Over April vacation, a group of students and our very own Señor Nickerson took a twelve-day trip to Spain and Portugal, exploring beautiful new historical sites and customs. Every year, Señor Nickerson organizes a trip with a group of students to a country overseas. Last year many students ventured to Amsterdam and Paris. This year their destinations were Spain and Portugal! As seen on the @winthroptravels Instagram page, this group saw so many amazing places, as well as bonded as they traveled together. They were able to visit places such as the Cathedral in Toledo as well as the Park Guell in Barcelona. The writers at The Viking Times were curious as to how the students and Señor Nickerson felt about the trip after they arrived home on Tuesday afternoon, so I went out to interview a couple students who attended the trip and Señor in order to learn more!

First off, Señor Nickerson was kind enough to give me a brief breakdown of their trip, the group they traveled with, and his feelings about how the trip went. Señor shared that he was very happy with this group of students, saying: “they did a very good job and there was no drama, which is always key.” Señor also shared that the weather was fantastic and the group was “a good mix of fifteen juniors and five seniors.” Señor Nickerson explained that the entire group seemed to get along very well. He even shared with us that his wife “said it was her favorite group that we have ever traveled with.” Señor Nickerson shared that his favorite part, having visited Spain many times before, is “seeing it through the student lens.” He says that he believes that the students got a lot out of the trip.  Lastly, Señor shared that, for the most part, the students were “pretty adventurous with the food” and “many were willing to try to speak the Spanish which was a key part for me.”

Then, I asked Ben Prew, Zineb Belghiti, and Señor Nickerson what their favorite place was that they visited during their trip. Ben Prew said that his favorite destination was Lisboa. He explains that “it had a great combination of a lot of different cultures as well as a lot of history.” Zineb Belghiti said her favorite destination was Barcelona. She said that this city “had an ocean but also was a city, and was very modern but also had old bones.” Señor Nickerson shared that his favorite destination was Toledo, Spain. He says that he “love(s) the cathedral” and “the aerial views.”

Next, I asked Ben and Zineb why they chose to go on this trip. Ben explains that he had “never been to Europe before and have always wanted to go to Spain and Portugal, so the decision was a no-brainer.” He says that the trip was a blast! Ben explained that “in just eleven days, we saw so much of Iberian culture.” Zineb said that she just simply wanted to travel and knew it would be fun! She explained that she “wanted to be immersed into a new culture and learn new things.”

Lastly, I asked Señor Nickerson why he chose to travel to Spain for this year’s trip. Señor shared that the school hadn’t been to Spain since 2019 because of Covid, but would have most likely visited it earlier. He explains that these trips are “an opportunity for students that have been taking the language for a few years to put their knowledge to use,” which is why they are tentatively planning for Italy next year or in coming years as that language has begun to be offered at Winthrop High School.

Thank you to Señor Nickerson, Zineb, and Ben for answering my questions and sharing more details about your trip with us! If this article is sparking your interest for future trips, ask Señor Nickerson for more details on how to start planning for next year’s adventure! I am definitely jealous of the students who got to go on this beautiful trip and am officially adding Spain to places I want to visit! Thank you for reading- and always remember to put yourself out there and try to experience new things!