Celebrating My 22nd Birthday in France!

By Aaliyah Walker

You know what’s better than studying abroad in France?… being able to celebrate your birthday in France WHILE studying abroad in France!! Thanks to the CEPA Foundation and the very very wonderful friends I’ve made, I had the best birthday I could ever have asked for.

During our class, Sandra graciously entered and gave myself and Julia, who has the same birthday as me, a cute little birthday celebration. It was so nice and thoughtful, there was cake and everyone sang happy birthday to us. We actually heard the happy birthday song in 6 different languages, fun right? But that was just the beginning of the perfect day. Later that evening, my friends and I went to Lake Baggersee in Strasbourg. Bella designed the absolute BEST charcuterie board one could ever indulge in, and there was wine, a beautiful sunset, and good vibes all around. All I needed was to have a wonderful time. We ate just about everything on the board, then went in the water for a dip. We swam around, did handstands, learned to backstroke, and just really enjoyed ourselves. This was for sure one of the best days of my life. I’m super grateful for everyone who helped to make that day so special 🙂