We realize that we’ve been M.I.A. for a couple days and that you’ve missed us, but we’re back and will be posting on the daily. The reason for our absence is an incredibly busy, yet more rewarding few days, sharing our experiences with the less fortunate, and each other. We have only been here for a short time, but our schedule has been booked minute to minute accomplish as much as possible for the Argentinean community.
From helping babies with supplies and funds to painting murals that will last forever, we feel that we have helped both the Jewish and non-Jewish communities here in Argentina in very meaningful ways. After at least 11 hours of air-travel, we immediately began our special journey by finding our home in Buenos Aires: The exceedingly gorgeous Hillel house. From there, we delivered our kilos of baby clothes to the Baby Help Center and got to mingle con los precious little ninos. Highlights included an epic performance of the chicken dance, toys, arts, crafts, and laughs (Shout out to Nacho!!). Following our overnight double-decker, reclining leather-chair-equipped “bus” to the charming ciudad de Cordoba, we had a full day of touring the Jewish facilities, including the inspiring Welfare Center, the only Jewish day school in the city, the spankin’ new JCC, and the extremely welcoming deliciously foodly equipped Hillel house. We also had the opportunity to begin our volunteer work with the non-Jewish community. La Botallita, (pronounced boh-teh-zhita) is a community soup kitchen to assist residents of one of the poorest neighborhoods in Cordoba. We split up into groups to renovate and beautify both locations of La Botallita to make the facilities accommodate the people as effectively as possible. We are proud of our work which, when completed, attracted the media who requested to interview a couple of our students about our efforts to enhance a community experience for the less fortunate. Ariel Lipski and Giselle [pronounced Gri-zezscj :P ] flaunted their Spanish to explain our mission to Cordoba. Though unfinished, our work in Argentina will continue to be appreciated by these beautiful people.
Work hard, play hard. As a bi-product, we were able to experience the Argentinean culture with college students in the most enjoyable and memorable ways. We would like to thank the Cordoba Hillel for welcoming us with open arms, empanadas, world-class kosher meat, cerveza, and great company. As we make our way back to Buenos Aires on our limo-bus hybrid, we reflect on last night and appreciate going out with the locals and immersing ourselves in their rich and intriguing culture. Caipirinhas para todos! We wined and dined in two fabulous restaurants sharing memorable moments, with some of the finest food our pallets have ever experienced, and celebrated our accomplishments con los ninos de Sour Patch.
It would be chutzpah to not mention this exciting facet of our spring break. Despite coming from three different schools, and ultimately, many different backgrounds, the students on our trip have already connected in an exceptional way in which we know will be everlasting by the end of the week. We personally feel that everyone has gotten the opportunity to express themselves and become comfortable with one another. This couldn’t be possible without our lively and understanding staff who have done everything in their power to make this trip truly great; and they ain’t bad to look at either. In addition to the Colonel, Teddy Bear Shahar, and Naomi, we would like to give a warm Tejas welcome to Yael y Brenda. Bienvenidos a nuestra familia!!
We know that was a lot to take in, but there is even more to come. Stay tuned.
Un beso,
Avi(v)
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