By VICTORIA CHANDRA, senior

AFTER SCHOOL ENDED, many students embarked upon adventures close to home and around the world. Along the way, they participated in amazing activities. These students have shared with us their memorable stories.

I went white water rafting for the first time with my family friends. The instructor said he would guide us through the rapids; all we had to do was row in sync. We managed to do so for a while, but once we started hitting the rougher waters, everyone panicked, and we ended up falling into the rapids. — Gloria Paulose, senior

I spent my summer doing research at Columbia University. One day, I spilled liquid nitrogen all over the medical center lobby; the main entrance was closed for 2 hours. Everyone was confused and irritated, but it wasn’t really my fault. No one got hurt, so I was okay with the situation. Also, the liquid nitrogen looked pretty cool. — Parth Patel, senior

I was on a 14­ hour flight and naturally, I was tired, so I tried to take a nap. I felt my mom wriggle away from me when I tried to use her shoulder as a headrest; I latched onto her tightly—after all, she’s my mother. I woke up with a start when I heard my mom calling my name, not from below my head, but from my other side. To my shock, I had been sleeping comfortably on a middleaged man’s shoulder. — Victoria Chandra, senior

I attended the Cooper Union STEM Summer Program, and the television show Elementary was there filming scenes. I almost collided into Jonny Lee Miller while on my phone. If the scenes air, you might be able to see a group of kids freaking out in the background. — Cheryl Chang, senior

One night, my family and I went out to Dominos, and I wrapped my retainers up in a tissue. After we finished eating I threw out all of our trash (tissues included) and left. After I figured out what had happened, my brother and I ran all the way back to Dominos. I told the employees about my retainers, and they ended up cleaning out their whole trash bin to find them! — Krisha Patel, freshman

I almost electrocuted myself while getting CPR certified. — Zenobia Tamboly, senior

Aneesh was walking down the street, and he got egged. — Aaron John, senior