Yesterday we started the tour with a visit of the Capitol Building. The sun was already shining and everybody had a good mood. The building was huge and beautiful. Our guide Mia told as a lot about the Capitol.

After that, we walked to the Library of Congress. First, we had to go through a security check and then we entered the wonderful lobby. We got to see the Gutenberg bible and the book collection of Thomas Jefferson. We also saw the Supreme Court Building, which unfortunately was under construction.

The Capitol Building

Joking around--Frederico (Italy), Andrea (Mexico), Laura (Finland),
Dani (Mexico), Isa (Mexico) and Tim (Germany) 

Group shot in front of the Capitol!

Library of Congress

After Supreme Court Building we went to the White House to catch up with B. J  The White House seemed smaller than we thought for the first sight, but when we got to see it from the other side, the house was overwhelming. All around the White House were police men standing. The flag on the top of the roof gave us the hint that the president Obama was in the house.

Group shot in front of B's house

We went to the Arlington cemetery to the see the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We arrived just in time to see the ceremony where the members of Honor Guard changed the wreath and then we saw the changing of the guards. It was really impressive. We also saw the grave site of John F. Kennedy and his family. The eternal flame was placed on it and it was really touching.

Changing of the guards at Arlington Cemetery

Over 400,000 soldiers are buried here  

Everybody was hungry when we drove to the National Mall, where we had time for lunch and visit Smithsonian’s museums. The mall was huge and a lot of people were enjoying the sun and beautiful day. We had our lunch at a pretty French café with a beautiful fountain. Our group went to see the original Constitution of the U.S. and the Bill of Rights at the National Archives. We also went to the Air and Space Museum. There was also time for a little nap in the middle of the National mall and some of us got sun burned!

Map of the National Mall

Finally we arrived after a short drive to Georgetown where we had some time to shop before our original American BBQ dinner. The streets of Georgetown were the cutest ones so far on this trip. The dinner was really delicious and the perfect ending for this unforgettable trip. We are so glad that we chose to come to this trip. We met awesome people from all over the world and made friendships which last forever!

Xoxo,

Laura (Finland) and Olivia (Switzerland)

Today was ours first day in Washington DC.

We started our tour at the Lincoln Memorial where we met our tour guide Mia. She showed us many memorials including Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson and Martin Luther King JR and also the war memorials from the Vietnam and Korean war. We ended our tour with the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial after that we headed to the mall where we got some lunch and some time to shop some souvenirs and other stuff.  

Lincoln Memorial

Washington Monument in the distance 

Group shot (almost) at the Lincoln Memorial

Vietnam Veteran's Memorial  

At around 3 pm we went to Mount Vernon where we saw how George Washington lived and how he became the founder of the United States of America. We walked into the cemetery where we saw George Washington’s grave. After we watched an interesting movie in a theatre where it snowed and then we met at the souvenir shop. 

Group shot at GW's house!

After an endless walk of 2 minutes we arrived at our restaurant--the Mount Vernon Inn Restuarant! After the dinner we took the bus back to the hotel.

me (Germany), Hayuru (Japan), Robert (Germany) and Guillem (Spain)

Stephanie (Australia), Pia (Germany), Olesya (Russia), Selen (Japan),
Kat (Belgium) and  Oleksandra (Ukraine)

Olivia (Switzerland), Dani (Mexico), Isa (Mexico), Andrea (Mexico), Frederico (Italy)
Laura (Finland) and Tim (Germany)

Afranio (Brazil), Varisara (Thailand), Mimi (Thailand) and Tee (Thailand)

     We are looking forward to our last day in DC!

---Louis (Germany) and Guillem (Spain)

Hey everyone, my name is Kat and I’m from Belgium.

This morning was a little bit sad (leaving New York and half of our group behind) but also exited. We left with a group of 21 students to Philadelphia. After a bus ride of 2 hours, we stopped at Reading Terminal. This is a food court where you can find dishes from all over the world. I was so happy when I found a Dutch eating place.

After lunch, we went on to the National Constitutional Center. We first listen to a presentation about how America became independent. After this we could explore the museum a little bit more. We also got a little tour through Philadelphia, first by foot, then by bus. It was very interesting to see the possible birth place of America, Ben Franklin’s grave, the Liberty bell, and many others.

The Constitutional Center

Our group in front of the Liberty Bell

Olesya (Russia), Selen (Japan), Stephanie (Australia), Pia (Germany)
and me (Belgium) in front of the Philly skyline

City Hall

For dinner we went to a little restaurant, where some of us tried the famous Philly cheese steak. Afterwards we all got a lovely dessert, ice cream with caramel and a Danish cookie.

Now we are on our way to Washington DC, ready to go to bed. And I can’t wait till tomorrow!

Me and Lady Liberty

My name is Sarita Niyomphan. I am from Thailand. I went to the New York trip! 

It was an awesome trip because New York City is the city that everyone wants to come because of Time Square, Central Park, Museums, the Statue of Liberty, Broadway, United Nations and the famous Brooklyn Bridge. We learn a lot of histories of building. Friends in this trip are very friendly. We meet many exchange students all around the world.

Group shot (almost!) at Pier 17

At the United Nations

Pannaporn and me outside the UN

Today is my birthday! They surprised me by singing happy birthday in the restaurant. I was so happy that I celebrated my sweet 16 in New York City. That was so awesome! Finally I would like to say thank you to the coordinator of this trip. They took care of us so. Thank you so much. I love this trip. I will not forget this time in my life!

Hola, chicos! We are four girls from Spain and Mexico and we just finished our second day in New York City!

To start the day, we went to the Empire State Building. Feeling on top of the world we took pictures and enjoyed a place where you can listen to a thousand different languages around you because everybody can enjoy this view. From the 86^th floor you can see a little version of the Statue of Liberty and understand why we all love ‘the city that never sleeps.’

On top of the world!

Afterwards, we visited Grand Central Station and its famous ceiling where you can see stars in a very different way. A little bit of free time for lunch and a walk through 5^th Avenue. We all shop in Prada and Lous Vuitton (we wish!) and then we get to the bus. Destination: the Brooklyn bridge!

Grand Central Station

We get out of the bus in the financial district. Learning a little bit of history around Wall Street we walked around the most famous places and spent some time trying to understand how 9/11 really was. We will come back in a couple years to see that awesome memorial finished, we’ll see you there!

Rubbing the Bull for good luck! (Andrea, me, Isi and Dani)

Where it all happens...

1.3 miles of Brooklyn bridge. The view and our pictures were worth all that walking.

Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge

Group shot with our guide, Garret!

Bus time again and new destination: Soho! The place where the whole world shops! We walked around for two hours. Spending time with our new friends we were feeling like a real New Yorker.

We met at 7:30. Time for dinner! Chinatown is amazing. You will feel like you are in China just a couple blocks away from Soho. A really fun dinner spending more and more time with our friends from all around the world and we were ready to come back.

A lot of walking and a lot of fun, some singing in the bus and we were back in the hotel. It was such and awesome day that we will never forget. Looking forward for an awesome day tomorrow too!

---Paula (Spain), Dani (Mexico), Isi (Mexico) and Andrea (Mexico)

Whooohooooo Day 1 in New York, and making it extra special it was my 18^th birthday!!!! Today as absolutely crazy, we began the day with a lovely breakfast of sausages, eggs and orange juice, then it was quickly onto the bus for the beginning of a crazy day.

We met up with our tour guide Garrett, at the New York Public Library. We were freezing, standing in the shadow of the buildings, but very excited to be in the middle of New York City. Garrett led us to the Rockefeller Plaza, where we especially admired the LEGO store and the sculptures in front of NBC studios. By this point our hands were freezing so we jumped back on the bus and headed over to Central Park.

In Central Park we took a stroll through to the Boat House (featured in such movies as 27 Dressed and Enchanted.) It was exciting to see the variety of people relaxing in the park. We saw a man preparing to propose to his girlfriend and models taking photoshoots. Finally we stopped at strawberry fields, taking some cool photos around the ‘Imagine’ plaque.

Group shot in front of the library

From Central Park we drove around the city in our tour bus, seeing sights such as, 5^th avenue, Time Square, Harlem, Museum Mile, St John the Divine Cathedral (the largest cathedral in the Western Hemisphere), Columbia University  and ending up at The Village for lunch.

After lunch we went to the Metropolitan Museum. Having only 2 hours, we sped through the exhibits, attempting to see as many of the 2,000,000+ artworks as we could. The Egyptian exhibit was particularly impressive, with whole tombs on display and the European students enjoyed searching for painting from their home countries.

Our final stop for the day was to Alvin Ailey’s New York Dance Studio, where we participated in a hip Hop class. By this point in the day everyone was very tired, but we gave it our best effort. We learnt some popping, tutting and slapping, ending the class with learning how to ‘Dougie’. The instructor was great and very energetic.

Finally for dinner we made it to the Hard Rock Café at Time Square! We enjoyed our long awaited dinner of cheeseburgers and Caesar salads and taking a look around at the cool displays within the restaurant.

For the last treat of the day, we had an hour of free time in Time Square. Dazzled by the lights we dashed around, trying to take in as much as we could. One particular favourite store was the giant three level M’n’M store. After taking 1 million photos of all the lights and screens in Time Square, we wearily headed for the bus to take us back to our wonderful hotel. 

Pia (Germany), Kat (Belgium), Trina (Norway), me, Oleksandra (Ukraine) and Selen (Japan)

Today was amazing, probably my best birthday ever, I especially enjoyed getting to dance at Alvin Ailey’s studio and my special birthday dessert at the Hard Rock Café.  It’s been great getting to know everyone and hear about both their own countries and their experiences here in America. Hope the rest of the week is just as amazing as today was!!! :D goooooooood night

---Stephanie, Australia

WELCOME TO THE NEW YORK CITY, PHILLY & DC TRIP BLOG!

This will be our day-to-day journal... each day, you'll get news, information and pictures from the students. Join us on our adventure!

Get ready for a week in the exciting cities of New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC!! 
The trip will be starting out in the great city of New York! There is no place like it in the world! A nice walk in Central Park, shopping in the cool and modern neighborhood of Soho, exploring the ritzy Upper East Side…the possibilities are infinite!

Continuing on to Philadelphia- we will see American history come to life! We will explore the National Constitution Center, see where the Declaration of Independence was signed –even try one of Philly's famous delicacies, the “Philly Cheesesteak”.
 

Next, we will head to Washington DC – the nation's capitol. Here, we will explore the many monuments and memorials in this important city! Enjoy an afternoon on the Smithsonian Museum campus, visit the quaint neighborhood of Georgetown, explore the life of George Washington on his Mt. Vernon estate…and more!

Join us on this journey through three of America's most vibrant, exciting, and historical cities!

Have Fun!!!