Wanderlust (noun): A strong desire to travel. Students who identify with this term may include those who have participated in school-sponsored trips to China, France, the Dominican Republic, or Costa Rica. Of all the community members who were interviewed, none spoke of the experience as a negative one. The feeling is unanimous: both students and faculty at Wilmington Friends School agree that summer trips abroad serve to strengthen one’s appreciation for a language, as well as to enhance the sense of community that students and faculty alike care for so deeply. The trips provide students with a unique opportunity to completely immerse themselves in a new culture, while simultaneously serving the newfound community, and creating relationships that are unlike any other.

    Few people are able to say they have an entire family across the ocean. When asked about why she stays in touch with her host family in France, Sarah Balick ’17 replied, “They were just so nice to me and very welcoming. I knew to expect that, but it was still so nice to experience.” In addition to reflecting on her good fortune with her host family, Balick also describes some of the things that made her trip worthwhile. She remembers that, “A lot of the trip was spent talking about the history and social norms, but it was really interesting to be immersed in a culture I was unfamiliar with.” Balick expanded even further on this idea, recalling that, “Culturally, it was like  nothing else that I’d ever experienced before,” while also recognizing the social adjustments she had to make while there. She found it, “kind of difficult because you had to be very sensitive so you wouldn’t accidentally offend people,” but ultimately Balick felt that she “enjoyed being part of a culture and family that was different and new.”  The appreciation students have for these trips is undeniable, but part of what makes them so valuable is the fact that teachers agree on their significance, and just as wholeheartedly.

       The value and love for these trips is echoed across the board, and the memories from these trips could make anyone else feel as if they have missed out. Bradey Bulk, who teaches French and chaperones the trip to France, seemed to be lost in a wave of good memories as she spoke about her experiences with the trip. Bulk described how the trips gives students an opportunity to pair the things they’ve learned in class with real-life experiences, saying that she loves, “watching the kids discover all the things I’ve talked to them about and prepared them for.” Bulk also describes how students discover more than just culture on the trips – they also discover a new sense of confidence: “I love to see how nervous they are as they first go to their host families and then how comfortable they become after only a day with them.” It seems that with the development of confidence comes the development of a go-with-the-flow attitude. When asked about the most memorable moment of any trip she’s been on, Bulk responds with, quite possibly, the most appropriate answer out there. She notes that, “Every day is really good, you never know what you’re going to run into. Who can predict that you’ll come across a parade in the middle of the city, or a concert in a park? I couldn’t possibly choose a particular moment.” Getting even more picturesque than that, Bulk declared that one of the the only downsides to the trip is that it is too short.

     In all respects, it is clear that summer trips abroad do more than just expose students to a new culture. They also allow students to add depth and create context for the material they have learned in class, and lay the foundation for relationships that will continue to grow throughout the years to come.