Cara Waterfall
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Cote d’Ivoire
Bio: Cara is a pack rat, runner and writer, who currently lives in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. She has Canadian and British citizenship and makes liberal use of both passports. She has a postgraduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Find her at www.caraincocody.com or www.belledejournal.com.
Sarah Baughman
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Germany
Bio: Sarah Baughman has worked as an English teacher in international schools on three continents. She and her husband, along with their two children, currently live in Germany. In addition to teaching, Sarah has published non-fiction articles and essays in a variety of print and online publications. She blogs about parenting, traveling, and living overseas at A Line At A Time.
Randianne Leyshon
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Russia
Bio: Randianne Leyshon is currently wading through icy puddles in Syktyvkar, the capital of the Komi Republic, a region in the northern reaches of Russia. She’s a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant, which, in addition to her regular teaching duties, allows her to discuss subjects like mail-order brides, the lack of a Russian word for “efficiency,” and how much fast food Americans really eat. She dreams of living in St. Petersburg, eating pickled mushrooms, and writing for a Russophile publication.
Ellen Freeman
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Egypt
Bio: Ellen Freeman thinks the best thing to do in any foreign country is go to the grocery store. Since graduating with a degree in comparative literature from Haverford College in 2011, she’s perused the aisles in six countries. Ellen is currently resurrecting her Arabic and traffic-dodging skills in Cairo where she previously studied in 2009–at home in Portland, Oregon she writes, teaches yoga, and rides a bike with no hands.
Avery Carpenter
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Cape Town
Bio: Avery Carpenter is an aspiring journalist who loves reading horizontally almost as much as traveling vertically. After graduating from Vanderbilt University in May 2011, she lived in Cape Town, South Africa for six months and worked as a Reporter for the Cape Times. In South Africa she covered stories that ranged from rhino poaching and government-funded housing to round the world boat races and the bungee jumping industry. Back in New York City, Avery is now working part-time for GQ magazine- temporarily employed but permanently looking for a good story and a spicy bowl of curry.
Abby Higgins
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Kenya
Bio: Abigail Higgins lives in Nairobi, Kenya where she writes, travels and works for Shining Hope for Communities, an organization that combats gender inequality and extreme poverty in Kibera, a slum in Nairobi. When she isn’t in Kenya, she’s in her hometown just outside of Seattle cooking, doing yoga and spending as much time as possible outdoors. You can read more of her writing at abbyhiggins.com.
Sophia Guida
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Peru
Bio: Sophia Guida is a freelance writer and photographer currently based in Lima, Peru. She blogs at http://sguida.blogspot.com.
Stephanie Sun
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Grenada
Bio: Born and raised in a small Canadian town, Stephanie Sun was at one time or another an Evolutionary Biologist, an Olympic swimming hopeful, or working as an advocate for women’s social housing and environmental sustainability. Her studies have taken her to China, Mexico, Costa Rica, Morocco, Spain, Barbados, the UK, and now Grenada, West Indies, where she is currently completing her second year of medical school.
Kirsten Schrier
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: Kyrgyzstan
Bio: Kirstin, 23, has wanted to live abroad for as long as she can remember. After stints in Jordan and Iraq, she moved to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in August 2010, where she and her husband started a research organization called Oxus International. When she’s not mangling the Russian language, she can usually be found honing her skills as an amateur photographer or posting on her blog, Ivory Pomegranate.
Tyler McCloskey
Session: Spring 2012
Location Abroad: The Philippines
Bio: Tyler McCloskey has been an environmental volunteer in the Philippines nearing two years. He studied writing at the University of Pittsburgh, lived in Costa Rica and Peru, speaks three languages and three dialects, and misses his mother’s carrot cake. Initially wary of suspect foods abroad, his stomach is now steeled to appreciate more courageous fare. He swears his blonde hair and blue eyes have something to do with it.
