Fellow Stories
True gap year stories from Fellows abroad!
Check out the latest blogs from Global Citizen Year Fellows in Brazil, Ecuador, and India!
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Class Year
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8 People That Have Inspired/Impacted Me Throughout Program Launch*
Marissa Emerson
2017-09-12
You may be wondering why I've written a list of eight individuals and not a nice, well-rounded number, like ten. Well I'll tell you that there is a deep, philosophical reason for it that will absolutely blow your mind: Eight is my favorite number. (Mind = blown) So, here is a list of eight people that...
Read MoreLive From The Field
Callista Helms
2017-09-12
And so the adventure begins. The saying “It’s not an adventure until something goes wrong” came to be very true throughout the start of my travels. It began after landing in San Francisco. I discovered that my suitcase wheel had broken, and there was no way I could carry two fifty pound bags when one...
Read Morenon-stop
Alexandra Moreno
2017-09-12
On Wednesday around 1AM we made it out of customs and into Ecuador. I was very happy to be out of Berkeley and finally in country. We spent four nights together at this spiritual retreat, two to a room. Each room had a bathroom, hot water available from 7AM to 8AM and like almost every other...
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Carrots
Phuong Nguyen
2017-09-11
“No comprehendo.” “No hablo espanol bien.” “Estudio espanol” And silence. Smiles. Smirks? An abundance of shame. The car ride to my host family’s home was unbearable. The welcome to my Quito home was an overestimation of my social skills. Those had expired the moment I set foot away from my cohort. I was loitering in...
Read MoreReturning Home
Danny DeBare
2017-09-09
Full disclosure: I am writing this post in the Houston airport on three hours of sleep in one of the most tumultuous weeks I’ve had this year.* I was hoping to upload this second blog post last Saturday, September 2nd; the day the Ecuador cohort was supposed to leave for Quito. Due to Harvey’s damage...
Read MoreThoughts of The Mind
Henry Yeary
2017-09-09
I’m currently suspended 37,000ft over the Caribbean Sea, finally on my way to Ecuador, where I will spend the next 8 months of my life expanding my notion of normal by immersing into an unknown culture. Acknowledging that adapting to a foreign lifestyle is easier said than done, I made sure to pack my bags...
Read MoreMaking Memories
Elizabeth Ollila
2017-09-04
I left my comfort and home about a week and a half ago, and since then my life has been a whirlwind in California (at Stanford) while we have had “pre-departure training.” I just wanted to share with you all some of the things that have gone “wrong” in the last 2 days, and I...
Read Moreat home home sickness
Alexandra Moreno
2017-09-04
So this past week and a half has been too jammed pack. On August 27th, I landed in San Francisco and found myself instantly thrown into a group of over 100 strangers- the only exception being a person I met at a college fly out where neither of us really knew each other but we...
Read MoreExtinguishing Doubts- Diego Lasner
Diego Lasner
2017-09-01
Having a nervous mind usually leaves me questioning every decision I make, including this one. I have a hard time settling on a commitment in fear of missing out of my perfect path. In other words, I have an obsession with trying to figure out what will be best for me. At this moment, Global...
Read Moreblog #4
Esme Merritt-Dorosin
2017-09-01
It happened! I broke down today. And that's all right. Of course I'm embarrassed about it, as it is instinctive of humans to experience feelings of weakness and helplessness when we have to cry and show emotions that we feel portray us as such. It's very late right now, and I should have gone to...
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Adventures with Antonio!
Antony Le
2017-08-31
The craziest thing that I’ve done is surf down an active volcano in Nicaragua. Actually, that’s probably the second most craziest thing I’ve done. The first… well, subscribe to my blog and find out! ¡Bienvenidos! My name is Antony Le and I recently graduated from Andrew P. Hill High School in San Jose, California. In...
Read Moreblog #3
Esme Merritt-Dorosin
2017-08-31
I might as well get in as many blogs as I can while I'm still in America, right? Tonight I was really moved by the fireside chat about decision making that was presented by an alum who was unfortunately sent home from his global citizen year (along with some other fellows). I was so moved...
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