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A. To be honest, it was a very eye-opening experience for me. I felt almost selfish, because I was going there to do a service, but at the same time you learn so much from the experience. I hope that their lives are enriched by us going there, too, in opening their eyes to new people from around the world.

Q. On those trips, were people surprised that you were American?

A. I remember on one of the trips that I went on they were calling me Jackie Chan. I said, "I'm not Jackie Chan." (Laughs) Then they said, "You're Chinese." I'm like, "No, I'm Korean-American." But they didn't know that. For some of them, I was the first Asian person they saw in real life. Some of them had very negative perceptions of Asians, from what they had been told or seen in their local media. I lived with the locals for weeks at a time and they said, "We're really glad we met you," which was so nice to hear.

Q. What are your five favorite cities?

A. London, Seoul, Osaka, Mexico City and Atlanta, because it's home.

Q. If you could hop on a plane right now and go to any place, where would it be?

A. I really want to go to Istanbul. I've only connected through there, but I want to spend some time in Turkey. I think it's a fascinating place.

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(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and travel writer. You can respond to this column by visiting her website at www.jaehakim.com. You may also follow "Go Away With..." on Twitter at @GoAwayWithJae where Jae-Ha Kim welcomes your questions and comments.)

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