Events

We strive to include all University events with a Western European theme to our calendar. All events sponsored by CES are free and open to the public.

Past Events

Visit by French Delegation, November 2010

In November 2010,  Dr. Nancy Guilloteau of the Department of French and Italian, hosted a week long visit of a French delegation led by Cédric Cirasa, Deputy Mayor of Tourisme and Culture of Villefranche-sur-mer, a beautiful little city on the French Riviera.  During his visit to Austin, Mr. Cirasa and the members of his delegation spent a day visiting the University of Texas.  The delegation was amazed by the Nièpce exhibit at the HRC, surpised by the beauty and size of the campus, and impressed by the French Lower-Division curriculum, Français interactif and Tex's French Grammar.  Mr. Cirasa addressed a packed house of French students in an engaging presentation about his city, hosted by the Center for European Studies.  He made a contact with an enthusiastic student in the crowd, Javier Ajjam, to whom he later offered an internship for the summer of 2011.  

During his visit to Austin, Mr. Cirasa signed an agreement with Mayor Lee Leffingwell to create Austin's first French sister city, Villefranche-sur-mer.  Austin now has 12 sister cities worldwide, but this is the only one in France.  This is the result of two years of friendly negotiations between our two communities. The relationship between Villefranche and the US is not recent. Villefranche was very impacted by the US Naval presence anchored there for more than 40 years.  As a result, a sort of familial bond was formed between the two cultures.  For this reason, Mr. Cirasa felt as though it was only natural to pursue a formal connection, and Austin happens to be one of his favorite American cities.  Villefranche was founded in 1295, and continues to maintain its rich architectural heritage.  It is a very popular destination, and welcomes tourists from all over the world, with the majority coming from the US.

Cédric Cirasa was made an honorary citizen of Texas in 2008, and the members of his  delegation were made honorary citizens of Austin during his November visit.  This delegation was represented by Michel Venturi, owner of several French fast food restaurants called "Quick", often referred to as the French equivalent to McDonalds; Christophe Noto, owner of a taxi and chauffeur service in Nice for over 15 years; Franck Gorgeret, owner of a company that provides private body guards to individuals; Franc Petit, a wine and olive oil producer who still uses centuries old traditional methods to produce his products and who organized a wine tasting at the French Legation during the visit; and Jean-Gabriel Camerini, owner and manager of Golf de Biot, one of the oldest golf courses on the French Riviera.