Upper Left: Las Sirenitas: My girls group Upper Right: My Escojo Mi Vida Graduation cakeLower Left: My Escojo Mi Vida girls on their graduation day.  We did all the decorations and cake baking (from scratch) ourselves. 

It has been quite a long since I last posted a blog that I am not sure where to begin telling my story again.  I feel I should start with a brief synopsis of my experience thus far.  I am a youth, families, and community development volunteer here in the Dom. Republic.  I arrived here last August and I have been in my site for 7 months now.  My 3 month pre-service training, before I became an official PC volunteer, took place as soon as I arrived in country.  I wouldn’t ever want to go through training again, but it did serve its purpose and I got to know spend some quality time getting to know my fellow peace corps volunteers.  The training days were long, but it was over before I could figure if I was really ready to start. My group swore in right before Halloween 2008, and then off we each went to our appropriate communities to begin our 2 year journey…for better or for worse.  By that time, I was onto my third host family which I had to live with for 3 months before being allowed to move out on my own.  The first 3 months were a “get to know you” period, in which I had to complete a community diagnostic to present at my 3 month In-Service training (IST) with a community project partner.  I had a lot of new and exciting experiences during this time, but it was also a very difficult and shocking time for me.  I had a big bout of culture shock and homesickness.  I didn’t have the comfort of training where we were always surrounded by other volunteers.  Also, my customary living standards dropped drastically (no running water or indoor plumbing) and my communication with my family and friends back home required much more effort (low phone signal and no internet access and a good 30 minutes away from the nearest pueblo with access).  While, we had a great Thanksgiving feast and day lounging at the pool organized by Peace Corps volunteers, Christmas was uneventful and sad since Dominicans do not have any special celebrations for this day .  It was like any other day.  I passed New Year’s at the beach in Cabarete (a small tourist town up along the North coast) with other volunteers.  After a couple of months alone in our sites, we were all happy to get out and let loose.  Anyhow, I survived my first three months.  I had my week long IST up in the mountain area of La Vega.  I moved out as soon as I got back.  While I love my host family, and they have helped me in so many ways with my life here, I was ready to start my own little niche in the community and enjoy some privacy.  I packed up all my stuff, including my new puppy, Pafnuty and moved 5 minutes down in my own little wooden and tin roofed casita.  Pafnuty and I started carving out our little life together in Morquecho.  I loved having my own space, but work was still slow.  My project partners were nowhere to be found and my sense of my efficacy was waning.  So there continued my battle of figuring out ‘what the heck I am really doing here’ and how to be an effective volunteer.  My work has picked up quite dramatically, but in terms of my emotional state, I can’t decided if I am becoming more understanding of the Dominican culture and the difficulties of grasping it or am I just becoming more jaded by this experience all together.  

I live right next door to the school.  The kids are finishing up their exams this week and starting up their summer vacations.  I am glad and grateful to say that I will not mind this summer break.  I will get to enjoy more quiet mornings, and I won’t have to open my window to wide shots of kids peeing on the building right across the street from me ( I also live next to the school’s latrines).  Of course, summer break means some kids leave to the cities to visit families and a high risk of tedium setting in.  Luckily, my summer seems to starting off pretty well and I have been sufficiently keeping busy.  I have my ‘Escojo Mi Vida’ group of girls that will be graduating next week.  This is my adolescent healthy sexual decision making (pregnancy prevention, family planning, safe sex, etc.) and HIV/AIDS educational and prevention course where I train a group of kids to be the ‘multipliers’ of this information.  I ended up with all an all girls group, which I didn’t mind so much since it allowed for a more private place to discuss more feminine matters.  We still have to finish up our meetings this week and they have to take and pass an exam next week before they can graduate.  Afterwards, we will commence with a graduation ceremony with cake, guests, and certificates and then hopefully use the rest of summer to prepare them to reach out to other kids.  I have also been put in charge along with 2 other volunteers of planning our regional Escojo conference for the East region of the DR.  That date is set for the middle of July.  In two weekends from now, my Escojo group and I will be hosting an intercambio (exchange/get together) with the Escojo groups of two nearby volunteers.  We plan to do a small training workshop and then end with a trip to the river.  I think by the end of July, I will be all Escojo-ed out. I have also started my young girls club for 10-14 years old.  This is becoming my new favorite project so far.  I got the senator to help with material donations, and I passed out invitations to 10 girls.  We had our first meeting this past week, and only 6 came (on account of the rain and other issues), but the girls have already asked to have more meetings together.  I think I will leave it for once week though in case the excitement dies down.  I am trying to make my girls club kind of like a girls scouts, even though I was never one myself.  Most of my girls have never had a chance to participate in any type of organized regular activities, so I need to keep them motivated and moving.  Let me know if you have more experience or ideas to help us out.  As for other projects, there are a couple of potentials that are coming from the community in which I am helping out on the sidelines.  I was approached by one of the teachers in a nearby community to see if I can help out with the community’s interest in building and setting up a ‘Cuerpo de Bomberos’ (kind of like a fire station).  Another group is another interested in seeing the government will be able to help the community build a baseball/sports field to provide a center of diversion.  I am also working on Peace Corps projects outside of my site, including a diversity camp for August. I would love to do an art and math camp for kids 5-10 at the end of July, but I am still looking out for funding sources and people from my community to help out.  Those are my summer plans so far, including of course some get away traveling time and a fourth of July celebration in a beach town somewhere.  Still looking for visitors!     

I don’t mind sharing. In fact, I like offering my food to others. I even give it to the cat: if I happen to lift off the cover off my breakfast to discover it’s that piece of fried cheese that will not sit so well in my stomach so early in the morning. The idea of sharing my Godiva chocolate bars (which my mom has so kindly sent in the mail to me) brings great joy to me as I share it with my Dominican host family and friends, and hear them exclaim ‘how wonderful American chocolate is!’ or to watch how other volunteers eyes light up seeing something from home. I don’t mind that at all. However, I am not sure how I feel when I was sitting in an internet café the other day, snacking on a granola bar, when a little girl (who I do not know) came up and demanded that I give her some of what I had. Even though I had finished the bar at that point leaving only the wrapper, she still insisted on taking the wrapper out of my bag, as she proceeded to lick it while walking away. A few minutes later, she returned and handed me back the wrapper. Compartiring to its finest.

It seems a little too American of me to judge what is or is not appropriate in the actions of a little girl who just wanted a little piece of my food. Americans are somewhat infamous for their individualistic (perhaps selfish), push and shove, “this is mine” attitude (or maybe those are just New Yorkers…but then again, almost everyone here thinks all Americans are from Nueva York), but this will not hold up well here in the DR. I should have premeditated the situation beforehand (before deciding to open that piece of chewy bar in a small public setting). Men are always offering me little packets of galletas or Halls (don’t ask why its Halls…a favorite here), so I should have offered that bar up to everyone or keep it hidden in my bag until I was alone (but I was starving?). Now, when it comes to personal belongings and space…I am more hesitant. Although, I will squish over and crunch in my seat to squeeze one more person onto an already crowded and over capacitated guagua, or hand over (reluctantly) my belongings for others to prestar (hoping it will be returned), I still hold on to my American beliefs that I enjoy having my personal space and my belongings with me…at all times.

After seeing Los Vasquez, Las Pajas, and today Magua where another Peace Corps volunteer lives, I think I safely say Morquecho has a lot more to offer. I am much more happy and proud of my living situation after seeing where the others live. With the new technology center opening eventually, a clinic, and the mayor’s township located right in Morquecho (along with our very own discotecque(, we could be considered the downtown hotspot of the municipality. Of course, there is still poverty, crime, broken families, and drugged up corners, but what downtown area doesn’t have that. When it comes to my host family’s house, what can I say except that it’s not too shabby (although the Magua volunteer has running water and full phone signal, hmm).

I swear everyday has been a new surprise thus far. When I think of what another boring campo day could bring, someone seems to step in and whisk me off to another activity. Today, the community’s youth group JUDEMAPA had planned a jira to the pool. I didn’t want to go, especially after yesterday’s upset. Chisme (Gossip) is huge here, except I hate it when it happens when you are right there. Before I go into that story, the pool party ended up being cancelled since one of the group member’s father died. While a death is never a fortunate thing (for most), I found it somewhat helpful in getting out of the pool trip. What makes the day even luckier, I didn’t have to spend all day at the funeral since once I got home in the morning, I had a moto waiting to take me to Hato Mayor to meet with my NGO for an emergency meeting.

Many volunteers have complained of chisme in their community. It is not too bad, until it happens to you. I realized people were going to talk about me, since I was the new (and different) person in the community. I should preface this occasion in my storytelling that I have been experiencing many ups and downs as I settle into my site, especially this first week. Refer to my other entries. At this point, my mood can quickly change and I am vulnerable to anything said about me. Yesterday, my mom took me to see a sick man (not that same man that died later that night whose funeral was today). I try to sit awkwardly there with the group of strangers who are gathered to feed the sick old man. Then, I start to get the questions if I am “china”. I politely try to explain there happens to be another country in Asia called Cambodia where my parents are from, but I also happen to be an American. “But you look China”… After my attempted explanation, up walks this obnoxious grown man who chooses to greet me with “Hola, China”, as if he knows me and that happens to me my name. I was so flustered,since I couldn’t believe that someone would really approach another person like that who they didn’t know, and perhaps I hadn’t heard correctly. My host mom tried to help by whispering that I was an American. This was not the tipping point of the day, however.

Later in the evening, the youth group was supposed to have a meeting. Go figure, the president goes missing. Although, no one was really worried about him not showing, but rather that another male group member was not present and thus the meeting couldn’t happen. While I waited around, thinking I should attempt to compartir before heading home, one kid tries to call me china once again. Then, one tiguere decides he can joke with me. He wanted to know if I wanted to go for a ride on his motorcycle, but when I refused, he decides to think I couldn’t go unless I went to get my helmet (PC rule that PCVs must wear helmets when riding bicycles and motos). He thought it was funny that I should have my helmet at all times in case I happen to trip and fall (stupid helmets). After that doesn’t work, he tried to ask if I would be going to the pool today, and throw in that there wouldn’t be any alcohol so I would be able to go (I don’t drink in my site as a personal choice since I would be working with youths-but tell them PC prohibits drinking in our sites). I coyly replied, “ya no sabes, el cuerpo de paz no me permite a nadar tambien” (or what I secretly wished I would have said if I wasn’t so mad at that point). If not to make that situation any worse, my host sister decides to pull the group of people aside, while I am sitting right there, and talk about what I do and don’t do. She brings up what I told my host mom about how I like places where I can talk with others, not places just for drinking and dancing (I am supposed to be a role model, duh). She even looks back at me thinking I couldn’t notice her talking about me. I couldn’t stand anyone at that point, (ready to disown this place, and break down in tears at the same time) especially my host sister. This is the 21 year old who thinks there are only 5 continents. I decided to walk home when it was all over, not even looking back when she called me to wait for her. I think she got the hint.

To round out the rest of the today, the volunteer in Magua and I met with our NGO’s director on our project plan for the community. I am assigned to do more work in Los Vasquez (my previous site) in addition to Morquecho. We found out we will be getting free transportation to come in every Monday for meetings. Also, I will have access to free internet in the office along with any supplies that I may need. Not too shabby. Later that evening, asI got back to my house, a group of ninos stopped by to visit me. A little surprised to have any visitors, and a little annoyed that they were some pesky kids hanging around uninvited, I was not so welcoming at first. All I wanted to do was to rest that evening. But it turned out; they were some pretty smart and fun kids that have now promised to go running with me tomorrow evening.

I have decided to post my list of my goals for my site projects in hopes of getting some support. I will appreciate any input and ideas. I am also on the look out for funding/grants or people to talk to that have experience in these types of projects. I am also throwing in some personal goals for cultural growth in my community during these next two years. I will be adding and changing to this list as I get further along into my 2 years.

Morquecho is a campo in the province of Hato Mayor in the East region of the DR. There are about 1,000 people or around 300 families in the area. There is already a youth group formed, although only recently formed (3 months) that is comprised of about 20 members (ages 18-35). There is also a Sociedad de Padres (Parent’s clubs) which is only 1 month old, as I found out yesterday. They have a cancha (court for sports) which is in the school’s backyard but only 50% complete. There seems to be a lack of motivation to complete the project.

The ayuntamiento (town hall) for all of Mata Palacio is also located in Morquecho. They have a brand newly constructed, but not yet completed (work has stopped on the project) technology center right in the community that has been commissioned by the First Lady all around the country. While I have asked everyone around, including the mayor, no one seems to know when it will be up and running. Next step is the first lady herself.

· They have 2 sessions of salas de tareas (tutoring programs), one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Classes are only half days here (3 hours long).

Project Ideas: (Thanks to Shilpa for helping me start this list)

Community:

- Find funding to finish the Cancha in the school

- Then, start a sports team (Volleyball, Basketball)

- Get the technology center up and running with a schedule of hours of operations.

- Give a charla on cleaning up the community (I have been told there is a trash pick up system through the ayuntamiento, but I haven’t seen any public garbage cans and people just throw the trash anywhere)

- Garden club

- Ama de Casas club (Mothers as head of household)

- Open a library in the community and get books donated

- Investigate funds

Activities:

- Start an ‘Escojo Mi Vida’ group

- English classes (not really into this one, but people are asking for it)

- Get younger kids involved with the current youth group

- Get more parents to join the school’s “PTA”

- Sports Club

- Art club

- Book Club

- Club de Chicas (girl’s club)

- Get resources/support for grandparents raising grandchildren (a lot of parents leave to bigger cities to work)

- More service learning projects with the youth

- Bring in business classes

- Storytime with the kids—in conjunction with a new library

- Drama/Acting club

- Registration campaign drives (to get cedulas/identification cards for those over 18 years of age)

Grants/Supplies (Looking for people in the States to help with this):

- Books for any age (in Spanish)

- English teaching materials

- Flashcards for math and reading

- $ for technology center

- Sports Equipment money

- Yoga mats donation, video instructions

- Art supplies

- Seeds for garden club

- Yarn/sewing material for knitting club

Personal Goals:

§ Find and fix up my own house in the community

§ Learn to live in a campo

§ Try to pick up some Dominican recipes

§ Learn to do laundry by hand

§ Learn to dance the bachata and meringue like Dominicans do

§ Compartir with my community on a daily basis, but also take time for myself

§ Accomplish some of the projects above

§ Learn to be patient and deal with loneliness

§ Learn more Spanish

§ Get over my fear of knives and learn to use a machete to chop things down

§ Get a pet and take care of it

§ Read as many books as I can

§ Learn as much as I can about my community

Crashing boredom; endless ideas for projects that may or may not work out; wavering dedication, motivation, that changes throughout the minute/day; a sour look on campo life; wondering if any of this matters, if I can really make a difference; craving normalcy and routine; missing home, family, friends, Felipe, spicy food, coffee shops, showers, internet; constantly worrying about my health and if the untreated bath water will give me an infection; suffering from multiple bug bites of all sorts; culture shock; starting to love life and believing in it; enjoying new surprises everyday; enjoying rides on motos through sugar cane fields and palm trees; happy with learning more Spanish, but frustrated I still can’t understand and communicate fluently; sad that I don’t really have a friend in this campo; angry that people are chism

I took another motorcycle ride this lovely campo evening (starting to really enjoy them). This time, Frances (who works and lives in the community) took me to visit my previously assigned site 20 minutes from Morquecho—Los Vasquez. Upon first impressions, I am happy to say I am glad to be in Morquecho! Despite all my complaints of life in the campo during my first week here (second, if you include the site visit), I am starting to appreciate it more everyday. It really is quite tranquil and breathtaking to be surrounded by palm trees and fields of sugarcane.

Los Vasquez, in my opinion, is a little less beautiful than Morquecho. Perhaps since Morquecho is my site now, I am a little more partial to it. LV is definitely much poorer and needs more work, and which a volunteer would be of great help. It occupies only one long dirt road. Frances took me to meet the host family I would have been assigned to if I lived there. They are somewhat similar to my family now, an Adventists couple on their second marriage. They occupy a cute little two story house (quite unusual for a campo of that size or any campo), where my bedroom would have been the second floor. I wouldn’t have minded that house that much. They told me they still have the room free in case Peace Corps decide to send another volunteer. I hated disappointing them that the next group of youth volunteers wouldn’t arrive for a while, and who knows if LV would get another volunteer.

As I am writing this, I have to keep checking up to the ceiling to make sure the GIANT spider hasn’t decided to move or fall into my room!

Having met all these different host families and after hearing other volunteers’ host family situation, I am grateful for all my living situations thus far. Even more, I am really content with my host family in Morquecho. All three families have fed me well and given me a pretty comfortable and spacious room to sleep. While the first host family in Santo Domingo was wonderful to me, I never got a chance to really get close to my doña. We were always on the go and my language was not very good at that point (still isn’t that great, but I can say it has gotten a lot better). Also, the awkward transition of learning the new culture, speaking the language, and adjusting to different living conditions didn’t leave me with much energy left over to really compartir with that family. I guess I didn’t make as great an effort as I should have (I always had other volunteers around me, also to share with).

The second family, my doña Nelly, her husband Gago, and their 4 kids was really a great family. I think there were just too many kids, no matter how great, for me to function and share a household with. I was always escaping to talk to the other volunteers or would retreat into my room to read. Also, while Nelly was wonderfully kind and warm hearted, we just did not have as much to talk about and conversations would be quite awkward sometimes. Therefore, I am really content with my family now.

I would describe my family now as very tranquila, yet somewhat kooky. Mirian, 43, and Enrique, 78 are both Adventists who do not dance, drink, or wear makeup (mainly applies to Mirian) because of their religion. Yet despite these religious differences, I feel so relaxed around them. I feel comfortable sitting with them at any time of the day, and no pressure if I don’t have anything to say. While are conversations are not all that deep or thought provoking quite yet, they are great to sit with. Mirian is more of the kooky one. She loves to tell me the same stories over and over, which I kind of like since I can practice how to respond in Spanish the next time she brings up the same story. I swear she can read my mind sometime. I was thinking about how nice it would be to have a refreshing coke during one of these days, and not of nowhere for dinner this evening, she asked if I liked refrescos (soda, pop) and bought me one. The other time, I was thinking how much better it would be if I could get rid of the mattress pad on top of my bed. Before I even said anything to her, she approached me about taking it off if it bothered me.

There is also Mirian’s adorable five year son, Jaboa who lives with us. While Jaboa has been pretty shy around me, he is definitely opening up to me more. Life is slow now, but it is somewhat nice to move from the quick pace of training to the down time of camponess.

OBÁMANOS!

Congrats to Obama as our next President of the United States! My host mom started cheering with me early this morning, telling me his numbers were arriba last night. Besides the exciting Democratic presidential win, I did not want to do much this morning. I didn’t want to sit in on another uneventful session of the Espacios Para Crecer (extra tutoring class for kids) full of screaming little children. But to my surprise, the little kids came looking for me at 9am. They told me there was only one facilitator that day since Reyna quit and the other one didn’t show up. I guess the one facilitator wanted me to go and help so sent the kids after me. I was a little upset the kids were allowed to wander to my house during their homework time. To persuade them to go back, I tempted them with some chocolate my mom had sent and that I had stashed in my room. Luckily it worked, only to realize as they were walking away what a mistake that was.

An hour later, the same group came back with more kids to ask for some dulces. I had to tell them I was out and that they had to go back to class. The teacher must have been desperate. She had given them a 20 minute recess which allowed them to wander to my house again. I figured it was my time to go to the center with them or they would never leave my porch. The rest of the morning session was not too bad. I made little conversations with the kids and engaged them in some math problems. I am glad I can hold their attention for that. I even had them go around and say what they wanted to be when they were older. When I told I wanted to be a lawyer, one of the 5 year girls responds “para defender la gente” (To defend the people)! She is probably my favorite. Despite all the cuteness, the kids still hit and get into fights at least 3 times per session. I think some discipline is in order. I also can’t help but become annoyed when they all try to touch my skin and play with my hair. I can’t help but wonder what I could catch from the stuff growing on their open wounds on their legs. Oh, the germs! I should not being thinking this way right. Precious kids aren’t they. I am little nervous that all the facilitators will disappear soon.

I went on another walk with the kids to see where some of the others lived. Made some awkward conversations with some of the families, and then decided it was too hot to continue. Before heading back, the kids decided to show me the “crazy” lady who was on the ground by the colmado. I recognized her to be this person from the Adventist church that I attended with my host mom during my site visit. She was a little crazy in my mind, having seen her try to throw a piece of metal at a person. She appeared to be sleeping, but had some blood on her face. I wasn’t sure if I should pull out my first aid training that Peace Corps equipped us with, or try to call for help—whoever that may be (911 does not exist her). When I went off trying to find signal on my phone to call, one man decided to stop and ask me to be his girlfriend. When I refused and told him about the woman on the ground situation, he told me not to worry. Apparently, she is an epileptic and it tends to happen all the time. I went home and questioned my host mom who told me not to worry. I figured it would be best to give Peace Corps a call about these things. I also wanted to tell them about the machete fight a few days ago where one of the men lost an arm, cut across the back and neck, just to let them know Morquecho is not so tranquila a place all the time.

It has only been four days since I have been in my site, and already I am bored and missing home. Today is Election Day in the States and I am completely missing out on one of the biggest events to come. I can’t even discuss politics with anyone since Peace Corps prohibits us from getting involved with politics with host country nationals. My phone barely gets signal from my house so I can’t really call anyone and we didn’t have electricity for a few days now, so my battery is down to its last bar. So by the time I get to post this on the internet, I will hopefully find out who the new President and vice president of the United States are.

So far, I don’t have any type of schedule on even anyone to really tell me what to do in my site. My host family is very tranquila. While I really like my host family because of the peace and quiet, they are church going Adventists who go to bed around 8pm. I haven’t mind this so much since it allows me a lot more privacy at night. My host mom is 43 and my host dad is 78 (her mom is 73) and there is one 5 year boy in our house. I have my first latrine, which is somewhat better off than the rest of the community since it comes with an actual toilet seat rather than just the hole. I don’t mind it so much. On the other hand, running water is a problem. We basically don’t have any. My host mom usually goes scouting for water from the llave down the street. She often takes the horse out with canteens dangling from its side to hold the water back. The past few days when we didn’t have any lights, water was also no where to be found. Today, she spent running around looking for water. At one point, she came in with a bucket on top of her head telling me “llegó el agua”.

Other than sitting around reading books, I tried to get a schedule going of things I could do. Since my host is farther down the street from the community, I am somewhat isolated from the rest of the people. So early Monday morning, I decided with or without my project partners, I would go asking around for community meetings I could attend. I decided my first stop would be the director of the school. However, when I arrived, there was a big lock on the gate that barred me from entering. I stood there thinking how foolish a foreigner I must look at that point trying to pick at the fence for another way in. Luckily, it only a few minutes before a man helped me along (my strangeness comes in handy for attracting attention). At the same time, my project partner shows up out of nowhere and accompanies me inside the school.

I didn’t really have a plan at that point on what I wanted to ask the director. I knew he could not really answer all my questions and I was right. He directed me to one of the community leaders instead. So off Eddi (project partner) and I went to talk to Pola, the president of the Sociedad de Padres. I think this is beginning stage of my Peace Corps experience is probably the most awkward. I barely have any idea on what to do in the community, and it seems neither does Eddi, and having to sit awkwardly at meetings and unable to understand everything that is being said still. After we found Pola (at her house, in her towel, and cooking), I suggested we find my other project partner, Reyna, so all three of us can finally talk together about what we are supposed to do.

Eddi suggested we take his moto since Reyna lived farther away. I had to run home first to pick up my Peace Corps issued helmet that has become an interesting point of discussion for the community members. My means of transportation was not, however, weatherproof. It started raining midway into the ride, where I wasn’t sure what to do, except to say “Esta bien, yo tengo mi sombrillo” and pop open my umbrella over Eddi’s and my head. On the ride over, I discovered my little town of Morquecho was a lot bigger than it seemed from the center, but the houses were more spread out. Once we got to Reyna’s house, I did most of the talking and questioning. I still don’t think the three of us really know what we are supposed to be doing. At least we have 3 months to do something about it.

My first three months are supposed to be spent doing my community diagnostic. Most of the other volunteers told us that the first month or so is usually spent visiting houses and drinking little sugary Dominican cafecitos. Aftere Reyna’s house, Eddi offered to show me his house which was outside of Morquecho, past fields of sugar cane, and trees that transport you somewhere else, and up a little hill. I met and talked with Eddi’s mom, found out his dad is the mayor of the province of Mata Palacio (which includes Morquecho) and the man I met during my visit two weeks ago but did not realize until now was Eddi’s father. Eddi served me up some coconut knocked down from the trees in his yard and gathered up some chinas (name for oranges here) to take back home with me. Not bad for a morning where I had no plans.

As I am finishing this blog up, I pause to notice little specs of blood in several spots on my legs. You can’t imagine all the strange little creatures that roam around in the campo. Though ants are not that strange, I picked up my laptop today to find tons of little ants all over it. Have you heard of crotch eating ants? One of the volunteers warned us against leaving our dirty panties lying around because the ants will get to them. Too bad I don’t always have enough water to do laundry sometimes. Oh, and I get to pee in a chamber pot at night.

What a crazy and absolutely exhausting day. Got up at 5:30am after a night of little sleep since there was no electricity to power the fan. We then left around 6:30 to get downtown by 9am. We had our session on settling into our sites in the morning and then headed to the PC office for lunch. Later in the evening, six of us decided to take a trip to Carrefour (French owned grocery store) before heading home. And that was the start of the transportation adventure.

We had to catch a guagua (public buses) down the Avenida and hop on another guagua to go down the highway. While waiting, a guagua pulls up and the cobrador (money collector) tells us that he is heading the way we want...WRONG. When its too late to get back off, we realize we were being lied to and were taken in the opposite direction. It turns down the street instead and heads in the direction of further downtown Santo Domingo. Upset and sweaty, we got off and still had to catch a ride back home.

We were let off at the corner, so we decided to hop in this rickety 9 or 10 passenger van. It was a little crowded with the few people already on there and then the additional 6 of us. Just imagine a really funky broken down little van with a sinking floor. A little ways into the drive, one of the passengers starts arguing with the driver. He finally demands to be let out and waits outside for his change. The driver waits impatiently in the traffic, gets frustrated, and speeds off and stops at the corner. He gets out, while we are are still sitting in the van waiting, and exchanges a few bad words with the man and comes back. So off we go again. Meanwhile, the door of the van hangs open since it doesn't close. One of the volunteers is sitting near the edge hanging on for dear life , while at this point we are cruising down the highway with 9 people in the car.

All of a sudden, the driver decides to stop and we were unsure why. We panic when we realize its to pick up more people! Not 1 or even 2, but 5 more people jump in with 2 people hanging out the side of the door, literally! We stop again to let one man off, although no one moves to let him off since they don't want to lose their seats. And at the same time, more people decide to jump in to the already super crowded bus. There were at least 17 people at that point in that van. Packed in like sardines is an understatement.

What made it worse about the whole thing was that we overpaid for the transportation. Gas prices had gone down that day, so transportation cost also went down. The ladies that came on after us demanded to only pay 20 pesos while we handed over 25 earlier. Not that much when it comes to dollar value, but the principle of it matters. Plus, we are volunteers and need all the extra pesos we can. Of course, this doesn't happen daily (although being squished on public transportation is relatively normal). Most passengers on the guaguas are great at helping you if you seem lost though, even if the cobrador or chofer are not (and the pickpocketers, of course). Gringos' life in the DR for you there.

Thanks to Lari's suggestion, I figured I should update my blog. I thought I would have more time to update this thing, but it's going to have to be more of a once a month deal (if I am lucky).

I have officially spent the entire month of September in the Dr. Since my last blog, I have relocated northwest of Santo Domingo in the interior of the country, in the town of Constanza. Constanza offers quite a change from Santo Domingo, with mountains all around and a cooler climate. I am living in a little barrio known as El Chavon (named after a former brothel now turned hotel). I have since been living with a new host family with 5 children. While I have my own room, about 6-7 family members share the other room. I have been lucky that the other trainees live very close...less than 2-3 mins apart. In a few weeks, I won't have that luxury.

I have been working with a couple of other trainees with an enviromental youth group, Brigada Verde. We are getting ready to do a mural project with them for the end of our training during a week of 'Celebrando de Juventud'. Outside of youth group meetings and charlas, we are working on a sexual health presentation for a local high school. So with my shaky level of Spanish, I will describing how to use a condom to a youth of Dominican high schoolers.

School is a big problem here. Kids only go to school for a few hours a day, if its open. last week alone, classes were cancelled for 3 days because of a teachers strike. A lot of older kids can be found in the lower classes since passing the 3 rd grade is a huge problem. But more to come on this later...

As for other cultural adjustments, I think food is one of the biggest adjustments for me. I find most of the food to be somewhat bland for my taste buds, full of starches, and loaded with oil. I will have to break down soon and invest in a bottle of hot sauce. However, I do enjoy a nice bowl of Sancocho--typical soup dish with viveras and carne. Oh, even though this blog is named after a typical Dominican dish Mangu (mashed platano, potatoes, and butter) I have discovered I don't really like it.

Another huge adjustment is living with host families. I have a solid 3 more months, at the very least, of living with a host family. while my 2 families so far have been good, I miss my own space and privacy. Also, my definition of cleanliness does not quite fit in with my host families' definition. However, it is amazing how sharing Dominicans are. Also, people are always willing to help you out.

Last week was the Patronales festivals. Bachata and Merengue musicians came to play in the park. I was able to go see Omega (famous mambo singer) one night, but I don't think I am a fan. Also, the crowd was full of local tigueres which just did not make dancing fun.

For some exciting news, our youth APCD came in last week to do a mini presentation on our future site assignments. My site will be located in the eastern part of the country near Hato Mayor. So far from what I can find out, it is one of the poorest and hottest region in the DR. Ironically, along the coast of the eastern region, all the top tourist spots and resorts are located for those wanting to visit me.

I have 2 short weeks left in Constanza before I go back to the capital for swearing in and moving to my site. I am very excited to be getting my cellphone shortly. More to come later.

This is going to be a very quick update, since internet use is very limited here on my PC budget. I am somewhat settled in with my host family. I am currently staying with my host mom, Iris and her 9 year daughter, Michelle. However, her mother and aunts each have a house on the street where other volunteers are staying. I normally take my meals at her mother´s house with another volunteer. It has been lucky to have other volunteers in my barrio.

It has been 4 days since I arrived, but it seems much longer. I learned how to put up my first mosquito net on my first day in country, through trial and error. My host mom put it up for me the second time, luckily. It is extremely hot and humid here, so it will be a challenge to survive the days in the heat. Most of my days are spent in training from 8 until 5, but we get out earlier on Saturdays. Sundays are free to spend with host families, which we are encouraged to do. I spend most of my evenings sitting on the porch with my host family and other volunteers. Dominicans love to sit for hours and hours just talking on their porch. Most porches have 4 chairs set out for others to come by and join in the conversation. We have been told the national sport here is chisme or gossip. While the national religion is baseball.

It will take me a while to email everyone back. I have lots more to tell everyone, so write me if you want to know more. Miss you all.

1st day:

Some of yesterday's unexpected events upon arrival to Miami left me completely exhausted at the end of the day that I have not been able to collect my thoughts until today. I arrived at the hotel to discover that the electricity was out due to a storm from the previous day, which meant no registration. We weren't able to check into our rooms, when all I really wanted to do was rid of the 80lbs or so of luggage that I had on me. Then, we found out the meeting room for PC was on the 20th floor with no working elevators. The humidity and heat wasn't helping either. But we all made it up the flights of stairs (some twice) and dripping with sweat by the end. All part of the PC experience ;)!

Orientation was pretty much as expected. I assume its a good way to make sure 50 (how many in the my DR group) Americans don't make a fool of themselves upon arriving in the DR for the first time. We have strict guidelines on how to dress professionally when we first meet our host country director and PCDR trainer. In orientation, we had introductions and went over general anxieties and aspirations for the PC. I guess it was a good way for me to take a minute to go over my own personal goals for PC. It would be great to not have to translate all my thoughts in my head before I can actually say them out loud. Another goal would be to leave at the end of all of this with a feeling that I actually accomplished something...I would love to start a new youth program that would have the potential to be carried out by future volunteers.

Everyone was given a $140 allowance from PC to cover costs for the few days we spend in Miami. However, to my screw up, I managed to only retrieve $100 In the end, we all are going from getting that to receiving the equivalent of $1.50/day once we are in the DR. Try living on that in the U.S.

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2nd Day:

It is somewhat surreal that I have finally left home after months of anticipation for the Peace Corps, but I'm not in the Dominican Republic until tomorrow. It still hasn't really hit me yet that 27 months of my life will be spent over there come tomorrow. In some ways, it's better not to think about the length of the stay, but simply taking it one day at a time.

Our schedule tomorrow is to check-out of the hotel at 6am. However, our flight won't leave until around 12:30pm, and then its only a 2.5 hr flight from Miami to the DR. Our luggage will be taken to our host families, while we will all be shuffled off to a retreat for vaccinations and language assessment for the first night.

I probably won't be able to update or email anyone anytime soon once we get into the country. Communication is supposed to be limited during training (not that it will be any better once we are on site).

So until next blogging....

Love,

Liz

In order to avoid those bulky mass email updates, I am going to try to keep an updated blog! Also, this would serve as a good way for me to record my adventures. Feel free to post any comments or shoot me an email.

About 6 days left until I leave for 3 days of orientation in Miami and then off to the DR on the 21st. I don't really have any big fears at this moment, but I hope I can get along with the other volunteers and hopefully make some good friends. sigh.

I still have some paperwork left to finish up and bring with me to Miami. Packing hasn't been all that bad. I have one bag down and one more to go. I am only allowed two bags that can not exceed a combined weight of 80lbs. I think I may have overdone it on the clothes, but try having to pack for two years (not to mention women need more things--bras, feminine hygiene products, etc...). Luckily, my shoe size and clothes are on the smaller end so I can get more into my bags :). The hard part though is that I am going to have to carry whatever I bring myself, at least for the first three months during training and traveling, until I actually settle into my site.

I have not been given my exact assignment or location in the DR yet, and I won't find out until after training. From the handbook PC has sent us, I have a somewhat general idea of what my situation in the DR could be like. I am going to be training right on the outskirts of the capital (Santo Domingo) and living with a host family. My sector of work will be in Youth and Community development. As PC states, the main purpose of my work "is to promote the empowerment of young people and have a positive impact on their personal lives and that of their communities"....and did I mention I do not like kids. haha gotcha.

Love to all my friends! Keep in Touch.