Archive for the ‘Around Town’ Category

September 2nd, 2010 - 10:43 am § in Around Town, Culture, Day in the Life, News, Uruguay

Strike Season

The blossoms are starting to bud; spring is on the horizon. Uruguayan president José Mujica has entered his 6th month, and legislators are wrangling over the five-year budget. This is strike season. ¡Paro! There are occasional strikes here anyway, mostly of the transit kind, and mostly in response[...]

August 31st, 2010 - 7:23 am § in Around Town, Careers, Day in the Life, Guatemala, In the Field

Partners in Poverty

Conversely, Guatemalans will ask how much your left shoe cost you without a second of hesitation. Living in such a money-obsessed, impoverished community has been difficult and bitter, and at the increased exposure to the question "How much?", I find myself fretting for my personal financial future.[...]

August 30th, 2010 - 8:11 am § in Around Town, Culture, Peru, Tips & Resources, Volunteer

Signing Off: Reverse Culture Shock and Lessons Learned from a Year Abroad

Last week I stepped onto U.S. soil for the first time in a year, and I admit that I’m experiencing a classic case of reverse culture shock. For the first few days I felt a pang of worry before drinking tap water, and was reluctant to throw toilet paper into the bowl. I wondered at [...][...]

August 27th, 2010 - 1:53 pm § in Around Town, Chile, In the Field, Volunteer

Recognizing Difference

I have been disappointed with the education provided by Anakena when I am wearing my red, white and blue lenses. However, the school is quite impressive when you consider that “discapacidades en Santiago, Chile” brings up less than ten relevant results in Google, which is nothing for a city of f[...]

August 24th, 2010 - 12:56 pm § in Around Town, Costa Rica, Volunteer

Back to San Jose, Back to Excitement

Some might say that cities such as San Jose, Límon and Jaco in Costa Rica are ugly. Reasons for this ugliness might include poor air quality, a plethora of prostitutes searching for wealthy gringos (or vice versa), thieves on every corner, traffic jams, or the large amount of drug dealers. I guess [...]

August 23rd, 2010 - 8:27 am § in Around Town, Culture, News

One Day on Earth: What Story Will You Tell?

One Day on Earth is asking you, me, and the rest of the world to film something you're inspired by on that day, with the hope of creating a time capsule that documents our collective struggles and triumphs. You don't have to be a seasoned filmmaker to participate—cell phones and digital cameras wo[...]

August 19th, 2010 - 2:20 pm § in Argentina, Around Town, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Event, Honduras, News, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela

Americas Social Forum in Summary

One day at lunch everyone danced together under an electric blue Asunción sky and it was easy to believe, at least for a second, that if all this buena ondaa and energy could translate to action, the world would be all right (in a left sort of way).[...]

August 19th, 2010 - 7:49 am § in Around Town, Culture, Good Ideas, Guatemala, In the Field, Volunteer

Lessons in Purchasing Power and Investment

I have tried my hardest over the past few years to bury the key concepts and bold lettering that were force fed in business school, a process heavily aided by the acquisition of two new languages and ether-like Chinese rice wine. Last week, however, I was reminded of the purchasing power of American[...]

August 18th, 2010 - 8:39 am § in Argentina, Around Town, Culture, Mexico, Nonprofit Spotlight

An Avalanche of Human Rights for Same-Sex Couples

In the United States stereotypes abound regarding Latin America’s strong machista culture (with corresponding levels of homophobia). But recent victories for homosexuals (in Uruguay, Argentina, and Mexico City) should call into question such assumptions given that Latin America appears to be getti[...]

August 16th, 2010 - 4:30 pm § in Around Town, Chile, Culture, Day in the Life, In the Field

Life in the Classroom

Up to this point, all of the kids in my class at Colegio Anakena have been between the ages of three and four, which is of course the most adorable age and size kids come in. Most of the children have some minor learning or behavior problem, but they all also have some sort of [...][...]





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