Okay, Ive managed to organise some serious spending of donations today which took four hours but glad to be able to help out with everyones donations which have bought some essential things for the orphanage and are as follows

1 X large Fridge/ Freezer ( the only fridge they had was broken and not used for what looks like years). In this heat its really essential.

1 X Television ( they have a tiny one of poor quality, so we have got a bigger one for the kids to see as currently the TV is 10 feet off the floor at least and they strain their necks to see it. Some of the children like Walter and his brother Danny hardly ever leave the orphanage, for kids like them its their only pleasure.

1 X Tumble dryer ( This will help girls with the huge amounts of laundry that they have to do. I have to say that two older lads, Luis and Jonas also help out with the washing)

1 X Computer monitor ( The one they have for the office looks about circa 1980 and has wide stripes going down the middle)

1 X CD/ Radio player for the children

I X kettle for the office ( They dont have one)

50 X plates

50 X cups

24 X spoons

20 X sets of duvet covers

1 X large casserole dish

2 X large flasks for water and mate

6 X tea towels

1 X large rubbish bin

1 X bathroon bin

1 X Iron and ironing board

Various quantities of clothes hangers, and some smaller items of kitchen equipment.

All in all we,ve spent about 1,300 pounds, the electical items came to just over 900 pounds. We decided not to buy toys as they get broken easily.

When we had finished Isabel who is in charge of the orphanage hugged me and kissed me and was so grateful. Its not usual for them to receive large donations. There is a British BBC journalist, who I think is the BBC,s correspondent in Caracas, Venezuela who has links to the orphanage and ran the London marathon to raise money for them but otherwise most of their funding comes from the local community. I have seen some clothes and other things dumped outside the orphanage on some mornings.

I am grateful to Mario, Isabel´s son who speaks good English for coming with me to translate and smooth the process. Mario explained that they receive no funding from the government. They do provide some food, rice, cereals and meat etc. None of the staff are paid a salary and all the helpers there work voluntarily. According to Mario I now have legend status. Only too happy to make a difference.

We took 5 young children to the cinema yesterday ( which took a lot of hard work to broker) to see Alvin y las ardillas 2 ( or Alvin and the Chipmunks 2). The total cost including bus fares, cinema tickets and drinks was about 20 pounds which came out of the donation pot. Theres not much left now after todays spending but may take some more again next week if we can. Even though the film was aimed at 5 year olds plus I quite enjoyed it, even if I couldnt understand much of the very intricate plot. The kids were as good as gold, the youngest boys being 6 ( Frederico) and (Aldo) 7, and they were much better behaved than some of the other children in the cinema. The bus journey back was incredibly frenetic and crowded, but again the kids took it in their stride. I have said before that the buses here are like rollercoasters and you have to hang on for dear life. They take off before you even have stepped off the bus and the driver doesnt even take your fare before hes off, dishing out change and tickets whilst he´s driving. All part of the fun.

So week three is drawing to an end. I have tomorrow to complete , then off of an epic 5 hour bus ride again to Puerto Iguazu. Should be an amazing weekend.

Adios for now.