An experience such as this would never be possible in the USA.

I am grateful the school is attempting to improve the lives of the poor families.

I'm very sad to be leaving this school. I'll miss my new friends and all the teachers.

The accomodations are very simple. You should be aware that you will live as the poor live.

El Salvador is really beautiful. The experience I have had here at the language school has been one of the best experiences I have had during my last few years of travel. The host family I stayed were very warm and generous. I felt part of the family as soon as I got there and the food was excellant. The socio-cultural language programmes are especially interesting. Learning about the context of El Salvador whilst meeting true survivors of the war and finding out how people are mobilising themselves to actively participate democratically is highly inspiring. Many people come back to Melida Anaya Montes because they just miss the openess and energy of the school! Highly recommended.

good job!

CIS es el mejor de todos. Mi corazón está ahí. Volveré algún día!

EXELLENTO:):):)");)

Classes were helpful and talked about Salvadoran life and history. Sometimes I almost didn't even notice I was learning Spanish too. I taught English as a volunteer for 10 weeks and by the end of my time at the CIS, I felt great about the improvements in my Spanish as well as the friendships I had made with my English students and my homestay family.

This is the best school to learn spanish, refresh or go advanced in the country. The teacher's are passionate and the center provides a cultural immersion program that rivals the others. I would highly reccomend.

I spent 10 months teaching at the CIS and am convinced I learned more than I taught. When I first moved to Central America (I spent several months in Guatemala), I swore off teaching English. It just seemed strange to me (and still, in some ways, reflects colonialism). English, however, is necessary for many people (especially in the capital) to get a decent job. The students come to LEARN, they WANT to be there. Through Popular Education methods, I was able to learn much from my students and their experiences. Even with no background in education, I immensely enjoyed the experience of teaching. In working with CIS, I was also able to visit many places throughout El Salvador that I would have otherwise not sought out. Most of the places we visited had some connection to CIS (either with the clean water projects, the artisan store, the women's business project or the scholarship program), but there were other places, such as El Pital, that were merely beautiful places to visit. These trips are made possible through a $100 volunteer fee-- only paid once-- and also allows you to take various Political-Cultural day trips, further enhancing your knowledge of El Salvador's history and culture.