Gap year student and Travel Access Project grant recipient Michelle Zhang used her year to become fluent in Spanish while spending time in Guatemala, Mexico, Columbia and Peru. She began by studying at a language school on the shores of Lake Atitlan in Guatemala and bonding with her host family. She then went on to intern in Oaxaca Mexico with the EnVia Foundation, an organization that empowers women through microloans.

As if that wasn't enough, she then went on to backpack solo for ten weeks in Columbia and Peru, making friends and conquering challenging treks along the way. ¡Vamos a escucharlo!