Since 2006, the North Cobb School for International Studies (NCSIS) magnet program has held both international and local tours for NC magnet students, traveling between five continents. The international aspect of the magnet program has allowed countless students the opportunity to immerse themselves in various cultures and showcase their desire to pursue international internships in college. During NC’s spring break, the magnet freshman class of 2027 traveled to Spain visiting major cities for their traditional freshman trip.
“My favorite part of the trip was probably all of the different and historic architecture and infrastructure in Spain compared to the US. They had many very tall cathedrals in each of the cities as well as other buildings and ruins that have been preserved all this time,” magnet freshman William King said.
To kick off the trip, the travelers began in Barcelona and journeyed through Zaragoza up to the Spanish capital, Madrid, and ended in Toledo, Spain. The students spent two days in Barcelona walking around local towns and visiting unique monuments and notable cathedrals. Not only did students visit the big city of Barcelona, but they also traveled to Catalonia and made a stop at a local beach and multiple scenic, photo-worthy areas.
Ending their time in Barcelona, students headed toward Madrid. While visiting the Spanish capital, students participated in a Flamenco lesson and then continued to a Spanish palace, taking pictures of the beautiful scenery. Throughout the palace, the freshman explored colossal rooms filled with historical paintings, dazzling chandeliers and elegant gold details surrounding the halls.
“For me, I had only been out of the country once and this being my first time in Europe, it was truly unique. The thin streets are all lined with apartment buildings and stores below them. It was definitely a different and exciting experience for me going from the US city and roads to European cities with little to no tall buildings and many bike lanes beside the roads,” King said.
The NC magnet program strives to utilize the students’ current curriculum in their magnet classes to connect to international travel. Recently, the freshman year magnet bundle class, which includes the AP Human Geography course, dove into unit six topics in which they learned about urban land use patterns. With this course, students connected their knowledge to the big cities of Barcelona and Madrid because they recently learned about Central Business Districts (CBD), in which Barcelona and Madrid emerged.
With the fast-paced, exciting scenic routes the class of 2027 took around Spain, students learned about popular historic monuments and Spaniard culture and tried native foods to spice up their taste buds. While the plane ride home left students and faculty in awe of the fond memories made in Spain, NC magnet awaits the summer 2024 Europe trips which include visiting Italy, Germany and various other countries accompanied by current freshman, sophomore and junior magnet students.
“I had an amazing experience on the trip, it was so much fun and I was sad we had to leave because I made so many amazing memories. We did a lot of tours, so we toured some cathedrals and the cities and lots of areas in town. My favorite part was that we got to do a Flamenco dance class and then watch a show which was so fun and I got to learn a lot,” magnet sophomore Elise Gallant said.
