I Do
I am, by far, the least musically inclined person I know. Yet that doesn’t...
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The Uganda Diary
As I plopped a lemonade-flavored, electrolyte hydrating tablet into my plastic water bottle, I could feel Sylvia’s big eyes watching my every move. With our rear-ends simultaneously bouncing up and...
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A Memorable Trip To Bryce Canyon
Travelling is a beautiful journey that leads to many experiences. Around the world people travel to take a break from their daily routines and explore their surroundings. They travel to learn about...
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Catskill Mountains: Birthplace of My Dreams
In the 1960s, a book called My Side of the Mountain inspired a young man’s dream to live in the wilderness and train raptors (eagles, hawks, falcons, and owls). As a young man he moved to Roxbury,...
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48 Hours in London
Comely cornerside shops selling fish and chips, ancient yet steadfast Gothic architecture among sleek silver skyscrapers, the thick whirl of a gray-tinged Thames -...
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Walking with Wolves – A Trip to West Yellowstone
It was the middle of July, and it was snowing. To my younger sister and I, this was a miracle in itself; back home in Texas, we got a few inches of snow once or twice a year if we were lucky,...
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Dad, Rafting, and Me
Every time dad called me and invited me to go somewhere, it was special for me. I did not get to see father very often because my parents divorced and he moved to another city. Also, dad’s job included...
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Pickett’s Charge – When Even God Mourned
You can still hear the sounds of cannons, the steady tap the drummer plays for the army, and the cries of men, young and old, who will never make it home to see their loved ones again. These dreadful sounds...
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A Journey Through Music and Time
It is known as the city that never sleeps, a name that only seems appropriate with its millions of bustling people, thousands of restaurants, hundreds of successful companies, and one Lincoln Center...
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A Day in Their Shoes
On February 17th, 2017, I embarked on a 12 day trip throughout Eastern Europe with a group of students I had never met before. See, I was a senior at the time, well the only senior on a trip full of...
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A Little Too Much on Island Time: My Visit to the U.S. Virgin Islands
The rays of the Caribbean sun first greeted my family as we stepped off the plane. I looked around at the mountains surrounding the airport’s runway, as I climbed down the shaky,...
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Seven UnBelizeable Days
Last summer I went on my first international mission trip with my church and a church group from Alabama to Dangriga, Belize. There I spent seven days in the hot Belizean sun making memories and friends...
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My Journey of Discovering the Meaning of “Sí Se Puede”
The world is a marvelous place, home to many cultures, beautiful scenery, and many undiscovered beauties. Since I was a child, I dreamt of traveling this beautiful blue marble, called Earth. I had no...
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Rediscovering My Roots: A Trip to Vietnam
It was a steamy day when our plane touched down in Da Nang, Vietnam. But then again, what summer day wasn't hot in Vietnam? Being Texas natives did not make my family immune to the blistering sun. It...
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Galveston: The (Not So) Pristine, Sunny and Glamorous Beach Getaway
It rained so hard on the drive down to the island that the only thing I could see sometimes was the taillights of the car in front of us. Since the sun rose the sky had been grey, and the car crept forward...
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Santo Domingo, A Whole New World
In the summer of 2016, my family rented a charming townhouse by the beach, packed our bags and took on what would be one of the most eye-opening experiences we’ve ever had. Ideally, being...
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Finding Home
This is Vietnam at 6:00 in the morning. I peer out from the tenth story...
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VSA (Vacation of Scholarly Acceptance)
Merriam-Webster says that a vacation is a period of time spent away from work in order to rest or travel, but my vacation was much more than that. My time spent in Nashville, Tennessee, blended together...
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The Pounds I Gained from Paris to Provence
In a word association test pertaining to France, people will likely come up with answers such as Eiffel Tower, Louvre, and Tour de France. However, I had the opportunity to visit France with my family...
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The Trip of a Lifetime
When I was a little girl, the best presents I would receive were from my grandmother. My chest would cinch with anticipation as I spotted one of her coveted parcels lying in the doorway. Inside would...
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10 Things Your Kids Will Love in Nassau, Bahamas
My name is Will, and I’m an 11-year old who loves to travel! Last month, I was able to visit Nassau and Atlantis for the first time, and trust me, your kids are going to love it! Here are 10 of...
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Feel Like a King at Heritage Hotels in Rajasthan
We all have heard the stories of kings and queens and royal empires. What if you could re-live those fantasies? Rajasthan, the land of royals and the well-renowned seat of Rajputana gives you an incredible...
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Emerald Green by the Sparkling Sea
Ireland. A journey of a lifetime and a land of absolute astonishment for any traveler. Upon arriving via Lingus Airways at Shannon Airport, the hues of green confounded every spectator, and was a blinding...
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Munich: Beyond the Hofbrauhaus
Munich, Germany is known as the beer capital of the world and is most famous for its annual Oktoberfest, but this city was founded on more than a love for beer. On a recent trip to the village which...
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Home in the World, Roots in China-June 2013
This is the story of when I returned to my Found Site. What I saw made me realize how lucky I am. The roads were made of dirt, the building timeworn, and I stood in front of it – my Found...
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5 Tips for Experiencing England
In June of 2017 I traveled to England, with a group of High-School students to explore British Literature and Culture. I traveled to Oxford, Stratford, Bath, Warwick, Canterbury, London, etcI. was...
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A Step That Took 250 Years
You could say this vacation trip actually started over 250 years ago. That’s when my eighth great grandfather (Granddad Matthew) came to America. I bet you are saying…WHAT? Well, his life story...
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Undressed in Atami
Our loaf-shaped tour bus wove up hilly roads to the New Akao Hotel, located in Atami of Japan’s Shizuoka Prefecture. Its snow-white buildings had tucked themselves into leafy pockets on the rocky...
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Life Hack: De-Stress By Celebrating Family Holidays At Sea
Thinking of spending the holidays (any holiday) on a family cruise vacation; here's my report on the stress-free pluses and minor minuses of cruising over an Easter school break. As much as I love to...
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Dying Legacies and A Dusty Attic: The Lost History of Hungary
One thing Andrew Pongratz is notoriously famous for is his horrendous driving. On his visits from Arizona, he would occasionally drive me to basketball practice, involving serious bumper riding and cruising...
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Loving The Unloved: I Can Make A Difference
Large innocent eyes stare at me solemnly, faded from hopelessness and caked with the grit which came from years of living in garbage. Underneath the grime, I notice...
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Best Wine Country Family Attractions – Sonoma And Napa With Kids
If you're visiting California's Napa Valley or nearby Sonoma...
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Restricted By The Lens
It was just yesterday that I was cleaning and came upon a large cardboard box marked pictures. As I opened it up, I looked at the heap of scrapbooks and bundles of photos randomly scattered...
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St. Croix, USVI
It was not the dream trip we thought we had planned. Even still in the plane to St. Croix, USVI, I had expected to...
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Family Destination News from IPW
For Family Travel Forum, the IPW travel convention which brought together 6,300 buyers, sellers and media covering international travel to the United States, was an opportunity to understand the facts...
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Short Breaks And Weekend Getaways From Greater Los Angeles
The neighboring Pacific Ocean, lush farmland, arid desert and snow-capped mountains give southern California families plenty of options for weekends away. "California, Here I Come!" may be the cry of...
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Kaanapali Beach Hotel, Maui, Hawaii
The Ka'anapali Beach Hotel, one of many resorts on the 3-mile-long Ka'anapali Beach, is so authentically Hawaiian that families return over and again, as if to visit ohana (family). Over several...
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10 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do In Wales
Wales, a small country in the United Kingdom (along with Scotland, England and Northern Ireland), offers a great diversity of surprising experiences. It feels comfortable, safe, and familiar -- yet foreign...
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Making Island Connections on a Caribbean Cruise
Every year my family and I take a cruise ship from Miami, Florida around the many islands of the Caribbean. My family is Afro-Caribbean, and we feel very strongly about our roots in the islands. Traveling...
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5 Reasons Families Favor Airbnb Vacations
Everyone looks forward to a family vacation, but planning for it, especially when there are so many new choices in transportation, lodging, reservations and more, can be overwhelming. After the decision...
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Shoot for the Stars
Every family has their ups and downs. Every family is different, every family loves in different ways. Every family is at least slightly crazy, and if this in't true for your family, you haven't spent...
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The Paper Airplane Wars
A week. That’s all I had: a week to experience a new culture, a new world, a new perspective. I assumed that the geography, culture, and people of other countries would be wildly different. What else...
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An Unexpected Present
As we approach our destination of Lake Tahoe, California, a drastic shift from our home town gradually emerges. The tall buildings which ruled the city are replaced with densely packed fir trees, stretched...
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Like a Scooby-Doo Cartoon
I half expected a monster with matted green fur wearing a sombrero to scare me just like out of a Scooby-Doo cartoon. Perched on a two-foot wide stone ledge with no guardrail, I gazed at ancient carvings...
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The Korean Summer Sun
The smell; that’s the first thing I noticed when my plane touched down in South Korea on July 17, 2016. The smell was nothing like I’d ever experienced before,...
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Adventures in Aspen
I'd say that nothing can really change you like travel can. I was sixteen years old, teetering on the edge of elated freedom and terrifying reality. I had never flown without my parents before,...
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Roadtrip to Friendship
On June 30 of 2016, I left my home in Washington State to go on a two-week adventure with my grandparents. For me, the main goal of the trip was to meet my best friend in person, for the first time...
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Why Tourists Shouldn’t Be Tourists
I knew from the beginning that my itinerary would not consist of sunny days spent lounging by the pool, coconut slushy in hand and sunscreen smeared sunglasses perched on my head. Despite my frequent...
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