Familiar with the crowded sidewalk at the San Jose Municipal Airport, Alicia Xu (12) crosses the street to reach the glass sliding doors. Above it reads, “Departures”. She walks into the building without hesitation as she was accustomed to the rapid flow of people. 

While Alicia traveled to Hong Kong independently in the summer of her junior year, she hardly started high school with that intention in mind. During her sophomore year, she began to reflect on her own mindset of her future. Her father encouraged her to take a trip to Boston without the guidance of her parents.

“My dad was the first one to push me to go on my own, to not be shy, to go for things for myself and to [care more for myself],” she said.

After experiencing independent travel for the first time, she decided to travel to Hong Kong by herself for an internship. Thrown right into the heart of an unfamiliar environment, Alicia wanted to stay in the comfort of her aunt’s home. However, as she grew curious, she began exploring Hong Kong on her own.

“I ended up spending a lot of time on my own: taking the subways, exploring the cities, making new friends and learning about the culture through them,” she said. 

Pushing herself to talk to others and becoming more independent, Alicia gained new perspectives on other people’s thoughts. She learned that she did not need to conform to the activities that all her friends did.

“[Traveling] has taught me that doing things that other people don’t do is ok; it’s even better in my perspective. It has definitely taught me to be outgoing and adaptable in the sense that I have to talk to strangers and ask questions,” Alicia said.

Alicia expressed how her independent travels have positively affected her daily life at school. In the past, she was hesitant to try new things; however, through her experiences, she began to open up more in her own small community and even to those outside.

“Becoming more independent has helped me speak up more in class, to be more confident in myself, to take on more leadership roles. [I started joining new events] because I just found that doing things that I didn’t originally do was a lot better than I thought,” she said.

Her economics teacher, Dean Lizardo, expresses how he saw her becoming more outgoing in his class.

“When she first signed up for Behavioral Economics, I remember seeing her as quiet and somewhat reserved. But, as she became more comfortable in the classroom and I got to know her a lot better, she has this unique energy about her which is awesome,” Lizardo said. 

During Alicia’s travels, she listened to podcasts to fill up her transportation time. She started listening to a podcast titled “Not Overthinking” and found herself with a more analytical mindset. This podcast brings different perspectives on social interactions and other small aspects of lifestyle that others might find challenging to analyze.

“I feel like when I listen to a podcast before driving into school, I feel more prepared to have those discussion type classes,” Alicia said.

Additionally, she began incorporating her deep analysis into her daily life, pushing herself to explore her interest through others’ perspectives.

“I think I try to [do that analysis] with myself, to take something that seems like a really small detail and just dissect it and really think about it. Talking is definitely the best way for me to process my thoughts,” she said.

During her free time, Alicia also participates in Key Club and other community service activities which have taught her the importance of talking to people outside her friend circle, regardless of the environments they came from. Stemming from her love of interacting with others, she began conversing with many of the people she crossed paths with.

“I enjoy doing community service where I get to interact with people, like teaching kids and helping the homeless. It’s not really about the service, it’s more about the experience,” Alicia said. “I’ve worked at a lot of homeless shelters and I just cook them breakfast and sit down and talk to them. That’s just taught me a lot about ways to approach life, not to judge people when you first see them or by the fact that they’re homeless.”

As Alicia pushed herself to talk more deeply with individuals outside her own social community, she emphasized the importance of listening to others. During these conversations, she began internalizing others’ words that she found personally significant.

“If someone explains a thought process and it makes sense to me, I feel like I can definitely incorporate that with my own thoughts. I find it really interesting to see how other people think and I just want to make sense of everyone’s thought process,” she said.

Close friend Sejal Krishnan (12) reflects on the growth that Alicia has gone through, which has allowed her to become more outgoing.

“She’s become free. Before she was a bit restricted, but now she is more willing to make new friendships,” Sejal said.

After being encouraged to step outside her community, Alicia’s experience through independent travel and service has pushed her to learn more about individuals all around the world. These interactions have allowed her to see the perspectives of people from all walks of life. 

“When you speak to people outside of your direct circle, you learn a lot and you begin to question your own beliefs and I really enjoy that. I’ve learned to be more open-minded and I believe that you don’t have to dismiss someone just because they don’t agree with something that you strongly believe in,” Alicia said.