Trip to Mexico

I will be traveling to Mexico for a short vacation later this month, and I can't wait to document it in words and pictures here in this blog!

Thinking about all the satisfaction I had bringing things down to Guatemala in April, I asked the innkeeper in Mexico whether he knew of any local charitable organizations for which I could bring donations.

He told me that the biggest group they work with is Project Amigo; however, they also give donations to several local groups that come by asking for assistance. As he puts it, "everything is always needed by someone."

So I am going to start rounding up things to bring down. Project Amigo asks for donations such as multi-vitamin tablets for children, toothbrushes, new or good used girls' or boys' jeans, children's sweaters and jackets, and various other things. You can peruse their full wish list.

If any of my readers that live nearby me have anything they would like me to bring down, just let me know!

Also, I wanted to post a link to Project Amigo's volunteer opportunities. Before I got involved with Mayan Families earlier this year, I was looking for voluntourism possibilities (volunteering combined with a vacation abroad). What discouraged me was that most of the options that were easily accessible on the web are ones that are brokered by for-profit companies, where much of the fees you pay go into overhead and don't benefit the cause directly.

Project Amigo looks to have some great volunteer opportunities - work weeks that combine volunteering with a Mexican cultural experience - and you sign up directly through their organization.

There are Literacy Work Weeks and a Christmas Fiesta Work Week available for late 2008 and early 2009. If anyone is looking for a week-long volunteer vacation, this might be a good place to investigate!

Anyway, more on my Mexican holiday will be coming up later this month. And stay tuned! I will be giving away a unique item I find on my trip to one lucky Gonna Make a Change blog reader!