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
What Stays
Sayre Quevedo
2013-07-16
The packets we are asked to read about our countries suggests we pack light, bringing what we need: a formal shirt, a gift for our new host families, comfortable shoes; nothing that has too much sentimental value, nothing we would be upset to lose. The nature of packing is that we are never prepared. It...
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Passion
Emily Hockett
2013-07-16
I am sure all of you have had some interaction with those long, sometimes harsh posts on the Internet about controversial issues. These can range from current events, sports games, or even the tragic downfall of a particular celebrity. Reading these comments, which are usually full of strong language and conflicting opinions, I frequently find myself outraged, disturbed, thrilled, or...
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The Next Great Venture
Alexandra Lines
2013-07-15
About a week ago, I was telling a family friend about the wonderful journey I am about to take to Ecuador. She was looking at me with bright and excited eyes while I was speaking, and when I finished, she turned to my mom and asked “Are you nervous that your girl is going away...
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Sailing Away From The Bubble
Lauren Rendler
2013-07-15
I am from a typical suburban community in San Diego, California where there is preconceived expectation to head straight to college after high school. I have observed a consistent path that people from my hometown follow. They work really hard in high school, to the point of exhaustion, go to a prestigious four year university, and then get a high...
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Me Llamo Soe Han Tha.
Soe Tha
2013-07-14
Hello, I’m Soe Han Tha, and since this is the very first post on my Global Citizen Year blog, I am also a little nervous. It’s probably because the moment I submit this, I will have embarked on my bridge year journey before I even board the plane. This is the very beginning of my adult life, and...
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Protected: Introductions
Simone Fillion-Raff
2013-07-14
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
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Why I’m Here
Vijay Dukkipati
2013-07-14
It felt odd. Sitting in English class on the last day of school, I hear my classmates talk about their dorm assignments and what they’ll major in at college. While they use the summer to relax and get ready for their college journey, I am fully immersed in studying Spanish to prepare for my Gap Year in Ecuador, hoping that...
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The Beginning
Ilana Marder-Eppstein
2013-07-13
Hello everyone and welcome to my blog! My name is Ilana Marder-Eppstein, and I will be spending the next school year in Ecuador through the program Global Citizen Year. I grew up in Evanston, a town right outside of Chicago. Like most children, when I was young I spent my days finding new places to venture and play...
Read MoreThe World of Westernism
Galen Tsongas
2013-07-10
Welcome to the world of Westernism! Come one, come all. Come ALL indeed. How can you improve your beauty, your home, your enjoyment, and your popularity? You can ride the wave of Western civilization for the low price of a piece of your soul. Listen to those voices that tell you to consume, to rid your home of pests,...
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¡Bienvenidos!
Madeline Lisaius
2013-07-10
Welcome friends, supporters, countrymen. Well, maybe not countrymen. More like “web-surfer.” Anyways, welcome to the chronicle of my adventure with Global Citizen Year. I will begin by introducing the first chapter of this tale: My Identity and my Desire for a Happy, Productive Life. Slow down! You might be thinking, you haven’t retired to the top of...
Read MoreLeaving Home
Galen Tsongas
2013-07-10
For months I thought about being home in my previous lifestyle and enjoying the life before of every comfort I can imagine. I’ve been seeing clouds that remind me of fog and I feel like I’m being dragged away. I even saw the Statue of Liberty in the clouds in a wash of San Francisco Giants’ Orange. I...
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Oh, the Places You’ll Go!
JT Su
2013-07-09
Inspiration is everywhere. It drives my everyday life and pushes me to become a better person. It has the power to lift my mind to a world of infinite possibilities, where I can consistently feel empowered by reading inspiring words, listening to soulful music, watching miracles happening around me, or simply observing the raw beauty of the...
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