[USA Trip] New York City & Washington DC

Six professeurs intrépides accueillent une cohorte d’élèves dans l’aéroport. Leur but partagé : l’épanouissement de l’esprit et du cœur. Une aventure unique les attend, sur un continent nouveau pour presque tous : l’Amérique. Une batterie de procédures administratives et sécuritaires les assaillit. Rien n’y fait : ils arrivent dans l’avion, plus soudés que jamais, le savoir et la découverte à l’horizon. 

Juchés par-dessus les nuages atlantiques, les élèves et leurs accompagnateurs passent en revue leurs attentes par rapport aux villes à découvrir : des bagels ? Des taxis ? Des cowboys ? Bien sûr, la réalité les surprendra en bien, et cette quête démystificatrice, mettant l’accent sur les aspects culturels de New York City et de Washington DC, marquera un point fort dans le parcours éducatif de nos élèves de section américaine. 

Day 1
New York City
After we woke up at 7 a.m, we took the subway all the way to the Freedom tower where we could admire the New York skyline from its highest point. In the afternoon, we went to the U.N. headquarters, where we got to see first hand this seat of world power, how decisions are made, as well as a few interesting exhibitions. We also had a guided visit of it which was very interesting, lively, and has helped us to relate to the MUN that we partske in annually, who knows, maybe we’ll be in the reall conference hall? In the evening, we had the opportunity to discover Time Square. 🙂
Matéo, Léontine, Max, Okba

Times Square est l’un des lieux les plus touristiques et attractifs de la ville de New York. On peut y faire toutes sortes d’activités. Chacun y trouve son compte: les fans de Kpop ont droit à la boutique BT21, le magasin M&M’s pour les gourmands, les grandes enseignes de mode pour les fans de shopping ou encore le musée Ripley pour les curieux. Il s’agit également d’un lieu de spectacle pour les artistes professionnels (comédies musicales) et amateurs (dans les rues). Par exemple, nous avons pu assister à un spectacle d’acrobaties.

Andoniana, Naik, Océane, Aurora

Day 2
New York City

After waking up nice and early, we took the subway to Harlem to get a feeling of this embelmatic area in which James Baldwin, among other famous figures, grew up in. We had a long stroll and went to Columbia University. We then wandered around the snowy streets trying to find a place to stop our starvation, although we learned a thing or 2 about American pricing. Then we took a trip through a snowy Central Park. We started a snowball fight although there was a casualty, nothing serious though, and he’s all better now 🤕. Through our wanders, we caught sight of the ‘duck pond’ in Central Park, none other than Holden Caulfield’s duck pond! We took the subway to Soho and Chinatown and we had some free time.
Colin & Yannis

Day 3
New York City

For this third day, we first took the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty! It was really impressive to see this iconic monument. We went into the statue to see the view over New York and to take pictures of its skyline and many skyscrapers. Then we visited the Immigration Museum on Ellis Island, we discovered the rooms where migrants coming to America were checked, controlled, questioned, and either accepted or denied entry to ths USA.
After the lunch, we had free time to discover Chinatown, Soho, the MoMA, and Greenwich Village. It was great! Lastly we walked on the Brooklyn Bridge by night, a very beautiful view over the skyscrapers of NY. For the most motivated of us, we took the subway and walked to see the Empire State Building or Times Square. Then we went back to the hotel for a good night sleep before our very last day in NYC.
Bettina & Garance

The September 11 attack was a worldwide event that left its mark and left many irreparable scars.
It is located on the site of the former twin towers of the World Trade Center, in southern Manhattan, New York.
Visiting these places rich in emotion and synonymous with both progress and horror was therefore an essential part of our visit to New York.
The September 11 memorial looks like a pit framed by the names of the victims where water flowing through the centre symbolizes the tears shed by all the victims of this attack.
This visit was my favorite because it made me realize that any act could have severe consequences.
Claire

Day 4

For their last day in NYC, some went to the Statue of Liberty, in Liberty Island. This must-see monument was given by France in 1886, as a token of friendship between the two countries. Near this impressive steel woman, we felt really small. For some of us, it was a dream that became true. After this first visit, we went to Ellis Island. This small island opened in 1892 to welcome immigrants from different countries. We felt like walking in the footsteps of these people, such as Annie Moore, the first immigrant who entered the island, a fifteen-year-old Irish girl. To pay her a tribute, they built a statue at her effigy. She lived in Manhattan until she died at the age of fifty. We also would have loved to stay a little longer but we had to leave for Washington D.C in the afternoon, on the road towards new adventures.

Valentine, Yasmine.

« The high line » est une ancienne voix ferrée qui a été transformée en une allée piétonne. Elle s’étend sur plusieurs mètres au dessus des rues de Manhattan. De magnifiques bâtiments se trouvent tout le long, des locaux d’art, des appartements atypiques et des bureaux. C’est l’endroit parfait pour une balade, un rendez-vous, admirer le coucher de soleil, ou même pour faire un concert. On a traversé le parc linéaire lumineux, tout en s’arrêtant pour faire des photos du beau paysage new yorkais.

Aurora.

Part II: Washington DC

Après un peu plus de 4h de car nous sommes bien arrivés à Washington DC aux alentours de 20h. A suivre, très prochainement, le compte rendu de nos premières visites et premières émotions dans le district de Columbia.

Day 1

Hi de hi
We started the day the day at 9 am and we went to the White House. It was astonishingly small and we sent a peaceful message to the lovely president. We then walked to the National Museum of Natural History where we learned a lot about animals, fossils or even mummies. After lunch, we went to the National Gallery of Art where we had 2hours to learn about neo-classism, romanticism and impressionism. We then met up and started walking towards the Abraham lincoln memorial during sunset. We finished the day by going to the place where Martin Luther King Junior gave his iconic speech « I have a dream ».

Kim, Romain & Ryme