Ciao Bella! Bienvenuto! Buonasera! You may not be familiar with these phrases, but over spring break, 13 ODA students were introduced to these expressions when they visited Italy.

“We really enjoyed our time in Italy and seeing and experiencing the different culture was an amazing experience, and I would highly recommend any opportunity to travel to anyone else,” senior, Amy Cutmore says.

The students explored museums, historical landmarks, and cities such as Florence, Rome, and Pompei.

Amy shared that she “…could not have asked to go with a better group of people…I came home having met new people in Italy and seeing and visiting new places that I had only seen in movies.”

Senior Jordan Towsley enjoyed the experience as well. “The laughter and pure happiness of everyone was palpable and made the trip so enjoyable…It was extremely refreshing to be in a place where life seemed to slow down and people really enjoyed each other’s company.”

As Italians are known for being very family oriented, Jordan Towsley seemed to notice that in the Italian culture. “They love to hug, and dance, and they take care of everyone like they are family,” Jordan says.

Jordan said that her favorite part was “getting a chance to experience my first time abroad with a group of friends and teachers I am really close with. The food (the meals that I could eat) was delicious and really opened up my palate. I also really enjoy our bus rides in and out of the cities. We held our phones up to the microphone in the bus and played a wide variety of music and sang and dance through the aisles of the bus. The laughter and pure happiness of everyone was palpable and made the trip so enjoyable.”

Interested in more opportunities for student travel? Consider this summer’s Maine sailing trip at the start of July or the “Leveraging STEM to Protect Human Rights” trip in the summer of 2016. See Ms. Giraud for details.