A French teacher at Oakdale High School, Nissa Quill, plans a trip for Oakdale students every 1-2 years. In June of 2025, Ms. Quill will be traveling with her students on an 11-day trip to Paris, Normandy, and Brittany.  

This trip is almost two years out because Ms. Quill likes to plan it in advance so students have enough time to prepare and get money for it. According to Ms. Quill, “Trips are expensive, they run in the range of about $5,000 a person.”

On the first day, they will fly to France overnight, and travel to Paris the next day for day 2 and take a walking tour. They then get an expert-led tour of Paris, which includes a visit to the Eiffel Tower and a tour of the Palace of Versailles on day three. On the fourth day of this trip, they will explore the history of Chartres, Paris, and St. Malo. Next on day 5, they take a tour of St.Malo and visit historical places there.  On day six of the trip, Ms. Quill’s students will have a history-packed day when they visit Normandy. Ms. Quill states, “I really want to visit because it has such a strong tie to our American history, because of the events that took place, like the Invasion of D-day, Invasion of Normandy, and the end of WWII. I think its really important to visit.”  

The next day, they’ll continue to take an excursion to Etretat and go to a well-known Normandy cheese factory. On the eighth  day, they travel to Rouen and visit their cathedral. On day nine, they’ll go to London by train, where they take a walking tour of the city. On the 11th day the students, sadly, must leave and go home.

This trip helps with responsibility and financial responsibility skills, as well as a great experience and opportunity to learn a new language and culture. It helps students grow on so many levels. Not only do these future students have Mrs. Quill, who stayed her junior year abroad in Strasbourg, France, but they have many helpful tour guides. “Travel is life-changing.”

This 11-day trip is not only life-changing but also such a good experience! Ms. Quill highly encourages any high school  student to come, whether you know French or not.