Traveling the World? What Do You Want to See? One Family's Global Education

Dr. Jessie Voigts's picture

It is with great, great pleasure that I share with you a remarkable story and video. It comes from Alex Berger, a friend and fellow international educator, who runs a fantastic site called Virtual Wayfarer (here's our interview with him!). He's also shared his study abroad experiences with us - and now, his extraordinary worldschooling adventures with his family.

Talk about inspiration...and an incredible family that truly gets international education - and lives it!

 Traveling the World? What Do You Want to See? One Family's Global Education

Here's an introduction to the video by Alex...take a look...

It was with some shock and disbelief that I received the news that we’d be renting our house and leaving everything behind for 11 months.  There wasn’t much warning. I didn’t really know what to expect, and at the age of 11, I’m not sure you even really properly understand what a trip 11 months long could possible entail. I vaguely remember thinking it was the end of the world and a grand new adventure.  At a certain level I think it felt like I was moving, more or less never to see my friends again.

Yet, I also remember the conversations and excitement when my parents asked me what I wanted to see. Castles of course. Greece with its grand mythology. Temples. Battlefields. Medieval cities! That, and a wealth of fishing wherever possible. Beyond that?  I had no idea.

One thing, however, is for certain as I sit here re-listening to this interview and reminiscing on that wonderful adventure 20 years ago. It was one of the greatest adventures of my life and an incredible gift that not only paved the way for the person I’ve become, but which still continues to pay dividends and helps me enrich my understanding of the world on a daily basis.

In this video I sit down with Ed and Jo Berger – dad and mom – and we discuss topics as a family that we’ve never talked about before.  These cover the decision to make the trip, how they made it a reality, how they educated my 8 year-old brother and me, their concerns, their fears, and the impact on our relationships across the board.

 

Read more: http://virtualwayfarer.com/we-discovered-the-world-together-rtw-family-travel-20-years-later/

And: http://edwardfberger.com/

 

 

Photo courtesy and copyright Alex Berger