A Day in the Life of an Italian
Opening my eyes to Rebecca, my roommate, still asleep, I get up and go upstairs for an espresso.
Read More 3 min read
Millennium
As I was running along the River Thames with my classmates to catch our group’s bus I realized that everything...
Read More 2 min read
.JPG)
Indulging in Deutschland
A connecting flight, a six-hour layover in Newark, an eight-hour flight to Düsseldorf and a train to Bochum, and I am finally met with open arms of my German sister (AKA exchange partner). Excitement...
Read More 2 min read
The Girl in Stripes
About two weeks ago, I had the privilege of going on my first, actual vacation. We were going on a road trip all the way to the Gulf of Mexico so my grandmother could see the ocean before she died....
Read More 3 min read
Campus Touring Tips Learned on a California College Road Trip
The idea of a two week college road trip seemed daunting to me at first, and as the date neared for my family to leave, I became increasingly anxious and apprehensive. The basic...
Read More 2 min read
Just a Peace of the City
Scorching temperatures, spectacular tree-domed mountaintops, and narrow city streets were just the ribbon of a well-bound summer package. These were wonders of the western Japanese summer of 2013. What...
Read More 3 min read
Mission Beach, San Diego, California
Home: the place where a person lives. Sorry Webster's Dictionary but I have to...
Read More 3 min read
Finding Tranquility
We drove through the night and I gazed at the towering skyscrapers through the rain-spattered windows, amazed by the myriads of cars around us, feeling the Mexican metropolis envelop...
Read More 3 min read
Mzungu Monday: One Day of Life Lessons for a Foreigner in Uganda
Uganda is troubled with Malaria, a disease not commonly found in America. Despite the risk of entering a malaria zone, I traveled there for three weeks this summer. I was...
Read More 2 min read
A Danish State of Mind
On one random drive to the library in November, my friend Maya asked me if I would be interested in going to Denmark this summer with her. My first thought was “OF COURSE!”...
Read More 3 min read
Driving Into a Hole Can be Monumental
The early August sun beat down on the prolonging stretch of road. A “Welcome to Utah” sign had long since passed, and our rented black Ford Explorer was filled with...
Read More 2 min read
South River Girls Soccer Takes Italy
If you ever have the opportunity to travel to Italy, I highly recommend taking the time to explore the beautiful cities that litter the Tuscan landscape. I had the pleasure of traveling with 25 other...
Read More 2 min read
La Ville Lumière
Paris; It’s the city of lights, known for its magnificent beauty, delicious foods, and romantic qualities. Some people dream of visiting this esteemed European city their entire lives, and here I was...
Read More 2 min read
_2.jpg)
Joy in the Journey
The old cliche “the joy is in the journey” is taken literally in the Smoky Mountains. The real attractions there do not rest in Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge; they do not reside in Ripley’s...
Read More 2 min read
A Convergence of East and West
I knew what city my mom was born in: Chicago. I knew what city my dad was born in: Damascus. However, I never truly got to drive through my culture and watch the images of what make...
Read More 3 min read
Returning Home: Portland, Maine
When people hear Portland, they usually think of that famous Oregonian town on the East Coast—bicycles, roses, and rain. Little do most know that on the opposite side of the United States, there exists...
Read More 2 min read
A New Experience in America’s Oldest Town
I always found myself falling asleep in history class. Some lessons couldn’t hold my interest. Even when I visited places filled with history, I found myself extremely bored. Summer of 2012 changed...
Read More 3 min read
Expect the Unexpected
In March of 2014, I journeyed with my junior class of twenty-six students on a road trip to Washington, D.C. We not only visited the Capitol and most of its sights, but made numerous...
Read More 3 min read
Striving for More
Travel is a person’s way of expressing desire for something new, whether you’re conscious of it or not. People take trips for multiple reasons: visiting family, leisure, exploration, or charity....
Read More 3 min read
Big City, Big Lights: A New Home
Good morning Shanghai, my second home. The scattered rays of sunlight that manage to penetrate through the thick smog don't quite do justice to the city, a place better clothed in the sexy black of...
Read More 2 min read
The Beautiful Disaster
July of 2014. Nashville, Tennessee. My senior year. This was going to be one of the last vacations I take with my parents, so we decided that we should take a 2 week vacation and explore every corner...
Read More 3 min read
Cambodia: A Whole New World
Three days in Cambodia... That was all it took for the world to change my entire perspective on the world. Three days, and I was never again able to understand how we could categorize Americans as “impoverished.”...
Read More 3 min read
A Day of Discovery
I wriggled my way into a grey and slightly damp wetsuit. The air was hot and muggy, and the sky was a brilliant blue. I stood in the slight shade of the building on the docks in Cancun. I was here with...
Read More 3 min read
Red, Black, and Gold
The streets were devoid of vehicles. Views of the people of Mainz were few and far between as we walked the cobblestone streets. My friend and I were anxious to get to dinner. This was not because we...
Read More 3 min read
Can-Can with Strangers
The French culture has always been present in my life. My fascination stems from childhood; family members and friends constantly told me that the French culture was...
Read More 2 min read
School Trip Survival Guide
I am the queen of late nights and early mornings, the master of suitcase-sitting-so-I-can-get-the-zipper-around-this-last-corner, the grudging...
Read More 3 min read
Paris, the Beauty Within
I’ve always dreamed of going to Paris, France. Walking along the River Seine and having lunch by the Eiffel Tower. Wanting desperately to see the beauty that only Paris could give. After much consideration,...
Read More 2 min read
.jpeg)
Juan Dolio
On an oppressively hot day in mid-July, armed with hundreds of hastily assembled ham sandwiches and bundles of clothes, I climbed on a bus and rode with thirty other students through the dusty switchbacks...
Read More 2 min read
New York Is Not All About the City
The first thing that pops in a person’s head when they think of New York is automatically related to the city. I grew up on Long Island so the first thing that pops into my head when I think of New...
Read More 2 min read
Home is Not a Place
The only thing different about her was that her hair was a bit longer than last time and that she had changed her glasses to have tortoiseshell frames. She still wore the same, serene expression, casual...
Read More 2 min read
Wrong Turn Made Right
During the summer of 2012 I had the opportunity to travel from my suburban town in Minnesota to Chicago with my youth group from church. We...
Read More 3 min read
Tropical Paradise, Elephant Rides and… Cultural Discovery?
After a mentally and physically exhausting two week mission trip, my team and I were beyond ready to enjoy some well-earned fun in the city of Chaig Mai, Thailand. That morning we...
Read More 2 min read
The Africa They DON’T Tell You About
Many times when people write about visiting Africa, it tends to be about a missionary trip. The term ‘Africa’ is usually synonymous with poverty, dirt, corruption and illness. Africa is...
Read More 3 min read
Ecstatic Elijah
“First we’ll have to cross crocodile pond, and then we’ll go up ice mountain,” little Elijah said, as he clasped my hand tightly and started to sprint across the gym. The five year old was one...
Read More 3 min read
I Think We’re in Kansas
The road north curves and winds through the valleys of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains just as the summer breeze cuts through the New Mexico maple and pine trees that line the luscious terrain. ...
Read More 3 min read
Asante (Thank You)
Journal Entry Day 5: “As I step off the bus into an unknown desolate, I...
Read More 3 min read
The Trip That Has Forever Changed My Life
Most people look at the world as this picture perfect place where everyone lives a life either the same or better...
Read More 3 min read
When in Rome, Relax As the Romans Do: What My Italian Adventure Taught Me About Life
‘Twas the night before I was set to leave on my first European vacation, a two week trip to Italy. My bags were packed, my camera charged, and my passport updated. I was sixteen and expecting...
Read More 3 min read
A Not So Perfect Picture
Whenever I went to a party, my camera would be in my hands, capturing the moments that I longed to never forget. Even as a little girl, I had a training camera. Finally, at the age of fifteen I took...
Read More 2 min read
Journey to the Emerald Isle
While on my travels to the U.K with the People to People Student Ambassador Program I was most excited about going to Ireland. Not only because of how beautiful everything looks over there (my camera...
Read More 2 min read
Indian Identity
After we settled into the apartment my grandparents have lived in for years, I was presented with something I had sincerely missed: authentic South-Indian cuisine. Living in the United States and being...
Read More 2 min read
Across the Pond in Ten Amazing Days
Buongiorno, je m’appelle Jessie. Wait. What I mean to say is, hello, I’m Jessie. I guess you could say I’m having trouble reverting back to speaking...
Read More 3 min read
_1.JPG)
A Thought-Provoking Adventure to Kenya
In July of 2012, my family boarded a plane bound for Kenya, full of excitement and a little apprehension. Our safari had been booked through Tim Melesi Safaris,...
Read More 2 min read
I Shall Return
Going back to the home of my ancestors was now or never. The Philippines, my parents said, was Third World: No paved roads, No streetlights, No running water, Sweat, and Mosquitos....
Read More 2 min read
The Mission of a Life
The power to change the world. At the young age of 17, I never thought I would have that chance. Now, after a mission trip to Black Mesa, Arizona, I believe anything is possible.Twenty-five people...
Read More 2 min read
