Get
on mail list for future programs
For
Further Information Photos
The Paris Seminar
THE GRAND TOUR: PARIS
OCTOBER 19-24, 2003 •
PARIS,
FRANCE
"The town grows upon one as the greatest city in the world. . . ."
T. Robinson, British Traveler to Paris, 1763
“Nothing is so useful as travelling to those who know how to profit
by it.”
Martin Sherlock, New Letters from an English Traveller,
1780
This October, you are invited to experience the mystique
and splendor of a Grand Tour visit to Paris.
A sophisticated city of elegance and romance, of cafes
and artists, Paris has for centuries been the jewel of the fabled Grand
Tour of Europe. It has often been said that without a visit to
Paris no education is complete. Sophisticated travelers seeking to
experience beauty and acquire knowledge have found rewards beyond measure
in this marvelous, magical city.
From a four-star hotel near the lavish
Opéra, you will experience Paris and environs in a whole new
way. In the company of talented historians, guides, and fellow
travelers, you will immerse yourself in the art and architecture,
the food, the history, and the life and beauty of
Paris, the City of Light.
This is Paris with a difference—a feast for your senses
and your intellect.
Return to top
DURING
A PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR INSTRUCTION AND DELIGHT, YOU WILL. . .
-
Stay on the Right Bank, in the beautiful Hotel Ambassador,
a first class, Four Star historic hotel near major cultural and shopping
attractions.
-
Join fellow travelers and faculty in
a series of lectures
and walking tours that will enhance your enjoyment of the City of Light
and your understanding of how Paris educates the sophisticated visitor.
-
Examine the history and legacies of the Grand Tour
and
the role Paris has played in educating and entertaining generations of
visitors, including Thomas Jefferson, who spent five happy years
in Paris.
-
View some of the world’s finest art during
private tours
of two of Europe’s premier museums. The magnificent Louvre
Museum, with its glass pyramid entrance and encyclopedic collections,
presents the masterpieces of 7000 years of civilization. The Orsay
Museum, in its unique Left Bank setting, offers the work of the great
masters of the 19th century (from Degas and Monet to Cezanne, van Gogh,
and Renoir). These tours will delight old hands and first-timers
alike.
Return
to top
-
Savor the hospitality and unsurpassed cuisine of Paris
at a reception in a Parisian apartment and at intimate meals in a neighborhood
bistro, an elegant hotel, a spectacular station restaurant, and at Café
Procope, a celebrated center of the literary and philosophical life
of Paris in the 18th and 19th centuries.
-
Spend a special day in the Île-de-France, the
royal heartland of France. Here we will see the village of Barbizon,
where light and landscape drew painters to the outdoors, and tour two jewels
of French architecture and garden design - the Château de Fontainebleau,
a major royal residence and site of an untold number of historic events,
and the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, a superb 17th century
creation and inspiration for Versailles.
-
Walk in the footsteps of history and witness how Paris continually
revitalizes and modernizes itself, ever blending the new with the old.
Traveling to eastern Paris on the futuristic Météor métro
line, we will see Bercy, an old wine village on the Seine, being transformed
into one of the city’s most popular new areas. A walk through
the gardens of the new Bercy Park, on the banks of the Seine, reveals
a winning modern mix of ancient elements, romantic garden features, and
classical design.
-
Trace the long and fascinating history of the development
of Paris on an exclusive guided evening coach tour of the City of Light.
Our Grand Tour of Paris in October is an experience
you will not want to miss!
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Interested adults from all
over the world have enjoyed our travel-learning programs. They
are perfect for anyone who enjoys learning opportunities that provide intellectual
stimulation in a welcoming, congenial, and historic environment.
This program offers unsurpassed value,
rich content, and a history of exceptional participant satisfaction.
You will immerse yourself in the art and architecture, the food,
the history, and the life and beauty of Paris. At program’s
end, in the tradition of the Grand Tour, you will leave Paris enriched—savoring
indelible memories of your visit to this beautiful, exciting, and romantic
city.
Join us and discover that, as a participant wrote,
“This is education raised to an art form!”
PROGRAM
LOCATION
The program is based at the beautiful
Hotel
Ambassador, a first class, Four Star historic hotel featuring a truly
Parisian atmosphere. The hotel is very centrally located
on boulevard Haussmann, near the lavish Opéra Garnier. Just
two blocks from the hotel you will find the famous les Grands Magasins,
the magnificent department stores Galeries Lafayette, famed for
its sparkling interior and its fashionable clothing, and Printemps,
which advertises itself as "the most Parisian department store" and whose
domed ceiling (1923) is now a historic monument. Near the hotel there
are also
a number of early 19th century Passages (shopping arcades),
including the extensive Passage des Panoramas. Filled with small
specialty shops and cafes, the Passages are a delight to explore.
There are a vast array of sights and
diversions within easy walking distance in any direction from the hotel.
Check
the Paris Weather
Return
to top
PROGRAM
FACULTY
JILL DANEELS: a lecturer on
art, culture, and history and licensed Paris guide. Jill is a widely
traveled British Parisian with many years experience in communication and
cultural tourism.
ALICE JOUVE: an art historian, lecturer, and long
time Paris resident. Alice is the author of the award winning book
Visages
de Paris au Moyen Age, and co-author of Paris: Birthplace of the
U.S.A.
LUCIA (CINDER) STANTON: Shannon Senior Research
Historian at Monticello's International Center for Jefferson Studies.
Cinder’s major introduction to the eighteenth-century world was as co-editor
of Jefferson's Memorandum Books, a sixty-year record of his expenditures.
She has written books on slavery and articles on Jefferson's cultural and
scientific interests. She is co-editor of Jefferson Abroad,
and author of the introduction to Thomas Jefferson's Journey to the
South of France.
PROGRAM DIRECTOR:
Tom
Dowd, Senior Director of Program Development, University of Virginia
School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
Return
to top
PROGRAM
SCHEDULE
(subject to change)
| |
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 19 |
|
|
Individual Arrivals (rooms available by 3:00 pm) |
|
2:00 - 4:00 pm |
Program Check-In
Lobby
Hotel Ambassador |
|
4:30 - 5:00 pm |
Introductions
• to the program
•
to Paris
•
to
one another |
|
5:00 - 6:00 pm |
Session 1: Introduction to the Grand Tour
Lucia Stanton |
|
6:00 - 7:30 pm |
Free Time |
|
7:30 - 9:30 pm |
Opening Reception and Dinner
Hotel Ambassador
Return
to top |
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
MONDAY, OCTOBER 20 |
|
9:00 - 11:30 am |
Session 2: "The Greatest City in the World" - Paris and the Grand
Tour
Lucia Stanton |
|
11:45 am |
Session 3: An Introduction to the Louvre Museum
Jill Daneels and Alice Jouve |
|
12:45 pm |
Lunch
Hotel Ambassador |
|
3:00 - 5:00 pm |
Session 4: Private Guided Tours of the Louvre Museum
A castle, a palace, and now one of the world’s largest art museums,
the Musée du Louvre is a joy to explore. Our focused tours
will delight old hands and first-timers alike.
Musée du Louvre |
|
5:00 pm |
Free Evening
Return
to top |
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21 |
|
8:30 - 12:00 noon |
Session 5: Exploring Historic Paris:
A Guided Walk in the Village and Park of Bercy
Paris continually reinvents itself and today the Village of Bercy is
being transformed. Its restored wine warehouses, cobbled lanes, and
trendy shops mix agreeably with whimsically designed new buildings.
The Parc de Bercy integrates old and new to charm the visitor. Our
walk ends at the Viaduc des Arts, workshops and showrooms offering
the best of traditional crafts. |
|
12:30 pm |
Lunch
Le Train Bleu |
|
1:30 - 5:30 pm |
Free Afternoon |
|
6:00 pm |
Reception
We begin the evening with cocktails in an elegant private apartment
in the fashionable 7th arrondissement. |
|
7:00 pm |
Dinner
We continue with a special dinner in a delightful neighborhood bistro. |
|
9:00 pm |
Session 6: Tracing the History of Paris
A Special Private Guided Bus Tour
Return
to top |
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22 |
|
8:30 am |
Session 7: A Day in the Île-de-France
This region, with Paris at its heart, is central to French history
and culture.
We will see Barbizon, a beautiful village that was home to an
important group of mid-nineteenth century landscape painters, and tour
the Château de Fontainebleau. The stunning architecture,
decoration, and gardens of this royal residence will tell you fascinating
stories of French art and history. |
|
12:45 pm |
Lunch
Fontainebleau |
|
3:30 pm |
Session 7 cont'd: A Day in the Île-de-France
After lunch we will tour the Château de Vaux-Le-Vicomte.
Erected in 1656 by Louis XIV’s ambitious minister of finance, Nicolas Fouquet,
this beautiful château cost him his fortune, his freedom, and his
life. With its colorful history and outstanding architecture, decorations,
and gardens, this is one of France’s great baroque châteaux and the
inspiration
for Versailles. |
|
6:30 pm |
Free Evening
Return
to top |
|
|
|
| |
|
| |
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23 |
|
9:00 - 10:00 am |
Session 8: The Legacies of the Grand Tour
Lucia Stanton |
|
10:00 - 11:00 am |
Session 9: An Introduction to the Musée d’Orsay
Jill Daneels and Alice Jouve |
|
11:30 am - 1:00 pm |
Session 10: Private Guided Tours of the Musée
d’Orsay
Designed to engage and delight, our tours will explore the Musée
d’Orsay and its collection of the dynamic and exciting arts from the period
1848-1914.
Musée d’Orsay |
|
1:30 - 7:00 pm |
Free Afternoon |
|
7:00 pm |
Closing Reception
Hotel Ambassador |
|
8:30 pm |
Closing Dinner at Café Procope, the oldest café
(1686) in Paris. Voltaire, Rousseau, Franklin, and Napoleon have
been among its patrons.
Café Procope |
|
|
|
| |
|
| |
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24 |
|
|
Enjoy a Free Morning
Hotel check-out time is noon
Return
to top |
USEFUL PARIS LINKS
- The
Paris Pages: a "collection of
everything regarding the City of Light."
Return to top
To be added to our mailing
list please send your mailing address to
travelandlearn@virginia.edu
or call us at 800-346-3882 or 1-434-982-5252.
View our current U.Va. Travel and Learn Programs
|
