Travel Days

Each program spends some days visiting several different regions of our host country. Our object here is not to see ten cities in five days, but instead to give you a fuller view of a few cohesive regions. For example, the Gijón program focuses first on Castilian Spain, then Asturias, and finally Catalonia; the Segovia program starts also with Castile and then spends much of the remaining time in Andalusia, while the Pontevedra program focuses on Galicia, with time spent in Extremadura, Andalusia, and Castilian Madrid. We want to light the fire and have you visit again to explore the rest of the country—with us, in college and on your own.

The China program spends time at higher altitudes and has more rigorous trekking than any of our other programs. Accommodations are, as one would expect, more basic. Students should be in decent physical condition and accepting of local foods and lodging.

"...traveling with the group, and staying with his Spanish family was an extraordinary exercise in independence, developing self-esteem, and learning to adapt in strange surroundings.... We would whole-heartedly recommend Rassias to any prospective participants."

- Family of André De Russy, Spain

The travel portion of the program is also a chance for our students to come together again as a group, as well as practice the language and gain a sense of the people and places of France, Spain, or China. Though our schedule is full, it does allow for spontaneity. While having fun we try to keep everyone’s eye on the target—speaking the target language as often as possible!