While some students stayed inside their houses all day, relaxing in the summer heat, 55 of the Regional’s staff and students went on a trip abroad to see Spain, Austria, and Germany.
“I had two favorite parts of the trip,” said Spanish Teacher Robyn De Gennaro. “The first one was La Sagrada Familia (a cathedral), in Barcelona, and the other was seeing the Neuschwanstein castle in Germany. It’s the castle that Disney based Cinderella’s castle (the one in Disney World) off of.”
Students used a buddy system when they had two to three hours to explore independently.
“For the most part, the trip was guided by teachers and we followed strict rules. But we had free time which was my favorite part of the trip,” said senior Jack Greene.
Travelers said while visiting the different countries, they experienced many new foods and cultures.
“Students participated in a cooking competition to make tapas and it ended up being my favorite food all trip!” said Spanish teacher Erin
Destratis. Most travelers agreed their favorite foods came from Spain.
“We had squid ink paella, it was really good, ” said De Gennaro. “I already love squid and have never had anything with squid ink before. It was a new experience and very tasty.”
Junior Mariana Munzert also agreed that the ink paella was amazing.
“The ink paella was my favorite food, it tasted very fresh and it was super delicious!” said Munzert.
The entire trip: airfare, guided tours, rooms, and transportation, cost travelers a total $6,000.
“I paid early and got a special deal for signing up early,” said senior Jordan Damelio.
For the $6,000 most travelers paid, they all believed if they took the trip on their own they would have paid significantly more because traveling as a large group is cheaper.
“It was so nice watching students have to grow and be responsible on their own in a foreign country,” said William Labaire. “A student came up to me in the city of Toledo, and as we were walking across the bridge she said how the view was worth every shift she had picked up to save money for the trip.”
Mountaineers have an opportunity to go on a trip to Scandinavia in June of 2026 with history teacher Teresa Hickey and another trip to Costa Rica in April 2026 with history teacher Elizabeth Cahill.
