The best parts of traveling internationally is not only seeing new sights but experiencing different cultures. You can learn how people live, work, and play all around the globe. These kinds of experiences inform how you look at the world, build your empathy and understanding, and help you to learn more about yourself, while you’re at it.

Retreat. The word conjures visions of luxury and purpose. Ours was no different. Three of us headed for Shelter Cove on the lost coast of California. Christened the "Lost Coast" after a 1930s population drain, the name reflects the area’s difficult accessibility. Challenges posed by the steep coastal mountains prevented construction along this stretch of Pacific coast and forced Highway 101 to jut inland. Travelers overlook this 80 mile stretch of the most undeveloped and underexplored portion of the California coast.

Planning a school trip is a lot like coordinating a large-scale battle…

And you’ve got an army of a million troops… 

And a billion things are likely to go wrong…

And while you’re planning the trip, you’re expected to balance a beach ball on your head while spinning more plates than a professional plate spinner at the Plate Spinning Olympics. 

But when a school trip, whether it’s a day in the countryside or a week in Barcelona, goes off without a hitch, there’s no stopping the feeling of pride that’ll race in your heart. 

What comes to mind when you think of Thomas Jefferson? Third president of the United States, check.

Principal author of the Declaration of Independence? Sure.

Founding Father of the American Nation? Without a doubt.

Developer of ice cream recipes? Well…maybe not.

Great Family Vacation – American Factory Bound

Studying abroad is more than just a fun experience - it is a great opportunity to enrich yourself with lessons that you wouldn’t learn at home. It gives you a chance to learn not only in another culture, but the chance to learn about and immerse yourself in another culture as well.