At the beginning of every school year, most teachers ask what students did over the summer, but when it comes to Spanish teacher Mrs. Wakefield, the tables have turned. Over the summer, Mrs. Wakefield traveled around Asia and did some pretty interesting things along the way.

“The trip was incredible. I started out in Japan, then went to Thailand and then we headed to Cambodia and Hong Kong,” Wakefield said. “In Japan, we saw lots of temples and also got the chance to go to the Edo-Tokyo museum which shows the history of Tokyo. In Thailand we went to see the reclining Buddha which was probably the size of a football field and that was truly incredible sight to see.”

For those who do not know her, Mrs. Wakefield is an avid traveler and is fluent in five different languages. It is no surprise she went to Asia, but there is significance behind her trip.

“What started the whole trip was when I heard from my cousin about a couple in their late 60s from California who moved to Cambodia to help stop landmines,” Wakefield said. “They were celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary in Cambodia and decided to have a traditional Khmer wedding. They invited my cousin, who asked me if I would like to go to Angkor wat [a Buddist temple] with him to attend the wedding. From there we built the whole trip around the wedding.”

Cambodian wedding celebrations are usually three days long and full of chanting and praying. Since this whole experience was in a different language, Mrs. Wakefield had an opportunity to test her foreign language skills.

“I studied a couple of things, but I knew some Japanese before I went,” Wakefield said. “I mostly just said the basic please and thank you, but I definitely used it a lot. Ever since I was a little kid I have had a fascination with Japan and its culture.”

With a journey across the world, a combination of different foods and a wedding that can never be forgotten, this experience was one that Mrs. Wakefield can cross off her bucket list.

“I just loved the experience and there wasn’t anything that I didn’t like about the trip,” Wakefield said. “Yeah, the foods and things were different but that’s the reason why I travel. As I said to my cousin, ‘When am I ever going to come back?’ and that is why I take every opportunity that I can; not just for traveling, but for life.”