Spring Break!

Posted by Maddy April 08, 2024

Spring Break!

Hello! Sorry about the late post. I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

On the 25th, at about 2 a.m., my mom and Grandma arrived at the base (which wasn’t the original plan, but due to flight cancellations, we did what we had to). That day, I got to introduce them to all of the other Global Bridge students, my site leaders, and my site! It was a really exciting day-- I’d been looking forward to it since the first semester. I wanted to show them why I’ve come to love this place so deeply. The kids, the people, how I’ve been able to grow in my Spanish and other skills.

After a long day at the base and the Tutoring site, we headed to the resort that we stayed at for the rest of the week. A couple of other families were staying at the same resort, and so I got to see some of the other students throughout the week on the beach and at meals. My mom, grandma, and I were able to do some super cool things like whale watching, petting monkeys, and ziplining! We hung out on the beach, got sunburned, drank coconut smoothies, and relaxed in our (air-conditioned!) room.

One of the best things about the resort was talking to those who worked there in Spanish. I loved saying “Que lo que!” (a Dominican slang term that means “what’s up!”) and having the staff and tour guides look at me like: “Wait… she knows Dominican Spanish.” It was really fun to act as a translator on Monday for my mom and Grandma as well as a little bit throughout the week. It was really strange to be at the resort though, because even though I hadn’t left the DR, I was hearing English, French, German, and Spanish all in the same place. Pretty much everyone understood me when I was speaking English, which was a little bit of a shock since it’s been a while since I was in the States and basic communication with strangers wasn’t something that I had to give much thought to.

It was hard to say goodbye to them at the end of the week, but I was also excited to head back to base and be reunited with the other students to hear about what they’d been up to. For Easter, we ate lunch at Courtney and Dustin’s after church and dyed eggs. It’s been awesome to celebrate the holidays with them and the rest of the group when I haven’t been able to be with my family. We spent the rest of the weekend chilling around base and enjoying the end of Spring break.

I returned to sites this last week. I truly love working there with the kids, Elizabeth, and Emilie. I have so many stories of small interactions that make my day. Dudely and Beverlin brought me flowers. We had a birthday party for Beverlin. I got to talk with Dudely one day after sites. All of these little things build up to what I love so much about this place. I’ve only got one month left with these people in Santiago.

But that leads me to some really, really exciting news. I had my interview for Global Bridge 2, and over the last two weeks, the director from Jarabocoa sent out an email saying that I’d been accepted into the program for next year!! So, even though I’m leaving Santiago at the beginning of May, I will be returning to the Dominican Republic in mid-to-late August! It’s something that I’m super pumped for, and even more so since a few of the girls from this year are also returning for year 2! It’s been amazing to go through this program, and I can not wait to continue with it for the next school year.

That being said, I will be looking for those who are willing to continue to support me both prayer-wise and financially. I’m hoping to partner with monthly supporters as well as run a fundraiser over the summer (a work in progress at the moment) to raise money for this upcoming year.

Thank you so much for taking the time to learn about what I’ve been doing here and about the Dominican Republic. Thank you for supporting me and reading these posts. It means the world. I’ve got about 2 more posts for this year, so I’ll see you on the 22nd of April!

¡Hasta luego, y'all!

Maddy <3