Traveling Around the World

By Victoria U.

Samantha woke up one morning and she was very excited to go to school. She was wearing a light blue shirt, light jeans, a pretty mask, and her glasses. When she got to school, she went to her third period class, which is English, and sat down next to her partner. She then started to tell her stories and experiences to Brazil. This was very exciting for her because last year during COVID, she couldn't go, so she missed the sweet memories that would be made with her family. Talking about it was one way to remember those beautiful memories that she would never forget.

Samantha was only a couple years old when she started to travel with her mom. Now, she travels to different places for fun or to visit her family every year with her mom! Her mom, Vanusa, was born in Brazil. This is one of the reasons she goes every year. Vanusa’s family is still in Brazil, so she goes to see them yearly, and she takes Samantha with her. Samantha used to have Brazilian citizenship, but her mom took it away since they had trouble getting back home to the U.S.

Vanusa loves to travel and see her family. For all the places they have gone to, Vanusa has planned almost all of them. Her mother lived in a poor neighborhood, and she had many brothers and sisters. She and her brothers and sisters had to help their mother, Samantha’s grandmother, around the house. Vanusa moved to the USA in her adult life. Ever since she moved, she has visited her family in Brazil every year.

Bonding with her family is one of Samantha's favorite parts of traveling to Brazil annually. When she goes to Brazil, she gets to see her grandma, uncle, aunt, and other family members that come to visit. Her family loves to explore. Brazil is a beautiful place for touring, so she and her family take tours of the wet, green forests and the tall, colorful buildings in the cities.

Traveling is a huge part of Samantha's life. Not only does she travel to Brazil, but she has also traveled to Japan, Brazil, Washington DC, Florida, Utah, Chicago, China, Mexico, Hawaii, and some other smaller states in the US. “I love seeing the different cultures, and hearing languages that are spoken when I travel to places outside the USA,” said Samantha. Culture is a very fun thing to learn about because you can see how people live their daily lives, and learn different traditions. “Traveling is a big part of my life. I love and cherish the memories because that’s the time I get to spend the most time with my family.”

Apart from traveling, Samantha also gets to try lots of new foods. Some of them she hasn't even heard of in her whole life! Samantha and her family have tried assorted foods from main entrees to tiny desserts. The favorite food she tried in Brazil was Brazilian rice.

“Brazil, overall, is a very fun and exciting place,” states Samantha. It has fun things to do like seeing beautiful views, and going to fun amusement parks. Samantha loves going to Brazil, and she hopes that it will stay a family tradition forever.