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
To whom much is given, much is expected
Maria Bossert
2019-04-15
One of the most difficult things I have been forced to confront over my gap year is my privilege. I’m white. I’m American. I’m a native English speaker. I’m wealthy. Well, I have never considered myself wealthy until recently. I knew my family had money; we lived comfortably and never had to worry about putting...
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My Final Community Project (Preserving Kichwa Folktales)
Jeffrey Fishman
2019-04-02
I can’t believe that my time here in Ecuador is coming to an end! The days have truly flown by in the blink of an eye. I have learned so much over these past seven months, and I know that I am returning to the U.S. as a better version of myself. Before leaving Ecuador,...
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Grace Peel
2019-03-31
I only have 3 mornings left in Iluman, the small town in the Sierras of Ecuador that has become my home. Only 3 more breakfasts spent playing with my baby host brother and his cars and action figures, taking breaks every couple of minutes to take a sip of coffee or a bite of huevos...
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I wanted to buy a book today
Adriana Martinez-Smiley
2019-03-29
I wanted to buy a book today. The distant eyes seem so close when their gaze is fixed on you. I wanted to buy a book today. My hand glided upon the glossy covers as I endured the transfixed look of the “diligent” workers. I wanted to buy a book today. I picked up a...
Read MoreWhen catching chicks use your feet and other things I have learned in Ecuador.
Joseph Brett
2019-03-28
1. Language is culture When I first arrived in Ecuador one of my main goals was to get better and hopefully fluent at Spanish. However, after being here for eight months, I can say something that I am not afraid to say. I am not fluent. Language is not only a collection of words used...
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First carnival
Jeremy Chan
2019-03-25
A thing that Hong Kong really needs to learn from Ecuador and South America is their 4 day long carnival. My first carnival started one day before it should have started when we got into an intense but fun fight at the office of where I worked. Paint, ink, flour, eggs, foam and water were...
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Overview of Apprenticeship– Quilloac
Bihotza James-Lejarcegui
2019-03-25
Intro Teaching is hard, and the first few weeks I wasn’t sure how I felt about my job. When I entered the elementary school classroom, the teacher handed me the text book and asked me to teach, since she knows basically no English. My first week on the job, this teacher had an appointment and...
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College Decision Day (One Year Later!)
Jeffrey Fishman
2019-03-25
It’s crazy how much can change in a year. I began my senior year of high school as your typical overscheduled, overstressed, and overworked student. I was president of the National Honor Society and Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper. I played the flute in my school’s band and soccer for my travel team. I was taking...
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Live From The Field
Sundhya Alter
2019-03-21
[image: IMG_3154.JPG] Aji is something that I am going to miss. I am going to miss its spicy tanginess that always hits right where it’s supposed to. When I think of aji I think of my abuelas smile as she peels potatoes in the kitchen, or my host brothers laugh, or even the long bus...
Read MoreA Day in the Fields of an Environmental Movement
Grace Partridge
2019-03-21
My internship at Vibrant Village Foundation provides me with many unique opportunities to learn about environmental conservation, including the chance to witness action on the forefront of the agro-ecology movement in Ecuador. Yesterday, what started as simple office work turned into a field trip to farmers’ markets, an organic *almuerzo (lunch)* restaurant, and the chance...
Read MoreEsencia
Natalia Rijo
2019-03-20
I decided to buy a guitar to learn it how to play it during my time here in Ecuador. It was the best decision I have made so far, and after feeling more confident at it I started writing and composing songs. The last song is called Esencia, and I composed it after realizing how...
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Ambivalent
Katarina Guillot
2019-03-20
Ambivalent is the perfect word, to sum up, my feelings about only having two more weeks in Ecuador. According to Merriam-Webster ambivalent means “having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something” and ambivalence suggests “movement in two directions at once and hence a wavering uncertainty.” When people ask me how I feel about going back...
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