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
A -not so- letter to myself
Julieta Lechini
2017-08-17
My life seems to change suddenly from a moment to another. Where I am and what I do. And so am I. Letters to yourself are supposed to be read by you some time later in life, to see those changes and be proud –or not- of whom you are now. My name is Julieta...
Read MoreJe veux que les baobabs m’embrassent… I want the baobabs to kiss me?!?!
Ebunoluwa Akinbode
2017-08-17
Welp, six years of middle and high school French probably didn’t prepare me for this. In an effort to be mystical and romantic I tried to tell a friend in French that while in Senegal I hope to be embraced by the baobabs- as a metaphor for being welcomed into the community- but instead only...
Read MoreEmbracing the Unexpected
Katie Dodge
2017-08-15
A year ago I had my life figured out. Well, not my life, but certainly the next five years. The summer before my senior year of high school, I spent a lot of time thinking about the future, mentally planning what would happen after I received my diploma: I would go to some Ivy League...
Read MoreTop Ten List
Zoe Ward
2017-08-15
Hello friends, I have no idea how to blog or what my blog will look like, however, I am certain that by the end of my trip it will look much different from now. That being said, I'm looking forward to sharing my adventures in Brazil with you through blogging. As the days grow closer...
Read MoreBrimming With Excitement!
Gemma Kelton
2017-08-15
Namaste! Welcome to my blog. I hope you enjoy your stay here. I am so excited and honored to have been selected for the Global Citizen Year program to India. GCY is kind of a “Peace Corps” for high school graduates. GCY’s India program partners with Teach for India (TFI) (a sister organization to Teach...
Read MoreThe “irresponsible” choice to take a gap year
Marli Anglim
2017-08-15
Being irresponsible has never been my thing. I have always made calculated and fully researched decisions, aiming to make the right choice. That is, until I found Global Citizen Year. I discovered GCY only a few days before the deadline to commit to college. At this point, I had completely decided to commit to a...
Read MoreExpectations vs Reality
Kara Esplin
2017-08-15
Amidst the rush to obtain our visas, packing, and say our goodbyes to family and friends, there is a mix of mystery and anticipation in the air. Our cohort group chat is bustling with questions, advice, speculations, and the occasional funny video from Trevor. With only a few weeks until departure, this is a time of reflection. Many of...
Read MoreNo Turning Back
Elizabeth Ollila
2017-08-14
If you had told me a year ago that I would be leaving to live in Ecuador in less than two weeks instead of going college I would have probably laughed. Not because I was shocked or disappointed, but because I never thought that I would actually have the guts to take a year to...
Read More
Expectations..?
Emma Boe
2017-08-14
If I tell you: «I’ll be taking a gap year in India», it might trigger you to think along these lines: [1] [2] And if I tell you I’ll be volunteering at a school for less privileged children, this might pop into your head: However, I am neither going to India to “find myself” or...
Read MoreMy Pre-Departure Global Citizen Year Story
Wyatt Foster
2017-08-14
When I first thought of going to college, as I began my college apps nearly a year ago, I was excited for all the same things my friends were looking forward to. The prospect of decorating a dorm room, having classes I was passionate about, and way more freedom than I was used to, were...
Read More
So Long, Sayonara, See You Later: Goodbye In My Own Language
Elise Leise
2017-08-14
Au revoir. Ba beneen. Mornings spent struggling with vowels on Rosetta Stone have equipped me with basic French. My small, yellow Wolof phrasebook, sure to remain my trusty sidekick throughout the year, helps me bid adieu in a Senegalese language totally foreign to me. Yet the translation in English is the hardest to say....
Read More
No Preconceptions
Miniya Ali
2017-08-13
As an African American I've always had a cloudy idea of what and who Africa is. I've been left to sort of fill the gaps and ponder the endless different lifestyles and philosophies that exist on the vast continent. However this time I've decided to approach Africa with a blank canvas. I won't assign any...
Read More