Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures Custom Group program!

Here are a few things you can expect:

1. We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
2. Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
3. Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.

For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.

-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team

---

Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures Custom Group program!

Here are a few things you can expect:

1. We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
2. Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
3. Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.

For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.

-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team

---

Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures Custom Group program!

Here are a few things you can expect:

1. We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
2. Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
3. Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.

For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.

-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team

---

Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures Custom Group program!

Here are a few things you can expect:

1. We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
2. Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
3. Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.

For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.

-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 20

Hello from Spain. We arrived at 11 20 am at the Madrid airport and the GLA staff was waiting for us with two big buses. We were organized in 4 pods and followed our mentors to the bus located in a big parking lot. The drive to the hotel was short. We unloaded the bus and brought our suitcases to the hotel, but first lunch. It was a buffet lunch with a lot of different food. We ate a lot!

After lunch we had the orientation and our mentors gave us our bedroom keys. We were able to go upstairs and our rooms, brought our luggage and got ready for the second activity of the day. One group of students when to downtown for a great city tour of Madrid and the other group went to the “Bull Ring” to learn a lot about this Spanish tradition that has some followers and some opponents.

We had a very sunny day and we were able to see how Spanish people like to sit on coffee shops and restaurants to have their lunch or coffee outside on parks and sidewalks. It is a very friendly city, lots of signs and broad streets.

We hope you enjoy our pictures! Tomorrow we will have a busy day visiting Museo del Prado and the Royal Palace.

Thanks for the checking out the blog for this Global Leadership Adventures Custom Group program!

Here are a few things you can expect:

1. We typically receive 2-3 blog posts per week here at GLA Headquarters from our program staff and students, so please don’t be alarmed if you don’t see a blog post daily – that’s totally normal.
2. Blog updates sent on weekends may not be posted until Monday.
3. Due to many factors, including but not limited to internet accessibility, photos may not always be available to post onto the blog. Sometimes onsite program staff are only able to send text back to Headquarters, where our team updates the blog.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, and we hope you enjoy following along on these unforgettable adventures.

For frequently asked questions about the blogs, please visit our Program Blog FAQ page.

-The Global Leadership Adventures HQ Team

---

Click here to jump down to the most recent post!

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 7

Day 1: Arrival at Rome! Ciao Roma! We made it to Italy!

Benvenuto a Roma! Our 10th graders have touched down in Rome, Italy. The GLA staff met us right when we walked out of customs at the airport, and we immediately were on our way to an afternoon in Rome. We walked through the city center where we crossed one of the oldest bridges in the city to see Tiber Island. Then we walked through a park where we played a game of “Speed Friending.” We ate traditional margherita pizza (yum!) for lunch and panna cotta (not a favorite). After lunch, we met the two guides that took us on a city tour through some very iconic building in Rome, Fontana di Trevi, Spanish steps, and fantastic building and obelisks created by famous Italian architects. We started practicing a couple of words through the tour that will be useful during the stay. We left the guides with a friendly “Ciao” and went back on the bust to get to the hotel.

After we came back to the hotel, we were able to check into our rooms. At 5 30 pm, we met with Francesco, the hotel chef and we learned about authentic Italian recipes starting with Pasta a la Carbonara, breaded veal, and an amazing and delicious Tiramisu. Two students were accompanying Francesco with the preparations.

Lasagna, chicken and salad were available for dinner. We met later on for an Orientation to go over agreements, behavior expectations, health and hygiene and the schedule. We have to be ready for a great day in the city tomorrow, lots of walking and learning about Roma and its history.

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 8

Written by Fermin, Dorian, Jelianny & Kim

Today we woke up at 7:30, some of us were tired from our 10 hours flight the day before and the little tour of the city of Rome that we had. We were surprised with a “bellisimo” breakfast, we were served with an amazing variety of croissants, then we hopped on the bus at 8:30 to explore more of the ancient city of Rome.

First, we went to explore the Colosseum and learn history from our observations. We were asked later about one thing we learned from the Colosseum, in which there was active participation. Then, we went to an amazing restaurant in which we were served a lovely pizza and original Coca-Cola.

After lunch, we took a walk to a local Gelato spot. Students then got to sit and eat the gelato for a few minutes. Then we took a 10 minute walk to the Roman Forum. From there students splitter up into groups and took a one hour and a half tour of the Forum. From there, the group walked back to the bus, and made their day to the hotel. Students ate some pasta and hanged out with their friends. Before we called lights out, we had a meeting about what it means to be in a community and how we can maintain a happy community!

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 9

Staff member Becca here!

We’ve had a LONG travel day so I am chiming in to update all of you families out there :). Today we had an early wake up call and rushed over to Roma Termini to catch a high speed train to Milan. We got to see the beautiful Italian countryside as we sped by. Then we got off the train, grabbed some burgers for lunch and got on a bus. We had a change of plans so we got to ride the bus through Italy, Switzerland, and finally arrived in France.

On the bus, we saw the Swiss alps and the tallest mountain in the mountain range, Mont Blanc. The bus ride was 13 hours and we were VERY ready to check into the hotel. When we finally got there at 2am, we checked in and went straight to bed. We’re headed to the Louvre in the morning and then going to do a GLA activity in the afternoon. Au reviour!

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 10

Written by Hani and Madison

On March 10, 2023 the group of Atmosphere students participating in the GLA program visited the Louvre. We woke up at 7am and all the students got ready and made it to breakfast by 7:30 where we had a wonderful breakfast. It was our first day in Paris so we had our first Paris breakfast and the students were able to experience first hand what the people of Paris eat for breakfast. I personally loved the Baguette.

After breakfast the group made our way to the lobby at 8am and got on the bus for a 50-1hour ride to the Louvre. It was out first day in Paris so the students were able to observe and really take in all the monuments and people around us and see how it was different to our every day life.

On our way to the Louvre we were able to get a sneak peak of the Eiffel Tower, which made everyone extremely happy for the next day to come. Once we arrived at the Louvre everyone was very excited to be there but even more happy to see the Mona Lisa. We went inside and after packing all our stuff away safely we all made our way to the famous painting.

Everyone was extremely happy to see this work of art after hearing about it for so long and i think it completely lived up to their expectations. We went into pods and started to explore on our own the pod i was in we saw the Islamic are from 1000 -1600 Bc and we saw some of the most famous statues. after the Louvre we went to lunch at a local buffet. The food was very good and unique , i myself had some chicken and fries.

After lunch we went to buy stuff which was most likely the highlight of the day because a lady at the gift shop gave us everything 40% of just because we were American and then 5 min later the owner of the store gave us a bunch of keychains. Then we came back to the hotel and did an activity and went to sleep.😎

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 11

Written by Brian & DJ

Today we all went to the Eiffel tower and the view was amazing and in the elevator up we was all laughing at the fact that Roel Fermin DJ and Antionio got stuck in a elevator and we was on one so that was pretty funny and we all took pics on the Eiffel Tower. I also think that we all had fun on it whether or not you were taking pictures or if you were just enjoying the view. I think today was good vibes at the Eiffel Tower it was funny,Beautiful, and we got to do our own thing and just meet up it was just good overall.

We also went to the River Cruise, and it was super fun. we made new bonds today and we had a lot of fun waving at all the people. We also noticed all of architecture in Paris, the apartment building, government building and even how beautiful the Churches were. But the best we saw was definitely the bridges and how much detail was put into them and the realistic the carvings were but yea today was pretty great and PARIS WAS DEFINITELY EVERYONES FAVORITE!!!!!!!!!

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 13

Written by Gabriel, Aileen, Joselyn & Dylan

So today is Monday, March 13. We first woke up at 8 in the morning to get our luggages ready and to do our last arrangements and we also cleaned our rooms. We then had breakfast at 9. Today was our last in Paris and to be honest, I feel like we’re going to miss it because we might never come back to that beautiful city In years or we might never even go back.

We left the hotel at 11 to go have our last hours in Paris at the Arc of Triumph and we learned how the French thought this structure as a sign of triumph and victory in war specifically. We climbed the tiring stairs to reach the top of the arc but at the end, the work was all worth it. We viewed the beautiful landscape of Paris were we were able to see the Eiffel Tower and Notre dam.

We took some very spectacular photos of the view on top of the arc, we had so much fun and we hope this creates some long lasting memories for our group-mates. Some of the view looked like New York City and it remembered many of us of home which caused many of us to feel home sick. After this, we walked to the restaurant were we ate lunch, the restaurant had a variety of foods, I (Gabriel) chose the mashed potatoes, the turkey in gravy, the brown rice, and the mandarin dessert. The food was great.

Once we finished our lunch, we got on the bus which took us to the train station that would take us to London. We waited for the train for about two hours. During those two hours, the kind GLA staff gave each of us 15 euros to go get some dinner to eat. We really appreciate how kind the GLA staff have been and how they do their very best to make us have a great experience. Many of us later played foosball and we were having some competitive matches, we all had fun even the ones who lost.

We then took the train to London in which it took about 2 hours, our teachers gave us our phones during the long trip so that we wouldn’t get bored. Once we got off the train, we walked through the train station to get to the bus that took us to our hotel. We are now here at the hotel writing this blog, we are excited for tomorrow. We can say that this experience has been really good and we are very safe, we appreciate the school and GLA for this great opportunity. We now wait for our first day in London tomorrow. Good night. 😃👍🏽

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 14

Leaders of the Day: Steven, Janeisy, Kimberly, Kenneth

Students woke up here in London at 8:30am and had breakfast. We had a huge selection for breakfast! And baked beans! We then left at 10:00am to take the bus to the Tower of London, we took a tour and witnessed the Crown Jewels. At around 1:30pm, we then went to go eat lunch at Slug & Lettuce. There was a photo booth that a lot of us used to take pictures. Students then went to take a trip on an Uber Boat to the Tate Museum. This is the modern art museum and had some of the most famous paintings! Around 5:40pm we went to a Pub to go eat dinner. Students were fed fish and chips. After dinner students went to the hotel and had phone time until 9:30 pm and then went to sleep.

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 15

Scholars woke up at 8:00 AM to go downstairs to eat breakfast then at 9:00 AM scholars left to the bus. On the bus students took a guided tour of London with our tour guy named Mark.

We saw a lot of cool sites in the city of London. We then went to lunch.

After lunch, we went to an acting studio to do an acting workshop. We played games. We made an assembly line by acting and we would each act out the thing our group was making and the other group had to guess. It was a cool workshop we got to learn from real actors.

Then we went to the covet garden, we didn’t really explore it, but we were given the opportunity by GLA and our teachers to go to many stores and shop. An hour later we all came back in groups and talked to each other about our wonderful souvenirs. After we then walked to the bus and headed to dinner. All in all, we were served a very flavorful and juicy steak with potatoes and other wonderful vegetables, we all enjoyed it as family.

Afterwards, we all went to go and see the musical, Wicked! When we were there it was such an amazing experience. The reason being would be that while we were on our way we were able to soak in London city’s sights. When we arrived in the musical we all observed quietly and closely so we could take it all in. After the musical finished many were left crying and happy with the musical. It was an amazing day thank you for GLA for this amazing opportunity.

---

BLOG POST FOR MARCH 16

Today is our last day in London and on the trip. We woke up early and got on the bus to go to Oxford University. We were tired from the show the night before but very excited to see Oxford. We started with an audio tour through Christ Church which is a famous and old part of the university. The Queen has visited there and 13 prime ministers of England studied at this school. We also split into groups and got tour guides who showed us around some of the old campus.

When we finished the tour, we did an Appreciation Circle led by the GLA staff. We all got to share things we appreciated about each other and it made us think a lot and feel grateful for our new friends. We all had a big group hug and then we walked to tea. We went to a very old restaurant where we drank tea from tea cups and had proper tea time. We had sandwiches and sweets. Some of it was too sweet for us but it was cool to experience. Then we went home by bus and ate a great buffet dinner at the hotel. Some of us stood on the balcony after dinner and saw London at night. We are sad to leave but very excited to go home and eat our parents’ homecooking!!! Tomorrow is departure day so see you soon!