It seems that at any given time we can name exactly what’s wrong in the world and why we despise it but on a whole, are we actually doing anything about it?

So despite this obvious question above, in the name of volunteering, I think it is important to go over why it is important to volunteer.

1. Help is desperately needed

In the world…

• Over 1.1 billion people do not have reasonable access to water.
• 80% of humanity lives on less than US$10 a day.
• Almost one billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their name.
• 40,000 children die each day because of poverty.
• In 2009, approximately 4.9 people were infected by HIV and 3.3 million people died of AIDS.

And the list goes on.

2. You can travel cheaply

There are many volunteer programs that offer organized and complete volunteer and travel packages that end up being a lot cheaper than if you would have tried to go ‘save the world’ on your own.  Volunteering in Buenos Aires will include the volunteer program, accommodation, and free extras such as city tours, dinner’s out, day’s at the beach, etc. Finding a volunteer program can actually save you money, all while you are saving the world.

3. Learn a new language

Volunteering abroad is a fantastic way to get to learn a new language.  If you are volunteering in Argentina you will be faced with the Spanish language every single day of your placement, forced to speak with your group members, staff members, and the locals. This may seem a little bit intimidating at first, but once you get the hand of it, you will be surprised how quickly the language comes to you when you are having to use it on a daily basis.   Plus, for extra help, you can take a volunteer & Spanish program in Buenos Aires, combining your volunteer hours with some Spanish language studies.

4. Meet new friends

Some of the most interesting, diverse, and unforgettable people you will meet on your life will be on your travels abroad.  During a volunteer placement, you create strong connections with people, closer connections than you would ever find back home in such a short amount of time, mostly because you are all doing something new, you are all foreigners, and you all have the same goal.   These are often friendships that no matter how far you move from each other, will never be lost.

5.  Make a difference

We always seem to be complaining about the problems around us and it is about time that we stop using are transparent words and start using our strongest actions to make improvements. Stop thinking you are only one person and really what difference could you make. If in New York City every single person picked up one piece of trash from the street or the sidewalk or the subway in one day, New York would be utterly spotless, without trash.  Just one person…stop making it sound so small.

Expanish offers a myriad of volunteer programs in Argentina that range from environmental care, community development, animal care, and youth outreach, each equally important, and each needing generous volunteers to aid them in their efforts.  Sign up to volunteer in Buenos Aires today!

Wondering whether a volunteer placement in Buenos Aires is right for you?

According to Travel + Leisure, a magazine published in New York and read by more than 4.8 million readers annually, Buenos Aires comes in 4th place this year in their selection of Top Cities for 2009.

We are proud to say that Buenos Aires beat out New York, Rome, and San Francisco in this Top Cities competition!

Every year Travel + Leisure posts its picks of cities, hotels, vacation resorts, etc, based on traveler numbers, reviews, and other criteria. This year, Buenos Aires came in 4th after Udaipur, Cape Town, and Bangkok, of best cities to visit in the world.

Why is that you ask?

Argentina saw a rough start this 2009 with the global economic crisis and tourism numbers were definitely falling from both in country and out of country travel. Despite that, the friendly Argentine peso, which continues to be taking advantage of by foreign currencies, kept tourism going in the country until mid year when numbers started to rise again along with foreigner financial confidence.

Buenos Aires continues to gain popularity every year, offering up more services and amenities to foreigners, and still staying affordable to most outside currencies.  I mean where in the world can you go to a gorgeous styled restaurant, eat a full steak dinner with a fabulously flavoured bottle of wine, and indulge in a sweet desert with champagne for less than US$100 per couple?

Interested in volunteering in Buenos Aires? Buenos Aires has a lot of incredible things to offer its visitors, but it still holds a darker side, the reason why numerous volunteer organizations are always looking for volunteers to come and lend a hand.  Volunteer in Buenos Aires and get the best of both worlds; put your volunteer efforts to work while enjoying one of the best cities to travel to in the world.

For a foreigner, figuring out the best way to take money out of the bank can be challenging so we have put together a short list on How to Successfully Use the Bank’s in Buenos Aires.

1.    Make sure that before you leave your home country you have a fully functioning, internationally accepted, bank card.
2.    It is best to use bigger, international banks in the city, they are less problematic, and easier to use as they offer options in English. (HSBC, CIBC, etc)
3.    If you are going to the bank during the weekdays, try to do it out of the lunch time hour, as that is when everyone on their lunch hours head over.
4.    Once you put your card in the ATM you should automatically be asked to enter your pin or to choose the language. These ones interchange depending on the machine. If you are more comfortable using English, it is highly recommendable to choose English and not challenge your Spanish skills on an ATM.
5.    Regarding money, the majority of the ATM’s in the city will only let foreigner cards take out either 300 pesos or 600 pesos at a time. This rule was applied after the 2001 crisis when banks lost too much money to foreign cards, and the rule has stayed in place.
6.    Keep in mind that banks dispense big notes, so you will receive mostly 100’s, which can be difficult to change in Buenos Aires, unless you buy something from the supermarket, etc. If you want to receive smaller notes, you can input figures like 295 pesos, or 595 pesos.
7.    When the machine  the money, always count it right there. If there are any discrepancies, grab your receipt and head into the bank to speak with someone.
8.    Only go to the bank during daytime hours and preferably with someone; it is always better to be safe than sorry.

Are you volunteering in Buenos Aires? Put your questions or comments below?

At Expanish, we are so proud to see young and old, men and women, come to Argentina to volunteer in Buenos Aires, spending their holiday enjoying the city while giving back to the local community.  However, there is often an ‘idea’ of what type of person volunteers their time to a cause they believe in. Sometimes it is thought that only humanitarians and extremists volunteer abroad.  Or that only those studying human rights or animals rights or those wanting to own or work in an NGO volunteer abroad. NOT TRUE!

To be a volunteer in Buenos Aires, Argentina or any other city or country around the world, all you need is some time and the desire to help others around you.  You do not have to be an expert in volunteering, have a specific background in education, want to change the world overnight, or devote yourself to every human and animal rights movement there is.

Our volunteers come from all over the world and they all come to Buenos Aires to volunteer for different reasons. Some want to add a little more value to their holiday abroad, some want to be immersed in the local cultural, some want to put volunteering on their resume, and others, of course, do want to change the world.

Whatever you reason for wanting to volunteer abroad, let us assure you, it is a good one. During your volunteer experience you will have the opportunity to meet a wide range of people, both local and foreign, and embark on an incredible journey in Argentina.

Find out more about our Volunteer Programs in Buenos Aires here!

There are thousands of travelers who volunteer in Buenos Aires every year, creating incredible experiences through travel, volunteer, and taking courses like Spanish, to help them both in their volunteer efforts, personal lives, or professional lives. Taking a Spanish course allows volunteers to learn the local language, giving them advantage in their volunteer placement, further immersion in the culture, and the chance to feel ‘Argentine’.

Why learn Spanish while volunteering abroad?

Spanish is spoken by millions of people around the world and, in Argentina, is the official spoken language. Studying Spanish can help you in myriad of ways:
·    Advantages in volunteer placements
·    Complete cultural immersion
·    Chance to meet both locals and foreigners
·    Easier travel throughout Spanish speaking countries
·    Future opportunities
·    Add Spanish to CV

Having a grasp (or extensive knowledge!) of the Spanish language makes any experience in a Spanish speaking country even more exciting. Combining those Spanish studies with a volunteer placement allows you to learn more about the local culture while giving back to the community in which you are travelling in, creating unforgettable and life long memories!

Interested? Combine your volunteer placement with Spanish courses today!

• Bring a decent selection of clothing, a little bit of everything; casual clothes, formal clothes, warm clothes, and summer clothes.  If you are traveling, depending on where you go the weather may be different, so be prepared.
• Bring a small backpack; great for day trips or when you take city tours, engage in activities, etc.
• Bring photocopies of your passport and important documentation and keep them separate from your regular luggage, better yet, place them in a secure place in case you lose an original, you have a photocopy.
• Bring a spare credit card that you can use in case of emergencies. Never carry this credit card on you, it is your backup in case your regular credit card or debit card get lost or stolen.
• Bring some pictures of friends and family back home, this way you can look at them whenever you miss them!
• Bring a couple of great books.
• Bring a list of contact numbers and emails from back home.
• Do not bring any expensive jewellery or any other valuable items.  You are a temporary visitor to Argentina, it is best in this situation not to bring anything that could get stolen.
• Do not bring too much of anything; you will be buying things abroad and will be having to take them home again, so leave room in your luggage!

Interested in more about volunteering in Buenos Aires?

Figure out how long you should volunteer abroad,  click here!

Below are a few words to get you started with your lunfardo! (taken from Argentina Spanish Slang Dictionary):

boludo/a

Referring to a person who is silly, clumsy, annoying, stupid; also is a very common way to address friends but be aware as it can also be used to INSULT someone.

bondi

Public urban transportation; comes from English bonds, which is how Rio’s tram service got built and paid (being one of the first in Latin America) by a British company.

che

‘hey!’, ‘hey, you!’; a very common way to address friends or strangers.

loco/a

‘crazy person’; a common way to friendly address someone; similar to the English ‘dude’.

gordo/a

‘fatty’; a common way to friendly address friends or family members. Also, Gordito/a is ‘little fatty’, used in the same way.

mango

currency; pesos.  Is used like the word ‘buck’ in English; can be used when describing how much something this.

pendejo/a

Describes a child(boy or girl). Can be used to describe someone who looks young; also, as an insulting term for someone who comes off too young for their age.

Tip:  You should always be careful when using slang in another country as to not insult someone or say something inappropriate.

Make sure you are always listening to HOW people are speaking and ask as many questions as possible in order to learn Spanish like local. If you are interested in taking you Spanish to the next level, enroll in Spanish classes in Buenos Aires!

If you are a volunteer in Buenos Aires, it is recommendable to take a taxi when you are unsure of your destination, it is late at night, or when you just don’t have the energy for public transportation!  Here are a few tips on how to take a taxi, safely, in Buenos Aires:

1. Call a radio taxi!  Radio taxi’s are registered taxis and the securest type of taxi in the city. There have been noted events of unregistered taxi’s taking advantage of passengers and its best to avoid this at all cost.
2. Make sure the taxi driver is charging you with the meter (cheaper than a quoted price), unless you are going to the international airport or a destination similar whereas then you should have a quote from the person on the phone reserving the taxi.
3. Tell the taxi driver where you are going, and if you can, tell them which route you would like to take. Although most taxi drivers are hardworking honest people, sometime you will run into a driver that will take you around the block 5 times before letting you off at your destination, making the trip long and costly!
4. If at anytime you feel uncomfortable in a taxi, if they are going to fast, or for any reason, ask politely for the taxi to stop at the next corner, pay your meter price, and leave the car.

Ask the Expanish staff for the number’s of Radio taxi’s in the city!

This Thursday, 9 de Julio, in Argentina is Dia de la Independencia, a national holiday that celebrates Argentina’s birth and Independence from Spanish rule and is celebrated throughout the country every year. This Thursday is a national holiday, meaning everything closes up and its time for rest and relaxation. Or excitement and going-out?

What are you going to do this 9 de Julio?

1. Go to San Isidro
This lovely neighbourhood just outside of Buenos Aires features narrow cobblestone streets, trendy bars and restaurants, shops, riverside patios, and a beautiful cathedral located in the middle of it all. It is easy to arrive, only 30 minutes, just take a train from Retiro train station.

2. Green Bambo
Green Bamboo is the best of Vietnamese restaurants in the city, serves up one of a kind dishes and drinks, and has the most trendy and seductive atmosphere around.

3. Palermo Park
Warm or cold, if the sun is out, this is a great park to hangout in during the day. You can enjoy a leisurely walk, bike ride, rollerblade, or lunch and just soak up the sun.

4. Alto Palermo – Shop till you drop
One of the cities trendiest malls, Alto Palermo has everything you could ever want in a shopping mall and then some. There is also a food court on the top level with great cafes and mini restaurants that make for a good pit-stop along the way.

5. Congo
If by the end of your night, you are ready for a delicious cocktail outside or inside at the stylish bar, Congo is your place. This place really lights up on Thursday nights, getting going at 12am and on.

Volunteering in Buenos Aires? What are your plans this Thursday?

Colonia del Sacramento, a world heritage site, is the oldest town in Uruguay and has a population of about 23,000 people, adding to the peacefulness and quiantness of the town. Besides wandering down its small, narrow, cobblestone streets, enjoying the delicious cuisine, or taking picture perfect photos, there are a few worthy sites to see in Colonia:

· Porton de Campo – the City Gate and wooden drawbridge
· Basilica del Sanctisimo Sacramento – a beautiful stone basilica, built by the Portugese in 1808.
· Lighthouse and convent ruins
· Iglesia Matriz – Uruguay’s oldest church
· Downtown – Tourist shops and restaurants
· Beaches – Colonia’s beaches are perfect for the summer sun

Colonia is very small from one end to the other allowing visitors to discover it by foot, bicycle, or moped. The town’s people are very accommodating to visitors, accustomed to their presence, and service is good and very friendly, and affordable.

Colonia can be reached by boat from Buenos Aires, in either one hour (fast ferry) or three hours (slow ferry). Colonia can also be a convenient place to visit for those volunteering in Buenos Aires and needing to renew their visa (every 90 days) as the cross over to Uruguay in back, even same day, will renew a visa for another term. (Check your specific country requirements beforehand.)

Interested in visiting Colonia?