My First Impressions of Paris, and the school

I was planning to write this post at the very first day of school. But you know… one thing came after another and here I am, two months later writing it.

To be fair, I had little time to think about anything else other than baking, watching classes and then off to some more baking. It was almost like heaven to me (well, if it wasn't, what would I be doing there?), but time wasn't on my side.

Regardless of that, I still have a lot of very fresh memories from the whole experience and this is what I'll be sharing with you now. I understand that for some people (including me!) it is a deep change in your career, so it's good to know what to expect. And I hope I can help you with what I lived over the past months or so.

Even though Paris is a top destination for travellers like me, I had never been there before the course. I had absolutely no idea what to expect. You might have heard that French people are somewhat rude (they're not), that they don't speak English (they do -- not as much as in Germany, but they do) and that a Culinary course in Paris is tough with a lot of competition and pressure (it is not). So I was prepared for the worse.

I have to say that it is much easier and lighter that I expected. If you sign up for the intensive course like I did, you will have about 9-12 hours of classes (demonstrations and per day, 6 days per week. It is intensive and demanding, but definitely not competitive or extenuating. You obviously have to be sure of your choice, but if it's something you really love, you'll do it with a big smile on your face, believe in me!

The city itself is just amazing. I arrived there in early November and left in late December so I got the transition from Fall (my favorite season) to Winter, which is just gorgeous. If you sign up for the course on the regular cycle of three months, you'll have plenty to do in the city as well.
I just visited the main spots briefly, but when I return there in June, I'll definitely go to more museums, markets and landmarks for sure.

Finally, the school is great. I decided to sign up for Le Cordon Bleu due to the flexibility they offer.
The Intensive Basic Pastry course had around 46 students, divided in 3 groups. So we watched all the demonstrations together but the practical class was separated, in different kitchens. Everybody has enough space, utensils, ingredients and everything else you may need to complete the recipes. You can take home all your work, except from the exam dish.

Each demonstration lasts for about three hours and the chef shows what you need to prepare in practical class, plus one or two recipes (related to the main one). The practical class lasts for about 2,5 hours and you need to prepare from scratch the recipe it was shown at the demo. The basic module consists of 20 lessons (20 demonstrations + 19 practicals + exam), spread through 4 weeks. We also had a Pedagogic Lunch (which I didn't quite understand the purpose -- other than party with your friends!) and three theoretical lessons.

To wrap it up, we had a written test and a practical test. I'll cover them later, on the weekly review of the course :)

Want to know more? Read my detailed review, week by week of what happened and what I did!

First Week - Part One and Two
Second Week
Third Week
Fourth Week
Final Test