Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Taking it day by day . . .

We have been enjoying yet more opportunities to practice that "flexibility" which the Peace Corps promised we would need. There turned out to be an unexpected delay between the Dominican Republic and Honduras, which we have been spending in Miami. We have simultaneously been enjoying luxuries like hot showers and wondering whether we will soon regret having allowed ourselves to be spoiled again.

The Peace Corps has sent down several personable and helpful staff people from D.C. to continue our language instruction, arrange for community service opportunities, and try to keep up our morale. They assure us that Honduras is not just a mythical destination and that we will be there before long.

It would be foolhardy at this point to predict when we will be setttled in Honduras to the point of having Internet access, but we will post again when we can.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Farewell to the Dominican Republic

Our time in the Dominican Republic appears to be coming to an end. The last news reports are that negotiations are continuing through the week and we think that we will be cleared to go to Honduras. Given all of the mixed reports that we have gotten about what is really going on there, it will be very interesting to have the opportunity to find out what people are saying on the ground.

The people in the DR have been very amable and have made our stay here quite enjoyable. We are fortunate to have had the opportunity to see a small part of this country. Perhaps someday we will have an opportunity to get out much further into it.

We may not have access to the internet for some time at our new post. Do not be concerned. We are being well taken care of and will look forward to letting you know what we are up to as soon as we can.

Friday, July 17, 2009

Week Three

The highlight of our third week here was a field trip to a Peace Corps site located about 90 miles from Santo Domingo. First off, the bus was air conditioned, an amazing luxury these days. This time of year here is similar to Houston summers, before electricity, with maybe a little less cooling at night. We traveled through a very lush country, with cane fields, rich grazing land and trees that seem to come from an earlier era.

The Peace Corps volunteer that we met is deeply engaged in a poor barrio in a small regional center. The pace was much slower than here in the capital. Although they seem to have more reliable electricity (we have regular blackouts, although we also have storage batteries and an "inversor" which keeps some things running) all other amenities were significantly less. It was inspiring to see the community library and other projects that they are building and to see how deeply connected he is to the local community. It was a little intimidating to see first-hand something that may be very similar to our living situation in Honduras. We will have a lot of adjustments to make -- like learning to collect and store water when it is only available for brief periods several times a week.

Our Spanish improves slowly. John had a dream in Spanish the other night, although with a bad accent and significant misuse of the subjunctive. We are almost getting accustomed to the complete failure of the "adopt a highway" program here and hardly notice the heavy exhaust from the nearby "autopista." Our host family continues to be extremely gracious.

Things seem to be heating up again in Honduras according to news reports, although they are still telling us that we are scheduled to go soon. All is well.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Our Studies Continue


This week passed very quickly for us. We spent the mornings in our respective Spanish classes of five people each. We are both still frustrated with our lack of ability to speak coherently, but we are making progress in hearing and understanding the language. After our morning session, we have a large comida at mid day and then we have been having classes on health and safety - how to clean vegetables, purify water and have safe sex - and we are now beginning to have more substantive discussions about Honduras and our assignments. All indications are that we will going to Honduras within the next two weeks, but that is still not final. We are receiving training at this point from a combination of Honduran and DR staff.

The highlight of our week was our trip to the Centro of Santo Domingo on Wednesday with our respective Spanish study groups. Interestingly, the Peace Corps headquarters for the DR is located downtown in a grand old house that was once one of the family homes of the Trujillo family, prior to that dictator being overthrown.
There is a very impressive Zona Colonial adjacent to the commercial and governmental center. Santo Domingo was the first Spanish city in the New World and there are a surprising number of homes, churches and public buildings that date from the 1500 and 1600´s. Their Design Review Board has done an impressive job of maintaining the integrity of a large area, that seems to include more than a couple of square miles.

We are both in good health - as are most of the other voluntarios - and doing well. Note that if you may have had problems posting comments on this blog, please try again, as we think that we have fixed this. Please keep in touch.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Our Second Week

We are beginning to settle into something of a routine now. We go to classes beginning at 8 A. M. each morning, mostly Spanish, but with some special sessions on health, security and development issues. We get there on public transportation, which is an experience in itself, particularly the "guaguas." They are a form of small bus with lots of people crowded in and the cobrador hanging off the side trying to encourage more people to get on. We are broken up into small groups of 5 or 6 for very personalized instruction. Elizabeth is in one of the "blue bird" groups and John is in one of the "others." We also have a lot of diversions. Today we learned how to dance merengue and bachata in the afternoon. Tomorrow we all go to the historic district downtown for a combination of practical Spanish and some sight-seeing. John has found a couple of places to run in the neighborhood now, so even though it is very hot and humid, he is enjoying that in the evenings.

This past weekend we had a nice free day with our host family. We went to church services with local flavored music and an energetic priest who spoke clearly enough for us to understand - you should be providing guidance to your children no matter how old they are. Then we went to a restuarant and to to visit other family members. John went to a pelea de gallos in the neighborhood, where he watched the scene, as it was too crowded to get very close to actual cockpit. Very loud and exciting.


All of the information that we are getting now indicates that we will probably be cleared to go to Honduras towards the end of July. Things are still not resolved in Honduras, but most of the country seems tranquilo outside of the capital. We continue to hope that they can find some compromise solution. All of this remains subject to change, but absent any other dramatic development, we may get something close to final plans next week.
Here´s a photo of the casitas that we study in under the fruit trees. Que chulo aqui.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

We arrived safely in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday. We spent that night in a Catholic retreat center that was large, but also somewhat reminiscent of the fellowship halls of many Catholic churches we´ve known in the States. Early Thursday we were bussed to a Peace Corps training center where we´ve been spending our days since. The grounds are beautiful with many mango, banana, and papaya trees. The classrooms are all ramadas located out on the grounds. We´re now living in a home not far from there with a family. They have been extremely hospitable and our living arrangements are very comfortable.

We have had two days of orientation and Spanish classes. Our teachers are very energetic and experienced and we think we can already notice some improvement in our Spanish. We´ll have a shorter day of classes on Saturday and then Sunday will be free time.

Everything is going well and we will try to post pictures before too long.