Celebrities are just like us, only with better hair and a prettier Instagram feed. They too love to fly and travel the world, and in fact, many of them even studied or taught abroad before they became famous. Here are some celebrity travelers you’ve probably heard of.
1. Bradley Cooper
It’s no secret that the universal dream star Bradley Cooper is comfortable with the French language. After apparently deciding as a child that he wanted to learn French, he spent six months in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France. Once, during a press tour for The Hangover 2 , he even gave an interview entirely in French. Admiration!
2. Emma Watson
Sharing a passion for education with her character Hermione in the Harry Potter films, Emma Watson spent 18 months studying English literature at Brown University in Rhode Island before pursuing her undergraduate degree at the University of Oxford in England.
3. Barack Obama
As a child, former US President Barack Obama spent three years in Jakarta, Indonesia, with his mother and stepfather, where he learned Indonesian and studied history, mathematics, and other subjects at home with his mother. He returned to Hawaii – his birthplace – to continue his schooling, and later moved to New York City to attend college. Eventually becoming “Leader of the Free World,” Barack is living proof that travel and education are essential to a successful life.
4. JK Rowling
JK Rowling, aka the brains behind the Harry Potter universe, studied in France for her degree at the University of Exeter and later moved to Portugal in the early 90s to teach English for three years. It was around this time that Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone began to take shape, so we all owe a huge thank you to the kind people of Portugal.
5. Benedict Cumberbatch
Sherlock Holmes himself – well, our beloved Benedict to be precise – went to live in India for a year, teaching English to Buddhist monks at a Tibetan monastery in Darjeeling. He taught a class of 12 students and particularly enjoyed the opportunity to learn about Buddhism and ancient Indian cultures. Known as an international movie star all over the world, he nevertheless remained quite cool and collected – perhaps this has to do with his time among the monks and the meditation techniques he continues to practice to stay focused!
6. John Krasinski
John Krasinski, the American heartthrob of The Office, actually wanted to be an English teacher before he discovered his passion for acting. He spent six months teaching English in Costa Rica as a student and, upon his return, dropped his course at Brown University for drama.
7. Matthew McConaughey
Okay, okay, okay. The man responsible for introducing us to Dallas Buyers Club, Interstellar, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and one of the most widely used catchphrases of the 21st century was a world traveler before he became a movie star. Matthew McConaughey spent a year in New South Wales, Australia, as part of his degree at the University of Texas.
8. Prince William – Duke of Cambridge
Even royalty wants their share of studying abroad. Prince William has moved to a remote town in Chile to teach English for 10 weeks as part of his post-graduate gap year. If teaching abroad was a positive experience for the future King of England, it will certainly be for us too!
9. Chris Pine
Long before he was traveling light years across distant galaxies in the new Star Trek movies, Chris Pine simply flew across the Atlantic. Chris ended up enrolling at the University of Leeds in England for a year as part of his UC Berkeley degree. Because where else is a better place to study English literature than England? Ugh!
10. Vera Wang
Originally from New York, American designer Vera Wang studied art history at the Sorbonne University in Paris, where she fell in love with fashion. It wasn’t until she finished her stint as fashion editor-in-chief at Vogue magazine that she realized that designing clothes was her true passion. Vera, who now heads a huge fashion empire, is best known for her stunning wedding dresses.