Puerto Plata --> Santiago

Oh man, it is nearly impossible to believe that three nights ago I was living the life Columbus, OH style. So much has changed that I feel like there must be something more substantial than a few hours separating me from the rest of my summer. Things are going well though, and I am already with my family in Santiago. We spent the first night at a resort in Puerto Plata, which is on the North-western coast of the country. The flights were fine, although I was a little shocked because after all the stressing I did over getting a visa, I was the only one on my program with one and everyone else just paid $10 and flew on by. There was a consolatory free rum stand right after that though, which helped.

The resort we stayed at was very nice, and I got my own room, which also gave me a little space but made it a little harder to meet people. There are a lot of people from Wisconsin on this trip, which is funny. I got to go swimming in the ocean and it was so clear and warm. There was also a mountain very close with clouds obscuring the top. It was so relaxing and a nice break from the chillier, weed filled lakes of MN. We also did some orientation activities, but information is given in huge chunks and it's a little overwhelming. I’m definitely going to struggle more on the Spanish front than I anticipated. I think I’m either rustier than I thought or just never knew as much as I thought. The prospect of being in a normal university class and expected to do readings and write papers is really scary.

This fear was not abated by a show we went to put on by the resort. Before the real show began emcee did a little shtick where he pulled some “gringos” from the audience onstage and made us repeat after him. I made it through a few sentences, but then he pulled out some tongue twisters and I was done for. Much to the audience’s delight, he decided to give me a handful of other chances to redeem myself, but, to put it delicately, I was unsuccessful. D’oh!

But I met my family yesterday and they seem very nice. I am at their apartment now and things are going smoothly, although I'm still trying to figure out their schedule and my schedule. My mother is a lawyer part-time and my dad is a dermatologist, but he's doing a lot of epidemiology work with the Dengue Fever outbreak in Santiago now. He invited me out in the field to educate people about how to avoid Dengue on Saturday, but I can't go, which is a bummer. They have 2 young daughters, ages 6 and 7 named Julissa and Perla. They are very cute and get along well, but I think I’ve already been through a few of the “stages of cultural shock” with them. They showed me some toys, we worked on a puzzle, and I had a meal at their “restaurant” but then I went to unpack and they joined me. This mainly involved them rooting through my suitcases, asking what everything was (trying to explain an eyelash curler was a doozy), throwing my Frisbee across the room, and finally zipping each other up in my suitcase and pulling it around. They are also not too keen on knocking and today i walked into my room and after a few minutes Julissa popped out of my cupboard. Holla!

This is turning into a monster, and I'm not sure if it is going to save based on the sketchiness of the internet, so I'mma call it a day here. We have also had very busy days and by the time it gets dark I'm wiped out. Try to understand and be understood is quite the challenge!