GOA students had the chance to explore Mexican culture during the weeklong GoAbroad Exchange Program.
WEST ORANGE, NJ — Eleven of Golda Och Academy’s 10th-graders had the chance to reunite with the exchange students from the Colegio Israelita de Mexico ORT school in Mexico City last month as part of the GoAbroad Exchange Program. For the second consecutive year, the two schools have been paired to participate in a cultural exchange program. Golda Och Academy was honored to welcome the CIM-ORT students to New Jersey this past November, and from Feb. 15 through 22 CIM-ORT hosted GOA students in Mexico City.
During their weeklong trip, Golda Och Academy students took Mexican government and culture classes, visited the center of the city and the pyramids, rode gondola-like boats called trajineras in Xochimilco and explored popular Mexican art museums. They also saw important areas of the Jewish community in Mexico City, such as the Jewish Community Center, called the Centro Deportivo Israelita. New to this year’s program was a visit to the Otomi center, an indigenous community center outside of the city. Students learned how to make tortillas from grains of corn, saw how traditional artisanal rugs are handwoven and gained insight into the lifestyle of the community.
“The program was an incredible opportunity to explore other cultures and immerse myself in new experiences,” GOA sophomore Michelle Bilmes said in a press release. “We had the chance to order food in restaurants and speak to our host families in Spanish. I definitely understood more than I expected and my Spanish hopefully improved a little while visiting Mexico City. I’m grateful I had the chance to learn about the community and feel I brought some of their culture back home with me.”
According to Spanish teacher Christine Garrity, who coordinated this year’s program, the week abroad allowed students to grasp just how much Spanish they have learned.
“I enjoyed celebrating the small victories with our students,” she said in the release. “Often it was as simple as understanding a sign, communicating with a vendor at a market or understanding part of what native-speakers were saying. This trip also set the stage for deeper learning for the rest of the year and beyond.”
Another special aspect of the trip was connecting with other Jewish day school students abroad, experiencing the similarities and differences between the two cultures. GOA sophomore Theo Hyman-Bockman said one of his favorite parts of the Mexico City program was spending time with his CIM-ORT partner.
“We were a perfect match and got to spend quality time together,” he said in the release.
Gail Shapiro, who heads GOA’s foreign language department, was thrilled to see the second year of the program continue to be such a success.
“Through this program, we are developing an even deeper connection to the CIM-ORT school and community,” she said in the release. “Although we have some cultural differences, we are all part of the tapestry of our Jewish traditions and people. It’s wonderful to see that tapestry grow through our students.”
Photos Courtesy of Golda Och Academy
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