Twenty-five upperclassmen will room with pen pals from Barcelona private school
By Sophia Howard
Over this February break, 25 students accompanied by Señora Silva-Lisa, Señora Lugo and Mr. Frasene will travel to Barcelona, Spain on an exchange trip. Seniors and juniors, all of whom have taken Spanish for five or six years, will be able to apply and further develop their Spanish speaking skills in Spain. Mamaroneck High School’s Language Department has sent many trips over school breaks to China and France, but this is the first time MHS is ever participating in a Spanish exchange experience. While in Spain, MHS students will be truly immersed in Spanish culture as they get to experience the country’s home-life and unique lifestyle.
MHS students were paired with Spanish “pen pals” from a private school in Barcelona who they will be living with during their entire stay in Spain. Prior to the trip, the students have been in contact with their pen pals in order to get to know a little more about each other.
The group leaves school the Friday before February break and will head to the airport to take an overnight flight. Upon arrival, they will immediately begin touring sites, visit el Museu Nacional de Art De Catalunya, Pueblo Español, get to experience the metro
and even take a flamenco class. Eventually, they will regroup and prepare to go to meet their host families.
Over the course of the week, MHS’s Spanish students will spend nights in their host family’s house, and mornings at school with their host. They will shadow their Spanish partner through all of their classes and receive a total of three hours of Spanish class a day. Every day after lunch, MHS students will separate from their Spanish host students for the afternoon. They will then meet with Señora Silva- Lisa, Señora Lugo and Mr. Frasene who will take them to continue to experience the extravagant city of Barcelona. Over the course of the week they will visit sites including, las Ramblas, la Boqueria, Barrio Gotico, Teleferico Montjuic and Sagrada Familia.
Clearly, this trip will be an incredible experience—a real way to apply what MHS students have already learned in school in a true Spanish setting. Meetings, emails and assignments of Spanish “pen- pals” have the students counting down the days. Mia Steinberg ’17, one of the students going on the trip, shared her thoughts about her excitement, “I can’t wait to travel to an amazing city with my friends and learn more about Spanish cul- ture.”
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