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
Can You Hear How Many Stars Are Out Tonight
Isabel Clarkin
2019-03-27
Something I’m going to miss when I go home is tilting my head up to look at the stars each night when I brush my teeth. I think in a way it feels like my most quiet, independent moment. This one particular night, I decided to record it. The stars were so bright, that I...
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The perks of being a wallpaper
Aissatou Tagaty Badio
2019-03-26
It’s a typical Saturday afternoon in Khombole. Pawla just picked me up from my house like she always does, and we are both on our way to Nisha’s house. One important thing to note about Pawla is that EVERYONE knows her in Khombole. I cannot put two steps together without hearing “Yaye Fatouuuu!”, her Senegalese...
Read MoreO poema de quem me tornei / The poem of who I’ve become
Joana Mouzinho
2019-03-26
Escrevi este poema em Shillong, nordeste da Índia, olhando o sol descer sob um rio que acabava em si mesmo. Ao longe, um homem remava. Tanta paixão que eu sinto vendo um homem remar embora a enormidade dos seus sonhos. Tanta paixão que eu sinto dentro do meu corpo, congelado e permanente, pelo mágico paralisado...
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My Hindi Journey
Jack Swartzentruber
2019-03-26
My Hindi Journey One of my goals when I set out for India was to learn a language. I believed that language and culture are linked at their core, and that it is often difficult to understand one without the other. So, I wanted to make learning Hindi a central part of my experience here....
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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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Environmental Activism in Brazil: Saving our Oceans from Plastic.
Marco Barracchia
2019-03-24
During the last three months, the NGO I work with launched a new project in southern Brazil: raising awareness on the use of plastic and its effects in the ocean ecosystems. Having been an environmental activist for some time now, I couldn’t be happier to be part of this project, which in the end had...
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Why nature saves me
Marco Barracchia
2019-03-24
During my gap year (and all my life) I’ve always felt a strong urge to consistently connect with nature. The reason behind is that it helps me grounding, meditating and connecting to the roots of the earth. Listening to the whispering of birds, watching sunsets, swimming in the cold ocean, hiking, canoeing, running, among others,...
Read MoreA guide for gap yearers
Marco Barracchia
2019-03-22
I wish I had a booklet in my pre-departure preparation with some advice on practicalities encountered on a gap year. This might be limited to my own (and other fellows experiences), though potentially useful for everyone considering a gap year. 1. Be a curious observer. Curiosity before judgment. Be open to cultural relativity to unlearn...
Read MoreRunning as in Life
Marco Barracchia
2019-03-22
It’s about the trail, not the destination Few times it happened to me to be seeing run-races here in Brazil, to the extent to which they seem to be a popular thingy. Although it might be something cultural here, I was keen enough to go running for the pleasure of running, instead of racing, and...
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