A once in a lifetime opportunity in Spain

Traveling Tigers is a Wasco High School club that expands students' horizons through travel. This year a group of 26 students visited Spain.

Katie Moreno is the club advisor. She said she wanted to be the advisor because she loves to travel.

"I got to travel when I was in high school and college, and it just opened up my perception of the world."

Moreno has been an advisor since 2020 and has, in the past, taken students to Western Europe to visit London, Paris, Florence and Rome.

With their trip to Spain, the students spent five nights in Madrid, two nights in Barcelona and many day trips to Segovia, Toledo, El Escorial and Salamanca.

They visited the Prado Museum and the Real Madrid and Barcelona soccer stadium.

"We took a cooking class for authentic Spanish foods and a flamenco lesson where we watched a show afterward."

The group also toured the university in Salamanca, Spain's oldest university.

"We saw the ancient Roman aqueduct in Segovia and enjoyed a lot of fun time together having dinner every night, riding on the bus quite a bit and taking a bullet train from Madrid to Barcelona."

Moreno said they saw places that the students only have seen on TV. Next year she will take a group of students to Japan during spring break.

"We have just started taking sign-ups for July 2025, where we will visit Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic."

What Moreno loves most about the club is helping kids do something they might not have any other chance to do.

"I love that it creates the desire to continue to travel with these kids."

The trips usually cost around $4,000 for nine days of travel. There is fundraising all year long, and parents can make monthly payments.

"I encourage students to do as much fundraising as possible." she explained.

Moreno said the trips instill in the students a sense of pride and accomplishment, and just because they live in Wasco doesn't mean they are limited to traveling the world.

"The sky is the limit. A lot of the kids don't realize that it is even a possibility. Once they experience it, it's more likely that they will want to have more of those same experiences, whether it be for college or just for pleasure."

Student Penelope Jones has gone on two trips, with her first visiting London and Paris.

She said of her travels to Spain this year, "It was really fun. I got to go with my mom since she was a chaperone, and it made it more special."

There was free time for the students, too.

"It allowed us to adventure in the city, go shopping and try different restaurants."

She said she formed close friendships. "On the trip, we got to know each student personally. I made three really good friends, and I get to see them every day now."

The best part for her was seeing all of the cathedrals and learning about the historical facts of each city.

"It was a once in a lifetime opportunity."