Disclaimer: My Amigos experience isn't recent!

I am tired of reading endless reviews that Amigos is perfect..it's not! I 100% support Amigos, am I very glad I did it twice and I recommend it. But it's not perfect.

First, Amigos has real weaknesses. Poor families aren't paid to feed us, and in rural Paraguay people can not speak much Spanish--so communication is very hard. Communities do not understand the rules Amigos sets for us; people try to just take project supplies.

More importantly, the word on chatboards is that every family who hosts an Amigos volunteer is perfect; that's not true! If you had a perfect experience with your family of course that's wonderful-- but NOT EVERY VOLUNTEER WILL! That should be both obvious and okay, but Amigos is so into "positive thinking" that negativity isn't allowed-- even with a "negative view of things" is actually a realistic view of things.

I had real problems with my host family. The mother abused her child and screamed at both her children and me constantly. I was left completely alone for 24 hours, and my host mother threw a fit that I--not knowing what else to do-- asked neighbors to feed me. I was told to grow up and be culturally sensitive..even when my family planned a weekend trip and didn't even tell me. But Amigos won't let us leave our area without permission and I was to go 7 hours from my town for a weekend; we were leaving 20 minutes after they told me about this trip!

I moved; Amigos wasn't happy that I made that choice. My route leader (project helper for volunteers) did (with words) say that she'd support me, but she also told me that "this WILL be discussed in Amigos in the future" and that I would be labeled as a bad volunteer.

Of course Amigos can't ensure that "your family is perfect..or your money back! :)" but it is clear that there is an "Amigos culture".. if you don't think your host family (and everything else about your summer) was "absolutely perfect" it's your own fault; you weren't being culturally sensitive. Not every person who I actually encountered while doing Amigos bought into that--my route leader in Paraguay definitely did not-- but that is what most volunteers who post reviews seem to believe.

I also dislike the fact that Amigos denies another reality: poverty is awful! Amigos volunteers often gush about how amazing their summer was because "the culture is so different". That is fine up to a point, but just because the families we live with eat food we don't eat and do things in ways we have never seen-- my family hooked up a TV battery to a TV and watched TV by candlelight!-- doesn't mean their lives are amazing. They are in awful situations. I found it very hard to see extreme poverty--among people I grew to care for-- and I couldn't just "make it all positive"..nor would I want to. Amigos doesn't encourage--and in fact discourages-- volunteers from experiencing negative feelings about poverty. Of course we are there to help and we do--and that's good-- but the Amigos philosophy actively denies that poverty is really a problem. Finding your experience to be upsetting only means you "need to push yourself to your limits"..and (reviews claim) everyone does that and learns "to be a leader" and that "I can do anything I want to".

I didn't experience that. I came home very grateful for what I have, but also overwhelmed at the realization that my Paraguayan family will likely never be able to get out of poverty-- and my Costa Rican family won't ever be too well off, either. I have always felt like most volunteers fail to accept my feelings about my Amigos summers as valid. Amigos claims that they greatly respect every volunteer's deeply personal experience, but people who aren't relentlessly positive are snubbed. Amigos would also deny that (globally) most people born poor will stay poor. Of course we do Amigos to try to do our part to reverse that trend, but we are led to believe "anything is possible" at the expense of actually seeing reality.

-- Program Cost --

When I went in 1992 and 1995 eight weeks cost about 3000 and we had the option to fund raise. Of course prices go up in twenty plus years and yes the gap year program is nine months versus two. But paying 24900 plus (I assume since visas weren't mentioned) at least 300 for visa fees..and then having no stipend at all of 9 months? You shouldn't have to be rich to volunteer! Gap year volunteers are already giving a chance to work or go to school for a year..and living in communities without basics we take for granted. Amigos could do a great deal to lower the costs. Kill all touristy stuff.. Maybe just have one weekend where volunteers could all meet up but stay in hostels. They could only charge us the costs of families taking care of us and our project supplies..we don't need to agree to give amigos seed money to go. It sounds like gap year but volunteers are on the move..so ask communities to feed and house the volunteer that comes at their expense. They could even get corporate donors to give Amigos funding to fund projects or give us supplies for free so we can pay less. Another issue is the visa. Amigos needs to at least mention who pays! Getting visas is a huge pain; not even mentioning them in the information is a red flag that Amigos isn't really supporting a volunteers as well as they say they are.

I recommend Amigos!! I really do :). It is a very eye opening experience and it's the best way to learn Spanish. I am just tired of the endless mantra that it's perfect and that only whiners disagree with that.

My AMIGOS project staff experience in Costa Rica was one of the most life changing, touching adventures of my life. The uniqueness of this project had me nervous at first- yet it was what made the summer so special for both the volunteers and staff.
AMIGOS has an amazing relationship our partner agency in Costa Rica, Casa de la Juventud. In fact, project staff lives on their grounds in Pérez making the relationship that much stronger. Youth from both Casa and AMIGOS work hand in hand throughout the summer, making this project extremely sustainable after the volunteers leave the country.

Spend a week in your rural community (with 1 or 2 partners from the U.S., live with a host family, work on a project that the locals have chosen before you arrive, and run activities for the local kids) and then spend a week working in national parks (projects that are already chosen and most likely are to make improvements to the park). Improve your conversational Spanish immensely and make incredible connections with other volunteers from the United States, Ticos (Costa Ricans), and your Tico host family. No summer could compare to the one you could have with Amigos in Costa Rica.

If I could only say one thing about my experience I would say that I met more genuinely good people on this trip in six weeks than in the past five years of my life. Costa Ricans are kind, hospitable, and hard working. The AMIGOs staff was motivated, smart, and energetic. I had so much undeniable fun I will never forget. I love Costa Rica and AMIGOs has such a special place in my heart. I would be very happy to answer any specific questions anyone has about this program, and I'll be as candid as requested.

I have had the fortunate opportunity to serve on the Amigos de las Americas (AMIGOS) staff team for the past two consecutive years. I can genuinely say that the AMIGOS program in Costa Rica is like no other AMIGOS program, or to my knowledge, any other international exchange program available in the region. AMIGOS volunteers split their time between host communities and three different national parks. In 2013 and 2014 we worked in Parque Nacional Volcan Tenorio, Parque Nacional Carara and Reserva Forestal Rio Macho. While in their host communities volunteers collaborate with the local youth groups to design, implement and evaluate a relatively small community based initiative project (CBIP). The CBIPs were incredibly diverse and tailored specifically to the needs of the community and the desires of the youth group. In 2013-2014 we saw projects ranging from recycling and children's rights initiatives to the construction of a school garden and the refurnishing of a salon communal. During the weeks in the national parks, or campamento weeks, the AMIGOS volunteers, alongside their local youth counterparts from their host communities, travel out to the three national parks. While in the national parks both the US American and the local Costa Rican volunteers work on various trail maintenance and restoration projects, participate in various youth leadership trainings and explore the natural beauty of the national parks.

As a staff member one of the most rewarding moments of the summer was seeing how much both my AMIGOS and Costa Rican volunteers grew during the weeks in the national parks. Though the volunteer work in the national parks was physically demanding, volunteers came together in a very unique way as many were gently encouraged to step outside their comfort zones. Volunteers bridged cultural, linguistic and geographic divides and formed beautiful cross-cultural friendships.

The AMIGOS program in Costa Rica works mano en mano, hand in hand, with the local partner agency Casa de la Juventud (CASA) to facilitate a transformative, empowering summer program for youth across the Americas.

The Costa Rica project taught me the meaning of culture and community. You can say whatever you like about voluntourism, assistance abroad, and high schoolers in general, but I assure you that Amigos is not your average volunteer program.

In my school, I see kids discussing past service trips, whether it to Guatamala, Tijuana, or wherever, and they all note the poverty, the food, and their contributions. However, with Amigos, I found myself noting the community in which I lived, the relationships which I built, and the cultural impact on my life.

Anyone can go to a foreign country, dig their feet in the ground, and say "Wow, to think people live without warm water." Through Amigos de las Americas, I learned to embrace the conditions, not gawk at them from a city on a hill. I developed an appreciation for these people's ways of life and learned to work within the community to inspire youth leadership and sustainability, leaving the "poor" people rich with experiences and laughter.

Going into this past summer, I thought I had traveling/living/working in Latin America kind of figured out; I had studied abroad, gone on a mission trip, and been a tourist in three different countries. I found an add for AMIGOS on Facebook and talked to a woman from the International Office and was immediately hooked. The only trip that was open that worked for my availability, was the high school trip in Costa Rica; I was about to be a senior in college. I did not know a soul going, I didn't know anything about the history of the organization, nor did I know any veteran AMIGOS volunteers. But, the feeling in my gut just said I should take a chance, and spend the summer making an impact in a new place while practicing the language I love.

I was an international volunteer, so I had to attend training in Miami a few days before actually traveling to Costa Rica for the in-country training. After about a week of training, it was time to go to our different communities. By that point I had already made life-long friends, been nervous, heard someone from the State Department speak, laughed, danced, been humbled, and been excited. It is funny to remember how naive I was when I signed up; the summer was definitely going to be a unique adventure.

The Costa Rica project is unique in the sense of traditional AMGIOS projects, and every summer a volunteer has with this outstanding organization is unique because of the unexpected. No matter how much training you have, no matter what people tell you, you have to experience the beautiful sights, meaningful interactions with people, and long fulfilling days working on the trails for yourself to understand. I was one of two college students with over 40 other high school aged students on the journey, which showed me the power of youth leadership and inclusion. People come from all over the US and Latin America with different backgrounds, but yet join together with the same mission. Host communities are so welcoming, especially the children, and the park guides you work with teach everyone so much. Seeing your physical work and conversations make impacts is worth every second of your time away from the United States because cultural exchange is a mutual process; you pour into people and people pour into you.

Just to name a few perks: unique experiences for resumes, applications and interviews, a huge AMIGOS network, the Spanish language, and being a part of something bigger than your hometown.

Go.

The AMIGOS program was a great opportunity to make friends with and learn from people from a completely different culture. I loved learning about myself as well, and the campamentos -- time in national parks -- were a great way to make friends with Costan Rican youth while learning about the environment and experiencing the country's natural beauty. Definitely recommend!