Erfahrungen und Erfolge im Gemeindezentrum - Volunteer Stefi Seitz im Interview
Written by Jesica FrancoVon Andrew Furness. Übersetzt von Lisa Kretschmer.
Im Oktober kam Stefi Seitz von Dresden nach Buenos Aires. Im Moment ist sie als Volunteer mit am längsten bei Voluntario Global dabei. In wenigen Wochen geht es wieder heimwäts. Zeit für einen persönlichen Blick zurück auf ihre Arbeit und Erfahrungen im Gemeindezentrum “Los Pibes”.
Warum hast du dich gerade dafür entschieden dich für das “Los Pibes”-Gemeindezentrum zu bewerben?
Von Anfang an wollte ich in Argentinien Englisch unterrichten. Dank Voluntario Global habe ich erfahren, dass zwei Monate meines Aufenthalts hier in die Schulferien fallen würden. Los Pibes war die perfekte Alternative: Hier kann ich, wenn Bedarf besteht, Englisch unterrichten und an den restlichen Tagen die Schule in anderen Bereichen unterstützen. In Los Pibes wird den Gemeindebewohnen über den Englischunterricht hinaus viel geboten, was meine Arbeit besonders abwechslungsreich machte.
Wie lange bist du schon hier und welche Eindrücke und Erfahrungen waren im Gemeindezentrum am eindrucksvollsten?
Oh, das ist schwer! Ich bin nun schon seit vier Monaten in Buenos Aires und arbeite seitdem sowohl als Englischlehrerin und als auch für die Schulverwaltung. Darüber hinaus ist aber so viel mehr passiert! Ich habe das Gefühl mittlerweile wirklich im Zentrum angekommen zu sein und eine Verbindung zu den Familien in “Los Pibes” aufgebaut zu haben - weil wir gemeinsam viel unternommen haben.
Außerhalb des Zentrums gibt es beispielsweise eine Mauer, die lokale Künstler, die Mitarbeiter aus dem Zentrum, Kinder und wir Freiwilligenhelfer zusammen bemalt haben. Von mir stammt ein Mate-Becher.
Ein anderes Beispiel sind die Kurse, die in der Bäckerei hier stattgefunden haben. Wir lernten Medialunas und Empanadas selbst zu backen, was unglaublich Spaß gemacht hat.
Der wahrscheinlich emotionalste Tag war jedoch, als wir die offizielle Namensänderung des Zentrums feierten. Wir haben ein Video über die Geschichte und die Entwicklung der Organisation geschaut und am Ende begannen alle zu singen und zu tanzen – die Stimmung war wie auf einem Familienfest.
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Mit dem "Tattoo" einer argentinischen Mate-Teetasse zeigt Stefi ihre Begeisterung für Voluntario Global[/caption]
Arbeitstechnisch betrachtet finde ich es toll zu sehen, wie sich Schüler entwickelt haben, die ich auf ihre Prüfungen vorbereitet habe. Im Normalfall hat Berta mir gesagt, wo sie gerade Hilfe benötigt oder welche Kinder gerade Unterstützung bei ihren Hausaufgaben bräuchten. Wenn sie allerdings keine hatten, konnte ich mit ihnen spielen und beispielsweise Zeichnungen für eine Ausstellung im Gemeindezentrum anfertigen.
Mein Spanisch hat sich durch all diese Aufgaben unglaublich verbessert. Auch für die Volunteers, die anfangs aus Zeitgründen keinen Spanischkurs besuchen konnten, war die Arbeit in der Hinsicht definitiv hilfreich.
Wie ist das politische Klima in Los Pibes?
Es ist ohne Zweifel ein politisch ziemlich aktives Zentrum. Ich habe an einer Demonstration in der Nähe des Congreso teilgenommen, wo jeder mit “Los Pibes”-Fahnen auftauchte, um die Rechte eines Farmers zu unterstützen, der aufgrund von Regierungsentscheidungen von seinem Land vertrieben wurde. Es war gleichzeitig interessant und aufregend, Teil davon sein zu dürfen.
In “Los Pibes” finden auch jeden Monat politische Diskussionsrunden statt, in denen es darum geht, wie die Arbeit im Zentrum besser organisierten werden könnte und welches das gemeinsame Ziel des Zentrums ist. Bei diesen Treffen merkt man gut, für was und wo “Los Pibes” gerade steht.
Hast du Ratschlaege oder Anregungen, die du deinen Nachfolgern dort mit auf den Weg geben willst?
Ich denke, das Wichtigste ist die Offenheit, die einem dort entgegengebracht wird, zu schätzen und mit so vielen Menschen wie möglich im Gemeindezentrum zu reden. Auch wenn das Spanisch noch nicht so perfekt sein sollte, lohnt es sich zumindest zu versuchen jeden kennenzulernen. Dann wird man automatisch überall miteinbezogen, sei es wie in meinem Fall in einen typisch argentinischen Backkurs und bei der Mauergestaltung. In “Los Pibes” bekommt man keine Vorurteile zu spüren und wenn man mit der gleiche Einstellung an die Arbeit geht, ist das Einleben kein Problem.
Stefi ist von ihrer Zeit in La Boca und vor allem von dem dort enstandenen “Gemeinschafts-, ja fast schon Familiengefuehl” begeistert. Mit dieser Empfindung ist sie nicht allein - sie lässt sich meiner Meinung nach auf viele Projekte von Voluntario Globals übertragen.
“Los Pibes” ist vielleicht das klarste Beispiel, wie Gemeindearbeit die Lebensbedingungen und den Zusammenhalt zwischen den Bewohnern eines Viertels zum Positiven verändern kann. Projekte wie der “Travesuras”-Kindergarten oder ein organischer Garten helfen dagegen eher indirekt benachteiligten Menschen und zeigen ihnen Lebenschancen auf. Viele Freiwillige von Voluntario Global haben auch aus dem Projekt “La Casa” von einem familienähnlichen Zusammenhalt berichtet.
Stefi hat es bereits erwähnt: “Los Pibes” ist ein breit aufgestelltes Zentrum, in dem vielfältige Aufgaben warten. Die compañeros betreiben eine Bäckerei, eine Suppenküche und eine Textilabteilung. Außerdem werden Boxtraining, Englischunterricht und Nachhilfe angeboten. Wenn Du also Stefis Rat befolgst und in den ersten Wochen offen auf die Menschen zugehst, dann kannst Du dich in La Boca überall einbringen.
Der vielleicht wichtigste Rat zum Schluss: Auch wenn es eine tolle Erfahrung ist, für einige Wochen im Zentrum zu arbeiten, so bekommt man das wahre Gemeindeleben erst nach einigen Monaten zu spüren und kann beobachten, wie sich die Menschen, mit denen man täglich zusammenarbeitet, weiterentwickeln. Das Erfolgsgefühl, das Stefi hatte, als sie durch Nachhilfeunterricht einem Mädchen geholfen hat alle ihre drei Prüfungen zu bestehen, wünschen wir jedem ihrer Nachfolger in „Los Pibes“.
By April Bohnert Everyone has their own reasons for volunteering. Many volunteers come here to learn Spanish and immerse themselves in a new culture. Others come to gain experience in professional and social fields. Whatever their reasons, all come with the intent to help others. After all, volunteering, at its core, is about giving of oneself without expecting any compensation in return. But the fact of the matter is, giving actually is receiving, and there are more and more studies popping up to prove it.
In recent years, research from John Hopkins and the Institute for the Advancement of Health have found a number of mental, emotional and physical benefits gained by volunteering, from increased self esteem, endorphin levels, life expectancy and immunity, to reduced blood pressure, insomnia and depression. Part of this can be explained by the theory of social integration, which posits that people, who feel they are a contributing and accepted part of a collective, are less likely to feel depressed or isolated and more likely to live happy, productive lives. At Voluntario Global, the volunteers are connected with the communities they work in and also with their fellow volunteers. The anxieties and challenges of living in a foreign country diminish drastically with the support and help of others. Seeing a person you have helped or a project you have worked on succeed and flourish is probably the greatest joy of volunteering. Successes both small and large can be very fulfilling, and it’s not uncommon to feel what’s often referred to as “helper’s high.” It may sound crazy, but the effect is tangible. The body actually releases endorphins into the blood stream, creating improved emotional well-being and sense of self-worth, reducing stress, and in turn, promoting a stronger immune system and better overall health.
Altruism is, by definition, a selfless act that improves the lives of others, and with recent studies we can see that it also improves our own lives. With the countless reasons that compel us to volunteer, we rarely consider the biological and psychological benefits volunteering can have, but it certainly is a perk worth mentioning. There may be no monetary or material compensation in volunteer work, but what we give of ourselves comes back to us tenfold in the form of happiness and health.
A Review of the 'Los Pibes' Community Centre and an Interview with our Volunteer: Stefi
Written by Voluntario GlobalBy Andrew Furness (communication volunteer) 
Stefi Seitz is one of current longest-serving volunteers, from Germany having arrived in Buenos Aires in October. With only a few weeks left we wanted to reflect with her on her time at ‘Los Pibes’ community centre and discuss a bit about their work, thoughts and her experiences. What made you want to apply to the Los Pibes community centre? I wanted to come to Argentina to teach English, Voluntario Global were really helpful and told me that there would be holidays during two of the months I was here so placed me in Los Pibes where I was able to teach English when possible and take part in school support for the other days of the week. Los Pibes is a diverse centre and so there were always many activities to do as well as my English teaching. How long have you been there now and what are some of the best moments for you around the centre? Oh that’s hard! I’ve been in Buenos Aires for 4 months now working both with school support and English teaching but so much more has gone on. For me I’ve really got to know the feeling of community and family in Los Pibes through events like the wall painting. Now outside the centre there is a big mural which local artists, the community staff, the kids and the volunteers all helped to complete; I painted a maté cup. Also the panadería hosted classes in Empanada and Medialuna making which was really fun. Probably the most emotional day was when they had a celebration for the official name-change of the centre... we saw a video explaining the history and development of the organisation and at the end everyone began to sing and dance which really made the event feel like a family celebration. In terms of work I’ve loved seeing the development of the people I have helped to prepare for their exams. Normally Berta would tell me who needed help with what or some of the children would have specific homework tasks. If they didn’t have any homework I really enjoyed playing with them or doing some drawings to display in the centre! My Spanish has improved so much thanks to all this, but it was definitely helpful to have some fellow volunteers who could co-ordinate in Spanish and English at the beginning. What is the political mentality of Los Pibes like? It’s obviously quite a politically active centre. I went on a march near Congreso where everyone brought ‘Los Pibes’ flags to support the rights of a farm worker who had been forced to leave his land due to some government development plans. It was really interesting and amazing to be part of this. Actually every month the centre hosts political meetings to discuss how to improve the work of the centre and decide what the mindset should be. This is a good way of getting to know where ‘Los Pibes’ stands. Do you have any suggestions or recommendations to look forward to for any volunteers that will be taking part in the community lifestyle? I think it’s really important to embrace the openness of the place and talk to as many different people inside the community centre as possible. Even if your Spanish isn’t great it’s worth getting to know everyone. Then, like me you will find that you can get involved in all the different aspects on offer such as the bakery, helping to organise and clean different rooms, painting some of the walls or whatever needs doing. Everyone has an open mind so go in with a similar attitude and you’ll really get to know the environment of ‘Los Pibes’. Stefi is extremely complementary of her time in La Boca, calling her feelings “a sense of community, almost family” and personally this is a sentiment I think easily attachable to many of the aspects of Voluntario Global’s work. While Los Pibes is one of the best and clearest examples of a community working for a developing life, projects like the Travesuras kindergarten and the organic garden take underprivileged people and help them reach new opportunities. Similarly I know many volunteers feel “La Casa” brings a family-like atmosphere. 
As discussed above there are several aspects to the community centre. The compañeros run a textile area, a bakery, a soup kitchen, boxing classes, English classes and school support so as you can tell from the interview having an open mind in your first few weeks will gain you access to a range of opportunities in this seminal La Boca area. The final bit of advice to give is perhaps the most important: while it is great to experience if you can only spare a couple of weeks, joining the ‘Los Pibes’ community for a few months will really give you the chance to get to know the way of life and you will see progress with the people you work closely with. Just like Stefi felt she made a difference with a girl who passed all 3 of her exams after studying with Stefi we hope any volunteers coming in 2012 will feel a sense of achievement after settling in as one of the Pibes. Stefanie Seitz is part of VG advisory volunteers team. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Restaurants
For me the food and dining culture in Buenos Aires is among the best in the world. Many volunteers have told me the food is better across South America but it’s the atmosphere of the restaurants and the fact that dining out is a regular part of an Argentine’s lifestyle that makes 3-hour meals fly by and leave you looking forward to the late hours of the day. Guía Oleo (http://www.guiaoleo.com.ar/) is a fantastic guide to all the restaurants in town and gives you all the information you need. Below are some suggestions and my thoughts on the experiences of them: La Pasiva- CorrientesA casual Uruguayan diner on the busy street of Corrientes. Very nice atmosphere with inside or outside dining available. The food is very filling and comes in big portions; very typical of Uraguay- try the Chivito or the metro de pizza.La Cabrera- José Antonio Cabrero, Palermo Renowned as one of the best Steak houses/Parillas in Buenos Aires. Quite pricy but worth every penny as the Steaks are incredibly juicy and large. They also have good sharing options which makes it easy to go in a small group. Go early(ish) as there can be a long wait.
La Cholita- Rodriguez Peña A Voluntario Global favourite! This parilla is not too far from the Casa de Voluntarios and is effectively a cheaper alternative to La Cabrera (above). But that do esn’t mean you lose any flavour, the steaks are large and served on a hot platter, the restaurant also has a very good wine list.
Campo de Asadores- Puerto Madero (near Puente de la Mujer) An excellent and traditional Argentine restaurant. It has a campo theme meaning the food and the decor imitates the field-life of the country’s estancias. Based in a beautiful location, you can sit by the water or inside and enjoy the suede table-cloths and Gaucho-dressed waiters.
Hard Rock Café- Pueyrredón An international classic. I’m sure you’ll all have visited a Hard Rock at some point and this lives up to expectations! Great food, American style BBQs are the favourite and then you’re free to enjoy the various rock memorabilia spread around the walls (heavily Beatles themed in this case)
Iberia- Avenida de Mayo This is very near the volunteer house and is quite a modern restaurant with a wide range of food. Drinks are expensive but the food is very reasonably priced and even comes with flags on top to tell you where the recipe is from! You can eat at a bar, at a table or outside and I would strongly recommend the empanadas or any of the “Spanish” menu. Night-Life As you may already know the night-life out here is a booming experience and very different to what I would be used to coming from Europe! ‘Pubs’ aren’t so common over here and bars will usually also serve food; what I would recommend is taking advantage of the cheap ‘litro’ bottles and finding a place to gather until you want to properly go out. Clubs will never normally open until about midnight and even then you will find yourself very alone if you arrive before 2am. The Argentines are not massive drinkers which at least does mean you’ll rarely have to find yourself in a long queue for the next drink! Clubs/Bars
Gibraltar- Perú Great British style pub in the heart of San Telmo. They serve phenomenal Thai food as well as traditional British pub food. Also, it’s one of the few bars I’ve seen that will serve your beer in a pint glass and not a bottle.
Skybar- Hotel Pulitzer (Maipú) Relatively pricey but an amazing view with a unique atmosphere. Champagne and cocktails are flowing while a DJ plays on the patio balcony.
Cruzat- Sarmiento A Celtic-style pub that boasts over 50 types of beer (light and dark) based in a small tropical garden; quite near the VG house.
Amerika- Palermo Fridays and Saturdays offer an all you can drink bar for between AR$65-85 and on alternative weeks has foam parties!
Terrazas del Este – Palermo With 3 different rooms playing different styles of music (Latin, Rock, Hip-hop) this club will please the majority of your group. The large balcony/terrace that gives the club it’s name is also great in the summer time.
Le Click- Rivadavia This is somewhere I was taken frequently when I first arrived in Buenos Aires. Again, a very large club with 2 floors that plays modern music. 5 minutes from the VG house so always good for an impromptu night out.
La Bomba de Tiempo Featured in BBC’s travel log as an “unmissable experience”. This is a Brazilian drumming event that takes place in an outdoor arena every Monday. Perhaps the most unique, South American and fun event I’ve been to in the city. TourismBuenos Aires is a historical and passionate city with tourist hot-spots to match. There is an ‘architectural bus-tour’ that will show you some of the best points but I think it is much better to take the time to truly explore each spot, and as a volunteer, this will be an easily taken advantage of opportunity. Many travellers have said to me that they think of Buenos Aires as their “home in South America” which is a fantastic way of describing how good a hub this city is for many of your travelling desires. Something fantastic about living in Buenos Aires is the ease at which you can explore surrounding areas. The bus/coach system inside the country means you can sip wine in Mendoza one weekend and scale the glaciers of Patagonia the following! As well as that there’s a one hour ferry to the beautiful old village of Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay where many people go to turn the lugubrious task of extending a visa into a frivolous weekend.
(https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.329618700413821&type=1) And of course there are many amazing things to see in Buenos Aires. The Casa Rosada is an amazing structure and on Thursdays you can see the ever-present ‘Madres de Plaza de Mayo’ walking around the square which is not to be missed. La Boca is a beautiful and impoverished area that is always good for a trip to a bar or souvenir haggling. Similarly make sure you head to the San Telmo market on a Sunday afternoon. Relaxation Points In the vast yet homely metropolises that is Buenos Aires it is not uncommon for travellers to seek pastures new for some open space and relaxation. Of course the bus services and ferry terminals mentioned above can transport you to something a bit different but what about comforting opportunities in the capital itself? Parks Palermo is about a 15 minute SUBTE ride away and has many glorious parks and plazas. Many long term volunteers choose to find an apartment in Palermo for this very reason. If I had to recommend one in particular I would say the Jardines Botanicos,but I think that ma y just be due to my (un)healthy obsession with the cats that roam there. Closer to the centre the Plaza de Congreso is a nice place to go for a run or a stroll but is still largely concrete. CafésBuenos Aires has a good tradition of Cafés, perhaps coming from the French and Italian immigrants. All tend to serve lunch style food (sandwiches, small pasta dishes etc) and have a vast range of coffee that was certainly unfamiliar but very pleasant to me! You will be able to find a small shop on almost any street (and inevitably Starbucks) but here’s some of my favourite frequents: El Gato Negro- Corrientes One of the oldest cafés in the city, this is a very small café that has over 100 types of coffee from all over South America (which is arguably the greatest coffee growing region!) You can also buy bags of your favourite beans to take home. Café Tortoni- Avenida de Mayo Home to Argentina’s first Tango Academy, this café is quite large and very beautiful. Occasionally there are tango shows so look out for events. The food and table service is top class at this famous tourist attraction. MatéFor anyone who hasn’t been to Argentina (or Paraguay/Uraguay) before, prepare for maté to become a large part of your life. It’s a very traditional drink drunk out of a special maté cup and bombilla, all the staff at the projects will more than likely offer you some each day and although some consider it an acquired taste, it’s the perfect way to relax and stay alert while in South America. http://www.voluntarioglobal.org/
Our volunteers, from across the globe, all share a drive for social change and global activism. Many continue their service from home by actively promoting the organisation and recruiting new volunteers.
As we approach the end of 2011, we wanted to take a moment to thank you all, past, present and future volunteers, for your continuing help and support. Your commitment has allowed Voluntario Global to grow and keep up the good work with our network of social organisations and projects. We would also like to take this opportunity to share with you some news. In the last month, some members of our organisation have been working on a new project: The Voluntario Global Alumni Group. The idea behind is to give former and current volunteers a chance to continue their involvement in the organisation after they return to their home country. Our volunteers, from across the globe, all share a drive for social change and global activism. Many continue their service from home by actively promoting the organisation and recruiting new volunteers. Each of you is an integral part of the organisation, and you are in a unique position to represent VG in your home country. We hope this will also be a much easier (and more regular) way to keep in touch with our past volunteers and bring a further ‘global’ context to the projects. What we’re looking for in this new venture is to take advantage of the vast range of experiences encountered by everyone. In this way, we would really be able to establish a bigger network of interest for both the work of VG and the skills of our volunteers. With these past experiences and testimonials, volunteers can help us to become better known in their corner of the globe and maybe even discover some new interests themselves. Thus, the permanent team at VG would be able to keep working inorder to extend the help to those who need it most. We hope the following recent events that highlight the potential of this idea will help you to understand and be further inspired. Between Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve one of our volunteers hosted a cake sale with his family and raised over us$500! It was a simple event with some flyers given round to the neighbourhood and advertised online but was a great way of telling people in Virginia, USA about Voluntario Global and receiving donations. Just imagine if we could get something like this once a month... Something else that we feel the Alumni branch of VG could be prosperous in is assistance with volunteers’ projects. We were recently contacted by a former volunteer who is putting together a book on free travel opportunities around the world and she wanted advice and feedback about Argentina to include in it. We would love to do the same for others in the future. As we hope anyone who reads this will agree, the ability to frequently interact with our alumni not only enables us to improve recognition of Voluntario Global throughout all the countries that we have connections with and set up fundraising/recruitment events in all of these places; but really create a collection of projects/stories/experiences and opportunities all related to the unique lifestyle shared by the volunteers that come here. So you are all now officially invited to share your thoughts and ideas with the rest of us and the world! Any pictures, comments and memories from your experience with Voluntario Global would be greatly appreciated. Come join us on Facebook or send us an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it./This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. FELIZ 2012! 
Throughout the world Christmas is a time for reflection, fun and gathering but this can be expressed in many different forms. One of the many advantages of living in a multi-national environment in such a vibrant continent as South America is that we can experience a collection of different cultures and traditions and find something a bit different and appealing in the midst of familiarity. Of course what all our volunteers have in common is the want to embrace the Argentine way of celebrating Christmas. By its very nature Argentina is a country made up of a mezcla of backgrounds, customs and progressive development and so it was with little surprise that the festive norms I found when researching had some things in common with the other nations currently represented throughout our organisation. Like their European ancestors, Christmas decorations are a big part of the festive season, little trees are decorated in offices and houses all through the nation, and usually this joyous task begins on the 8th December. Across the globe the nativity scene is famous and in front of Congreso each year a Pesebre is put up (see below). Personally I find that’s where the similarities end.
Apart from the searing temperatures of 30-40⁰ the meals consist of entirely different ingredients with cold salads and an Asado. Partly due to the heat, this is different to the traditional roast turkey meal I’m used to in Ireland and England. The most striking aspect is that it is celebrated on a different day!It was surprising at first to hear this fact but many of the volunteers have told me that I am, in fact, the strange one. I’ve been told this many times before but it was the first Christmas-themed insult I’d had in a while. Turns out many countries celebrate the night of Christmas eve with presents and a big family meal and reserve Christmas day itself for more tranquil events such as visiting Churches.
The Christmas cultures I’ve experienced in my time have tended to use Christmas Eve as a time to give thanks to those that invented alcohol by drinking copious amounts of egg-nog (and anyone who hasn’t heard of this drink, I implore you to look it up and make it ASAP) and save the traditional religious and family celebrations for the 25th. VG House had a few heated debates in my company over what meals were to be eaten between them. It seems Eddy, our New Zealander volunteer will be forced into adjusting his calendar to celebrate a day early as he is dominated by a European presence. The Germans found themselves arguing with the Polish (again) this time over whether to feature fish, meat or simply vegetables on the menu. Best wishes to them during their private, international revelry and here’s to hoping the global nature of this organisation means the holidays will be full of new and enjoyable experiences. Furthermore this year the volunteers that chose to stay in Argentina for the Christmas period celebrated in style with our version of an ‘office Christmas party’. With snacks, a lot of wine, Caipirinha and music everyone met at la casa and, thanks to the ideas of our long-term intern Maamoun, brought some small gifts for a Danish Christmas game. The idea was to collect (and then steal) as many gifts from the pile as possible by rolling a “double” with two dice. It may not be obvious from the included photos but things definitely got quite competitive and borderline aggressive as gifts began to be rumoured more desirable than others. There then followed Laura’s ‘get the chocolate from your forehead to your mouth without using your hands’ game which requires no further explanation. Everyone at Voluntario Global would like to wish a Merry Christmas and a great New Year to all our supporters and thank them for all the help this year.
As can be seen on our Facebook page, Friday the 9th December brought about a hugely significant event on the education calendar of Argentina. Some of our niños at the Kindergarten graduated after 3-5 years of hard work and noisy fun, the Christmas celebrations were the perfect opportunity to throw a party and the kids’ achievements only heightened the festivities.
Bri Rosen has been working as an assistant at the kindergarten for three months and gives an insight into her impressions and experiences below: I anticipated my last day at the kindergarten to be emotional; however I knew I would be so sad and excited at the same time to see the ‘nenes’ dressed up in their black plastic graduation caps, singing and dancing in front of their proud parents. There is something special about the small, violet painted school- It is full of kids who are very, very poor; however they seem equally happy and enthusiastic about life( if not more) than any other kid. I spent the week before the party helping the ‘professoras’ prepare gift bags and decorations for the kids and their families.
The love and compassion the teachers have for the kids is shown through their dedication to work endless hours without receiving a single ‘centavo’. Walking into the jardin to see the patio crowded with family members was a good feeling. I realize now after volunteering in the school and getting to know the teachers, that it’s not important what the school has materialistically speaking- because they don’t have much; what is inspiring is what they do with the little they have. The excitement on each kid’s face as they opened the Christmas gifts they were given combined with the smiles of the proud parents makes their unfortunate reality a little more bearable to see. The fact that most of the kids know little outside the slum or may never go to university was not so important that last day. What was important and evident was family and fun.
This is seen as one of the most representative projects here at Voluntario Global. It is great to see a large group of children from a deprived 'villa' who would never have had the chance to learn to read and write Spanish (rather than their parents’ language of Guaraní) find themselves ready to ‘graduate’ and go on to bigger and better things in the primary schools of rural Argentina. We hope their time at Travesuras will bring them happy memories as they begin their future education.
Jeg tænker over hvor kort tid 3 måneder egentlig er, da jeg dagen inden afgang går i gang med at pakke. Men nu, hvor de snart er gået føles det som evigheder siden jeg kom. En af hovedårsagerne til det, er alle de forskellige mennesker jeg har mødt i Voluntario Globals lejlighed, hvor jeg har boet under mit ophold. Nogle har boet der i 2-3 uger, andre et par måneder, og få i 3 eller flere. Uden disse personer havde mit udbytte været et andet. Huset blev omdrejningspunkt for mit ophold, der hvor jeg slappede af, hvor jeg arbejdede på mine universitetsopgaver, hvor vi planlagde weekendens udflugter og byture. Det var her jeg altid kunne regne med at møde nye mennesker, eller bare snakke med en god ven. Men egentlig handlede det ikke om venner og fritid. Mit ophold var et praktikophold, en del af mit kandidatstudium. Derfor drejede mine tanker før afgang sig også om det faglige udbytte. Jeg har læst en del beskrivelser af hvad andre har fået ud af deres praktikophold, og havde derfor en fornemmelse af at jeg ikke skulle regne med at få sat al min teoretisk viden i spil. Det var på sin vis rart at være forberedt, men samtidig følte jeg at denne viden åbnede for en masse andre spørgsmål. For hvad kunne jeg mon så forvente?
En del af mit arbejde bestod af kedelige opgaver, men samtidig fik jeg grundige forklaringer på hvorfor de er nødvendige, samt opfølgning og gennemgang af resultaterne. Hvis jeg havde regnet med at få ansvar ville jeg klart være blevet skuffet. I stedet har jeg lært hvad det vil sige at arbejde for nogen – både som en del at et team, men også med en chef som har forventninger og ønsker. Jeg har lært hvor lang tid alle de små opgaver kan tage, og set hvordan intet fungere hvis der ikke bliver fulgt op. Dertil kommer de ting jeg har lært om sig selv, om mine styrker og svagheder. Som jeg i forvejen mente at have et rimeligt kendskab til, men som jeg nu føler at jeg forstår i en anden kontekst. Jeg føler at oplevelsen har forberedt mig på nogle situationer som kom bag på mig at jeg kunne havne i – hvor jeg ikke anede hvordan jeg skulle reagere. Det er ikke fordi jeg nu har en fejlfri fremgangs procedure for enhver situation jeg kunne havne i, men jeg har fået udvidet min horisont i forhold til arbejdsmæssige situationer og hverdagslivet på en arbejdsplads. En uundværlig erfaring, føles det som. Og ikke mindst en erfaring som vil komme mig til gode når jeg skal søge job.
On Tuesday and Wednesday this week the Community Centre, ‘los Pibes’, in la Boca organized two fantastic workshops. The first was learning how to make ‘medialunas’ and the second ‘empanadas’. I (Alexia) attended the ‘medialuna’ workshop and was once again stuck by the positive atmosphere of the community centre. We arrived and, as always, were warmly greeted by everyone whilst the children eagerly showed us a dance routine they had been practicing all afternoon. Johan offered a tour of the centre for those who wanted it and then we got down to business. Voluntario Global’s own volunteers, Isabelle and Louisa, along with the cooks, Julia and Natalia, were waiting for us in the kitchen with everything prepared. We were taught how to make the dough from scratch. This was actually more difficult than I expected as it needs to be kneaded in a very specific way, with the butter being folded into the middle at the very end to create layers. The hardest part though was making the perfect 'medialuna' shape. Julia demonstrated (making it look very simple!) by forming several perfect, evenly sized croissants in about thirty seconds.We eagerly followed suit only to be left with various odd looking ‘medialunas’! However, practice makes perfect and by the end we had fortunately improved somewhat as shown here by Lisa’s work of art.. They were then all placed on baking trays, brushed with a light layer of raw egg and left at room temperature for half an hour before being baked in the oven. At the end we were allowed to taste and take some of our concoctions home and as one volunteer put it, “these are the best ‘medialunas’ I’ve ever had!”
Follow Isabelle’s recipe in the article below if you want to impress your friends and family with this typical Argentine pastry at home! The next day brought the turn of me (Andrew) to learn the skills of empanada making. This is one of my favourite Argentinean treats and clearly this sentiment is not uncommon as there was a turn-out of more than 10 people (many not part of Voluntario Global) for the class. Again, the afternoon started with a tour of the centre, of which there are some photos below, showing us the areas used for such initiatives as: a boxing centre, wall murals, after school support, computer literacy lessons and even a local radio station! 
After this the real event started. Gathering around the table in the large ‘cocina’ we were given a very professional example of how to roll out our dough before taking it to ourselves and leaving the centre staff in doubt as to whether foreigners knew what ‘a circle’ was. When we had prepared ample amounts of pastry they let us loose on the ‘rellenos’ including potatoes, chicken, beef, onions and eggs. All were chopped and seasoned (largely
with cumin and chilli) before being cooked in order to be ‘ready-to-use’. It was particularly interesting to see how chicken stock was used to wet the dough and to cook the potatoes in to give a rich and non-vegetarian friendly taste. The group then filled the pre-prepared pastries and dug into the left-over mixture like pigs to a trough (speaking personally anyway)! Our finished results looked like this...
.... and tasted even better! 
We would really like to thank the very friendly and talented team at Los Pibes community centre for the time and effort in giving us these enjoyable days. Keep up the great work you do in La Boca as an example for all of Argentina!
Isabelle fait du bénévolat au Centre Communautaire, Los Pibes, à La Boca. En démontrer sa compétence cuisinaire, elle a été une aide irremplaçable au centre. Ici, Isabelle partage sa nouvelle recette pour ‘medialunas’ (croissants). Buenos Aires est réputé pour son petit-déjeuner caractéristique de ‘café con leche’ avec ‘medialunas’ et maintenant vous pouvez recréer ce repas délicieux à la maison. Bon Appétit...
VOLUNTARIO GLOBAL
Voluntario Global helps local communities by being available to discuss anything that local organizations need, and offering ideas for further change and development.
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CONTACT
Location: General Pacheco. Buenos Aires. Argentina
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