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

DAY    2            ARRIVE BORDEAUX (5 NIGHTS HOMESTAY)
Upon our arrival this morning, our Tour manager/guide will meet us at the airport and accompany us into Bordeaux, the capital of Aquitaine and the center of the world's most important wine-producing area. This afternoon we will take a Boat Tour of the Port, which goes up the river and all around the harbor. This trip will provide a wonderful introduction to Bordeaux and provides one of the best ways to view the magnificent Pont de Pierre, featuring 17 arches and built on orders of Napoléon I in 1813. This evening we will meet our Host Families.

DAY    3            LANGUAGE CLASSES & BORDEAUX
This morning we will begin our French Language Classes. This afternoon we will take a Walking Tour through the prettiest, most interesting, and most historic neighborhood in Old Bordeaux, known as the "golden triangle." Highlights of our walk will include: place de la Comédie, in the heart of this old city; one of France's great theaters, Grand Théâtre, the city's cultural symbol; the esplanade des Quinconces; and the lovely place de la Bourse, bounded by quays opening onto the Garonne and flanked by the Custom House and the Stock Exchange. During our walk we will also visit the Cathédrale St-André, the largest and most ostentatious church in Bordeaux. The sculptures on the 13th-century Porte Royale are admirable, as are the 14th-century sculptures on the North Door. Our visit will also include an ascent of the 155-ft. Tour Pey-Berland, a belfry begun in the 15th century, which offers wonderful views over the city. We will view other churches during our walk, including: the Basilique St-Michel; the Fleche St-Michel, with the second-tallest stone tower in France; the Basilique St-Seurin; and the Abbatiale Ste-Croix. Our afternoon will also include a visit to the Musée des Beaux-Arts, featuring an outstanding collection from the 15th to the 20th centuries, including works by Perugina, Titian, Rubens, Veronese, Delacroix, and Marquet. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    4            LANGUAGE CLASSES & ANGOULEME
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we travel to Angoulême, and begin in the Place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville. The town hall was erected from 1858 to 1866 on the site of the palace of the ducs d'Angoulême, where Marguerite de Navarre, sister of François I, was born. Here we will view all that remains of the palace, the 15th-century Tour de Valois and the 13th-century Tour de Lusignan. We will continue with a visit to the impressive Cathédrale St-Pierre, begun in 1128 and restored in the 19th-century. Flanked by towers, its facade boasts 75 statues, each in a separate niche, representing the Last Judgment. This is one of France's most startling examples of Romanesque-Byzantine style. Our afternoon concludes with a Walk along the panoramic Promenade des Remparts, a path that flanks the site of the long-gone fortifications that once surrounded the historic core of Angoulême. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    5            LANGUAGE CLASSES & BORDEAUX
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we will enjoy a Visit to a Local School. After some free time to explore or shop in Bordeaux, we return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    6            LANGUAGE CLASSES & SAINTES
This morning we will have our French Language Classes. This afternoon we will explore Saintes, capital of the Saintonge region and a city with a rich architectural heritage. The city once served as an important stop on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. We will view the Arch of Germanicus (19 AD), before visiting the 1st-century Roman Amphitheater. Our afternoon concludes with a visit to the spectacular Eglise St-Eutrope, a church that produced a miraculous cure for Louis XI. Louis, in return, provided the Gothic additions to the Romanesque capitals. We return to our host families for the evening.

DAY    7            LANGUAGE CLASSES - TGV TO PARIS (3 NIGHTS)
This morning we say "au revoir" to our host families and enjoy our final morning of Language Classes. After lunch we board a high-speed TGV train 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 which 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.