TheTornadoTimes

By Jeannie Mai

Lisbon, Portugal

After two flights, we arrived in Lisbon at around 7 a.m. on Sunday, March 17 and met with our tour guide, Laura. We checked in at the SANA Rex Hotel and had an hour to get ready before exploring the capital with the entire group, which also consisted of students from Hawaii and Kansas.
We took a walking tour of the Baixa, or downtown Portugal. The architecture of the brightly-colored buildings was absolutely beautiful, but the best part had to be the decorative stone pavement. It was so different from the usual gray California sidewalks.
On the second day, we started our morning off at Belém Tower, a fortification located on the bank of the Tagus River. Afterwards, we trekked uphill to see the view from the Castle of São Jorge. The red rooftops of Lisbon were the most prominent features from the view.
In the afternoon, we visited Cascais, a couple of train stops away from Lisbon. The town had a very Santa Monica-like feel to it due to its location right along the beach. It had a relaxing vibe, which we all loved. We perused the small shops before heading back to the Baixa.

Seville, Spain

Seville was easily one of my favorite cities we visited. I groggily dragged myself out of bed, only to be pleasantly surprised by the warm and sunny weather. We started off the beautiful morning at the Plaza de España. The plaza had ornately decorated bridges and towers, and, of course, roaming gypsies.
Shortly after, we visited the Alcázar of Seville, a royal palace. Everywhere I turned, the walls were intricately designed to the last detail. The palace had lovely, captivating architecture with Moorish influence. We then went to climb the Giralda, the famous bell tower of the Cathedral of Spain. Thirty-three floors later, we reached the top, where you could see the breathtaking view of Seville.
After the hike, we rewarded ourselves with lunch. I finally had the chance to try a classic Spanish paella, which consists of rice, vegetables, and saffron. It was delicious; the rice was cooked to perfection and the seafood was pleasing.
That evening, we took lessons from an authentic flamenco dancer who taught us the basic steps of the native Spanish dance.
Afterwards, we attended a flamenco show that was so different from the normal dance styles we see here. The best part of the flamenco dancing is the passion I was able to see on the dancers’ faces.

Madrid, Spain

We spent our last few nights in Madrid at the Hotel Medodía. Our hotel was in a convenient location – close to the Reina Sofia Museum, the Plaza Mayor, and the Prado Museum. Madrid reminded me of New York City with its crowded streets and bright city lights. I absolutely loved it.
We arrived in Madrid in the evening and had dinner with the entire tour group at the Museo del Jamón. Dinner consisted of delicious zucchini soup followed by a vegetable paella. We then walked back to the Plaza del Sol and Hoover split up with the rest of the tour group to get churros and hot chocolate at the Chocolatería San Ginés.
We also got a chance to visit El Museo Reina Sofía, home of Pablo Picasso’s famous “Guernica.” I was skeptical of this famous painting that everyone spoke so highly of because I was never a fan of modern art. However, I was genuinely surprised; the “Guernica” is astonishing. I was speechless at how Picasso conveyed the destruction of the Spanish Civil War in such a unique and disturbing way.

Toledo, Spain

On our last full day in Spain, we woke up and traveled to Toledo, south of Madrid. After seeing an exquisite skyline of Toledo, we went to one of the town’s most famous tourist attractions: the Cathedral. The church was magnificent with detailed stain glass windows and various paintings by famous artists such as Goya and El Greco.
Then, we went to the Church of San Tome to see El Greco’s most famous work “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.” We also got a chance to walk across the Bridge of San Martin, which was located at the western side of Toledo. The bridge was majestic; it looked like something out of a fairy tale.
The trip passed us by so quickly, but I enjoyed every minute of it. Not only did I get to experience European culture and see breathtakingly beautiful monuments, but I got closer to a lot of my Spanish Club friends.
I hope to visit again soon; my first trip to Spain and Portugal with Mrs. Cooper and Spanish Club was amazing.

By Rita Zakaryan

Bullying is a controversial issue that has drastically affected teens all across the nation. This act of harassment and abuse is difficult to escape from and has left many teens to believe that their lives will always consist of such misery.

At schools, innocent students are being preyed on. They roam hallways pretending that it is okay, but little do they know they are the victims of a terrible act.

Bullying in any form is recognized as a threatening and juvenile act. Due to its negative effects, bullying can cause severe emotional and mental damages to a victim. Because of the vulnerability, victims are left to run towards threatening options such as drug abuse and suicide.

Many victims do not speak out about the ordeals they experience, as they believe that the situation may only worsen. However, two students on campus were willing to share their personal stories in order to spread the awareness of bullying.

For their own protection, the students will be anonymous, acknowledged as Dan and Stephanie.

Dan’s story

Bullying began to take center stage in Dan’s life when he first attended kindergarten at a private Catholic school at the age of six. He faced constant mocking and teasing on a daily basis. The childish bullying continued to progress until Dan reached the third grade.

“It was the usual childish name calling,” Dan said. “They called me names like faggot and told me that I was going to go to Hell for being gay.”

When he reached the fourth grade, the bullying increased and spread to cyber bullying. The cyber bullying forced Dan to completely deny his true identity and hide his sexuality.

“I always told myself I wasn’t gay, though I knew I was,” Dan said. “I was forced to tell myself this because I was willing to do anything for the bullying to stop. I would tell myself it wasn’t true that I was gay so that I would be able to deal with it and try to ignore [the bullies].”

By the eighth grade, Dan had already faced many psychological issues beginning with sleepless nights spent crying to suicidal thoughts and attempts.

“I tried to kill myself so many times, but I wasn’t able to do it,” Dan said. “I would pray to God for help, to sleep and not wake up. I couldn’t take it anymore. I used to come home crying. I wouldn’t sleep…I would just cry.”

Although the bullying has died down, Dan still faces the damages of stress, insomnia, and loss of self-esteem due to such an adversity. He’s found outlets in his extracurricular activities which have allowed him to cope and heal.

Stephanie’s story

Stephanie’s battle against bullying came in all forms. Her “living hell” began towards the end of her junior year, with the spreading of rumors and constant harassing that have been taunting her until this day.

A “friend” had begun spreading rumors in order to gain the attention of a boy who was interested in Stephanie. When she realized that her plan had not broken down Stephanie’s spirit, the “friend” took even more drastic steps and called her profane names, advised others to harass her, and bullied Stephanie with “nasty” phone calls and Facebook messages.

Dealing with issues at home, keeping up with her responsibilities at school, and being the target of such terrible acts lessened Stephanie’s happiness and confidence.

Before she reached her breaking point, Stephanie found ways to cope by spending most of her time taking part in extracurricular activities and relieving stress through exercise, but they were not enough.

“My parents have been divorced for a while,” Stephanie said. “I also have to deal with an alcoholic father.”

While balancing school and leadership roles, Stephanie was involved in police investigations due to her father’s illegal actions and inappropriate behavior.

Being stressed and emotionally drained, Stephanie skipped school, suffered from hypersomnia, lost her hair, and ate irregularly.

With home, school, and friendships deteriorating, the bullying was just the icing on a cake.

“I couldn’t take it,” Stephanie said. “I drove around with a knife in the car, seriously thinking about killing myself.”

Stephanie’s friends began to see changes in her behavior. They became concerned with her absences, leaving them no choice but to seek help.

“When we found out what was going on, we were shocked,” Her friends said. “ We didn’t know what to do or whom to tell or if we should, but when we heard that she was trying to kill herself we went straight to the administrators.”

After getting help from medical professionals and support from those around her, Stephanie has been able to reclaim her life.