Jolijn in Argentina

My story

This summer I went to Buenos Aires for 4 weeks.

I had been looking forward to it for months and in July I finally went. After a 14-hour flight I arrived in Buenos Aires. And there I was at 5:00 in the morning, in the middle of South America, traveling alone for the first time, barely speaking Spanish… Everything looks different from home, it smells different from home. For a moment I didn’t really know why I wanted to do this so much. But luckily this was only for a short time. On the first day I immediately came into contact with a number of other volunteers and we soon became a close group. We often ate together or went out with all of them.

The four weeks really flew by. If I were to go again I would definitely go longer.

During the week I went to the project from 8:00 to 13:00. In the morning we gathered downstairs in the “office” and from there we left with a group to the project. You never just go alone. Especially in the beginning I really liked this and it was also a lot more fun! We mainly played football with the children. Every now and then we tried a different game but the children really only want to play football. They play with a lot of passion and emotion and can’t stand losing very well…

We were often done around 12:30 and I was back in my apartment around 13:00.

The rest of the day is free, just like in the weekends. This also gives you enough time to explore the city. In the weekends we sometimes went to another city. For example, I went to Tigre and Rosario. These are beautiful cities and easy to reach by train or bus. I didn’t go very far otherwise. I think there is so much to see in Buenos Aires alone that you should definitely take a month to do it!

During the week I also had Spanish lessons. This was a nice basis, but of course you learn the most by just talking to people!

I also trained there 3 times a week with a local football team, at Club Ferro. This was really great fun! The girls were super nice and friendly. The last Friday evening I was invited to an Asado at the club (a kind of BBQ). This was super fun and a perfect end to last month!

I think this way is a really nice way to travel, because in my opinion you get a much better feel for the real atmosphere of the city and the country. You are really a “resident” of the city instead of just a tourist.

What advice would you give to those who come after you?

Take your time to explore Buenos Aires! Also try to look beyond the tourist highlights. There is so much more to see in this enormous city! Just do it, you can’t prepare for everything, you just have to experience it!