Sophomore bids au revoir to home, plans to attend summer camp in Paris

Imagine peering out of your hotel window in awe, amazed by the famous “City of Lights” in France filled with crowds of people visiting the Eiffel Tower. As you gaze at the Seine River, it lights up the night sky with reflections of city lamps. You jump back into bed, eager to start the next day of sightseeing and learning about French culture.   

Rarely do high school students have the opportunity to study abroad, but sophomore Anya Herne is one of the lucky few. This summer, Herne will study in the Summer Study Camp at Sorbonne University in Paris, France.

The five-week camp, which costs around $8,000  will focus on French language and enrichment classes such as fashion and architecture. The program caught Herne’s eye when she was searching the web for potential summer activities.

“I didn’t want to be bored out of my mind [this summer] so I found this camp that perfectly aligns my interests,” Herne  said.

The camp offers classes in language and fashion, two subjects that Herne “is crazy about.” Her love for these two arts and for French language developed after hearing stories from her parents.

As a young girl, Herne’s mom, who took French in high school and visited France a few times, related many “casual remarks” about the amazing food, great shopping outlets and quaint cafes in Paris. Not only is Herne excited about new clothes and food, but she also is currently taking French 3 and “is really intrigued by the French culture.”

Most of the program will be run in French in hopes of completely immersing students in the culture, though some English will be used as the students are not expected to be fluent yet. Since the core of the camp is the French language, the program required participants to take a language placement test prior to the camp. Herne tested well and was consequently placed in the intermediate/advanced French class.

“One of my goals is to definitely be close to fluent in French by the time I’m back,” she said. “I know my French will improve drastically.”

Because Herne was so eager to learn about France, she began the application process in early October and finished within a week, even though the deadline was in December. A copy of her transcript and contact information was then mailed to the camp’s headquarters in New York. Herne said that applicants are accepted on a first-come-first-serve basis rather than completely based on their merit .

“About a month later, I got an email saying I was in,” Herne said. “I was extremely excited at the prospect of spending five weeks in Paris.”

Because the program is five weeks long, Herne’s family will not accompany her to France. Though this is her first time being away from her family for so long, Herne is excited to experience some freedom.

“I’d like to get a taste of what it’s like to be independent and to use my own judgment in day-to-day life,” Herne said.

Once Herne arrives in France on July 3, she will be staying in a hotel suite with three other students from around the world.   

The chaperones, graduates from the university, will take students to visit many famous attractions in France, including the Eiffel Tower, Versailles and the Louvre. The camp offers organized tours every weekend, including a stay in  Amsterdam. Since the French value lunchtime, the camp provides a lengthy two-hour lunch break, which Herne plans to use to explore the city.

At the camp, Herne will take classes in three fields that she is passionate about: language, fashion and architecture.

A fashionista at heart, Herne plans to visit many fashion boutiques throughout Paris, such as the original Chanel and Cartier. She will also check out smaller boutiques with developing designers, hoping to learn from the “laid back but elegant” street styles in Paris.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing how Parisians dress, as I’ve long regarded them to be a very fashionable people,” Herne said. “Paris has been the capital of fashion for so long and that alone draws me in.”

Intrigued by patterns and designs, Herne is fascinated by the architecture of Paris. Though she is not very interested in the technical and engineering principles behind structures, she says she “loves looking at architecture and appreciates how artistically buildings are laid out.”

Although the focus of the camp is French culture, Herne thinks she will end up learning many things, outside and inside of the classroom, during her stay.

“Paris is such a vibrant city that I’m not sure I know what I want to learn yet,” she said. “I think I’ll develop a lot of interests once I’m there and get a full grasp of what Paris has to offer.”