It´s playtime (between the sea and mountain) | WECO2023-7 | 2023-11-06 - 2023-11-24 | KIDS,EDU,ART | Age: 18 - 99

This workcamp will be carried out in cooperation with a non-profit organization which for more than 15 years has been using activities and sports as a tool for community transformation in Colombia, to promote the capabilities of children and teenagers, inspiring them to be agents of change. Your volunteering will be placed mainly in Ciénaga and Santa Marta. Here we offer sport, cultural and recreational activities like football, dance, music and language classes to more than 700 kids and teenagers weekly. Together we achieve a real impact. The foundation believes in the reciprocal exchange of experiences.The volunteer program allows you to contribute to the improvement of the community by giving your time and sharing your experiences, talents and knowledge.

Work: In general, volunteers help organize and develop the different activities of the foundation. Every day, from Monday to Friday, there are classes, sport trainings or workshops for the children of the community. The work includes: • Helping, planning, and carrying out regular activities (art, dance, music, English, and French workshops/lessons). • Assisting in sports training (football). • Helping with extracurricular events (beach cleanups, board games get-togethers, or community cinemas). • Support university students in practice of languages, mainly English, in the “Café Bilingüe” on Fridays. • Sharing time and knowledge with children (play, chat, etc.) and being an example for them. Our volunteers work around 4 or 5 days a week (5-6 hours daily), depending on the activities.

Accomodation and food: You will stay in a cultural center and hostel for volunteers in Ciénaga that brings together local people and volunteers. On one hand the place offers freetime activities to the kids in its large room of the house, on the other hand it offers space for 8 tourists in total who can stay in two private rooms or in a dormitory. You will stay in a 6-dorm room. The house has a self-service kitchen, dining room, working area, two terraces, balcony, two showers, bathrooms and a lot of shared spaces to relax or to get creative. The local foundation and hostel supports the community and local business and sells local products such as coffee, honey or handcraft art through a local shop. The volunteer program includes 3 meals a day, the foundation is in charge of the shopping and volunteers cook together (vegetarian food option also available). Please do not expect expensive/special ingredients (olive oil, nuts, etc), but the Colombian cuisine is rich in fruits, vegetables and 3x a week there will be meat in the menu. There is laundry service at the hostel, 20.000 Colombian pesos (4euro) / 3kg.

Location: CienagaColombia

Location and Leisure: The foundation is located in the city center of Ciénaga directly on the Caribbean Sea in Colombia, just 5 min walk from the 2 km long beach and 20 min by bus to the huge mountains and wildness of “La Sierra Nevada”. The city center and the pier at the beach offers a variety of restaurants and cool bars. Ciénaga is a very traditional and typical Caribbean village with around 100.000 habitants (which is small in Colombia). The Airport “Santa Marta International” is just 30 min by car. Things to do in and around Ciénaga: • Visit floating village of nueva venecia • Thermal waters costa verde • River Toribio • Mountains sierra nevada - Pueblo San Pedro de la Sierra • Visit Aracataca • City tour in Ciénaga and Santa Marta • Spanish and dance classes It just takes 45min by bus to travel to Santa Marta or 1,5 hours to visit Minca, a village in the mountains. It takes around 2 hours to visit the famous National park Tayrona. It takes around 4 hours to visit the beautiful and touristic city of Cartagena. Be prepared for a warm/hot and humid weather, with strong sun but you will enjoy the beaches during the freetime. For more information visit: https://colombia.travel/en/cienaga

Airport: SMR

Train/Bus station: Terminal de Santa Marta

Requirements: • All participants must have medical assistance insurance, which covers, among others, situations related to COVID-19. • The volunteer’s participation is confirmed after the extra fee is paid. The payment must be done at the latest 1 month prior to the project starting via bank transfer / Paypal. • Language: Intermediate English (Spanish is a plus. If no Spanish, we recommend start learning before you come). • Fill out the following form: https://forms.gle/ruCp9WtsJYA7qWuo6

Nov 6th at 2pm in Santa Marta. The group will go together to Ciénaga. The exact meeting point will be given in the infosheet some weeks before the projects starts.

Language: eng

Extra Fee: 300 EUR

Extra fee: 300EUR (The extra fee can change a bit due to the exchange rates). The extra fee includes food, accommodation, transport to the activities, and certificate of participation.