More on Life in the DR...

Hello all!!

I have a little bit of time here and I thought I'd update a little bit. Things have been going well lately. There have been some fun, funny, and interesting things happening and I'll tell you about some of them. :)

First of all, let me tell you about Thanksgiving at school. The 1st graders were studying Pigrims and the 2nd graders were studying Native Americans...so, of course the Pilgrims and the Native Americans had to have a feast together! Here are some pictures of the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

My little Native Americans!


A very unthankful Native American...she was
convinced she did NOT like the food!


Feast!


Feast!


More Feast!

2nd Grade Native American Chiefs...ok, I know
I don't really look like a Native American...
this is the best they had in the drama
department for me to wear. ;)
(Darcy and I, the two 2nd grade teachers)

Now for the part that will make a lot of you jealous...my Thanksgiving trip. My roommate Mindy, our friend Linda, and I went on a roadtrip to Bayahibe. It is in the southern part of the Dominican Republic, a.k.a. the Caribbean side! On Thanksgiving we took a catamaran out to a little island called Isla Saona, and let me tell you, it was BEAUTIFUL! It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen! I didn't know places like that really existed...the blue-green clear water, the white sandy beach, the palm trees everywhere, the bright blue sky, the warm sun on your skin...wow! God's handiwork is breathtaking! Here are some pictures for you, but the pictures don't do it justice!

Coming up to Isla Saona

Palm trees on the beach

Me on the beach on Thanksgiving!

(No, the white stuff on the ground is not snow...it's sand!) ;)

Mindy, Linda, and I on the beach


Beautiful Beach!

Mindy and I on the boat on the way out to the catamaran


Mindy and I on the catamaran headed back to
Bayahibe after relaxing on the beach

That was on Thanksgiving Day. Then on Friday we started heading back toward the capital...Santo Domingo. We stopped on the way at an art school called Altos de Chavon. It was neat and it had an amazing view of a different kind. Here are some pictures, but again, they don't do it justice.

Beautiful river valley


River and my friend Linda

Linda and I at Altos de Chavon

When you go on a road trip, you have to take driving pictures!


Linda and I at dinner one night

Here's a random funny picture for your enjoyment. There are geckos here, as I shared in a previous entry, and I don't like them even one little bit! As we were walking around in the different shops, we saw this huge statue of this nasty creature and they forced me to pose by it. So here I am, terrified of this huge gecko-like thing! :)

We had a wonderful time on our trip, and it was a great break from school! It was a different Thanksgiving than I've ever had, but it was a good one just the same! I can't complain.

Well, uploading pictures is taking forever, so that's enough pictures for now. I do have one more story that I want to share though. I have something to confess to all of you. I'm a thief. Now, before you start worrying and wondering what has happened to my morals since moving to the Dominican Republic, let me assure you that I did everything in my power not to be a thief, but I absolutely could not prevent it. Now for the story...Mindy and I went to get groceries on Sunday afternoon. (Now you need to know this background information...she is having problems with her vocal chords and she is on complete vocal rest, which means she can't talk at all, not even a whisper. If you think about it, pray for her, as this is frustrating.) We got to the checkout and Mindy had already paid for her groceries and it was now my turn. Well, one of the items caused an error or something on the computer and the cashier did not notice it. The items that she rang up after that item did not ring up. We noticed this, but the cashier did not. We tried to tell her and the bag boys what had happened, but we were very unsuccessful. Picture this: Mindy (who knows Spanish but can't talk right now) and I (who does not know Spanish but can talk) pointing and making motions and speaking English to people who do not speak English...trying to explain what had happened. The cashier then started to delete items off of my bill, thinking that was the problem. This caused more confusion as we finally got through to her that we wanted everything. Everyone was so confused! Then a lady came up behind us in line and she thought she understood the situation but she did not at all. She only complicated matters even more. She didn't speak English either. We tried and tried, making motions and talking in a language they couldn't understand. We made quite the scene. We did this for probably more than 5 minutes, with no success. We could not communicate what we were trying to say. So we just said, "Ok." and I paid my bill and we left the store. As soon as we walked out the door, we burst out laughing at the whole situation. We got home and checked my receipt...it turns out that I stole 2 cans of tomato sauce and 1 big thing of yogurt. I am a thief. But, as you can see, I tried everything I could not to be. It's another chapter in the story of "The Mute and the Dumb out in the DR"...that's our ongoing joke when Mindy (the mute since she can't talk right now) and I (the dumb since I can't speak Spanish) go out together on our own. :)

Ok, I think it's time for bed. Tomorrow's another day with my 19 little blessings and I need to get my sleep in order to survive it! ;) I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving like I did, despite the snow and ice. I love you, and I hope to see you when I'm home for Christmas!