by Kat Cook
Students at East Lyme High School have been fortunate enough to do a bit of world travel - vacationing in Germany, France, Bermuda and Italy - but the Vikings have yet to travel to Asia.
Social studies teacher Alice Pembrook will be leading a three-week exchange trip to Thailand this summer. ELHS students will live with Thai host families, and next October, the Thai students will come to the United States and live with ELHS students.
"I want to give [students] an experiential view of the world," said Ms. Pembrook.
While the school has not yet decided how many students are eligible to go, the trip is open for all grades. It will cost $2,000, excluding air fare.
While the focus of the trip is simply immersion into the day to day Thai culture, students will be able to ride elephants, visit the open-air museum called "Ancient City," visit the Siam Cultural park, and even spend three days relaxing on a beach.
Senior Karen Hays was immediately interested in the program. "I love Thai food! Besides that, I thought it was a unique experience that I had never come across. I would love to experience an entirely new culture beyond what I am used to." For Hays, the most difficult aspect of such a trip would be living comfortably in another person�s home.
The exchange is part of the Thai� U.S.A. Student Cultural Exchange Program, which was established in 2005 by Superintendent Dr. Lombardo�s previous school. Dr. Lombardo introduced the concept to ELHS, and Ms. Pembrook, who has traveled to Thailand once before, was immediately interested.
"[Thailand] was awesome! I like the philosophical aspects of it. The Buddhist impact is significant. It presents a different picture of what's important," said Ms. Pembrook.
According to Ms. Pembrook, students do not need to take a crash course in Thai before going on the trip. While complete immersion may be daunting to some, Ms. Pembrook feels students will learn more of the language in Thailand than in the classroom.
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