Now, I've focused my travels on the south since I have been living here. I've gotten to know São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Florianopolis and many other parts of the south, and their beautiful nature and beaches. Every time I travel, it expands my mind because I get to experience new environments and meet new people, and it increases my ability to understand the world around me. I feel more grounded when I can understand the world and people better. And it is also really fun!
Tell us more about your grants/scholarships:
I was granted the Gilman Scholarship in 2018, which meant that I got to travel to Brazil without paying anything for three weeks. It is a scholarship exclusively for people who received the Pell Grant for university, which is a need-based grant for college. All my expenses were covered from flights to meals and housing. There is a major scholarship department at my university, SUNY Geneseo. My advisor, Dr. Mills, was extremely helpful in guiding me through the applications of these grants. To this day, I am extremely thankful for everything he's done for me related to my Gilman and my Fulbright grants. I mention him to say that there are offices and institutions that are there to help you and would love to help you, especially for students from different socio-economic classes who might not have been able to afford these experiences otherwise. They want to help you succeed and Dr. Mills was very important for me in getting these opportunities. After I received the Gilman scholarship, many doors were opened for me because it is from the Department of State. The Fulbright grant that I am on now is also from the State Department, which helped me in the application process.
