ASB Argentina
We are a group of 20 Northwestern students planning to spend our spring break doing community service in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Schools from around the country are teaming up with Hillel Argentina to help improve the surrounding communities in Buenos Aires. We are dedicated to alleviating third world poverty and improving the plight of the international Jewish community. We will be working with both interfaith and Jewish community organizations on projects dealing with education, infant care, literacy and more. We will be partnering specifically with an under-resourced school to improve the quality of education for its students by painting murals in outdoor play areas, improving the music-education facility, and building a library so the students can access books and improve literacy. We will also volunteer in a childcare center that serves underprivileged families. By completing our service projects and spending time with the people of Buenos Aires we will prove to them that those facing the challenges of third-world poverty are not alone.

We have been fundraising so that we can make a donation to one of the causes that we will be working with (to be determined). If you are interested in making a donation, please contact Shauna Perelman at perlman.shauna@gmail.com. Please note that she will be out of contact while we are on the trip from March 20-28.

And don't forget to check out what our friends are doing on the ASB Cuba trip at http://asbcuba.tumblr.com!
March 22, 2009
Second Day- Free time!

Hi everyone, it´s Kacey again!

First of all, I would like to apologize for the delay in posts.  I know that many families and loved ones have been checking regularly to see what we have been up to. As soon as we bring the camera connection to Hillel (forgive me, I forgot to today) we will post photos in addition to text.

We were allotted a few hours of free time on Saturday, during which we split up into smaller groups to explore the city. Most people shopped at Palermo, a “barrio” (neighborhod) in Buenos Aires where hundreds of vendors and designers set up booths to sell their goods. Many of the booths were located inside bars; the juxtaposition between beautiful clothing and disco balls made for some good photos!  The quality of jewelry and clothing here is fantastic, and the kindness of the natives is unmatched.

Others explored the Botanical Gardens in Palermo, where there are different types of trees from all over the world.  Performing in the park were four saxophone players who play there every Saturday at 6 p.m. The ambiance was relaxing and “magical” as according to the students who visited the Gardens.

Along the river was a photo exhibit unlike anything I personally have seen in the United States. The exhibit was called “La Cuenta de la Mujer,” which translates to “The Story of the Woman” in Spanish.  Excellent photos of the exhibit were taken here as well and will be posted as soon as possible.

As we were dining at a kosher restaurant that evening, we were able to get to know the members of the group who arrived earlier that day.  Afterwards we stopped at a famous helado (ice cream) shop where we tasted, reportedly, the most delicious ice cream in the city.  I believe it.

After an exciting Saturday night out at the Moishe House and Crobar, we all arrived home in the early hours to essentially nap before we headed out at 9:30 Sunday to explore Recoleta.  I or another student will update the blog shortly regarding our Sunday experiences at the market and the Fútbol game!

The trip has been incredible so far, and the weather unbeatable!

Thanks for reading,

Kacey Albertine, NU 2010