This article has been corrected since published.

During spring break, WJ students, many of them sophomores, scattered far and wide on trips to Costa Rica, Barcelona, London, France and Italy. All of the trips were organized by a private company, Education First (EF) Tours, which handled the logistical components of each trip, such as money-handling, ticket-buying and making hotel reservations. The Pitch Online caught up with some of those students post-tour.

Costa Rica

The trip to Costa Rica was coordinated by science teacher Thomas Rogers, who along with Barb Rogers, his wife, and Heather Rogers, their daughter, went on the trip to supervise 19 students. The group flew to Costa Rica on Thursday, April 10, and returned home on Friday, April 18.

“[The trip was] amazing. Costa Rica is a beautiful country and the people were the nicest I’ve met…in the world,” said Rogers. “[While in Costa Rica, the group did] jungle tours, boat tours, [visited a] sea turtle research center and nesting grounds, [hiked]…volcanoes, [went] white water rafting, kayaking, fishing, [zip-lining], swimming, [bird watching]… [and participated in a] culture exchange.”

For sophomore Grace Ray, visiting Costa Rica was the first time she had ever left the U.S.

“[The trip] was great, we learned a lot about nature in Costa Rica,” said Ray. “It was really fun.”

While going to Costa Rica and meeting new people was a great experience for Ray, there were some disadvantages.

“I wouldn’t have been so rushed when I was trying to do my homework [when I got back from the trip if I hadn’t gone…[I would have had] more time to do homework [and] spread it out,” she said.

Rogers also enjoyed the trip, and said that it was a great time to be in Costa Rica.

Europe

From April 10 to April 19, 10 students, Spanish teacher Carolina Freitas, and her daugher, a 15-year old freshman at Colonel Zadok A. Magruder High School,  went on a tour of Europe. The trip incorporated visits to the United Kingdom, France, and Spain- specifically the cities of London, Paris and Barcelona.

The trip was organized by Freitas, who was also the only chaperone from WJ present on the trip. The group’s tour guide also acted as a fellow responsible adult, and accompanied the group throughout the trip.

“I love learning about different cultures, I love seeing how different people behave in their own environment,” said Freitas.

Freitas said the purpose of the trip was for the group to enjoy themselves and to experience and learn about different cultures and history by personally visiting historical sights, such as the Palace of Versailles in Paris. While there, the tour guide specifically discussed Louis XIV, the kingdom, why the palace was built and Marie Antoinette.

“My favorite parts were Primrose Hill in London and the beach in Barcelona because we got to relax and stay in one place for a few hours, as well as Park Guell and the Sagrada Familia because I love architecture and Antoni Gaudi,” said sophomore Joel Maiman. “Ms. Freitas invited a small number of kids to go, and she emailed us the information as she got it. There was one meeting about three months before the trip.”

The trip’s itinerary was very action-packed, and left little time for the students’ relaxation or for long explorations.

“[Going to Europe over spring break] means that you spend your whole break away, and you have no time to relax or do homework. [One of the cons was that] we didn’t have much time to explore the cities or take in what we were seeing… it [left] me wanting to go back for longer to truly discover the cities I visited,” said Maiman.

France

From Friday, April 11 to Saturday, April 19, 15 students, including sophomore Surya Radhadkrishnan, took a trip to France.

While in France, the group visited Paris, a small town and several chateaus, or castles, in the Loire Valley, an old walled-in city on the English Channel, and the D-Day beaches, to name a few attractions.

French teacher Ryan Martinez and his friend Lily Hamburger were the only two chaperones. Martinez said that the trip taught the students how to travel in a somewhat independent manner. This included managing their finances, being on time, taking the bus and how to get by in a foreign country.

“The purpose of the trip was to get the students to see…Paris, to see some different [regions] of France. There was also the purpose of using the French language in context, about having the [cultural immersion] experience, such as going to the market…[and] conversing with people,” he said. “It was a very multi-faceted trip.”

Martinez wanted to take a trip that incorporated the chateaus in the Loire Valley, and Paris, which he told EF Tours were requirements for the trip. In order to get the word out to students, Martinez talked about the trip last year in his French 3 and French 4 classes, and let the information spread by word of mouth.

“I thought it was a very good trip. It…gave [many] different types of perspectives about France,” said Martinez.

Radhadkrishnan also enjoyed the trip, and said that she would definitely repeat the experience.

Italy

From Wednesday, April 9 to Saturday, April 19, 28 students and two chaperones, teachers Maria Cavallini and Joanne Reynolds, took a tour of Italy. Reynolds commented on her experience on the trip.

“I enjoyed getting to know the students more. They were all really great kids,” said Reynolds.

The tour was also restricted to students in level 4 or higher of Italian, and Latin 3 or higher.

“[The fact that the students only visit Italy] reduces the travel time between cities and the more in-depth knowledge of Italy this trip provides makes the experience for the students even more meaningful,” said Cavallini.

The trip’s itinerary included visits to the cities of Rome, Florence, Siena, Venice, and Pompeii, the islands of Murano and Capri, and the Uffizi Gallery, Vatican Museums, Roman Forum and the Colosseum, among other stops.

“My favorite part was visiting the city of Siena…[specifically] the architecture,” said sophomore Owen Brinker.

Cavallini also added that the next time she does an Italy trip with students, she would like to customize the trip more and include a visit to Montecassino and a walk to the top of Mount Vesuvius. Brinker said that if there was one thing he would change about the trip, it would be adding more free time to each day.

“My favorite part is always the enthusiasm of the students. When something they have studied comes alive before their eyes, it is all worth it,” said Cavallini.