Ending the Week, Starting the Weekend

Thursday October 28, 2010

Day 55

Today was our last day with the visitors from the US.  We all had a nice breakfast at the Dominican Fiesta and then went to the clinic for a tour and a little meeting.  I prepared a lot for the tour but Teresa actually did most of it.  She has so much passion for that clinic so it is hard to keep her from sharing it.  It was still nice to show everyone around the place that I have grown to like so much.  I had a sense of ownership that I didn’t think I would have for a place I have only been at for less than two months.  After the tour we had a little meeting with two of the Cabelleros or Knights of Malta.  They both spoke English so that made everything even easier.  After the clinic we headed to the Santo Domingo Country Club for lunch.  I went with one of the cabaelleros and his driver because there wasn’t enough room for me.  I think this whole “not having enough room for Jaclyn” thing is becoming a theme. (Happened twice that day and a few times this week already)  Either way, we got there and I was so surprised to see a country club less than a mile from Teresa’s house.  How did I miss that these last 54 days? The lunch was nice and the conversation was good.  It was nice having the visitors but their presence has increased my calorie intake tenfold and for that reason it is OK that they are leaving today. 

Friday October 29, 2010

Day 56

We went back to our regular schedule today.  I went back to my research and other assignments and Teresa went back to, I am not sure but probably just saving the world as usual. I am being serious and not sarcastic at all.  I have been following the cholera epidemic in Haiti very closely and have noticed how some newspapers and websites report on the same story and give totally different facts.  The health officials in the Dominican Republic are doing a ton of health education and prevention and praying that it doesn’t cross the border.  If it does, I think they’ll be more than ready. 

We left a little early today to do some errands and get the kids from school.  I was happy to see all of the kids at Cynthia’s school dressed in orange and black for Halloween.  When I got there they were disassembling a huge structure that Cynthia later told me was a haunted house that was actually dark and scary.  I spent the rest of the day and night relaxing and I am glad that this tiring but great week is over.

Fun Facts:

1.       My brother is coming in 7 days! (See previous post)

2.       The sweet dessert I bought last week is supposed to be served with cheese and that is why I found it too sweet.

3.       People in the street market next to the office have TV’s set up to watch.

4.       The Dominican Republic is preparing their health information about cholera in Spanish and in Creole.   I plan to learn French in the next coming years but Creole just seems impossible!

5.       See photo below.

Peace,

Jaclyn

A helmet with room for a ponytail? Great idea!

A Request

My brother is coming to visit me next week and we will be bringing some very special things to the community of La Lomita. Here is a copy of his e-mail.

Hello All,
Next week I will be heading to the Dominican Republic to visit my sister, spend a few days at the beach, and visit a village called La Lomita.  La Lomita is a small rural community where the non-profit I co-founded, Grace Cares, has done several projects.  In the past we have built a community center (used as the school), a water well, and a chicken coop to start a community owned egg business.  We have also provided for an elder care program.  I will be going to check-out some of the past projects and would like to bring supplies to set-up an art program for the children there.

I am buying classroom-sized boxes of crayons, colored pencils, watercolors, paint brushes, and pastels in the US and sister will purchase the bulkier items like paper, clay, and bottles of paint in Santo Domingo.  These are things that most of us had plenty of in school and probably at home growing up, not so much there.  This is a small project and as such even small donations would help out greatly.  If you can spare $5-10 dollars or would like to pass this email on to someone who can, it would be greatly appreciated.

Information about Grace Cares and more about our past projects in the Dominican and elsewhere is available at http://www.gracecares.com/.  Grace Cares is a 501(c)3.   As I will be bringing the goods along with me, 100% of the donations will be going towards purchasing the supplies.  Donations can be made by check to Grace Cares, Inc. 773 Guilford Street, Brattleboro, VT 05301; cash (send me an email); or online at http://gracecares.com/donate.html. 

Thank you,
Captain Ken

P.S. At the beginning of December our Annual Report will come out with info about our larger projects completed this year as well as those proposed for next.  If you are interested in finding out more, please let me know.



Teresa and the kids in La Lomita singing a song



"Life" in the Time of Cholera

Monday October 25, 2010

Day 52

Today was a nice start to an exciting week.  In the afternoon Teresa and I went to the airport to pick up two people from Project HOPE who are visiting this week.  Two people are visiting from Sanofi and they came earlier this morning.  The two Project HOPE people were so excited to see Teresa and she was equally excited to see them.  We took them to their hotel and we went back to the office to finish some work before dinner.  Did I mention that we skipped lunch?  That was the only bad part about the day.  I really don’t like missing meals.  (Right, Mom?)

We went back to the Dominican Fiesta Hotel and picked up our four visitors and went to a restaurant in the Zona Colonial for dinner.  The restaurant was very nice and we started out sitting outside with a nice view of Alcázar de Colón which was the home of Diego Columbus , but had to move inside when it started raining.  We had a good diner and great conversation to go along with it.

Tuesday October 26, 2010

Day 53

We started off our long but exciting day with a meeting with the person in charge of the national vaccine program for SESPAS (Ministry of Health).  We discussed the donations and the cholera outbreak.  A note about the cholera outbreak: Everything we are doing now has been altered or must be altered because of the cholera outbreak in Haiti.  In the Dominican Republic people acknowledge that this is all one island so not only is the Dominican Republic at too, but as neighbors, they must help Haiti.  As we keep hearing, “Diseases have no borders.”  For now there haven’t been any cases here and hopefully it stays that way.

Following our very informative meeting we went to see the cold rooms where they store the vaccines.  The warehouse has a few big walk-in refrigerators where they store the vaccines.  We got to see the donated vaccines as well as the rest of the warehouse.  It was so cool (pun?)!

Since our car was very full they sent two of us with the doctor who we just met with to travel a few blocks to the Ministry of Health.  That was when I thought “hmm, I am in the car with the person who is in charge of a national vaccine program, how great!” We went to the meeting and the Ministry of Health and unfortunately the Minister had to cancel because he was at the border for a cholera meeting (I know this is true because I saw him on the news tonight in one of the border towns).  Instead we met with the Vice Minister of Health.  That was still extremely impressive.  I can’t believe all of these opportunities I am getting!

After a relaxing lunch at the Dominican Fiesta we went to UNICEF for a meeting.  At UNICEF we had the same issue because the person we were supposed to meet with was also at the cholera meeting at the border.  Instead, we met with a person who specializes in health in disasters.  It was interesting to talk with him and he gave us some good insight about what they were doing at UNICEF.  Oh, and this time at UNICEF I brought my passport so I didn’t need to use my gym membership card as identification.

Teresa had an important meeting with important people in regards to the work Ecuador is doing in Haiti.  Everyone loves Teresa and it is no surprise that she had to jet out of a meeting to meet with some ambassadors.  While Teresa was at her meeting Ruben and I went to get snacks and water for the trip to the border towns tomorrow.  The fast paced grocery shopping and the selection of fruit and water reminded me of my days as the wrestling team manager at IU and my many grocery store trips before meets.  I miss it!

For dinner we went to the Argentinian restaurant that we went to for Nanita’s birthday the other day.  I had some sort of steak and it was delicious.  I rarely eat steak but it was a steak place so I think that is what you are supposed to do.  Everyone really enjoyed the food and I hope we can find another excuse to go back there.

Thursday October 27, 2010

Day 54

We woke up early today and were on the road to the border towns by 7:45am.  We took Teresa’s SUV and hired our favorite taxi driver, Freddy to take some the overflow people.  I was one of the overflow people and I enjoyed the ride with Teresa, Orlando and Freddy.  The first stop on our trip was to El Limón.  We wanted to check out the vaccine situation there at the rural clinic and the regional director of health met us there too.  While we were there, one of the doctors was giving a lecture on Cholera to about 30 people crammed in to the tiny clinic.  Teresa eventually took over and wow, what a public speaker!  She was so animated and passionate and I think she should go to every town and do this.  She explained to everyone what Cholera is, how to prevent it, how to treat it, etc.   I attempted to videotape the lecture because it was THAT good but silly Jaclyn had it on the wrong setting so it didn’t come out correctly.  I can almost guarantee that everyone in the room (more people started coming in when they saw from the street that something was going on) now knows about cholera and how they can prevent and treat it.  I hope to do this exact thing one day (the public health talk).

We left El Limón and went to Jimani which is on the border of Haiti.  We went to their public health office and met with a couple of doctors there.  They told us how they were responding to the Cholera outbreak in Haiti and what they were doing to prepare.  We also assessed their vaccination situation and discussed things that they think they need to improve their care.  Just a few feet away, across the street was their hospital and we went there next for a quick tour.  It seemed surprisingly quiet and empty and everyone kept reminding us how right after the earthquake it was absolutely full with patients, crowding every inch of space in the waiting areas, hallways, etc.  

We wanted to go over to the Haiti side just to see the health centers closest to the border but we decided against it. We figured it would be too risky if we went over and for some reason (perhaps an increase in Cholera cases) they decided to close the border, we could be stuck there.  In the beginning of the week, or maybe it was last week, they suspended the market days at one of the other border crossings that take place right next to the border where Haitians bring their goods to sell so everyone has been afraid that they might actually close the border.  Instead of crossing over we just drove right up to it, took a few pictures and turned around.

We headed back to Santo Domingo and I was grateful to be back after a long day of sitting in a car.  It was another good experience so I am definitely glad I got to go.

Fun Facts:

1.       None of the toilets I used today out in the field flushed and only one had toilet paper.  Am I oversharing? I just thought it was a fun fact.  Advice to all traveling: tissues and hand sanitizer gel/ hand wipes are key.

2.       I saw a truck with tire flaps (I have no idea what that is really called) from Hackensack, NJ in Santo Domingo.

3.       At the military and police checkpoints Teresa continued her public health promotion.  She told the military people that when the vaccines are available they need to get the meningococcal vaccine because it is being prioritized for military personnel. 

4.       We had to stop for a cow crossing the road three different times today.  Why did the cow cross the road?

5.       There are goats everywhere here.

6.       On the way to the Ministry of Health I spotted Haagen Dazs and Baskin Robbins.  I call that success!

7.       The other day I had such a bad mosquito bite (or something else) and my ankle was swollen almost twice the normal size and it actually hurt a lot.  I am alive now so I guess it is OK. It is still a little big but I am not suffering from “cankles” anymore. 

8.       Sometimes I drink coffee here to be polite because people serve you things and assume you will drink/eat them.  Everyone here is just so nice that they want to give you food, drinks, seats, etc.

Peace,

Jaclyn

The group minus one of the doctors and Ruben. Banana promotion?

Teresa doing her AMAZING Cholera lecture. The lady next to her was someone she called up to answer a question.



The border



Fruit Paradise

Friday October 22, 2010

Day 49

Today I worked on some things for my upcoming tour with the visitors.  I prepared a guide and a summary of the important points that I need to include.  I got a bit distracted when I found about the Cholera outbreak in Haiti.  I ended up researching and reading articles for a lot of the day.  Disease knows no borders and it is quite scary to think what can happen in the next few days.  As of today it hadn’t hit Port-au- Prince yet and I am just hoping it doesn’t go there because that could be disastrous. 

At night we went out to dinner for Nanita’s birthday.  We were trying to keep the location a surprise but I wasn’t entirely in on the surprise so I was a bit confused and frustrated.  We were trying to go to a restaurant next to a hotel where they were having a big, fancy fashion show.  Needless to say there were absolutely no parking spots and a ton of people trying to go where we were going.  Eventually, Teresa worked her magic and the chef from the restaurant snuck is in to a VIP spot next to the restaurant.  She knew this guy already and it was somewhat part of the plan I think.  The restaurant was an Argentinian place and we had two big platters with a variety of different types of meat.  It was delicious but I had no idea what half of the things were that I was eating.

Saturday October 23, 2010

Day 50

I woke up early today to get ready for our trip to Ruben’s.  The kids were supposed to have music lessons this morning but the power went out so they had to cancel because Juan Carlos plays the keyboard and that requires electricity.  We all went to the grocery store to buy some things to take with us to Ruben’s and I had to also stock up on my yogurt and cereal. 

We ended up leaving a lot later than planned but eventually we began our journey to Ruben’s.   The trip is about two hours and the first hour and a half or so is on a highway.  The final 30 minutes is where the adventure is.  The roads are unpaved, narrow, bumpy, curvy or hilly.  I actually enjoy those kinds of trips but I was glad I wasn’t driving because I would be afraid to hit something or worse, someone.  We had to ask for directions a few times but people here are so kind and helpful.

When we arrived at Ruben’s they were waiting for us and had sancocho (stew with meat, cassava, and potatoes, etc) and freshly caught river crabs all prepared.  Ruben is married and has two daughters and a son and plenty of other kids and friends who frequent his house so there were a bunch of people there too.  We had a big meal outside and after the meal everyone was telling riddles and jokes until late in to the night.  It was a lot of fun and the best part was that there weren’t any mosquitoes! (Can you believe that, Grace?) 

Sunday October 24, 2010

Day 51

I woke up to ducks and chickens and the sun streaming through my window.  Not a bad way to wake up.  Teresa helped Ruben’s wife and another woman prepare the breakfast in their outdoor kitchen.  I love the smell of fire so I was glad they were using that instead of the regular kitchen they have inside.  They made some type of stew with salami and onions and served it with yuca (cassava) for breakfast.  At every meal we also had avocados because they grow them on his property and they were just delicious.  While they were preparing the breakfast, Ruben showed me the chicken coop that my 13 year old cousin, Grace raised funds for and helped to build.  I was expecting something a lot smaller and basic but this thing was huge.  It is more like a chicken house than a coop. I was so proud!

After breakfast Ruben gave us a tour of his property.  This tour was the most delicious tour I ever went on.  He has so many different types of fruit on his property and I will try to remember everything: mandarin oranges, avocados, something that looks like a cherry (I do not know the name), Chinese grapes, coffee, cocoa, cashews, macadamias , star fruit, mango, limes, pineapple, passion fruit and probably more that I am forgetting. I should have kept a list! It was fun walking through the property and tasting things. The cocoa tastes nothing like chocolate and I felt like I was in the Kashi commercial when the lady tries it and goes “ooo, slippery!” In the 24 hours that I was at Ruben’s house I consumed so much fruit and it was delicious.

After the fruit tour we went to go check out the rest of the surrounding communities.  We visited some of the people Ruben helped recently and they were all so grateful to see Ruben.  Ruben lives in an extremely poor area and is always doing some sort of project to help his neighbors.  One area that we went to was La Lomita.  This community is very poor and they were suffering greatly before Ruben and GRACE Cares got involved. http://gracecares.com/home.html My brother, Aunt and Uncle founded this organization and they have been working in La Lomita for a few years now.  Ruben showed us the well that they helped build as well as the community center they constructed.  As soon as we got out of the car to walk around, a ton of little kids joined us.  They were all happy to see Ruben and it was so nice.  It was as if Ruben had 20 something little nieces and nephews who all ran to meet him and welcome him.  In the community center (it is a covered pavilion area that the kids can play in it when it rains, have classes, eat, etc.) Teresa got all of the kids to sing a song.  It was cute and of course I took a video.  She also was teaching them how to properly pray.  She told them it was a game and they HAD to keep their eyes closed until we were done.  I hope to do more personally with the kids of La Lomita because I can see how much they need the help and how much they are benefiting from what GRACE and Ruben have already done.

After La Lomita we went to visit a friend who lived on the top of this hill.  He had built a beautiful house and it was so comfortable and fancy (as hilltop houses in the countryside of the Dominican Republic go) on the inside.  Teresa and the kids rode the horse for a little while and they really enjoyed that.  I took a bunch of pictures because the view was so wonderful. 

When we finished our community tour we returned to the house for lunch.  We had rice, meat, habichuelos (bean stew to put on rice) and a side salad.  It was very tasty and I ate way too much.  After lunch I played with Ruben’s daughters (ages 7 & 8) and I think I have made two new friends now. They are very outgoing and LOVE being models for pictures and photographers with my camera.  The last thing we did before we left was go to church with Ruben and his family.  The church was very small and there were probably only about 30 people there (10 of which were Ruben’s family/friends and Teresa and her kids) but it was a nice service.

When church was over we headed back to Santo Domingo and made two stops along the way.  The first place we stopped at was a roadside place to buy freshly cooked chicken.  I elected not to have any later because it didn’t meet my food safety standards. It was out of refrigeration for too long and I am a bit obsessed with food safety.  The other place we stopped was this famous grocery store.  They sell fresh yogurt, cheese and a bunch of different types of desserts.   Even though I was so full from eating way too much this weekend I purchased some interesting looking candy.  One was sesame candy and the other was some sort of sweet milk concoction.  To sum up this weekend: fruit, food, adventures.

Fun Facts:

1.       I tried a sweet lime and it tasted like margarita mix.

2.       Sugar cane is amazing and surprisingly high in iron.

3.       Ruben’s daughters know a bunch of words in English and it is so cute when they randomly blurt out something in English. 

4.       On Sunday morning some people were walking down the street in front of Ruben’s and stopped to chat.  He obviously knew them and then I realized that they were from New Hampshire.  They were doing some community service here and they were very nice.  Ruben told them “oh look, one of your species” implying that there was another person from the US here (me).

5.       Even though I am afraid of machetes, they are quite useful in the country.  Everyone seems to have one so maybe I should invest in one? Not.

6.       I tried a piece of a hardboiled egg that came from a duck and it tasted like a regular egg.  The only difference was that it was bigger. 

7.       The streets were so narrow and it was often nearly impossible for two cars to pass each other.

Peace,

Jaclyn



My two new friends, Noami and Rosie (spelling on both?) in front of Grace's chicken coop




Teresa leading the kids in a song




Bad expression, nice view



New Job: Tour guide

Wednesday October 20, 2010

Day 47

Today I got a new assignment: prepare to give a tour to the visitors from Sanofi Pasteur next week.  Now this may seem like an easy task but there are two difficult factors here.  One thing is that I need to translate everything I know or will learn about the clinic in to English.  The second thing is that the visitors are very important and very well educated.  This company recently donated vaccines to Project HOPE so it is important that we do our part to show our gratitude.  Needless to say, I spent the entire day at the clinic learning about every area of the clinic so I can describe it to the visitors at a somewhat intelligent level.  One of the most interesting parts of my day was when I was learning about the check-in/payment system.  Manuel (or Manuelito because his dad works there too and that is how they differentiate) gave me the lesson in his area entirely in English!  He taught me about the computer program they use, how they work with the rest of the clinic and how to solve various problems.  I was so impressed with his English and I finally asked him how he knew so much.  He told me he learned it in his classes and I was still surprised because it was just that good.

A note about the Yankees: thank you for winning. Dad, thank you for NOT giving them bad luck at the game, for once!

Thursday October 21, 2010

Day 48

In the morning I did a little more preparing at the clinic for the tour.  I visited the HIV test counseling area, the lab and another part of the check-in process.  All of my lessons are short versions of what I will learn in my rotations but they are very helpful for my tour preparations.  In the afternoon I went back to Obstetrics to finish my rotation there.  Today I realized how many people in this area (Herrera) do not work.  The doctor was telling me that people are just not motivated to work. She told me that the middle-class people are more motivated and those are the people that work long hours to provide for their families.  However, in the lower classes a lot of the women just stay home all day.  She asked a few of the girls/women what they do all day and they basically told us they watch TV, chat with their friends, etc.  One woman had four children and didn’t work and had no intentions of looking for a job because she “doesn’t like to work”.  How can you ever improve the situation if people have no motivation to do more to have a better life? Or maybe they are content with their lives and don’t see a need to do more.  I do not know how anyone can ever fix this problem since it is so much a part of the culture there.

After work I went with Teresa and her family to the Dominican Fiesta.  Juan Carlos had  some sort of basketball tournament in school the other day and his team didn’t do very well so he and his friends wanted to practice.  I took this opportunity to run on the treadmill and do some cycling.  After the kids were done playing basketball, Teresa ordered them pizza and the people in the hotel let them use the sports bar area to eat.  They were so nice and accommodating.

Fun Facts:

1.       I bought my first item from a street vendor on Wednesday at the clinic.  The banana was 5 pesos which is less than a quarter in US dollars I think. 

2.       Everyone shares food at the clinic during lunch and no one usually wants mine because I usually bring boring things like Healthy Choice soup.  This week I brought some of Nanita’s food and everyone wanted some.  I also shared my banana too.  On Wednesday I scored a big piece of avocado.

3.       One of the boys Juan Carlos was playing basketball with is from New York and I didn’t realize at first until he asked me in English (with an obvious NY accent) where I was from. 

4.       When the boys were playing basketball and eating their dinner I noticed that they randomly break into English.  They all know it from school so I guess that should be expected.  The funniest thing is when they imitate their female teachers, speaking in English because I could definitely picture my friends doing that at that age too.   

5.       When Manuel was giving me my lesson, I witnessed a very intense moment with a patient.  I am still not sure why she was so angry but she was throwing a fit about something to do with the payment process.  The people in the clinic were so calm, even after this went on for at least 20 minutes.

6.       We finally tried the unknown fruit that Teresa picked last Saturday when we were at their friend’s house in the country.  It looked like some sort of melon but when we cut it open it was more like a grapefruit.  Teresa brought me a big piece on a plate to try when I was in my room talking to my mom on Skype and at first I thought it was a big raw piece of red meat (my mom thought so too). It was a little less sour than a grapefruit and it was pretty tasty.

7.       Cynthia says we are going to Ruben’s house this weekend but she says that every weekend so I am not sure if that is true. 

8.       Cynthia tried Skippy peanut butter instead of the other kind I had (I forget which brand) that was a natural peanut butter and now she loves peanut butter.  I like the natural kind because it has more of a peanut flavor but it gets kind of dry sometimes so I guess that is why she didn’t like it that much at first.  I told her about these easy peanut butter cookies I know how to make and so now we will have to make those soon.  I am doing my part to popularize peanut butter in the Dominican Republic.

Peace,

Jaclyn

Back to Work

Monday October 18, 2010

Day 45

My first day back to the office after my vacation with my parents was nice and uneventful.  I caught up on some work and did some research.  Today I was researching information that I need to know for my observations in obstetrics tomorrow.  There is so much to learn and of course Teresa was able to teach me a lot too. She really knows about EVERYTHING.  Sometimes I wish I had one of those pocket voice recorders so I could record everything she is telling me and play it back to reference.  We ended up staying at the office until some time around 8:30.  When I got home I watched the disastrous Yankee game on Gamecast and it was even more painful than watching it in real life.

Tuesday October 19, 2010

Day 46

Today was the first day of my obstetrics observation.  I learned more today than I did in some classes that I took for an entire semester in college.  Not to knock IU because it is a great school but the amount you can learn from hands on (or eyes on) experience is priceless.  In my morning session I learned how to take blood pressure, determine how many weeks pregnant someone is from the position/location of the baby in the abdomen, how to listen to the heartbeat and even more things that I am probably forgetting. Note: I will attempt to actually take the blood pressure on Thursday when that doctor returns because I was too nervous to mess it up today and told her I needed practice.  Since the lesson was in Spanish I needed to confirm a few words before I felt comfortable.

In the afternoon I learned more about obstetrics but a lot about gynecology also.  There were only a few patients in the afternoon but I learned all about pelvic exams, pap smears and types of possible infections and ailments.  Although I was not specifically “taught” this, I learned a lot about bedside manner.  Both of the doctors made all of the patients feel so comfortable in situations that were often uncomfortable.  The way they speak to the patients and the way they ease their nerves really gave me a good example of proper bedside manner.

When it was time to leave at 4:00pm, I had a tiny problem.  The person who usually drives me to the clinic in the morning wasn’t there this morning so one of the nurses took me.  Since I didn’t see the usual person I guess he didn’t know I went to the clinic so at 4:00 he was far away and wasn’t able to get me.  No one else was available and Teresa only lets me use one taxi driver that she knows but that driver didn’t know where the clinic was.  Someone in the office told me that Orlando, someone who works in the Project HOPE office a few days a week (he actually works for Order of Malta), would come get me but in the back of my head I was thinking that he didn’t have a car.  Orlando showed up but when I went outside I saw a familiar yellow taxi and inside was Freddy, the man who drove my family around the other day! Orlando had to show Freddy the area where the clinic was and then they both escorted me back to Teresa’s house.  That was a long story but I thought I should share all the trouble people went through just to get me home safely.  That was really for my mom.  I am not afraid of the taxi situation but Teresa insists that I only use this one person and of course I am not going to disobey the person who is doing so much for me.

Fun Facts:

1.       When I was talking to one of the doctors about women not knowing how far along they are in their pregnancies (that happens a lot here) I told her about the TLC show “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant” and she seemed very interested. 

2.       Food is one of the easiest topics for me to talk about in Spanish.  I think it has to do with using the same set of words so unless it is a new food that I haven’t heard of; I can most likely figure out what people are talking about.  I noticed that today in the car with a nurse who I usually have trouble understanding because she speaks very quickly with a difficult accent to understand.  When we talked about food the conversation was so much easier.  I feel so much smarter when I am able to respond to the questions in the conversation and not just smile or nod my head.  I am good at talking about food in English too.

3.       People in the kitchen at the clinic always think my microwavable Healthy Choice Soup cup is really nifty.  They also always get concerned that the silver part is metal and that I am going to ruin the microwave. 

4.       A patient brought the doctor two bananas a few minutes after her consult (there is a fruit vendor outside the clinic, how smart!) and the doctor told me one was for me.  That was so nice and I really wanted a banana for my lunch too.

5.       The best way to watch a game on Gamecast is when you have someone actually watching the game supplement the scores/graphics with live updates.  On Gamecast you can’t see close/bad calls, injuries, delays, etc. (Thank you, Miss Alex!)

Peace,

Jaclyn

Eating Marathon

Wednesday October 13, 2010

Day 39

Tuesday night I slept at the Dominican Fiesta with my parents.  Wednesday morning we had a taxi driver, Freddy, take us around the Colonial Zone.  It was fun to show off all of my historical information that I have been picking up over the last few weeks.  I kept reading in my guide books that it is difficult to go anywhere in the Colonial Zone without someone trying to sell you something and boy were those guide books right! There is a whole network of people who refer visitors to other parts of their network.  When you pull up to any type of landmark the vendors basically meet you at the taxi and try to sell you everything from that point onward.  After a few hours my parents had enough (they are old and it was hot) so we had Freddy take us to Boca Chica.

Boca Chica is a resort town less than an hour from where I am living in Santo Domingo.  The hotel we

stayed at was very nice but the area around it is not the best.  It is one of those places where they want you to just stay in the hotel and not to venture out too much.

October 14- 16, 2010

Day 40-43

I can sum up these days very quickly:  wake up, eat, beach, eat, beach, eat, sleep –repeat.  I think that is the general idea of an all-inclusive resort and we definitely took advantage of that. Since we stayed on the 6^th floor we got special black wristbands.  We were able to use the lounge on the floor and that was the best part.  The lounge had computers, better food and drinks, a lovely deck and comfortable chairs to relax in. 

The beach was nice and not crowded at all.  We found out that this week was one of their slowest weeks and it was pretty obvious throughout the resort.  The water was beautiful but very calm.  I think it was more of a bay than an ocean.  My mom was a little upset with the shell situation or lack thereof.  She could spend hours seashell hunting so she would know. 

On Saturday my other family (Teresa, Juan Carlos and Cynthia) came to Boca Chica for the day.  We hung out on the beach, went on a paddle boat, played volleyball and went in the pool.  Of course we ate a ton too.  We went out for a nice dinner at a restaurant on the water at the end of the day and it was so nice to see both of my families together again.  After dinner I said goodbye to my parents and went home with Teresa and her family.

I had such a good time with my parents and I was sad to see them leave.  Why can’t they visit me every weekend? I could really get used to the whole resort thing every weekend.

October 17, 2010

Day 44

Back to life in Santo Domingo.  I unpacked a little this morning and then we went to church at 11:00am.  The only problem was that it didn’t start until 11:45 so we had to wait for a while.  We went early because we were invited to one of Teresa’s friend’s house for the day.  After church we picked up another friend and her daughter and headed out to the country.  We had a barbecue and the kids got to ride the horses.  I didn’t want to ride the horses and everyone just assumed I was afraid.  I am not afraid of horses and I have gone horseback riding before.  I didn’t want to do it because I didn’t know how the horses were being taken care of and after watching Cynthia and Juan Carlos I realized that the horses were a bit finicky.  I also didn’t feel like getting all smelly and dirty.  I think that was the real reason.  It was more fun to take pictures of the kids on the horses from a distance.  Later in the day Teresa and I got to pick some fruit from the trees.  We picked guava, star fruit and limes.  Teresa picked some type of melon-shaped fruit and I still do not know what it is.

Before we left we went over to the other side of the highway to another part of their property to see some cows.  Teresa grew up on a farm and had been telling everyone about the benefits of drinking colostrum so we had to go experiment.  We all went over in the back of the pickup truck and it was a bit dangerous especially since we had to cross the highway.  FYI the pickup truck was actually very new and the fancy kind, not really the kind you would want to use for work (just so you can get the visual).  After the calf drank his milk, one of the people milked the cow and the milk went straight in to a plastic pitcher.  Teresa then served the colostrum in glasses to anyone who was willing to try it.  I was not willing to try it.  First of all, it was yellow and warm. Second of all, the person who was milking the cow could have had germs on his hands.  I am not trying to sound like a brat, but I do have some rules when it comes to eating/drinking.  A few people tried it but most people passed like I did.  I am all about fresh food but this was a little too fresh for me. Eating a star fruit straight from the tree was my fresh adventure for the day. 

Fun Facts:

1.       One day in Boca Chica my dad won first place in a throwing competition and I won third place.  There were probably about 20 people or more who tried so that is pretty good for one family, right?  After all, he did teach me how to throw!

2.       When my two families were playing volleyball Cynthia accidentally hit the ball into the top of a really tall coconut tree.  Later, one of the people who worked on the beach climbed up the tree (without a shirt or shoes and only in bathing suit shorts) and retrieved the volleyball.  He also threw down a coconut.  It was the coolest thing to watch. He scurried up the tree so quickly and effortlessly.  He must have done that before.  After he came down he cut open the coconut and made rum drinks for his little fan club he had been hanging out with. 

3.       If you speak to people in Spanish they will assume you are fluent and it is very difficult to get them to switch back to English at this point.

4.       On the beach we were constantly asked if we wanted to do go snorkeling, diving, horseback riding, etc. and it got very annoying.  They probably asked about 5 times a day and that is not an exaggeration.  They also always want to sell you timeshares and vacation clubs and they insist that they just want to give you a free hat and t-shirt. Yeah right.

5.        I had calamari a few different times in Boca Chica and it was never breaded and fried, always grilled or sautéed.  When will NJ pick up on this delicious trend?

6.       My mom and I had dessert for lunch two days at the resort.  We were allowed, it was vacation.  How could we contain ourselves when there was free (well I guess we already paid for it) ice cream and toppings?

7.       I made all of the housekeeping, restaurant, towel requests, etc. in Spanish to show off to my parents and it was fun.

8.       In the Colonial Zone one of the people in the “network” referred us to his brother-in-law’s cigar store and told my dad that he could buy Cuban cigars and if he wanted to bring them back to the US on the plane they would rewrap them in Dominican cigar packaging. How sneaky and intelligent! We didn’t actually do that but what a good idea.

9.       My parents loved the coffee here.  I think it is stronger or more flavorful than the coffee they are used to drinking at home.

10.   Derek has a passport and that is all I am going to say about that.

Peace,

Jaclyn

My dad won a little bottle of rum and I was just happy to brag about third place =]

Eating again

The Parents Are Coming, The Parents Are Coming!

Monday October 11, 2010

Day 37

Today started off as a regular day at the office but then it got a lot more fun.  A couple of the people at the office planned a surprise party for Teresa's birthday.  They secretly brought in in a cake, snacks, drinks, a few employees from the clinic, decorations and some gifts.  Teresa was busy in her office and didn't even notice.  It was my job to get her to come in to the room where they were having the party.  I told her that I was having a problem with my computer (I usually work in the room where they were having the party) and I needed her to come help me.  She got very nervous because I never ask her for help but she walked in and "SURPRISE!" It was really fun but Teresa has this thing about smearing frosting on faces so that was messy. 

For lunch we ate at McDonalds with the kids. Yes, Jaclyn ate at McDonalds.  After our gastronomic adventure we went back to the house and I packed and did some work.  My parents are coming tomorrow!

 

Tuesday October 12, 2010

Day 38

Today I didn't go to work because my parents were coming to visit. I got to sleep late but I only ended up sleeping until 8ish because I wanted to finish packing and I was also really excited.  I also had to go pick up the dessert for after dinner. I went to the ice cream place right around the corner to get an ice cream cake and that was my first solo adventure to a store. Yes, that meant asking for everything in Spanish and paying close attention not to get ripped off. It was successful! 

 

Teresa and I went to go pick up my parents but we ended up being very late because there was all of this traffic because a bridge was opening for a boat.  In the 14 years that Teresa has lived in Santo Domingo that was the first time she ever saw the bridge open.  My dad later explained that it was more of a barge than a bridge but I didn't know the word for barge in Spanish so I kept calling it a bridge. We met my parents and a TON of luggage at the airport and we drove back to the Dominican Fiesta Hotel where my parents were staying.  They had so much luggage because they brought gifts for the kids at the clinic, gifts for Teresa and her family, and a few things that I requested from home. 

 

Later in the evening we went to Teresa's for dinner.  Nanita prepared sancocho which is a traditional Dominican dish.  It had potatoes, corn, and a bunch of meat in it and it was delicious.  After dinner we gave everyone their presents and I think the favorite was the Nintendo Wii we got for the kids.  Juan Carlos set it up in about 5 minutes so clearly he had some experience with that game system.  We are hoping that Teresa isn't mad about that present! After dinner we went back to the hotel.  Tomorrow we will tour the Colonial Zone and then head to a beach resort in Boca Chica in the afternoon. I can't wait!

 

Fun Facts

1. I can't figure out how to type a colon on this silly keyboard

2. When I went to the ice cream store they thought I only wanted a little piece of cake and tried to sell me that. I had to explain that yes, I actually wanted the ENTIRE cake. Yes, I enjoy food.

3. Ordering food at McDonalds was harder than I thought it would be. Teresa was helping me but they had so many questions and options.  The grilled chicken salad wasn't the best but the small french fries were delicious.

4. I finally got my Kindle and I am loving it (thanks again Aunt Julie)!

5. My parents are surprised that I can actually speak and understand Spanish. Yay, I think that was the goal.

 

Peace,

Jaclyn

10/10/10

Friday October 8, 2010

Day 34

Today was a typical day at the office.  I continued with my research projects and that is always exciting. No really, it is. I actually enjoy researching things.  I think it is the idea of collecting things actually. I started with rocks as a little kid and moved on to sugar packets in my teen years (still collecting!) and now I am collecting information.  I like gathering information and putting it into something useful.  I am working on the “something useful” part as we speak.  Nothing too exciting happened today, other than the water shortage at the office.  Our emergency water containers are bio hazard containers (one is the size of a medium sized garbage can and the other is the size of a small garbage can) so when I walked into the bathroom and saw the two red bio hazard receptacles I was a bit confused at first.  No worries, nothing hazardous, just a water shortage.

Saturday October 9, 2010

Day 35

Today was a typical weekend day here in Casa de Teresa.  We had a relaxing morning and I think I watched a little too much Boy Meets World on the computer. (Mom, this is legal. I am not a pirate.) Since I had the three necessities for laundry (power, water, sunlight) I decided it would be a good time to get that done.  Laundry by hand is quite the workout so luckily I only have to do half of my laundry like that.  They have a washing machine but it is extremely rough and I was warned not to but anything fragile (i.e. the shirts I wear to work) in it.

In the evening we went to the mall.  What does a mall in Santo Domingo look like? As a matter of fact, it looks very similar to the Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus or any other multi-level mall.  The place was huge and had a wide variety of stores.  Cynthia needed shoes and she had quite a few stores to choose from.  After the shoe adventure I finally bought a cell phone. Yes, I am connected again.  I bought a really cheap phone and I will use phone cards so I don’t have to pay for a plan with a one year contract.  I usually use Skype for long phone calls but this phone will be for quick calls during the day, mostly to people in Santo Domingo.  So far I only have one contact in my phone book, Teresa.

Sunday October 10, 2010

Day 36

First of all today is 10/10/10 and that is just nifty.  Even cooler than that, today is Teresa’s birthday!  Well Teresa’s birthday started out very early today at the ungodly hour of 6:15am (for a Sunday of course) because we had to get ready for Cynthia’s rally in the Colonial Zone.  The entire 7^th grade is required to participate in a competition that is part historical facts and part physical competition.  The students walk/run around the area and answer questions about different historic buildings and people.  Luckily Cynthia had studied a lot so she was a great asset to her team.  After they finished their questions they participated in some physical challenges and that was fun to watch.  Teresa and one of the other mom’s from Cynthia’s group were the best motivators/coaches.  They followed the group and not only were they great cheerleaders but they also supplied the necessary water when anyone got thirsty.  Did I mention it was very hot out there? I was so surprised that it was so hot so early in the morning. (8:00am-10:00am). 

After the rally, the kids went with their dad to buy Teresa a birthday present and I kept Teresa company at the hair salon.  The salon was an upscale place and it was very chic and well, salon-like!  The hair salon was so busy and all I could think of was how much money they were making there.  They open very early in the morning and stay open until 10:00pm every day of the week. While I waited for Teresa I think there must have been at least 40 people there.  After the salon adventure we went out to lunch Teresa and I met up with the kids and their dad and we went out for lunch for Teresa’s birthday.  I was so hungry so I really enjoyed what I had.  I had grilled chicken and tostones (fried plantains that are served instead of French fries) and that hit the spot.   The menu was really long so it took me forever to figure out what I wanted.  At night we went to church and everyone sang happy birthday to Teresa.  What a nice way to end a birthday!

Fun Facts:

1.       The people selling ice cream in the colonial zone probably made thousands of dollars today.  I didn’t have any because I have this rule about only having ice cream at night.  I rarely break it and I only do it for special ice cream.

2.       At the salon I noticed that most of the clients bring tote bags filled with high-end hair products.  They have hair products at the salon to use and some to buy but Teresa told me people just like to bring their own. 

3.       The mall security guards carry a baton and two guns.  I am not sure how I feel about that yet. 

4.       There are so many random chickens around the city.

5.        Jam and Ham and soup and soap are commonly mixed up words that I always try not to laugh at when I hear them.  Soap with jam in it? Yuck.   Note: ham=jamón and it is pronounced “ha-mone” and soup=sopa and it is pronounced “so-pa”.

6.       Healthy Travels has been live all weekend at 10:00pm in Bethany Beach, Delaware.  I have been skyping with my parents and their friends, Dr. Mary & Paul, because they are all in Delaware for a weekend of tennis and birthday celebrations.  I almost feel like I am there with them.

Peace,

Jaclyn



Everyone ready for the rally