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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¿Hablas Español? Do You Speak Spanish?
“Deja tus zapatos, por favor.”
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Getting Lost, Being Found
I am alone. Five days have gone by on my trip to France and Italy, and my geography teacher lets me roam the streets of Assisi, Italy, alone. My Romanesque sandals aid my feet across the cobblestoned...
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Dirt-Caked Memories: A Story Revisited and Retold
Standing inside my mother’s former home for the first time, I notice the uncovered skylight. The floor beneath it is moist with rain that has fallen through. Scratched pots and pans lay cluttered...
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Journey To Find Love In Chicago
Over a year ago, I met someone who changed my life. As a teenager, I spend a lot of spare time browsing the Internet. One point during those lonely summer days, a boy from Chicago, named Tim, messaged...
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A Beautiful City with a Dark History
I remember being there. The very grounds where many people were sent to their deaths. It felt so unreal seeing all that remains. You know that moment that you could not believe that a part of history...
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Nobel Week with the Swedes
Never did I think I would be in a room with the greatest minds of our time. Yet here I was sitting only rows away from them hearing their amazing plans for change. I had...
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You Trippin’?
Leather seats with oversized pillows, hostess serving chicken and apple juice, 39,000 feet above civilization, clouds overshadowing the wings, front-row views of sunsets. That...
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I Always Knew, but Now I Know
The scene that lies before my eyes could best be described as hell on earth. As I walk down the school bus stairs and onto the dusty Guatemalan soil, I can’t take my eyes off what is before me. I...
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A Sky of Stars
When I was a freshman in high school, I was a part of this program called Expedition Academy which was for advanced students who also had a love for the outdoors. From Quehanna, to the Laurel Highlands,...
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People in Paris
I received news that Paris was a journey foreseeable...
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All It Took Was a Little Faith, Trust, Pixie Dust…and eBay!
There it was! As I squinted into the sun, not only did I see the gates, but I saw my impossible dream coming true. I never before realized a 12 year old could pay for a vacation to Walt Disney World!
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A Walk Alone in America’s Most Unique City
Hard as I tried, I could not do it. As I closed my eyes and tried to imagine just how enormous the river really was, my brain failed to comprehend the sheer magnitude and raw size of the Mississippi....
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Learning Humility
During the summer of 2015, I was selected to participate in Loop Abroad, which is a program that enables students to work with endangered elephants and provide veterinary care for the elephants, Bengal...
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