Spanish Club Off To See Another Side of NYC

02/04/2010

By Laura Haarer and Emily O'Brien
Staff Writers

Photo courtesy of shkbuzz.wordpress.com

In-the-heights-7991071

The Spanish Club will travel to New York City to experience Hispanic culture on April 16-17. While there, they will take authentic salsa dance lessons and tour a Hispanic neighborhood. The trip will also include a guided tour, in Spanish, of Central Park, eating at Spanish restaurants, discovering the Hispanic Society of America in Harlem, visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and more. Members of other Spanish classes will also travel with the club.

"We're [also] trying to get a tour of the new Yankee stadium," said Spanish teacher and Spanish club adviser Ms. Passage, who organized the trip. Perhaps the most anticipated event is seeing "In The Heights," a Broadway musical about Dominican-American, Cuban-American, and Puerto-Rican-American culture in New York City. The play also features popular Disney star Corbin Bleu.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the Broadway musical and becoming a part of the Latino culture in New York City," said junior Joseph Hall, secretary of Spanish Club.

Srta. Passage would like for the students to be speaking Spanish as much as possible, and freshman Emily Fitzgerald and junior Kelsey Cook are some of the many who are willing to try.

"I need to improve because I'm not so smooth with my Spanish, so it will help me," said Cook.

So far, about 30 students are signed up for the trip, and there are roughly 10 spots left. The cost is $350, which also includes the bus trip, Broadway ticket, a night in a hotel, and all meals. One way students raised money was through a poinsettia sale fundraiser.
"The timing [of the fundraiser] was really good with the holidays so we raised a lot of money," said Hall.

Hall thinks that the trip will be a neat experience. "It's a pretty diverse group in terms of grades and social groups," said Hall. "The more you practice you have with the foreign language, the more accustom you become to that particular language," he said.

Anyone who is interested in going on the trip but isn't signed up already is encouraged to see Srta. Passage.