So I’ve been in the DR for a little over a month now and it has been amazing. Ive been able to do so much in my short time here. Ive tutored students, coached basketball, surfed, snorkled, danced(in the loosest definition of the word), had conversations in spanish, and even took a short slightly illegal trip to Cuba(lets all just agree not to say anything,ok?). This has also been the first time that Ive really lived by myself, and from that alone Íve learned so much. Things like shampoo does not double for dish soap, putting your garbage outside does not solve your lizards-all-over-the-place-inside problem but does create a dogs-fighting-over-garbage-in-the-middle-of-the-night problem, and trying to avoid doing laundry by wearing your bathingsuit for 5 days straight is going to give you some uncomfortable rashes. Some days have been better then others but when im feeling down or stressed the beach is only a short walk away, and most days are great. The school is a great place to work and I love playing games with the kids and teaching them english while they teach me spanish. The foundation is called Mahatma Ghandi foundation in Las Terenas DR. Its a great little school thats trying to build a better future for the DR and Las Terrenas in particular. Jose the directore runs it with his wife Annette and the money they recive from the tuition of children of tourists goes directly into funding scholarships for local dominican and haitian children. Creating a school where the students are comfortable with people of different cultures and one that fosters creativity and self-reliance. Im thrilled with my decsion to come here and I look forward to the next two months.
“The apocalypse is not something which is coming. The apocalypse has arrived in major portions of the planet and its only because we live within a bubble of incredible privilege and social insulation that we still have the luxury of anticipating the apocalypse”-Terrence McKenna
-Quintin