CONSTANZA

THIS PLACE IS GORGEOUS!

It is the only place in the DR that is not sweltering hot (ahh cool relief!) and it is the only place that grows strawberries! Bad timing for us that strawberry season ended in August, less than a month before! :(

To give you some background, Constanza was originally populated by Japanese farmers per dictator Trujillo's orders in hopes that they would be able to convert the area into a thriving agricultural center. It worked, and now is known across the country for its delicious produce and beautiful flowers!

Reading the description of this hotel in our guidebook, no way could we pass up this place:

"Perched partway up a high bluff, the rooms have terrific views of the whole valley, the bright green fields of carrots and strawberri

es spread out like a patchwork quilt below"

Breathtaking!

There's only one road you can take to get there and is it in bad shape! For a country that's not super concerned with safety, it certainly gives you pause when you see signs of "Warning! Landslides!". Thankfully we made it around those hairpin one lane curves without any nasty surprises

Since there are only 2 buses a day to this town, we had to get a super early start and had almost the entire day to explore. We hired a guide to take us on an "excursion" to these waterfalls called Aguas Blancas. Little did we know "excursion" really meant "death trap"! In this guys 4WD we drove slowly slowly up this mountain, which was an excursion enough for me. There were times when the road was so narrow that it seemed more of a path than anything. At least once I think we only had 3 wheels rolling, with the 4th just hanging off over the side of the cliff...that'll give anyone sitting in the window seat shivers for sure!

The waterfall itself is beautiful, so beautiful in fact that our guide was easily able to convince us to climb to the top. And climb we did. Boy that was some 50 degree incline!

The view from the top was fantastic as well. And then it was time to go back down.

That's when the problem started. Our guide did not know how to get down. He just kept having bad idea after bad idea. "Why don't you just jump across the top of this waterfall to get to the other side...?" Apparently he had only made the climb 15 years ago, and since then every path he "remembered" had been taken over by prickly bushes. It took us 45 minutes to go up the mountain. It took us 2 1/2 hours to climb down. His directions at times literally consisted of "Now just scale up this tree" and "Jump across this ravine". By the time we made it down we had ruined our clothes just sliding down 45 degree incline after 45 degree incline.

And I loved it! Hey, we asked for an excursion and we got an adventure. I'd say we got our money's worth ;)

Well that was unhelpful!

So let me educate you a little on how the law functions down here. First, we need to start with a clean slate. Put aside those visions of CSI, because it ain't nothing like that.

This was my second experience with the police, and I left no more confident or reassured in the system than after the first time I went last year. The office itself was essentially a shack. From what I could tell there were maybe 2 men on duty? It was hard to tell because only one was wearing a uniform, and who I took to be the "chief" was wearing some sort of Abercrombie jersey...

The "lobby" (perhaps covered patio is the better word here?) was bare of everything except an old swivel chair without a back, a rough looking desk, and a fat old computer that didn't connect to the internet. The chief chastised me for having waited 2 days to report the mugging and made me cry, then diligently took down some of my information in his handy dandy notebook! Which should hopefully explain to you why I waited 2 days to report this. I went out of town that weekend and honestly I didn't feel that the police were going to be helpful enough to warrant canceling my (prepaid) trip to the mountains. Heck, he never even asked me to describe the man who mugged me! So I guess essentially the police are waiting until all my stuff is turned back in with everything intact and then I will get a call.

If only they had had a suggestion box on how to improve their services, I would've given them an earful...

An unfortunate incident

I was mugged yesterday, but have no fear I am unharmed and A-ok. Praise be to God for looking out for me and keeping me safe!

Psalm 46:1-2
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.

Well, it's technically mostly English...

Black Point is on point

(Yes, it really does make that little sense)

Some gems to share

Favorite quote of the day:

"Ew gross! Dead, or sleeping, mouse!"

However it's not my favorite quote when said about other larger animals... Yeah, that's life here

This quote was rivaled by the 3 year old telling the school director picking up his toys, "No es de tuyo, idiota!" ("That's not yours, idiot!")

He's going to have to learn that you usually call people that behind their back, not to their face

DJ recommendation of the day: Cuando el amor se acaba by RBD

Dominican slang: Que lo que?= What's up?

Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in His sight!

My. students. are. AWESOME!

I loved my kids from last year. Just loved them. I was nervous about getting new kids, and especially seeing how that first week went, I was starting to have a few doubts about my decision to stay with second grade. But you know what? I have put all of that behind me. Because these kids are ridiculously adorable. I have an absolute BLAST teaching them. Yeah of course there are days when everyone is just off in lala land and I feel like I'm banging my head against the wall trying to get them to participate. And yeah of course there are days when no one will sit down and I can only give out directions in my outside screaming voice.

BUT (yes, there is a but!) they can also be a TON of fun! :)

Like today, when we ended up spending 15 minutes of class after recess practicin

g our Michael Jackson moves because one kid swore to me "Teacher! Teacher! Look! I'm Michael Jackson!", before proceeding to walk backwards moonwalk style. Except the way he did it, it just kind of looked like how we walk backwards here on Earth...

And like how one of my kids can only be made to sit down in his chair if his "robot mode" is turned on. (Hey, if it gets him in his seat!)

And they are also super duper sweet! :)

Like today, when the kids brought in M&M's to use in Math class and I (casually) mentioned how much I love M&M's. Next thing you know I'm being handed an entire bag of Peanut M&M's by one kid while another repeatedly tells me "Bajate!" ("Get lower!") so he can throw more into my mouth.

And like how one student wishes me "Buena suerta con los otros ninos!" ("Good luck with those other kids!") before we change classes.

And did I mention how they love to think critically?

We went on a field trip last week to the fire station and the amet (traffic control/DMV office) because we are currently learning about "community" in Social Studies. When they were being educated by the firefighter about what number to call in case of an emergency, one student very seriously brought up the issue "But what if the phone is on fire?"

*Sidenote: In the DR, the # 911 DOES NOT WORK! The call center is in Santo Domingo, so if you need help from anywhere outside of the capital, you're just going to end up wasting precious minutes being transfered. I can't believe I didn't find that out until after having lived here for over a year...

So in conclusion, my job is friggin great and I want to eat all of my kids up :)

Though honestly I would probably love them just a teensy bit more if they could break it down like this... ;)

Thanks, I did want to wake up at 3am

If, when driving down the street, you set off every car alarm on the block, YOUR MUSIC IS TOO LOUD

Noise violations schmoise violations. Not in this country!

Recommended song to be woken up to:

Ella quiere un pedazo by Cherito

So not PC

One reason why you just have to love Dominicans is their lovely ability to be so direct and to the point. For them there is no subtlety.

"You're not going to wear that shirt, right? Because that color makes you look horribly washed out."

or even better

"Wow, are you sick or something? Because you look awful!"

It gets worse when you venture out into the streets. You are no longer referred to by a name but by a physical description:

"Gordo! Flaca! Cojo! Morena! Joven! Rubia! Negro! Manchau! Linda! Manco! Gringa! Americana! Vico! Pajaro! Vieja!"

which effectively translate to-

"Fatty! Skinny! Lame one! Darkie! Young person! Blondie! Black person! With the multi-colored skin! Pretty! You with only one hand! Whitie! American! Cross-eyed! Gay! Oldie!"

Since I am certainly not one to have tough skin it's a good thing I get called the more positive of those terms! Heaven forbid the day I should hear someone yell "Feita!" (little ugly one)...

Por fin!

After living life successfully for 1 year without a TV down here, the school has finally decided to give our apartment one!

But as of yet we are not permitted to take it out of the box...

It's proving so far to be a good foot rest ;)

Ain't no party like a Cabarete party

Well that was a well-deserved break!

After another exhausting week with the kids I figured it was high time to reward myself with some very much needed beach relaxation. I'm very lucky in that Santiago is only 2 hours from the nearest beach, and buses run all the time to and from. We always take the Caribe Tours bus line, and while they manage to get you from one place to another in one piece, there's not much more reason to brag about it. They have TVs on all their buses that they somet

imes show movies on, and it always seems to work out so that when you're the most tired and want nothing more than to just sleep the next few hours away, that's when they decide to play movies. And not just any movies, mind you. Their collection consists of nothing but violent Quentin Tarantino style movies. With lots of explosions. Lots of yelling. Lots of painful dying. And no one seems to know where the "volume down" button is. Just imagine what kind of dreams you would have falling asleep to that, huh?!

So one of my favorite places to go for a weekend away is Cabarete, a small beach town with a BIG night life. It's 2 1/2 hours away, and is just a huge expanse of sand and ocean. There's one road through the main drag that for 3 blocks is quite the happening area. It's super touristy, with lots of really nice shops (when prices are given in dollars you know you're in for some expensive souvenirs) and some DELICIOUS restaurants. I could go there every weekend for the food alone, it's that good.

We stayed in an apartment down a side alley that leads out to the beach, and for $20/night we couldn't have done better (hot water included!). It's just such a great place to lay out and catch some rays. (Though of course your sleep is punctuated by locals interrupting and encouraging you to "Try massage! For you, very nice price". Or better yet, you can go all island-y with some classic hair braids they'll do for you right there!) My roommate knew someone from UNC working there with the Dream Project so they gave us the scoop on the best beach spots with minimal bothering :)

The city's got somewhat of a sad back story, with prostitution and drugs especially rampant. It's a small town, and very transient because tourists are always just coming and going. It's easy to walk around and spot the oddly matched couples whose relationships clearly involves money exchanging hands. And because the night life is so big, there are definitely some illegal substances floating around

All of the restaurants are right on the beach, literally right on it. And there's nothing quite like chowing down on some yummy pizza and cold beer while digging your feet in the sand. Plus, they're all such posh looking establishments! And when it turns night time? The party just spills out all over the beach, a total free for all.

How is it possible to be worn out and also rejuvenated by the same place?! I'll continue investigating... ;)

And in honor of Cabarete, your party music recommendation for the week:

Virtual Diva-Don Omar

A rubia is a rubia is a rubia

Best quote from a student last week:

"But Teacher, why do all the American English teachers look the same?"

Apparently we're all just "blondies" to them :P

Surprise!

So my kids may not know how to say "water" in English, but one of them definitely busted out the word plumber today.

Where in the world did that come from?!

Never cease to be amazed...