We’ve just finished up our first work week in the town of Valle Grande, a small village set into the mountains above the jungle-like Parque Nacional Calilegua. Here, even the arrival is spectacular. Students pile into a red and white collectivo bus, and watch the ecology change along with the elevation, from muddy jungles to sandy alitplanos, with breathtaking views from the bus windows all the way.
Our arrival marked the beginning of a wonderful partnership with the Escuela de Alternancia, No. 1, a highschool of some 200 students (who travel up to 8 hours to board at the school during the week) that specializes in agricultural and physical sciences. Putney students have been warmly welcomed by the faculty and students there.
“It was really great to be able to interact with the girls from Valle Grande,” said Heather Feshbach of Port Washington, New York. “When first meeting them, we were originally shy and timid, but we warmed up to each other very quickly. They are awesome people and we are thrilled to have made friends with them!”
Putney students have committed to helping Escuela de Alternancia construct a greenhouse where students can learn growing techniques throughout the year and also harvest fruits and vegetables to be cooked in the school’s kitchen which serves 4 meals a day. This week was spent working side by side with high school students from Valle Grande to level the site the greenhouse is being built on and gather fertile growing soil from the surrounding mountains.
But, as Dona Silvia, the school’s director says, “No todo en la vida es trabajo,” and Putney students have had time each day to share in music, dancing, and sports activities with their counterparts in Valle Grande. Among the most successful activities was a Yoga Ball Soccer tournament, a variation of soccer played with giant exercise balls, a standard of Putney programs traveling throughout the world this summer.
“Throughout our first week in Valle Grande, many of our interactions with the students have been through sports and games,” Ethan Bernstein of Larchmont, New York wrote recently. “With the language barrier, sports have been one of our key modes of communication. From the first day, many of us began playing in pick-up soccer games. With this, we were able to form nice connections and relationships with the students. After the quick game, many volleyball games were organized, followed by more soccer later that night. So far, while our Spanish speaking skills remain a little weak, all of us have been able to form great relationships and even friendships with many of the students in Valle Grande, simply by participating in sports, games, and other organized events.”
“Yoga Ball Soccer is a genius idea,” added Adam Ramirez from Chicago, Illinois. “It was great to be able to learn and teach a new game to students. We’ve had a great time so far.”
We’ve taken a brief reprieve from our work to further explore the city of Salta and celebrate the 4th of July, Argentina style. We’ll update you soon.
Hasta pronto,
Brenna and Zach
