After a somewhat stressful train ride from Leipzig central station to Paris Gare de l’Est, I managed to arrive in Paris in the early afternoon on a warm September Friday. And I must say I was quite overwhelmed at first.
After a somewhat stressful train ride from Leipzig central station to Paris Gare de l’Est, I managed to arrive in Paris in the early afternoon on a warm September Friday. And I must say I was quite overwhelmed at first. I’ve been to Paris twice before, but to walk out of the station, knowing I’ll be living and studying here now was almost unbelievable for me. To get to my accommodation, which I found on Studapart, I ordered an Uber and was immediately moved as the driver chauffeured me in the back seat through Paris as it was a little welcoming sightseeing tour just for me.
In order to have a little more time to get to know the area and the city better, to find friends outside of university, or to possibly obtain an internship or part-time job and, main reason, be there for Paris fashion week, I moved to Paris a month before classes started in October. So, I could have some time to adjust to my new circumstances and not be confronted with university and socialising all at once. This also gave me the chance to visit museums, galleries, parks and other places I wanted to see; of course, the list is still pretty long.
On the first days I walked mostly aimlessly through the city, because you can reach a lot of famous places by foot. There is something to see on every corner even if it is only one of the beautiful traditional apartment buildings that you always have first in mind when you think of Paris. Among Champs Elysée, museums and art galleries, and other places, I also walked from my accommodation to the school, Istituto Marangoni. It is somewhat inconspicuous in a side street near the metro station Miromesnil in the 8th arrondissement. Nevertheless, the location is perfect, the metro station with line 9 and 13 is only a few meters away and at the first look around I could also see some cafes and restaurants or boulangeries. So, if you want to have lunch or are hungry after school, I’m sure you can find something (my host mom gave me the tip to prepare my food and take it with me, because it can be very expensive).
One of the reasons why I arrived earlier was, as already mentioned, Paris fashion week in the last week of September. And I must say it was exciting, super inspiring and of course as someone who can be quickly inspired by fashion one of the most beautiful days I was allowed to experience so far here in Paris. Unfortunately, I did not receive an invitation to an official show, but since the shows usually take place in public places, I still went to some locations to see a few celebrities and influencers, such as Chiara Ferragni or Aespa, meet new people, but also to get dressed chic myself and be photographed by streetstyle photographers. Thanks to a friend I spontaneously had the chance to participate in a fashion show as a guest. The show was organized by the global fashion collective and 5 young designers were allowed to present their collection. This was of course super exciting and interesting, and I can finally say I was at my first Paris fashion week.
During the days before the official start of school, we already received emails that informed us about everything important: welcome week, administrative things, insight into the university and the rough course of the semester. The Student Service of Marangoni in Paris was (and is) also available for any extra questions by email and thus nothing could stand in the way of an exciting start to the semester. However, the first day was not as exciting as I had expected. At a certain time, we were supposed to arrive at the campus. There we received our student ID, info sheets and a few goodies. After waiting a bit on the terrace to the backyard we got a small introductory presentation. The most important contact persons introduced themselves briefly and gave us a deeper insight into how our semester will be structured. This was similar to what we know from Macromedia when a new semester starts with new modules.
Yet, The semester schedule at Marangoni in Paris is different from Macromedia. The semester is divided into 2 terms for us. The first term goes from 10.10.2022 to 20.12.2022 and includes 8 weeks of classes and 2 assessment weeks to finish project work and write an exam. This is followed by a winter break of 3 weeks before classes resume in the second week of January. This again is followed by 8 weeks of classes and 2 assessment weeks to complete projects and write an exam.
This division is quite pleasant, and you can focus very well on the respective project which must be handed in first. In between, a lot of time remains to visit exhibitions and events outside of university. Because even outside of Fashion Week there are museums that are always open, even some that are free for Europeans under 26 years, and many other temporary exhibitions and events where there should be something for everyone.
After the more organizational first day, there was a welcome day with two very captivating guest lectures. First, we got the chance to listen to Lyor Amar’s presentation about PR and celebrities. This was super interesting and gave us a little real-life insight into the industry and showed us an area that you are naturally confronted with in the fashion industry. In the afternoon there were alumni interviews, and to be honest, I’ve never listened to such an inspiring talk before. We had the chance to listen to Parissima Saleh and follow her story and steps of her career. She was also kind enough to show us an insight into her current work at Cartier in customer and retail management, which was also very fascinating. Completed by a Q&A session and a presentation of the library the welcome week ended, and classes started the following Monday.
Long story short, coming to Paris one month earlier was definitely a good idea, as I was able to make new friends, enjoy my time as a tourist and get used to living in such a big city. Istituto Marangoni with all the Staff members and Tutors welcomed us dearly as the first Macromedia students’ group coming for a semester abroad and made us feel comfortable in our new environment. I’m curious how the remaining weeks of the 1st term will go, but also very excited when it’s again time for Paris fashion week, because the education director already told us that they will give us opportunities to get internships, work backstage or even participate in events as a guest.
