Monday, November 2, 2015

A day in the Dominican Republic

Hola readers!

We had a busy day to start off our November in the Dominican Republic. Our group ventured out of Sosua with our friend Steve, a rotarian form Wasaga Beach, and Wilbur, our wonderful local translator, to visit a couple of villages where Steve works with the people and helps with numerous initiatives. We hopped on an open air bus in the rain and made our way to our first destination while motorcycles and cars daringly zoomed around both sides of our vehicle. As wild as the driving seems, we have yet to see an accident or a traffic jam for that matter. 

No sooner had we made it to the first village we were ushered toward the local church. We hardly needed a guide as you could hear the shouts of joy and feel the energy emanating from the building all the way down the street. Their congregation welcomed us with open arms, prayed for us and invited Dr. Doug to come to the front and speak to them. After offering we moved further into the village and were joined by Wilbur's friends Delfin and Stanley. These three men were extremely passionate about their community and so dedicated to improving the living conditions in any way. They started by showing us the original buildings that their village was formed around. The long and narrow dwellings were once used to house the men working in the sugar cane fields. When the sugar cane companies went under the men were left without jobs. A new law made the situation even more difficult for Haitian workers living in the Dominican Republic because they were no longer legally allowed to work. So a large number of people live in these sugar can dorms and rely on the community as they have no family and no means to provide for themselves. While the living conditions are quite poor, the people are  incredibly optimistic. As Wilbur, Stanley and Delfin showed us around their village they were quick to point out all of the improvements they had made. Delfin would constantly point to different buildings and say, "with the help of our friends, the rotarians, we painted the houses to improve the appearance of our village," or "with the help of our friends, the rotarians, we built these homes. The relationship between the locals, their Rotary branch and the Rotary Club at large seems to be a powerful one. We were invited into their community room to see where the children come to do their homework and learn computer skills. Featured prominently on the wall was a large Rotary symbol, but our local guides were most excited to show us and talk with us about what they called "our BIG VISION." We were led to the edge of the village to see acres and acres of untouched land. Delfin explained that their hope is to buy the land and build a new community with proper infrastructure so that everyone has plumbing and access to clean drinking water. On the border between their current community and the land they dream will be home to their next, they showed us the pens awaiting the goats that will come in the new year with the help of Rotary and talked animatedly about their plans to make cheese with the goats milk. Their optimism and belief in a better future was infectious! We left the village with the joyous sound of the church band echoing in the streets.

The second village we visited was in a very remote area. We travelled rocky paths cut through abandoned sugar cane fields and all of a sudden we jumped up onto beautifully paved roads. As soon as our bus entered the village, people, especially children, started coming out of their neatly kept, multi coloured homes. Steve explained that the village was part of a project where families were relocated and given a house for five years and if, after the time was up, the families had maintained their houses they were given the papers. The children were quick to grab onto our sweaty hands and pull us around wanting to show us their homes, their playground and demonstrate their English speaking skills. The biggest hit with the kids was Lori's candy apple scented hand sanitizer. They had an absolute blast washing their hands and then showing each other how good their hands smelt. 

We made our way back to Sosua rather tired and rather happy. Our bus made a quick pit stop to pick up an unbelievably large bunch of bananas to take to our first medical mission tomorrow. Think of us and send your good thought and well wishes as we begin five days of great medical work. Buenos Naches!

Emily