From the French Riviera to the Greek Archipelago, Homewood High School’s language departments explored Europe this past summer. Students had the unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the culture of regions they learned about in class.
HHS French and language arts teacher Melissa Dameron Vines was the primary organizer for the France trip. The group of 21 students and chaperones traveled from May 30 to June 9, a trip that was in the works for 6 years.
“I planned a Morocco trip and a France trip pre-covid,” Dameron Vines said. “I pitched both and Morocco had a lot of takers so we decided to take that one first after the shut down, but I already had the itinerary for France. As soon as Morocco was over we started planning for this one. We made a few adjustments and then got down to the details.”
For these trips, teachers utilize travel companies to lighten the load of planning. These companies are experienced and help form the perfect schedules and tours to meet each group’s preferences. The France itinerary this year was particularly packed with sights and experiences.
“We started in Paris, if you’re in French class you of course want to see Paris and all of the traditional monuments, so it’s a must do,” said Dameron Vines. “We then went to the south of France. We stopped in Avignon, then went to Arles and saw the Roman stadium, and then we went out to the Camargue region which is really wild and marshy and we rode horses. It was really amazing. Then we finished in Nice and Corsica, it was a very packed trip.”
Promotions for these trips begin over a year in advance. Interest meetings are held over zoom where prospective travelers learn details including cost, itinerary and other related information to help decide if they want to go.
HHS sophomore Lydia Driskill attended the Latin department’s trip to Greece June 5-13. Driskill wanted to go since she saw the promotional materials around the school and was sold when she attended an online interest meeting and learned more.
“I always wanted to go to Greece and hearing about it in Latin class made me want to go even more,” Driskill said. “We got to see a lot of different parts of the country. We started in Athens and went to places like Delphi and Tolo for the first six days and for the last three days we took a cruise to different islands.”
These trips are designed to include both academic and traditional vacation activities to make it engaging for all. Students get to see first-hand the history they’ve studied while also enjoying modern vacation fun like lounging on the beach for an afternoon. There’s something for everyone, creating a fantastic opportunity for HHS students to experience new parts of the world.
Travel opportunities for this upcoming summer are available as well. The Spanish department has a trip in the works to Costa Rica available for all interested students. More information will be available soon.
