Santo Domingo, DR

I meant to post this yesterday, but I was only getting internet while out on a patio, then it started raining and I couldn't finish the post. All references to ‘yesterday’ refer to the 16th, and references to ‘today’ or ‘tonight’ refer to the 17th.

Anywho...

At approximately 2:30 PM yesterday, local time, I landed in Santo Domingo. I was unable to sleep on either of my plane flights, as I am basically incapable of sleeping while sitting up. As such, I hadn't truly slept for almost 40 straight hours. Despite that, I didn’t feel all that wiped out, although much of this is probably due to the constant stimulation of being in a completely new place.

Although new to me, SD will certainly strike a familiar chord with anyone who has spent time in a big Latin American city. It's a bit dirty and more than a bit chaotic, both in traffic and in manner. Pastel-colored buildings line the streets. Many houses and establishments have rod-iron fences, gates, and barred windows. Sidewalks are frequently lined with trash. Drivers do not have much regard for pedestrians; you will never find a car willing to stop for pedestrians waiting to start crossing, but mercifully they will not hit you if you are already crossing—hitting pedestrians causes dents.

Later we checked into our hotel, La Residencia. It’s pretty cheap ($12/night to share a double room), but still is adequately clean. I’m sharing a room with another intern, a guy named Nate who goes to UWash. There is no AC in our room. There is, however, a fairly powerful fan in the middle. The ceiling is very low, so we have to be really careful to avoid getting our hands broken in the fan!

What else...

Today we had a lengthy information/training session in Esperanza’s main office here in Santo Domingo. Our time was really productive, and the hours flew by. The leaders in charge of our orientation are all recent college graduates, and are very competent and professional. My job will involve a lot of talking to borrowers, and as such what I’m most concerned about is my ability to understand what people are saying. I’m fairly confident in my ability to speak and be understood, but being able to understand what people are saying at a decent pace is a whole different learning curve.