Frequent Flyer
Posted on April 30, 2026
Abby Russ trekked solo through eight European countries over three weeks in January, navigating trains, hostels and mountain trails, wearing her trusty New Balance sneakers and all her belongings stashed in a single backpack.
By then, the University of South Alabama senior was a seasoned traveler on her way to a career in international journalism.
In South’s Office of International Education, where Russ interned for a semester, she’s what’s known as a “frequent flyer,” said Bri Ard, executive director of Global Engagement.
A long study-abroad stint in Barcelona in 2024 quickly led to one in Argentina when Russ, a journalism major, earned a selective grant from the Council on International Educational Exchange that funded a semester in Buenos Aires, where she lived and traveled across the South American country and adjacent regions, documenting life with her iPhone.
This year, South has 28 faculty-led study abroad programs to 24 different countries, with more than 320 students participating — a USA record. The University also sponsors solo trips, including Russ's to Spain and Argentina.
Russ photographs with a journalist’s eye: off-season streets, unexpected connections, fleeting moments. She has a record of distance traveled, but also of the distance between the person who once thought the world was out of reach and the one who’s courageous enough to explore it alone.
In the raw landscapes of South America, Russ’s journalistic eye sharpened to capture the "spur of the moment,’ from the towering red walls of El Anfiteatro, where the natural stone creates a soaring, amplified stage for any voice, to the pink of wild flamingos in El Calafate. She said Iguazu Falls, a thundering expanse of mist and jungle, felt less like earth and more like a scene from Avatar.
Patagonia/Flamingos
We just decided to take this little trail, and we walked where there were all kinds
of species that are native to Patagonia — lots of birds. And we came across these
flamingos, and I took a picture, but you couldn’t really see all the colors. So, I
zoomed in a little bit and it just — everything I was seeing with my eye, I could
see through the camera, which gave me so much relief. I was like, “Finally.” I felt
like my pictures weren't getting the full colors. And it finally did.
But, it was just so picturesque, I don’t know. That was just our first day here, and
we were looking forward to seeing these glaciers and it being so beautiful. So, I
was appreciative of how beautiful everything was, because we weren't able to get to
the glaciers, so I was upset. And seeing this was just really cool and reminded me,
you know, be spontaneous because you don't know what you'll find.
The most difficult border to cross was the decision to keep going alone after her study abroad program ended. With a single backpack, a rail pass and her everyday pair of New Balance sneakers, she stepped into the independence of solo travel, trading the comfort of a university program for the quiet confidence of navigating Europe — here, in Zurich, Switzerland — on her own terms.
Across eight countries, travel became a series of small victories. It was the brisk air of a German gorge — a seemingly endless wall of icicles — the architectural history of the Berlin Cathedral and the reflections on a rainy street in Amsterdam, with the historic Westerkerk church in the background.
Zurich
I had one backpack. One pair of shoes, three pairs of pants, a jacket and two sweaters. That’s all I had for three weeks. Hostels had washers and dryers, so I could just rewash stuff every few days. I ended up wearing everything in my backpack because it was so cold.
In Madeira, the journey ended where the clouds met the sea. In the ancient, misty forests of Fanal, beside hidden waterfalls shared with strangers-turned-friends and on a beach with volcanic, charcoal-black sands and a rose-gold sunset. Russ was no longer a dreamer from Alabama. She was a storyteller who learned the world is just a conversation waiting to happen.
Madeira/Hike
I did this last-minute hike. I got to the entrance; it was raining again. Then, halfway through the hike — it’s about six hours total — so like 2 or 3 hours in, the clouds went away; it was sunny again.
And we were under these little caves almost. And these two guys came up behind me. They were speaking German, and, spontaneously, they were like, “You wanna take a picture?” They took a picture of me, with me, a selfie.
I didn’t pass by many people and, you know, small talk here and there. But these guys were really easygoing, and they were like, “Join us!” And I was like, “Okay.” And I think I spent like four hours with them. This was the final part of the hike. We had to go all the way there and back, so this was the final part of going there.
