What's New?
Education and Achievements
Music and Dance
My musical journey
My Travel Experience
My sister, mother, and I established a pre-college bucket list early on. With limited funds and a packed schedule, traveling was not very easy for my family; but, providing us with opportunities to travel was very important to my mom. We have saved and spent wisely to enable our family to travel abroad before my sister and I graduate. I have been to many places so far, both within the United States and internationally. Here are some of the international trips I have been on:
Australia, twice. Yes, I did get the opportunity to pet both a koala and a kangaroo in their habitat; I was also able to see the world’s smallest penguins in their natural habitat. The Sydney Harbor Bridge, the Sydney Opera House, and the Botanical Gardens were spectacular walks and views. As part of their own personal journey, two of my aunts naturalized in Australia many moons ago, so travel to this far away destination was fairly easy.
Canada. During a trip to Niagara Falls, we visited our neighboring country and our friends and family in Toronto.
Germany, France, and Austria. These locations were part of a Jazz Band trip to Europe and I traveled with a stand up Bass and was able to perform. Of course, it meant I was able to experience the “Sound of Music” tour in Austria. In 2019, German friends we had visited came to the United States to tour and play jazz with us. My family and I hosted one of the students, who I had met and built a relationship with in the months proceeding our trip to Europe in 2018, in our home. We continue to keep in contact to this day.
France. As part of an exchange program, I was able to not just host a French student, but I was able to visit and experience French life too. During our trip I stayed in Bayonne and visited Spain and Paris. I made many friends during this trip and we all continue to keep in touch. I carried my tap shoes with me on this trip and was able to perform at some of the city centers and historic sites during our tours – even for the governor of Bayonne! This trip was by far my favorite and more accessible than other trips because all we had to pay for was the flight, since we were accommodated by our exchange families – I didn’t spend a dime more!
Ecuador. This was a great summer trip with my father and sister, which allowed me to experience authentic Spanish culture.
United States West Coast - Summer, 2020
The most recent of my trips, the one to Arizona, Utah, and Nevada, was amazing! Starting in Las Vegas, my mother, sister, and I drove through different canyons and landmarks to end up back where we started! This was definitely one for the books!
Foreign Exchange de Français - Spring, 2019
During my freshmen year of high school, I was blessed to host Tom, my French exchange student, here in the United States. Tom was a wonder and adored much of what he saw. The following year, I was fortunate enough to travel all the way to his home, staying for a week! This was by far my favorite trip that I have ever taken part in.
European tour, Spruce Creek high school jazz band - Spring, 2018
During my freshmen year of high school, I was fortunate enough to travel abroad with my school’s jazz band. Other than getting stuck in Canada for a couple days, it was a smooth trip! I visited Germany (where I would meet one of my future exchange students), Austria, and France. The trip was awesome and I was even able to tour the area where the sound of music was filmed!