Tag: volunteering

Spanish Lessons in Cartagena

Part of the reason I came here was to improve my Spanish. With the volunteer program, I signed up for a week of lessons. That week is still not complete but I am getting Spanish lessons in Cartagena.

Not What I Expected

I have now been here for 2 weeks + 2 days. I honestly thought I would have Spanish lessons each day after volunteering for the first week. Why did I think that? Because that was what was promised in my volunteer plan.  Things don’t work the way they’re supposed to – I have definitely learned that.

First off, the person who was supposed to be teaching me Spanish (or helping me to improve my Spanish, I like to think :)) declined the job the day before my arrival. Too busy or something. Then Libary, the volunteer coordinator, had to find someone to replace her. Who did she find? Herself. Yes, this is not a big operation!

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No Sugarcoating Cartagena Problems

So I don’t want you to think this is all a bed of roses and I am handling all the differences with no problems. I have had some setbacks along the way. In this post there is no sugarcoating Cartagena problems.

Getting lost

I’ve gotten lost twice, and it’s highly likely I will get lost again. So much of Cartagena looks a lot the same to me. The inner barrios are full of short apartment blocks mixed in with stores and restaurants. The stores and restaurants sometimes look like homes as well. Probably because they are or were at some point. I get lost! There’s no sugarcoating Cartagena problems.

The first time I got lost was on Monday night – I took the wrong bus from volunteering. The bus line was correct, but I forgot to ask if it was going to “Campestre” and, sure enough, it wasn’t. After about 30 minutes of riding, I looked for a suitable place to get off. I chose a location at a busy intersection with a gas station, figuring taxis would be by at some point. It took about 5 minutes to find an empty taxi and then I was ok and got home about an hour late, but still fine.


The second time I got lost, or “perderse” (lost myself in Spanish), was walking to Libary’s house on Tuesday for my Spanish lesson. I didn’t walk far enough and started walking in circles and got nervous. I What’s Apped her and she came and got me. Embarrassing. I was 30 minutes late for a Spanish lesson, and she lives a 10 minute walk from Marcela’s house. Embarrassing!

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Volunteer Duty in Cartagena

So I have been volunteering at the institution for over a week and gotten into a bit of a routine. As a first time international volunteer, I had no idea what to expect. Here’s what I’ve learned from my volunteer duty in Cartagena.

The Only Volunteer

Surprisingly there are no other full time volunteers. About once a week a couple of Europeans will drop by for a few hours, never to be seen again. They are with another organization whose name I haven’t caught but I am surprised they don’t return or that no one else is volunteering here. Honestly, for the number of children, they don’t have enough staff. I really feel like everything I do helps the institution.

A Typical Day on Volunteer Duty in Cartagena

I usually get to the institution around 8:30am. I have tried to arrive earlier but haven’t seen a bus between 730-8am so gave up on that.  The bus I need comes to my stop at 8am or after so that’s what I take.

I work with the same class of two-year olds every day. Their teacher is named Luz, she is 23, and very hard working and pretty.  She was the star of the play earlier this week!

School play at my volunteer gig
School Play; Luz is the one with braids
Children on swings on volunteer duty in Cartagena
Children on the swings
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