By Aaron Weitzman / Staff writer

On March 2, UPG students will be soaking up some sun on the spring break trip to Spain.

They will depart from Pittsburgh International Airport at 4 p.m. and will land in Philadelphia at 5:26 p.m. and then will depart for Spain at 8:15 p.m. and will arrive in Spain at 9:30 a.m. on March 3.

Michele Shuey, who is in charge of the trip, will not be going but Nancy Estrada, associate professor of Spanish, will be.

“She lived in Spain, so she will be a big help,” Shuey said.

For Estrada, returning to Spain is like going back home.

“I’m very excited about the trip,” Nancy Estrada, associate professor of Spanish, said. “I lived and worked in Madrid, Spain for seven years and know it well. My husband, Luis Estrada, who teaches a course in Spanish here at UPG is from Spain.”

The trip is planned for seven fun days in Spain, which includes metro rides, museums and lots of free time to go exploring. The group will travel to Madrid, Toledo and Segovia.

“This semester Dr. Herr and I are team teaching a course [Spanish History and Culture] in English and we have a few of those who are going on the trip in that class,” says Estrada.

Most kids in college don’t have passports, but according to Shuey that is not a problem.

“I’d say about half the kids had passports already and the other half had to get them, but there were no problems obtaining them,” Shuey said.

The cost for the trip is about $1,700 per person.

Like passports, most college kids don’t know a lot of foreign languages because the last time they took it was in high school, but Shuey says that isn’t a problem either.

Shuey says that students who don’t know a lot of Spanish shouldn’t worry — there will be interpreters there to translate everything as well as the faculty leaders of the trip.

“Pilar Herr and I will be the faculty leaders and both of us know Spanish,” says Estrada. “There are other students who know a lot of Spanish as well. Plus, they speak English in the hotels and stores. Guided tours are in English as well.”

Shuey says that if students would like to have a refresher course in Spanish, they should get in touch with Jody Horn, a student going on the trip, who will be holding classes.

“I am most looking forward to sharing my love of Spain and Spanish culture with the students,” Estrada said. “I know that they will love Spain — that’s a given.”