On Wednesday April 21st, fifteen students piled onto a Coach bus with the destination of New York City. The trip was organized by Ms. Matthews, the head of Students Unite, with the intent of getting the message across that tolerance is just as important as brushing your teeth. The agenda on the trip was a plethora of tourist attractions with a couple of tolerance activities thrown in there. It was a trip to remember.. with LOTS of walking.

The New York Ti? The first of many photos on this trip.

This was taken right off the New Jersey bus when we were hit with the beauty of the big apple.

Is it really a trip to New York without the subway?

We didn’t use the subway too frequently (we mostly walked), but when we did I stood up just to have the thrill of flinging forward and then back in a few seconds.

John Lennon’s Imagine memorial in Central Park. ☮

This was one of the stops that really hit home. The song Imagine by John Lennon is based around the idea of peace and tolerating the ones around you, although you may not always agree. The aura of the memorial brought a few watery eyes, but the walk in Strawberry Fields to get to the memorial was worth it.

A very touching image that captured the essence of the 9/11 memorial museum.

Being so young when the attack hit, I never fully comprehended what when. That being said, stepping into the museum was eye-opening in a way I never expected. Seeing and hearing stories of families who lost deeply loved ones was touching but heart-wrenching in the same. The museum was a flurry of American flags and tissues, but the museum taught me to give my parents and extra squeeze every night, because you never know what the next day holds.

The infamous Andy Warhol Campbell Soup cans at The Museum of Modern Art.

I just about jumped out of my skin when we stepped into MoMA. Who knew six floors of art could be so great? Seeing Warhol’s (and many others) art in person was amazing. If I had to have a can of Campbell’s Soup, it would be Tomato.

“Lady Liberty, Lady Liberty!”

Being to New York times before, I have never been so close to the Statue of Liberty. While on the ferry, we learned that the Statue of Liberty was not it’s current state of mint. At one point, the statue was copper! Overtime, like most things, the colour diminished as the copper penny became the mint we know today.

The Simon Wiesenthal Tolerance Center.*

I never expected by learning so much here. From mini feminism discussions in the Tolerance Center cyber café to tales of a Holocaust survivor, the tolerance center was informative. It opened my eyes to things such as tolerance that I never once thought about. Tolerance is an idea that I never fully comprehended. There’s a difference between tolerance and acceptance. One is understanding someone’s opinion and the other is comprehending someone’s opinion although it might not align with your values.

Jersey Boys: The story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons (not the hotel).*

I didn’t know around 3 quarters of the songs, but it was still cool. A great way to end off the trip.

The whole gang in Times Square.*

We all didn’t know each other well before the trip, but afterward, bonds were made, and Instagram followings happened. With our nightly pow-wows, we got to know each other on a different level than academic.

Thank you to Ms. Matthews for coordinating a fantastic trip along with the other teachers involved: Ms. Nuqui, Mr. Jones. Ms. Paquette, Ms. Zuccato and her daughter, Ali Zuccato.

To see an extended look at what the NYC students did, check out Alex Siles Youtube video here:: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L7k5dud9YA

 

*photos courtesy of C. Paquette