Eurotrip22: Twas the night before travel....

My last post was two months ago.  I can't believe how quickly those two months have passed.  Honestly, with everything we've been through over the past two years, I am actually shocked at how quickly time moves in general. When Covid first hit, it shut down a trip to Central Europe.  We had twelve students signed up for that one.  One of those students is joining us tomorrow.  I hope she feels the same excitement as I do. I also hope it seems the time has passed faster, now that we are looking backwards.

By this time tomorrow, we should be en route over the Atlantic.  29 students and 5 chaperones.  We are headed to two places that I care about deeply.  France started my international travel when I was a junior at Saugus High School and Italy started my career, lol, as an international tour guide for my students.  I didn't run that trip, but it was still my first time traveling with students and helping them to see the world.

I have a motto that I use to think about travel.  It comes from Mark Twain, he wrote "One Must Travel To Learn."  I have truly tried to embrace that philosophy and to teach that lesson to the students in my classroom and to those who travel the world with me.  I try to stay humble and to show gratitude and in this initial blog for Eurotrip22, I want to do both...I'd like to thank Kevin Fontanella for starting international travel at SHS.  I also want to thank Angela Morando for setting the highest of standards for all of us teachers who have embarked on similar journeys.  Together, SHS teachers have taken hundreds of kids to four continents and over twenty-five countries.  This would not be possible without strong advocates of student travel who have sat, and continue to sit, on our School Committee.  It would also not be possible without the continued support of our administration over the years.  Many folks don't realize that I am the teachers' union president for Saugus...these folks and I don't agree on everything, but we all agree that One Must Travel to Learn.  For the support these people, collectively, have shown over the years, I say thank you.

The Saugus High School Alumni Association is among our strongest supporters.  Over the years, their generosity has selflessly touched the lives of thousands of SHS students.  For me, a proud alumnus of the Class of 95, I am eternally grateful for their help in providing sweatshirts, raincoats, dry wick t-shirts, and other forms of support over the years.  Their donations have helped me keep track of our travelers in busy Metro cars, along bustling Flower Markets, and even on Mediterranean Cruise Ships.  They don't just agree that One Must Travel To Learn; they make it happen on a regular basis.  Also helping us, is so many ways, are the folks at Old School Apparel.  They've given me price breaks and dealt with my scatterbrain every winter that we've traveled.  Their commitment to quality and their community is unmatched.  Every time I go into their offices, I see a printout of one of our shirts hanging proudly on their wall.  They make my vision a reality.  If One Must Travel To Learn, these folks make us look good while we are doing it.

Tomorrow, I am the luckiest teacher in the United States...which is ironic because we will be leaving the United States, lol.  I get to show 29 students that the world is filled with much more good than bad...and my, do we need that lesson right now.  I will show them how to order ice cream in the shadows of the Eiffel Tower or which Gelato is the best (it's pistachio, btw).  I am sure that more than a few of them will order a Doner Kebab near St. Michel or laugh a little at the ancient graffiti in the Coliseum or Pompeii.  They will gasp in awe at famous landmarks and wonder how people without the technological advances of today could build such things.  For many, the Vatican museum and the Louvre will be their first exposure to art hanging on the wall.  I can't wait to show them favorites and hear why certain pieces are theirs.  We will stumble over French and Italian phrases, but we will succeed in meeting people from far away places.  We will be reminded that goodness exists in the eyes and smiles of those whose language is foreign to our ears.  Tomorrow, I get to travel to learn with some of the best our town has to offer.  I don't take this responsibility lightly...It has become a passion project of mine.

It's about 10pm in Saugus.  I'll most likely buy the wifi on the plane (if available) and post again tomorrow evening, but my next big post, with pictures and all of the flare will probably be from Rome and roughly 10pm local time.  I hope that this blog will continue to show folks back in Saugus what we do while on tour and how it is so much more than just a trip.  I have a bit of a tradition, in the sense that I sign off each night with a statement explaining where in the world I am...hence the name of this blog.  In reality, I am all over the place tonight...lol.  I am just making sure that I don't forget anything...I hope you'll understand.  Please read the blog each night, share it with family and friends, and feel free to comment. I will be posting pictures via Instagram and Facebook and the kids have convinced me to give TikTok a try.  The accounts are below...

Mr. Lavoie, currently packing his bag one final time and trying to explain to his pup that he isn't going away forever!

Instagram: MrLavoieSHS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/lavoie76

Twitter: History01906

TikTok: OneMustTravelToLearn