DAY    1            DEPARTURE FROM NORTH AMERICA
Enjoy full meal service on your scheduled wide-bodied flight to Paris.

DAY    2            ARRIVE PARIS - VERSAILLES - ROUEN
                          (5 NIGHTS HOMESTAY)
We will be met at the airport by our Tour manager/guide and we will board our own private bus and transfer to Rouen, a city in Normandy with a rich history, dating back to the Romans. We will visit the Gothic masterpiece, the Cathedrale Notre-Dame, dominated by its famous west façade and its two unequal towers. Claude Monet increased the fame of the cathedral after completing his four paintings of the west facade. This afternoon we will meet our Host Families.

DAY    3            LANGUAGE CLASSES - ROUEN
This morning we will begin our French Language Classes. This afternoon we continue to explore Rouen, beginning with a visit to the Joan of Arc Museum, which is located near the exact sight where Joan was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431. The museum is housed in a Roman-style cellar, and features displays on the times of Joan of Arc, including models, drawings, books, stamps and historical relics. Climbing up from the basement, we will re-live the life of Joan of Arc from Domremy to Rouen in a superb waxwork gallery. We conclude the afternoon with a stroll along the Rue du Gros-Horloge, a bustling street with old half-timbered houses and the famous Gros-Horloge Clock, to the Place du Vieux-Marche, the city's main square. In this square, the French heroine Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431, marked today by the great Cross of Rehabilitation, which commemorates her death. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    4            LANGUAGE CLASSES - ROUTE DES ABBAYES
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we follow the Seine along the Route des Abbayes, which winds through black forests and lush green countryside, eventually ending at Le Havre. During our tour, we will view the ruins of monasteries and châteaux, including the 11th-century Abbaye St-George, Caudebec-en-Caux, and Villequier. We will visit the Abbaye de Jumièges, one of France's most beautiful ruins, consecrated in 1067 by the archbishop of Rouen in the presence of William the Conqueror, followed by a visit to the Abbaye de St-Wandrille, founded in 649. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    5            LANGUAGE CLASSES - HONFLEUR
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we spend a relaxing day on the Normandy coast, with a visit to the fishing village of Honfleur, the base for the 17th century voyages that led to settlements in Louisiana and Canada. Bathed in the soft light of the northern sea, it is one of the most picturesque French ports, and its beauty appealed greatly to the painter Eugene Boudin and his Impressionist colleagues. Our afternoon will include a visit to the Eugene Boudin Museum, which houses a variety of early Impressionist paintings, as well as a collection of Norman costumes. This afternoon we begin with a scenic drive along the Normandy Corniche, a scenic route that winds through the countryside of Normandy and affords fine views across the Seine Estuary. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    6            LANGUAGE CLASSES - PONT L'EVEQUE & ETRETAT
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we begin with a tour of the Coeur de Lion Estate, located just outside of Pont l'Eveque. We will learn the art of cider- and calvados-making on our guided tour, which also includes tasting of the cider. Our afternoon continues with a stroll along the magnificent cliffs outside of Etretat, before returning to our host families for the evening.

DAY    7            LANGUAGE CLASSES - VERSAILLES - PARIS (3 NIGHTS)
This morning we say "au revoir" to our host families and enjoy our final morning of Language Classes. After lunch we journey to Versailles, a palace commissioned by Louis XIV around Louis XIII's hunting lodge. Our visit commences as we explore the ornate State Apartments, highlighted by the magnificent Hall of Mirrors. After time to explore the spectacular Gardens and fountains at Versailles, we continue to Paris, "the City of Lights." This evening we will take a Seine River Cruise, which will take us under many of Paris' graceful bridges and past many important landmarks and monuments along both banks - a perfect introduction to the beauty of Paris.

DAY    8            PARIS (THE REVOLUTION AND NAPOLEON)
Our morning commences with an ascent of the Arc de Triomphe, a massive triumphal arch commissioned by Napoleon, today a symbol of Paris and home to the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We continue with a stroll along the Champs Elysees, Paris' most spectacular thoroughfare, which offers a beautiful look at Parisian life and architecture. We return to the Place de la Concorde before strolling through the Jardin des Tuileries, the beautiful Neo-Classical gardens leading to the entrance of the Louvre. We will enjoy a specialist-guided tour through the museum that will include Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa and many of the finest paintings and sculpture from Western Civilization. This afternoon we visit the cathedral of Notre Dame, begun in 1163 on a spot that had already been a religious shrine since Roman times. Over the centuries, the cathedral has been the scene of some of France's most momentous occasions, including the coronation of Napoleon. This evening we will dine in and stroll through the Latin Quarter, a section of the city that dates back to the Roman times and is generally associated with artists, intellectuals and political unrest. During our walk we will view the Sorbonne, Paris' oldest university.

DAY    9            PARIS (PARIS OF THE IMPRESSIONISTS)
This morning we will ascend to the top of the Eiffel Tower, Paris' most recognizable landmark, built for the Universal Exhibition of 1889. We continue with a visit to the Musee d'Orsay, dedicated to the rich diversity of visual arts from 1846 to 1914, featuring masterpieces by Delacroix, Manet, Degas, Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Gauguin and Lautrec. Paris is one of the most important centers of fashion in the world, and this afternoon we will visit the elegant stores of Au Printemps and Galeries Lafayette for a first-hand look at the latest trends in fashion. This evening we will ascend to Montmartre, an area of Paris made famous in the late 19th century as an artists' haunt. We will spend time in the Place du Tertre, a square known for its local artwork, before visiting the Sacre-Coeur Basilica, a huge white church that dominates the Parisian skyline.

DAY    10          DEPARTURE FROM PARIS
Our enjoyable and rewarding tour will come to an end as our Tour manager/guide accompanies us to the airport for the return flight home.