Every now and then, a moment comes along when you do something without thinking and you must face those consequences for the rest of your life. Sometimes that comes in the form of an emotional scar and sometimes it comes as a physical scar that will literally always be on your body as a reminder to never do that action again. These things are very humbling to us, b/c then your mistake is made public to the world and everyone sees it.
I made one of these mistakes on Saturday and have thus been paying for it ever since. I believe in an earlier post I mentioned that most people get around on "motos", which are guys that drive motorcycles around for money. Occassionally us tres amigas (3 friends) will grab a moto if we are tired to walk or have alot of groceries to carry home or if a place is really far away. On Saturday, we were headed to the pool and we thought we would catch a moto. In order to do this, you wave at one of them and they usually come to where you are and off you go. On this particular day, there were 4 of us and about 6 motos pulled up. Somehow in Spanish we tried to convey that we only 2 motos to take 2 people. After the confusion and rejection for some moto drivers, I decided to get on from the right side of the moto. If you know anything about motos you know that you NEVER get on from the right side...WHY you ask? There is this thing called the exhaust pipe that is BOILING HOT!!! If you touch it, you get burned...so guess what I did without thinking? I burned myself really bad on my right calf. It definitely blistered up, oozed liquid and is now an open wound. Maria and Cecilia have been wonderful nurses to attend to my aid and while it is looking better, these pictures show me grittin my teeth as they pour soap and hot water on it to clean it.
The funny thing is that when people see it, Dominican or not, they all say "Hey, you got a Dominican tattoo!" Apparently, Dominicans and others all do this at some point in time. This makes me feel better momentarily. That is all for now...
9.23.2009
9.21.2009
Back to the good 'ol days...
My family took numerous trips camping or hiking to cabins or some kind of outdoor trip almost every year when I was growing up. This was very much a "Baker" thing to do. I feel as if my views about our vacations waivered back and forth. For some years (mainly younger years) I loved the outdoors and everything that it brings; other years I wanted to know why we weren't taking trips to Destin or overseas. This past weekend I was reminded why we took outdoor trips and why I loved them so much!
There was a staff trip to Manobao (about 45 min outside Jarabacoa) for a camping weekend. This meant about 20 staff loaded up gear for a 2 day trip; not much needed seeing how it was only 1 night, but clothes, food for every meal, and entertainment was on the packing list. Our expedition leader, Tim, pulled it altogether and come last Friday, we were on our way to start our hike up to our campsite. While we were told it would be about a 30 min hike, it definitely took us "non-marathon" hikers about an hour to get up the hill. It wasn't too vigorous, but definitely challenging parts. As we go to the campsite, we set up tents, had lunch, fellowshipped and rested. We spent the day either hiking to waterfalls or reading or napping. All of which are things I now love to do (I know some of you are surprised to hear that I am becoming a reader, but I am now on my 3rd book!!). That night we made tuna pasta for dinner and gathered around a campfire for songs and laughter. This was probably the time that mean the most to me as I remember mainly Dad and I making our own food and sitting together around campfires along the Buffalo River. As most of you know Dad took me on 3 or 4 father/daughter canoe trips and pretty much taught me alot of what I know now on those trips. He has now been gone for 2 1/2 years and it's crazy to have times like this of rememberance and not burst into tears. It was a good memory and more of me being thankful for what I learned from him and Rick (my brother) in those years.
Moral of the story, camping is wonderful and there is just something about you and nature and hearing nothing but crickets, insects and the wind come together in this beautiful medley that in any other place would sound completely and utterly annoying. Nuff said. Time for pictures...
This was where we cooked our food for our meals. It basically consists of a sink (with mountain water from a spring, so we could drink it naturally from the spout...this is exciting b/c we can't do this in the city), long wooden shelf to act like a countertop and some pots and pans. It serves its purpose well:)
This was our campsite, it's not an excellent picture, but you get the jist that it's a flat long piece of land where we could pitch our tents.
This was the view from our campsite. Leah has gotten me obsessed with clouds and taking pictures of them; you have to admit those are some good clouds in the background:)
Lastly, our campsite is on the grounds of Spirit Mountain, which is Krista and Chad's coffee farm. This is the coffee farm that was created to supply Dominican Joe's (coffee shop in Austin) with coffee from a direct source. In case you don't know what I am talking about, you should read the blog about coffee,eh?
There was a staff trip to Manobao (about 45 min outside Jarabacoa) for a camping weekend. This meant about 20 staff loaded up gear for a 2 day trip; not much needed seeing how it was only 1 night, but clothes, food for every meal, and entertainment was on the packing list. Our expedition leader, Tim, pulled it altogether and come last Friday, we were on our way to start our hike up to our campsite. While we were told it would be about a 30 min hike, it definitely took us "non-marathon" hikers about an hour to get up the hill. It wasn't too vigorous, but definitely challenging parts. As we go to the campsite, we set up tents, had lunch, fellowshipped and rested. We spent the day either hiking to waterfalls or reading or napping. All of which are things I now love to do (I know some of you are surprised to hear that I am becoming a reader, but I am now on my 3rd book!!). That night we made tuna pasta for dinner and gathered around a campfire for songs and laughter. This was probably the time that mean the most to me as I remember mainly Dad and I making our own food and sitting together around campfires along the Buffalo River. As most of you know Dad took me on 3 or 4 father/daughter canoe trips and pretty much taught me alot of what I know now on those trips. He has now been gone for 2 1/2 years and it's crazy to have times like this of rememberance and not burst into tears. It was a good memory and more of me being thankful for what I learned from him and Rick (my brother) in those years.
Moral of the story, camping is wonderful and there is just something about you and nature and hearing nothing but crickets, insects and the wind come together in this beautiful medley that in any other place would sound completely and utterly annoying. Nuff said. Time for pictures...
This was where we cooked our food for our meals. It basically consists of a sink (with mountain water from a spring, so we could drink it naturally from the spout...this is exciting b/c we can't do this in the city), long wooden shelf to act like a countertop and some pots and pans. It serves its purpose well:)
This was our campsite, it's not an excellent picture, but you get the jist that it's a flat long piece of land where we could pitch our tents.
This was the view from our campsite. Leah has gotten me obsessed with clouds and taking pictures of them; you have to admit those are some good clouds in the background:)
Lastly, our campsite is on the grounds of Spirit Mountain, which is Krista and Chad's coffee farm. This is the coffee farm that was created to supply Dominican Joe's (coffee shop in Austin) with coffee from a direct source. In case you don't know what I am talking about, you should read the blog about coffee,eh?9.17.2009
I don't really think I have caught yall up to date since we went to the beach at Cabarette. There was a group of us who went about 3 weekends ago and it was everything you would imagine. Here are some pictures to help you visualize what I was seeing.
We stayed in 2 seperate houses, the one to the left is called the Villa and it slept 6-8 people. It was huge!!! As you can see in the picture, the flora around it was beautiful and all the rooms around it are done in this Spanish architecture with that rust roofing that is oh so pretty!!
Here is one of the restaurants we ate at. Everything is very much decorated with thatched roofing either made from bamboo or coconut trees. Very beachy theme!!
This is the inside of the apartment and as you can see it is very stucco "ish" all over and extremely nice. These rooms were VERY AFFORDABLE!!! Maybe you should think about booking a room and come see me??
As most of you know, I am not a real beach person, but I can tell you that what I do love about the beach is the way it sounds when waves crash onto the sand and they way sand feels beneath your feet. These are the things that make the beach enjoyable to me. We took walks every morning and night along the beach and it was a great way to start your day off or close your day with that picture in your mind. I suggest people taking a trip for sure!!
We stayed in 2 seperate houses, the one to the left is called the Villa and it slept 6-8 people. It was huge!!! As you can see in the picture, the flora around it was beautiful and all the rooms around it are done in this Spanish architecture with that rust roofing that is oh so pretty!!
Here is the apartment where the other half stayed. These were called the apartments and they were still fairly large to hold 4-6 people. The inside of it is posted down below.
Here is the beach and it was GORGEOUS!!! I can't really say much more about it...a picture is worth a thousand words.
Here is one of the restaurants we ate at. Everything is very much decorated with thatched roofing either made from bamboo or coconut trees. Very beachy theme!!
This is the inside of the apartment and as you can see it is very stucco "ish" all over and extremely nice. These rooms were VERY AFFORDABLE!!! Maybe you should think about booking a room and come see me??
As most of you know, I am not a real beach person, but I can tell you that what I do love about the beach is the way it sounds when waves crash onto the sand and they way sand feels beneath your feet. These are the things that make the beach enjoyable to me. We took walks every morning and night along the beach and it was a great way to start your day off or close your day with that picture in your mind. I suggest people taking a trip for sure!!
9.08.2009
Can pink eye really follow you all the way to the DR........YES!
So, as you can probably already guess what this blog entry is about I feel like I should paint you a picture of what happened this weekend where I was infected by this ugly bacterium. This week had been wonderful for me in my classes and I was excited for a relaxing weekend with just some good ‘ol hanging out with friends. Little did I know that a little friend would come to visit me Saturday morning; yes that friend was pink eye. You always know when you have pink eye b/c when you wake up in the morning ready to tackle the day, no matter how much strength you have you can’t pry your eyelids apart. Sorry for the detailed picture, but I just want to make sure you are staying with meJ I decide to get up and wash my out and continue on with my day. That afternoon I realize that I should go get some medicine for my eye from the local farmacia (pharmacy);which let me remind you that I don’t have my Spanish down pat so this conversation was going to be rough, but you do what you got to do! I get out to go to the pharmacy and it’s closed!! Who closes on a Saturday?? Well, something you should know about this culture is that between 12-2pm everyday all business (except restaurants) shut down for lunch and siesta (nap). Of course I showed up at 1230, thus why they were closed. I was frustrated for a moment b/c as Americans we have a HUGE convenience problem and if we don’t get something right away, it feels like we don’t know what to do b/c we might have to WAIT for something! I quickly realized this about myself and thought I would go back later that afternoon.
Leah and I go back that afternoon to the pharmacy down the street from us where one of our high school students works. I realized I might need someone who speaks English, thus why I went to this pharmacy. I show up and show them my eye, which at this point was really back to normal size and just a little red. The boy, who let me tell you is 16, comes back with Visine. Really VISINE!! That is clearly not what I needed, so I try to start telling him about “pink eye” and he says they don’t call it that here and doesn’t understand what I am saying. So, I take the Visine just for laughs and it was 98 pesos. I give him a 100 and he comes back with my receipt and 2 Halls cough drops. He says he doesn’t have any change so he uses the cough drops as my change. Leah and I bust out laughing b/c we have just shown up for pink eye medicine and yet we received Visine and cough drops!!! Then Leah needs some more bug spray, but they were out so she asks where else she could get and they say “Oh, no you must buy it from us!” So, she asks if they were getting anymore in and he says “ I will go get you some right now”. She goes back and forth with him about how she doesn’t need it right now and she will just check back later, but he insisted on getting her some right then. He walks across to his house, gets on his moto and drives across town to find some for her and then delivers it to our house!! Now, if that’s not customer service then I don’t know what isJ I feel like a lot of the culture is like this. They are very welcoming and will go out of their way to do anything for you, even tracking down bug spray if that is what you need.
Needless to say, Sunday morning I woke up once again with crusty eyes and I called Sara (mentor teacher) and asked how do I go back to this pharmacy where 16 yr old boys are prescribing medicines and tell them I need something stronger. She suggested I stay home from church and she will get me what I need. She also said that I will probably miss my 1st day of school on Monday. This frustrates me b/c if you know anything about pink eye, you feel just fine and your eye doesn’t even hurt. Therefore you sit in a quarantined room all day while you really wish you could be something other than sitting around doing nothing!!
Leah and I go back that afternoon to the pharmacy down the street from us where one of our high school students works. I realized I might need someone who speaks English, thus why I went to this pharmacy. I show up and show them my eye, which at this point was really back to normal size and just a little red. The boy, who let me tell you is 16, comes back with Visine. Really VISINE!! That is clearly not what I needed, so I try to start telling him about “pink eye” and he says they don’t call it that here and doesn’t understand what I am saying. So, I take the Visine just for laughs and it was 98 pesos. I give him a 100 and he comes back with my receipt and 2 Halls cough drops. He says he doesn’t have any change so he uses the cough drops as my change. Leah and I bust out laughing b/c we have just shown up for pink eye medicine and yet we received Visine and cough drops!!! Then Leah needs some more bug spray, but they were out so she asks where else she could get and they say “Oh, no you must buy it from us!” So, she asks if they were getting anymore in and he says “ I will go get you some right now”. She goes back and forth with him about how she doesn’t need it right now and she will just check back later, but he insisted on getting her some right then. He walks across to his house, gets on his moto and drives across town to find some for her and then delivers it to our house!! Now, if that’s not customer service then I don’t know what isJ I feel like a lot of the culture is like this. They are very welcoming and will go out of their way to do anything for you, even tracking down bug spray if that is what you need.
Needless to say, Sunday morning I woke up once again with crusty eyes and I called Sara (mentor teacher) and asked how do I go back to this pharmacy where 16 yr old boys are prescribing medicines and tell them I need something stronger. She suggested I stay home from church and she will get me what I need. She also said that I will probably miss my 1st day of school on Monday. This frustrates me b/c if you know anything about pink eye, you feel just fine and your eye doesn’t even hurt. Therefore you sit in a quarantined room all day while you really wish you could be something other than sitting around doing nothing!!
9.03.2009
Life in the Fast Lane
Well friends if there is one phrase to describe my life since the 1st week of school it would be..."LIFE IN THE FAST LANE!!" This is how I have felt for the past 2 weeks as I have blown and gone from one thing to the next. Whether it's planning lessons, team meetings, going to the beach for an entire weekend, etc I feel as if I haven't fully had time to stop the comotion around me. A little overwhelming, but I have made it through and am now on the other side where I feel more comfortable in my skin as a "teacher".
The first couple weeks of school we did an amusement park project in all grades of math where our students constructed 1 attraction that would be at an amusement park. They created roller coasters, games, ferris wheeels, swings, etc. They turned out wonderful!! Pictures will be up tomorrow, so check back then.
Sara (mentor teacher) likes to start the year off with a fairly easy hands on project that incorporates math, yet at the same time makes everyone feel successful in math. The stereotype for math in the states as well as in the DR is math is hard and they can't do it, so they don't try. It's also doesn't come naturally to them seeing how in this culture nothing is really done on logic or sequence; more on feeling and the relational side of things. Sara definitely understands this and goes out of her way to design lessons that appeal to them and increase their understanding. They respect her alot and they say she is the favorite teacher although she is very hard and demands alot from them. It's cool to see that in action everyday! I am very blessed to be learning from her.
Well that is all for now from the DR...until next time...
The first couple weeks of school we did an amusement park project in all grades of math where our students constructed 1 attraction that would be at an amusement park. They created roller coasters, games, ferris wheeels, swings, etc. They turned out wonderful!! Pictures will be up tomorrow, so check back then.
Sara (mentor teacher) likes to start the year off with a fairly easy hands on project that incorporates math, yet at the same time makes everyone feel successful in math. The stereotype for math in the states as well as in the DR is math is hard and they can't do it, so they don't try. It's also doesn't come naturally to them seeing how in this culture nothing is really done on logic or sequence; more on feeling and the relational side of things. Sara definitely understands this and goes out of her way to design lessons that appeal to them and increase their understanding. They respect her alot and they say she is the favorite teacher although she is very hard and demands alot from them. It's cool to see that in action everyday! I am very blessed to be learning from her.
Well that is all for now from the DR...until next time...
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