tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30779460660374369432012-02-16T09:38:42.118-05:00This Blog does not express the views of the United States Peace Corps.Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.comBlogger871100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-14102974395785938002012-02-04T18:57:00.001-05:002012-02-04T18:57:36.558-05:00

Yesterday morning, I was making coffee, and turned around to see this little guy eating out of my dog's bowl.  So, I gave it half a sardine, and named it Mir. Also, sugar cane harvesting is still going on. This is the before shot: Then, they set fire to the fields. This is somewhat terrifying. It rains ash for a day or so, and the air is thick with the smell of molasses. Next,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-45443999462655928232012-01-12T21:58:00.001-05:002012-01-12T21:58:13.653-05:00

This morning, Emilio stopped by my house while I was making coffee, and I taught him how to strip. Ethernet cables. You see, today was the day I started teaching my youth about computer networking. Back before the holidays, I got a 16-port DLink switch, a box of CAT-5e cable, and a little bag of Ethernet terminators from World Vision. I had solicited this stuff because the 3g modem/Wi-Fi

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-10167267933674483052011-12-30T18:44:00.000-05:002011-12-30T18:44:54.259-05:00

I'm staying in my site for New Years.  This will be the first major(ish) holiday that I haven't spent with other Volunteers, and while I like the ability to decline participation in large group activities, the site seems to be conspiring to make me regret my decision. Let's talk about child abuse a bit. Say you have a kid, and the kid falls and hurts himself. Obviously, you go up to the kid, and

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-19268827093674135442011-12-20T11:43:00.001-05:002011-12-20T11:43:43.905-05:00

Batey life is going well. I spend most of the day playing with kids, supplying endless sheets of paper to draw on and fold into airplanes, and dealing countless hands of Uno. The lab is doing alright, and is pretty much running itself at this point. I have a group of youth who make sure it is open in the morning and in the afternoon, and while I’ve given up on any sort of work shift schedule,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-46924540179969262212011-12-18T16:21:00.001-05:002011-12-18T16:21:53.641-05:00

Before she COS’d, Sarah and I started up a QPCV group. Following other PC countries, we may end up naming it Volunteer Diversity and Support. The three main goals are: Q Volunteer support Raise staff and admin awareness Influence new Volunteer training This past Tuesday, Ellen, Nora, and I pulled off the first Safe Space (Espacio Seguro) training in PCDR! The training director gave us an

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-90863808573584632522011-08-22T11:36:00.001-04:002011-08-22T11:36:53.467-04:00

So.  I have less than 9 months left here. Let’s review! DONE: Adult literacy classes Adult literacy computer classes I lost 10 pounds (where’d they go?) Computer repair class American music radio program Ran a half-marathon Got a dog (BEAN!) Sex ed/environmental awareness youth group Taught English in a high school Tons of cholera prevention classes, in

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-67798865831406983802011-08-22T11:30:00.001-04:002011-08-22T11:30:06.447-04:00

I’m finally making progress with the new house!  The living room/kitchen. I spent a long time sweeping it—the owner was using the house to raise chickens. It was not pretty. The bathroom. Yeah, no plumbing, but lots of rocks.  Not sure why there are rocks. My bedroom! It has a window, but it is boarded up right now. Notice how nice and flat-ish the floor is—I spent a few hours with some

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-27769894895489125422011-06-26T13:00:00.001-04:002011-06-26T13:00:33.153-04:00

I’m a sureño! I moved in temporarily with Chloe, and at the moment, an evangelical church has set up massive speakers and about a hundred chairs (a bit hopeful…) two houses down, and everything is vibrating.  If they turned it down just a bit, you could hear something besides a billion decibels of static (screaming is…better?). It´s worse than what they do in movies in hostage situations, and has

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-28832805362987786192011-06-04T19:18:00.001-04:002011-06-04T19:18:11.591-04:00

I’m trying to get the floor poured in my new house, but it’s a lucha since I’m not there. So, I’m going to move to Chloe’s for a while until the new place gets set up. In the mean time, I’ve been spending some quality time with Bean!   Bean made friends with a goat. He looks like a fatty in this picture because he still hadn’t digested the pounds of white rice, chicken bones, and full-cream

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-61612979580433601812011-05-17T11:14:00.001-04:002011-05-17T11:14:21.421-04:00

I’ve been in the Dominican Republic for over 14 months, and in my site for almost a year. I decided a few weeks ago that another year in Yamasa may not be the most productive, and that I was ready for a new challenge.  It also didn’t help that, during this period, two of the girls that had been in my youth group, and who had also been in my English workshop in the High School, had won a regional

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-80924491875344504152011-03-31T11:54:00.001-04:002011-03-31T11:54:05.872-04:00

Jessica, Chloe, and I worked on this article for the PCDR magazine, the Gringo Grita. New Chapters: Alfabetizing Peace Corps Imagine that you can’t look up information in your phonebook, check your child's homework, follow street signs, verify that your bill was correct, or understand the warning labels on medication. Some say that being able to read and write your own name is sufficient to

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-7466562093950969862011-03-31T11:16:00.001-04:002011-03-31T11:16:33.242-04:00

The newest class of Peace Corps Trainees arrived in March!  After a week or two of training, each newbie goes out to visit a volunteer to see what their service is like.  I took Blair around to all my classes and groups, out to one of the bateys, and got to see Heidi's kids play baseball.  This is the basic computer class for women who have completed basic literacy.  Look at your keyboard.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-71996100843456567992011-03-03T13:24:00.001-05:002011-03-03T13:24:51.334-05:00

This is San Antonio! Out in the campo. Green, green, green. The road used to be paved. Then, it got a lot of potholes, so the mayor had it torn up, and never repaved it. The aqueduct is damaged, and only reaches a part of the community when it is working. The school yard. I think the trees may have been planted by a PCV in the 80’s.  The Ministry of Ed was fixing it up, then the

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-73619533299692128222011-02-27T13:24:00.001-05:002011-02-27T13:24:05.803-05:00

These are some of the neighborhood muchachos.  They hang around my house once in a while, ask me questions about living in Nueba Yol, and now, play with Bean. They came cover today with shirtfulls of cahuil fruit that they picked by climbing on the church roof, and we sat on my porch and gorged until the grass was covered with pits and chunks of fruit that the bugs had gotten to first.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-33288999834946348512011-02-21T09:27:00.001-05:002011-02-21T09:27:15.659-05:00

I sort of got a dog. His name is Bean. I have no idea what kind of dog he is, or how big he’s going to get, or where he came from. So that’s cool. Margo will take care of him when I leave site, and it’s kind of fun to have the little guy running around. Sure, he poops and pees a lot, but my entire house is cement, and bleach is cheap. The CTC had a secret santa and pot-luck for valentine

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-17315521432914016672011-02-14T09:26:00.001-05:002011-02-14T09:26:42.714-05:00

I’m a radio DJ! Today was the first day of La Hora Americana, the American Hour, on 107.9 Radio CTC Yamasa.  Here’s my first playlist: One Republic- Everybody loves me Adele- Chasing Pavements Good Charlotte- Dance floor anthem Santogold- LES Artistes Metro Station- Disco Mute math- Electrify Klaxons- Golden skans One Republic- All the right moves The Ataris- Boys of

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-8772938491279383542011-02-09T16:20:00.001-05:002011-02-09T16:20:41.745-05:00

I decided to finally mow my lawn again. The horse and goats haven’t been around lately to do the job, so I had a whack with it with my machete. This, of course, drew a crowd of neighbor women, who stood at a distance and smiled and pointed at me as I flailed at the overgrowth with a giant blade. You’d think they’d be used to it by now. Margo came over, holding her granddaughter, and in 5 broad

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-22043492170782469512011-02-06T15:56:00.001-05:002011-02-06T16:01:27.871-05:00

I spent the last week working in a clinic near Santiago with some other volunteers. The doctors were awesome, and it was a pretty great experience.  In the mornings we translated for patient intake, and in the afternoons we watched surgeries (and got to scrub in and help with a few).  They were doing bumps and lumps—hernias, sebaceous cysts, and lipomas. I learned how to do interrupted

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-37232540537973647842011-01-30T20:53:00.001-05:002011-01-30T20:56:05.767-05:00

Projects, in the order I remember them: 1. English workshop in the High School It has been going pretty well—the kids pay attention, want to be there, participate for the most part, and love to play dinamicas (games).  The hardest part is planning classes that everyone can participate in, and being consistent across classes.  One class was entirely conversations in small groups. Another was

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-69130272310147447872010-12-14T22:35:00.001-05:002010-12-14T22:35:47.857-05:00

I’m in the States for xmas!  The week before I left the DR was pretty hectic, trying to wrap up a few projects, talk to a dozen people, assuage Sugeidy’s fears that I wasn’t going to return, and planning things logistically. The ICT/Education sector’s Encargados del Futuro youth conference was in Licey, outside of Santiago, on the 5th-7th of December, so I headed to Santo Domingo to catch the

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-46537661312662969702010-11-30T16:57:00.001-05:002010-11-30T16:57:30.981-05:00

Thanksgiving and the All-Volunteer Conference are the two events each year when (almost) all volunteers get together.  For Thanksgiving, we went to this place in the capital and spent the whole day holding basketball, volleyball, domino, swimming, and other tournaments.  A whole team of volunteers spent the previous day cooking so we could gorge ourselves at lunch time, which was awesome.  In

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-68750184892898469422010-11-30T11:22:00.000-05:002010-11-30T11:22:01.638-05:00

So, another month has passed.  At some point, I'll get around to writing about it.  I fly home on Dec 7th, my sister is due to give birth any day, I started teaching English, have been traveling, learned how to cook beans, and met some Canadians.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-69196641541787691872010-10-22T22:17:00.000-04:002010-10-25T12:16:03.704-04:00

I woke up today thinking it was Thursday. I planned my day for a Thursday. Today is Friday. The last time I remember being this disoriented was in high school, when the summer smushed into one long weekend. Instead, I’ve had a month of weekdays.  I need some wins. The little island is chugging along.  The new class of volunteers swears in on Wednesday, and on Thursday I get my green card. 

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-87905467276107835262010-10-20T18:10:00.002-04:002010-10-25T12:04:16.672-04:00

There's this bridge in my town that eats cars and people.  Lots of them. So, the community decided to get together and clean it up, and build a pedestrian walkway on the side.  My youth group kids participated in the cleanup effort, hiking up their pants and picking up trash in the river, whacking away at overgrowth with machetes, and removing layer after layer of plastic bags from the gutters. I

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-2516255153560945492010-10-12T16:51:00.001-04:002010-10-12T16:51:10.695-04:00

I spent the last week on a medical mission up in the mountains outside Santiago, translating for American doctors and dentists.  It was a good experience, and I was surprised at how much I was able to say—I didn’t know much medical terminology, but neither did the patients. The group comes three times a year to the community, and over about 13 years, has constructed three clinics, a church, and a

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-87687085825577489302010-09-29T18:47:00.001-04:002010-09-29T18:47:55.776-04:00

You remember that episode of The Simpsons where Springfield is competing for the Olympics, and Lisa’s class is on the bleachers singing “Children! Children! Future! Future! Children are the future!”  ?  That was playing through my head this morning while I was trying to plan activities for my Escojo mi Vida youth group.  I’m mostly terrified of this group.  So many 14/15/16 year olds, so few of

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-84229893900456377482010-09-23T16:27:00.001-04:002010-09-23T16:27:31.784-04:00

I filled out a Vacation Request Form, took a picture of it, and emailed it to my program coordinator.  If it gets approved, I’ll be back in the States from December 8th to the 28th.  That will more than wipe out all my accrued vacation days… Also, I’m really happy to have a job where I have vacation days, and health care, and the ability to stay in my house reading David Sedaris books all day if

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-32466864774583542212010-09-17T11:18:00.002-04:002010-09-17T11:18:41.665-04:00

Avocados are EVERYWHERE right now. I would eat them in my house, I would eat them with a mouse. In my pueblo, they go for 5 to 10 pesos, which is about $0.13 to $0.26 each. I eat a lot of avocado. My basic recipe for guacamole is avocado, olive oil, garlic, and salt. You can add tomato, onion, or ginger too. You can add it to scrambled eggs (makes green eggs, ham is extra), pasta, eggplant,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-26868553265249010882010-09-02T17:52:00.001-04:002010-09-02T17:52:51.424-04:00

The computer teachers are in the capital for training, so Sugeidy has been covering some of their classes.  She doesn’t know much about computers, but has no shame in throwing herself out there.  Which is probably more important than knowing much about computers. Today, she brought me into the classroom, about 20 minutes after the class was supposed to start, and told me that I was going to

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-27721417447314214812010-08-31T12:32:00.001-04:002010-08-31T12:32:04.226-04:00

Well, this is interesting.  It seems that if I climb up onto my roof, I can pick up an open Wi-Fi signal! Oh Peace Corps… being an IT volunteer is funny sometimes.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-19516645249912252962010-08-27T15:00:00.001-04:002010-08-27T15:00:13.617-04:00

We started a new cycle of adult literacy classes at the CTC, so I get to see everything from the first day (this past Tuesday), and have a bigger hand in the classes. Above are three of the women who I am working with, Justina, Carlita, and Maria Jose.  So far, it has been pretty great.  Well, mostly great.  The first class, I locked all my materials in the radio room, and Diomaris, the

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-64888289671556274202010-08-24T12:01:00.000-04:002010-08-24T12:01:08.889-04:00

Instant message poetry from my Katy Williams, my world-traveling comrade: tropical countries eliminating lines on peoples' facesexcept for the ones that are poor enough that the daily struggle to make ends meetcreates those lines and makes them leatherby the age of 30

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-56521253747061886472010-08-23T09:40:00.001-04:002010-08-23T09:40:07.187-04:00

“You have to be crazy, like me.” said my project partner.  “Two days ago, I said in a meeting that I thought we should have coffee for when important people visit. Today, I got us a stove, gas tank, coffee pot, and cups, in exchange for promoting a local business on the radio. You have to be crazy to make things happen, to make anything change.  Not enough people here are crazy.” I’m not crazy

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-68931020499689490432010-08-19T18:28:00.000-04:002010-08-19T18:28:37.671-04:00

Today was my first class on computer repair at the CTC!  Sadly, no one showed up for it.  I've been a bit sick, and didn't show up in the morning, but still had every intention of giving class.  So, I guess that was my fault.  I even had a lesson plan, powerpoint, and challenge questions planned out. Next class is on Tuesday; I'll be sure not to look ill then.  Now back to bed.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-49477613346428460762010-08-17T17:36:00.001-04:002010-08-18T10:23:33.134-04:00

I took the weekend off, and visited Chloe, Jeff, and Justin at Justin’s site down south.  Justin lives in a little cane-board shack right on the beach.  It was pretty amazing to sit on the empty beach at night with a bonfire, watching the Perseid meteor shower.  The beach. The back of Justin’s house, from the beach (it’s the one with the two red chairs).  Yes, it is falling apart, and it’

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-8352026650982043022010-08-07T13:40:00.000-04:002010-08-12T13:44:23.525-04:00

Dengue-free! Today was an all around memorable day. I love my house, and the neighborhood is great. I have a tinaco, which is a big black drum that sits on your roof and stores water for when the pipes are dry. It turns out that you can go through 250 gallons of water in two days when all the muchachos in the neighborhood are filling up 5 gallon buckets at the outside spigot when you're gone or

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-25466337367430700472010-08-02T18:56:00.001-04:002010-08-02T18:56:44.297-04:00

So I’m in the capital.  I have dengue, but it isn’t a really bad case.  My eyes started hurting like hell on Thursday, and I called the Peace Corps doctors on Saturday, and they had me come in.  Earlier on Saturday, Sugeidy and I went in to Villa Mella at 6am to go hunting for a bed/stove/gas tank/table, bought said items, and found a truck to carry them back to site (which HAPPENED to be

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-25125588409775607952010-07-26T15:02:00.001-04:002010-07-26T15:02:02.748-04:00

Finally, here are a few pictures from the 4th of July beach trip. Playa San Rafael, from the San Rafael House porch.  I never wanted to leave this place. Clayton’s project site in Paraiso (Paradise). Pool, beach, camping. Catching a ride in the back of a construction truck from San Rafael to Paraiso.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-78151911954899850082010-07-23T12:58:00.001-04:002010-07-23T12:58:25.289-04:00

On Thursday, I had about 25 middleschoolers from New Jersey visit my site.  It was a Friends Without Borders trip, organized by Tours Trips Treks & Travel.  I gave them a tour of the CTC, and talked about what Peace Corps is like, what we do, and a bit about Dominican culture. We played some games, and then a girl got locked in the bathroom.  We spent a few minutes with a knife and pen trying to

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-78214010672185368672010-07-21T11:22:00.001-04:002010-07-21T11:22:35.024-04:00

Alright!  I have two options for living on my own. Here is option 1.    It would need a lot of work—bars on the windows, lots of cleaning, etc. This is option 2: It is the right half of a duplex in a government housing project, freshly painted and with new metal window bars and slats.  My project partner lives across the street, and I have a few friends nearby.  Pottery! They

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-56351002821201265932010-07-19T11:27:00.001-04:002010-07-19T11:27:32.587-04:00

I realized that I haven’t posted any pictures of my actual site… So, here we go! Here is my host family’s house! The top is my host sister’s one-room apartment, the bottom right part is the little store my host dad runs, and the bottom left part is the actual house. This is my room in my host family’s house. My lightbulb, towel, and clothes line This is the bathroom. To shower, you

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-2703468724335361932010-07-16T19:43:00.000-04:002010-07-16T19:43:32.885-04:00

I am showing my project partner pictures of sandwiches online.  Delicious sandwiches, gyros, subs, paninis, and sliders.  With tomato, lettuce, cucumbers, spinach, peppers, ham, turkey, bacon, roast beef, salami, avocado, mustard, spicy mayo, onions, pineapple, all kinds of cheeses, and different types of bread. Sandwiches here are not sandwiches.  One typical attempt is to slather lots of

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-79006130224665577772010-07-15T19:13:00.001-04:002010-07-15T19:13:54.341-04:00

  Kudos, Argentina. Here is an article (below) that I originally posted on Jim Neal’s blog.   A Dirty War, Crisis, and Human Rights In voting to extend the full and complete rights of marriage and adoption to same-sex couples, the Argentine government has taken another step away from the nightmare of military bureaucratic authoritarian regimes, and has opened a new chapter in South American

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-68878265387001763402010-07-12T15:08:00.001-04:002010-07-12T15:08:33.032-04:00

Look, I got a certificate from the First Lady’s office for attending a camp on how to give a camp! meta? Just look at those green green shirts.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-87185207238603997732010-07-10T16:42:00.001-04:002010-07-10T16:42:37.979-04:00

Chickens.  In the States, we have all these words like “free-range”, “organic”,” and “cage-free.”  In the DR, chickens are one of three animals that replaced all native mammals except for a venomous rat and something i can’t remember right now. The other two are dogs and cats.  There are no poisonous snakes or spiders to speak of here, just tarantulas that can apparently jump 6 feet.  This is

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-46603590084715244602010-07-09T16:21:00.001-04:002010-07-10T14:05:38.903-04:00

July has been a whirlwind so far. I went down to San Rafael for my birthday, and then on to Los Patos and Paraiso with the rest of my training class for the 4th.  The southern beaches are almost all pebble beaches, with smooth oval stones that make a really neat noise when the tide goes out.  We got bolas (hitchhiking) from town to town, swam in river mouthes, and ate fish fried in little beach

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-33094432333482443132010-06-28T16:56:00.002-04:002010-07-09T16:28:13.027-04:00

On Sunday, something like 20 volunteers and I ran in the 15th annual Maratón Hispaniola in Santo Domingo.  I had “trained” for about 4 weeks, which mainly consisted of running every evening that it wasn´t raining, for as long as it wasn´t raining.  We´re in the rainy season…  and are on the tail end of a hurricane, I think.  We picked up our microchips and running shirts in the morning, and

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-13625231485057038632010-06-26T15:40:00.000-04:002010-06-26T15:40:15.683-04:00

I've been looking for places to live, and have had two leads so far.  One is a one bedroom apartment above this lady's house, and I have to wait for her to get her US visa before I can rent it (she married an American, is leaving the country.)  The other is an apartment above a hardware store that is under construction, but I think I'll have to disconsider it...  I look at it every morning when I

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-6327269578988367712010-06-25T12:13:00.000-04:002010-06-25T12:13:39.564-04:00

My sister (real, not host) is having a girl!  Above is Adelyn.  I think she's looking pretty fly for a fetus. I'm going to be going back to the States sometime in December to meet her!

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-37873187999765367552010-06-18T09:40:00.001-04:002010-06-18T09:40:48.803-04:00

I’ve been teaching kids how to play chess for the past few days.  I don’t especially like the game, and I’m not very good at it, but everyone is amazed by it.  Most of them have picked it up really quickly, but very few seem to grasp how the pawns move.  They constantly try to make them move sideways, backwards, and diagonal, and attack by moving forward.  One girl picked up the game really

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-44488524776640408062010-06-14T10:31:00.001-04:002010-06-14T10:31:42.383-04:00

  On Sunday, my town had a big Taíno festival.  This is how I learned about it: Host mom: Adán, there is a party with a bunch of americans. They will probably give you popcorn. I´m not going. Host sister: Yes, lots of americans.  They like pottery. It is someone´s birthday. I´m not going, I don´t care for pottery. Me: Oh. Maybe I´ll walk by it. Where is it? Host mom and sister, looking

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-6650968800138360022010-06-14T09:21:00.001-04:002010-06-14T09:21:38.385-04:00

On Saturday night, the CTC had a fundraiser at the local car wash (car washes turn into clubs at night.  This explains why they have bars).  It was pretty great, with live bachata/merengue music, and a huge turnout.  I think they actually…lost…money, due to confusion, poor door management, and people sneaking in.  I had an urge to take charge, but the last time I did that the military started

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-17748764602011708012010-06-08T16:51:00.001-04:002010-06-08T16:51:52.930-04:00

I started work on my community diagnostic this week.  I’ve written up two surveys, and am planning out how to convert the CTC youth into my interviewing minions.  I meet with the Peace Corps people this Friday to go over the diagnostic stuff, so hopefully I’ll have it all sorted out by then! I got stung by a bee for the first time in over a decade.  That was unexpected. I’m a little bit at war

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-46476362832570196122010-06-04T09:57:00.001-04:002010-06-04T09:57:43.893-04:00

On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week, I covered the first half-hour of the adult literacy classes at the CTC. The first day, three students showed up in the first 15 mins, so I started class with them. I read the first two paragraphs of a newspaper article about how literature can introduce you to new, better worlds, and then dissected the word "mejor," and came up with other words that

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-27433407379634648532010-05-31T11:45:00.001-04:002010-05-31T11:45:41.755-04:00

  It is really hard to explain certain things.  Here are some examples! 1. Not only is the US not called New York, but it is a pretty varied place. (Example 1) Me: There are some really poor parts of the US that receive a lot of government-- Project Partner: Fish! (Example 2) Guy: Where are you from in New York? Me: New York is a city. I’m from a different state, North Carolina. Guy: No,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-22116791770276685932010-05-30T12:28:00.001-04:002010-05-31T10:14:01.525-04:00

I've been in my site officially for only a week, but already, my views on a lot of things have changed. I'm not sure if teaching tech classes in the CTC would be really sustainable in any way. I'm actually pretty interested in working with the adult literacy projects, after sitting in on a few classes and talking with the students and the facilitator.  They actually WANT to be there.  Most of the

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-30368868576136271322010-05-25T14:46:00.000-04:002010-05-25T14:46:44.672-04:00

The municipal election results came in, and apparently, people weren't too happy.  There are calls of massive fraud, etc, and there is talk of a re-vote. http://www.cosasdelcibao.net/2010/05/protesta-del-prd-en-yamasa-deja-tres-heridos-y-el-pueblo-paralizado/ "Militants" from the Dominican Revolutionary Party (which is oddly right-wingish and nonrevolutionary, as much as any party here has a

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-22900287077194733192010-05-24T09:53:00.001-04:002010-05-24T09:53:36.227-04:00

Literacy training… happened. Then, my training group had one last great night in Santo Domingo, after which we all went our separate ways.  Upon returning to my site, I discovered that the duffle bag and backpack I left were infested with ants, and all my clothes were covered in rat hair and feces.  I was most saddened to find that my giant jar of peanut butter had a thriving ant colony in it. 

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-13038001827483234432010-05-14T22:24:00.001-04:002010-05-14T22:40:58.459-04:00

On Wednesday we swore in as Volunteers in the Peace Corps!  This officially marks the end of our official training with Entrena, the training organization.  Many of our Doñas attended, and many mini empanadas were eaten by me. Here are a few pictures: The last one is of Sabrina, Mas, and I, right after we got our Peace Corps Dominican Republic pins and certificates and

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-2210697891024051032010-05-11T10:19:00.001-04:002010-05-11T10:19:42.822-04:00

  I like this song- Rita Indiana http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC2PRHWloyo

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-32399469348806785442010-05-09T17:22:00.001-04:002010-05-09T17:22:24.713-04:00

  1. A commercial saying “we have combined science and religion.”  The logo was a star of david with electrons orbiting it, and the starwars theme was playing in the background.  2. Juice.  Tropical island, full of amazing tropical fruits, and no one eats them.  Instead, they make juice.  More often than not, the juice turns out to be Tang. 3. Viveres. Potatoes, yuca, plantains, different

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-85546997873416980932010-05-09T17:18:00.001-04:002010-05-09T17:18:52.763-04:00

  This is my CTC, built in 2009.  It is the latest iteration of what used to be LINCOS, the labs built inside shipping containers.  It has 20’ high ceilings, something like 25 computers, a daycare, radio station, social outreach center, and… NO INTERNET.  The no internet thing kills me—it has been out for over three months. This is one of the facilitadores, Elvis, hanging the picture of the

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-51027049957711543422010-05-07T11:12:00.001-04:002010-05-07T11:12:18.226-04:00

Wednesday was my first full day in my new site. Some new friends from the CTC were going to a nearby city to register students for financial aid, and asked if I wanted to go with them. I had hung out with them Tuesday afternoon while they registered local students, and it was kind of neat to see all the people and chat with them, so I jumped in the back of the truck. I called the PC “whereabouts”

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-76211646493480441982010-05-05T17:43:00.000-04:002010-05-05T17:43:42.893-04:00

Wow.  My "first day in site" story will probably kick any other story in the ass. I'll try to post when I find out what the hell happened. Needless to say, I'm in Santo Domingo right now, the only place that I know how to get to and get around in.  Just... holy shit.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-57294620070931085152010-05-05T11:01:00.000-04:002010-05-07T11:02:14.848-04:00

  Tuesday was project partner day, where all the trainees met their new work partners!  The word I’d use for this would be “awkward.” It was like a blind date workshop—we had on name tags, and were matched up with people who a few minutes ago we were politely smiling at (is he the one?? or that group with the matching shirts? why’d we have to do this outside, I’m sweating like a whore in church)

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-23649007584516205762010-05-04T06:22:00.001-04:002010-05-04T06:22:55.839-04:00

  I got my site! I’ll be in a small town outside Santo Domingo.  Hopefully it will be good!  I have my bags packed, cellphone charged, and sunglasses in my pocket.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-50784969925286518612010-05-01T13:21:00.001-04:002010-05-01T13:21:05.142-04:00

  Yesterday, many of the volunteers that work in (or will work in) the CTCs met with representatives from the Dispacho de la Primera Dama (the Office of the First Lady) to welcome the new volunteers, and to say goodbye to those that are at the close of their service.  I expected it to be a mundane, predictable event, but the question/answer session turned into a pretty great (sometimes heated)

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-88818751572419967502010-04-29T16:05:00.000-04:002010-04-29T16:05:16.463-04:00

I'm going to be posted in a CTC! These are the labs that are run out of the first lady's office, and are usually pretty well equipped with lots of batteries and solar panels.  I was almost certain that I'd be placed in a high school, but this is cool! Although, it also means that I won't really be able to do much technical work (computer repair, etc) in my site.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-61483478233340694452010-04-27T17:06:00.001-04:002010-04-27T17:06:31.909-04:00

  Community-based training ends on Wednesday! On Monday we find out our site placements, and on Tuesday we head out to our sites for the rest of the week.  Then, we have a few more days in Santo Domingo before returning to our sites and starting the next two years!  I’ve loved hanging out with all the other volunteers, and am looking forward to reunions and flota calls. To celebrate the last

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-80221922632453741722010-04-24T16:35:00.001-04:002010-04-24T16:35:38.569-04:00

  On Friday, Sabrina, Mas, and I Peace Corre’d through the town, across the river, through the sugarcane fields, across another river, across more fields, and up a big hill. Because we are IT volunteers, the excursion was photojournaled. Campo is Spanish for field/farmland/middle-of-nowhere. Sudor means to sweat. Last time, this is where we realized we had to start running from the horses.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-74277654890636487672010-04-23T10:03:00.001-04:002010-04-23T10:03:16.821-04:00

This is Joe, Heather, Justin, and me riding in the back of Anne’s truck.  Yeah, my hair is really short.  It’s pretty necessary. 

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-34915795957078795422010-04-19T08:39:00.001-04:002010-04-19T08:39:59.612-04:00

  These are two of the youth who are working on making logos for Mabi, the local beverage that tastes like Care Bear sweat.   Here is Jenn pointing at something on the screen. She gets +10 points for teaching kids how to read good, and to do other stuff good too!   Here is Joe, reconsidering his Photoshop competency. Jenn is still pointing in the background. The kids can draw! This is

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-78674501832520664842010-04-15T16:01:00.001-04:002010-04-15T16:01:04.205-04:00

These are my friends in the Info/Comm Tech group! This is the whole group. We are considerably tanner now.

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-38135178030374842572010-04-15T15:58:00.001-04:002010-04-15T15:58:56.718-04:00

  Meet Anne.  Anne is our technical trainer, and has more energy than the sun. She drives this badass truck everywhere, and sometimes we get rides.  I am continuously amazed at how much work she does.  When I worked at UNC, I would have 8 programs and dozens of Chrome and Firefox tabs open.  Anne does this in real life, with people and projects and bags of candy.  She doles out the dulces enough

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-6560462540425388012010-04-13T15:40:00.001-04:002010-04-13T15:40:46.277-04:00

My training group went to the beach! It was pretty much the nicest one that I’ve ever seen, and the pictures don’t do it justice.  The Peace Corps-issued sunscreen does nothing, and most of us left pretty burnt.  I scraped my knee on some coral, and another volunteer stepped on a sea urchin. I helped her pull the big spines out, but a few were pretty deeply embedded.  I also offered to pee on it,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-32937638313084113822010-04-12T10:47:00.001-04:002010-04-12T10:47:37.117-04:00

  Today, my group met with our jovenes at the high school to plan out our graphic design project.  We had 10 or 11 on Friday, and 4 today.  4 is a good number… 3 girls, and one guy who showed up the first day in a suit (he was coming from some presentation or whatnot).  We call him the suit guy, because I can never understand/remember his name. Sabrina made an awesome lesson plan. We played

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-54773916293588949772010-04-10T11:37:00.001-04:002010-04-10T11:37:26.700-04:00

The high school we are working at has a wi-fi signal, so I got the school director to type in the password for me.  Then, I clicked “show characters.” Free wi-fi for all!

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-33312473090776081512010-04-07T17:10:00.001-04:002010-04-07T17:10:32.005-04:00

In training, we talked about the difficulties in dealing with problems in a fatalistic culture.  Things are expected to not work. Examples: The power and water are expected to be out, the mail system doesn´t actually deliver mail to houses, and microwaves are used for storage.  If you say you are going to do something, or ask someone to do something, a likely response is “si dios quiere,” if god

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-59836779596060813532010-04-07T17:04:00.001-04:002010-04-07T17:04:04.004-04:00

This is Sabrina, another volunteer who lives a block away. She’s pretty great, but watch out: UNO can become a contact sport. This is the street I live on. It was paved about a year ago! This is the IKEA in Santo Domingo. This picture was taken over the heads of about 30 Dominicans in a 20-year-old Toyota minibus van. IKEA… I was pretty shocked. WTF, Sweden?!

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-76495154398384339102010-04-04T11:22:00.001-04:002010-04-04T11:22:42.891-04:00

I'm sitting at a baseball field on the edge of a small dusty town that somehow has a wifi signal.   The training group went out to Discoteca WOW last night and partied, which was a needed respite from three hours of Pentecostal evangelical church with my host family.  There were people writhing on the floor and speaking in tongues, and others seizing and flapping their arms.  The pastor stalked

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-54107884382020369282010-03-25T11:59:00.003-04:002010-03-25T11:59:38.558-04:00

  Food. Mostly, it’s fried. Salt is the only known spice, and it is applied with gusto.  Coffee is simply a carrier for sugar; the first day, I watched my dona shovel 5 spoonfuls of it into a very tiny cup of coffee. I felt like a coked up hummingbird the rest of the morning, before coming down and swearing it off. For breakfast, my dona usually gives me papaya or pineapple, two grilled cheese

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-76972684270471957132010-03-25T11:59:00.001-04:002010-03-25T11:59:00.946-04:00

The DR is one of the few PC countries that allows trainees/volunteers to ride on the back of motorcycles. Many sites are only accessible via motoconcho (motorcycle taxi), and while the PC equips us with helmets and a short training session, those things don’t really mitigate becoming half of a human projectile.  The DR is extremely Catholic, but it also has “evangelicos.”  More specifically,

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-88805229723045393932010-03-16T06:58:00.000-04:002010-03-17T08:01:11.588-04:00

Or, Rabies and spiders and worms. “Don’t mess with the water.  Lettuce, cabbage—don’t even think about it.” So said our Canadian nurse, and after 2 hours of some of the most horrendous mental images of throwing up worms and life-long intermittent diarrhea, I was convinced.  Besides the tarantulas that can jump 6 feet, worms and life-long intermittent diarrhea are probably now my biggest fear on

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-64739812182727695072010-03-14T20:41:00.001-04:002010-03-14T20:41:26.878-04:00

We had a tour of the Zona Colonial at 9am on Sunday, which I think was as much a test of our proficiency in using public transit as it was an opportunity to learn more about the DR’s place in American (the two continents) history.  This touristy area, of course, is very far away from the barrios where trainees live.  I met one of my trainee friends on the street at 7am, and we caught a guagua

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-74512667717825435572010-03-08T15:51:00.000-05:002010-03-08T15:51:45.641-05:00

I'm in the DR!  Everything is going well so far, and I am settling in with my host family.  I have eaten a few pounds of beans and rice so far, and a ton of avocado. Breakfast is usually this melon-like thing that is bright red and tastes like strawberries, and a grilled cheese.  The fruits are amazing, and my dona gives me heaping piles of everything.  My host sister decided that my name is too

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-49762995621262074942010-02-22T13:04:00.000-05:002010-02-22T13:04:35.872-05:00

Friday was my last day at work, and I have this week to move everything back to my mom's place and pack.  The alarms that would usually wake me up this morning were blaring invitations to just keep sleeping, and around noon I woke up in the middle of a dream where mangoes were rolling off the roof.  It was just rain.  Depressed by the lack of mangoes, I reached over and grabbed my iPhone, and

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3077946066037436943.post-44935686110365462372010-02-14T19:38:00.000-05:002010-02-14T19:38:42.201-05:00

With 17 days to go until I start the Peace Corps, I put my room and car up on Craigslist, and started a blog.  The going-away party is planned, I trained my replacements at work, and I'm collecting boxes to move everything back home. On March 3rd, I fly to Washington, DC, for a few hours of pre-departure fun.  On March 4th, at 8:25am, the training group will fly to Santo Domingo, and the next 27

Aidanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02502545456523595579noreply@blogger.com0