Welcome to Down Home, San Luis Obispo Classical Academy’s blog! We are a classical school offering several options to make our education work for families with infants through high schoolers. Our signature hybrid program, which is part-time classroom and part-time home instruction, provides an engaging education for preschool through middle school (with full time options available). We also have a university model high school. This blog is meant to support and encourage on the home front because, in so many ways, the heart of what happens at SLO Classical Academy happens down home.

Semper discentes—always learning together.

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Wednesday Wonders: Europe Through the Ages

Tower of London with Tower Bridge in the background
{photo by Cindy Hilton}

You knew we’d eventually blog about this extraordinary trip, didn’t you?

This past summer, a group of SLOCA families embarked on a whirlwind tour of Europe, visiting England, France, Italy, and Greece. Cindy Hilton, SLOCA parent and owner of Simply Culture Boutique Travel, organized this “Classical Learning Journey” specifically for our families, tailored to our classical education cycle.

You can be sure that each day in Europe brought wonder upon wonder, and while there’s no way to encapsulate the entire journey, we did ask a few of the participants this question:

What is one moment of wonder you experienced on the “Europe Through the Ages” trip?

Here are their answers, along with a few favorite photos from the travelers:

I was amazed by many places we went to on this trip, but I was quite awestruck and wonder-filled standing in the Pantheon in Rome. Standing under the ancient Roman-built dome (still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world) and gazing up at its vast size and symmetrical beauty was breathtaking.
~Caleb Campbell

{photo to the right by Meg Campbell}

The first thing that popped into my head was the character trait Perseverance. Watching my three girls walk around Europe in 100 degree heat, engaged in the tours, with smiles on their faces, and wonder in their eyes, was truly remarkable. Their perseverance was impressive.
~Tamzin Ritter

Inside the Colosseum
{photo by Margie Peterson}

I think our students are awesome they can really rally! It was very hot most days and they had walked more than 5 miles and we often had more to go and they would just dig deep and know that this was a once in a lifetime trip and plug on. They complained very little and they just enjoyed washing off in the fountains of Italy, filling their water bottles and generally loving life, playing games and being kids. It truly was like they were related by the end of the trip, like they were one big SLOCA family.
~Caroline Vaccaro

Students in front of St. Peter's Basilica ; Cramming into cabin to play cards on the night train from Paris to Italy; Meg & Shelby playing at a fountain in garden of Palais Royale, Paris; Boys on a bunk at a hostel in Rome
{photos by Caroline Vaccaro and Cindy Hilton}

Descending into the darkness underneath the church of San Clemente in Rome. We went through many layers of history – the ground level church, the older church, and the ancient Roman temple deep below.
~Nick Stavros

As a trip leader, my top magical moments were my conversations with our guides about our students. Even as our students were tired and hot, they still were impressive to every single person who interacted with our group. EVERY SINGLE guide was blown away by our student's maturity, endurance, stellar behavior, respect and by the information they knew and the observant, insightful questions they asked.
~Cindy Hilton

Walking the ancient path through olive groves from Leonardo da Vinci's birthplace to the village of Vinci; Guide at Tower of London discussing gory execution techniques, much to the amusement of the students; Contemplating life & the Arno River, Florence, Italy; Julie Campbell holding an ancient Roman Lantern in Bath, England
{photos by Cindy Hilton}

Thanks for sharing these moments with us, everyone! The rest of us can live a little vicariously through you…

To read more about our group’s experiences in Europe, check out the blog that SLOCA parent Margie Peterson started, in order to document the trip: slocaeurope.blogspot.com.

And by the way, this year Cindy is organizing another Classical Learning Journey for our school: