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| My Adult English Students |
Thank you all for following my journey with me. I look forward to seeing many of you soon!
Dios les bendiga,
Tina
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
The End
I will write a more complete "wrap-up" post in the next few days, but now I'm just a few hours away from my flight home. In the past few days I've been busy visiting friends and enjoying time together before I leave. My students and co-workers threw me parties on Friday, and I've been very touched by their words, gifts, and other sentiments. I'll be back soon to visit, but never again to work like I did this year. Next fall I start teaching Spanish at a school at home. I apologize ahead of time to my future students for my Dominican accent!! Hahaha!
Thank you all for following my journey with me. I look forward to seeing many of you soon!
Dios les bendiga,
Tina
Thank you all for following my journey with me. I look forward to seeing many of you soon!
Dios les bendiga,
Tina
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
What I Will Miss
It is obvious that the number one thing I will miss is the people, so I'm just going to get that out there and say that there are WAY too many people to mention and I'll move on to things.
I am going to miss riding everywhere on the back of a motorcycle. Every trip is like a mini-adventure. Though my dad will hate this, I enjoy riding without a helmet and with flip flops. We never went much more than 30 MPH, very different than driving on the roads and highways at home, but it was fun to ride with more freedom without the protection needed to ride in MA.
I'm going to miss the market. There are parts that smell horrible, especially near the vendor that sells animal organs, heads, and hoofs, but to be able to walk through alleyways of piles of fresh fruits and vegetables and huge bags of beans, seeds, and grains is something I will miss. It makes it a lot more adventures and a lot more exciting to buy groceries.
That leads me to the fruit. We do not have fruit like they have here. Though I miss New England fruit like blueberries, apples, and strawberries, I will really miss all the mango, limes, pineapple, and papaya along with new fruits I have found like nipero, guanabana, and others.
I will miss hanging out on the corner. Life is simpler here because people don't have the money to busy themselves with shopping malls, movie theaters, going out to dinner, joining clubs or activities, so instead, people pass time with other people. They hangout on street corners, sitting on plastic chairs, greeting the neighborhood as they pass by and just generally enjoying talking and spending time together. We don't just spend time together and we don't get to know our neighbors like they do here.
I will missing learning new words everyday. I don't think a day has passed when I haven't learned a new word, phrase, or usage. Most words I learned by listening to others talk, but watching TV, listening to the radio, and reading also helped a lot. I may have a Dominican accent and I may use Dominican slang, but my Spanish is much, much better than ever, and I feel comfortable speaking in Spanish to anyone.
I'll miss having 3 hours off at lunch time! Mid-day break is really nice. It is necessary here because of the heat, but its nice to be able to go home, make a meal, re-group mid-day, and take a nap when needed. I also like having my biggest meal mid-day and having a lighter dinner. I know it is healthier, and I think it helps me sleep better too.
I'll miss drying my laundry outside. Though I can continue to do this during the summer, I can't do it all year at home. The smell of freshness and the softness of wind-tossed clothes is so nice. My clothes also get beat up less without the rough tumble cycle.
I'll miss the music. Yes, it is loud, but I like having music around me all the time. It is a little annoying when I'm near the clubs and they are all blasting different music at the same time so that it all just gets mixed up into a loud mess, but other than that, I like having a soundtrack to life.
I'll miss the music in church, too. The hymns are much more spirited and there are drums, tambourines, and rhythmic clapping that get everyone involved. The enthusiasm and joy is so contagious. It is a fabulous way to worship and praise God.
I'll miss the flowers, the trees, and the plants. Tropical plants are so beautiful. It is always green here, and I have to admit, I am jealous to see plants that only grow as annuals or house plants at home flourishing here. I miss my own garden and my plants, but there are many here I really wish I could steal!
I'll miss rain days. It is nice to have to stay inside and relax in a storm. I love the sound of the rain on a tin roof and the breeze through the palm trees. Tropical storms here are really something special and its nice that the main transportation of walking and motorcycles means that people get to stop and enjoy the storms as they pass.
I'll really miss dancing. Yes, I can (and I will) go dancing at home, but it won't be the same. There is a whole culture here around dancing. Parents and other relatives teach kids to dance from and early age so that everyone, of all ages, know how to Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata. It doesn't matter the persons age, social status, or even who they are dancing with. Everyone here dances and they dance well. It is so fun!
I'm sure there is much, much more that I will miss, but this is a good list for now. I won't miss the bugs, the heat, doing my dishes twice to avoid cholera and other sickness, the crazy drivers, seeing poverty, abuse, and cruelty towards people and animals, machismo, and everyone being late all the time, but really, there is so much more that I will miss, and I'm glad to know I'll be back here soon enough to visit my friends and the city of San Pedro.
Dios les bendiga,
Tina
I am going to miss riding everywhere on the back of a motorcycle. Every trip is like a mini-adventure. Though my dad will hate this, I enjoy riding without a helmet and with flip flops. We never went much more than 30 MPH, very different than driving on the roads and highways at home, but it was fun to ride with more freedom without the protection needed to ride in MA.
I'm going to miss the market. There are parts that smell horrible, especially near the vendor that sells animal organs, heads, and hoofs, but to be able to walk through alleyways of piles of fresh fruits and vegetables and huge bags of beans, seeds, and grains is something I will miss. It makes it a lot more adventures and a lot more exciting to buy groceries.
That leads me to the fruit. We do not have fruit like they have here. Though I miss New England fruit like blueberries, apples, and strawberries, I will really miss all the mango, limes, pineapple, and papaya along with new fruits I have found like nipero, guanabana, and others.
I will miss hanging out on the corner. Life is simpler here because people don't have the money to busy themselves with shopping malls, movie theaters, going out to dinner, joining clubs or activities, so instead, people pass time with other people. They hangout on street corners, sitting on plastic chairs, greeting the neighborhood as they pass by and just generally enjoying talking and spending time together. We don't just spend time together and we don't get to know our neighbors like they do here.
I will missing learning new words everyday. I don't think a day has passed when I haven't learned a new word, phrase, or usage. Most words I learned by listening to others talk, but watching TV, listening to the radio, and reading also helped a lot. I may have a Dominican accent and I may use Dominican slang, but my Spanish is much, much better than ever, and I feel comfortable speaking in Spanish to anyone.
I'll miss having 3 hours off at lunch time! Mid-day break is really nice. It is necessary here because of the heat, but its nice to be able to go home, make a meal, re-group mid-day, and take a nap when needed. I also like having my biggest meal mid-day and having a lighter dinner. I know it is healthier, and I think it helps me sleep better too.
I'll miss drying my laundry outside. Though I can continue to do this during the summer, I can't do it all year at home. The smell of freshness and the softness of wind-tossed clothes is so nice. My clothes also get beat up less without the rough tumble cycle.
I'll miss the music. Yes, it is loud, but I like having music around me all the time. It is a little annoying when I'm near the clubs and they are all blasting different music at the same time so that it all just gets mixed up into a loud mess, but other than that, I like having a soundtrack to life.
I'll miss the music in church, too. The hymns are much more spirited and there are drums, tambourines, and rhythmic clapping that get everyone involved. The enthusiasm and joy is so contagious. It is a fabulous way to worship and praise God.
I'll miss the flowers, the trees, and the plants. Tropical plants are so beautiful. It is always green here, and I have to admit, I am jealous to see plants that only grow as annuals or house plants at home flourishing here. I miss my own garden and my plants, but there are many here I really wish I could steal!
I'll miss rain days. It is nice to have to stay inside and relax in a storm. I love the sound of the rain on a tin roof and the breeze through the palm trees. Tropical storms here are really something special and its nice that the main transportation of walking and motorcycles means that people get to stop and enjoy the storms as they pass.
I'll really miss dancing. Yes, I can (and I will) go dancing at home, but it won't be the same. There is a whole culture here around dancing. Parents and other relatives teach kids to dance from and early age so that everyone, of all ages, know how to Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata. It doesn't matter the persons age, social status, or even who they are dancing with. Everyone here dances and they dance well. It is so fun!
I'm sure there is much, much more that I will miss, but this is a good list for now. I won't miss the bugs, the heat, doing my dishes twice to avoid cholera and other sickness, the crazy drivers, seeing poverty, abuse, and cruelty towards people and animals, machismo, and everyone being late all the time, but really, there is so much more that I will miss, and I'm glad to know I'll be back here soon enough to visit my friends and the city of San Pedro.
Dios les bendiga,
Tina
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