I'm sitting in probably the most unlikely place to be using the internet right now. Just about to head back to Santo Domingo after my Volunteer visit and wanted to share a little sumin' sumin'. This is what I wrote in my journal on the 22nd...
I could be really grossed out right now. And actually I guess I should be grossed out right now. See this is what's up. I'm visiting a real life Peace Corps Volunteer this week. Just seeing what life is really like in the PC, all the day to day kind of stuff. All I can say is that this is the Real Deal. I've realized I'm getting pampered at my host families house. I will be living this life of luxgery (well, I guess luxgery it's relative) for the next 2 and a half months until I move to my own site. This visit has just made me much more psyched to get going with my own site and own projects. Between training, my host family, and the fact that I feel about 8 yrs old when I speak Spanish I am ready to grow up and leave the nest. But anyway to the part that should have made me puke.
Me and my real life Peace Corps Volunteer went out to gather up supplies for lunch. We were able to get our hands on some beans, a few vegies, but we needed some chicken. We found some without any problem, its just that the chicken wasn't exactly where I would expect to buy chicken. We walk up to this corner and my rlPCV starts chatting it up with this lady who proceeds to whip out a whole chicken from a bag. This headless chicken had the longest neck I've ever seen. It also still had its feet, toes, and all internal organs. The lady then whips out this huge machete, takes a few full swings and chops up this whole chicken Jujitsu style. Before I knew what to think about the whole ordeal we're off with a bag full of chicken parts, including a huge chicken foot. I guess, this was all fine and dandy and would have been enough for me.
We get back home and have to prepare this chicken. We had to pull out some extra feathers, remove various organs (heart, lungs, liver, etc.), and cut up these ginormous toes into more bit size pieces. After adding the chicken to an amazing beans and rice dish it turned out to be an excellent lunch. Had I been in the states, I would have given up way before we got to the feathers but this is the DR and if I want to survive there are things I just have to not think about. Freshly killed, whole chickens with feathers and toes being one.
9.24.2005
9.15.2005
Welcome to The DR
I really don´t no where to start or what to even say, so I´ll just start rambling. Maybe that will be the best way to get things out. Lets see...
I can start out by telling you about my shower. I would just like to say this is not your Grandma´s bubble bath! Calling it more of a drip shower or bucket shower would be more accurate. It really consists of a limited amount of cold water that I drip over my head, wash, and drip some more to rinse. I don´t think I have been as awake in the morning as a have after a cold bucket shower. You should try it sometime. This brings me to my second thought.
I don´t think I have stopped sweating since I walked off the plane exactly a week ago. I sweat myself to sleep, wake up and sweat as I walk to training, sweat all day long, and even sweat during my cold bucket shower. It really never stops and it is quite uncomfortable, but I hear it is also great for my skin. All of us in training have all pretty much gotten use to this and are at the point where we don´t even think twice about talking to each other while dripping like a faucet.
Wow, it sounds like I am complaining about being here which is deffiently not the case so I better talk about the things I enjoy here in the DR. #1 is the people. Dominicans are special people. They are very warm and welcoming, and really enjoy to dance! We even have been learning merengue and bachata dancing in our culture classes. You have to know how to dance to survive here. Music is everywhere and Dominicans will break down and dance as soon as they hear it. It´s really great and gives the atmosphere here a wonderful vibe.
There is so much more and forgive me for getting to only a small part of it. I hope to write more soon. Take care and I miss all of my friends and family.
paz y amor
mateo
I can start out by telling you about my shower. I would just like to say this is not your Grandma´s bubble bath! Calling it more of a drip shower or bucket shower would be more accurate. It really consists of a limited amount of cold water that I drip over my head, wash, and drip some more to rinse. I don´t think I have been as awake in the morning as a have after a cold bucket shower. You should try it sometime. This brings me to my second thought.
I don´t think I have stopped sweating since I walked off the plane exactly a week ago. I sweat myself to sleep, wake up and sweat as I walk to training, sweat all day long, and even sweat during my cold bucket shower. It really never stops and it is quite uncomfortable, but I hear it is also great for my skin. All of us in training have all pretty much gotten use to this and are at the point where we don´t even think twice about talking to each other while dripping like a faucet.
Wow, it sounds like I am complaining about being here which is deffiently not the case so I better talk about the things I enjoy here in the DR. #1 is the people. Dominicans are special people. They are very warm and welcoming, and really enjoy to dance! We even have been learning merengue and bachata dancing in our culture classes. You have to know how to dance to survive here. Music is everywhere and Dominicans will break down and dance as soon as they hear it. It´s really great and gives the atmosphere here a wonderful vibe.
There is so much more and forgive me for getting to only a small part of it. I hope to write more soon. Take care and I miss all of my friends and family.
paz y amor
mateo
9.07.2005
Quick Note
Well, I don't have long but I just wanted to do a small post. I'm currently in Miami and have just finished up our orientation into the world of Peace Corps, it remindes me of what I studied in my social psyc class about indoctrination. I am currently beening indoctrinated into the Peace Corps culture and it's not so bad. We are a group of 51. Most are recent college grads and a few a recent grad school grads and its been exciting and odd meeting all these new faces. I'm trying extra hard to learn names because I usually don't get names until about 5 weeks of talking to that person. I thought I better work on changing that. I just thought of this, but tonight is my last night in this country for a while. I will be jumping head first into the DR tomorrow and will be living with my host familiy the next day and everything will take off from there. What exactly everything is I have no idea. I feel this will not be the last time in these next two years that I have no idea what is going on. Guess I better cut it short as there is way to much more to say and I don't have the patience to say it all right now. Just a note, (Mom, Dad, and whoever else is wondering why I haven't been in touch) my gmail account has not been working. It may be a problem with the computers here at the hotel or something else but I'll get in touch with you asap. Alright, peace and love from the MIA.
Hasta Santo Domingo
Hasta Santo Domingo
9.01.2005
A DR News Article
I'd like to share a piece of news I came across about the DR. It's not happy news. It's actually rather disturbing, but since I had no idea this type of thing went on I figured it would be good to clue you all in also.
Friday, August 25 Migrant slayings trigger tensions between Haiti and Dominican Republic PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -
Haiti recalled its top diplomat to the Dominican Republic on Thursday after three Haitian migrants were beaten and burned to death in the neighbouring country, an official said. Pierre Willy, Dominique Gilberto and Paul Cinius were attacked Aug. 16 in a small suburb just south of the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, where they worked at a furniture factory, Dominican police said. According to the Dominican Attorney General's Office, the three men, aged 19 to 22, had been drinking alcohol with a group of Dominicans at a neighbourhood store. Later that night, the Dominicans went to a house where the Haitians were staying and demanded money from one of them. After he refused, the group jumped the men, beat them, doused them with a flammable liquid and set them ablaze, the Attorney General's Office said in a statement. The men died days later from burn wounds in a Santo Domingo hospital. In response to the killings, Haiti's interim government recalled its charge d'affaires "for consultation," said Jean Daniel Lafontant, a spokesman for Haiti's Foreign Affairs Ministry. "The Haitian interim government energetically condemns these criminal acts. It deplores that such deeds have occurred at a time when significant efforts are being made to lastingly improve relations between the two countries," a Foreign Ministry statement said. The Dominican National Police said Thursday it had formed a commission to investigate the attack and find the killers. The slayings seemed likely to further inflame growing tensions between the uneasy Caribbean neighbours, which share 390-kilometre border on the island of Hispaniola.
Friday, August 25 Migrant slayings trigger tensions between Haiti and Dominican Republic PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) -
Haiti recalled its top diplomat to the Dominican Republic on Thursday after three Haitian migrants were beaten and burned to death in the neighbouring country, an official said. Pierre Willy, Dominique Gilberto and Paul Cinius were attacked Aug. 16 in a small suburb just south of the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, where they worked at a furniture factory, Dominican police said. According to the Dominican Attorney General's Office, the three men, aged 19 to 22, had been drinking alcohol with a group of Dominicans at a neighbourhood store. Later that night, the Dominicans went to a house where the Haitians were staying and demanded money from one of them. After he refused, the group jumped the men, beat them, doused them with a flammable liquid and set them ablaze, the Attorney General's Office said in a statement. The men died days later from burn wounds in a Santo Domingo hospital. In response to the killings, Haiti's interim government recalled its charge d'affaires "for consultation," said Jean Daniel Lafontant, a spokesman for Haiti's Foreign Affairs Ministry. "The Haitian interim government energetically condemns these criminal acts. It deplores that such deeds have occurred at a time when significant efforts are being made to lastingly improve relations between the two countries," a Foreign Ministry statement said. The Dominican National Police said Thursday it had formed a commission to investigate the attack and find the killers. The slayings seemed likely to further inflame growing tensions between the uneasy Caribbean neighbours, which share 390-kilometre border on the island of Hispaniola.
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