As summer comes to an end and the school year begins, students reflect on the vacations they were able to go on before coming back to school. Senior Tristen Hyde and her family flew to London, England, before embarking on a Disney cruise through Northern Europe.

“It was nice to get to see the ‘Old World’ because America is so new and young compared to Europe,” Hyde said. “It was neat being able to visit all of these historical landmarks that I’ve heard of since I was a kid, but had never seen until now.”

Hyde spent two days in London, before taking a trip to Paris, France.

“I remember we had to run down the Eiffel Tower because we lost track of time,” Hyde said. “Our tour group almost left us.”

From France, Hyde boarded a fourteen day Disney cruise to the Baltic Sea. The cruise ship made stops in Copenhagen (Denmark), Berlin (Germany), St. Petersburg (Russia), Tallinn (Estonia), Stockholm (Sweden), and Helsinki (Finland).

“We got to see Les Mis at the Queens’s Theater in London,” Hyde said. “And in Russia, we got to see the ballet Swan Lake. It was beautiful and we were so close you could see the dancers’ makeup sweating off and could hear the dance shoes on the floor.”

Hyde wasn’t the only student who got to travel out of the country for the summer. Sophomore Emma Tran had the opportunity to visit the Dominican Republic.

“I went for a family/service trip with EF, which stands for Education First,” Tran said. “It’s an organization that allows you to travel to different countries and learn about their culture. I got to stay at an environmental school, and they taught me about the environment.”

The week long trip consisted of both service and leisure activities.

“We got to work at the environmental school, so we got to help them grow crops,” Tran said. “They taught us how to properly garden, and we even got to learn about their hydroelectric program. We also went to a private island and went snorkeling and water rafting.”

Tran was also able to make friends with of the people at the environmental school.

“There was this guy, Marcus, who nicknamed me China, and got everyone else to call me it too,” Tran said. “I tried to tell them that I was actually Vietnamese, not Chinese, but they wouldn’t believe me. I had to pull out a map and show them where Vietnam was before they actually believed me that I wasn’t Chinese.”

Overall, the trip had a great impact on Tran.

“It showed me that I don’t always need to have technology, and that I should care more for the environment,” Tran said. “Mostly it showed me that I’m very fortunate to have what I have.”