Thursday 5/22- From Paris to Lausanne

 

After spending some unforgettable days in Paris, it was time to say "au revoir" (see what I did there) and move on to the next leg of our journey—Lausanne, Switzerland. The city swap came with its own set of adventures, and let me just say this day couldn't be any calmer. 

We caught a train early in the day, and the ride itself was surprisingly peaceful. Three hours and some change of smooth, scenic travel through the countryside allowed me to catch up on some much-needed sleep. Honestly, the gentle sway of the train and the quiet hum of the ride made it the perfect setup for a mid-morning nap. I woke up just in time to see the Swiss landscape come into view: lush hills, charming little houses, and everything looking like it came straight out of a postcard.

But that peace didn’t last long.

As soon as we got off the train, we were met with the reality of Swiss terrain: hills. Steep ones. Now, the plan was to wait for the bus to take us up to our hotel. But in a twist of collective chaos (or maybe delusion), the group decided we’d walk. With suitcases. Uphill. During the day's peak temperature. I don’t even know how we got to that decision, but there we were, trooping like we were on a mission from Lord knows what. To be fair, it was a great exercise, and the fresh air on the way up was kind of needed… but my calves were definitely screaming.

Once we finally made it to the hotel and had a chance to freshen up, we headed back out to grab some dinner. Our spot for the night? A cozy little restaurant known for its authentic Swiss fondue. I was actually excited because it was my first time trying fondue, and I’d heard so much about it. Everyone was hyping it up, so I figured, why not?

Well… y’all. Let me tell you. One bite and I was fighting for my life. The cheese was SO strong. It was truffle-flavored, which I know some people love, but for me? It was doing way too much. I tried to power through it, but I gagged. I really did. I don’t know if it was the texture, the smell, or just the sheer cheesiness of it all, but that fondue was not my friend.

Luckily, I had the good sense to order a carbonara pasta on the side. That pasta? Came through and saved the day. Creamy, flavorful, and easy on the stomach. Basically, everything that the fondue was not. Shout-out to the chef for that lifeline.

After dinner, we wandered a bit and got to soak in some gorgeous views of Lausanne. The city is perched on a hillside overlooking Lake Geneva, and at sunset, it’s just… wow. The walk back to the hotel wasn’t bad either (probably because we weren’t dragging suitcases this time), and everything felt peaceful again.

All in all, it was a day full of highs and lows, literally and figuratively, but it’s moments like these that make traveling so memorable. Paris gave us glamour, Lausanne gave us hills and cheese-induced trauma. And somehow, I loved both.

5/21 - INSEP/Sightseeing

After a busy day of sightseeing in Paris on Tuesday, the group looked forward to a more laid-back day on Wednesday. We left the hotel at 8 am for the French National Team’s training center on the outskirts of Paris, called INSEP, which stands for National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance. INSEP was created in the 1970s after an embarrassing French performance at the Rome Olympics. The government wanted to see success, so they built a state-of-the-art complex for their athletes to train, compete, and improve. 

After multiple trains and a bus, we reached INSEP. When we got there, we were met by two people: Simon Ravello, who works in international relations, and Jean Minier, the Director of Sports for the French Paralympic Team. Jean talked to us about the current state of Paralympic athletes and teams in France and worldwide. We learned much about the French National Olympic Committee's struggles to increase Paralympic participation. France is trying to increase sports participation, as it has been a real problem. Only ⅓ of the population participates in sport, and it is even more of a struggle to get Paralympic athletes to participate. Jean explained to us that there is a whole process that sports clubs have to go through to become certified to train Paralympic athletes, and even then, there are not a ton of athletes willing to participate. France hopes hosting last summer’s Olympics will boost participation in Paralympic and Olympic sports. After his talk, we asked him some questions. One of the main themes of our questions was marketing/communications. We were wondering how the French Olympic Committee markets the Paralympic athletes. Jean said it is difficult for the committee to sell the athletes, especially with the IOC revenue regulations. He said it is an issue they are trying to figure out, as it is crucial for future success. 

After this excellent talk, Simon led us on a tour of the facilities, where we saw multiple teams training, including a refugee team member who won a bronze medal in the Paralympic taekwondo event. Her story was truly inspiring. The facilities at INSEP were top-notch and showed that France is an Olympic and athletic success. Every resource that you can imagine is at the fingertips of each athlete. France is trying to use every tool possible to ensure Olympic success.

The afternoon was filled with more sightseeing. We started at The Louvre, where we learned about the museum's history and how it used to be a compound of the royal family. With each new king, a new wing was added to the compound. Fun fact: the famous pyramid was built in 1989 for the 200th anniversary of Bastille Day in France. The Louvre was very interesting, and the art was beautiful, but my favorite part of the day was when I went to Notre Dame. The architecture was stunning and one of the most incredible things I have ever seen. This was a great end to a busy but fun day in Paris!