As Ian Feagler, senior, prepared for the summer of 2017, one of the thing that was on his list was packing for his trip to Spain.

Feagler, along with nine other students and two chaperones, spent 14 days this past summer in northern Spain. This group traveled to many cities, including Barcelona, Bilbao, Santander, and Logroño.

“We did a lot of sightseeing which was awesome,” Feagler said. “I enjoyed Madrid a lot. We were there during the pride festival and that was an interesting experience because there were all sorts of celebrations going on.”

During their time in Logroño, the student spent five days with a host family.

“You improve just by being around and being immersed in a culture that is completely Spanish-speaking,” Feagler said. “You learn by necessity, especially when it comes to the family stay.”

Ms. Andrea Sebenaler and Mr. Erik Thompson, World Language, were the two adult chaperones. Sebenaler has been on seven student trips, but this was her first time in northern Spain.

“Usually when people go to Spain, they think [of] the south of Spain, because that’s what the stereotypes of Spain are: whitewashed building, flamenco music, the culture of the south, the Alhambra in Granada, and some famous things like that. But this time we went north,” Sebenaler said.

This trip allowed the student to see Spain in a new light.

“It was a really great experience to see how different everything was. I wasn’t prepared for the difference that we would see,” Feagler said. “I would spending hours just talking with the guy about prevalent cultural differences between Spanish and American families, but it was also cool to see that there are some universal truths to the family system.”