On Sunday we went to the the campo, or country.  We spent the afternoon eating fried yucca and walking around the mountainside.  We picked cherries, pears, grapefruits, cacao, and avocados off of trees.  I didn't get sick from eating any of these things, which is kind of miraculous, considering. 

The last of the Tres Ojos, underground lakes in the middle of Santo Domingo.This is the only one that has an opening over it and you have to get there by taking an underground ferry.

The house in the background was where 4 generations of Colons (Columbus').  The back of the house looks out on the port and the front looks onto a giant plaza with restaurants and shops.

Remnants from the Trujillo era, when Santo Domingo was called Ciudad Trujillo. 

The Botanical Gardens in Santo Domingo

This is the first Spanish  fort in the New World

From the grounds of the oldest church in the New World. A storm was brewing as we walked around Santo Domingo, the capital city.

I want to say a little something about how great the naps are here.  The afternoon siesta is not a myth--well it is in the sense that the whole world doesn’t actually shut down for it, but it definitely exists.  I don’t take one every day, but when I do, they are always fantastic.  There’s nothing quite like sprawling out on your bed, directly under the fan, and just dozing off for half an hour.  The best part of the whole experience is that there’s no shame in it.  During the school year, if I nap in the middle of the school day, I always feel a little guilty, like I’ve been over-indulgent and lazy.  When I talk about it, it’s always in the same tone; baffled that I found a sliver of time and apologetic that I used it for a nap.  Here, when I come out of my room with the announcement that I napped, it’s met with not just approval, but praise!

Cabarete and Beyond

One of the beaches in Cabarete

View From the Hotel Window in Cabarete

I spent last weekend in Cabarete, which is a city along the Northern Coast famed for its windsurfing. It was definitely a tourist town, but the beaches were great, our hotel was super cheap because it’s off-season, and there were lots of things to see. It was also enjoyable to get out of the city for a bit and see another part of the country. Our hotel was right on the beach and had a nice ambiance. The ocean was the perfect temperature and it felt so good to just float in the water. We also got to see loads of people kite-surfing, wind-surfing, and reg surfing, and although none of us had 3 days or $300 to give it a shot ourselves, it was fun to watch. Six of the people from my group went, and I got to know them a bit better but I spoke way too much English! Other highlights from the weekend include playing Frisbee on the beach, replacing my shorts tan with a full-thigh sunburn, and eating dinner at a restaurant on the beach. On our way back, the touristy travel buses were all full at the time we wanted to leave, so we got back to Santiago using gua-guas (this word is used to describe all sorts of public transportation vans/buses, but they have seats that fold up to fit more people and will go wherever you need to get to, at a low cost) which worked out surprisingly well. It was nice to feel more comfortable with the transportation system and it like a more natural way to travel in the D.R.
We got back to Santiago on Sunday and it’s pretty much been a regular week at school since then. Although I’m not sure if I’ve figured out what a “regular” week at school is yet. I’m trying to figure out what I want to do my Independent Research study project on, and I interviewed a woman last night to try to narrow down my options. I am trying to incorporate geographical themes and public health issues and I thought I had a plan involving sexual education programs implemented by schools and NGO’s but after talking to the woman tonight, I can tell I’m going to have to go back to the drawing board. She was very interesting to talk to, but I think this issue is way bigger than I was expecting, because it's deeply tied to the machismo culture. Apparently, in the D.R. the influence of the Catholic church is still so strong that sex education, particularly for girls is incredibly stunted and there are few resources and open lines of communication for girls to talk about issues of puberty, sex, menstruation, etc. One consequence of this is that rates of teen pregnancy are extremely high and the D.R. is one of 5 countries where all abortions are illegal, so there are lots single, uneducated, poor young women.
Another topic the woman I met talked about was how the lifestyle in the D.R. is extremely affected it's island status. She said that it’s this stop off point between businesses in South America and the U.S.--no one comes to stay, and even the Dominicans are always looking to leave. She talked about how this idea is reinforced beginning with the history of the island, which was discovered by Christopher Columbus in the 15th Century, who was looking to get rich easily and leave. That mindset has continued in Dominican lifestyle in that money and material goods are highly valued and people are always talking about leaving for other places. It was very interesting (and a little uncomfortable) to hear a Dominican woman talk about her culture like this, but it helped me make a lot of connections between the things that I’ve experienced and the existent cultural values she pointed out.
Things at home are going pretty well. I more or less taught Perla and Yulissa (I’m learning new things every day, including that I’ve been spelling her name wrong!) how to play Frisbee. It’s slightly terrifying because they like to stand about 5 feet away and throw it, but it’s fun. Dad, you’ll be proud, I taught them the foolproof “crocodile” catching style (boca de cocodrilo) although it’s still a hit or miss situation. My mom’s car got broken into the other night causing some damage to the window and a stolen battery. She took it pretty well, but it was definitely a bummer. However, if nothing else, it was a testament to how deep of a sleeper I am, because my window (which was open) is on the second floor is looks directly over where her car was parked and I didn’t hear a thing.
I have also been trying to get some runs in, but I did something to my Achilles’ tendon which has me side-lined for the moment, particularly because icing isn’t really an option. It's kind of a bummer, because running is one of the only things that I feel comes intuitively here, but hopefully some time off will do the trick. Other than that, things are going smoothly and hopefully our internet will be fixed in the near future so I can put up some photos and be better at responding to e-mails!
Word of the day:
Bigote= mustache/ whiskers (for an animal) It’s the name of the stray cat in the neighborhood that occasionally wanders into the house--more so now that my sisters have been feeding him every night. I’m pretty sure he is probably carrying about 15 highly-transmittable diseases, and every time I come in contact with him I get a little nervous. But he’s super good-natured and the girls play with him and they’re still healthy…

It's the Freakin' Weekend

The CIC group on PUCMM campus

At a jazz concert in a cultural center

Promotional material passed out by the Presidente Beer Company that uses the Bible verse

"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. ³⁸Whoever believes in me, as^[a] the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." to encourage liberal drinking in Catholic dominated D.R.

The majority of our group, waiting for the show to start

The crowd at Festival Presidente

At the gates of Festival Presidente in Santo Domingo with some Dominicans we met on the bus

Well folks… today marks the official end of both my first week of school and Mosquito Massacre 2010. There are very few classes on Fridays, so I have three day weekends every weekend. Tomorrow I’m going to Cabarete with some girls from my program. It’s apparently the wind-surfing capital of the world and as a result, is kind of a touristy place but I’m looking forward to getting out of the city for a bit.
I am also fairly confident that I have killed every mosquito in my room and bathroom, so until their eggs hatch, things are looking up. It’s been raining more here (as a result of Hurricane Earl) and there have been significantly more mosquitoes, which is problematic because the cases of malaria in the D.R. have gone up recently and Dengue Fever is a big problem in Santiago. My host father is a doctor and works part time at a government health clinic so a few weekends ago I volunteered with his office to go out into communities in Santiago to spread awareness about Dengue and Leptospirosis, a disease spread by rats. We basically just went door-to-door taking surveys, distributing larvicide, and sweating like maniacs.
Last weekend I went to Santo Domingo, the capital, to a huge music festival called Festival Presidente. El Presidente is the beer of the D.R. and they sponsor this enormous concert every couple of years, and it was quite the scene. It was held at a stadium used to train Olympic Athletes and was packed with people. When we left, we were practically wading through trash (well, recycling really…) left by people. The music started at about 6:30 and ended at 1 AM and there were all sorts of special effects including fireworks, giant flames, saucy dancers, smoke, and pillars rising from the stage. We saw Tito el Bambino, Luis Enrique, Luis Fonsi, (who apparently is quite the BFD based on the amount of screaming by the girls behind me), and Juan Luis Guerra who is a famous Dominican singer/musician. It was definitely exciting and we were probably less than 100 feet away from the stage, so that was really fun. Towards the end of the concert, they sprayed water on the crowd to cool us down because Santo Domingo is even hotter than Santiago (which has been at least 90 every day since we got here). This was nice at first (and explained why so many people had cell phones in plastic baggies) but they did it about 5 more times with what I’m pretty sure was a fire hose, and by the end we were all soaked. It made for a very chilly bus ride home!
Other than that I’ve just been getting settled into school and sorting out classes. It’s not looking like credits are going to transfer as easily as I had hoped, but I’m feeling a lot better about it than at the beginning of the week. I’ve decided to take Contemporary Hispanic Literature, Gender and Society in the Caribbean, Community Medicine, Introduction to Healthcare, an independent study, and Intro to Guitar. Right now, I’m most excited about guitar, but the other classes are growing on me. I feel like a freshman in college again, but without the communication skills. I’m having to learn all the little things again: my way around campus, how to check a book out of the library, where public computers are, etc.
I’ve been running on the dirt track on campus a bit though, and when another girl in my program and I have the same schedule, we go around the neighborhoods as well. I still get turned around very easily here in Santiago, but luckily there is the giant monument that makes a great marker.
Well, this has turned into a monster post, so I’m going to see if I have an internet connection to actually put it online, but I love hearing from everyone else so keep me updated on your lives and have a good weekend!

One-week-iversary

One week ago, we arrived in Santiago, and since then things have been going well. I'm getting used to the idea that there are things that I like but also things I still need to adjust to.  I have been staying relatively busy, but also taking some time to take siestas and walk around our balcony in search of wireless signals.
My birthday was on Sunday, and that was a nice, but rather long day.  I have a lot of trouble sleeping in here so I got up early and tried to go on a run with another girl from my program, but we were unsuccessful because the university was closed and we couldn't get to the track.  We took a walk together though and later in the afternoon I hung out with Danica, my neighbor from the program. I really enjoyed reading all the messages sent from friends at home, it was certainly a highlight of my day.  Later in the evening, we went out for birthday dinner at Domino's Pizza and my little sisters played on the outdoor play-gym thing. At night, I went out for a low key evening with some of my friends from the program who brought me a cake with candles.  I had missed chocolate so much! Basically it was a good day, but generally an awkward time to have a birthday, so I'm a little relieved to not have to think about it anymore.
My little sisters started school yesterday, and I, in turn, have registered for my classes.  I am a little unsure right now about my schedule, particularly in terms of credit transferring, but I am sure it will all work out.  Right now I am signed up for Hispanic literature, Gender and Society in the Caribbean, Community Medicine, Introduction to Healthcare, and Independent Study and a guitar class.  All the classes, excepting guitar, are designed for non-native Spanish speakers so I hope I will not be too far out of my league. I'm looking forward to having a more stable routine, although I am sure the first few weeks of classes will be hectic while everyone tries to sort out their schedules.
Other than that, we've been doing little culture activities which have included a dance class, a visit to a jazz club, and a trip to a cultural center.
Things at the house have been pretty stable, except for the indoor plumbing which has been sketch the past few days. I have taken a few bucket showers and been using hand sanitizer without reservations.  I am still figuring out family dynamics here and my role in them.  I say this because every day I come home and have comida (more or less at lunch time, but with dinner food), which Pedro and I normally eat together, sometimes with the girls, but always in relative silence.  I want to respect his space, because as a doctor I am sure he needs a break in the day to recharge and listening to a foreigner struggle with basic communication doesn’t really fit that bill-- but it’s a little weird. My family is very nice though, and have been great about giving  me vegetarian food and letting me have a flexible schedule.
Tomorrow is an early morning though, and I got up early today to give running another try (slightly more success although between the traffic and sidewalk quality it's not much of a stress reliever) so I'm going to go to bed!
I haven't been taking many pictures, but I'll work on getting some more up.

Santiago-->Jarabacoa

 Julissa and me

Today was a very good day. For one, Julissa told me she loves me. It’s so soon…but when you love someone, why wait?
 We also went to Jarabacoa, a part of the country known for its rivers and waterfalls, it’s in the mountains that surround Santiago.  The bus ride there, we had to sit next to an estudiante de apoyo who explained a list of classic Dominican phrases to us.  I was with Joseph from Haiti, helped explain the Dominican accent (which involves cutting off a lot of words off and not pronouncing the letter s, so the phrase “vamos para ese sitio” is said “Vamo pa ese sitio) as well as some key phrases.
Our first stop was a coffee factory where we took a tour.  I legit didn’t understand most of it, although I eventually learned the word for coffee bean and coffee grounds.  Next, we went to a waterfall and at first, the water was so freakin’ cold, but once I got used to it, it was really refreshing.  I swam under a waterfall  and climbed on some super slippery rocks, all without incident.  Joseph however, very nearly drowned.  He didn’t know how to swim, but made it out to the waterfall with help but on the way back there were 4 people out there helping and it was not a pretty situation.  He played it cool on the ride home though.
Our last stop was La Confluencia, and as the name would indicate, it was the confluence of 2 rivers, one of which may or may not be the biggest in the DR, depending on the accuracy of my listening comprehension.  We weren’t there very long but I didn’t have a fabulous impression of it.  On the way home, Lilly, the program director, bought me pink roses for my birthday and everyone sang for me, which was nice.
When I got back from Jarabacao, I visited the family of my padre, Pedro .  I was really not feeling another trip,  but I thought of all the times people advised me to say yes to everything,  and I ended up going. Dontcha know, I had a great time.  His mother’s house is beautiful and she has this two story garden-patio full of orchids, a grape vineyard, a cherry tree, an orange tree, bananas, and doves.  10 points for the upper-middle class! I also got to pet an albino rabbit. His mother and brother also host foreign exchange students, so I got to meet both of them which was fun. 
On the way home we stopped at The Monumento which is in the center of the city.  It was originally constructed of Trujillo, by Trujillo, and for Trujillo but since then it’s been restored and apparently reclaimed and is this park where a bunch of people were hanging out. There was a great sunset, and it’s built on a hill so it offered a great view of the city.
Word of the Day:
Picado= bite,  like of the mosquitoes that are causing the dengue fever epidemic here.  Pedro is a doctor and part of his job is to go around and educate people in high risk areas of the city about how to prevent mosquito breeding, etc.

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!

Guys, it's really not that far.