Vacation!!

Thursday: horseback trip
On Thursday we decided to go horseback riding and let me tell you, it was the best decision we have made yet! We showed up the morning of and were soon greeted by a lady named Joyce. She was thrilled to have us there and so excited to tell us all about the trip and just get to know us. She is originally from Manhattan but now lives in Puerto plata and runs this horse place. The funny thing is that she isn't a horse person and she doesn't speak Spanish. We got all set up, paid for the trip and she made sure we got a great picture before we headed out! The ride was amazing! We went through the village and up the mountain through beautiful farm land. Farmers were out hand farming the fields and greeted us with a warm smile. The overlook point was beautiful! After taking some pictures at the overlook we made our way down through a rain forest like trail down to the river. We stopped at a beautiful blue lagoon and went for a swim. We even convinced one of our guides to swim with us despite the fact that "cowboys don't swim".
After our swimming we kept on riding up to a cute little place for lunch. The food was Amazing! They also had a guy there selling jewelry and other trinkets for what he said was the best price around. He was a very good salesman and talked us into some beautiful things. After we ate and bought our trinkets we were given a tour of the kitchen. They cook with a wood fire stove and pots and pans that could be straight out of an old western. I loved it! The ride back to the ranch was just as beautiful as the way up. We ran into a few mud puddles and hanging tree branches, but a little mud and a few scratches just adds to the adventure! All in all that horseback trip has been the best thing I've done with my free time. I would recommend it to anyone.


Friday: Sosua
After our horse trip we stayed in a hotel a lovely hotel right on the coast of Sosua. The hotel wasn't the best, but it was perfect for us. The AC was amazing! We had a working shower, wifi, and some TV channels in English. We were living large. The pool was a refreshing change from the salt water we are used to. Friday we just stayed around Sosua. We wandered around town and found this cute little café for breakfast. I noticed right off that Sosua is a big tourist destination. So many people spoke English enough to try and sell you things. The beach was fairly crowded, but it was beautiful. We did a glass bottom boat tour over a beautiful coral reef. Somehow I made it through a full day on the beach without getting sunburned.


Saturday: Cabarete
On Saturday, the last day of our vacation we decided to go to Cabarete. We hopped in a taxi and went flying down the road and made it there just before lunch. We found a path down to the beach and were immediately bombarded with people trying to sell us their chair spot or jewelry. By some lucky chance we found a spot we could sit for free and get some food. We pretty much say in that same spot all day long. After the first few people tried to sell us things we decided to keep track of the number of people that stopped by. It was exhausting trying to hoard them off. Apparently three American girls draw a lot of vender attention. By the time we left, over 40 people had tried to sell us something. Somehow we made it out of there without spending way too much money. I bought some beautiful jewelry from a guy named little Richy. He talked to us multiple times and found out what we were doing here. He decided that since we were here to help the Dominicans and were poor teachers he would give us a good deal. He wasn't kidding either! He certainly didn't make money off of my purchase. In the DR they have this stone that is native to only this island, it's called Larimar. It comes in a variety of light blue colors similar to that of the ocean here. The jewelry I was talked into buying consists of the Larimar stone and another beautiful flower stone. Luckily we didn't bring a lot of money with us so I couldn't bring myself to buy anymore. Though one guy was selling really cool wood carved animals. The beach at Cabarete is beautiful and the water there seems more clean and refreshing than anywhere else. So far I think Cabarete is my favorite beach.

Power struggles and a haunted house?

This week we only taught three days the rest of the week we had a vacation. Teaching is getting better and the kids are starting to get into a routine. It's still a little chaotic most days, but that's what you get trying to teach 35+ young kids.

I've mentioned the trouble with our power before, but this week was way worse.. We had over 36 hours without power to our house and it started to worry us. Even our neighbors were concerned to the point of getting after us for not calling and having someone come look at it. During this time of darkness at our house many creepy things went on. We were informed that this building used to be an orphanage and was closed down. The nights without lights in the house are extremely creepy. One night one of the girls downstairs couldn't sleep, but she swore she could hear little kids playing in the room next to her, which is our supply/ classroom. She said they seemed like good spirits, but spirits nonetheless. At the same time in the other room two girls were having the same dream where little Dominican kids were just standing around and staring at them. They wouldn't more or respond they just stared. Creepy right!? The next day, when we were still in darkness, for some reason they found creepy stories and psych hospital stories to be a good topic of conversation. I found the feeling around when those stories were told  to be very unpleasant. There was a point in time I really didn't want to be around it any longer and next thing I know I am sitting in a hammock on the roof listening to hymns and reading scriptures. Hymns can work wonders when it comes to chasing away Satan. I'm really grateful for the power Our Heavenly Father has and his willingness to help us.

It's the little things that mean the most

Another week down!
This week flew by and I'm glad it's over. The schools are all slowly improving. We introduced the strike and reward programs this week but when you are working with three year olds that don't speak English it's pretty hard to get them to understand strikes. We are hoping some of them learned something.

The last few days have been very eye opening to me. On Thursday I was walking down the street with my Polaroid camera. I took a few pictures of me with the kids or just the kids. Next thing I knew people were standing around me asking if they could have a picture of themselves. Oh the joy it brings to just give away a simple photo. It's the little things that mean the most.  These people may have nothing but they are some of happiest people in the world. Amarilis said, "When you have nothing there is nothing to worry about. The more you have the more you worry".  That statement has been proven to be true so many times. We don't need riches or worldly possessions to be happy. We need to be grateful for the little things and find joy in being around and helping others. I don't have enough fingers and toes to count the number of times I have been helped or supported by the people here. They are always willing to drop what they are doing to help out their neighbor.

On Friday we cleaned out our supply room and threw away a bunch of supplies. A short few minutes later our neighbors were out on the street digging through all of the things we just threw out. It turns out we are very wasteful people. It was like Christmas for ten to get all of the supplies we considered garbage. Again it's the little things. The joy I could see on the children's faces when they found some colored pencils and paper was unreal to me. It's heartbreaking to see just how little these kids have, but they are still happy and playful children. I see two little boys, almost everyday, racing cars down the road. These are homemade cars tied to a string that they drag around. They cut a bottle in half stick a small stick or rod through it, put the water jug caps on as wheels, and but a rock or piece of brick inside to give it weight. Someday they will stop moving long enough to get a picture. These little cars seem to provide hours and hours of entertainment and they made them from garbage.

Adventures of the week: introducing store to three year olds, getting the flu, having enough internet to watch a movie, Polaroid photo shoot, and a neighborhood dance party in the street.

A zoo in the middle of town

One day, after school, our friend Mario invited us to come to his house to see his chihuahua that just had puppies and his parrot  that talks. What we found defied our expectations. Mario lead us down street after street until we came to a street that said zoo something, I don't remember the exact name, but we walked down this street and found a big gate to a zoo. Mario pulled out his keys, unlocked the door, and let us in.

We learned that this zoo was Mario's father's passion and labor of love, but when he died six years ago they had to close because it was too much for them to handle. Now they just open it for private parties and such. It is such a cool place! It's not a huge zoo, but there are lots of cool animals and plants. It was a little bit of paradise. We stayed there for a few hours looking at animals, playing pool, drinking fresh guava juice, holding turtles, and talking to parrots. What a great day! I'm amazed everyday at the little gems I find in this country. This little zoo is definitely one!

Friday, Paradise island, and the Sabbath

The end of the week seemed so far away, but Friday came so soon. We all were grateful to have the weekend. Friday night we decided we wanted pizza so we hoped in the guay guay(public bus system) and made our way into town. Our friend Mario took us to a pizzeria. It was so worth it! Even though the pizza was clearly different, it was delicious. A refreshing change from the rice and meat we have everyday. After dinner we walked down the road past long beach. Mario wouldn't let us walk on the beach because at night they become very dangerous. I'm really glad he came with us.

Saturday morning we got up bright and early to head to Paradise island. We piled in this big bus with the AC blasting and traveled about two hours. We passed beautiful feilds of animals and crops, some of which were going to be shipped to the US. When the ocean came into view again it was so blue. We walked down to the crystal clear water where three little boats were there waiting. These boats looked super sketchy... Like a big fiberglass boat with a huge 70 horse power motor strapped on the back. At first I was a little freaked out but once we got going I remembered how much I love boats. It was so fun!! After about ten minutes the boats stopped and underneath us was a big sand bar. We al jumped out and played in the shoulder deep water. It's weird to be able to stand in the middle of the ocean. When we decided to continue on I was so grateful for my guide strength that allowed me to get myself in the boat. We continued another ten minutes out toward the middle of the ocean. Then out of nowhere a little sand bar with six tiny huts appeared. A little piece of paradise. All around the sand bar was a coral reef with tons of fish. We snorkeled and played for a couple hours on this tiny island. On the way back the boats took the long way and took us through a mangrove forest. It reminded me a lot of Florida. I kept waiting for an alligator to appear. ;) We had lunch at a little buffet by the sea. It was amazing! I don't know if it was really that good or if we were all just starving, but nonetheless it was a delicious meal. After the two hour ride back we were all exhausted.

Now on to the Sabbath day! I love Sundays, even when we don't understand most of what is being said. Just being at the church, taking the sacrament, and feeling the spirit is what I find important. It's about a mile and a half walk up to church. And when I say up I mean it.. It's uphill just about the whole way, but it's worth it. On the way home we were dying of heat walking in the sun when all the sudden we were startled by a load horn. Now it's not uncommon for people to honk at us but it was seriously frightening. When then heard a person bark and immediately knew who it was. Amarillis's son in law was the one who drove us out to paradise island in the big bus and he he was again! It seems like such a menial thing, but three minutes in a very air conditioned bus helped us find the stamina to make it the rest of the way home. Tender mercies are all around us.

Adventures of the weekend: getting a flat tire with papi at la Sirena, having no power for hours and hours, taking a boat to the middle of the ocean, and trying to drink the ocean while snorkeling...