It's been a crazy crazy week. This week I interviewed a man who lives out of an abandoned train. He invited me into his "room" and showed me the camp fire that keeps him warm, but also produces heavy fumes that make it hard to breathe. He directed me to his bed, a mattress lined up against the wall and the cupboard that held his few bags of food, all given to him from the NGO I'm working for, Hogar Noel.(www.hogarnoel.com). He told me he has lived in these unfathomable conditions without sufficient food, clothing, warmth, and clean water for over a month with his son. Although he would like to work, there are almost no job opportunities in Vista Alegre, an impoverished neighborhood right outside of the center of Bahia Blanca. This was an incredibly humbling experience and I can confidently say that I am more motivated than ever to do my part and work as hard as I can to help the people of this poverty stricken neighborhood. It's one thing to do marketing work behind a computer and help distribute food, it's another thing accompanying someone back to their "house" and seeing how they truly live. From this experience I learned that be it family, friends, education, health, or basic necessities, there is always something to be grateful for.
Aside from this I went to the beach called Monte Hermoso with my host mom and had empanadas and mate (Argentinean hot beverage) on the beach. I also celebrated a fellow international intern's birthday and went to Bahia Blanca's port.
In terms of work I'm still working on the publicity video for the NGO's and I recently made a short video talking about my NGO's collaboration with AIESEC (the organization I came over with).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGvOd6eZLXE
That's all for now!
I love your pictures! Are all of those dogs your host family's? This post really reminded me of my final semester of Spanish, where we read a story about Che Guevara and how he traveled through Argentina. We actually had a discussion about the different types of mate they make, so it's funny that you brought that up. Must be as popular as we were told! I definitely agree that often times, when we go to a different country, we are able to see how lucky we really are. I went to the Dominican Republic over Spring Break and like the man you mentioned in your post, the people that housed us for homestay were so incredibly generous and welcoming, graciously opening their homes to us even though they barely had enough space for themselves. It's a privilege to be able to meet new people with such inspiring attitudes. I'm glad to hear that you're having such an eye-opening experience and I hope you continue to learn both on and off the job!
ReplyDeleteI feel for that man, and I hope that there will be something done to help those in poverty around the world! Have you visited him recently?
ReplyDeleteAlso, I love your pictures as well, and your host mom seems so fun! You should teach me how to make empanadas :D!!
Your internship sounds incredible! The fact that you are able to do new things all the time and experience the lives of people in a different country is amazing. I hope you enjoy the rest of your internship!
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