Natives of tiny territory meet on campus

Gibraltar is a multicultural British territory at the tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It has a population of 30,000.

Two Gibraltarians are now at Grand Valley and they met recently. Gabriella Martinez is a new international student, one of 434 on campus and the first from Gibraltar. David Alvarez, professor of English, is a native of Gibraltar and has taught at Grand Valley for nearly 20 years. 

Mark Schaub, chief international officer, arranged for the two to meet. "In the summer, Gabby told a shopkeeper in Gibraltar that she would be studying at Grand Valley, and she said, 'Oh, that's where David teaches, say hello for me,'" Schaub said.

Martinez, a photography major, said back home, "You can't walk down Main Street without being stopped by someone you know. It makes me feel more at ease knowing that I have a 'Llanito' here on campus. It's great!" Llanito is a form of Spanglish spoken in Gibraltar, and residents use it to refer to themselves.

Alvarez said he has met one other Gibraltarian in West Michigan. "It will be lovely to occasionally hear a Gib accent on campus," he said.