Oops..

So I haven't writted in forever... Sorry! I've been so busy! Now that we know the kids pretty well they invite us over all the time after school. It's kinda cute like being in grade school again! :) It's fun to meet their families and see their living conditions. Their mother's usually give us really sugary juice or warm coke. I haven't figured out which I prefer. I also started tutoring a cute little girl, Genesis, twice a week. She's 11 and cannot even write the alphabet. So it has been really rewarding to read and write with her.
This past weekend we went to this gorgeous beach, Playa Grande. It was the classic white sand, clear-blue water beach. I got a fatty burn on my back which was pretty lame. I put on spray sunscreen but I think it must have been windy or something because my back definitely did not get covered! We just swam and made a sand castle and hiked around.
This weekend we're going to Santo Domingo to see the temple and historical sites there! It should be really fun! We're staying in temple housing and I heard rumor that they have air conditioning so I am extra excited! I cannot even imagine not sweating while I fall asleep. It's going to be glorious. Of course getting to go to the temple will still be the highlight of the trip though!
I only have 11 more days here! It's kinda hitting me. I'm trying to make the most of every day and do everything I wanted to. I can't wait to go home but I also want to take advantage of my time here. I am just so content here. I get at least 10 hugs a day from the cutest, most loving kids. I am teaching lessons that I am truly passionate about and concepts that could help this developing community. I am learning so much about the Spanish language. The friends I work and live with are fun, intelligent, admirable people. I live freaking three feet from a beautiful Carribean beach! Of course at times I still get hot and sick of the food and grumpy but it never lasts long because I'm doing something I care about.
I am going to miss those aspects of this experience for sure but I'll be ready to come home to you all in 11 days. :) Sorry I haven't been the best blogger but I've been busy doing good things! I'll probably blog a few more times before I go and then I'll blog some photos when I get home. Thanks for reading my random thoughts, whoever is still reading! I miss you all lots. Start planning a fatty party for when I get home k? I'm not even kidding. Love you guys!

Oops..

So I haven't writted in forever... Sorry! I've been so busy! Now that we know the kids pretty well they invite us over all the time after school. It's kinda cute like being in grade school again! :) It's fun to meet their families and see their living conditions. Their mother's usually give us really sugary juice or warm coke. I haven't figured out which I prefer. I also started tutoring a cute little girl, Genesis, twice a week. She's 11 and cannot even write the alphabet. So it has been really rewarding to read and write with her.
This past weekend we went to this gorgeous beach, Playa Grande. It was the classic white sand, clear-blue water beach. I got a fatty burn on my back which was pretty lame. I put on spray sunscreen but I think it must have been windy or something because my back definitely did not get covered! We just swam and made a sand castle and hiked around.
This weekend we're going to Santo Domingo to see the temple and historical sites there! It should be really fun! We're staying in temple housing and I heard rumor that they have air conditioning so I am extra excited! I cannot even imagine not sweating while I fall asleep. It's going to be glorious. Of course getting to go to the temple will still be the highlight of the trip though!
I only have 11 more days here! It's kinda hitting me. I'm trying to make the most of every day and do everything I wanted to. I can't wait to go home but I also want to take advantage of my time here. I am just so content here. I get at least 10 hugs a day from the cutest, most loving kids. I am teaching lessons that I am truly passionate about and concepts that could help this developing community. I am learning so much about the Spanish language. The friends I work and live with are fun, intelligent, admirable people. I live freaking three feet from a beautiful Carribean beach! Of course at times I still get hot and sick of the food and grumpy but it never lasts long because I'm doing something I care about.
I am going to miss those aspects of this experience for sure but I'll be ready to come home to you all in 11 days. :) Sorry I haven't been the best blogger but I've been busy doing good things! I'll probably blog a few more times before I go and then I'll blog some photos when I get home. Thanks for reading my random thoughts, whoever is still reading! I miss you all lots. Start planning a fatty party for when I get home k? I'm not even kidding. Love you guys!

Halfway Done!

So I am now halfway done with my time here in the DR! It's strange because in some ways I am really sad because I love it here and I have so much to learn! But then I think of you guys and air conditioning and the lake and In N Out, etc. and I know I'll be ready to come home. :)


This week was really fun in school! I stayed home sick on Monday but then the rest of the week I was at camp! We taught nutrition, hand washing, fecal-oral disease prevention, and water supply. The fecal-oral lesson was fun. We started out by asking the kids if they wanted to eat poop. They found the lesson pretty hilarious! I love teaching the kids because they are so enthusiastic and sweet. Three days a week we go with the kids for lunch at a local restaurant and then the other two days we eat sandwhiches from a garbage bag. The directors make mass amounts of these sandwhiches with just a slice of ham and a slice of cheese and then they put them all in black garbage bags for each classroom. It's pretty hypocritical considering what we're teaching in health class, but oh well! My Spanish is really improving, as is my tan! Every day after school we grab a batida (milkshake/smoothie) and have nap time on the beach. :) I'm definitely going to miss that.


I got to go on a fieldtrip on Thursday! We went to the Teleferico, which is a sketchy gondola type thing that takes people up the mountain to a monument. It was so fun and the view from the top was gorgeous. The kids were pretty scared on the gonola but not gonna lie I was too! It stopped three fourths of the way up and started rolling backwards. Then it jolted a few times and slowly climbed to the top. I think our pack of kids was a little too much for the old machine. On the last fieldtrip all the kids got sick on the bus and threw up all over each other. Our leader had the idea of having the kids sing the whole way to distract them. It worked but I don't think I ever want to hear the camp theme song again.


Yesterday I went on a tour with some friends to a tropical island off of the penninsula of Samana. It was beautiful! We had a little boat ride over and then just played on the perfect little beach. I got a cute little pina colada, sin alcohol :), and laid out for awhile. I only have two more weekends here! Next weekend we're going to another gorgeous beach and then the next weekend we're going to the temple in Santo Domingo!


I hope you all have enjoyed this update! I'm loving the experience here and learning a lot. I hope all is well at home! Love you!

Halfway Done!

So I am now halfway done with my time here in the DR! It's strange because in some ways I am really sad because I love it here and I have so much to learn! But then I think of you guys and air conditioning and the lake and In N Out, etc. and I know I'll be ready to come home. :)


This week was really fun in school! I stayed home sick on Monday but then the rest of the week I was at camp! We taught nutrition, hand washing, fecal-oral disease prevention, and water supply. The fecal-oral lesson was fun. We started out by asking the kids if they wanted to eat poop. They found the lesson pretty hilarious! I love teaching the kids because they are so enthusiastic and sweet. Three days a week we go with the kids for lunch at a local restaurant and then the other two days we eat sandwhiches from a garbage bag. The directors make mass amounts of these sandwhiches with just a slice of ham and a slice of cheese and then they put them all in black garbage bags for each classroom. It's pretty hypocritical considering what we're teaching in health class, but oh well! My Spanish is really improving, as is my tan! Every day after school we grab a batida (milkshake/smoothie) and have nap time on the beach. :) I'm definitely going to miss that.


I got to go on a fieldtrip on Thursday! We went to the Teleferico, which is a sketchy gondola type thing that takes people up the mountain to a monument. It was so fun and the view from the top was gorgeous. The kids were pretty scared on the gonola but not gonna lie I was too! It stopped three fourths of the way up and started rolling backwards. Then it jolted a few times and slowly climbed to the top. I think our pack of kids was a little too much for the old machine. On the last fieldtrip all the kids got sick on the bus and threw up all over each other. Our leader had the idea of having the kids sing the whole way to distract them. It worked but I don't think I ever want to hear the camp theme song again.


Yesterday I went on a tour with some friends to a tropical island off of the penninsula of Samana. It was beautiful! We had a little boat ride over and then just played on the perfect little beach. I got a cute little pina colada, sin alcohol :), and laid out for awhile. I only have two more weekends here! Next weekend we're going to another gorgeous beach and then the next weekend we're going to the temple in Santo Domingo!


I hope you all have enjoyed this update! I'm loving the experience here and learning a lot. I hope all is well at home! Love you!

Padres

So I never wrote about when my parents came to visit and celebrate their 25th wedding anniversiary! It was a few weeks ago but it's worth blogging about. :) They down the first weekend I was here and we had so much fun! They basically just laid on the beach and by the pool, but I think they enjoyed themselves. It was so nice just to have them here with me! I know it cost a lot to come and I think they both ended up getting sick on the food so I just want to tell them thanks for making the sacrifice to come see me! I miss you guys and the rest of the family! Here are some photos of us!

Padres

So I never wrote about when my parents came to visit and celebrate their 25th wedding anniversiary! It was a few weeks ago but it's worth blogging about. :) They down the first weekend I was here and we had so much fun! They basically just laid on the beach and by the pool, but I think they enjoyed themselves. It was so nice just to have them here with me! I know it cost a lot to come and I think they both ended up getting sick on the food so I just want to tell them thanks for making the sacrifice to come see me! I miss you guys and the rest of the family! Here are some photos of us!

Parade= Children's Riot

Sorry I haven’t posted in a long time! I have been nauseous basically all weekend. But here’s my next adventure!

On Friday we were told we would be having a parade with the whole school. The children had been preparing their outfits/get up in arts and crafts all week. I pictured the kids going class by class around the schoolyard or something. No. We definitely took 170+ kids and teachers down the small dirt road, onto the main street of the city (basically the equivalent of Douglas Boulevard), and across the street to the beach. It was insane. The camp director kept saying that it was safe because we had a police escort. That’s fine and dandy but when you have 150 children one cop car at the front doesn’t do much. It’s dangerous enough everyday for me walking home from school because they have no sidewalks, the streets themselves are not very wide, and motorcycles dart around the cars all the time.

So we started walking with the kids and I quickly realized I had to take on more of a crowd control role. The kids were all chanting their class mascot’s name and theme song as they danced/pranced along. I walked in the middle of the street and urged them to stay closer to the sidewalk. The small dirt road was bad enough but then we got to the main street. Motorcycles were zipping past and cars were backed up completely as we turned the street into a one lane road. I think people were pretty angry at us! One car started driving right in front of our parade and started playing Reggaeton music. I thought I had been zapped into an MTV music video or some nasty night club. Even the youngest kids could seriously shake it. It was impressive but a little disturbing. Then we completely stopped traffic as we crossed the road to the beach. We waited for 30 minutes with the kids because the ice cream shop in town had forgotten that they agreed to donate ice cream for all the kids. We finally got the ice cream and marched in little groups back to the camp. It was a pretty insane ordeal. At any moment one of the children could have been struck by a car or motorcycle fairly easily. It’s crazy what you can do at a summer camp when you know none of the kids’ parents can sue you!

Parade= Children's Riot

Sorry I haven’t posted in a long time! I have been nauseous basically all weekend. But here’s my next adventure!

On Friday we were told we would be having a parade with the whole school. The children had been preparing their outfits/get up in arts and crafts all week. I pictured the kids going class by class around the schoolyard or something. No. We definitely took 170+ kids and teachers down the small dirt road, onto the main street of the city (basically the equivalent of Douglas Boulevard), and across the street to the beach. It was insane. The camp director kept saying that it was safe because we had a police escort. That’s fine and dandy but when you have 150 children one cop car at the front doesn’t do much. It’s dangerous enough everyday for me walking home from school because they have no sidewalks, the streets themselves are not very wide, and motorcycles dart around the cars all the time.

So we started walking with the kids and I quickly realized I had to take on more of a crowd control role. The kids were all chanting their class mascot’s name and theme song as they danced/pranced along. I walked in the middle of the street and urged them to stay closer to the sidewalk. The small dirt road was bad enough but then we got to the main street. Motorcycles were zipping past and cars were backed up completely as we turned the street into a one lane road. I think people were pretty angry at us! One car started driving right in front of our parade and started playing Reggaeton music. I thought I had been zapped into an MTV music video or some nasty night club. Even the youngest kids could seriously shake it. It was impressive but a little disturbing. Then we completely stopped traffic as we crossed the road to the beach. We waited for 30 minutes with the kids because the ice cream shop in town had forgotten that they agreed to donate ice cream for all the kids. We finally got the ice cream and marched in little groups back to the camp. It was a pretty insane ordeal. At any moment one of the children could have been struck by a car or motorcycle fairly easily. It’s crazy what you can do at a summer camp when you know none of the kids’ parents can sue you!

Soy profesora Lucia!

Okay so I've finally started teaching! It's so fun! We made health journals on Monday and then we learned about the germ theory and family health. The kids are wonderful... most of the time. :) It's funny because usually I'm not the most assertive person but when it's in another launguage and the kids are getting on my nerves I lose all my inhibitions. I'm definitely the disciplinarian in our group of teachers. Oh and my new name is Lucia! It was my name in one of my spanish classes and now it's come in handy! There's another teacher named "Ali" and it was going to be too confusing so I got to name myself. Sometimes the kids have to yell "LUCIA!" five times before I remember that's the dumb name I picked out. My Spanish is coming along nicely! I have taught about a third of each of the lessons. I always stand there and stutter like "Caracter... caracterist..pues..." and then three or four kids will blurt out "Caracteristicas!" It's kinda wonderful how I came here to teach them about health and hygiene and then they teach me how to say characteristics in Spanish. I love it so much.
On another more disturbing note, last night I had my first internal wrestle with the Dominican food. Mom and any others easily disgusted should probably not read on. I have been doing so well with this foreign diet and then last night at two in the morning it all went wrong. I was naseous I thought my stomach was going to explode. I guess it kinda did. I basically slept on a thin towel in my sauna-like bathroom with only cockroaches for support. I don't think there was anything left in my G.I. tract. I even dry heaved until I threw up yellow, bitter bile (my knowledge of physiology came in handy!). This lasted until seven in the morning. My nurse friend gave me an electrolyte drink and off to school I went! As soon as I got off the bus my favorite little boy, Eliezer called out "Lucia!" and ran into my arms and gave me a cute little kiss on the cheek. It was just what I needed :) He is precious. My nausea decreased throughout the day but I think I'm going to be a little more careful about what I eat! Ironically in Tyler's email to me today he asked if I had gotten sick yet. We'll have to compare stories!
Okay well I better run. My time at the internet cafe is dwindling. Sorry this blog wasn't as interesting or insightful but whatever just deal with it. I hope everything at home is peachy! Love, Lucia

Soy profesora Lucia!

Okay so I've finally started teaching! It's so fun! We made health journals on Monday and then we learned about the germ theory and family health. The kids are wonderful... most of the time. :) It's funny because usually I'm not the most assertive person but when it's in another launguage and the kids are getting on my nerves I lose all my inhibitions. I'm definitely the disciplinarian in our group of teachers. Oh and my new name is Lucia! It was my name in one of my spanish classes and now it's come in handy! There's another teacher named "Ali" and it was going to be too confusing so I got to name myself. Sometimes the kids have to yell "LUCIA!" five times before I remember that's the dumb name I picked out. My Spanish is coming along nicely! I have taught about a third of each of the lessons. I always stand there and stutter like "Caracter... caracterist..pues..." and then three or four kids will blurt out "Caracteristicas!" It's kinda wonderful how I came here to teach them about health and hygiene and then they teach me how to say characteristics in Spanish. I love it so much.
On another more disturbing note, last night I had my first internal wrestle with the Dominican food. Mom and any others easily disgusted should probably not read on. I have been doing so well with this foreign diet and then last night at two in the morning it all went wrong. I was naseous I thought my stomach was going to explode. I guess it kinda did. I basically slept on a thin towel in my sauna-like bathroom with only cockroaches for support. I don't think there was anything left in my G.I. tract. I even dry heaved until I threw up yellow, bitter bile (my knowledge of physiology came in handy!). This lasted until seven in the morning. My nurse friend gave me an electrolyte drink and off to school I went! As soon as I got off the bus my favorite little boy, Eliezer called out "Lucia!" and ran into my arms and gave me a cute little kiss on the cheek. It was just what I needed :) He is precious. My nausea decreased throughout the day but I think I'm going to be a little more careful about what I eat! Ironically in Tyler's email to me today he asked if I had gotten sick yet. We'll have to compare stories!
Okay well I better run. My time at the internet cafe is dwindling. Sorry this blog wasn't as interesting or insightful but whatever just deal with it. I hope everything at home is peachy! Love, Lucia

Mas Fotos

1. My classroom! and a cute little boy who is my new best friend :)

2. The cute little boys that live next to our school. I guess they've learned how to live with barbed wire...

3. The boys and I

4. Some of the other counselors and I swimming in a cave

5. Hiking in La Loma- the inland, foresty part of DR

6. Just a pretty road with the laundry hanging up

7. This is the political party that I wrote about in my last blog. You can see the crowd of people the the men in their camo.

8. This is a beautiful baby I played with for a half hour at an ice cream shop. Que preciosa!

9. My favorite neighborhood boy

Mas Fotos

1. My classroom! and a cute little boy who is my new best friend :)

2. The cute little boys that live next to our school. I guess they've learned how to live with barbed wire...

3. The boys and I

4. Some of the other counselors and I swimming in a cave

5. Hiking in La Loma- the inland, foresty part of DR

6. Just a pretty road with the laundry hanging up

7. This is the political party that I wrote about in my last blog. You can see the crowd of people the the men in their camo.

8. This is a beautiful baby I played with for a half hour at an ice cream shop. Que preciosa!

9. My favorite neighborhood boy

Happy 4th!

Hey everyone!
This will be quick. I just had to tell you about an experience I had today. We were walking out of the school after preparing our classrooms and there was a huge crowd of people yelling in the streets. I noticed a big truck in the middle with military men standing in the back. A couple of the men even had big guns slung on their shoulders. The people of the village were screaming at them and reaching out their arms. I asked someone what was going on and they told me that one of the political parties was giving out food in order to ensure votes. The people were desperate, begging for the bags of food. Then suddenly the truck drove off and the people wandered back to their homes. Some showed their prized bag of food to their friends and the bag-less walked away disappointed. I guess this is pretty common in third world countries but it was crazy to see their destitute situation firsthand. Later I contrasted this with our political process and government. It was interesting to see this on the Fourth of July and all. I know we still have tons of problems (immigration, social security, poverty, etc) but we have a lot to be grateful for. For example, we have wonderful, classy candidates like Mitt Romney we can vote for! So go donate! Haha that was my shameless plug for the night!
Okay a cockroach just crawled under my chair... I think that's my cue to head to bed! Love you all lots!

Happy 4th!

Hey everyone!
This will be quick. I just had to tell you about an experience I had today. We were walking out of the school after preparing our classrooms and there was a huge crowd of people yelling in the streets. I noticed a big truck in the middle with military men standing in the back. A couple of the men even had big guns slung on their shoulders. The people of the village were screaming at them and reaching out their arms. I asked someone what was going on and they told me that one of the political parties was giving out food in order to ensure votes. The people were desperate, begging for the bags of food. Then suddenly the truck drove off and the people wandered back to their homes. Some showed their prized bag of food to their friends and the bag-less walked away disappointed. I guess this is pretty common in third world countries but it was crazy to see their destitute situation firsthand. Later I contrasted this with our political process and government. It was interesting to see this on the Fourth of July and all. I know we still have tons of problems (immigration, social security, poverty, etc) but we have a lot to be grateful for. For example, we have wonderful, classy candidates like Mitt Romney we can vote for! So go donate! Haha that was my shameless plug for the night!
Okay a cockroach just crawled under my chair... I think that's my cue to head to bed! Love you all lots!

Here are some photos!

1. My new friends and I on the beautiful Dominican beach. It's about a 3 minute walk from our hotel

2. The mariachi band! The creep is the one in the bright blue shirt...

3. My roomies and I on our balcony.

This may look exactly like a lavish vacation but it is not. I am in fact earning 6 credits so let's call it a "Study abroad." Happiness.