Rain with a chance of Sun

Monday was a nice day off, I use that as my free day since JT has the day off too so we did chores around Maria's house, grocery shopped, and headed to the beach. Tuesday I headed to the Transformation House/Tyler's House which is a free medical clinic for children. I helped the Dr to see about 6-7 kiddos but their busy day is Monday after the weekend, so I was done by noon then headed to the school to help kids learn of Africa ;) After school was out, the rain came............. It was a MONSOON I swear! The roads were flooded over on the main road and lots of peoples houses flooded too, so sad here because no body ever thinks of preventing by building up walls or barriers from the rain while they have nice weather and free time, so it's a continual cycle each time the rain comes. Wednesday was a really productive day in A Ganar (english class) the adults are in this course to develop enough English skills to get a job and provide for themselves. Thursday I went with Maria, Margot, and Alesandra to a orphanage in Puerto Plata. It is run by a nun and houses mainly special needs/handicapped children. There are 2 little sisters there that the nun doesn't allow outside because she is afraid they are going to get sick and make the others sick, so our mission was to play with the kids and convince the nun to let them go to the beach and get out for the day with Margot and Alesandra.... we were successful!! Our friend Cody was DJ at VoyVoy (a beach bar) that night so we went out for a bit that night, Oh and the weather.... still RAINING.... Friday was English again and then the afternoon there were blue skies so I B-lined to the beach! (There are Yellow chairs outside of Jose Oshea's and they are free to lay on so that is where you will always find me) I got a solid 2 hours out there but it turned into a thin layer of overcast, then I felt a rain drop so I packed it up and started home... I got to the edge of the beach, turned the corner, and the rain started pelting down like madmen! I have a broken umbrella that I have to hold at the base to keep up, and it also leaks so I was drenched by the time I got home anyway, Love the Rain ;) Friday night turned into a movie night thanks to the weather ha I know I sound like a Complaining Catherine and it's because I am... everything here has a constant dampness to it, some might say moist, but most people hate that word so I will say dampness, but I just would like a day of dry! Enter Saturday, today is Monkey Jungle day where I do clinic and Pharmacy work, it had a few drizzles once we got up into the mountains but the rest of the day was raindrop free!!!! Saturday afternoon JT and I did our workout on the beach, and passerby's looked at us like we are crazy... we kinda are... and then spent some time in the sun ;) Saturday night dancing was fun but TONS of people were out since everyone had been hiding indoors all week. Seriously if there is rain, Dominicans do not leave their houses, End of Story, Not a Chance. Sunday morning JT and I went over to Puerto Plata, its a hour drive in a guagua, but worth the drive. I understood about 15% of the talks in church, which is an improvement from my first week in church ha ha Afterwards we went and continued our day of rest laying at "Secret Beach" in Sosua and then home in the evening to relax and hang with everyone. I absolutely HATE how fast this is all going, I LOVE all the people I am meeting and coming in contact with, there is so much to see in the world and I am So grateful and blessed to have the opportunity to be here!! Outside view of the Transformation/Tyler House

Me and the little 4 month old, so stinking cute!

Just the View on my way to school...... EEEEEKKK and EEEEWWWW

Oro and I, she is a 96 yr old lady next door who never leaves the street and never wears a bra ;)

The top of the street Colmado, love the paint job

Margot, Alesandra, Maria, and I on our way to the orphanage in the rain ;(

Angelica and I with the little boys who name I forgot, whoops, she is a crazy sweet little thing unable to walk on her own so I helped her do laps on the back porch where I believe the children sleep since there were lots of mattresses stacked up outside

Angelica finally wearing down!

Maria, Angelica, and I

El cuentro beach, or the cute surf shops at El Cuentro beach

A whole other week under my belt, whew... This past week I spent a lot of time at DREAM helping out, all of Thursday and half of Friday I helped in Justins class. Sociales Estudios and A Ganar which is the English class are the 2 I helped with, by the end of Thursday I was finally able to understand the entire Spanish written book that Justin read to the class, he went through it SiX times lol So I learned a few new vocabulary words ;) On Saturday I went to the Monkey Jungle again and ran the pharmacy once again, its a fun little thing for me to do and makes me feel good! Saturday night there was a dance competition here in the Callejon La Loma, its called Dembo, but I am not sure if thats how you spell it. Its a Dominican style of dancing where they go really quick on the beat and their bodies do all sorts of crazy tricks and bends, it was crazy though, I met 2 little sisters who were 11 and 7, they became my shadows for the night. At Midnight one of them was asleep in Marias lap so we walked them home, absolutely a different world I encountered with parents home in bed sleeping while there little girls were out and about, no worries in the world. Yesterday we took a day trip out to Santiago, Maria, Justin, Hannah, and Obie her boyfriend went on Caribe Tours! Its a 2 hour ride and we went to eat Mcdonalds and watch the Hunger Games, its the closest movie theater to here ;) Obie had never done either of those so he was pretty happy trying it all out... ok he was STOKED!! We had a great time, but it was interesting to see that in a city where people had a little bit of money, there skin was a shade or 2 lighter and they all had chemically straight hair. It was funny because my friends kept calling them "whities" like we are not a bunch of white Americans in the city lol I got a vanilla ice cream cone to polish of the trip ;) Also while here I am working on some books, right now I am reading Wurthering Heights for the first time ever, so tragic and also Catching Fire for the 2nd time through. Also I am part reading The Book Thief, this one I found at the library at the school and it was a recommended read ;) Tomorrow I am going to Transformation House, its a kid rehabilitation house that does all free cares and medicines for the kids! Justin in Social Studies, so hot to see him teaching the kids ;)

Hannah, Mariah, Christina and I, check out our matching earrings, only 50 pesos for all of them!!

Me and my two girls, Anabel and Aliasi

Obie having his first McDonald's, we Americanized him ;)

Maria.... So special

So far this week....

Kite beach, tons of kite surfers come here to the North Coast to wind and kite surf



Another view of the beach... why??



The entrance to the gate where i live ;)



Maria Listening to one of the kids read



Yo y mi amigo Roberto reading



Wow its Wednesday, its official I have been here a week now... my tan is a little better looking, my hair is a little frizzier, my skin a little less dry, and my craving for a Dr Pepper is at a all time high! Its been a nice week, Monday I took it for a day of rest ha I spent it bumming around watching old TV shows with JT and going for a nice run then swim on the beach ;) Yesterday I went to DREAM with Maria (the friend I am staying with) and helped in her reading class, we had a blast teaching the kids how to say my name... I can't even imagine if we tried to show them how to spell it and say it Ha There is a video of them singing a poem/song out of a book they just finished yesterday, they are too stinking cute! Today I went to the school and helped in Al Ganar english class for the 16-24 yr old adults, it is a tough task because there are so many levels of knowledge in the class but we are coming along... I hope! This afternoon, me and my new Canadian Dr friend Rebecca took a moto out to Transformation House which is a free children's hospital and met with the manager. They are mostly in need of help on Mondays and Tuesdays so thats when I will probably be spending my time next week! Besides that I have been meeting people, wandering around town, and working on my spanish... tough task!! There is currently a truck full of fruit in the back that is driving around and yelling out in Spanish all the things they have for sale... to me it sounds like a communist take over is happening right outside my window... I am afraid!! Ha

I will update soon, until next time, stay classy

Just incase stupid tourists try to stick their hands in the cage... They have been warned ;)



WillFrank, a volunteer up at the HADAC clinic, in the pharmacy where I spent my Saturday



The DREAM kids enjoying a hand game with BYU Idaho Jazz band when they did a special performance



Justin and I on the Moto his friend gave him



Not positive on the name of these flowers but they are everywhere like its normal!

Here I Go!

Another turning point a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist directs you where to go
So make the best of this test and don't ask why
It's not a question but a lesson learned in time

It's something unpredictable but in the end
It's right I hope you've had the time of your life

So take the photographs and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos and memories and dead skin on trial
For what it's worth it was worth all the while

Green Day

So this song popped into my head when I started to post to this blog for the first time, I am sitting in the front room on the sofa hearing the chirping crickets outside and the wind breezing through the window, and it has really hit me today that I am here in the Dominican Republic!! This has been such a roller coaster of emotions getting here and so many doubts and concerns if this was the right choice to make by coming here, but good gracious it hit me today and it feel GREAT!! I have a lot of things I haven't seen, tons of people I haven't met, differences to make, and growing to do. I have made leaps and bounds the past 2 years in the DC area! I have met some of the most influential people in my life up to this point and am so grateful that I took that chance and put myself out there. I have always heard that change is good and a necessary means to progression; if things are not changing then they remain the same or deteriorate to a previous state. It is never comfortable, but its necessary. Never wanting to be stale/stagnant I have subconsciously moved every 2 years since graduating high school... Not on purpose, but I guess its kind of what I have been doing. When I came to the Dominican Rep in Feb I had planned to have a nice relaxing vacation and to enjoy a new beautiful country for a week, then to return home to DC and continue to enjoy my revamped life in Glover Park, however this is clearly not was intended for me. After the first few days, I fell in love with the people here on the North Coast! So when the opportunity to come back, stay with friends, volunteer, and have a life changing opportunity, I could think of no reason as to WHY NOT?? This is going to be UNPREDICTABLE, LESSONS LEARNED, and WORTH WHILE.... So I will take some still frames and post when something exciting occurs. My goal is to make this the time of my life and to continue to improve myself each day!!