Spending a year in Latin America has opened the eyes of a group of young Bermudians to the challenges and rewards associated with living in developing countries.

The teenagers travelled to the Southern Hemisphere though Rotary International's Exchange Programme.

"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity and I encourage anyone in Bermuda to do it," said participant Jakila Maybury, aged 19.

"It just changes your life, opens you up to being more open to everything and not being afraid to step out of your box."

Miss Maybury headed to Brazil in July of 2007 in search of exciting new opportunities, but what she stumbled on was a life-changing experience.

During her 12-month stay she visited a city in the northeast of Brazil where the houses had no roofs and people went without basic appliances and electricity.

She told The Royal Gazette: "Bermuda doesn't have that poverty, little children sleeping on the side of the road, no food, no clothes, no housing and Bermudians don't realise what they have, like me for example.

"I couldn't believe it, I started to cry a bit."

Miss Maybury signed up for the exchange programme because she believed "it would be a great experience: learning a new language, grasping a new culture. I'm never afraid to try anything once".

The teenager had the opportunity to travel throughout the diverse country, from Brasilia, which she said is similar to New York City, to Rio de Janeiro, which had distinct cultural flair.

Yet aside from the new experiences, there were also challenges along the way for the teenager, who admitted she had never spoken the language before.

"When I arrived at the airport, I didn't speak not one word of Portuguese and my exchange family wasn't there and I was like 'what am I supposed to do?' My first family was really great, my second family didn't speak any English at all."

Miss Maybury was lucky to have an assortment of host families throughout the year and was speaking the language within five months and fluent within seven.

Her fellow participant Joann Nichols, 18, said she experienced "culture shock" when in Chile — as one of the few black people in the country. She also had to get used to extreme weather conditions ranging from 90 degrees in January to 20 degrees in June.

"They were very fair (skinned), with dark hair and dark eyes. Everywhere I went people did stare at me. I didn't feel that anyone was being racist, people were just interested in me. That was the biggest change, aside from the weather," she admitted.

Miss Nichols took Spanish classes throughout middle and high school, but was surprised to find out that Chileans speak notoriously fast.

"I thought I knew more than I did, until I got there," she said. "In a classroom you are moving at a slower pace."

It took her a month until the speech became more clear and three months to get comfortable with the pace and build up confidence to talk with others, she said.

Despite the challenges along the way, Miss Nichols believes the experience changed her. "I actually think I matured a lot while I was out there from the experiences and interactions with new people.

"I gained a lot of friendships with people all over the world. I would recommend this because it's a great way to gain friendships and be exposed to new experiences that you wouldn't actually encounter in Bermuda.

"And getting a greater understanding of people and places around you, different cultures, languages, which in the end can benefit you in further studies and careers."

Exchange student Donn Foggo, 18, spent close to 12 months in Anaco in northeast Venezuela and admitted it was "very hard" for him to leave his close-knit family in Bermuda and venture into unchartered territory.

However, the Venezuelan people were very friendly and made the transition smooth for him, he said. "For the first two weeks, it's a dramatic change but once you make friends and become closer with your host family, it's fine. After that, it's easy sailing," he said.

He was "shocked" when he first arrived in Venezuela, then frustrated because of language barriers, but after five months he was fluent in Spanish.

The experience changed him for the better he told The Royal Gazette: "I learned to respect people and their culture because there's always reasons behind what people do."

"They are Roman Catholic, so they did (the motions of) their cross a lot... but there's a lot of meaning behind that," he said.

The experience also taught him a lot about himself: "I'm a lot stronger than I would have thought — emotionally.

"It taught me how to be co-dependent and independent at the same time — co-dependent on others but how to not have my family, that's what taught me the independence.

"It was the best year of my life. I would have never done anything like that was it not for Rotary.

"Everything you do in the year — the vacations, family, friends and even school, it's just a combination of things that make it unforgettable."

All three teenagers are back on the Island temporarily but they are excited to move on to the next chapter of their lives and start university in Canada this September.