A place rooted in art and culture, Mexico is a place that has been around for many centuries. Every year, 51 million tourists go to visit. However, for senior Michelle Torres, her first trip to Mexico this summer had a lot more meaning. 

Torres visited Mexico for three weeks to visit family she had never met in real life. Although her family is originally from Mexico, she was born and raised in the U.S. and had never been to Mexico until this summer. 

She visited the state of Puebla. It’s a state in east-central Mexico, and where Torres’ parents are from. It is away from the city, near the country-side.

“It’s like a little village or a town of people that know everybody– that know everything,” Torres said.  “It was just really nice going to see all my family members.”

During her trip to Mexico, Torres recalls doing things that she never thought she’d do in her lifetime.

“I was playing in the dirt with little kids, I never thought that I’d be the type to do that…,” Torres said. 

Torres describes feeling out of place due to how everyone looked compared to her while in Mexico. Even though the way she spoke, the way she dressed, her skin and even her hair were different, that didn’t stop her from enjoying her time there. 

Since she was in Mexico to meet more of her family, that included Torres going to visit her grandfather who was sick. Her grandfather had passed away while she was there. Despite everything, she still enjoyed having loved ones close to her. 

In the three weeks she spent there, Torres recalls seeing things there that she had never seen in the U.S. Many of these things have given her a new perspective and view of life. Coming back from Mexico, many values have changed for her. 

“I built so many relationships with my family, even though it was just for three weeks,” Torres said. “I talked to them, I got to know them, I woke up with them, I ate with them.”