Class in a Graveyard and the Zoo

On Friday we had class in the famous Recoleta cemetary, about a fifteen minute walk from our hostel. The graveyard is filled with family crypts dating back to the early history of the Argentinian nation. The graves of the first president and the famous Evita Peron (former first lady) are there.

In the afternoon we headed out to a neighborhood consisting manly of Paraguayan immigrants for our work with LIFE. The activities were similar to Wednesday's work, as we helped children color, played soccer in the street, and tossed some paper airplanes around.

We worked with LIFE again on Saturday as we took a group of some of the same students we had been working with to the zoo. Each volunteer was responsible for two children. Everyone was quite worn out by the time the 6 hours spent there were up. We returned to the hostel and had class from 6-8.

I teamed up with two of the other guys for dinner as we dismantled a restaurant's empanada menu by ordering one of each of the 12 specialties and splitting them up amongst ourselves. The four cheese was considerably better than the rest of the crowd, with the chopped veil bringing up the rear.

Today was another long day, as we took the train to an English church about a half hour away. After worship we continued on to El Tigre, a top vacation location. We about an hour boat ride along the river there, which was quite polluted as an uncountable number of dead fish were washed up on the banks.

We got off the river and took the train back downtown where we headed to a street fair like I've never seen. Vendors stretched for miles as the horizon was inundated with people. The powerful force of groups of drummers only added to the chaotic, yet enjoyable experience.

The cat has been causing my allergies to flare up, so I went with a few others to a corner convenience store for something to help my throat. We have become acquainted with a young Dominican man that works there as we typically pass him a few times a day.

He was friendly enough to give all of us his employee discount and also gave each of us an apple that he had brought along in his lunch. We talked for about a half hour about his homeland and baseball and after a few pictures he showed us a Santa Biblia that he had been reading while working. He attends the Catholic Church right down the street. We have now become friends with this once perceived mischievous character.