Our time At Fe y Alegria started with a tour of the surrounding neighborhood. It became immediately clear just how poor and without resources the area was. Dogs ran up and down the dirt roads and kids from the school revealed how drugs and gangs had a firm grasp on the area. The school itself is referred to by the community as "the yellow school" because of its yellow walls, protected from graffiti and vandalism by a surrounding barb wire fence. We began talking to kids from the school, who seemed very unfamiliar with Boston and the United States as a whole. Even buenos Aires seemed to be a world away for the students. It felt like the best thing we could provide the students was a bit of exposure to the world that existed beyond Salta. We painted murals and repaired walls, but still it felt as though that was our biggest contribution. Kids asked to take pictures with all of us; clearly, very few people ever visited the school and our presence was a big deal. We danced to Argentine songs. The kids of Fe y Alegria taught us choreography and though we were completely uncoordinated, it had everyone laughing. We were unable to provide a traditional American song to teach them in return, so we then decided on the "Cupid Shuffle", a crowd pleasing classic at Bar Mitzvahs, Weddings, and other parties in the States. We were glad to get to know all the kids of Fe y Alegria, hopefully we made the impact on their lives that they made on ours.
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