2019 • East Coast Trip
April 14, 2019 to April 19, 2019
The 2018-2019 school year was my first year teaching at San Benancio, and, of course, I was a chaperone for the 2019 East Coast trip! The trip in 2019 only visited the Washington area and New York City, but it was a great time for everyone who went. We started in Washington, and our hotel was a way out of the city, close to Baltimore, but that did not stop us from enjoying almost everything our capital city offers! We started in DC by visiting the memorials around the Reflecting Pool: the World War II, Lincoln, Korean War, and Vietnam War Memorials. But that wasn’t all! We then went to the US Capitol Building, went inside the Library of Congress, visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum, went to some of the Smithsonian Museums, stopped outside of the White House, and then, finally, visited the memorials along the Tidal Basin. Again, a busy day! The next day, we spent most of our time in Virginia, starting at George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate. It was a beautiful day, and we were able to spend a little time on the bluff overlooking the Potomac River. Afterward, we went to the 9/11 Memorial at the Pentagon, then Arlington National Cemetery, and saw the changing of the guard, and then the Marine Corps (Iwo Jima) Memorial. Finally, in the evening, we saw the Giants take on the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park back in DC.
After leaving DC, we loaded a coach to New York City. Upon arriving in the city, our coach left, and the rest of the time in the city would be spent on foot and by subway! While walking around the city, we saw the establishing shot for the Friends TV show, went to Washington Square Park, walked through Little Italy and Chinatown, and ended up at the top of the Empire State Building. The next day, we spent a fair amount of time in Lower Manhattan. We went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, went on a Lower Manhattan walking tour, and went inside the 9/11 Memorial Museum. While on Liberty Island, we realized that a student had left their backpack (with medication) back on the dock in Lower Manhattan, leading to a bit of a chaotic moment with Ms. Fields having to take the boat back and find the backpack! Later in the evening, half of the group saw Aladdin, and the other half saw the Mean Girls musical and spent a little time in Times Square. Finally, to end the trip, we spent some time in Midtown and Central Park. Later on, on the last day, we went to the airport, exhausted but happy that we went on this incredible trip!
