SSUSA Intern Abroad

Pictured at left is Adriano, a graduate from the Buenos Aires Street Soccer program.

Hillary Moscow is a George Washington student who is interning along with her sister this summer for Street Soccer USA. Right now she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina. We introduced Hillary to the our friends Jorge and Sergio who direct a parallel program to our own there. Hillary will contribute some blog posts this spring and continue through the Street Soccer USA Cup this summer. Here is her first post after her first day trying to volunteer in Argentina with their homeless soccer program:

After lazily living in Buenos Aires for the past month, I finally got my act together and started “volunteering” with Street Soccer Argentina. After an unsuccessful attempt at figuring out the bus route, I decided that it might be better if I took a cab to the Plaza for the first time. So after being dropped off at what seemed like an entrance-less park (despite the fact that there were many people inside the gates), I roamed in a circle for 20 minutes until I was finally able to find the coveted entrance (obviously 2 steps away from where I was originally dropped off). Regardless, I had made it.

I walked a little further inside the park until I spotted some people playing soccer underneath the highway. I went over to the area that they were playing in and tried speaking to 3 men who were watching them play (I later realized they were the subs). I told them I had been speaking with Sergio and that he knew that I was coming to help them “volunteer”. No Sergio here. That was a little discouraging but they introduced me to the wife of one of the players who I was told spoke “English”. So, after saying hello (the only word of English she actually knew), I decided to try out my Spanish on her. We talked a little and somehow she misunderstood what I was saying and started telling all of the players that I was there to recruit. It was all good though and I decided to try watching the game instead. It was very intense and the only phrase that I repeatedly heard was “Che Boludo,” which I later discovered means “hey idiot”. I can only hope they were not talking to me. Another fun fact is that when a player subs out, he is likely to light up a cigarette. Che Boludo.

Well, the adventure has begun. It was a great experience and I can tell I am going to learn a lot!