Fellow Stories
True gap year stories from Fellows abroad!
Check out the latest blogs from Global Citizen Year Fellows in Brazil, Ecuador, and India!
Category
Class Year
Country
The Continental Crisis
Daniel Lewis
2015-10-14
How many continents are there really? In the US were taught 7, Australia getting one all to itself, in Brazil, they are taught 6, because North and South America are just The Americas, and in much of the EU (and for the Olympic Committee) there are only 5 (sorry Antarctica, your 4,490 people didn’t make the...
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New Blog Post, Deonte’ Lee
Deonte' Lee
2015-10-13
Trading Knowledge; Trading Cards As a child I used to collect Pokemon and Yu-gi-oh cards, trying to obtain the strongest monsters to add to my collection. Now as a young adult still addicted to collecting things I have turned my attentions to collecting experiences and connections, the problem that I have is that these things...
Read MoreLet’s ketchup.
irene subervi
2015-10-12
Alright, so what the heck have I been up to?! Well, it’s officially been a good 45 days since I’ve arrived in Brazil and holy cow I still can’t believe it! A pond arrival we landed in Sao Pablo just to flight over to Curitiba. The first week was just so perfect; we stayed...
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Etapas Brasilerias do Bebê
Sarah Murray
2015-10-11
“You are babies, in the first week you are observing so to understand, in the second week you are taking your first steps, and in the third week you will say your first words” – Marcos, host father of Maria in Curitiba. On my third day in Brazil, I travelled in three overcrowded buses for two hours, and I was frustrated. I was frustrated because I...
Read MoreMy Urban Playground
Daniel Lewis
2015-10-09
My urban playground is rarely still, only resting to be fixed and filled. My urban playground is blue, usually, with words scrolling across its semi-human forehead. My urban playground has only a jungle gym, no swings; every crack, corner and crevice built to be lurched. My urban playground has three names and three sets of three...
Read MoreMy First Week in the CIA
Daniel Lewis
2015-10-02
I work at the CIA. I translate press releases, make videos, edit powerpoint presentations and have a lot of time to kill. My coworkers are not spies, they are entrepreneurs; all hard at work making their dreams reality. I work in the Centro de Inovaçâo in Florioanopolis, a building off of a main highway brimming with tech...
Read MoreExtremely late;
irene subervi
2015-09-29
<originally written August 25, 2015>Curitiba Not everyone knows how to dance samba, 3. Soccer – isn’t on m Pre-Departure, We are young, but our minds have already left our bodies searching for more. We are strong, yet we cry when the chance is given. We love, forgetting that we all have just met. ...
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New Settings
Zoe Barnes
2015-09-26
Exactly one week ago I left my temporary home in Curitiba. It was here where, athough I ultimately really enjoyed spending time with my host family, I experienced my first “low,” (clearly shown in my previous post). Luckily, almost immediately after posting, I made it out of the trough and began to feel much more comfortable in...
Read MoreSettling Syndrome
Daniel Lewis
2015-09-24
What is Settling Syndrome? Settling Syndrome is a bout of hyper sensitivity and hyper openness that occurs whence an individual is tossed into a place he’s never been before, with a language he barely knows and a new family he has just met (Warning: this definition is from the DHD, the Daniel’s Head Dictionary, a...
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The Big Switch
Daniel Lewis
2015-09-20
Three weeks ago the six Tufts fellows sat at a hostel awaiting the arrival of our temporary parents. We were in the middle of the city, our new city, Curitiba. Gabriel was the first to go, swooped away in a flurry of smiles and kisses by an as of then unknown woman. We were meeting...
Read MoreThank You PDT!
Isabel Garcia
2015-09-16
Before landing in Brazil, I spent eight days getting to know more about Global Citizen Year and the purpose of my year abroad. But most importantly I got to meet a diverse group of fellows who share similar interest as me, the global cohort of 2016. During PDT(Pre-Departure Training) we started our journey at Alliance...
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Being Lost
ericagonzales08
2015-09-15
“No expectations. Stay in the present. Curiosity before judgement.” I recited this mantra in my head as all the Brazil Fellows prepared for the reveal of our final placements. We were practicing mindfulness. Eyes closed, we focused on the moment – what and how our bodies felt, what we smelled, what we heard. As the...
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