Yesterday it was 10th birthday of MIRA where I work as a volunteer and again "bank holiday" in Colombia. I was invited to an all-day celebration party. I am amused by the situation - I wanted to do some voluntary work for the natural environment or poor people in Cali and I ended up meeting some important politicians of the country...
In the morning I was picked up by an older couple - Alberto and Yolanda. They do social work for MIRA in a disadvantaged district in Cali. It took us one hour to get to Borajine where the celebration took place. Then we qued 1.5 hours to get the lunch, we played bingo and when a woman on the stage started shouting to the microphone "I love you Mira", I was ready to leave. This was an extraordinary experience, kind of a black comedy. I thought that a political event was going to be more serious but I was wrong. Lack of organisation, children running around and an extreme fanatism for MIRA - it surprised me. The fanatic shouting was mixed with the bingo game. I was told by Viviana, my good friend at MIRA, that Colombian people get distracted and bored very easily so the bingo game keeps them at the event, especially if there are nice prices involved.
In the picture Yolanda who is a bingo addict :)
