“The majority of my family on my dad’s side and my extended family on my mom’s is from Peru.

I didn’t live in Peru, but when I was in second grade, my family and I moved to Argentina for my dad’s work.

One of my aunts lives there, so every Sunday we would go to her house. We’d get to her apartment and it’d be the same meal.

Every Sunday.

Argentina is very big about Parrilla, like grilling. It’s not like America where you have your burgers and hot dogs. Meat is a very big part of Argentine culture. My parents and I would all get so tired of barbecue. We would guilt-trip our uncle to come to our house so we could have fish.

Meals are such an important part of Latin American culture because you eat and spend time with your family. In the U.S., I think it’s a lot more overlooked.

In South America there’s this thing called Sobremesa, where after your meal, you’re just sitting at the table. You’re not eating, just chatting with your parents. I like that tradition because it represents how special it is to have a [set] time to talk to everyone.

I remember my school was very different there. I went to an International school and it was very easy compared to school here. It was an English school, so luckily the schedule was the same, and it was an English curriculum. It was definitely different, but it was a lot like what we see at Bellaire. Houston is such a diverse city, and that was mirrored in my international school.

I like going into school every day and seeing different people in different classes. In IB, we see each other in every single class we’re in, which is great. You grow to really appreciate the people around you.

Something I’ll forever be grateful for is the relationships you have with your teachers. The teachers that we have that care about your academics and care about you as a person or ask how your day is just so valuable, and I’m sad that that’s probably gonna be lost.”