If you remember hearing that your parents and grandparents had to walk a ridiculous amount of miles to school, then you'll be impressed by this story. Queens, New York teen Santiago Munoz leaves his home in the Far Rockaways at 6 a.m. every morning in order to get to his pretigious school, Bronx High School of Science on time, two and a half hours away! That's five hours a day spent commuting! The 14-year-old may seem like an average kid, but his school commute has made him the student with the longest travel time on the planet, according to the United Nations! This kid is truly an inspiration…
The New York Post reports that Santiago's extensive commute will be featured in an art exhibit titled "Journeys to School" at the United Nations which details the hardships kids face when going to school. Many of the kids displayed in the showcase are from foreign countries such as Kenya, Brazil, even Thailand–and Santiago STILL beats them with the worst daily commute. But the amazing teen is just happy to get an education…
Getting up for school was generally an easy feat for me since I'm a morning person, but the commute on the other hand was the challenge. Although train delays, bus issues are bad enough, the weather can also impact how smoothly your commute goes in the morning. The fact that this boy makes this journey to his school EVERY day is quite impressive!
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Santiago's trip to school generally takes 2 hours and 20 minutes or more, depending on how transit is running. The teen takes two buses and two trains, along with a 10-minute walk to the school every morning. Presumably, all the time commuting leaves very little time for a social life. So why does Santiago continue making this journey instead of transferring to a nearby school?
The 14-year-old tells the daily: "The trip I do every day to get to school everyone should be willing to do to get a good education." He adds that he is lucky to travel by train compared to others in foreign countries, who have less than safe conditions.
And despite the long commute, Santiago STILL manages to get involved in extracurricular activities twice a week by taking a genetics course at the Museum of Natural History. On those days, he doesn't even get home until about 9 p.m., but he says he does it all for the sake of becoming a doctor and that It will be worth it to go to one of his dream schools, MIT or Columbia University.
How amazing is this kid?! Most 14-year-olds are so focused on getting the latest video games, but we're happy to see Santiago putting school first. He already has a good head on his shoulders and his dedication and ambition prove just that. He's a positive role model for kids and adults everywhere since even the commute to work can be a pain for most of us. But he's showing that when you have your heart set on something, you'll make it happen no matter how long it may take you to get there. We wish him the best on his journey to becoming a doctor–which we're sure he's going to excel at as well!
Image via Thinkstock
