The Inception of Perception
Flashback to July 2nd – the day before I left on the trip of a lifetime. I had 46 less friends, less knowledge of foreign cultures,...
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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...
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As Far As the Eye Can See
My eyes flutter open as the smell of papaya and salt water fill my nostrils. As my vision returns after the long night's rest, I can see the dark wooden ceiling and greenish...
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When the Party’s Over, World Cup 2014
“Bro, can I get a selfie?” Never have I heard this as many times as Brazil’s World Cup this year. This simple phrase highlights something that makes my trip to the 2014 World Cup unique...
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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...
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I Think It Really Is My Kind of Town
This past spring break, my family and I embarked on a vacation to Chicago. Our main intention was to visit the University of Chicago and Northwestern...
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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...
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Stressed But Blessed: London and Paris 2014
“No, I’m not too old to be a Girl Scout,” I told the man sitting next to me on the plane. I get tired of saying that. Before you ask, we do more than sell cookies, too. Way more in fact. At that...
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Hello Dalai!
It was about noon when I fully realized that I was much farther away from the Dalai Lama then I had anticipated. I suppose, in retrospect, that that wasn’t entirely in my control (the Kalachakra festival...
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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...
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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,...
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Get Some Red on Your Shoes in St. George
I fell in love one weekend, not with a boy, but with a place that changed my life. I returned from my weekend getaway with red dirt sticking to my white socks and to my hiking shoes. And it stuck to...
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500 Miles
I would walk five hundred miles “Welcome to London.” Over a ten-mile trek through the city, I tripped on cobbled sidewalks and absorbed the sights around me—double-decker buses, towering...
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From Concrete to Campgrounds
New York City is arguably the most incredible city in the world, and I have the good fortune to have lived there for all 15 years of my life. It is buzzing with activity and full of culture. It is so astonishing...
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Pardon My French: The Art of Making Mistakes and Trying Anyway
France in the summer is lovely. I remember the buildings of yellow stone, ancient beyond belief to my American eyes; the canals whose water lilies inspired Monet; the countryside, passing in a blur...
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La Vida Rica
My trip to Costa Rica with Common Ground International was the most amazing experience of my life. First,...
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Moonscape Beauty
Scalding fountains and multi-colored pools were only a few of the magnificent sights I was encountering. Yet the fountains weren’t man-made,...
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Baring It All in Iceland
Nothing in the world could have prepared me for the Icelandic locker rooms.
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Detroit: A Harbor of Hope
As a child I remember taking trips to Mackinaw Island and...
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The City That Never Sleeps
The three hour train to New York left the station when the air was still crisp and new at seven in the morning. My mom, two...
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A Camp that Changed My View of Life
When you meet people from other countries, with backgrounds and beliefs different than yours, you are able to learn many things that you would not ever imagine. This summer,...
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Touching, Seeing, Understanding
During the month of November, 2013, the junior class at the International School of Americas (ISA) visited a multitude of places throughout the deep south, including Birmingham, Alabama, a place some...
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J’aime la France: A Story of Escargot, Lots of Walking, and the Best Two Weeks of My Life
When I was ten years old, my mother told me, “When you’re twelve and Andrew is ten, we’ll go to Paris.” When I was twelve years old, she told me, “We’ll go when you’re fourteen.” And...
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Great Adventure… I Don’t Think So!
Hurling through the air at speeds defying logic, twisting, turning, flipping upside down, then careening down terrifying heights, screaming until your lungs burn, is not my idea of fun. Roller...
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Victory at the Giant’s Causeway
As soon as we stepped off the tour bus, our guide apologized. "We don't normally have weather like this," He said. "It's usually so foggy you can't see four feet in front of you." The forty of us, all...
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World Beauty
?Something about standing alone, thousands of miles away from home, a certain beauty embracing my very being; I am gazing upon something that will remain a vivid picture in my...
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Where the City Leaves the Northwest Coast
I always find that the minute you go into a vacation with preconceived notions, they tend to rule your entire vacation, and limit your ability to really delve into something unique and personal.Early...
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Adventures Down Under
Travel is about more than just seeing the sights, it's about connecting with the locals and taking on new adventures that will lead you to the great unforeseen...
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My Teacher Got a Lap Dance
Sometime before I decided that band class was the meat grinder of my school's curriculum, I went on a trip to Chicago with my school's Wind Ensemble. My class and I travelled to play...
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I Left My Heart in the Heart of Art
Florence, Italy: birthplace of...
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Scuba Diving in the Great Barrier Reef
Experiencing the world that lives under the sea has always been a great topic of interest, constantly peaking my curiosity. So, after just completeing my scuba certification, one can only imagine my...
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The Solution For Which You’ve Been Waiting
Ladies and gentleman, I have the solution—the...
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A Staring Contest with the Great Perhaps
“I go to seek a Great Perhaps.”-François RabelaisThese words are so often quoted in travel magazines and young adult novels,...
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Here Be Dragons: Filling in My Map
I had never ventured abroad before. Arizona had been at the edge of my travel map; beyond that, 'here be dragons'. I knew nothing about flying, passports, baggage checks, or customs.And...
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Sweet Home Alabama
It all started four years ago. My entire world flipped upside down in the blink of an eye in June of 2010. This was the end of one book and the beginning of another as I trekked...
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Spine of the Earth: A Hike Through The Great Smokey Mountains
Sweat dripping down my back and feet crunching the dry earth, I pushed past tree boughs drooping in my path as I walked along the ridge of the Great Smokey Mountains on what has been referred to as...
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Pandas and Places You Only See in China!
When my sister was living overseas in Hong Kong, I jumped at the opportunity to visit her and get a glimpse of what my culture was like. As a fifth generation Chinese-American, I...
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Sweet Sixteen in the City that Never Sleeps
For one of my friends’ sweet sixteen parties, she did not want something traditional. Her father, the owner of a limo company, let her rent out a limo for the day and she invited around ten friends...
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Rural Japan – A Vacation for Those in Need of More
Owase is a serene fishing town nestled comfortably in southern Mie prefecture on Japan’s eastern coast, surrounded by towering mountains and twisting rivers. Although Owase is the rainiest place in all...
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Second to None: Why Chicago is America’s Heart
Gritty, blue-collar town, City of Broad Shoulders. Hm. Strolling along the breezy blue lakefront, among the joggers, jugglers, bikers, chess players, volleyballers,...
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We’re Still in Kansas, Toto
“Where are you from?” “Kansas City.” “Oh...so you live on a farm, right?” I cannot even count the number of times I have received this response after informing someone of my place...
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