Doh, no one at home! It was such a mission to even find this joint we feel like that in itself was a small achievement.  Although we were disappointed not to volunteer here (as we only have one opportunity left after this) we were feeling pretty tired (for no real reason) so the day off suited us just fine in the end!

As we entered into the Chilean city of Temuco, we were pleased to discover how easy it was to locate the Salvation Army headquarters, as their big billboard sign on the side of the main road shone like a beacon amidst the sea of city signs, lights and noises. Email correspondence, our primary and preferred means of communication due to cost and our smattered Spanish (thank goodness for google translator) often is unsuccessful and we have made a habit of introducing ourselves to S.A. captains and majors the day before, giving them some time to deliberate on what kind of jobs they would like done.

The Temuco S.A. have a home for girls and we were simply asked to spend the afternoon with these children that range in ages from 6 to 14. Like previous volunteering experiences, we again did not know how the afternoon was going to unfold, and were just chucked into the mix.  By and by things worked out in the end and before any doubts or stage fright could creep in, we had managed to teach and play a few games which seemed to break the ice. Before we knew it our time here had passed and we had kids clinging to us and begging us not to leave. Even now, Roland´s muscles feel a little tender (chalk this up to 16 months of unused upper body muscles) from all the carrying, swinging, lifting and playing with the kids. Attempting to share our time fairly amongst the little ones, we quickly learned that it would be much easier and enjoyable for some of the older children to use the camera. A good 100 or so pictures later and a second battery, we had some difficulty deciding which captured images should be published on the site and tried to get a range from both photographers and photographees.

A special thanks to Major Antonio for coordinating our day and to the many hard working staff at the home. It was very obvious that the girls are very happy, full of life and are well looked after. No easy task at times we are sure.

On the advice of our trusted traveling companion, the Lonely Planet and the highly praised accounts of other touring cyclists, we took a bus to the nearby sea port city of Valparaiso (a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural site). This side trip did not disappoint. Along with having steep streets and passageways filled with interesting art we were pleased to discover a Salvation Army that has been a corner stone of the community for over a 100 years. 

Captains Jorge and Patricia lead this site in which we were fortunate enough to get an extensive tour of the senior citizen's home they run.  This is the first rest home we have seen that belongs to The Salvation Army and so it was very interesting for us.  There are 40 elderly people that live here with numerous staff working hard and buzzing around the place.

Roland spent some time with Captain Jorge cruising 'Valpos' streets picking up food donations for the centre.  Otherwise, we spent the better part of the day delving through big bins of vegetables donated by local businesses in the community.  It was surprising that even though the bean's shells looked terrible on the outside the majority of them where quite fine on the inside.  It's great to see things not going to waste and also learning the surrounding communities are supporting The Salvation Army and their projects.

We would like to thank the Captains and their children for making us welcome and sharing some meals together.  This was our first experience of 'onces' which for us is like a formal afternoon tea.  Quite delightful!

Roland was rubbing his hands together with glee to learn of our task at The Salvation Army primary school next to Santiago's Central Division Headquarters.  Our job was to remove a wall to make two small rooms into one giant room in preparation for expanding the school roll next year.  This room is going to be their new computer room and so we were starting off the process of renovating it. 

Although we had limited tools to work with, it was surprisingly easy to take it down but maybe that had something to do with Roland's skills at our disposable.  After a few hours of solid work the wall was gone and our work done.  Before we left we enjoyed a meal with the teachers and tried our best to decipher Chilean Spanish, which as it turns out is very difficult to understand.

We would like to thank Majors Marcelo and Patricia for getting on board with our volunteer work and helping us organise volunteer work in other cities in Chile.

We have not seen a Salvation Army thrift store since Belize and we instantly enjoyed the change of scenery and the opportunities to lend a hand.  Major Edgardo Baolin, his wife Alicia and children Melisa, Jose and Esteban warmly received us and were delighted to hear more about our adventures throughout the Americas. This is a very exciting time for the Salvation Army here in Mendoza, as they have just secured some new land and have plans to build a church, sports field and multi-purpose complex for social support in the community, with a particular focus on teenagers. Construction starts later this year.Our day consisted mostly of sorting and pricing clothes but we also managed to squeeze in a lot of eating delicious food and socializing with this fabulous family. Thank you for a great day and making our volunteer work memorable. Best wishes for your new place.

Word must be out on the street that we know our way around a paint brush or something, as once again we were given a challenging assignment, that test our fine motor skills and patience. The Salvation Army sign facing the street, was in need of some sprucing up, but was originally done in a factory with stencils and spray paint. After some collaboration and discussion, Roland was given the stencil cutting assignment, while Belinda set her eyes to giving the board a clean background and trim.  The next day, together we re-painted the words using the stencil and a sponge which gave it a fresh new look. 


While sweeping the church in preparation for services the following day, Belinda was curious if her talents could stem past painting and possibly enter into the wonderful world of one woman bands. It was an unanimous decision that she should stick to the brush and rollers. 


Major Betty Callizaya, her husband Major Giovanni Pedraza and two children Micaela and Samuel really made us feel at home at their Oruro facility. During the week they run several children programmes which includes meals, classroom education and church services on the weekend . We thoroughly enjoyed sharing a few delicious meals together and having a couple of laughs as well.   We were even able to use the temporary tattoos that Belinda's Mum had sent over with the kids and spread the New Zealand love!  We would like to thank this delightful family for inviting us in on their weekend and being so generous with their time.

Captains Saturnino and Fortunata Laruta run a tight ship in Tiahuanuco, 1 1/2 hours west of La Paz.  They have an after-school programme for some 200 local kids which provides a hearty lunch as well as extra tutition and some good old fashioned fun.  They get enough funds to continue this great community project through sponsorship from "parents" all around the world.

The first day we volunteered coincided with a festival: dia del estudiantes (day of the students).  So we pitched in with the other staff members and set up the hall ready for the kids to arrive.  After a meal, a puppet show, and games they were sent home happy with a goody bag packed to the brim full of bikkies and lollies.  Afterwards, everyone got busy cleaning up and before we knew it we were playing a friendly game of soccer.  Belinda was very pleased to be on the winning team...... sorry about that Roland!

The next day and a half was set aside to give the 'Ejercito de Salvacion' logo on the front building a freshen up.  Once again, we very skillfully managed to cover ourselves in paint but also completed the task with it not looking half bad.  Inbetween painting we were fed to the max with local cuisine and were left not wanting anything.  Thank you so much to the Captains, Victor, Exsalta, Carolina, Miguel, Veronica, Fernando, Emilio, Ruth, Brigida, and Marcos for making us feel welcome: you are doing a great job!  Also, we would like to thank Major Gerd Dahlin Oberg for organising our visit to Tiahuanuco, Commander Miraflores and the staff in the Altiplano Headquarters of La Paz for being interested in our trip and volunteer work too.

Reality check
It's been a while since we last volunteered and along with the company of the brothers we haven't been using our Spanish so much.  It's always a little bit of a knock back when we can't fully communicate our thoughts and brings us back to wishing we had learnt Spanish before we embarked on this trip.  It's amazing what you can accomplish with so few words but it would be great to be able to share more indepthly and learn more about the people and services we are helping.  Ahhh, we could go on with "should've, could've, would've" but we have to live in reality and make the best go of it we can.  However in saying that, time and again we are so grateful that we have these unique opportunities and feel our cycling trip would not be quite so enriching without this volunteer work.  It definately keeps us grounded, takes the focus off "me, me, me" and gives us a fuller picture of life in a country.