random

Here are some pics to hold you all over until I have time to post another blog. The top is of Jessica, Bill and me at a restaurant in the capital. We splurge on junk food at TGIFs (oops). Bill and I are acting classy at the consolidation hotel and drinking out of champagne glasses. Thanks to his mom for sending Mambas from the States. The next picture is of the health PCVs. We had just sworn in. We´re looking up at the only male in our group because he had to deal with all the girl issues during 5 weeks of CBT (Thanks Tod!)

sick

Well, everyone is officially cleared to go back to their sites. However, I will remain in the capital until Monday. The PC Medical Officer has diagnosed me with some kind of bronchial infection and I'm loaded up on meds. Don't worry I get to stay in a private room at the hostel with cable. Please send me lots of funny emails as I will continue to take full advantage of the free internet via the PC office. Love you all.

OLGA la sin verguenza

Timeline of Monday and Tuesdays events:

Monday 12/10 evening: My neighbor announces to the community that there was some ciclon coming towards the country.
*In my community, there is no phone service and no TVs. 2 people own radios and we rely on them for the noticias

Tuesday 12/10 8:30a: I walked outside to clean my "pee pot" and noticed a sky full of clouds. Brief thoughts of packing up essentials and heading into the city to call the PC office to see what was happening ran through my mind. Problem: Only ONE truck heads down from my site into Ocoa. It leaves each morning at 7:30a.
Went about my day.
There were more rumors of a storm coming towards us by 2:00p or 5:00p. Everyone kind of stayed indoors and didn't show much concern.

1:00p The skies continued to darken. I told my host-mom that if the weather gets bad, I'd have to find a way to contact the PC office. She laughed and said "Si Dios quiere".

3:00p An unfamiliar motorcycle driver came looking for la Americana to hand deliver a note. Sure enough the note said for me to head to the capital immediately. My contact in the city received a phone call from the capital advising her to reach me. She sent a moto-driver up to my site (this cost me a pretty penny).
I packed up, grabbed a backpack full of necessities, put on my helmet and hopped on the back of the motorcycle.
*The road (if you can call it that) is really rocky, you have to cross a river at least 5 times, and motorcycles suck. I thought I was going to fall off.
3:30p: On the road, we passed a motorcycle driver was looking for la Americana. We stopped and he handed me a note. A volunteer had written it stating that all PCVs were now in the CONSOLIDATION PHASE and need to report to "safe-houses" (i.e. hotels throughout the country).

4:15p: A man in a truck traveling towards my site flagged us down. You guessed it, he was looking for la Americana. This driver said that he was sent up the mountain to pick me up. I was ecstatic as this meant no more moto ride for me!
The ride down the mountain was really bumpy and became pretty scary once it started to rain. We picked up hitch hikers on the way as many people wanted to head down to the pueblo for a safety. I grew antsy because I knew that the last bus to the capital would leave by 6:00p.

5:56p: The truck driver dropped me off at the bus stop and they were still loading! I boarded and found Katie, but none of the other regional PCVs (there are 5 of us). We headed to Santo Domingo.

8:45p: Katie and I arrived at the assigned hotel SAFELY. We checked in and met up with the other PCVs and gobbled up a delicious (and very free) dinner.

Notes:
I can honestly say that some of my faith in the PC system has been restored. I whole-heartedly appreciate the efforts taken to get me to a safe location during OLGA. You all should know that all PCVs have been accounted for. A couple were unable to leave their sites, but PC has had contact with them. As far as the storm direction, you all in the States probably know more than I do. I believe the eye is passing Haiti, but we're expecting tons of rain as the tail whips over us.

Spoiled American Notes: All consolidated PCVs are happily enjoying our air-conditioning, cable tv, hot showers (REAL SHOWERS) and the yummy hotel buffet thanks to the PC. A few of us made the 5 block trek in the crazy rain to the PC office to retrieve packages. Thanks Tia Vero, Mom, and Danny for all the love.

Back to Reality: We'll be here at least one more night. All of us are dreading leaving and are scared to hear about the damage the storm has caused in our sites. Whatever the results, I'll try to keep you posted. I think my house will be fine. We'll probably just have an increase in rats. Yeah, rats. I'll write about the rats later.

For now, have a great holiday season and good luck with finals UNR!

It's been awhile

So much on my mind and there's no way this short entry will be sufficient but.....

Noel: The dang storm did a ton of damage. The roads turned into rivers, homes turned into pools, and people and animals lost their lives. We didn't have power for 8 days and food was becoming scarce. Luckily all of the PCTs are ok. The water group was evacuated from their training site by hellicopter. That made for a good story. There's some good footage of the damages caused by the storm on You Tube...check it out and let me know what you think.

Site: I received my official placement last week! I'll be in a small community surrounded by the mountains of the Cordillera Central in the province of San Jose de Ocoa (I left San Jose, Ca to end up in San Jose of the DR...go figure). It takes 1hr 45min to get to the community from the city. The road is really dangerous and scary, but leads to my paradise. Fast facts: the community is made up of 54 houses, there's a school that goes up to 5th grade with 45 students, the community has had an agro-forestry PCV in the past so there is tons of vegetation, I live near a river, It is really cold at night (yay!), my outhouse is about 50 yards away from my house, I use the "pee pot" at least twice a night, It's amazing.....you should come visit.

Early XMAS: Thanks Mom, Tracy, Juvie, Christine and Danny for the wonderful packages and mail. I received everything last week when I arrived back at the capital and enjoyed my early Christmas. Some highlights were: post-its, tapatio packets, M&Ms, UNR stickers, trail mix, granola bars, Gulliver's Travels, magazines and batteries. Don't worry, I am sharing my goodies with the other PCTs. Again, thanks so much for making me feel special.

Communication: Once I am permanently at my site I will only be able to check my email bi-monthly. Please remember to send me messages and or funny emails whenever possible. It'll be a nice balance to all the messages I get from my mom telling me of a new personal item she has decided to sell or give away (love you mom).

Quick

Sorry this has to be quick. I just found out the huge spider was a tarantula! Go figure.
I´m in Bani for a month. I´m safe, but always hungry.

I am learning a lot about the knowledge people have regarding HIV and sexual health. We health volunteers have a lot of work ahead of us.
Love you all
wish me luck on my presentation this Friday.

HUGE SPIDER

I eceived my CBT assignment today and from the sounds of it I´ll be cut off from internet for 5 weeks.....boo. I´ll be in a small campo in Bani. There are 4 of us in the same block so it won´t be bad. Just know that I am safe and probably eating ridiculous amounts of platanos.

First picture: Vaccination time at ENTRENA
2nd: my princess fort. tilt your head, i don´t have time or money to rotate the picture



funny....

The other night i was on the phone with my mom. It was super late because she was apparently waiting for the vaccum repair person to call her back (i forgive you Alma). Anyway, I´was talking to her while laying under my mosquito net and enjoying my powerful AC (wall mounted fan). Out of the corner of my eye, i see this black thing squirm a little. Guess what it was......that´s right......A HUGE SPIDER! It´s body was the size of a nutter butter and it´s leg span was the length of my hand! It seriously made me freak out. My mom convinced me to wake up my dona by saying, ¨mamitas, spiders are dangerous!¨ Anyway, after waking up my lady, she came down and just looked at the ginormous spider and said ¨no hace nada¨ (doesn´t do anything). Was she kidding?! she could tell i was freaked out so she went and got the broom. She fought the spider by swatting it until it crawled out through the window. The best part of this story is that i had just finished hand washing my ahem....undies and they were hanging in the window slats to dry (common practice here). yup, the same window slats that the spider crawled in through, was swatted against, and crawled out through. say it with me.....HUGE SPIDER 1 , ESPIE 0







Thanks Em for letting me know that UNR beat UNLV.....GO PACK!

goodbye for now. wish me luck in BANI!

Sweat, Guagua and Yucca

First off, it´s hotter than hades here. The only time I´m not sweating is when i´m bathing. Luckily, I haven´t mastered the art of bucket baths so this usually lasts about 30 mins. hmm...1 whole hour a day of no sweat.

moving on
This week in training we´ve been using the transportation system. I officially take back anything bad I´ve ever said about the 27 on Blossom Hill. That is first-class compared to the guaguas we have to ride in the DR. They´re basically REALLY overcrowded busses (I´m talking like 3.5 people per seat). We also have carros publicos . These are usually like 1992 corrolla-ish cars with 6-7 passengers (i know, right?). The part that really sucks about this is that they don´t always have specific routes or times-you have to stop them and ask. AND you have to be really careful about which ones you take and who is riding in it with you. BART, anyone?
Next week I´m going to the Northwest part of the DR to visit a current PCV. I´m looking forward to picking her brain about her last 2 years here and her project. To get to her site, i have to travel 5 hours in a very luxurious bus (think Greyhound). Hooray for the AC!!!! Downside, I have to ride 20 minutes on a motoconcho.....pray for me.
A few things...
I´ve been here 1 week and it feels like 1 month. Things are getting frustrating and tedious. We haven´t had much time outside of our training center/barrio. This will change in about 3 weeks when we move to our training communities. Lucky me- I´ll be in the Bani area.
There was a huge thunderstorm last night. I really thought the roof was going to fly off and I would be struck by lightening. I prayed that my princess fort (mosquito net) would protect me.
The food is good but definitely starting to taste bland. I don´t know how much more yucca I´ll be able to eat before I go crazy. Please go and have a fish taco from Rubio´s for me. While you´re at it, drink a bottle of Tapatio. There are no spicy foods here. Wait, my dona (host mom) sait that the chicken from KFC is spicy and tasted really good (SERIOUSLY?!). I´m ending this.....I hope you enjoy your AC.

I´m in the DR!!!!!!

I´m here! I don´t have much time here and because it´s a spur of the moment trip to the internet cafe, i don´t have my thoughts organized. Yesterday was adoption day for the trainees from the center. my family consists of a don, dona, brother-7, sister 2. so far everything is really overwhelming and intense, but totally how i expected it to be. i haven´t had a chance to really sit down and take in the feeling, but that´s just my american way. man, as i type this the sweat is dripping down my face. the biz casz attire isn´t working out in this environment. we´ve taken a few pics and i´ll post them as soon as i get the chance. be sure to laugh at my hair as it has taken a very different shape overnight.

I survived my first bucket bath last night. it´s really not that difficult (way better than my bucket baths during surgery recovery), but i´m going to definitely miss regular showers real soon.

ok, time to go. i think i´ll be back later this week.

love you all


p.s. a couple of us are determined to bring the hyphy movement to the DR (hahahaha jk)
p.p.s. my first meal in my home was an omelet and plantains....yummy

Last night in the U.S.!

We leave for the D.R. in a few hours! I took advantage of our free evening by exploring Georgetown a bit. Derrick (fellow PCT) is from here so he was the official tour-guide. He showed Maryam and me the university Red Square, Healy Hall (sorry if that's off), the famous steps where former U.S. Presidents have spoken (including Abe Lincoln), and the staircase where THE EXORCIST was filmed. This was super exciting for me and I plan to post a few pictures at a later time.

Anyway, I should call my mom so she isn't a "Sad Monkey". Thank You so much for your interest in my adventure. I am counting on your continued support and motivation throughout the PCT and PCV process.

I'll post as soon as I am able to from the D.R.

Staging

HOLA! I'm in Washington D.C. at the moment. I arrived safely (but very late!) on Monday night. Staging officially began yesterday afternoon. Basically, it's filled with ice-breakers and brief information sessions. I feel as if they are really general almost as if they are avoiding the difficult and serious topics. Maybe they are waiting for us to be in the D.R. to keep us from wanting to stay in the U.S.
Anyway, here's a few facts. There are 54 trainees in my class. Most are from California (what can I say, we have big hearts). 15 males, 1 married couple. I'm not sure how many were in my specific program, but I think about 15. We are all really nervous/anxious about our service, but are excited to live up to (for lack of better terms) the Peace Corps Mission.

Sorry this has to be brief...I am on lunch break and on Maryam's (she's from Berkeley and in my program!) computadora. I'll try to add more later as this is my final day in the U.S. for a few years.
Muchos Besos!

Description

Some specifics:

Program: Healthy Families
Job Title: Community health/Health Nutrition Extensionist
Dates of Service (incl. Training): September 2007-November 2009

The program's overall goals are to contibute to the reduction of infant mortality, reduction in maternal mortality and reduction in HIV/AIDS infection.

My thoughts: HOLY MOLY (picture a biggest smile my facial muscles can produce)!

13 days

The purpose of this blog "thingy" is to keep in touch with family and friends (all 4 of you) during my 26 months in the Dominican Republic as a Peace Corps Trainee and Volunteer. I'm hoping that this form of communication will ease the minds of loved ones in the U.S. while also providing a place for me to vent, share, and simply inform of my experiences in my new home.

Hmmmm.....did anyone watch The Hills last night? Sad to admit, but I'm going to miss trashy mtv shows.

Ok back to DR stuff.

I was reading on a current PCV's blog about learning to dance merengue and bachata and I'm totally looking forward to that. Partly because it'll be a nice change from the USA funky cheer dances (shout out to those who know what I'm talking about), and mainly because I want to battle with all you fouette, plie, releve, soutenu, tendue-ers when I get back. Let's take a second and think about how ridiculous that sounds.....

I have to measure my luggage. Peace Corps Trainees are only allowed to take 2 checked bags and 1 carry-on. 26 months of life into 3 bags....that's crazy! Looks like I won't be setting up a Bed Bath and Beyond registry...


On that note, I will continue with more DR nuts and bolts tomorrow. Be sure to tune in!