartment.

However the real fun starts tomorrow, with our level test in the afternoon which will grade our level of French for the intensive French language course we are all participating in. Dauphine is about 40 minutes on the metro from where I will be living at student accomodation in the Latin Quarter. The University is in an amazing location, very close to the Arc De Triomphe and Champs Elysee. While it feels like  I have been gone for a while the real whirlwind adventure is just beginning! I can’t wait to improve my French, meeting some incredible people and live in one of the world’s most magnificent cities.

Claire Sandig