A Weekend of Firsts

Living in NYC, I rarely go to the same restaurant or bar more than once. With so many options, it’s hard to justify having the same experience twice when something brand new is always around the corner. When traveling (or making a temporary home abroad), I think it’s important to have a similar mentality: Try everything once, and only go back again if it’s worth it. While I spent my first few days in the Dominican Republic getting settled, I’ve spent the past few days “trying things.” Here’s a list of things I’ve tried so far that I will most likely be doing again:

(1) I learned how to dance merengue and bachata at Latin Night. The restaurants and bars along the beach are so touristy that a night dedicated to Latin dancing is the exception not the rule. We are trying to coordinate salsa lessons so we can learn to dance to the salsa songs too. Now I just need a partner!

(2) I rode on a “motoconcho.” Motos are the main form of transportation when traveling shorter distances, and everyone in Cabarete knows the DREAM volunteers because we are the only ones who wear helmets on the motos. After several rides, I’m thankful to have one!

(3) I rode in a “guagua.” Guaguas are public vans that run between several towns. You simply hail one on the street and tell them where to drop you off. There are no space limits (and no personal space) in a guagua. They pack as many people as possible and often barely come to a stop when picking somebody up.

(4) I went surfing for the first time when I was in Cabarete over spring break but was never able to stand up on the board. But this time, me levanté! I had a great instructor and rode the waves nearly every time I tried (with only a few spills). Much more graceful this time, even if seven year olds were passing me on their boards.

(5) I learned how to play dominoes, Dominican-style. This includes slapping (not placing) your dominoes on the board when you make a move. I haven’t quite mastered that part of the game, but I did win several games at the surf shack. I’m pretty sure it was beginner’s luck.

(6) I went dancing at “la bomba” which happens to be a gas station that turns into a makeshift dance club at night. Kansas Citians know how good something run out of a gas station can be (Oklahoma Joe’s), and my first night at la bomba lived up to its expectations. Because it was raining it was less crowded than usual (the plastic chairs and tables are all outside), but I have a feeling I will be dancing merengue and bachata at the gas station many more times.

(7) I participated in my first bola. Getting places in and near town can be a bit inconvenient (and the pesos spent on short rides add up!) so people often try to catch a bola, or free ride, with someone heading the same direction. Leaving la bomba we were able to catch a bola with a truck, packing about ten people into the back of the pickup. Sitting shoulder to shoulder and listening to new friends singing Dominican songs in the misty rain will always be one of my favorite memories.

I’m grateful to have a list of things I look forward to doing again rather than a list of things that I will never do again. I’m also lucky to be surrounded by some amazing volunteers who have introduced me to exciting adventures and new friends. I can’t believe that only one week has passed since I first arrived. So much has happened and so much is yet to come! I can only hope that the next eight weeks contain many more “firsts” but also several “seconds,” “thirds,” and “fourths.”

Let There Be Light

Imagine waking up this morning and walking all the way to work in blistering heat (or cold rain) carrying a heavy backpack. Imagine that on this commute you must dodge intense traffic on a narrow road where you clearly look and feel like an outsider. Maneuver through the street animals, barely miss being struck by a speeding motorbike, catch a few words of the music blaring from the shops, and try to avoid any cat calls or whistles coming your way. Imagine entering the office and flipping a light switch to find only darkness. After trying to turn on the PC, you can only stare at a black screen. You brought your computer, but it needs to be charged in the outlet so it’s useless. Not only are you without internet, but you are without the ability to work on any documents you have stored on your computer. There’s no air conditioning (as usual), and you can’t use the copy machine, fax machine, computer printers, or any other electronic device in the office. Think about your current workload. What could you get done without electricity? For the entire week we have faced this challenge.  It’s a common challenge to face when working in the field: Each time you go to work, you never know exactly what you will encounter on the street or in the office. You must be prepared for anything!

DREAM is lucky, but I like to think of it as luck that has been hard-earned and well-deserved. It is beloved by not only the local community, but the international community as well. Extensive support has equipped the DREAM Center with a great set of computers, and volunteers bring their laptops to work to take advantage of the wireless network.  With the availability of technology often comes a reliance on that technology. Anyone who sees me constantly check my iPhone can attest to that, and I’m reminded nearly every minute on the streets of NYC that I’m not alone in this reliance. With that being said, when your regular work routine is thrown off by a situation out of your control, how do you handle it? For many of us, it can be tough not to be discouraged by what goes wrong when you face pressing deadlines and when so many others rely on the work you produce. I think nonprofit organizations are particularly resilient in this regard because they often face unpredictability within immense constraints to a greater extent than the average business. It’s a virtue of the sector, and it’s also a downfall. We make do with less than we need, but sometimes are afraid to ask for more when we truly need it.

So how have we handled the situation? While all volunteers are normally based completely at the DREAM Center (essentially the “school”), we have had to rotate in shifts to work at the small office in town which has power. It has been a great luxury to have internet access at all during this time, but we have also faced significant obstacles in using the shift system. We are in the planning process of a huge project—an entire summer camp for 250+ kids—and all of our jobs overlap and require feedback from each other in some way. We’ve done our best to schedule office time with those we need to work with most, but there are many things left to do which can’t be done until we are all together.  I don’t have internet at my apartment, so I can’t work on anything after hours—check emails, communicate with family and friends, Google translate, or enjoy any other luxury I had literally at my fingertips only a few days ago. But it feels great to be disconnected. I can enjoy the sights and sounds of the street a bit more when I’m not hunched over my iPhone checking email for the hundredth time, refreshing my Facebook newsfeed, and generally avoiding eye contact with human beings. And suffice it to say that the streets here make the streets of New York City look tame! Cabarete has crazier traffic, louder noise, more trash, and more distractions. And when you’re walking down the street everybody sees you because everybody is outside and of course nobody is attached to an electronic device. To have so many eyes on you and so many people talking to you can be a bit surreal, but then again, I’m sure any New York transplant could tell you it would be nice if more people acknowledged that you do, in fact, exist. But I guess that would require everyone to look up from their phone—which sadly seems too much to ask!

For now, I’m enjoying the calm before the storm. The trickle of work will soon become a flood, but at least the Dominican rainy season will have prepared me well by then!

Working Girl

The first day of any job is always filled with mixed emotions—eagerness to embrace new opportunities and tackle your job description is often grounded by the realities of navigating a new work environment and fitting into an unfamiliar organizational culture. Luckily, several factors made my first day on the job an easy transition. Having spent a week with The DREAM Project over spring break, I had already met all of the year-long volunteers and staff and become familiar with the local community. Working with DREAM on several projects throughout the past year gave me a strong understanding of their mission, the work they produce, and their expectations for volunteers. And most importantly, an informal gathering on Sunday evening helped me brush up on my Spanish the day before work. You know the feeling when you haven’t used a language in awhile and the words seem to get stuck in your throat the first time you use it again? Yeah, I wanted to avoid that. I expect the words to flow more freely each day with practice.

Right now there are five native English speakers and three Spanish speakers among the volunteer crew who will be running the summer camp. Thus in any mixed meeting, we use Spanish. When the international volunteers arrive in late June, there will be a huge influx of English speakers (all of whom must have at least intermediate Spanish skills) and the local Dominican volunteers will begin joining meetings at that time too. During camp, all classes will be co-taught by Dominican teachers and international volunteers will serve as professional development coaches and camp counselors. While we will use English the first two days of international volunteer orientation (before local volunteers arrive), the rest of the orientation and camp meetings will be in Spanish. DREAM has made a conscious effort to employ both local and international volunteers in the summer camp, and this requires them to pay particular attention to language choice in their operations. The choice of a working language and the creation of local ownership are both important issues in the development field, and addressing both is a constant process—the work is never done, as it is a complicated task. We know that international development work becomes dangerous when it is English only and operates based on what an organization wants to implement rather than what a community needs, but sometimes both happen in practice more than we care to admit. I can already tell that both these issues are important to DREAM. Of course, there is only so much an organization itself can do to promote an inclusive culture and local ownership. When a program relies heavily on volunteers, it becomes the responsibility of the volunteers themselves to ensure that they carry out the mission of the organization. Part of my job will be to instill that idea in the volunteers when they arrive.

I’ve gotten a bit more clarity on my role throughout the summer. Right now, I’m working to develop the content and schedule for the volunteer orientation. I’ll also need to take care of all logistics for volunteers, from coordinating airport pick-up to securing accommodations. The needs of the volunteers will vary tremendously, as will their international experience and levels of Spanish. I will be the go-to person for any needs that arise during their stay, from answering questions about where to find things in Cabarete to checking up on volunteers when they are sick. July will be an exhausting month—I’ll be accountable to at least 50 volunteers! Beyond volunteer coordination, I’m working on two other important tasks. We will be taking the students on several field trips during camp, and I’ll be working with another volunteer to plan all of these field trips (choosing locations, creating lesson plans, arranging transportation, finding food options, designing a field trip handbook, etc.) Lastly, throughout the month of June I will be assisting in the English classes for DREAM’s adolescent program, A Ganar.

The next two months are going to be busy. I work 8-5 every weekday during the month of June, and volunteers begin arriving on June 24^th. Next up is a week of orientation, followed by four weeks of summer camp (7:30am-4:30pm, five days a week, with 150 students aged 9-15. I need a nap just thinking about it!) My time in the Dominican Republic is going to be here and gone before I know it. Until then, I plan to make the most of it. And I hope you continue to check in to see how I manage that task!

All I Ever Needed to Pack, I Learned from a Friend

I was not raised to be a traveler. I hopped on my first airplane in high school–for a school trip–and saw the ocean for the first time at age 17. It’s true. When you live in a landlocked state, you often tend to do landlocked things, and this was certainly the case for me. So as my international interests began to emerge, the need to learn how to be a smart traveler also emerged. But with so much to learn, where to begin? I’ve honed some tips and tricks of my own over the years, but when it comes to packing for two months abroad, I knew I needed the expert advice of a well-traveled friend. Enter one of my nearest and dearest from NYC: Megan. While I like to trust my own instincts, it can be more beneficial to trust someone else’s experience. Before leaving for a summer in Cambodia, Megan wrote an excellent blog post about how to pack everything you need in one bag. Now Megan is my hero(ine) in a lot of ways, but her travel savvy is truly admirable. Using her list, packing went from being a nightmare to being enjoyable manageable. All you world travelers and world-travelers-to-be take note: Don’t leave home without this list! And if you’re really looking for an adventure, take Megan with you

1. Will you be staying in one place or moving around?
NYC has a direct flight to the Dominican Republic, and DREAM organizes airport pick-up for its volunteers out of Puerto Plata. Since I will be taken from the airport straight to my apartment (where I’ll be set up for the entire summer), I feel comfortable taking a large suitcase that would otherwise be unwieldy if I were taking taxis, buses, public cars, or any other type of transport. I took this same suitcase to Guatemala for a two-week stay and felt ridiculous. At least this time, the size reflects the length of stay. I’m sticking with one suitcase and a backpack for nine weeks.

2. What will you be doing?
Working with students, volunteers, and teachers during the day, and enjoying time in Cabarete and on the beach in my free time. I decided that I would need casual but presentable and professional clothes for the school day, and casual beach wear for the rest of the time. Staple pieces include bright colored fitted t-shirts with a high neckline, bermuda or other long shorts and skirts for work, casual shorts and sundresses for the beach, and a few casual night-time looks. Plenty of comfortable sandals and tennis shoes are a must!

3. What season/climate do you need to prepare for?
HEAT. Clothes must be lightweight and breathable. During the school day, I will need to have more coverage–arms, neckline, hemline–so I need to choose fabrics that will withstand the heat. Weather can be unpredictable this time as well, so I need to be prepared for rain. And I always pack a sweater or two and a pair of long pants for cooler nights/days or a time when you seem to be “under-dressed” for an occasion. Lastly, I’m packing a pair of leggings, a lightweight long sleeve top, and socks for sleeping to avoid those pesky mosquitoes (I learned my lesson the hard way over spring break).

4. What clothing is culturally appropriate?
Cabarete is quite a touristy and very casual beach town, but it is still important to be presentable and appropriate, especially as a representative of a well-known organization in town. I won’t be wearing short hemlines in my shorts, skirts, or dresses, and tank tops will be limited to the beach. Covering up on the beach is not an issue, so I can pack two piece swimsuits without a problem. Did I mention it is extremely casual? I can–and should–leave anything at home that is too dressy or calls attention to myself.

5. What can you live without?
Sad to see it go, but I’m saying goodbye to high heels, jewelry (except for stud earrings), and dressy clothes for the summer. I don’t need to pack a makeup bag–just the bare basics plus an eyeshadow or two for night if desired. I decided that with this destination, I’m going to still take my hair dryer and straightener because I have room in my bag, but I will probably have my hair up most of the time and may regret dragging them along!

6. What cheers you up after a rough day?
Taking a cue from Megan, PEANUT BUTTER. Anybody who knows me knows how much I love the stuff. I bought a HUGE jar today that I’ll be taking with me. Working out and going to the beach help me de-stress, so I’m packing several swimsuits and plenty of running attire. I’ll also have plenty of reading material on hand. And, of course, what cheers me up most of all is talking to friends and family, so I’m taking my laptop along for the ride.

7. Is what I’m about to pack multi-functional?
Yes, yes, yes. Most everything I am bringing can, in the right combination, be interchangeably appropriate in the classroom, on the beach, or throughout the weekend. This is a great benefit to being in a casual environment!

Out of Megan’s list of must-haves, here are several that I’m packing:

- Sunscreen (Dominicans rarely need or use it, so it’s expensive when you find it)
- Bug spray (several bottles…)
- Reusable water bottle (a MUST in the DR, but bottled water is also cheap and easily found there)
- Copies of all my documents carried with me and stored at home
- Flashlight (with spotty electricity, I’ll need this–plus a 10 count pack of batteries)

I also stocked up on medicines: aspirin  (I get headaches frequently), anti-malarial, Cipro (an international traveler’s must), plus any prescriptions I take regularly. Additionally, I tried to identify what was most important for me to have in case I couldn’t find it. I decided to stock up on face wash–I use Cetaphil–as I know the Dominican heat and sun will take a toll on my skin.

As is typical, I’ll probably find that I overpacked some things and underpacked others. But overall, I think I’m…ready? Only time will tell.

Introducing: Me!

Let me start by saying: Bienvenidos! Thanks for reading the beginnings of what I hope will be a more long-term blog about international education issues and my work in the field. For now, my goal is to write content about my summer work in the Dominican Republic not only as an update for friends and family, but to detail what The DREAM Project is doing to improve education in the local community and to discuss important issues related to education and development in the country. (DISCLAIMER: The views expressed on this blog are my own and are not those of The DREAM Project nor any of its funding organizations).

First things first, let’s get the basics out of the way so we can move on to the fun stuff. As a graduate student in international educational development, I get asked one question more than anything: What does that mean–are you planning to teach abroad? My answer: Yes and no. I’m not going to school to teach (been there, done that) but I am interested in training teachers, designing curriculum, and producing outcomes for ALL students–all of which come with the territory of teaching. With that being said, I like to tell people that my field requires a bit of idealism and realism to accomplish a very complicated task: Use education as a means to create social, economic, and personal development in a country while doing so within the social, economic, religious, and other constraints of that country. Education as a tool for nation-building is much too simple, but it seems to work well as a quick explanation. You’ll learn more about the complexities as the blog unfolds.

Now for the second FAQ: What are you doing in the Dominican Republic? To make a very long story short, The DREAM Project works to break the cycle of poverty by ensuring that students in impoverished Dominican communities have access to educational programming. They provide a variety of services throughout the year which I won’t get into (I’ve linked to their website above if you’re interested), but one of the highlights of the year is their month long summer camp. This camp serves several hundred students and brings in dozens of international volunteers to work alongside Dominican teachers. I will be coordinating all of the volunteers both pre- and post-departure, specifically providing support and professional development workshops to the volunteers when they arrive. I’m sure my job will include many other odds and ends that you’ll hear about soon!

What NOT to expect from this blog:
- A list of what I ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (I’ll save that for my dietitian)
- A play by play of what I do to occupy my time (I won’t even save that for Twitter)
- A comparison of how “here” in the DR is different from “the States.”
- A revelation of my “surprise” at various cultural differences. No.
- A touristy explanation of the country/community
- Complaints about mosquitoes, the heat, and no hot water (Can I save that for Facebook?)

What you CAN expect from this blog:
- Information about the community where I’ll be working–Cabarete–told from a field perspective: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
- Details about my work with The DREAM Project
- Pictures, posts, and maybe even video of The DREAM Project’s work with youth
- Relevant information about education in the Dominican context, including development issues or current events (and how they relate to our work)
- And, okay, some posts about what I’m doing to occupy my time–but only the exciting times, like when I finally conquer surfing, learn to dance merengue and bachata, or take a weekend trip to Santo Domingo. I won’t tell you every time I try a new restaurant, run on the beach, or get asked if I’d like to ride a “motoconcho.” Promise.

My adventure begins on Sunday! I hope you follow along. And while you’re here, take a look at my blogroll to see the amazing work that some of my friends are doing around the world–from Peru, Cambodia, and Liberia to Denmark, Kuwait City and Tanzania, there’s something for everyone!