Immersion Experience: Tijuana

DAY 4: TAKING ON FRIENDSHIP PARK

By Riley Lukanic and Monserrat Cholico
A day gardening at the border. 
Today we had another amazing breakfast with Caro and Leo and then got ready to go to Friendship Park with Ricárbol. He also took time to explain to us some of the history behind the park; it is a beautiful area right beside the border where everyone is welcome to come together. It originally was a park meant to be able to maintain relationships with friends and family, and “bridge the gap” between the two sides. People could use this to see family through the wall and even make new friendships. Unfortunately, the US side is not accessible anymore, but that didn’t stop Ricárbol and others from maintaining the beautiful park on the Mexico side. The small little area is filled with murals, benches, plants, and pictures of those who have been deported. We got the opportunity to spend the morning cleaning up the area to make it as beautiful as it should be. We did everything from hanging new peace flags, picking up trash, and weeding. We continued the day by working on Spanish by ordering lunch at restaurants close to Friendship Park.

After our lunch break, we got another chance to hear someone’s story. Efren is a director of Commission of Refugee Aid. This means he helps refugees from all over the world in Tijuana with all their needs. Efren discussed what it means to be a refugee and the current status of people seeking asylum. It’s safe to say we all were so impressed and inspired by the work Efren does. We ended our night by reading a poem as a group about the border, reflected, and even wrote our own verses creating a poem called “The Walk along Absurdity” filled with lines expressing what the border is to us. We are very excited for tomorrow!
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