Vacations Archives - My Family Travels
The bunkhouse at Whitewater Challengers Camp
Student Article
A Night at the Shack

Last July, my Mother, Grandmother, and Aunty Tracey had excitedly made plans to sleep in a log cabin before rafting down the Lehigh River along the lofty peaks of the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania. For...

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Scuba Diving Sister and Brother
Student Article
Cabo San Lucas and One Unforgettable Dive

With a forceful surge of energy, I heaved myself up out of the chilling water, and collapsed onto the closest bench. The whole snorkel-boat shook -- though admittedly, it was scarcely more than a large...

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Student Article
Ogunquit: Beautiful Place by the Sea

Maine is a beautiful state nestled on the coast of New England.  It kisses the chilly Atlantic Ocean while spreading its arms toward the Canadian Province, Quebec.  It’s filled with natural...

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Student Article
Learning with Elephants

I have always heard that trips enlighten, and yes, that is true. After a trip to Thailand,...

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Student Article
Looking Past the Skyline

We walked nine miles in one...

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Student Article
Wild Travels in the Wild West

Many summer vacations include relaxing on the beach or lounging in a hammock under a blue sky with warm sun. However, my summer vacation was much less relaxing but surprisingly every bit as enjoyable. My...

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Student Article
Beauty Amongst Poverty

The first thing I distinctly remember was the stifling temperature and humidity. Although it was summer back in Pennsylvania, I didn’t have the slightest idea of the meaning of “heat” until I...

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Student Article
Summer Ice Cream

A few years ago, my family had rented a house in Massachusetts with a pool to spend a week’s vacation. En route to our destination, we had gone to a local ice cream store, SoCo Creamery; the primary...

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Student Article
Through Dust and Debris: Exploring a Buried City

If you take one look at Instagram posts under the hashtag “#vacation”, chances are you’ll see photos of people surrounded by palm trees, tanning beds, and beachside pool service in some far off...

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Student Article
A Volcano and a Hitchhiker Open My Eyes

We had been on Big Island for a week, enjoying the vibrant blue water and colorful Hawaiian reefs, when our family decided we wanted something more adventurous. Naturally, we decided to visit a volcano...

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Student Article
There Are Rats All Over the World

Venice, Italy is like no other place in all the world. Venetian beauty cascades from atop the clanging San Marco bell tower all the way down into its teaming maze of canals. Walking the narrow,...

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Student Article
The True Meaning that Lies Beyond the Ocean

“The ocean is everything I want to be. Beautiful, mysterious, wild, and free.”  The first time I laid my eyes on the ocean, I instantly fell in love.  Ever since I was a young child I...

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Student Article
The Unexpected Joys In Bread, Cobblestones, and Graffiti

During every vacation that my family takes together, I insist that we must visit various historical sites. When we travelled to France, I fought for a detour to Normandy. When in London, I dragged them...

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Student Article
First of Many Best Friend Adventures

       The last wedding on my mom’s side of the family was finalized, and my family’s attendance was most certainly required. This was the perfect trip for my best...

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Student Article
“I Think We Might Die” – Tempting Fate at ‘The Bowl’

It was 5:30 am and my mom was egregiously speeding through Arches National Park in Utah. The speed limit was 25 around long, looping curves and roads that wound between towering spires of red sandstone,...

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Student Article
New York’s Unexpected Beauties

The city was breathtaking, an enchanting and magnetic place I will never forget. The hustle and bustle of New Yorkers trying to get to where they need to be, tourists snapping pictures at every location,...

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Student Article
My Trip Alaska

Alaska is amazing. Millions of people vacation there every summer, and I was one of the lucky ones. In July 2016, I traveled there from my home in Everett, Wash.,...

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Student Article
El Casado

“¿Puedo tener el casado?” The waitress from Tierra Mia smiled at me. “I speak English, honey. You’d like la comida típica?” I nodded my head up and down, careful not to further...

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Student Article
Siblings of the Sea: Ethereal Encounter on the Island of Lanai

I heard them first. The soloist belting out high pitched whistles, each one a burst...

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Student Article
A Drive Down Memory Lane

I looked to my mother and saw a tear roll down her worn face as she said “We’re here love, this is where my father fished and...

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Student Article
An Underwater World of Wonder: A Glimpse Into My Future

Softly…softly… Whisper in my ears Swell towards the land Spray on me your tears Let me hold you in my hand Softly…softly… Quickly, quickly! Rush towards the shore High tide is coming Breaking...

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Student Article
On Becoming an Active Spectator

It’s six in the morning. Today is my last Sunday in Huejuquilla, Jalisco—my birth town—before my family must head home to the United States after having spent the entire month of December here,...

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Student Article
The Whispering Path

     As I walk down the trail, I am in awe of the beauty around me. Tall oak and maple trees tower above me with sunlight streaming through the leaves touching the floor of the forest...

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Student Article
The Sacred Triangle of Temples

When I found out that I would be visiting Greece for a family reunion last summer, I was beyond thrilled. As a child, I would often find myself buried in a Greek mythology book, so visiting the real...

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Student Article
Becoming Friends with the Mayans

After the 45-minute bus ride from the port of Costa Maya, we finally arrived. My dad and I had had a front row seat for the tour guide’s lecture and were ready to discover the ancient civilization...

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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
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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Student Article
The Touch of Magic

As soon as I walked in, I immediately regretted it. Cobwebs were dangling off broken chandeliers and spooky music hummed in the background. Dim lights gave the room an orange glow, and everything looked...

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Student Article
Solace on a Roller Coaster

Here I was. The moment I had always dreaded, but simultaneously looked forward to - riding a roller coaster. Before me was Expedition Everest, Disney’s behemoth of a coaster, situated in a mountain modeled...

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Student Article
Small Ship Cruising with Families

I have been on three cruises: one with a traditional, large cruise line and two with small ship companies.  Yes, big ships offer swimming pools, rock climbing walls, and teen lounges.  But...

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Student Article
Leave No Trace

        The Adirondack Mountains, located in Upstate New York, hold forty-six High Peaks above 3,790 feet.  One of my favorite vacation activities is hiking some...

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Student Article
Italy: The Path of the Gods

The narrow, serpentine road hugs the hillside, rocks and vegetation to the left, a sheer drop to the Mediterranean to the right. We’re taking the Sita...

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Student Article
Climbing to New Caledonia

The American flag waved above me as I paraded across stage with forty other Americans all wearing red white and blue. We were surrounded by the reds, whites, greens and yellows of twenty-six other flags...

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Student Article
Pompeii Dreams

Young and hopeful, I dreamed of seeing the places from my "Who Was" books and History Channel documentaries. I wrote stories of going to Egypt and discovering King Tut’s tomb for myself. I wished...

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Student Article
New York Two Ways

     The air is sharp, like the people who glance at our mini-man for but a second before discerning our place as outsiders looking into their world. The pale, yet colorful, cynical,...

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Student Article
Fifteen Cent Priceless Glossy 4×6’s

I can still see myself standing in the middle of the Budget parking lot, basking in the scent of rental cars, trying to imprint the moment in my memory for the rest of my...

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Student Article
Uprooted in Gold

It was that night by the gas station when I felt it. A liquid, a lightness, kind of like the golden air over my shoulder as I sat on the curb. For a moment it was stretched out soft, carrying me with...

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