Argentina (November - December 2013)
Habitat for Humanity : Argentina
Our Habitat for Humanity Argentina team spent a week in Buenos Aires working on three separate projects. Our first day was spent in La Matanza, a district of Greater Buenos Aires, helping to mix concrete and helping a home owner pour concrete before putting a roof on his new Habitat house. We also spent two days at a Senior Citizen Center, near where we worked our first day, pouring the concrete floor of an outdoor activity area. Our remaining days were spent in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of La Boca where we helped plaster an eight unit Habitat for Humanity Complex.
This trip was very different from my last two builds with Habitat for Humanity. During this build, we found ourselves in different neighborhoods working on various projects that needed our help. While I really liked working on a single house during my other builds, I was thankful for the opportunity to work in different neighborhoods in Buenos Aires and see different areas of the city. This was also my first build in a city, which was also a major change.
During our time in Argentina, we learned how to drink mate and we mastered the Argentine kiss, both of which are two very distinct parts of the Argentine Culture. Also, since many people only know how to speak Spanish here (At Retiro Omnibus Station, I couldn't find a single person who spoke English), it is definitely worth learning the basics, especially if you plan on staying on after the trip.
This trip was very different from my last two builds with Habitat for Humanity. During this build, we found ourselves in different neighborhoods working on various projects that needed our help. While I really liked working on a single house during my other builds, I was thankful for the opportunity to work in different neighborhoods in Buenos Aires and see different areas of the city. This was also my first build in a city, which was also a major change.
During our time in Argentina, we learned how to drink mate and we mastered the Argentine kiss, both of which are two very distinct parts of the Argentine Culture. Also, since many people only know how to speak Spanish here (At Retiro Omnibus Station, I couldn't find a single person who spoke English), it is definitely worth learning the basics, especially if you plan on staying on after the trip.
La Matanza
Upon arrival in Buenos Aires, our team stayed at Two Hotel Buenos Aires in the heart of San Telmo, a beautiful area in Buenos Aires. As we drove to our work site in La Matanza, our surroundings became a stark contrast to what we saw in the heart of Buenos Aires.. Immediately, the first thing I noticed was the massive amount of garbage in the area on both sides of the road. We even saw dead dogs lying amidst the garbage, feet up in the air with flies covering them. It was disheartening staring out the window of our bus.
From what we were told, Buenos Aires chooses to recognize specific districts/areas in and surrounding the city. These areas get certain amenities, such as garbage pickup, water and/or paved roads. However, the areas not recognized by the city become the slums of Buenos Aires or "misery villages." These slums become dumps as neighboring communities bring their waste there to get rid of it. When it rains, the dirt roads turn to muck, preventing any travel.
It is amazing that such a beautiful, well-known city has so many people living in terrible conditions in these slums. If you'd like to read more on these areas in Buenos Aires, please see this article written by S.R. Weeda,
From what we were told, Buenos Aires chooses to recognize specific districts/areas in and surrounding the city. These areas get certain amenities, such as garbage pickup, water and/or paved roads. However, the areas not recognized by the city become the slums of Buenos Aires or "misery villages." These slums become dumps as neighboring communities bring their waste there to get rid of it. When it rains, the dirt roads turn to muck, preventing any travel.
It is amazing that such a beautiful, well-known city has so many people living in terrible conditions in these slums. If you'd like to read more on these areas in Buenos Aires, please see this article written by S.R. Weeda,
One of the most memorable moments of our build was when we were at the Senior Citizen Center. After we ate lunch, we formed a circle with many of the seniors and shared personal information about ourselves. Many of them shared reasons why they loved the center, while we shared why we were there to help them. They were all extremely appreciative for our help and what we do and it was very heartwarming.
La Boca
The neighborhood of La Boca was very different from the neighborhood of La Matanza. La Boca is in the heart of Buenos Aires and is home to the popular tourist attraction - the colorful alley, Caminito. As a result, the area is not as devastating as La Matanza. The four-story building in the picture on the left was the building where we worked. The previous building in its place was deemed unsuitable to live in, so Habitat for Humanity Argentina bought the building, demolished it, and built a safe, suitable building in its place which will house eight families when finished.
Since there is a such a huge gap between the rich and poor in Buenos Aires, many people live in unsuitable housing. While Habitat for Humanity cannot simply provide suitable homes for everyone in the city, the organization works to, one by one, get rid of unsuitable habitats. When a family moves into their new Habitat house or building in Buenos Aires, their prior shelter is demolished to prevent other families from moving in and living in an unsuitable, unstable house. While these unfit shelters will still rise up daily, Habitat for Humanity is doing all it can to try to increase the number of suitable houses available for those in need. As long as these suitable houses keep being built, people in the area will continue to have hope and look to improve their living conditions.
Since there is a such a huge gap between the rich and poor in Buenos Aires, many people live in unsuitable housing. While Habitat for Humanity cannot simply provide suitable homes for everyone in the city, the organization works to, one by one, get rid of unsuitable habitats. When a family moves into their new Habitat house or building in Buenos Aires, their prior shelter is demolished to prevent other families from moving in and living in an unsuitable, unstable house. While these unfit shelters will still rise up daily, Habitat for Humanity is doing all it can to try to increase the number of suitable houses available for those in need. As long as these suitable houses keep being built, people in the area will continue to have hope and look to improve their living conditions.
On the last day of our trip, we volunteered alongside Argentine volunteers from a local bank. We also were able to meet some of the families who would live in the four-story complex. Meeting these people also helped us recognize how important our work was on the La Boca project and in Buenos Aires in general. Buenos Aires was a great city to volunteer in and, like the other countries I've volunteered in, the people of the city were so grateful for our help.
Build Progress
La MatanzaLa Boca |
More Build Pics |
Buenos Aires Pics
After the Build.
After Buenos Aires, I decided to travel solo for a couple of weeks through South America. This was the first time I stayed on after a build to do more traveling. Since I was on a very, very tight budget (And by tight budget, I mean 150 hours spent on a bus), I decided to go to three major places - Puerto Madryn, Iguazu Falls and Machu Picchu. If you're interested in any of these locations, be on the look out for blog posts coming soon!!
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