Caught in a rainstorm on their way to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, North Idaho students chose to dance — and swim — in the rain.

"The skies opened up and we had a torrential downpour," Lakes Middle School world cultures and U.S. history teacher Tanya Lilley said Friday. "We were soaked to the bone. You could wring out our bodies."

Instead of complaining, the kids on the inaugural Coeur d'Alene Kids Travel trip to Rome laughed, danced and pretended to swim through the deluge.

"These kids are wearing jeans and regular clothes and tennis shoes," Lilley said. "When you see their faces staring at the Mediterranean Sea, seeing it for the first time, their bodies were itching to go in."

They asked if they could go into the water just a little, Lilley said.

"I said, 'You know, you will never have this moment again, you will never be here again,'" she said. "They counted to three and the full group ran into the sea, fully clothed."

Lake City High freshman James Vincent, who was an eighth-grader at Lakes at the time, said this is something he will always remember.

"This was the first time I’d ever seen an ocean/sea, let alone got to swim in it," he said. "It was also very salty. I would go back to Italy any time. One of the best things you can do with your money is travel."

Dunking into the sea, making pizza in Naples and shedding tears of awe and joy beneath Michelangelo's paintings in the Sistine Chapel were among the many memories the 44 students, teachers and chaperones made during an eight-day trip to Italy in March and April.

"The main thing I learned is to enjoy things while they last, because when they are gone, you will wish you took the time to enjoy it more," James said.

He said the trip meant everything to him because he had never really been out of Idaho and it was his first time on a plane.

"To go to a whole different country was incredible," James said. "One thing I’ll always remember is getting to swim in the Mediterranean Sea.

LCHS freshman Kai Kropf, who went on the trip as an eighth-grader, said she learned how different American culture is compared to Italian culture.

"The trip meant a lot to me because it was where I met new people and became close friends," Kai said. "The thing that I will always remember from the trip is how quick a group of kids can become so close in only a week."

Lilley started this travel experience for local kids because she wanted them to experience international learning.

"I wanted the kids to have experiences beyond the classroom," she said. "I wanted them to walk the halls of the Colosseum and touch it with their own hands. When we go to these places, they have expert local guides that walk us through and give us the stories and the history and the information that’s not in a textbook."

At the ruins of Pompeii, students learned how even ancient people liked fast food.

"I have pictures of some students pretending to play 'restaurant' in Pompeii," Lilley said. "Here’s these kids at a site over 2,000 years old and they’re playing restaurant at this ancient site where people once stood actually ordering food 2,000 years before them."

"To teach about ancient Rome, the fall of the empire, the artists and to walk in those steps with those kids, it's an experience I can never ever describe," Lilley said.

Even though Lilley is a Lakes teacher, she said eighth- and ninth-graders from all schools and homeschools are welcome to participate.

The next tour will whisk students away to ancient castles of Scotland in spring 2023. The tours average $3,400-$3,600 and are booked through EF Educational Tours. More tours are on the horizon: Amsterdam, Belgium and Paris in August 2023; Japan in March 2024; and Ireland and England in August 2024.

Students will host a carwash Sept. 17 in the parking lot at Runge's Furniture from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. as they work to raise funds for the Scotland trip.

Visit CDA Kids Travel on Facebook for details: https://bit.ly/3RwQqCR