This past spring break, a group of students from Southwest, including myself, went to Europe with Jon Linne as the coordinator and group leader. Social studies teacher, Matt Larkey, and past social studies teacher at Southwest, Robert Kohnert, tagged along as supervisors as well. The trip consisted of adventures in three different countries.

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The first country we visited was Italy. We flew into Milan and explored the city of Verona before we made our way to our main location, Venice. In Venice, we saw historic sites, such as St. Mark’s Basilica. We also got the opportunity to go on a gondola ride, which is an absolute must while visiting Venice. We also were able to travel by water taxi to the island of Murano and the island of Burano. We first went to Murano, which is known as the “glass blowing island.” What is there to do on “the glass blowing island?” See a glass blowing show, of course. Murano was a unique place to visit, I recommend going! The second island was Burano, an island with beautiful colored houses. I highly suggest visiting this place if you enjoy seeing diverse types of architecture. I’ve never seen houses so vibrant before. This island was very fun to explore, and I definitely want to go back. Our last day in Italy, before we crossed into the next country, we visited Lake Como and Bellagio. We went on an amazing boat excursion on Lake Como, which had so many beautiful sights to see. The boat brought us to Bellagio, a cute Italian island. After that, we got back on the boat to our bus and headed to the next country.

The next stop was Switzerland. We arrived at our hotel surrounded by the beautiful alps, a scenery I’ve never experienced before. I and many others on our trip were amazed. While in Switzerland, we took a cog ride up into the alps, ventured around the historical city of Lucerne, took a boat ride on Lake Lucerne, and got to explore on our own around the hotel. This was my favorite country we visited. I suggest everyone go visit at some point in their lives! “Switzerland was so pretty, I want to go back ASAP!” Bella Mathys (‘24) said.

Our last stop was France. We were in Paris for three days of our trip. I don’t think I’ve ever walked more in my life. We did a lot while we were there. On day one, we got free time to adventure around Paris; this was a fun way to get introduced to the city and get a feel for it. On day two, we got an educational tour of the city and its history, which was interesting to learn about. We also went to Montmartre that day, which I really enjoyed. On the third day, we visited the renowned Louvre art museum and then the Montparnasse Tower Panoramic Observation Deck, where we overlooked the entire city. To end the trip, we stayed in the city at night until the Eiffel Tower started its sparkling lights. That was my favorite part of Paris; the lights were incredibly lovely, and it was a wonderful way to cap off a wonderful journey. I feel very fortunate to have been able to experience that trip. Ava Sauser (‘25) said, “The trip was supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!”

Do you wish you could experience foreign countries with Linne like I did? Look no further as he is bringing another group to Europe next spring break! Anyone is welcome to look into it and register. If needed, scholarships are also offered. This is a great opportunity to travel the world and see various cultures while still in high school, so I strongly suggest doing it! For more information on next year you can scan the QR code below. You can also speak with Linne in person in room E101.