From preparing weeks in advance to packing all of your bags or rushing to the airport and to your gate. As a person who adores traveling, there are many places that I still want to travel to, but so far I have been lucky to travel to a few very terrific places. Read on to find out about different places that I have traveled to and my opinions on them.

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Cancun

Our flight to Cancun was a direct, 5-hour flight departing from LAX Airport. The resort that we stayed at, Grand Park Royal Hotel, was heavily booked but because of my dad’s over-preparation, we arrived a few hours early. We had to sit in the hotel, waiting for the family suite for a couple of hours, but after I bothered the hotel workers for a few minutes, they were able to give us the room! The staff was very nice and we enjoyed our stay very much. Our all-inclusive hotel also set us up for 2 trips to some of the most historical places in Cancun. They set us up for full-day trips to both Isla Mujeres and Chichen Itza, which is one of the seven wonders of the world. To arrive at Isla Mujeres, we went on a boat ride from Cancun to there. While there we went on a golf cart ride throughout the town to a historic beach where we saw historic statues and sites. To arrive at Chichen Itza, we took a bus ride from our hotel. On the bus ride, we had a tour guide that shared many informative facts and stories about the pyramids we were traveling to. When we arrived we went on a tour of the pyramids but after just a few minutes it started raining. I thought this was a fun addition to the trip, because we all had to go find a covered place to stay and wait until the rain stopped, and it was safe to continue the tour. My only complaint would be the hot weather, but then again, we couldn’t control that. My overall rating of this trip was a 10 out of 10 and I would definitely recommend it.

Washington and Virginia

My trip to Washington D.C. and Virginia was a school trip. Originally this trip was scheduled for March 26th to April 1st, which was on my spring break. Our group met up at a park across the street from my middle school and left on a bus ride to LAX Airport from there. After getting all the way to the airport, and halfway through getting our bags checked, we got informed that because of Covid-19 there was a shortage of pilots, and there wasn’t a pilot to carry out our flight. We once again met at the park, and successfully this time, made it on our flight to Chicago Airport. From Chicago, we went to Washington airport. After making it through the airport and getting our bags checked, we made our way to the first stop, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Later that day we also visited the Jefferson Memorial, Pentagon Memorial, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Throughout the trip, with the help of World Strides, we also went to many different historical landmarks, two of them being the Holocaust Museum and Arlington National Cemetery. At the Holocaust Museum, we walked around through multiple different rooms where we learned different things and different stories about the Holocaust. In one of the rooms, we had the ability to select different photos on an iPad and listen to the stories behind them. At Arlington National Cemetery, we walked around and saw some of the most important historical figures’ resting places such as The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We also got to witness the changing of the guards, where they perform a ritual to switch out the guard that is watching over the tomb, keeping this cycle going all hours of the night. This experience was definitely a 9.5 out of 10 and would definitely recommend going on school trips if you have the opportunity!