Travel Bugg: Start your travels here
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Hiking the Appalachian Trail
One of my goals coming to Virginia was to hike a portion of the Appalachian Trail through Shenandoah National Park. The AT begins in Georgia and ends in Maine, crossing 14 states and approximately 2,200 miles. To hike the entire length of the trail takes anywhere between five to seven months. Growing up in Texas,…
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Music of the Romani people
A common element of Romani culture is music. Whether singing and performing on street corners, playing cellos and violins in orchestras, or winning first place at local school competitions, the Romani people often showcase a talent for harmony and rhythm. “You can say it’s in their genes,” one Romani mother told me. “No one teaches…
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Preparing for Auschwitz
Before visiting the Roma Cultural Museum in Brno and Auschwitz in Poland, I stayed in the Slovak town of Kežmarok: a village boasting a 13th century castle and vocational school for Romani. I learned from the English guide that during WWII, the castle had been used as a prison for Jews in the village before…
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Romani in Slovakia: Cooking Class
After spending the weekend at the nonprofit Hope for Roma in the little village of Rankovce, I hustled back to Košice to meet Kristen’s friends Kathy and Rebecca. They were going to visit the small village of Vitkovce about an hour away by train.I loaded up with Kathy, pregnant Rebecca and her two young daughters. They’re…
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Who are the Romani people
The identity of the Romani people(s) is complex with differences not only ranging from continent to continent and country to country but as magnified and particular as village to village. Some villages have kept to themselves and don’t associate with outsiders while other places are more open to strangers and the wider world. As with…
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Romani in Slovakia: Issues in Education
“Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world.” Issues in education are widespread throughout Slovakia, but they especially affect Romani communities. I’ve spoken with Romani parents as well as leaders from Slovak, Romani and U.S. groups who have cited a lack of care for Romani students in schools. Others have acknowledged that teachers…
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What do you know about the world?
What do you know about the world? It was our first day of classes in the Latin American Studies Program in Costa Rica. I was in a new country with culture shock coursing through my veins. We took a pop quiz on the “State of the World.” Everybody failed. Our professor wondered how we—educated…
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World without Words
“Until I feared I would lose it. I did not love to read. One does not love breathing.” -Harper Lee I remember the magic of being young, standing in the library holding a book about dragons and dancing princesses, imagining my own epic universes. Reading has always been a joy in life: a way to…
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Slovakia’s Botanical Gardens
P. J. Šafárik University Košice, Slovakia July 2014
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A visit to the White House
For a small-town kid from rural Texas, riding the Metro through the tubes of D.C. to visit the Eisenhower office of the White House is like something out of a super patriotic children’s story. When the closest Wal-Mart is 30 miles away and any city bigger than Waco is unbelievable, meeting with senators and…
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Running Across Cultures
Most of our entertainment mediums: our social media accounts, cell phones and films are engineered to help us fool reality. They transport us to a virtual space where concrete answers are a Google search away, acceptance is traded through clicks of approval, and we can become anything we imagine. Running is different. Running grabs you…
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Battlefields: Lee Drive Trail
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park Fredericksburg, Virginia December 13, 1862
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