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I'm moving to Latin America by February 2009, but I'm having a hard time finding a job or even volunteer opportunities where I don't have to pay to be there. Does anyone have suggestions about locations or programs in which I can learn Spanish and work? Also, I'm looking for a travel partner if anyone is interested...

It sounds as though what you want to do is a dream that you can attain, it is just a question of how much you are willing to sacrifice to live that dream. Usually it is easier to work in the U.S. and earn enough money to spend time in Latin America without working.

One can find work down here, but it is usually for what the locals will accept. In the case of Guatemala it is around $350.00 a month. Those jobs involve teaching English, being a waiter/waitress, tending bar, and little else. The locals justifiably resent foreigners taking any well paying jobs, as unemployment is a very serious problem here.

It is very difficult to find a job as a volunteer that will provide room and board, unless you have an extremely valuable skill such as medicine or engineering. Most of the volunteer organizations down here, unfortunately, are set up to make money off the people who volunteer.

In quetzaltenango there are many spanish language schools that also have attached volunteer programs. If you don't know Spanish its a very good start, since you'll end up paying for language lessons in any case.

In exchange for signing up at their school for lessons, which can be very effective, they let you volunteer. I'm guessing that if you go to the school, get introduced into a volunteer situation and you show yourself to be effective, you can CONTINUE to volunteer for free.

There are other opportunites, but as Juan said, most want money to let you hang around. The best and most expensive actually give you some real training.

One alternative is to plan well here and set up your volunteer stint at home. There are church and non profit institutions that will accept volunteers on the conditions you want, but they vet you well, and make sure you fit THEIR needs. There is a book on this means, but I forget the name. It was very useful to me, though ultimately, I didn't qualify for most of the opportunities. Many require church membership,specific skills, OR a years notice until they accept you.

There are other ways as well, including 'work camps' where you pay a minimum fee to do volunteer style work for a few weeks. You might finagle a few more weeks on the longer term camps for free if you make friends with the organiser.

What you want is possible, but it takes some work, preferably while you're still in your home country.

Hey there! I too and heading down to Latin America soon, Guatemala to be exact, and I'm planning on spending about a year volunteering in there. I'm not expecting to be paid, but there are a select few positions that provide free rooms if you work for them, but in those cases you almost always must be fluently bilingual and give a hefty time commitment. At least in Guatemala, I've heard that staying with a host family and having them feed you is roughly $45-$60 per week. I budgeted my money before I left so that I knew that I would have about $100 to spend every week for the duration of my stay, knowing that I'll surely spend less than that while I'm staying in one place volunteering.

As for finding a place to volunteer, there are a plethora of places that are understaffed and need help and energy. I ignore any organization that wants hundreds or even thousands of dollars for just a couple of weeks of my service. Check out these websites:

1. www.idealist.org - You can search volunteer organizations in any country in the world, some ask for a fee, but many do not.

2. www.entremundos.org - If you will be in Guatemala, check out this webpage, they have a ton of volunteer organizations.

I found a ton of organizations on those websites that I am going to look into when I get down there, and none of them ask for any fees, only that you arrange your own accommodations.

You may not even find something that catches your eye online. From experience, I know that sometimes you just need to find a place you like and can afford to live in, and walk around and look for places that might need volunteers.

Hope this helped.

PS. I second that one should think thoroughly before taking a paid position that could easily be filled by someone from that country. It's not cool.

there is a place close to poptun, guatemala where you can volunteer for room and board included, its basically a backpackers/hotel place... its called finca ixobel... we stayed there for 3 days...minimum volunteer time is 6 weeks.. they also have a big book in the reception area with other places around central america where you can volunteer for free or cheap.. they have a website... google it..

hey treehouse, there are definitely a lot of great place to go and live in Latin America. One option that is always there for native English speakers is to teach English. I taught in Mexico for a while and now am living down in Buenos Aires teaching again. It is certainly not the best money in the world but it is enough to get by and a great way to live and learn Spanish abroad. A great thing about teaching English is the hours are somewhat sporadic therefore you will have plenty of time for Spanish classes. When I was in Mexico I studied with ViaSpanish they offer courses throughout Latin America. Suerte
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