The First Two Weeks

Posted by Maddy September 04, 2023

The First Two Weeks

Hey everyone! I hope that you've had an awesome two weeks. I've been super busy, that's for sure. I'm sure you all have plenty of questions about what I've been up to, and I can assure you that I'll answer them to the best of my ability. Enjoy!

How is school?

In short, school is great! I started classes on the 23rd of Aug. and I'm excited for what this semester has in store for me! I'm taking four classes this semester: History of the Old Testament, History of the New Testament, Psychology, and Cross-Cultural Transitions (CCT). CCT is a class that all of the Global Bridge students have to take because it teaches about culture shock. Culture shock (or culture stress) is an unavoidable phenomenon that everyone goes through when they engage deeply with a culture different from their normal culture. It's the process of realizing the differences between what is socially normal and acceptable in your culture versus the new culture, and how you can adapt to that. It's a wild concept, and it's been cool to learn about so far.

What expeditions have you gone on?

The first weekend that we were all here, Courtney and Dustin took us all to the beach! It was about an hour's drive through the city and then the mountains. We set up camp beneath some trees and ran out into the water (don't worry, I remembered to put on sunscreen... not enough though, because I still ended up burned). It was warm and surprisingly salty. Which, I know it's salty, it's the ocean. That's how it works. But it takes some getting used to. Also, the fact that I'm living on an island? Absolutely wild.

We also went to a Columbian empanada restaurant. With a little (read: lots) of help from Courtney, Dustin, and our Spanish teacher, Marielle, the majority of us were able to order in Spanish. I ordered two empanadas: one shrimp, and one chicken and corn. They were delicious, with crust resembling chicken pot pie, but shaped like a closed hard shell taco. I've been thinking about them since and may attempt to make them at some point in the semester. I also had chinola jugo, also known as passionfruit juice. I've been looking forward to eating out again so that I can have it fresh.

What kind of food are you eating there?

One of my favorite things about the Dominican Republic is the fresh mangoes. You can get them for about 34 pesos each ($0.60 USD each). They're so juicy that I can't even cut them open without my fingers getting sticky. Every time we've made the half-hour trip to the grocery store in Santiago (think an over-glorified, brand-new Coborn's) I've bought mangoes. I've also bought different juice box flavors, like chinola, guava, and cherry. We go to the store once a week to buy food for our lunches, and the craziest thing is that it costs me roughly $15 USD. Which is almost 800 pesos. It's mind-boggling to pay using bills that have the number 500 on them and to have that not mean a lot of money.

Many of our dinners have been some variation of chicken, rice, beans, and fresh fruit. (I love the pineapple, it's so sweet!!) The Dominican Republic's national dish is called La Bandera, which translates to 'The Flag'. And, if you haven't already guessed, it consists of chicken, rice, and beans. We've also had soup, tostones (fried plantains), arepitas de yucca (fried hush-puppy-esque nuggets made of yucca), and Little Caesars on one occasion. No ramen yet, though I do have an emergency stash, as all college students do.

How are sites going?

One of the big parts of Global Bridge is being able to work in the community to build relationships and experience Dominican culture firsthand. It's also a great place to practice my Spanish! My first week was full of orientation, so we didn't really leave the base. But on Monday of the second week, we toured all of the sites; the two clinics, the three sports sites (volleyball for girls, baseball and soccer for boys), appropriate technology, the two education sites (the preschool and the tutoring center. They were combined when I was here in March, but have since expanded), and the social work site. Over Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we got to go to three different sites and try them out for the day.

On Tuesday, I went to the preschool. It was as I remembered from March, though there were new students. We played with them, throwing kickballs back and forth and building towers out of magnet blocks. It was the kids' first week of school, so everyone was getting used to the new rhythms.

On Wednesday, I went to the volleyball site, and surprisingly enough, we didn't play any volleyball. Which was a blessing in disguise because I don't know how to play volleyball. Myself and the site leader, Kendra, walked around the community to ask women if they wanted to sign up for two types of classes. The first class was learning how to write in Spanish, and the second class was learning how to speak in English. In the afternoon, we met up with the volleyball girls and made paracord bracelets. I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, because they talk so fast.

On Thursday, I went to the tutoring site. I worked with the kids on writing their letters, and then we also had a music class. One of the things about the tutoring site that I love is that they have both Haitian and Dominican kids who are learning Spanish. It's a challenge though because the Haitian kids only speak Creole (they're picking up on bits of Spanish) so directions involve a lot of pointing. Which I can relate to on a personal level. After lunch, we only had one student, a girl who I practiced reading Spanish picture books with.

The next day, we gave Courtney and Dustin our preferences of which site we would like to be at. I chose the tutoring site because I love the kids there, but also because the classes that Kendra and I signed people up for will potentially be hosted there, and I would love to be a part of those. On Saturday, we got our site assignments, and I am going to be working at the tutoring site for the next seven and a half months! I'm so excited to build relationships with the kids and the staff there.

Are you learning Spanish yet?

In short, not formally. Every day I pick up a new word or two from the Dominican staff, and the North American staff is always willing to help correct conjugations and expand my vocabulary. Language school doesn't start until Sept. 11th, so I'll have to carry around my Spanish-English dictionary with me everywhere I go for a little bit longer. I can confidently introduce myself and ask how everyone is doing, but that's about it for now. I'm looking forward to expanding my communication skills.

Which church are you going to?

Myself and all of the Global Bridge students are going to the intercultural church that Courtney, Dustin, and their family go to. One of the super cool things about the church is that the worship songs are in English, Spanish, and Creole. There's something so powerful (and slightly disorienting) about hearing three languages simultaneously during worship. Another thing that's different from an American church service is that it's two hours long. Which, if you think about it, makes sense. The sermon is basically being given twice; once in Spanish and then once in English. The pastor, whose name is Stanley, is on the staff with SI, and so we've been able to talk with him outside of church, and he's really awesome.

To wrap it up a bit, I've been having a blast. There have been so many new things and so many new people, and I can't wait to experience this country and its people to the fullest. All of the students here are on fire for God, and I can already tell that we're all going to push each other to grow in beautiful ways. Thanks for reading, and as always, your prayers and support are deeply appreciated. If you have any questions that I didn't answer in the post, feel free to comment! I'd love to answer them. I'll see you in two weeks on Sept. 18th!

¡Hasta luego, y'all!

Maddy <3