Bella posing at the sandstone formation called the Kissing Couple with its shadow in the Colorado National Monument.

   Senior Bella Martinez loves to travel. She has been to 17 states and 8 different countries. When she’s not on the road, she loves to spend hours playing chess and swimming. 

Get to Know Bella  

   Before becoming friends with Bella, you should know she keeps an enjoyable conversation and has lots of energy. 

   Bella is down to earth because she lives life by the moment. A quote Bella lives by is 2-2-4 which stands for “Today, Tomorrow and Forever.” She said, “Don’t think too much about the past or the future, just the present.” 

  Bella grew up with her cousins, brothers, and dad, and she learned to not take things too seriously and to always be a goofball. “My dad inspires me the most ever since I was little because he has never taken a day off work and always keeps the lifestyle stable,” she said. 

   People would say she had too much energy and could not focus during class, which caused her to struggle mentally and socially. What impacted Bella the most were her parents, who forced her to go swimming because she was struggling in school. 

   Bella hated swimming because she was forced to go after school 5 times a week for 3-4 hours with no excuses, but over time, she grew to love it. She said, “Swimming was once something I used to hate but turned into something I cannot live without.” 

Hobbies and Interests  

   Though swimming has been Bella’s main hobby, she does not swim for Miami High’s team, but it has crossed her mind a few times over the year. “I regret it now, but we’ll never know what happens in the future,” she said. “When I swim it’s my quiet place. It’s better than talking to the best therapist, I could swim for hours.”  

   Bella likes chess because she grew up playing with her brothers and has continued playing it every day since then. She likes scuba diving because“It is another world down there, and we only discovered so little of the ocean, and I love the beauty of it.” 

   She also loves photography and got her first camera during her 15th birthday as a present. It was a GoPro Hero 8. “It was the start of something new,” she said. The first thing she started was videotaping Florida’s springs and lakes with nature everywhere. Her favorite place to film is Ichnetucknee Springs State Park. She loves taking pictures because she said, “Just with one photo, you can change their perspective, thousand words, meanings, and thoughts.” 

    Bella loves music with meaning from artists like Bruno Mars and Drake. “I like Drake’s old music from 2014-2016, but his recent music not so much because I feel like the fame got to him like a lot of celebrities,” she said. 

 Bella’s Travels 

   Traveling and going on vacations are some of the many things that Bella loves to do. Her favorite thing about going on vacation is the people she meets along the way. “Everyone is different and has their own unique story to tell,” she said. 

   Mexico is Bella’s favorite place she has traveled to since she was young. “Maybe it was the crazy bus or the fish that come up to your face while scuba diving,” she said. If she could travel anywhere, she would go to North Africa because it has always been her dream since she was little. She said, “I promise myself I can’t die without going there even if I go when I’m 90.”

The only place that feels like home to her is Costa Rica. “I’ve been going there every spring break,” she said. The perfect vacation for Bella is having her family go with her. She says, “Nothing is more perfect than going with the people you love.” 

Her Future 

   Bella is most definitely looking forward to the future and all the adventures, but she is not looking forward to all the responsibilities that come with growing up such as paying bills.  

Teaching is a career that Bella wants to pursue. “It has always been my goal so that I could leave a mark,” she said. Bella wants to teach elementary kids in kindergarten.  

Bella has always wanted to start a family because family is everything to her. She adds, “I want a family with someone I could trust and has the same goals as me.” 

   In 10 years, Bella will be in Boston, pursuing teaching, having a family, and traveling most of the world. “For now, I’m living life,” she said.