This has been the perfect trip for my first fully independent travel experience. I am 20 years old and have traveled quite a bit, but usually it has been with family, or a structured program. This was perfect because not only did the people I met become family, but so did the staff who run the house. The staff are incredibly kind, welcoming, and patient. If you want an easy way to meet amazing people, and still have someone to turn to and answer whatever questions you need, while at the same time being able to travel independantly, this is without a doubt the perfect program.

The volunteer experience in Argentina will definitely go down as a memorable experience that will stay with me forever. The support services provided to the teachers and students were very gratifying. Seeing the daily commitment of the teachers and the love and respect from their students were very inspiring. Additionally, the time allotted to traveling was well appreciated. I had the opportunity to enjoy the many landscape Argentina has to show off. From the ice glaciers of the South to the cascading waterfalls of the North. A definite MUST SEE!

IVHQ linked me to an elderly home in Villa Allende, a village in Argentina. Four weeks of my summer vacation I spend working with elderly. At the end of the project I felt that real friendships were made. This project made me realize how important and fulfilling it is to do community work, something I really appreciate about IVHQ. Next to the community project, IVHQ arranged a wonderful place to stay. The program managers and the people working at the volunteer house were so helpful and kind. Thereby, living together with all the volunteers was amazing and contributed to make my summer an unforgettable one!

Volunteering with IVHQ and AFOS in Argentina was a great way to travel outside the US for the first time. My limited spanish language skills were a concern but I quickly found a welcoming Argentine community. Working with the elderly at El Arbor and assisting with Children´s Day preparation provided a wonderful opportunity to build lasting relationships wtih the community. Staying and volunteering in Villa Allende allowed for the opportunity to interact with a smaller community while having access to the larger city of Cordoba a 45 minute bus ride away.

It was a wonderful time, our two weeks in Villa Allende, Argentina. Lichi, Jose, Ariel and all the others were very helpful; they got us and the other volunteers well adapted to the program and made us feel at home. Generally, the people of Argentina are very nice too, and they try their best to help us out, even if we do not speak Spanish. We chose the community project, and thus we were tasked with interacting with the community elders during the mornings. Although our Spanish skills are non existant, we broke the language barrier by doing things like teaching and giving them origami creations, and they were even interested in teaching us Spanish. In general, it was a great time.

I came to Argentina to volunteer with my girlfriend and this was my first trip without any family members. It was a good experience: it made me feel more comfortable with traveling alone and the staff was very welcoming and helpful. It made me feel very at ease in this new place. They helped us along the whole time when we needed help, from arriving at the airport to taking us on a tour of the city to helping us get to our programs. It was great!

Argentina is know for their asado, good wine, and their mate! It might have been a cold summer, might have had to walk 3+ miles daily to my volunteer place, and the water in the shower might have been either freezing or steaming hot but I wouldn't have had if any other way, I love my time in Córdoba. I fell in love with the country not because I got engaged there but because of the stress free culture people live. Volunteering from the u.s more specifically Houston the third largest city in the u.s where everything is go go go it was nice to take a breather and let the world slow down. Anything can happen and the Argentina locals just go with it. If you don't have the right tool during the construction program you work with what you got, if the lights go out during dinner you have a candle lit "romantic dinner", and if all restaurants are closed during lunch because of the fiesta you raid the pantry to see what you can munch on until dinner. I had the pleasure of staying with 22 other volunteers from all corners of the world who I already miss dearly. I had an unforgettable time impacting a community other than my own and I will continue to slow down from a hectic American schedule and continue to give back. Nos vemos pronto!

Overall, my experience with IVHQ Argentina was an excellent one. I spent one month helping to clean out and renovate an old library that got flooded. The work included: moving a lot of books to a storage area, rearranging the bookcases and attaching them to the walls, constructing new shelves and bookcases from old ones so they would fit and utilise as much space as possible and painting the walls, shelves and bookcases.
It was great to work with the local people, especially Debbie, the woman in charge of the whole operation. She was a kind, lovely woman who loves a good asado (BBQ). It was also great to meet other volunteers from all corners of the globe, go out with them on the weekends etc.
One memory that I will never forget is when myself and another volunteer went to play some basketball in the afternoon and we got swamped by at least thirty primary school aged children who were so interested in these two gringos who were using their court. Despite our lack of Spanish-speaking skills, we managed to make good conversation with them and play a good game of b-ball.
I would highly recommend this volunteer program to anybody. We had a 70-year-old join us for a week and he fit in just fine. A program for any age and from anywhere in the world.