Arianna and Bella Boshara have been on journeys throughout the world, some for pure enjoyment and some to aid those in need. Their travels include Greece, Haiti, France, Spain, Peru and Italy. Living and experiencing these unfamiliar cultures have become a love for these sisters.

Arianna’s, senior, and Bella’s, sophomore, parents used to live in Italy, so the family traveled there to see their parents’ old neighborhood located right outside Rome. Next, they traveled to the countryside and then to Vada beach, located near Florence.

“The best food was in Italy,” Bella said. “I loved every part of it, and if I had to choose one country to go back to it would be Italy.”

Bella and Arianna’s mom, Lisa Lannotti, works for Washington University collecting nutritional data, and her job has her traveling for research. When she went to Peru, the whole family was able to join. In Peru, the family stayed in the cities of Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu in 2007.

“Peru was the first country that changed [my] outlook,” Bella said. “When you go to a developing country like Peru, [and you see how] that culture is so different from what we’re used to really opens your mind about other people’s lifestyles and how they’ve always lived.”

While staying in Cusco, a huge earthquake occurred in 2007. According to earthquaketrack.com, the earthquake had a magnitude of 8.0, and the building next to the one Arianna and Bella were staying in was half crumbled.

“Our mom made us sleep with our shoes on in case we had to get out because we were on the 17th floor of a 19-story building,” Bella said. “There was an aftershock where the building was tipping back and forth and on the verge of swaying.”

After Arianna and Bella finished their eighth grade year, they were able to pick a place they wanted to travel to. For Bella it was France. Arianna’s choice was Greece. Soon their younger brother will be able to go on his dream trip.

In France, Bella began her adventure in Paris then traveled by train to a town by the sea called St. Jean de Luz. While Bella chose France as her destination, she was also able to experience Spain because her old neighbors live in Spain during the summer, so she stopped by to visit them in San Sebastian.

Arianna experienced the sights and sounds of Greece, starting in Athens for 12 days.

“Athens is not as pretty of a city as everyone thinks,” Arianna said. “It’s kind of grimy, but it is really cool because if you look up, you can see the Acropolis. The first day we got there we climbed [the Acropolis] on jet lag, but it was so beautiful and so worth it.”

When Arianna traveled to Haiti with her mother, she helped her collect more nutritional research for Washington University.

“We go and give kids this food her and her team came up with and see if that impacts their height and weight, and to see if their education is changed by it because nutrition is important for education,” Arianna said.

Arianna’s experiences in Haiti compelled her to create a club at KHS called H-BELLE which stands for Building Education by Learning Loving and Encompassing in Haiti. This club fundraises for books and other supplies to send to Haiti by asking donations from students.

Arianna and Bella said their family does not spend a lot of money on purchasing new technology, instead, they travel. Bella said her memories are worth much more to her than an iPhone would be.

 “It’s not just the sights that are cool, it’s the people too,” Bella said. “Don’t take too many pictures because then all you’ll remember is taking pictures.”