Here in the DR.

Hey guys!

Well I’m here in the Dominican Republic and I couldn’t be happier. Everything has worked out really well and it has been a really exciting adventure so far. After arriving in Miami on the 30^th, I met all my fellow volunteers and it’s a really great group. There’s really no one that I don’t get along with, and it’s obvious that we are all very like-minded people. Upon arrival to our hotel, we received a welcome/introduction to the Peace Corps, which took about 5 hours. We stayed in Miami for 2 nights, and then left at 3:30 in the morning to catch our flight here. We flew to Puerto Rico, had a 2-hour layover, and then arrived in the Dominican Republic. After being met by the Peace Corps country director (the guy in charge here in the DR) at the airport, we went to a retreat center in Santo Domingo that was surrounded by armed guards. We later found out that it was so well protected because the president of the Dominican Republic was hosting a party there that night. Unfortunately we weren’t able to meet him, and so we then spent the night in our rooms where were about 95 degrees. The next day, we put all our bags in a truck and came to the Peace Corps training center. We met all the staff and had a quick Spanish class that covered all the basic phrases we would need before meeting our host family.

At the end of the day, my host mom came to pick me up. Her name is Dona Suel and she’s really nice, as well as very patient with how little Spanish I know. Her and her husband, Don Liwik have a 9-month-old baby boy, whose name is Lionard, but it is pronounced Ley-o-na. I really like my living situation. We have electricity ever once in a while, but we never have running water. Bucket showers are definitely an adventure. I will decribe more about my home and everything else in my next post, but for now I’ll put up some pictures for you guys.

Adios,

Miles

My room, and the view from the window in my room, and my host parents.