By Stephanie Guerin and Melissa Giblin
EE Staff Writers
This year, Trumbull High School’s December break was eleven full days. That is 264 hours or 15,840 minutes. What can you do in this amount of time? How about travel thousands of miles across the country or maybe fly down to your favorite vacation spot to get out of the cold December weather.
You can even leave the country entirely and explore somewhere new. Let us take a look at some THS students and staff who took advantage of winter vacation as a time to truly enjoy themselves, even if that meant spending the vacation as couch potatoes.
“The whole break I caught up on sleep and watched about three seasons of One Tree Hill. It was so nice
to relax and not worry about any work.” Said THS Senior Marisa Destany.
With winter weather and free time, comes perfect conditions for the two popular activities of skiing and snowboarding. While some THS students hit the slopes for just as a few hours here in Connecticut, others spent their entire vacation in Northern states where snowfall was even more prevalent. Regardless of the mountain, these skiers and snowboarders enjoyed every moment of their vacations. Here in Connecticut, the popular mountains are Sun Down and Southington. These ski lodges are convenient for those who are unable to travel out of the state for multiple days travel a short distance for a day of fun and adventure.
Avid skier Holly Hoffmann commented, “My favorite thing to do is to get away for the day to ski. I do enjoy laying around and relaxing all day, but making the effort to go to a mountain is definitely worth it!”
Other students, such as intense snowboarder Amanda Burtnett, spent her entire vacation hours away in Vermont, taking advantage of the fresh snow on the slopes. She truly enjoyed her trip, stating, “Spending my vacation in Vermont was really relaxing. I was able to leave my phone at the lodge and dedicate the entire day to only snowboarding. It allowed me to escape for a few days, which is exactly what I needed…and I had fun while doing it!”
Most people would like to road trip around the country at least once in their life. For Gulrukh Haroon’s family, this time was December vacation. “My family and I drove over 2000 miles over the course of nine days. We drove to Alabama, then to Disney and then back home. It was a lot of fun, and a great family bonding experience!” This December break is one that will remain in the Haroons’ memories for their entire lives. Not every member of the THS community was so lucky to go on a trip as great as this. The rest of us are sure jealous!
Other students entered the school sun kissed or sunburned, after returning from tropical, out of the country, vacations or venturing to a southern state where they spent the majority of their time on the beach.
Senior Natalie Crowe spent her winter break in 80 degree weather down in Florida, dressed in shorts, tank tops and flip flops. She spent relaxing days on the beach or by the pool. “It was nice to get away,” said Natalie, “especially when I heard about the snow in Connecticut while I was chilling by the pool.”
THS junior, Alex Cammarota also was lucky enough to take a trip to Florida over this winter break. In fact, her family surprised her with this trip only days before she left, so even if she was planning to spend her whole break watching Netflix, she wouldn’t have the chance to. It was clear by her newly tanned face that it was worth getting away. It is hard not to be envious of people who found their way to warmer climates this break.
Another classic yet timeless thing to do over winter break is catch a train to the city for the day. No matter how many times one goes to see the tree decked out in its lights or watched the skaters in Rockefeller Center, it is still special. Numerous THS students took a trip to the city this winter break, along with many others who wish they found the time to go.
Senior, Mike Cydylo, traveled to the city right before Christmas with his family, as he does every year. He said, “The family trip to NYC is something I always look forward to during the holiday season. It’s crazy how people come from all across the U.S to see the tree in Rockefeller Center.” Going to the city over winter break is a popular and memorable tradition for many families, not just the Cydylo’s.
Mr. August, a teacher at THS also got caught up in the days off. When leaving on the last day of school before break, he left with a box full of tests, quizzes and projects he fully intended to grade. “Each day I thought of that box in my car and thought, I still have time. Then it was 7:00pm Tuesday night, and there was no more time.” Said Mr.
August, not regretting spending time with his family rather than working on his vacation.
Vacation does not need to be full of extravagant outings, as long as you are doing something you enjoy, as these THS students did. Simple family time can surely make a vacation worthwhile as many THS members commented. Or perhaps a simple trip to the city with some friends is just the day trip you need. But whatever it is, remember, you have 15840 minutes of winter vacation, make it count. Don’t let it pass you by!
All I did was watch movies… and I STILL didn’t do everything I wanted.
As a student of the teacher with the box of ungraded work, I definitely relate to this article. However, I don’t blame him because I do not like doing work over my break either…it’s a ‘break’ right?
I really enjoyed this article. It’s a good topic, and something that everyone will want to read. I think I can speak for everyone when I say that break is one of the best things to ever happen to a high school student. As previously stated, it’s a time to catch up on sleep, work, or just TV shows you may have missed because school was too hectic before. I liked that they interviewed a lot of people on what they did to get a broader picture of what everyone does on break. It made me want to keep reading.
Interesting article, I liked the topic and how they included the perspective of a variety of different students. I also really liked the beginning paragraph and lead, caught readers attention.
It was cool to see what people did during their break because there was a wide range of what students did, from relaxing at home to going on an adventurous vacation. Also, it was interesting to see what it’s like from a teachers point of view as well.