Sometimes an escape from the hectic life of high school is all a teacher really wants. This is especially true for AP U.S. Government and Philosophy teacher Beth Muehl who traveled to Italy this summer. Italy seemed like a perfect, quaint little getaway for a week hiking in the Italian alps. Muehl spent a little over a week on this vacation which include seven days hiking in the Dolomites, a mountain range about two and a half hours out of Venice, and her final three days were spent in the calm and historical city of Venice.

Muehl spends most of her breaks from school travelling and does an annual spring break trip through the school with some of her students. Last year Muehl and her group of students went to Costa Rica and this year they are headed off to Belize.

“I have never been to Italy before this which is kind of crazy considering I love to travel the world,” Muehl said.

Through a recommendation by a friend she met during a kayaking trip, her trip to Italy was set and she instantly fell in love with the lifestyle that it had to offer.

Muehl hiked up the Dolomites with a group called REI Adventures and explored the mountain range with a group of fellow travellers. Among the group were couples and some single travellers like Muehl who enjoy the experience more than the company.

The food was definitely another highlight of the trip.

“We stayed at these places call Refugios along the trail. They were family owned farmhouses and oh the food, it’s all right there, it’s all farmed, it’s fresh and it’s unbelievable. I still think about it to this day,” Muehl raved.

The meals that Muehl had were extravagant and dinner would last for a minimum of two hours. Course after course, each serving offered increasingly delicious cuisine, which left Muehl feeling thankful for the food that her hosts offered.

After her hiking trip, Muehl spent the next three days exploring the streets of Venice.

“I was totally a tourist. I did the whole 2.7 gelatos a day,” she joked, “I tried to get lost and just let myself have a day where I didn’t have any plans where I literally just went and wherever the alley took me is where I ended up and I would find a place to eat lunch. I continued on walking around, I had a book and sat on a bunch and read and watched people,” Muehl explained.

Her trip to the mountainous Dolomites and the city of Venice was the best part of her summer and she hopes to return.