Author Archives: Kasey Feather

About Kasey Feather

Kasey is currently studying at Penn State University working toward a major in print and digital journalism. She's studying abroad in Aix-en-Provence, France for the Spring 2016 term. She enjoys writing about feminism, fashion, music and existential crises. Ask her about double spacing after a period and the use of the oxford-- she dares you.

36 hours in the City of Lights

So I realize I’ve been slacking a bit in blog posts and I’m sorry about that, but I never realized how busy I’d be in Europe. The days go by faster and the weekends are all booked, I can’t believe that March is already almost over; it feels like my European life is racing by.

But enough with the excuses, I’m back and I’m here to tell you all about Paris. After my second weekend in Paris, I’ve come up with a pretty good itinerary, which I recommend to all of you. Here is my list of the top sights to see in Paris.

  1. Montmartre

Yes, it’s the home of the Moulin Rouge and you should definitely go stand on the subway grate and take a photo in front of the red windmill. But, it is also home to the Sacré-Cœur. A beautiful basilica, which overlooks Paris and has just as good of views as the Eiffel Tower except it’s free. Aside from the tourist attractions, Montmartre holds the key to what Paris looked like back when artists ruled outside of centre-ville. When leaving the Sacré-Cœur, take a right down the road and you’ll run into a square filled with artists selling hand-painted canvases of your favorite sights in Paris. Then take a road you wouldn’t normally and you’ll leave the tourists and find the Parisian shops you were looking for.

The Moulin Rouge

  1. Musée d’Orsay

I know the Mona Lisa is at the Louvre and I implore you to spend hours there, but also take a walk down the road to the Musee d’Orsay, which houses some of the most famous works of the impressionist era. Van Gogh, Monet, Manet, Degas, Pissarro, the list goes on. And at the top of the stairs before you enter the room with all the impressionists, you’ll see the backside of a giant clock face, which overlooks the Louvre and the river Seine.

Clock Tower of d'Orsay

  1. The Eiffel Tower

I know this is already on everyone’s list of things to see, but this time don’t wait in line for the elevator. The climb isn’t that bad at all and chances are, if you’ve been climbing towers all over Europe like me, you’ll have no problem—it’s only 700 stairs. It doesn’t save you any money of you want to go to the top in the long run, but it does save you some time and you get to watch Paris get progressively smaller as you make the climb. And if you go back at night, you can see the lights on the tower sparkle every hour for one minute—it’ breath-taking.

Eiffel Tower at night

  1. Ladurée

Have your Blair Waldorf moment and eat your macaroons too. Ladurée is the place to be for good macaroons, I must warn you, though, it can be expensive. But, if you are in Paris for one weekend and you want the photo and some really good macaroons, you don’t have to break the bank. What’s expensive are the cocktails (19 euro for a mojito, yikes!) and the food. But, if you and a friend split a tea and each get a few macaroons, you’ll have the experience and enough money left in your wallet to buy a crepe in the Latin Quarter.

Ladurée

  1. The Latin Quarter

Home to one of the oldest universities in Europe, the Latin Quarter is a must. The statue of St. Michel welcomes you before you turn to corner to a myriad restaurants and patisseries. If you’re looking for a cheap place to eat in Paris this is the place to be. The food is delicious and centrally located so you’ll have no problem finding it.

  1. Palace of Versailles

Pretend you’re a French aristocrat for the day and step outside the city. The gold château will blow your mind away from outside the palace gates. If you’re a student, you can be eligible for free admission. But, if not, buy your tickets in advanced because the lines can get pretty long. When you’re inside, take a mirror selfie in the Hall of Mirrors, walk through the gardens (if you get lucky, maybe you’ll see a rowing match), and check out Marie-Antoinette’s pink house.

Hall of Mirrors in the Palace de Versailles


Location: Paris, France

Write it down

The open air markets all over France have the most amazing foods.

The open air markets all over France have the most amazing foods.

My English teacher has been having us write quick, one-line sentences in a journal whenever we see something new. At first I wasn’t keen on the idea because I’m not much of an avid “journaler,” but after getting started it’s amazing what I’ve experienced.

For example, the hand-written menus outside of the restaurants look like they’ve been articulately mastered by the same person. After asking around, I’ve found the reason for this is the French have strict penmanship education when they are little. Had I not written this down and asked around, I may have just brushed it off as nothing. I would have gone about my day like nothing new.

While studying abroad, it’s important to take in the scenery around you. And I know people say that all the time and it sounds cliché but I mean really take it in. Not just looking at your surroundings, but recognizing the homeless man who carries his puppy all over town, and being able to give directions (bonus points if it’s en français) to a tourist. To notice the small wolf graffiti placed throughout the town.

To literally stop and smell the roses in the flower market that’s in the première place every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning. Take a moment to listen to the birds that you start to hear just outside the city limits. And the French being whispered rapid fire between the children and their parents, or the school girls who are on break for two weeks.

Feel the cobblestone that threatens your ankles, the heaviness of the ancient doors.

Most importantly taste all the food. Who cares about the gained weight, carbs don’t count while abroad, right? Enjoy the home cooked meals made from your host mom, who was probably a master chef in another life. Drink the wine that’s made in the same province you’re living.

If stopped from the busy schedule that is the life of a college student, you will notice so much more. And even if you aren’t the next Hemingway, write it down in detail. It helps to not only remember the amazing experiences you’re having, but to live them more clearly.

Then, when you go back to the states, you will have learned how to see your town in a new way; how to notice little things that put a smile on your face. So, grab your pen and your paper, and allow your senses to stop and absorb the world around them.

The Sunsets in Aix-en-Provence are unbelievable! They are always so colorful, nothing like in Pennsylvania.

The Sunsets in Aix-en-Provence are unbelievable! They are always so colorful, nothing like in Pennsylvania.

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Dissolving the comfort zone

I stood on edge of one of the largest cliffs in Europe, near Cassis, France.

I stood on edge of one of the largest cliffs in Europe, near Cassis, France.

I’ve been here in Aix for about a week now and if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s living in discomfort is a good thing. For most of us, the first step to living uncomfortable was deciding to take the risk of studying abroad. It’s leaving the comfortable box of school that we’ve all become used to. But we clicked the accept button, and for some of us we flew alone, for the first time, half way across the world.

Advisers, parents and the Internet warned us it would be different. The culture, the food, the language, even the way the people look wouldn’t be the same. They warned us it would be uncomfortable at first. And it is, they weren’t lying. We’re meeting other students from across the U.S., teachers who come from different backgrounds and on top of that we are sent to live with a family who barely speaks English.

But, I’m here to tell you it’s a good thing. It’s better than that, it’s amazing, but only if you’accept the uncomfortably. No one learns anything new from continually living their daily routines. It takes courage to walk into a room full of 170 American kids and pick out a few new friends. The first few days are crucial for future friendships, and it’s intimidating.

It takes discomfort to laugh at yourself when your French is so terrible your family and the vendors at the market laugh with you.

It takes discomfort to invade the houses of French families and call them home. To eventually be able to walk into the house without feeling like a complete stranger.

It takes discomfort to join an art program when you’ve never painted in your life. It also takes trust in your professors.

There’s no point in studying abroad if you don’t prepare yourself for the discomfort that comes with uprooting your life. It’s a beautiful thing to become a whole new person and surround yourself with strangers. And I’m here to take advantage of that. I’m here to make a fool of myself so that I can learn better French, and make friends who’ll I’ll cherish for a lifetime.

Discomfort also leads to personality. We are studying abroad, not just for the experiences, but to grow and become more well-rounded people. That requires tasting foods even if you don’t know what they are (sometimes, it’s even better not to ask) and trying your hardest to keep up with the dinner conversations. Being uncomfortable is a part of life and it is what expands our personalities.

So cheers to my first week and Aix, and cheers to dissolving my comfort zone.


Location: Aix-en-Provence, France

An email worth opening

Life has been a little surreal lately. Maybe it’s because I haven’t been a real person, more of a couch potato on break from school waiting to go abroad. All the days have been mashing together and if you asked me the date, I would laugh at you. Needless to say, I’m ready to go to France. Not physically of course because I’m too scared to attempt fitting all my clothes in a suitcase, but mentally. All my relatives kept asking over the holiday if I was ready to leave, and I always replied with the same, “Yes of course, but it still doesn’t seem real to me.” I couldn’t believe I was going to Aix-en-Provence, France in three short weeks. I had been planning this moment since freshman year, yet it still didn’t feel tangible. Slowly though, as I crossed things off the to-do list (the visa, the phone, the money), it started to sink in.

I checked my email (I know, rare for a student on winter break) the other day to delete some of the hundred junk emails I got, when I came across a name I was unfamiliar with. I opened the message to see that it was from my host family. I was a little confused since I hadn’t gotten any information from my university at the time, but that was only for a fleeting moment. I believe I actually screamed and jumped off the couch. My dad, who was startled by my strange non-couch potato-like behavior, asked for an explanation. It was my host mom and she gave me an introduction to the family I would be living with for the next five months, and she seemed just as excited as I was.

Good news! I heard from my host family.

Good news! I heard from my host family.

This settled a lot of nerves. I struggled deciding where I wanted to live in France. My first instinct was with a family, but I had heard so many horror stories from fellow students not enjoying their stays. But, I took a chance and, by the looks of the email, it seemed like it is actually going to be amazing.

Brigitte, the author of the email, told me about her husband, their 15-year-old daughter and their cat. She told me she has been hosting American students for ten years and she told me she would pick me up at the airport (what a saint!). They seem like everything I could have asked for. Immediately, I emailed her back with a little background about myself, while daydreaming about my life with this family. All the terrible scenarios I was given escaped my memory to make room for the possibilities. I can help her daughter with her English studies as she helps me with my French. I can listen to Brigitte tell stories of past students. I can walk the cobble-stoned streets to class in the morning.

Suddenly everything seems more tangible. I just needed that first interaction and now I can picture myself in living and studying France. Now I just have to figure out how to pack, and how I’m going to lift three suitcases up the stairs to their walk-up apartment.


Location: Clarks Summit, Pa