As the first semester came to a close, many DHS students sought to busy themselves over winter break. While some took planes and car rides all over the country and the world, others stayed close to home and spent their breaks catching up with friends, family, and extracurricular activities. 

Aiden Gotera was one of the latter. Before winter break started, he told the Shield: “I’m going down to Sacramento to see most of my family members for Christmas . . . . I’ll also be attending a comic con with some close friends!”

Other students traveled further for their winter breaks. Andrew Lee, for example, traveled to Orlando, Florida for a week to check out both DisneyWorld and Universal Studios. “I spent three days at each amusement park. Overall, I had a lot of fun,” Andrew explained.

As for which theme park he liked better, it was close, as both theme parks are very different and have various exciting rides. But after much deliberation, Andrew said, “I found Disney World more enjoyable at the end of the day due to the FastPass system . . . which allowed us to skip a majority of the line.”

Some jet-setting students even traveled to different countries over the two-week break. Austin Meng spent his time in Cabo, Mexico as part of a job perk offered by his mom’s company. While he says he had a lot of fun, Austin regrets that they were “in a touristy area . . . . unfortunately, I wasn’t able to learn more about Mexican culture.”

Despite this, Austin made the most of his vacation, stating that he “hit up the downtown of Cabo San Lucas, went whale watching, snorkeling, [and] camel riding, saw the famous Arch of Cabo San Lucas, and celebrated a sandy Christmas!”

Whether they’re flying off on a beachy vacation, or staying cozy inside here in the Bay Area, DHS students are eager to take advantage of this much-needed (and much-deserved) break. As Austin notes, “It definitely feels nice to be off from school . . . . It’s a much-needed break from all the APs I’m taking.”

However, many Dublin High students’ winter breaks weren’t spent so glamorously. Many seniors spent their breaks polishing off college applications, while juniors worked on Driver’s Ed and planned their summer activities. Even underclassmen found themselves busy with schoolwork, projects, summer plans, or even jobs. Austin is among these busy students: besides binging movies, he plans to use his break to start his “summer internship grind.” 

Even over break, it seems, DHS students are making plans for the future. But for now, they enjoy this much-needed rest.