Emely Grüter

The fifth and sixth semesters of my bachelor’s degree in Architecture were spent at the École Spéciale d’Architecture in Paris. A major interest in Paris as a city, and above all its architecture and its artistic and cultural heritage, strongly influenced my decision to spend my stay abroad here. Raising my French to a new level was another reason for me coming to Paris.

I found it surprisingly easy to find my way around Paris and establish a daily routine. I felt at home from the very first moment, since the city is so pulsating and it’s simply a joy to mingle with the people here. I was incredibly lucky with my apartment, since I found a small studio on the sixth floor of an old Parisian building in the city’s most central district. This gave me direct access to the hustle and bustle. It could sometimes get a bit exhausting and above all very noisy, but I never missed an important cultural or political event. In particular, it was the presidential election in 2022 and the French National Day that connected me personally with France in a completely different way and strengthened my political interest. The same applies to the European Union, since Paris is one of the largest cities in the EU that is always a venue for political discourse.

The local transport network is very well developed and I always arrived at my destination quickly and easily, even if the underground stations are often very chaotic. That had a lot to do with me discovering new locations as often as possible. There’s hardly a single museum that I haven’t visited at least once. The range of art in Paris is simply incredible and is definitely one of the things that I’ll miss the most. Apart from my French, I therefore learned about the most important artists and their works, as well as the architecture of the museums. An absolute highlight, for instance, was the wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe as the final piece by artist Christo and his wife Jeanne Claude.

Privat

Wrapping of the Arc de Triomphe and the Musée de l'Orangerie

The diversity of architecture and buildings by well-known architects was equally impressive. I was already aware of some of these buildings from lectures or my own research, and then to visit them in person was extremely interesting and instructive. On my journeys within France I was even able to marvel at the best-known architecture by Le Corbusier and Oscar Niemeyer, such as during trips to Le Havre, Marseille or Poissy.

I prepared myself intensively in the linguistic use of French before my stay. I must admit, though, that it was very difficult for me to communicate right at the start of my stay. The French speak incredibly quickly, and they use a lot of words and idioms that I never learned at school or in language courses. It was also a big surprise to me that you actually meet with a lot of incomprehension when you speak English – especially among peers. It took a few months before I was able to make contact with French-speaking fellow students and communicate easily in everyday life. But now I feel very confident, and don't shy away from spontaneous conversations. It would have been very difficult for me to make true friendships with French fellow students without making these linguistic advances. There were also a few international students in my year, however, so I was able to establish an internationally mixed circle of friends that is likely to remain in place in the future.

I frequently spent my non-study time with these friends. We went for a drink after university, to the museum, to events or to the Atlantic for a day – it was never boring. I was also visited by a lot of friends and family from Germany and was able to show them the city from my newly acquired perspective.

All events at the university took the form of face-to-face sessions right from the start. That was great after the long period of online tuition dictated by the coronavirus. The first semester did however turn out to be a bit more difficult than expected. The project we had to develop was extremely extensive and, apart from the language barrier, there were also some organisational obstacles. The administration simply operates in a more disorganised and ‘relaxed’ manner. You occasionally have to send an email five times before you receive an answer. I was however able to learn a lot of new things, especially in urbanism and landscape architecture, and apply them directly in the project. The city of Paris is very interesting from an urban planning perspective, and quite different from the cities I knew before. I initially had to conduct a great deal of research and analysis, and therefore learned a lot about the history of Paris. In the second semester, the project assignment related to a small town on the Loire. We were able to visit it on an excursion and then develop our ideas.

I particularly enjoyed the direct collaboration with our professors. These meetings were always very cordial. Things were a bit chaotic at times, though, such as tasks that weren’t communicated clearly or at all. That was a bit confusing at first, but it also helped to not always view everything so strictly and to engage creatively with the project.

Looking back, my year in Paris has been one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had the privilege to enjoy. I’ve forged new friendships, improved my French and gained a lot of new knowledge. But above all I’ve developed personally, mastered uncertain situations and gleaned new self-confidence. I’m incredibly grateful for the support provided by the DAAD-Stiftung, which funded me in cooperation with the Alexander Spohn-Stiftung. Paris has truly become my home from home, and I’ll be coming back here often in the future.