Bullis Blog | Global Studies Trips

Greetings from Uvita! The time to say goodbye to La Fortuna and Volcano Arenal has come. Students had their final breakfast at La Montana de Fuego, set off for zip-lining, and boarded buses for a cozy ride to Uvita. Here are a few words from our adventurous students about today's experiences. Mari W. '30 reflects on the day Today, we packed up our things from La Montana de Fuego to get ready for our next adventure. We got on the bus with all of our stuff and headed down to some zip lines! The zip lines were scattered across the forest, and we were high in a canyon full of trees and the view of a beautiful lake. The zip lines were fast, and we were zooming through the forest! There were seven zip lines, and they were long enough so we could enjoy the view, solo or in duos with our friends. After facing our fear of heights, we got some snacks and got back on the bus for our ride to the Pacific side of Costa Rica. The bus ride was long, but the views made up for it. After tak...

March 26 in London started with a tour around the  Shakespeare's Globe Theater ! We had a chance to take a close look at the place where people in Shakespeare's time used to watch shows. We learned how less wealthy people suffered from the sun or rain because there was no covering, and how the nobles paid for the box seats with the worst view just to be seen by the people. Next, we had a tour of the National Theater . We were led through the different theaters, seeing the process of making the huge props that were the size of a house, and we had the chance to see the prop-making and costume shops. Then, we went to a workshop based on The Lion King, where we learned to play as different animals using our body gestures and changing the sound and tones of our voices. We studied the movements of the animals and then became them! The day ended with another stop at Covent Garden, where music was always being played. Food, jewelry, and decorations were everywhere. It is a great pla...

大家好！My name is Chris L. '25, and I am currently a junior traveling on the 2024 Taiwan Global Studies Trip. Today, we wrapped up our third day of travel on this trip, and I keep finding that the beautiful city of Taipei keeps one-upping itself. After our first two days here, all of us were able to play out the amazingly thought-out itinerary and realized just how jam-packed this trip really would be! While all of us are wiped out by the time we fall into bed, we keep waking up the next day with smiles, sensing the adventure that awaits us. On this third day, we were able to do a variety of activities that allowed us to explore many different aspects of Taiwanese culture and cuisine. We began the morning by having a slightly shorter breakfast than usual (for the need to stock up on Taiwanese snacks and transfer out some cash at a nearby 7-11) and then briskly departed to catch — as we learned on the first day — the incredibly efficient metro. Our destination was one of the most inf...

Some of us got an extra special treat on our third day in London! Ms. Adams was able to arrange a trip to the  Chelsea Football Club's home field for part of our group who really wanted to have a chance to visit a football stadium! They were treated to all sorts of behind-the-scenes access, including a visit to the player's locker rooms, sitting at the press box, and visiting the trophy room! It was definitely a treat for the soccer fans among us! The rest of our group headed over to Notting Hill, and, yes, our first stop was the bookstore! After the bookstore, we were able to browse the neighborhood and visit the famous market on Portobello Road. Once we all reunited for lunch, we ate and then headed over to the  Victoria and Albert Museum  for a quick visit, and then it was on to our first theatre workshop! The  West End Workshop was at a dance studio, and we had a lot of fun learning to use our bodies to communicate and embracing techniques used in devised the...

We woke up early on Saturday and headed about an hour outside of London to visit the Harry Potter Studios . While there we toured the sets from Harry Potter films for hours! We learned all sorts of fun facts and got a behind-the-scenes view of everything that goes into making the movies. It didn't seem like we were there for half the day because there was so much to do! After the studios, we went to the South Bank of London, which is on the side of the river opposite  Big Ben . We were able to take pictures, browse vendors near the river, and enjoy street musicians. We also saw the Covid memorial  created by people in London who lost loved ones. After dinner, we headed to our first theatre performance! We attended " Dear Octopus " at the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain (aka the National Theatre). It was great and the set was beautiful. We had lots of fun doing a post-show critique on the bus! Ms. Kathleen Adams, Chair, Upper School VPA

After a 7-hour flight between two continents, we finally got to the United Kingdom and hit the ground running! After landing in London on Friday, we dove right into discovering the city. We settled into our hotel and then went on a walking tour. One of our day one stops was  Covent Garden . There, we went shopping and - oh my gosh- there was so much to see! There were pop-up shops of antiques anywhere we looked! One of our favorites was a shop that had cameras from the 1920s to the 1970s! We ended our first day with an evening visit to the  National Gallery  to see some incredible works of art, including rooms full of beautiful impressionist paintings! We look forward to sharing our adventures with you! Ms. Kathleen Adams, Chair, Upper School VPA  

Good afternoon from the San Jose airport,  The time has come to say goodbye to Costa Rica. Students are checked in and ready to board their flight. At our group debrief this morning with Dr. Moreno, there were many different emotions - sadness, joy, nostalgia, and excitement at the thought of reuniting with families. Students also shared their highlights with the group - zip lining, white water rafting, meeting students from the Zeta Trece school, and the hot springs at Hacienda Orosi. Eden S. '28 shares her favorite moments from the trip:  My three highlights of this trip are: the beach. It was so much fun, and I played volleyball with my friends. I also loved zip lining with my classmates, and seeing the mountains. We also had a karaoke party on the girls bus singing Party in the USA. I loved the trip so much! Yolanda J. '28 reflects on the highlights of the trip: The hot springs were my favorite part of the trip because they were really calming. Since we had done...

Hello again Bullis families and community!  It is our final evening in Costa Rica, and emotions are bittersweet. Students and chaperones had a lovely day at Playa Mantas and Rainforest Adventure, where students zip-lined, rode the Aerial Tram, and observed the Butterfly Garden. Three students reflected on their final day exploring Costa Rica: Olivia W. '28 writes about the day:  Today, we spent our last day in Costa Rica to the fullest. Starting off with a delicious breakfast at our 2nd hotel, then hopping on the bus to go zip lining. My group went first, and it was amazing. There were 14 different lines leading up to the final one, where we dropped straight down. We then stopped for a snack before heading into the butterfly garden. On the way, we saw a toucan and many iguanas crawling around. We even got to see bats that were hidden under trees. The butterfly garden was beautiful. We saw all types, from a classic blue to yellow spotted. Next, we spent the afternoon with...