The Girl Who Goes

independent, intentional travel

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How My Parents Encourage My Travel Dreams

my parents

Since today is Mother’s Day, I wanted to write about something topical. But in my family, something funny happens every 5-6 years – Mother’s Day falls on May 13, which is also my dad’s birthday. So the day feels a little extra special.

We’re spending this extra-special day going to brunch and playing a family baseball game at a nearby field. All four of us girls are showering our parents with the love they hopefully feel from us every day. And tomorrow I’ll wake up at 3 a.m. for another too-early flight for another week in Indiana. As I think about what my life looks like now, it’s impossible to separate it from the upbringing I’ve had. My parents have been indispensable to my travel dreams and experiences thus far. [Read more…]

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Is Mexico Safe for Solo Female Travelers?

is mexico safe - feature

Is Mexico safe? Most of us know that Mexico gets a bad reputation. For many, the mention of Mexico invokes ideas of crime, violence, and earthquakes. Even the State Department has issued warnings urging U.S. travelers not to visit certain parts of the country. There were reports of tourists being served tainted alcohol; an Iowa family of four tragically found dead in their rented condo.

So, here we have Mexico sounding pretty dangerous for anyone to visit. [Read more…]

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Thailand: Elephants and Ethics

“I booked my trip to Thailand,” I told some friends, months before I would share this news with my parents.

“That’s so cool! You have to ride an elephant while you’re there,” one of them said.

“Oh, I totally will.”

I could just imagine it: photos I’d seen of other friends, and celebrities, perched atop the back of these gentle giants, danced in my head. Who wouldn’t want to ride an elephant? [Read more…]

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Q&A: Christmas Traditions in the U.S. and Italy

Merry Christmas Eve! Our house is busy wrapping the final presents, watching football, and playing in the snow that fell overnight. My Italian sister, Gaia – who joined our family this year through the AFS program – is in the kitchen making tiramisu for Christmas dinner. Since this is Gaia’s first Christmas away from home, I decided to find out her thoughts on the holiday season in the U.S. and how it’s different from where she lives in Sanluri, Sardinia. [Read more…]

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Top 25 Travel Experiences This Year

top 25 travel experiences

Guess what? Today is my 25th birthday! It feels a little weird to think I’m officially a quarter-of-a-century old, but I wanted to write something a little special to celebrate. I’ve had an awesome year full of travel, so I thought it would be fun to look back on my top 25 travel experiences from the past year. [Read more…]

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Packing for Southeast Asia: Lessons Learned

packing for southeast asia

Packing for Southeast Asia? Please learn from my mistakes.

Back in 2017 when I went to Thailand and Cambodia for the first time, I was committed to packing for two weeks in a backpack. I knew exactly how to pack — I’d done it plenty of times before, and at that time in my life I was working as a traveling consultant, living out of a carry-on suitcase most weeks. So when it was time to start packing for Southeast Asia, I was like “I got this.”

Oh, how hindsight is 20/20.

Not to be overly dramatic, but I did not “got this.” While I used the same principles as usual when it came to packing, my issues were mostly with the clothing choices I made. Fun fact: Southeast Asia’s climate/culture/fashion is totally different from Europe! (Who woulda thought?)

You can benefit from my mistakes! Here are the most important lessons about packing for Southeast Asia that I learned from my trip. [Read more…]

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Foreign Exchange Student Connection in Thailand

 

Dinner with Boong in Bangkok

As you may remember, this year my family is hosting a foreign exchange student from Italy. Gaia has joined our family through a program called the American Field Service (AFS for short). These students live with host families in the U.S. for 10 months, from August until the end of June.

When I was Thailand a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet up with a former exchange student from my high school days. Boong was an AFS’er from Thailand at my school during the 2008-2009 school year – almost 10 years ago! We follow each other on Instagram, so I told her when I’d be in Bangkok and we planned to meet for dinner. [Read more…]

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Why T-Mobile is the Best for Solo Travelers

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I highly recommend T-Mobile for solo travel.

I was 20 years old before I got my first smartphone. I was a sophomore in college. Now, if you’re older than me, you may be saying, “Big deal! I didn’t get one until I was x years old.” However, by Millennial standards, I was absolutely ancient. [Read more…]

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Travel Mistakes: 4 Experiences That Made Me a Better Traveler

travel mistakes - feature photo

When you’re traveling, the road isn’t always straight. I’ve made my share of travel mistakes.

What are the best things about traveling? Trying new foods, meeting new people, embracing a new culture? Is it the feeling of your long flight beginning its descent, getting a new passport stamp, or watching the sun rise on a Sunday morning and the city slowly come to life?

Those are a few of the things I love — but as we know, traveling is not always glamorous. Things sometimes go wrong, and sometimes we make travel mistakes. I’ve been fortunate not to have many of these moments over the years, but they do occasionally happen. And if we’re looking on the bright side, I can admit that each of them have made me a better traveler (in their own, twisted way).

Here are 4 of my biggest travel mistakes from over the years. [Read more…]

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Bringing the World Closer: Hosting a Foreign Exchange Student

foreign exchange students - football game

High school friends at the football game (including foreign exchange students Saara, from Finland and Pietro, from Italy)

Ten years ago, I started high school. Along with the first homecoming dance and first AP class came my first experience with foreign exchange students. I had never met anyone from Japan, or Colombia, or Finland before — yet, here they were, playing alongside me on the school soccer team. [Read more…]