Suspended in the Air: Rappelling Down Utah’s Intimidating Cliffs
Sweat pours down my tanned face under the relentless Utah sun. I am hiking to the rappelling site in Moab, Utah, near Arches National Park. My back sticks to my shirt, and my legs burn in...
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How Nicaragua Defined My Future
Significant moments in life are often connected to memorable places such as Paris, where we snuck my grandma’s ashes into the Tuileries gardens,...
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Sharing Experiences in a Tropical Wonder
As we stood in the mucky, sweltering heat of the Philippines, I prayed that the bus taking us to our destination would come sooner—along with the relief of its cold, refreshing air from the strong...
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Wonders That Surround Me
They remind me of tsunami waves, these mountains; frozen mid-air despite...
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A Thousand and One Nights in Persia
You are not supposed to break into a Mosque from a second story window – especially not in Iran. I scamper across the...
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An Indian Sunset
Our small bus inched down the busy dirt road, unable to weave through the traffic as the cars and motorcycles did. The passengers didn’t much care, each dozing off after an exhausting day of sightseeing...
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Endangered Island Life
"The big fish come in and swallow up the little fish." That is what Captain Crosby said to my family and me as we sailed out to Stingray City in Grand Cayman.
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In der Schweiz
The muggy, humid air that beat down on our travel group had been accompanied by a blazing, fiery sun. As our tour bus crossed the border between Italy and Switzerland, however, the veritable inferno...
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Traveling & Its Affects on Character
Hard work transgresses struggle. Junior year I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Panama and my distant family. Despite their daily struggles and apparent poverty, Panamanians are said to be the...
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Traveling to Make History
As the school bell rang on the last day, I could not control my extreme feeling of excitement. I opened the classroom’s door and ran insanely fast to the bus. I did not mind the burning sun. I just...
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I Czeched Out: Flying Out of My World and Into Another
Two words. Air. Sickness. I had attempted to prepare myself for the 14 hour “adventure”, but there...
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Path of Wind and Simple Days
Our feet, coated in grime and mountain mud, tread a path over the unsteady ground. The trail we hiked was one of indeterminable quality: it was, in essence, the very perfection of hiking. Only...
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The Day I Opened My Eyes
Travelling lets us explore. It lets us see other parts of the world and how others’ ways of living differ from our own. For me, it was a life-changing experience. I was 15, and straight out of my...
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The Island of Charm
There is a special place in my heart for the origin of my heritage. That place is called Puerto Rico. It was the most dazzling, gorgeous, and love-filled place I’ve ever had the opportunity to visit. ...
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Paradise
As I exited the airport in Carolina, I inhaled deeply—the air was crisp and refreshing, just as I had imagined it to be. I looked around and was in awe at everything I saw; I could see the sandy beaches...
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No Translation Needed
I thought I was ready for anything. It was my second year traveling to Nicaragua to do service work. Lulled into a false confidence, I talked excitedly with the rookies during the...
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Tulum Ruins: Seeing with One’s Own Eyes
I was extremely thrilled knowing that I would be seeing one of the last cities inhabited and built by the Mayans....
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Disability Travel in Japan and Taiwan
I went to Japan and Taiwan with my mom, my step dad, my grandma, sister, uncle, aunt, and two cousins. My sister and I were both born with developmental disabilities but we have been traveling with...
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A Merciful Mission
The opportunity to journey to Malawi, Africa came...
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Finding My Sister
This was a trip three years in the making. From the moment we stepped off the plane, the thick, balmy air hit me like a wall of tropical bricks, inducing the hazy, dreamlike feeling that dominated the...
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Let’s Be Ambassadors for Responsible Travel
The way we travel can have a long-lasting impact on the places we visit. Last year, while traveling for a documentary I am making called The...
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Parallel Lives
We walk, wearing our shoes branded with names that do not belong in this field of debris and misplaced belongings. “This was our home,” my mother...
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Just My Dad’s Luck
Did you know that its possible to travel internationally...
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The Big Blue
SEMI-FINALIST 2015 FTF TEEN TRAVEL WRITING SCHOLARSHIP
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Splash Mountain’s Fatal Attraction
The orange light that is typical of sunsets highlighted the horrors of the streets. It gleamed across a shopping cart that carried all the belongings of a man whose beard reflected his lifestyle. It...
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Determined to Dream
I look around and see a place outside my comfort zone. Instead of the crisp, modern structures of buildings and casinos in Nevada, I see deteriorating slabs of concrete and weatherworn brick. In place...
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Light from Broken Windows
My family’s footsteps were quiet on the damp earth. That was fitting; loud noise seemed gaudy here. Even though the broken walls opened straight to the sky, the abbey retained its reverence—noise,...
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Beethoven in Bonn
The rain steadily fell in misty sheets, so that the landscape was partly obscured by a dewy veil. Our train chugged through damp German villages, swaying gently from side to side. The grey horizon showed...
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The Beauty in Our Own Backyard
Majestic mountains, luscious forests, towering rock formations, a brilliant yellow sun, a magnificent thunder storm; the diversity astounded me. With every passing mile, a new scene erupted into view,...
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The Hike: How I Accomplished What I Thought Was Impossible
There is a mountain in the Dominican Republic named Brison. Never would I have guessed, with my lack of athleticism and of experience in hiking, that I would one day reach the top. But when jumping...
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Home Is Where the Heart Was, Is and Will Be
A broken or separated...
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The Day I Got Released and Confined
April 1, 2013 – to most people this date is not important; they just brush it off as a day that people try to play...
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Natural Beauty and Human Strength
I spent three weeks in León, Nicaragua this summer, and almost every day, Nicaragua surprised me. My experience in León couldn’t have been more different than my life in the United States, and it...
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Adventure Was Waiting
In 8th grade I was that kid who would leave my parents for about 3 days, having had enough freedom and adventure, and come back home as quickly as possible. But that completely changed when my mom convinced...
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How Much Water Do You Need?
My French teacher organized an exchange program with a high school in La Rochelle, France. For the first couple of days, we stayed in Paris. For about a week and a half, we would stay with host families...
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Encircled by Beauty
Three years ago, my family, journeyed from our suburban home in Frankfort, Illinois, to the beautiful, stunning wilderness of Yellowstone National...
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Endings and Beginnings
We had accepted a quest. A wonderful,...
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