3 AM Found Me in the Dominican Republic

August 19th-21st

3 AM found me in the Dominican Republic. For those who do not know what I am talking about, back home in California I would always wake up around 3 AM and usually eat a snack of some sort but here I am not hungry, I just naturally woke up at 3 AM. There is a ridiculous amount of stuff that has happened in the last 48 hours since I have been here so I will do my best to recap it all. I guess first off we made it safely with no problems. That is impressive for a group of 51 Americans traveling at 2 AM on little sleep. I remember sleeping at the airport underneath the rows of waiting seats. Most of everyone was passed out asleep and much of the same for the flight from Miami to Santo Domingo. When we touched down in the Dominican Republic we had to practice this phrase, “No gracias”. The reason being because there are several polite Dominicans who will help you with your luggage but request a tip. Even though I practiced my “no gracias” like the rest of the group, somehow a guy about 5 feet from the luggage truck grabbed my bag for me and placed it in the truck. I actually did not mind because it aloud me to get a sweet spot on the shuttle…bus…van? We spent the first night in a large church for dinner and some training. I was dying because we had a snack and then they began some presentations and turned the lights off. Just like in any school setting when the lights go off, my eyes go shut. It was difficult and painful to stay awake but I did my best has they explained some important rules and information for our safety. The accommodations here blow my mind. They are more than anyone would imagine for the Peace Corps. They say that the Dominican Republic is one of the most desirable Peace Corps countries to serve in….I am definitely beginning to see why.
The next day we traveled early in the morning to the ENTRENA training center for a day of information, Spanish training, and signing forms. ENTRENA is the company outsourced to train us. We are 1 of 2 Peace Corps countries that receive outside training by a private company. You have no idea how special this is. The food is amazing here and it is made up of different kinds of salads, chicken, rice, beans, fried treats and plantains.
After the day was coming to an end I got the opportunity to meet my host Dona. My Dona is fabulous. She has had many Volunteers before and knows how to make an American feel comfortable. One of the first things she said was that with all her Peace Corps volunteers she has confidence and trust in them to tell her exactly what they like and do not like because she is my Dominican mother. It is a bit difficult to communicate at this point but it is only an amount of time till Spanish begins to spew from my mouth. The only person here that speaks English is a joyful 9 year old girl who lives here and is wise beyond her years. She is a real treat because like many other girls in the U.S. loves Hannah Montana. I guess you can never escape the influence of Disney no matter how far you travel. They also like to watch the Simpsons here, Go Homer! The little girl said at dinner that needed to be excused because she needed a little bit more Homer. My house has fans, electricity, regular shower, and toilet, lights, music; you name it I got it. I don’t have wireless but come on that is asking a bit much.
Well it is now four and I should be getting back to sleep.