It smells really great here.
After one quick day in DC and a flight through Miami, I have arrived in the Dominican. All of us Peace Corps Trainees, of which there are many (and more than a few Iowans), arrived in country on Thursday and everything has gone really fast since then. The first day and night were spent in Santo Domingo in what was referred to as a "retreat." Basically just an orientation to get to know Peace Corps DR Staff, continue to get to know each other and get the first of many, many vaccinations. From there it as on to the outskirts of the city where our daily training will take place and where we will call home for much of the next 10 weeks.
The Training Center is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. The trees, flowers, plant life, outdoor classrooms and everything about the place are perfect. Extremely conducive to learning. It is here we are getting our Spanish language training, cultural sensitivity training and much of our introductory Peace Corps training as well.
On Friday we met our host families, whose homes will be our homes for much of the next 10 weeks. Meeting my host family was certainly the most nerve-racking experience thus far. It's impossible not to speculate how they might be, where they might live, how they might react to you, etc. But, of course, there was nothing to worry about. Along with my Dona (host mother), I have 1 host brother, 2 host sisters and one impossibly cute but extremely rambunctious 5-year old grandson. I live in a barrio not far from the training center alongside a number of other trainees.
My Spanish needs a lot of work. It's been almost three years since I studied in Spain and used the language with any frequency. I've obviously forgotten a lot in those three years and need to pick it back up quickly. I have decided that my brain shuts down slowly throughout the course of the day and by dinnertime I understand little and speak less. Fortunately, my host family has accommodated other Peace Corps volunteers in the past and knows how to deal with linguistically challenged gringos.
The first weekend has just finished up. I spent about 8 hours of my Sunday partaking in the Dominican pastime that is Dominoes. My family passes much of its day on the front porch, especially when the electricity is out, and today the porch was used for endless games of dominoes. Multiple aunts, neighbors and fellow PC trainees dropped by and joined in. The front door of the Dominican house may as well be a revolving door because people are constantly dropping in throughout the day to chat, chismear (gossip), simply sit around or meet the new gringo on the street.
Everything has been great so far. The food, the people, the weather, the staff working with us, the hurricane that went the other way. After just a few days I almost don't mind being perpetually sweaty and the cold-water bucket baths the sweat leads to. In a couple weeks it will be second nature. Hot showers, flushing toilets and life sans mosquito net will be a distant memory.
There is most definitely no internet access at my casa and finding time to use the wireless before, during and/or after our busy training schedule isn't easy, but I'll try to update as much as possible in the days to come before heading out to the Campo for some hands-on training in a few short weeks.
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