Fourteen Glen Rock High School students will embark on “el viaje a España” or “the trip to Spain” at the end of October.

This journey marks the first year that the Cultural Exchange Club will venture to Spain. Although the club usually takes a trip to the Czech Republic, this year they decided to go on a new expedition.

“They reached out to us and after many discussions with the adviser over at the Spanish school, we thought this would be a great opportunity to expand the program and add another country to our repertoire,” said Samara Fluster, head of the Cultural Exchange Club and trip chaperone. “With a lot of students taking Spanish in this school, it would be a benefit to those students,”

The students will stay in the homes of families that have agreed to host the students at the end of October. Although the specific itinerary is currently unavailable, the students remain hopeful that they will spend a day in a Spanish school and tour Barcelona.

While the group might “spend a day or two at the school” to start, that’s not all the trip entails.

“We’re planning to go sight-seeing to different points in Barcelona, because we’re not staying in Barcelona proper; we’re staying in another city. So we’re going to be taking day trips to different cites.” said Dina Plescia, co-chaperone and Spanish teacher.

Fluster continued, “We’re planning on going into Barcelona for a couple days, hopefully to a soccer game. We’re going to spend a little time, but not too much time, in their school – to experience what their education system is like, and we’ll experience the local culture and history of the town of Vic.”

Angelo Di Cori, a junior, is looking forward to applying his Spanish skills while spending time in Spain.

“Testing my Spanish to native Spanish speakers, and seeing how well they can understand it,” Di Cori said, explaining his excitement for the venture. Although Di Cori has taken Spanish courses for seven years, he’s unsure as to how well he can apply his Spanish skills. “Prepared? Not really. But I’m like a little excited, kind of anxious, and very curious.”

The trip includes visiting many cities including Vic, Montserrat, and Barcelona. If everything goes accordingly, the journey may become a bi-annual event. In the future, the price could fluctuate depending on whether the students stay at an inn or in the homes of host families. Included in the price is airfare, food, activities, and housing.

Last year, Glen Rock hosted foreign exchange students from the Czech Republic.

While on the excursion, Fluster hopes the students embrace other cultures while experiencing different food and etiquette than in the United States.

“I hope to learn the ways of the Spanish people in Spain. See how they act, for example in school. See what they do, if they act like us or unlike us, like try to see the differences between the two cultures,” Di Cori said.