Coming home can mean a plethora of things. Whether it be stepping through your home’s front door or stepping out of a plane onto the land of a country thousands of miles away from another, the holiday season provides a time of comfort and rejoicing all over the world. CNBC has found that “62 percent of 2023 flight searches in the first week of December were for international destinations,” projecting a busy travel experience for millions planning to visit family in the upcoming weeks. Many students at IHS find themselves a part of those millions, deciding to spend their winter breaks and holiday season across the world.
This busy adventure starts with planning and packing. The biggest thing students and their families have considered before even going on their trip is budgets. Airplane ticket prices naturally get more expensive with demand, so finding the right price to save money on such big trips is crucial to efficient travel. Junior Ryu Dy says that he sometimes skips school for a day or two “if the prices for flights are lower on a specific day.” I can attest to this as I remember my dad telling me that we saved hundreds of dollars for our flight to the Philippines by deciding to fly out on a Friday instead of a Saturday. After making the big purchase, people start considering what items are essential for their vacation. Sophomore Jordan Jackson starts packing “by researching what the climate is like [at the destination].” This is especially important if you decide to go from Seattle, which is cold and rainy during this season, to a hot and humid place so far away from your closet. Most students follow Jackson and always first decide what outfits they must have on their excursions. Even if it is just for the sake of cute Instagram posts, the pieces of clothes one may wear depend on a lot of factors that ultimately decide what the mood of the whole trip will be. Once all the suitcases are filled, people are ready to make their way to the airport.
No matter where you are, the airport nearest to you is bound to be filled with an uncountable amount of people during your travel time. In the 2022 holiday season, USA Today measured an amount of “54 million people [expecting] to catch flights between Dec. 18 and Jan. 3,” which follows the Issaquah School District’s winter break schedule. Sophomore Abbie Lo has traveled to her country Hong Kong multiple times and says that “there’s always long lines [at the airport]… but that’s pretty normal.” Regardless of your departure city, you must always go through check in and security. Once you arrive in a foreign country, you must also wait to pass immigration and pick up any bags which you may have not taken as carry-ons. However, some could say that the biggest part of waiting has to be taking flights. From experience, my travel days have lasted from 17 hours to even two days. Once the long hours are over, though, the stressful rush seems to be nothing the moment one steps out of the airport.
Students from IHS tend to spend the whole winter break in their country, including myself. But before they get to enjoy their vacation, they may have to battle some jet lag. Junior Sakura Yamawaki braves jet lag, saying, “My philosophy is that you have to fight through it.” She “also [eats] at specific times for each meal to help.” Likewise, freshman Nyssa Balagopalan keeps some drinks on hand to keep herself awake: “I try to consume quite a few energy drinks on the first few days to keep myself awake during the day.” Once the battle against jet lag is won, people can finally start to enjoy their break. When I am in the Philippines, I find myself just exploring some of the trending spots around Manila with my family and cousins. As senior Sijay Chen says, we “[mooch] around wherever we stay.” However, some people decide to be adventurous around their countries. Senior Preeti Kotipalli and her family “did a country tour around India… [with] a party bus,” allowing them to see things like art and history museums while simultaneously bonding. Jackson does similar, attempting “to do every possible activity either alone or with somebody.”
The biggest part of these trips abroad appears to be bonding with extended family and other loved ones. Yamawaki, Chen, Dy, Lo, and I believe that the best part about visiting home is seeing our relatives. Getting the chance to reconnect with people that you only see once every few years is so crucial to feeling more familiar and comfortable with your heritage. Dy elaborates on this with his experience in multiple countries: “In the Philippines, I love seeing my lola (grandmother) and she loves to see us. In Japan, it’s a lot about seeing the people that still live there [who] I [was] friends with when I was younger.” I personally remember another trip to the Philippines I had in 2019 where I showed up to a huge family gathering. Even though there were people I have never seen before in my life, it felt good to see people that share the same blood as me. The holiday season also invokes a period of gift giving towards family members. Kotipalli says, “My mom is a platinum member of Macy’s. She shared her account with her brother and family so they can buy what they want and receive it when we go to India.” I too have seen my cousins, aunts, and uncles send my parents lists of what is on everyone’s wish lists in the Philippines. Being able to give them things that are harder to get there than in Seattle is heartwarming and only makes me more thankful for being able to visit them.
Towards the end of the trip, people prepare to leave their homeland. Before saying goodbyes, though, students have gone on some shopping sprees to stock up on goods that Seattle and the states do not have. As mentioned earlier, my family brings a lot of gifts from the states to our home country. These suitcases of gifts end up getting emptied, which means my family and I get to fill them up again – this time, with clothes, snacks, and souvenirs from our favorite places. Freshman Tanish Majumdar’s family buys from around the area too, saying, “My parents love collecting so we end up buying local stuff.” Balagopalan additionally thinks of her friends while shopping: “I especially love getting little gifts for my friends from the location I went.” After spending just a little bit more money, it is time to say goodbye to loved ones and fly back to Seattle.
Going back home for the holidays is one of my favorite things about life and I am sure that many other students can agree. As I have grown up, going on these journeys have meant different things to me at different points of time. Yamawaki explains this beautifully, expressing, “When I was younger and visited my grandparents, I had a more romantic feeling [towards Japan]… Right now, I appreciate everything more.” She is comforted by her visits home “since everything is always changing so fast, [Japan is] kind of like a constant I get to have.” In a contrasting manner, Majumdar gets to learn about the world every time he travels: “[Traveling] opens your eyes in a different kind of way than how school does.” Lo interprets this idea in another way, saying that going home to her means “reconnecting to [her] culture and people” – she learns about herself in a way that school cannot teach her, even during a time of rest.
During this year’s holiday season and upcoming winter break, many can look forward to the thrill of coming home. The journey is not easy, but it is important to remember what the experience means to not only yourself, but to your loved ones as well. Next time a family member miles away gets to hear you say “I’m coming home,” make sure to give them a gift that is better than anything that one could ever buy.
