Spring Break 2026 Recap
Tri-School Classics Trip to Sicily
Read reflections from Upper School students who attended this Classics-focused trip to Sicily over spring break.
Travel and Day 1: Taormina
We started the day early, first landing in Rome from an overnight flight and then making our way to Catania with a short connection. Right after boarding our bus from the airport, we quickly stopped for lunch, getting aranchini from a nearby cafe. Our next stop was Taormina where we explored the ruins of a Roman theater, which was originally a Greek amphitheater. There we learned about the difference between the two styles of theaters, as well as hearing presentations about Mt. Etna from Caroline, Jaival, and Joey. After reading some Greek passages about the history of Sicily, we had some free time to explore the town. Afterwards, we drove down to Syracuse, where we are staying the night. Here we all went to a classic Sicilian restaurant where we were able to try a variety of pastas, seafood, and other Sicilian dishes to end the day.
–Michael Johnston '27, Jack Mashaw '26, and Alex Zhao '26
Day 2: Syracuse Archaeological Park
After a good night's sleep and breakfast, we left for Syracuse Archaeological Park at 8:30 a.m. Some highlights there were The Ear of Dionysius, a huge manmade cavern within a limestone quarry, and an Ancient Greek Theater with tombs nearby. Alex and Vivien also gave interesting presentations on the Sicilian expedition and Greek philosophical thought. Then, we left for lunch in Ortigia, where we got great Italian sandwiches, and spent some time exploring the Syracuse Archaeological Museum with a scavenger hunt. Cleo and Carlos also gave their presentations on the myths of Ortigia, and we went on a tour through the catacombs on San Giovanni. In honor of Pi Day, Matthew and Ashvin gave a presentation on Archimedes's science in front of his statue. Finally, we had some free time followed by dinner, and ended our day at 9 p.m.
–Rohan Sinha '26 and Jonathan Yu '26
Day 3: Ragusa and Noto
After a good night’s sleep and breakfast, we headed to the bus at 8:15 a.m. We had a long bus ride with beautiful views before arriving in Ragusa. There, we did a walking tour and saw several cathedrals before stopping for lunch. After lunch, we returned to the bus and made our way to Noto. When we arrived, we made a quick stop for gelato before walking to another cathedral, where we learned about the significance of the imagery in the paintings on each wall. At another cathedral, we climbed a narrow set of stairs to the roof, where we got an amazing view of the entire city of Noto. After coming back down, we had free time to go shopping and explore the town. Then we returned to the hotel by bus for a short break before heading to dinner at 7 p.m. At dinner, some people decided to try squid ink pasta, which was a new experience for many of us. Although the dark color looked unusual at first, everyone said it tasted great! After a delicious and filling meal, we concluded our day at 9 p.m.
–Meghan Brady (RPCS '28) and Isabel Recely (BMS '27)
Day 4: Agrigento
The morning began early, with us ending our stay in Syracuse to travel to Agrigento. We stopped at an imperial Roman villa for a tour and lunch on the way. Though it is uncertain, it is suspected to be the property of emperor Maximus. Our destination, Agrigento, is home to some of the best preserved temples of antiquity. Prior to visiting the temples themselves, though, we stopped at a museum containing the artifacts harvested from the ruins of the region. There, we had great presentations from Isabel and Meghan on the Temple of Olympian Zeus, from Jonathan and Ryan on the science and philosophy of the Agrigento-born thinker Empedocles, and from Sophia on the history of praise poetry in Sicily. Afterwards, we visited the extravagant temples of Agrigento. The atmosphere stayed electric despite the rain, and we toured the archaeological site for a great time. Finally, we ended the day with the best meal so far — possibly in our lives — which was also a birthday dinner for Alex.
–Matthew Chi '26 and Benji Wu '27
Day 5: Selinunte
Day 5! We set out to Selinunte after the best breakfast imaginable (tables of filled croissants, a variety of fresh juices, and many gorgeous cakes). In Selinunte we were able to walk through many temple ruins and see the architecture in amazing detail. Being able to be so close to such old structures was incredible, and we even got to walk and climb through the remains of ancient houses! Then we stopped for lunch before continuing on to Marsala, where we enjoyed the view of the water on our walk to the archaeological museum. There, we were able to enjoy some inscriptions of both Greek and Latin and even walk through a reconstructed ship. Afterwards, we got to explore Marsala in our own, which consisted mostly of eating gelato, walking, and shopping, before having yet another fantastic dinner.
–Cleo Houston (RPCS '27) and Caroline Makowka (BMS '27)
Day 6: Mozia and Palermo
This morning began a bit later, at 8:30 a.m. We left our hotel from Marsala to go to the island of Mozia. We reached the boat point, and took a little ferry ride to the island. On the way, we saw the salt flats on the side of us. Our destination on the island was vast. We were sent around the island in small groups to complete a scavenger hunt. The winners received a special prize. Some of our companions purchased what might have been too much salt. After our island adventure, we drove to the town of Palermo. After we arrived and rested in our rooms, we did a little tour of the city. More specifically, we went to the Fontana Della Vergogna, meaning the Fountain of Shame. We soon found ourselves in the Dominican Cloister enjoying some great Cannolis, and a great view from the roof. We soon went to the Duomo Cathedral, and saw many religious sights, including the tomb of Emperor Friderick Il of the Holy Roman Empire and former king of Sicily. We soon got free time to explore the street where our hotel is situated, and time to shop. We ended our day eating at a seafood restaurant.
–Joey Rhee '27 and Jaival Sevak '27
Day 7: Segesta and Monreale
It's been a week since we've left, now! Today we got up to a later start at 9 a.m., and enjoyed a rooftop breakfast overlooking the Piazza Pretoria. After a 50-minute bus ride, we arrived at the sprawling mountainsides of Palermo, where the Doric Temple of Segesta sits against the clear blue sky and brilliant wildflowers. After looking around, however, we concluded that the temple possesses many features that deviate from the customary standard. As such, historians suspect that it may not have been built by the Greeks, but instead the Elymians, and is also unfinished.
After admiring the beautiful scenery and temple, we hiked further up the mountain to the ruins of the city — here, we encountered the remains of a Greek theatre, and Agora known as "Onasus Square." At the theatre, we enjoyed a mini talent show, featuring "Shenandoah" by Cleo, Ryan, Carlos, Caroline, and Sophia, and a beatboxing show by Jonathan and Jack. Before descending the mountain, however, we stopped briefly to read some Latin written by Cicero.
We left at around 1 p.m. and headed to Monreale, our second and final stop for the day. Albeit a little chillier, the weather remained perfectly sunny as we arrived — where we then stopped for lunch at a local restaurant. We enjoyed a various assortment of sandwiches and Arancini, of which Jonathan and Matthew noted were “the best we’ve had this trip” and afterwards, a speciality dessert known as Sfinci.
Energized and ready for the rest of the day, we then walked to the Benedictine Cloister of Monreale; a 12th-century masterpiece of Norman-Arab architecture, featuring 228 unique columns surrounding the four trees of paradise. Here, Jack and Michael gave their presentation on the Cathedral of Monreale that the Cloister is attached to, which we then visited immediately after. The cathedral is dedicated to Santa Maria, and features breathtaking golden mosaics of Jesus, Adam and Eve, and the 12 apostles. We then climbed up to the cathedral’s rooftop, winding through narrow hallways and various display rooms. From here, we could see the entire Monreale skyline, enclosed by lush mountains and hills.
After taking in the view of Monreale, we took the bus back to Palermo. Free time was from 5:30–7 p.m., and we all enjoyed the sunset while roaming around the city. At 7:15, we headed out to dinner, arriving at a beautifully decorated restaurant, akin to a museum, with even more delicious food. There was no lull in banter and laughter as we ended the night and walked back to the hotel.
–Sophia Kantsevoy (BMS '26) and Vivien Wang (BMS '27)
Day 8: Cefalu
It’s day eight of our trip, and we started the morning by leaving the hotel at 8:50 a.m. and walking to the train station. From there, we took about an hour-long train ride to Cefalu. Luckily, the train was nearly empty, so we had a comfortable and relaxed ride. Once we arrived, we visited the Cefalu Cathedral and the Duomo. The tour felt similar to the one in Monreale, as we made our way up staircases and through various corridors, though these were slightly more spacious. At the top, we reached the bell and were rewarded with an amazing view overlooking the town.
Afterward, we headed to the beach for lunch, where we had pizza, arancini, and sodas of our choice. We did accidentally end up at the wrong beach at first, but it just meant we got a few extra steps in before settling down to eat. Following lunch, we had the option to hike up the mountain in Cefalu, which is about a 45-minute hike to the top, or spend free time exploring the area. At 3:45 pm, we regrouped and made our way back to the train station.
The return train to Palermo was much more crowded than the ride there, but we all made it back safely about an hour later. Once back, we had free time until 7:15 p.m. Then, we walked to dinner at Osteria Alivaru, though it started pouring rain on the way there. After dinner, we walked back to the hotel, ending another full day.
–Ashvin Sinha '26 and Josh Turner '26
Day 9: Palermo
We started the day off with another magnificent and bountiful breakfast at the hotel at 9 a.m. Then, we tracked across the bright streets of Palermo to the Norman Palace. Presenting about the structure and history of Capella Palatina, Josh regaled us with facts about muqarnas (fascinating honeycomb structure inspired by Islamic roots) and Roger the second. After walking through the aforementioned Capella Palatina and viewing the wonderful structures, we were fortunate enough to catch sight of a Michelangelo original statue of Jesus bearing a cross, one that had been in a private collection for years, rather than a church. Continuing into the apartments and living quarters of Roger the second, wondrous golden mosaics stared down at us from all the walls, depicting scenes with peacocks and lions. Outside in a quaint marble room, Rohan and Benji gave their presentation on early Norman Sicily. Another lucky chance be-felled us as a lovely Monet exhibit sprawled underneath the top facade, where we explored various paintings of water lilies, horses, water, and more!
For our next source of enrichment, we took another nice stroll to the archeological museum of Palermo where we were greeted by a whole congregation of small turtles! Here, we learned more about classical architecture and saw many myths depicted in the temples themselves including: Apollo riding in a chariot, the hunt of Acteon, and more! After free time to roam around the museum where people gawked at the turtles, explored more of the museum, and went to the gift shop, we headed on over for a quick bite to eat under an open air market. The assembly of savory delights included panella (a type of sandwich with fired chickpea or potato) and arancini (prosciutto or beef) served by a jubilant man who serenaded us during the meal. After the feast, we were awarded the LONGEST free time we’ve had on the trip, from 1:30 to 5 p.m., where many got some last-minute souvenirs.
Reconvening in the hotel, we embarked on a journey to watch some good old traditional Sicilian entertainment: a puppet show! Following the story line of the story of Orlando, the clashing of swords, love and desire, mental insanity, and beheadings filled the air as we watched what could only be described as a stringed masterpiece. After our guide Nico explained the meaning of the Italian puppet show (which some got, others didn’t), we headed over for a family-style supper to conclude our extremely magnificent stay in Sicily. Heading back to the hotel, we brace ourselves for the incoming 3:30 a.m. wake-up time. See all of you soon!
–Carlos Baleeiro '27 and Ryan Michael '26