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
Country
Capstone Reflection
Claire Darrow
2018-06-06
The Capstone project is a Global Citizen Year requirement to help bridge what fellows learned and experienced in-country to the reality of returning home and sharing those experiences. A few days ago I organized a story sharing dinner at my house. I invited a few of my friends who were in town to come eat...
Read MoreA Salutation to the Dawn and Auspicious Beginnings
Claire Darrow
2018-06-06
Sharing one of my favorite poems written by the Indian dramatist, Kalidasa: Look to this day! For it is life, the very life of life. In its brief course Lie all the verities and realities of your existence: The bliss of growth The glory of action The splendour of beauty For yesterday is but a...
Read MoreIs that a yes?
Marta Allegue Souto
2018-06-06
“Is that a yes? Maybe a way of politely saying no? Is she doubting? Why would she doubt? Have I said something wrong? Have I done something wrong? What does she mean with that continuous tilt of her head? She almost looked like a bobble head figurine.” A million thoughts welled up...
Read MoreLooking back
Marta Allegue Souto
2018-06-06
It has been about a month. One month since I last saw India. One month since I last hugged my host family. To be precise, it has been 39 days. 39 days that came, each, with a special memory from my year in Pune. Every single day brought me something new, something to be grateful...
Read MoreCapstone Reflection: “Because I can”
Donna Tin Sun
2018-06-06
Sometimes it's hard to accept the 'end' of experiences as intense as the ones I experienced in India. As I went through RET and the process of going home, it felt like a part of me was still in India. I didn't want to come to terms with the fact that I was back to...
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An Ode to the Journey of the Mango
Claire Darrow
2018-06-06
In the sunrise of April, I hold you before me, a product of a subtropical breeze, nutritious soil, and water that nourished from inside out. I have been waiting for you and I know the journey has not been an easy one. As I look at your skin adorned with swaths of deep coral, leafy...
Read MoreMy capstone
Emma Boe
2018-06-06
During the past months I spent in India I had so many experiences. Often it was hard to reflect on these experiences as I was in the middle of it all. Coming back has therefore been a good time to think about what I have been through, both the good and the bad, and how...
Read MoreHappiness is having chai with you
Marta Allegue Souto
2018-06-05
India taught me that real tea is very different from the sad little tea bag that we dip in hot water. Indian tea is flavorful, strong, sweet, warms you up when you are cold, cures you when you have a slight fever, gives you the strength needed to teach 5th grade kids for two more...
Read MoreCapstone Project Reflection- GCY Requirement
Ayla Blair-Smith
2018-06-05
Hello lovely human beings, It's me again. One last time I promise. About a month ago, I returned to UWC Robert Bosch, Germany. This is where I studied previously, before choosing to embark on one of the most challenging experiences to date. I was joined by my fellow classmate, roomie, and friend Soph Schonach,who spent her...
Read MoreMy favorite (untranslatable) Hindi words
Marta Allegue Souto
2018-06-03
1. Golmaal गोलमाल Chaos. This word is formed by two other Hindi words: gol (round, circle) and maal (wealth). 2. Rishta रिश्ता An inexplicable connection with another soul. 3. Masakali मसाकली Aspiring to fly high through peace and liberation. 4. Gulcharrey गुलचरे Enjoying life to the fullest with no aim, target or desire...
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a poem
Sydney Scanlon
2018-06-01
India: a Poem The food is spicy as it clamors down my throat like flames licking their way up a pot of daal. The people are every shade of gods eyes; A field of flowers shashaying through the streets. The language is a jumble of shadows dancing in the moonlight. The climate is hot and...
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India
Claire Darrow
2018-05-23
From the bejeweled flourish of a sari skirt to the tip of a humble Gandhi cap, India’s fashion remains just as diverse as its many foods, languages and religions. While clothing in India follows a long and well documented history, fashion in the western sense is a comparatively new concept in terms of India’s long...
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