Hace fresco...

well i have finished my first week (it was only really 3 days though) of volunteering. so far i love every minute of it. Not so much the length of time it takes to get to each place though. All the community centers and stuff are outside the main city in the poorer areas. I have found out though that i will not be working at a specific orphanage like i previous thought, but i enjoy what i am doing now. i have the possibility of working at 4 or 5 different community centers with children from the local area. Yesterday i went to a school support, where kids from the neighborhood come in and we help with school work and anything else they ned help with and today i went to teach english, although the little girl i was working with, Denise, was a little more interested in coloring the pictures that learning english. but we did work on her spanish and spelling because a lot of the kids do not know how to read or write. she told me she did not want to learn english. afterwards though the other volunteers and i took the kids outside and we sang songs and played duck duck goose! the kids from yesterday and today were so polite. we walked in and they all ran up to us and greeted us with kisses and hugs and did the same when we left! They are amazing! i am really excited to work with them more. What happens every weekend is that the oranganization will send me an email of all the activities for the week and i sign up for them. very simple process. below is the schedule i got on tuesday evening. it is good because i dont have to pay the transportation because my program i am here with already does even though 20 pesos is less than 7 dollars.

i am not even sure what else to say about the kids so far. there are a couple hyper ones, but they are still great. it definitely gets depressing seeing the neighborhoods we go in, and i have only been doing it for 3 days...but it definitely makes me feel better talking with the kids and playing with them and stuff!

the other volunteers that i have met are all amazing people. i met a couple from sweden who moved here two months ago just to learn spanish and volunteer, a girl from LA who was tired of living in the states so she is traveling and living all over south america, a ton of students who study in buenos aires from all over the world also volunteer here. it is awesome to talk to them and here their stories. this is one reason i dont like to be a tourist. for me traveling is about the people you meet, friends you make, and lives you change. its not about visiting every country in the world just to say you have done it, its about making every minute worth while and worth remembering...kind of deep, but i have a lot of time when i am sitting in the subte...but anyway enough of my philosophy...i am going to now go and spend some time with my host mother while she fixes dinner...until next time...

MONDAY:

SCHOOL SUPPORT & ENGLISH CLASSES in Los Angelitos - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator : Catherine Eaton

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:45.

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

SCHOOL SUPPORT & ENGLISH CLASSES in Laferrere

Coordinators : Lisa Cooper

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:45.

Cab: $25 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

TUESDAY:

FOOTBALL in Laferrere: Activity for male volunteers or female sports/athletes

* Local club will loan soccer field so we can play with the kids.

Coordinator: Aaron Beale y Stan Unrau

Meeting point at 2:30 Stop for public bus # 64 on Av. Rivadavia & Rodriguez Peña - Congreso neighborhood - LIFE t-shirt mandatory

Public transportation by van : $10 each round trip - doesn 't count off your deposit.

SCHOOL SUPPORT in La Union hace la fuerza - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator: Amelie Hawkins

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00 back in the city around 19:00.

Cab: $ 20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

SCHOOL SUPPORT in Las Horas Felices - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinators: Julianne & Jonathan

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00.

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

ENGLISH CLASSES in El Jaguel

Coordinator: Tanja Braecklein

Meeting point: LIFE office at 14:00, back in the city around 19:30.

Public transportation: $5 each - does not discount from your deposit.

WEDNESDAY:

BIRTHDAY PARTY in Los Angelitos - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator: Jack Cox

BIRTHDAY PARTY in Ejército Celestial - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator: Amelie Hawkins

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00.

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

THURSDAY:

SCHOOL SUPPORT & ENGLISH CLASSES in Laferrere

Coordinators : Stan Unrau

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

SCHOOL SUPPORT & JUEGOTECA in La Unión hace la fuerza - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator: Amelie Hawkins y Ari Silverman

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

SCHOOL SUPPORT & JUEGOTECA in Las Horas Felices - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinators: Caroline Frauman

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

FRIDAY:

SCHOOL SUPPORT & JUEGOTECA in Los Angelitos - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinators: Catherine Eaton & Jenal Austin

Meeting point: LIFE office at 15:00, back in the city around 19:00

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP

ENGLISH CLASSES in El Jaguel

Coordinator: Tanja Braecklein

Meeting point: LIFE office at 14:00, back in the city around 19:00

Public transportation: $5 each - does not discount from your deposit.

SATURDAY:

COOKING CLASSES in Ejército Celestial - Ciudad Oculta

Coordinator: Charlotte Neale-Edwards

Meeting point: LIFE office at 14:30, back in the city around 19:00

Cab: $20 pesos each – ROUND TRIP