Jayson Julius Waller has been to all 50 states in the United States and to over 80 countries worldwide.
Instead of getting clothes or the newest gadgets for their child, Waller’s parents would save every dollar to travel. Both parents were teachers so they got time off together, making traveling a possibility.
During his childhood, Waller and his family traveled during the entirety of their summer and winter breaks, and then often went camping during spring break. By now, Waller has camped in most U.S. national parks.
Waller has traveled in Latin America, Australia, North America, Europe, North Africa, and most of Asia. Waller’s favorite continent to travel to is Europe, specifically the Mediterranean countries. “Italy is probably my favorite,” Waller said, “I go to historical sites like castles, cathedrals, battle sites, and the really awesome places.”
Waller has been to every major country in Europe with the exception of Belarus. He has even traveled to many countries multiple times.
In addition, Waller has driven around both Britain and France. He prefers Britain for multiple reasons. The language barrier in France makes it less interesting for him, and he has always been interested in British history. He is fascinated by the Roman ruins, Stonehenge, the medieval castles, the royal palaces, and the battle sites.
As an introduction to traveling in Europe, Waller recommends going to Britain. He said, “There is a lot of cool things to see there, and you will probably fly into London anyway, which is the most important thing to see in Britain.”
Waller’s European travels began before he started teaching European history, so they may have influenced his passion for teaching its history. Students believe that he is extremely passionate about what he teaches.
Sophomore Luke Mohler said, “I would say that he is very passionate about history, especially wars, because he seems to have fun teaching the class and making historical jokes. He also says he takes all of the quizzes, and I don’t know any other teacher who takes their own quizzes.”
Waller plans to continue traveling and learning about Europe. This upcoming summer, Waller will be driving around Spain for three weeks, starting in Madrid and flying out of Barcelona. He plans to go scuba diving near a ship that sunk in 1916 during World War I.
