Over Fall Break, Brenau students were given the opportunity to travel up to New York City for their vacation! 44 students went on the trip along with some of our favorite teachers and got the chance to experience the Big Apple! They got to visit some amazing museums, see Times Square, and visit other ideal New York destinations. The group did run into a few bumps along the way- their bus broke down several times! “Apparently, the battery died and we were stranded in a Bojangles parking lot for about 6 hours, although I slept through most of it,” says Rebecca Kendrick, a sophomore at Brenau.
The group got to see Times Square, Central Park, the Statue of Liberty, and the 9/11 Memorial Museum among a variety of other interesting attractions. “I loved the free time we had,” says Rebecca. “The Jewish deli we ate at was amazing! The knish (a potato stuffed Jewish pastry) was delicious!”
Mary Rose Gibson thought differently about her favorite part of the trip. “I would have to choose between seeing Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, or exploring places like Times Square and Wall Street,” she said. “There were so many amazing places!”
I would have also loved to have gone, but my conundrum was that the money for this trip was due at the same time that Brenau tuition was due, so it was a one over the other kind of deal. Perhaps a tip for Brenau next time: Try to advertise the trip sooner and make the money for the trip due after Brenau starts. More people would have been able to attend if this had been the case.
Another suggestion would be to provide more time for independent exploration. “More free time would be a must,” Rebecca insisted. “A longer time there would also be great. I didn’t have nearly enough time at the Met or at Times Square to explore everything that I wanted to.”
Nevertheless, students still had a great time. “I really enjoyed the trip because of everything I learned,” said Rebecca. “There are such different living conditions than there are in Gainesville, and the New World Trade Center is so amazing to see in person. I also learned that the inside of the Statue of Liberty is hollow and that the newer and older historic part are laid out and built differently, which is amazing to see in real life. I am so glad that I went on this trip to New York with Brenau.” As for the future, she said, “I think it would be nice to go to San Francisco next.”