Fellow Stories

Untitled Part II

Bella Bjornstad

2015-02-10

Since my last blog, I have dug deep into the experiences that were sparking those thoughts. I don’t like cynicism, I think it’s a cop out, an easy say to wiggle out from under our responsibility to each other. And the same thing goes for pessimism. So, under these extraordinary circumstances, I have had the...

Pre-departure Training Video Log

Ian Frank

2015-02-10

Please check out Ian Frank’s Pre-departure Training Video Log (VLOG)!

What Happens When Five Kichwa Kids From a Poor Rural Amazonian Community Visit Quito….

Lindsay Saligman

2015-02-07

A few weeks ago, there was the grand opening of some museum in Quito, so naturally, the Ecuadorean government had to invite cute little indigenous children to sing a traditional song in traditional clothing for the opening ceremony. They took the cute little indigenous children from my community, Santa Rita, specifically from the 7th grade...

Here

Elizabeth O'Malley

2015-01-31

Before I came to Ecuador, or fully understood my part as a Global Citizen Year Fellow, I didn’t have expectations for my time here. I started these eight months with an open mind and an open heart. And as cheesy as that may be, it’s the truth. I knew I would have a host family...

Correoucu, Ca̱ar, Ecuador

Elisa Portz

2015-01-31

Greetings from Correoucu, Ecuador! I have been living in my placement community for about three months now. My indigenous host family is more than I could ever ask for. I live with my host mother, Narcisa, host father, JosÌ© MarÌ_a, and my three host sisters: MarÌ_a JosÌ© (13), Sara (16), and Lourdes (18). We started...

5. A Taste of Perspective and a Transformation in Returning

Sophia Richter

2015-01-31

I’m sitting on a beautifully woven met stretched out over the cool sand and beneath the dark sky. There is a light breeze that rustles the leaves on a nearby mango tree and causes a roosting bird to take flight. Reflecting on my day, I can hear the rhythmic drumming of a marriage celebration. I...

Finding My Place

Andrea Snyder

2015-01-31

The morning call-to-prayer rings sweetly in my ears and I awake to the still hours of dawn. I hear the swift sounds of the Senegalese broom against the concrete floors of my compound and notice that my host sister has already begun her hard day’s work. As I routinely tie my shoelaces and head out...

I’m Still Here

Alice Brower

2015-01-31

I heard a thud behind me and my head jerked around. A few feet away I saw a rock. I looked up from the rock and saw a young kid in a dirty yellow shirt surrounded by a pack of other kids pointing at him. “He just threw that rock at me.” I thought. I...

Life, Death, and a Theory

Bennett Quintard

2015-01-29

Simple Pleasures

Charlotte Reider-Smith

2015-01-27

Enjoying the hail/rainstorm/flooding from the comfort of the car. Some cars were flooded in feet of water and the hail floated on top of the streams. Plantains – in all forms (fried, baked, in balls, sliced, with cheese) My new best friend Ariana (she‰Ûªs 10). I was waiting for my order of plantains (where her...

A Good Stretch Before Growth

Christobal Urquiaga

2015-01-27

To remove one’s self from a culture and language in which one has known their entire life and place themselves into a culture and language in which they have very little knowledge of (let alone experience with), takes a lot of strength. As the Team Leaders have told us numerous times, we must be prepared...

The Many Definitions of Sick

Christobal Urquiaga

2015-01-27

The longest time I have ever been away from my house and my family has been a week. As it has been five months of me away from my friends and family, I’ve begun to feel a bit sick. However, not just one definition of sick, but many different definitions of sick. Sick: Infected with...