Yes, you read that right, a handful of our students in our YLHS Newspaper and Yearbook classes have gone, seen, and experienced the “concrete jungle”, New York City. The Yorba Lindans left sunny Southern California and flew across the entire country to the not-so-sunny New York from Nov. 1-6. This trip was full of laughter, fun, and above all, created memories that could last a lifetime. Because there was so much that we, Mustangs did, a full recap is in action!

Day 1:

The 12 combined members of The Wrangler and our Yearbook class woke up at the chilling 3:00 am hour to take off for New York City. Leaving that early was very tiring, to say the least because Halloween had just commenced the night before. After departing from LAX, we landed at the Newark, New Jersey Airport, met with our tour guide, Beth, and then rode the bus ride into New York City. We got to our hotel, The Manhattan Hotel at Times Square, and unpacked and freshened up for dinner in our rooms. We ate at Bubba Gump in Times Square, then proceeded to walk around Times Square.

Day 2:

The day started off at the New York Film Academy, where we got to learn what it takes to make it in the entertainment industry. After that, we browsed around 5th Avenue, the Financial District, and took an amazing tour of NBC Studios. At NBC, we got to see where many of our favorite late night shows are filmed and even got to try making our own mini talk show. We left NBC to go shopping and ice skating at Rockefeller Center. The skating was magical and seemed like a movie. We ate dinner at Southern Hospitality, a restaurant that Justin Timberlake started up. The eventful day ended at Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum.

Day 3:

We started the day by having a walking tour of the famous Central Park. Even though it was raining, we got to take great pictures! After walking through the amazing park, we visited the Met (Metropolitan Museum of Art); the rich history amazed all of us and it was definitely informational nonetheless. Following the Met, we took a long subway ride to SoHo (the fashion district) where we shopped at all the hipster stores. We proceeded to browse around Little Italy and Chinatown and had an Italian dinner at Puglia’s. The night was finished off by visiting Grand Central station, the biggest subway station in Manhattan, that even had shops and eateries.

Day 4:

Day 4 was one of the more “serious” days because we got to visit places that define much of American history. We took a ferry ride to Liberty Island, where we got to take pictures of the Statue of Liberty. A connecting ferry was taken to Ellis Island, a checkpoint where many immigrants landed in before starting their American dream. After that, we took a ferry back to the mainland and took a meaningful tour of the 9/11 Memorial Museum and the present-day World Trade Center. We all ate dinner at Mam Sbarro after a day of thinking and being grateful. The night concluded with the Broadway show, Mean Girls. I thought watching Mean Girls was such a  fun experience; the talent, comedy, and overall entertainment really wowed us.

Day 5:

Beginning Day 5, all of us were definitely starting to feel sad that our trip was soon ending. However, the trip was based all around this day. Today was the day that we finally attended the Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s Journalism Conference. The conference itself inspired us to put forth a better yearbook and magazine for the students at our school. After the conference, we took the time to shop around at the original Macy’s. Dinner was at Jack Dempsey’s. We ended the night at the Empire State Building viewing deck. This was also the night where we had to say goodbye to our amazing tour guide, Beth. She made the New York trip so much and there was never a dull moment with her.

Day 6:

Day 6 was all about saying our farewells to New York and the memories we made there. After leaving our hotel and going back to Newark Airport, everyone was definitely sad that this experience was over. Sitting in the plane on the ground for two hours, we got to bond one last time before we had to go back to the same routine with life. We finally departed Newark on the way to LAX. We all said our goodbyes, but we all knew that we could see each other at school the next day.

I can safely say that for many of us who experienced the trip, that it was refreshing to leave our everyday suburban lifestyles in Yorba Linda to learn the beauties and skills for journalism in New York. The newspaper and yearbook classes have gained much from the conference and the journey in New York. We are now one big, open family. Emily Ito (11), an editor for The Wrangler and a member yearbook, thought that “the trip was one of [her] favorite high school memories and was amazing for our publications programs”.

During this trip, we shared our laughs, our passions, our fun, our joy, our knowledge, our tears, and our love for journalism. New York will forever be a memory for our YLHS Publications.

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