Tuesday, March 27, 2007
you guys rock
Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's been writing comments for me on the blog! I love reading them and they always bring a smile to my face! (special shout out to you, michael bloom, who is aparently my most devoted friend)
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Longest blog posting ever
Well, it has been quite a week. We continued with Spanish classes, our internships, watched some movies in Spanish, went to the local market (where I bought a useless 60s wallet that I just couldn’t pass up- not quite sure why), heard from some more volunteers, and I even played scrabble in Spanish. I will try and focus on some of the more interesting aspects of the week though. (Not that my 45 pt. word in scrabble didn’t make my day, but you probably aren’t very interested…)
On Wednesday we visited some bateys nearby. “Batey” is the name given to a community where the people who cut sugar cane live. There can be many separate bateys just a few kilometers from each other and some are much poorer than others. (I think the ones we visited are not considered to be that poor.) A lot of the cane is owned by a company called Central Romana and entire bateys either work for El Romana or for smaller, private owners. Some of the El Romana bateys have houses built by the company for the workers. Entire families live in one room “houses” with no kitchens and communal bathrooms outside. Women cook over fires which hurts their lungs and children sit outside chewing on cane. Although I’ve never seen the US south, it seems reminiscent of the south and slave quarters in many ways. The bateys where the caña is owned by smaller, private owners (and also some of El Romana) have houses that would not even been deemed acceptable sheds in the US. Many of the people who cut cane and live in the bateys are Haitian. Haitians cross the border to come to the DR because things are better here. It used to be that most worked cutting cane but now the production of cane is decreasing and more and more are working in construction. Many of the Haitians still speak Creole and it is interesting to hear the way they speak Spanish. Like any country with immigration issues, many people here view Haitians in a negative light, fear them, and define themselves in contrast to Haitians. For instance, Dominicans don’t say that they are black, but rather that they are “indio oscuro,” because they associate Haitians with blackness. And looking around the bateys, I must admit that one of my first thoughts was how much blacker the people were than in most towns; people whose skin was so black it almost looked purple. At the batey La Higuera we saw the way they cut cane, how the oxen pull big trains/carts of it to the weighing station, and how they weigh it. They pay workers 80-100 pesos per ton of cane (about $2.50-$3). It is very hard work and many of the workers don’t use gloves so the cane cuts up their hands. We also visited a school and talked to the students and teachers there. The school only goes to 8th grade and in order to go to high school they would have to come into El Seibo but it is a long trip and you have to have papers (which some don’t) to attend. I think it was really good for us to see the bateys and see such a different, yet integral, part of Dominican society. At the end, I caught myself thinking that I was glad I would most likely not have to live in such poverty. Then I felt guilty for even thinking such thoughts.
On another note, I had an interesting night last night. When I got back to my room and changed, I saw a large spider that surprised me but that I knew I could deal with. Then I turned around and saw a rat/mouse run across the floor. That was not as okay with me. I got in bed, tucked in my mosquito net, and tried to forget about it. I was not successful. I could see the rat running around and could hear it jolt across the floor and rustle through what I imaged to be my clothes. I pictured it eating my undies (I had heard stories about this and also about a rat who scratched up a volunteer's face in a duel) and envisioned waking up to an underwear disaster. I knew it was irrational to be so afraid of it, but I couldn’t help it. Then, I felt something beneath me. The rat had somehow managed to get on the underside of the mattress and I could feel it walk around. That kind of freaked me out. Then, I saw a dark spot on my mosquito net and realized the rat had climbed up the net and was now sitting at the top of it, weighing it down. If it weren’t for the net, the rat would have been crawling on me. I paused, momentarily terrified, then did what anybody would do and kicked it off with one good whack. The rat flew across the room, landed on the floor, and proceeded to go about it’s business. I noticed that it had tried to leave but couldn’t make it out under the door. I braved the world outside my net and opened the door. After about another hour of hide and seek where I laid curled up in a ball afraid the rat might make it inside my net somehow, I think I saw the rat leave. I gave the rat one point for making me miserable and only getting 3 hours of sleep, but myself one point for getting rid of it. Then I wondered how I will ever make it two years. I might have to get a cat.
And lastly, a side rant about life here. It is so interesting to be in place where you stand out so obviously and get treated differently because of it. People pay attention to me- both in positive and negative ways. For instance, people usually feel comfortable striking up a conversation with me but I also get hissed at and stared at all the time. (Side story- I went to this exercise class once that turned out to be no good, but ever since people ask me why I haven’t been back. So, the other day someone was hissing at me but I decided to ignore it because I was sick of it. It continued and eventually the person threw a rock at me to get my attention! Seriously, did a guy just throw a rock at me to get my attention? Yes, indeed he did. It turned out to be the exercise teacher who then proceeded to question me on why I hadn’t been back to his class and let me know that it was free for me to visit. Sweet.) Anyways, I never know if things happen by coincidence or if they happen because of who I am. For instance, would the band of motorcycles have pulled up in that exact spot even if I wasn’t there or did they pull up alongside me solely because of my presence? It’s hard to know whether you’re being conceited/paranoid or if you’re being naïve by thinking these things happen all the time and it doesn’t matter. Knowing that you will spend two years like this, trying to make this country your home but always being the foreigner, the outsider who will never fit in and will never truly understand what it feels like to be a Dominican…it’s hard to know this and be comfortable with the concept. But, there is nothing I can do to change that. I will always be different. I was also taking to my technical trainer about how obvious the difference is when it comes to money. I will always have a safety net that I can fall into if something were to happen, will always be able to buy food-even if my money runs out before the end of the month, and will be able to receive medical care. It is quite different to chose to be poor for a short period of time than to be poor for your whole life, living day to day with no vision of future possibilities. Just something I will have to keep in mind as I go through my service.
Anyways, I will end my posting before I cease to make any sense at all and before I lose too many of my readers. I hope you are all doing well, enjoying life, and eating some sushi in honor of me. I miss you, think of you, and can’t wait to hear from you. I send my love.
On Wednesday we visited some bateys nearby. “Batey” is the name given to a community where the people who cut sugar cane live. There can be many separate bateys just a few kilometers from each other and some are much poorer than others. (I think the ones we visited are not considered to be that poor.) A lot of the cane is owned by a company called Central Romana and entire bateys either work for El Romana or for smaller, private owners. Some of the El Romana bateys have houses built by the company for the workers. Entire families live in one room “houses” with no kitchens and communal bathrooms outside. Women cook over fires which hurts their lungs and children sit outside chewing on cane. Although I’ve never seen the US south, it seems reminiscent of the south and slave quarters in many ways. The bateys where the caña is owned by smaller, private owners (and also some of El Romana) have houses that would not even been deemed acceptable sheds in the US. Many of the people who cut cane and live in the bateys are Haitian. Haitians cross the border to come to the DR because things are better here. It used to be that most worked cutting cane but now the production of cane is decreasing and more and more are working in construction. Many of the Haitians still speak Creole and it is interesting to hear the way they speak Spanish. Like any country with immigration issues, many people here view Haitians in a negative light, fear them, and define themselves in contrast to Haitians. For instance, Dominicans don’t say that they are black, but rather that they are “indio oscuro,” because they associate Haitians with blackness. And looking around the bateys, I must admit that one of my first thoughts was how much blacker the people were than in most towns; people whose skin was so black it almost looked purple. At the batey La Higuera we saw the way they cut cane, how the oxen pull big trains/carts of it to the weighing station, and how they weigh it. They pay workers 80-100 pesos per ton of cane (about $2.50-$3). It is very hard work and many of the workers don’t use gloves so the cane cuts up their hands. We also visited a school and talked to the students and teachers there. The school only goes to 8th grade and in order to go to high school they would have to come into El Seibo but it is a long trip and you have to have papers (which some don’t) to attend. I think it was really good for us to see the bateys and see such a different, yet integral, part of Dominican society. At the end, I caught myself thinking that I was glad I would most likely not have to live in such poverty. Then I felt guilty for even thinking such thoughts.
On another note, I had an interesting night last night. When I got back to my room and changed, I saw a large spider that surprised me but that I knew I could deal with. Then I turned around and saw a rat/mouse run across the floor. That was not as okay with me. I got in bed, tucked in my mosquito net, and tried to forget about it. I was not successful. I could see the rat running around and could hear it jolt across the floor and rustle through what I imaged to be my clothes. I pictured it eating my undies (I had heard stories about this and also about a rat who scratched up a volunteer's face in a duel) and envisioned waking up to an underwear disaster. I knew it was irrational to be so afraid of it, but I couldn’t help it. Then, I felt something beneath me. The rat had somehow managed to get on the underside of the mattress and I could feel it walk around. That kind of freaked me out. Then, I saw a dark spot on my mosquito net and realized the rat had climbed up the net and was now sitting at the top of it, weighing it down. If it weren’t for the net, the rat would have been crawling on me. I paused, momentarily terrified, then did what anybody would do and kicked it off with one good whack. The rat flew across the room, landed on the floor, and proceeded to go about it’s business. I noticed that it had tried to leave but couldn’t make it out under the door. I braved the world outside my net and opened the door. After about another hour of hide and seek where I laid curled up in a ball afraid the rat might make it inside my net somehow, I think I saw the rat leave. I gave the rat one point for making me miserable and only getting 3 hours of sleep, but myself one point for getting rid of it. Then I wondered how I will ever make it two years. I might have to get a cat.
And lastly, a side rant about life here. It is so interesting to be in place where you stand out so obviously and get treated differently because of it. People pay attention to me- both in positive and negative ways. For instance, people usually feel comfortable striking up a conversation with me but I also get hissed at and stared at all the time. (Side story- I went to this exercise class once that turned out to be no good, but ever since people ask me why I haven’t been back. So, the other day someone was hissing at me but I decided to ignore it because I was sick of it. It continued and eventually the person threw a rock at me to get my attention! Seriously, did a guy just throw a rock at me to get my attention? Yes, indeed he did. It turned out to be the exercise teacher who then proceeded to question me on why I hadn’t been back to his class and let me know that it was free for me to visit. Sweet.) Anyways, I never know if things happen by coincidence or if they happen because of who I am. For instance, would the band of motorcycles have pulled up in that exact spot even if I wasn’t there or did they pull up alongside me solely because of my presence? It’s hard to know whether you’re being conceited/paranoid or if you’re being naïve by thinking these things happen all the time and it doesn’t matter. Knowing that you will spend two years like this, trying to make this country your home but always being the foreigner, the outsider who will never fit in and will never truly understand what it feels like to be a Dominican…it’s hard to know this and be comfortable with the concept. But, there is nothing I can do to change that. I will always be different. I was also taking to my technical trainer about how obvious the difference is when it comes to money. I will always have a safety net that I can fall into if something were to happen, will always be able to buy food-even if my money runs out before the end of the month, and will be able to receive medical care. It is quite different to chose to be poor for a short period of time than to be poor for your whole life, living day to day with no vision of future possibilities. Just something I will have to keep in mind as I go through my service.
Anyways, I will end my posting before I cease to make any sense at all and before I lose too many of my readers. I hope you are all doing well, enjoying life, and eating some sushi in honor of me. I miss you, think of you, and can’t wait to hear from you. I send my love.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
A few random notes
Just a couple random notes to share with everyone (while I have a few minutes of free internet!):
-EL Seibo (where I am) is the only part of the DR to have light/electricity 24 hours a day. However, the first day I was here there was a blackout. Still, I am living it up with the luz 24 horas.
-In case you haven`t noticed, the spanglish has begun.
-All Dominicans think they can sing well and go around singing all the time, sin verguenza.
-Dominicans talk about everything, all the time. It`s fascinating because they will talk about anything and yet never seem to get anywhere in their conversations. The son at my house talks all the time and I felt bad that I couldn`t understand what he was saying until I realized it was all nonsense (like how someone killed the bread and what they wrote on it`s tombstone). Also, when you think about piropos (catcalls) in this context, it makes sense. Dominicans would comment if a leaf dropped in front of them or they saw a puddle, of course they will comment on a foreigner walking by!
Right now I am at the internet center where I am doing my internship. The teacher had to leave for a meeting or something and left me and the other volunteer to run the class. We taught one class on how to write upper case letters with accents and right now the second class is working on writing the story of their lives.
P.S. The rice, plantains, yucca, bread, etc. is taking a toll on my physique. I tried to go "running" the other day, but now my body hurts. Hard to get excersize here.
Love you all and am starting to miss having good friends around... MUAH
-EL Seibo (where I am) is the only part of the DR to have light/electricity 24 hours a day. However, the first day I was here there was a blackout. Still, I am living it up with the luz 24 horas.
-In case you haven`t noticed, the spanglish has begun.
-All Dominicans think they can sing well and go around singing all the time, sin verguenza.
-Dominicans talk about everything, all the time. It`s fascinating because they will talk about anything and yet never seem to get anywhere in their conversations. The son at my house talks all the time and I felt bad that I couldn`t understand what he was saying until I realized it was all nonsense (like how someone killed the bread and what they wrote on it`s tombstone). Also, when you think about piropos (catcalls) in this context, it makes sense. Dominicans would comment if a leaf dropped in front of them or they saw a puddle, of course they will comment on a foreigner walking by!
Right now I am at the internet center where I am doing my internship. The teacher had to leave for a meeting or something and left me and the other volunteer to run the class. We taught one class on how to write upper case letters with accents and right now the second class is working on writing the story of their lives.
P.S. The rice, plantains, yucca, bread, etc. is taking a toll on my physique. I tried to go "running" the other day, but now my body hurts. Hard to get excersize here.
Love you all and am starting to miss having good friends around... MUAH
Monday, March 12, 2007
My new palace (and the clumsiness that is I)
On Thursday I arrived in El Seibo for my Community Based Training. We will be spending about 5.5 weeks here doing technical training, spanish classes, and internships in computer centers. I was very excited when I arrived at my new house because it is beautiful and I have a nice room and even a private bathroom! I call it my palace. The food the doña cooks is amazing as well. Then, the first night I took a shower and as I was reaching for my towel I slipped, fell, and cracked the bathtub. It´s one of those plaster ones where it feels like it might break if you jumped really hard...Anyway, I smushed in the plaster in the corner. (I thought immediately of my mom and the broken toilet in Cuba.) I felt so bad and didn´t tell them until the next day because I didn´t want to just arrive and announce that I´d already broken something. But since then, things have been going well. On Friday night I went to the adventist church with my doña and son where they sang Jesus songs (some to the tune of Country Roads), watched videos where white Jesus healed people, and did a little skit about Jesus flowers (yeah, i must have missed something there). On Saturday we went to a beach called Playa Esmeralda which was about 1.50-2 hours away. It was absolutely beautiful and there was hardly anybody there. Another volunteer, Angela, and I took a walk down the beach and met this nice man who cut us each a coconut and I got to drink the water fresh from it and then eat it. Yummm. Later that night we went to the one and only discotec in town called WOW. Yup, it´s name is WOW. My dancing skills are pretty much in the dumps but I still danced some merengue and bachata. Sunday I hung around at home and watched movies like The Italian Job and Back to the Future in spanish. It rained so I didn´t really venture out. And the rain brought the cockroaches (there was one in my bathtub this morning which I had to kill...yes, I killed it myself. And then another one on the floor. But I was too traumatized from the first one to deal with the second one and had to call my doña to take care of it.) As for training, we are doing a mini community diagnostic (which we will spend the first 3 months at our own sites doing- basically just learning about the community) and will be presenting that next week. We are also observing and talking to teachers at the high school to learn more about the education system. I´m a little disappointed that my spanish hasn´t gotten too much better, which also makes me nervous about teaching in spanish, but I guess that will all come with time. Love you all and think about you all the time! (I actually spent time last night looking at the pictures of everyone I brought!) MUAH
Monday, March 5, 2007
Las Matas de Farfan
From Thursday to Sunday I went and stayed with a volunteer named Jenny in Las Matas de Farfan. It was about a 4 hour bus ride but luckily the bus wasn{t cramped and I actually had a whole seat to myself. After I arrived (and asked around for la americana) we hung out, ate lunch with her project partner who is the director of the school, and toured the town. I had the totally awesome experience of getting stared at by own guy for so long and so intensely that I felt super uncomfortable. Jenny finally asked him what he was looking at and he said I had pretty eyes and lips. It was then that I wanted and understood the reason for the burkah. The next day we went to Elias Piñas which is right on the border with Haiti and has a huge market. There sell tons of used clothes with come from the US as donations, I think through Haiti. People need the money more than the clothes, so they cross the border and sell them here. So that{s where you{re clothes go when you donate them. It was also hard to see all the poverty there. There are so many stereotypes about Haitians here because they are usually poorer than Dominicans. We saw one lady who was picking up the outside leaves of lettuces which had been left on the ground and were dirty and somewhat trampled. She was obviously collecting them to eat. We had lunch with a volunteer there and then caught a bola (free ride) back to Las Matas on the back of a pickup truck with tons of food and about 9 people squeezed into the back 3 feet of the truck cab. I saw the school where the computer lab is and was utterly amazed. I don{t think I have ever seen a school in such bad condition. The walls were literally crumbling to the ground. Imagine the ruins you visit in foreign countries- the school was like that. I also saw the famous ¨Matas de farfan¨which used to be a bunch of trees that some guy named farfan would tie his cattle to but of which only one remains. it looks like a regular tree. wowsers. anyways, that night we went out to a colmado near another volunteer´s site and met up with other volunteers and trainees there. It was great to sit around, drink a little beer, and dance some bachata. I also rode my first moto there (i was terrified and they laughed at me when i whipped out my helmet which says ¨tough¨on the front, but i made it in one piece). on friday we went to a bigger city about 1 hour away and met up with even more volunteers and went to a pool there! It was kind of murky water but we didn{t care. We also saw a carnival parade with tons of costumes including the living dead and men dressed up as women. There are also boys who run around and hit people´s buts with inflated pig bladder thigns. OW. It was interesting to hear all the stories of the other volunteers. I returned Sunday to the comforts of my Doña´s house. On Thursday we go to community based training in El Seybo with the other IT people. I{m a little sad about splitting off from the rest of the group because we´re all just starting to feel comfortable with each other and I want to continue getting to know everyone. Oh well, we shall see.
P.S. I ate chaca which is like habichuelas con dulce but made with corn. it was amaazing. i also tried claren which is the haitian bootleg rum which takes like booty.
P.S. I ate chaca which is like habichuelas con dulce but made with corn. it was amaazing. i also tried claren which is the haitian bootleg rum which takes like booty.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Adjusting
Since today is independence day and a national holiday, we did not have training and were even offered a free tour of the colonial district. The tour guide was fabulous and it was great to learn about the history of the city. I didn't realize that the Dominican Republic was basically the central hub of the Indies and the Americas. Afterwards we went to watch the military parade but we waited until it was already an hour past the official starting time and we got sick of waiting so we left. I got sunburned but felt really bad for the soldiers dressed up in full gear with hats, face paint, camping backpackts, etc. I'm sure their clothes must have been soaked within minutes.
This weekend also went really well. I was worried about being stuck at home and getting bored, but it turned out great. Saturday night I went out with most of the group to celebrate another volunteer's birthday. We went to a car wash which is where all the action happens at night. Car washes have music, dancing, and beer. I don't think I've actually seen a bar, but car washes are everywhere...my theory is because the ground there is already clean. Anyways, it was fun to hang out at night and try to dance merengue (although I made a fool out of myself). Sunday I went with another volunteer to an internet center where they give classes and we interviewed the owners to find out about IT stuff. It was really helpful for our projects. Then I went to see the dominican movie "Sanky Panky" which is about a dominican man who tries to get an american girlfriend to take him back to the US. It was hilarious in that awful way. And the actor who played an american was definately from a spanish speaking country and had a thick accent- pretty excellent. Everyone danced out of the aisles when it ended to the theme song: "hey there, sanky panky." WOW.
Thursday I head out to visit another volunteer for the weekend to see what life is like for her. I am really excited. We also meet other volunteers who come to training once or twice a week and it is always good to talk to them and ask questions. I'm amazed that they say the two years just fly by...
Each day I am getting used to it more and more here, but it's still amazing how things just function differently (like waiting an hour to get money changed when there were only 5 people in front of me in line). Time to go home now...Love you all.
This weekend also went really well. I was worried about being stuck at home and getting bored, but it turned out great. Saturday night I went out with most of the group to celebrate another volunteer's birthday. We went to a car wash which is where all the action happens at night. Car washes have music, dancing, and beer. I don't think I've actually seen a bar, but car washes are everywhere...my theory is because the ground there is already clean. Anyways, it was fun to hang out at night and try to dance merengue (although I made a fool out of myself). Sunday I went with another volunteer to an internet center where they give classes and we interviewed the owners to find out about IT stuff. It was really helpful for our projects. Then I went to see the dominican movie "Sanky Panky" which is about a dominican man who tries to get an american girlfriend to take him back to the US. It was hilarious in that awful way. And the actor who played an american was definately from a spanish speaking country and had a thick accent- pretty excellent. Everyone danced out of the aisles when it ended to the theme song: "hey there, sanky panky." WOW.
Thursday I head out to visit another volunteer for the weekend to see what life is like for her. I am really excited. We also meet other volunteers who come to training once or twice a week and it is always good to talk to them and ask questions. I'm amazed that they say the two years just fly by...
Each day I am getting used to it more and more here, but it's still amazing how things just function differently (like waiting an hour to get money changed when there were only 5 people in front of me in line). Time to go home now...Love you all.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Spaghetti sandwiches and guaguas
Well, training is going well so far. I was placed in the highest level spanish class and 2 of the people in the class were raised speaking spanish. There are 5 of us total and I am definately at the lowest level, but I figure it´s better to be with better speakers and learn from them. I just have to force myself to speak. We have been talking a lot about public transportation and yesterday we went on buses with a teacher into the center of the city and then back again. Driving here is a ¨desfio a la muerte¨ -a challenge to death or a death wish. They say you have to drive with 4 eyes. Public transportation can be a guagua (bus), a carro publico in which 6 people plus the driver sit, or a motoconcho (motorcycle). We are not allowed to ride motoconchos in Santo Domingo because they are too dangerous and will receive a class on how to ride one later on. Basically, public transportation is hilarious with about 100 different hand signals meaning different things depending on where you are and you can easily fing yourself with a stranger and a rooster on your lap in a car or squished in someone´s armpit on a bus. We have to take both a guagua and a carro publico to get to training but topday we walked which takes hardly more time and is much more enjoyable (especially when we sit all day). Tomorrow we will go with our spanish classes to visit the peace corps office, the clinic where we are to go in case of emergency, and some other important places.
Today I also got my assignment for my volunteer visit. In about a week and a half we are each spending the weekend with a volunteer to see how their project is, what they live like, etc. I will be going to the south west somewhat towards the border. I am excited to see a real IT volunteer in action. Today we also had our first IT meeting and I feel much better about my nonexistant skill level. The people who are training us are really great and qwell any anxieties.
Life at the house is going well. I got served a spaghetti sandwich for dinner one night (yes, spaghetti put inside of bread) but usually I get great food like rice, beans, plantains, meat, etc. I better be off ebcause I´m worried about staying out too late and them getting worried. I definately ahve to get used to the whole sitting around thing. Love you and hope you are all doing well.
Today I also got my assignment for my volunteer visit. In about a week and a half we are each spending the weekend with a volunteer to see how their project is, what they live like, etc. I will be going to the south west somewhat towards the border. I am excited to see a real IT volunteer in action. Today we also had our first IT meeting and I feel much better about my nonexistant skill level. The people who are training us are really great and qwell any anxieties.
Life at the house is going well. I got served a spaghetti sandwich for dinner one night (yes, spaghetti put inside of bread) but usually I get great food like rice, beans, plantains, meat, etc. I better be off ebcause I´m worried about staying out too late and them getting worried. I definately ahve to get used to the whole sitting around thing. Love you and hope you are all doing well.
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