Departure from the Dominican Republic - reflection on service andexperience

To end each day while on our trip, we had group reflection.  Most days, everyone shared a highlight of their day, leading to deeper conversations about our work and purpose here.  Many would mention small interactions with students or other Dominicans which often went overlooked by the group.  This reflection, while not the favorite part of the trip for most students (how can it compete with the beach?) was a key component of the learning to go along with our service.  This trip was not simply a week a and then back to our everyday lives.  All of us will take lessons learned in our own experience with us back home.  

As we wrapped up our experience on the Dominican Republic on Saturday, we asked everyone what lessons they have learned while living for a week on the north coast of the Dominican Republic.  Below are their responses. 

Johanna- The importance of living in the moment.

David- Happiness it not about money, it is something you cannot purchase. Happiness is about enjoying your life, whatever life you have.  Being grateful of what you have.

Derek- life is what you make it.  Many in the DR do not have "much" yet are a lot happier than Americans.

Claudia- I enjoyed learning more about the Dominican culture.  I also really liked talking with the high school students from Abreu and teaching English.

Carley- You can communicate with people no matter what language you speak. 

Siqi- everyone is capable of making a change 

Molly - it is possible to make a significant connection with someone in a short amount of time even without speaking the same language. 

Aurderic- to value all the goods and opportunity that I have in my everyday life. 

Mingyu- it is difficult yet rewarding to live outside of my comfort zone. Also, I need to learn Spanish. 

Connor- things can always be worse than you have.  Putting yourself in someone else's schools is extremely valuable. 

Max- it is fun to be a teacher in the ESL classes.

George- speaking a similar language is not necessary to make a new friend.

Elizabeth- be happy and live with a smile even if I don't have what I want.

Mr. Schwab- it is amazing how quickly we can adapt to our surroundings and feel comfortable in an unfamiliar situation. 

Dempsey- appreciate the little things, like being able to flush toilet paper. 

Dori- we are too materialistic and it is not worth it to stress over material things. 

Hayden- Happiness is a decision. 

We had an incredible experience during Project Week!  

For additional photos follow @jonathan_schwab and @mcolleenbrown

Day 7 - Tourists

With our last full day in the Dominican Republic, we decided to see some sights. In the morning, we drove to Laguna Dudu, a freshwater sinkhole that is gorgeous! We all swam and explored the beautiful property. There was a zip line there, but no one used it because we were not sure how safe it was. Still, everyone had a great time relaxing.

Laguna Dudu

We had a pizza lunch in the shade and then drove back to Playa Grande. David, Derek, and Siqi did their impression of the health and wellness project group by getting beach massages for 500 pesos ($11.65) for thirty minutes.

At Playa Grande we spent time at the beach. Some rented body boards while others swam, walked, and got snacks. Some found out just how strong the Caribbean sun is.

Tomorrow we head back to Santo Domingo to catch our flight home.

Day 6 - Our Last Day at Abreu School

In the morning we toured Playa Grande, a resort that is under construction. Playa means beach, and playa grande is one of the nicest beaches in the Dominican Republic. For years, locals have been going on the weekends. There is a very interesting cross section of interests between American investors from New York, who are building a 6 star resort, and locals. The investors want to make a profit, but would like to do so in a responsible way, creating jobs and allowing tourist dollars to flow into the local community. For this reason, they have chosen to not make the resort an all-inclusive, like many of the resorts in the DR. In places like Punta Cana, for example, where tourists fly to the airport and then are bussed directly to a resort, spending their vacation on resort proprperty, all of the money generated by tourism is captured by the resort. While the employees are local and paid, the vast majority of the money goes to the foreign owners. Allowing tourists to leave the hotel for meals and shopping, playa grande will have a much larger economic impact on the surrounding communities.

Playa Grande looking east.

Right now, playa grande has just built a small boutique hotel that is not yet open to the public. They will eventually create jobs, but it is not yet fully understood quite how the local community feels. Playa grande says that they will allow local vendors to continue operating on the beach and keep the beach open for locals. (Quick history fact, the former dictator Trujillio enacted a law in the 1960s that made the first 60 feet of beach public throughout the Dominican Republic because he wanted to ensure a Bay of Pigs style invasion could not happen here.) While it seems playa grande's intentions are good, some local vendors have had their licenses bought out and asked to leave. Playa grande wants to cater to tourists who want to share a beach with local Dominicans and eat local Dominican food. Hopefully they can develop the resort sustainably and responsibly.

Playa Grande looking west.

Brief traffic jam just before arriving in Abreu.

We continued to paint and interact with students. After lunch the Dominican students and New Hampton students each performed for each other.

Bachata dancing.

New Hampton joins the dancing.

Cups

Picture with some elementary school students arriving for
afternoon school. Until 8th grade, students only
go half day, either in the morning or afternoon.

Group picture in front of one of our murals.

Day 5 - The Work Continues

We returned to the Abreu school to continue working on our various projects. Now that we have been there for several days, the students recognize us and are much more willing to converse. Carley, Molly, Claudia, and Siqi taught ESL today.

Siqi holding the attention of her students.

We returned to lunch at a cafe that we dined at on Sunday and had a chance to meet with Sheila, the owner. Originally from New Jersey, she came to the Dominican Republic thirty years ago and has had many different business ventures. She now owns a cafe and garden on the main road along the north coast, in Abreu. Through her story we learned quite a bit about her community, the lack of efficient suppliers in this region of the country for a resturant, and how gaining trust within a small community is essential for survival. The security system in this area of the Dominican Republic is really the community looking out for one another.

Shelia talks to us after lunch

Shelia shared great perspective on her journey that resonated with a lot of us who either speak little to no Spanish. When she first arrived, Shelia did not speak Spanish and had to rely on friends to translate. Even though they translated, she would often miss much of the nuances in communication. If there is one thing that we have all learned from this trip, it is the value of being able to clearly communicate with those around you. However, despite a language barrier, it is amazing to see how much one can communicate with another person who speaks another language. For example, our driver Juan Martin does not speak much English, but we have been able to communicate well with him. He is great and has even gotten involved in painting the past few days.

 

Juan Matin

As we see and experience more in the Dominican Republic, students are beginning to gain more context as to our work here. Shelia was asked at lunch what she would say to people in the US if she returned. Shelia said that she was amazed how Dominicans do so much with so little and are so happy. The minimum wage is $200 / month, but many earn much less than that with informal employment. The unemployment rate hovers between 20-30%. Shelia also said not to feel bad for Dominicans but, instead, appreciate the luck of being born in the situation we are fortunate to be in.

And now, some photos of murals we have created with the help of Juan Tejada, our mural artist. 

Laguna Gri-Gri, where we visited

Playa Caleton, the beach we visited on Tuesday.

A drawing by Dempsey and Johanna.

Montessori Classroom

A quick video of Siqi, David, Mingyu, and Carley in the Montessori classroom.

Day 4 - Halfway

Believe it or not, we have reached the halfway point of this trip. We awoke to another absolutely spectacular day in the Dominican Republic and headed back along the north coast to the Abreu school. It was Elizabeth, George, Max, and Romilly's turn to teach ESL to high school students.

Cows casually stroll by the Abreu school.

The importance of speaking English is astounding in the Dominican Republic. With a large portion of the economy reliant upon tourism, especially along the north coast, if one speaks English, their opportunities for employment skyrocket. Also, the amount of money one earns knowing English is exponential to one who cannot speak English in the tourist industries. For example, Otto, who works for the Dream Project, would not be given the responsibility and leadership position he has without command of English. New Hampton school students are the first native English speakers to come to Abreu school and offer lessons. While we will not teach them a full command of English, we will hopefully leave a legacy of engagement that will help the Dominican students to pursue their educational goals in a country where education is not of paramount importance.

Some of the designs beginning to take shape.

Other students continued to work on our mural projects and art classes. We also had the chance to have more less-structured time with students, which often provide the best cultural experiences. Many New Hampton students are having the chance to practice their Spanish language skills. Several students have commented, "I wish I was still taking Spanish".

We ate lunch at Playa Grande, which is a beach that has a resort beginning to be developed and constructed. It is an absolutely beautiful location. The hope is that it will become a major employer for the people in Abreu. There is a partnership between the Abreu school and the Playa Grande Foundation where Playa Grande helps finance the Montesorri and ESL classes at the school.

Playa Grande

Our lunch spot.

In the afternoon, we went on our first excursion to Laguna Gri-Gri. Located in the town of Río San Juan, the freshwater lagoon is a protected area, home to mangroves. It eventually leads to the Atlantic Ocean. We boarded a small boat and got up close with some spectacular views, as well as had a chance to support the local economy.

Laguna Gri-Gri

Ocean view from our boat.

Our local guide, Kiko, took us to a local Dominican beach where we had an hour to swim. (See twitter @Jonathan_Schwab for photos.)

We continued to do great work during the day at the Abreu school. Students are beginning to form relationships with one another and create more chances for cultural exchange.

DR Day 3 - Engaged in Service

We woke up early for a 7:00am breakfast and were greeted with this beautiful sunrise. Time in the Dominican Republic is currently one hour ahead of New Hampton because they do not use daylight savings time, so the sun comes up a little late but also sets later.

On the drive to Abreu we were able to listen to a hit Dominican sing about Chuck Norris. Once at the school, some began to prep the wall for our murals, while another group entered a high school classroom to teach three ESL classes.

The mural artist Juan transfers a drawing by Johanna
and Dempsey that will be painted by NHS students

David, Molly, Mingyu and Claudia teach an English
language class about sports to Juniors

David and Mingyu add some Chinese lessons at the end of
the class. #trilingual

We ate a true Dominican meal of rice, beans, and chicken for lunch and then headed back to the school to teach art classes and continue working on our murals.

Dempsey and Mrs. Arsenault make bracelets with 

Dominican children.

Dori hits the volleyball during high school students break.
They have a break built into their schedule, just like NHS,
but instead of the country store, local vendors sell empanadas.

Johanna, Elizabeth, and Connor work on the mural.

On the way back to our hotel, students were able to buy some snacks in the Abreu market. Once at the hotel, everyone took advantage of the absolutely perfect weather (sun, 85 degrees) and went straight to the beach.

Reflection occurs after dinner each night when students are given time to put their day into context. We had a great day of student engagement, and we are all looking forward to returning to the school tomorrow.

Good Morning From The DR.

Spectacular sunrise. If we ever open a Husky Nation south campus, my vote is this spot.

DR Day 2 - Prep For The Children

Sundays in the Dominican Republic are quiet. Coupled with the rain, the country seemed asleep as we woke up. After a great breakfast, our group set off for our 30 minute drive to the Abreu school, but that drive turned into an hour as many roads were washed out.



We met the group leaders from the Dream Project. Jon, the Director of Development, gave us a great orientation about the school, area, and projects we will be engaged in. Marsha, also with the Dream Project, answered our questions and told us about the ESL classes we will be teaching and murals we will be working on. As it was Sunday, we were at the Aberu school without students so it was a calm before the storm.

We had lunch at a great spot that was a five minute walk from the school and doubled as a botanical garden. After lunch, we headed back to the school to plan ESL lessons and design the murals we will later be painting.



The Abreu school that we will be working in is an extremely nice school compared to others around the DR. The school houses the only Montessori on the island, as well as an elementary and high school. Education in the Dominican Republic averages only $900 spent per student each year. Only about 1/2 of Dominican children will graduate 8th grade. The Dream Project works to supplement, not replace, the education system.



Additionally, a local resort is beginning to invest money into local schools to bring in ESL program to help the local population gain skills that will help them gain employment in the future. This presents a great opportunity to discuss local development and how it affects the Dominican Republic.

We finally had a chance to enjoy the beach 60 feet from our rooms.

DR Day 1 - Travel Day

Twenty-one members of Husky Nation braved temperatures as low as -6 to walk across campus for a 2:30am departure from New Hampton to Boston Logan Airport. The chilly bus ride was rather quiet, as most caught up on sleep.

The group made it smoothly through security and flew to Philadelphia, connecting to a flight headed for Santo Domingo, the capital of the Domican Republic.

Once the group cleared customs and gained tourist visas we were met by Xaivier, our tour director for the week. After a long 12 hour travel day, we were ready to get to the hotel. However, we still had a four hour bus ride to take us from the southern part of the DR to the north coast. The bus ride allowed students the chance to witness some of the countryside and Dominican daily life, such as our bus coming to a screeching halt so that a bull could cross the highway and witnessing traffic laws that defy logic.

We arrived at our hotel, had a delicious dinner of chicken, rice and vegetables, and then went to sleep to get ready for our first day of service learning.

Service Learning in the DR Project Details

I received an email today from Xaivier, our Tour Director in the Dominican Republic. She is a freelance mural artist as well as a Tour Director for EF Tours in the DR. Xaivier is extremely excited for our group from NHS to arrive in only 10 days!

Our group will be working with The Dream Project. The non-profit organization focuses on education and our group has an amazing opportunity to work in a model community, Abreu, Dominican Republic on the north coast, where we will be paining murals outside of a public school, assisting with ESL and educational workshops.

The Service Project is to beautify the entrance to the Abreu High School. There is a 10-panel wall that lines the entrance to the school. The school has requested various murals that reflect their commitment to excellent and local Dominican culture. Students will work with a local artist to design and paint the scenes. We will be working directly with the Elementary school students in the DREAM library in the Abreu School. Classes such as ESL, art and other suggestions from our students are possible in which we will work to develop and teach the classes.

And there is this...