Fellow Stories

Saturday, December 29th: A Midnight Swim

Sophie Auvin

2019-01-02

I turn around slightly and shouted “Vamos?” into the night only to see two figures charging ahead into the waves. I pick my feet up and run towards the murky waters mentally preparing myself for the shock of ice cold water. My feet fumbling over the pocketed sand, I rush into the ocean and was...

All in the Mindset

Bihotza James-Lejarcegui

2018-12-31

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve written my last blog post, but finally, here I am. I know you’ve all been waiting for this! So much has happened since the last time I’ve published that I don’t really know where to start. At first, I just couldn’t find inspiration- so much was happening in...

Gap Years Don’t Go According to Plan

Anna Sophie Tinneny

2018-12-30

Before coming to Ecuador, I had it all figured out. I knew where I wanted to go to college, what I wanted to do for a living, and where I wanted to live post-degree. The one thing I didn’t know was why I was doing GCY. Despite being so sure of myself in most other...

Turning 18 in Brazil

Jahzaria Olivierre

2018-12-30

  Every year on my birthday I would cut a cake with my family and best friends, you can sort of say it’s like a tradition in my household. However, within a stir of event’s this year was totally different. I would have never guessed I would be turning 18 in Brazil, but all of...

Grappling with Gravity: Capoeira

Rebecca Rose

2018-12-25

Capoeira is art in motion. It’s dance, it’s gymnastics, it’s martial arts. When performed well, it’s two bodies moving as one in harmony. It starts with the premise of constant motion. A simple back and forth step called ginga is the foundation of everything else; stop moving, and you get got. From this base it...

Maktub

Bridget Wickiser

2018-12-24

Along crawls the sharp forgotten feeling Your feet managed to seep into the dirt Gasping for life while your mind is wheeling Pushing papers and wanting to divert The shattered countenance lied to your face So it went, you packed your brown carpetbag Loathing the constant and gradual race And your white laces will no...

Universal Language

Bridget Wickiser

2018-12-24

When I moved to Ecuador for seven months my Spanish language skills involved some numbers, colors, and saying, “Hi, my name is Bridget”. . I knew it would be challenging, but I had no idea about how challenging life it would be for a non-speaker. Not being able to communicate my feelings to my host...

My First 3 Months in India (Video)

Sophia Alfaro

2018-12-23

Teranga

Maddi McGirr

2018-12-21

When you look at this photo all you can see is a mango, a dirt track and a lot of blue. But this simple mango is a reminder of the generosity shown to me since coming to this country. I took this photo during my first weeks here in Senegal. It was a day when...

Only a Foreigner That I Know

Adriana Martinez-Smiley

2018-12-20

In the Otavalo market, other Americans couldn’t easily identify me as their own. For some reason, I make desperate gazes at tourists, hoping that I would spark some form of fraternity in this foreign land. But alas, they may shoot me a brisk stare, then continue their banter about how interesting the indigenous market was....

drowning in debt in brazil

Veronica Barrera

2018-12-20

To start off this story let me tell you about my apprenticeship: I work at a underprivileged and pernicious location known as a *favela. *It’s an afterschool program for kids ages 4-16 and they spend around 4 hours playing soccer, training muy thai / Brazilian jiu jitsu, acting classes, or playing with toys and their...

A Day in the Life, Sort of…

Barbara Peck

2018-12-20

As I write this blog, I have been away from home over three months, 110 days to be exact. It has been 110 days since I’ve been in my house, felt the comfort of my own bed, or enjoyed the company of my family and neighborhood friends. It’s crazy to think that I have been...