PACL Blogs

By: Aditya D., Grade 10   I have always loved skateboarding, and when I got my first skateboard, I was ecstatic. I am far from the best skater, and I regularly struggle to land tricks. But the magic of skateboarding, for me at least, doesn’t come from flashy tricks or landing everything on the first…

By: Xavier J., Grade 10 Over three dozen teen boys have died by suicide after being sextorted. These scams can happen in as little as 15 minutes—starting with a fake message from someone pretending to be a teen girl. To avoid this happening to yourself, it is super important to take online safety seriously. Sextortion…

By: Aditya D., Grade 10 Back in 2017, when I was eight years old, I recall visiting Target and purchasing a pack of Pokémon cards for around five dollars. Those Pokémon cards could entertain me for days, simply because I thought they looked cool. After all, what eight-year-old did not love Pokémon? Every time we…

By: Aditya D., Grade 10 Japan has always been a place rich with culture, tradition, and spiritual history. Among the many things that have fascinated me about Japanese culture, meditation and Buddhism have stood out the most. There’s something about the discipline, the serenity, and the simplicity of Buddhist practice that has always pulled me…

By: Aditya D., Grade 9 Buying two hundred-dollar concert tickets might not be for everyone, but it is something that I will never regret. Tyler the Creator has been my favorite artist since I listened to him for the first time, and I was fortunate enough to secure three tickets for me and my two…

By: Aditya D., Grade 9   There is truly nothing like waking up to the serene beauty of an ocean view in Santorini. As the morning light shined through the windows, the sound of waves crashing against the cliffs created a perfect start to the day. The first thing I saw when I stepped out…

By: Aditya D., Grade 9 What xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxlag?  Even though there’s a 10 hour difference between Athens and Palo Alto, I slept through the whole night in the cozy bed of the Athenian hotel without getting up a single time during the night! (Fair warning to myself - tomorrow night will be a different story! Tonight…