CW: Sexual Assault If you’d asked me to tell this story last year, I would have burst into tears and curled up into a ball on the floor. After being…
6 Surefire Signs That You’re a Global Girl
A very British Christmas with my sisters in Norfolk. Image by Leanna Johnson. Global girls: We tend to be easy to spot, with our multi-faceted careers, beat-up passports, and eclectic…
At Home on the Road: 5 Places to Find Family in Traverse City, Michigan
As Go Girls, we listen to the sound of the open road. It’s what calls us to our next destination; entices us to our next adventure. And although I would…
Christmas in France
Sapin de Noël in Cassis, amid the Platane trees. It is both exciting and saddening to spend Christmas in a country that isn’t your own. The prospect of learning about…
Close of Service: Goodbye, Peace Corps Colombia!
On Dec 6, 2013, I rang the bell marking the “Close of Service,” or COS, of my Peace Corps Service in Colombia. My service, like most things anticipated since forever,…
Homesick Holiday Help
Marseille’s Christmas market, the Foire aux Santons, is one new tradition I’m looking forward to. Photo credit: Ladmedia.fr Having lived outside of the United States for most of my life,…
Pumpkin Pie Thanksgiving Abroad
This year will mark my third Thanksgiving in Colombia. As a Peace Corps Volunteer, I have a conveniently large group of North Americans to celebrate with. Every Thanksgiving, Volunteers and…
Friends, Young and Old: Changing Your Perception of What Makes a Friend
Five months ago, I was sitting on the sofa at a friend’s house. I took a sip of my Bloody Mary and then frowned a little, looking around. There were…
The Big Move
If you think Adventure is scary, try routine — Paulo Coelho December 2008. My father had passed away a month earlier. I felt numb, unable to feel joy or pain….
Inspiring women
While walking to work the other day, my mind was flickering round in its usual disorganised state when my thoughts finally settled on International Women’s Day. I began to think…
Athens, I Love You
The first international airport I ever landed in was Athens Hellinikon. I was 18, desperate to hear, touch, taste, smell, and see life outside my middle-class, Christian, white, American bubble….
Connecticut Is My Heart
At a party last night, during introductions to friends of friends, someone asked, “Where are you from?” – a pretty standard getting to know you question. When I answered, “Connecticut,”…
Farewell picture postcards, we’ll never forget you!
Can you remember the last time you sent a postcard to anyone? Or maybe it’s something you’ve never done and are never likely to? When I was a youngster and…
135 lbs
Hi. My name is Samantha Wu and I weigh 135 lbs. I’ve got tummy fat and the remnants of sprinter legs (for those who have little experience with track, that…
Roots of my Values
When I started school, I was enrolled in a private Catholic school despite being from a family with no religious tendencies at all. We moved when I was 7, before…