A journey: From tourist to native Londoner


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Sometimes I forget that London is one of the top tourist destinations in the world and not just any ordinary city. You see, though I live in central London, I don’t live next to Big Ben or the London Eye. When I walk out of my apartment in the morning, I see joggers out for […]

Five tips for student backpackers


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This spring break, I spent my time a bit differently than I would in the United States, and embarked on the classic four-countries-in-ten-days excursion with nothing but a backpack and iPhone camera in tow. In just over a week, my traveling buddy and I managed to make our way to Germany, Austria, Hungary and the […]

A Day to Remember: Getting My Stuff Stolen


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I recently read something by Alice Walker about never walking in the same river twice, and though I might have read it before, her words really struck me profoundly as I set foot in Santiago again for my second semester. I had a conversation with another student from the United States who is also studying in […]

The fan and the idol (in Japan)


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On Wednesday, more than 2,000 people milled outside the famous ZEPP Tokyo Livehouse. Sweaty hands clutched glowsticks; faces were flushed in anticipation. There was only an hour to go until the start of Rib.on.”e” — that is, the concert/release party for Rib’s new album, released hardly a month ago. Of course, Japanese parents don’t actually […]

Seoul is a breath of fresh air


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Even when you’re spending your semester abroad an ocean away, headache-inducing responsibilities like figuring out housing for the next year will follow you around. Luckily enough, I’m spending my time in the heart of Seoul. In what seems rare for a city that has achieved its level of urbanization, Seoul is surrounded by hills and […]

It’s time to meet the parents


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My mom had been waiting to meet my host mom in Madrid ever since I got my housing assignment. Even when all I knew about my host family was that I would be living with a woman named Rosario Perez, my mom had already affectionately nicknamed her “Mamá Rosario.” (I’d later find out that Rosario […]

A trek through the sands of Wadi Rum


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This weekend was our first time out of Amman, far from the blaring car horns and endless dust that define our everyday lives in the city. We traveled about three hours south to Wadi Rum, Jordan’s famous, immense desert and the a film site in Lawrence of Arabia. Think flat, red sand for as far as […]

Oxford: Better than fiction


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In many ways, Oxford is the USC of England. For any Trojan that has spent at least a semester at USC, I’m sure seeing a few cameras, big lights and several celebrities sprinkled around campus is not an uncommon sight. Most recently, the action film Taken 3 was shot on campus. As for TV, this […]

Japanese sports festivals and blossoming camaraderie


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One of the most loved (or dreaded, if you’re a couch potato like me) traditions of Japanese primary education is the sports festival. Classes are assigned a team color and pitted against each other. The school grounds are opened for cheering parents. The warm sound of shouting and laughter drifts through the air. When I […]

Winter wonderland in Amman


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For those of you who may be following these posts, I mentioned last week that we were expected to get a snowstorm last week in Amman, one that threatened to shut the city down for days and merited a massive Safeway run to stock up on basic foods and plenty of water. Well, the storm […]