Regarding how I come and go...

You've all heard tell of many things that "half the fun is getting there." This saying certainly holds true of life in the Peace Corps. In the past few months I have used a variety of means to get from the various Point A's to Point B's. Here is a sampling...

Guagua - This is what you would most commonly refer to as a mini-bus. It's the most common way to move between large towns. Most of them are falling apart, and packed with people to the point of being a public health issue, but they are reasonably priced and relatively comfortable.

Passenger Bus - A lot like grey hound. This is what you use to travel very long distances. The bigger companies have buses that are very comfortable (air conditioning!!!), albeit a little festive for the taste of many Americans (they like to blast Meringue music).

Carro Publico - Translated = "Public Car". Used in the cities. They follow routes the same way that a bus would, and you pay based on how far you ride. These are normal sized four door cars, but they put up to four people in the back seat, and two in the passenger seat up front. Watch out for pick pockets.

Bola - In English we would call it hitch hiking. Basically you stand by the road and wave at whoever comes along, hoping they'll pick you up. In this part of the country most of the vehicles are pick up trucks so there is always enough room. You might have to sit next to a goat or a chicken, but at least the open air nature of the vehicle provides adequate ventilation. If the truck is REALLY full (like if you are headed toward a beach on a weekend, and there are a lot of people with the same idea as you) you will probably have to hang off of the bumper. This is not as bad as it sounds. The sense of adventure on the turns makes up for the discomfort.

Moto-concho - This is a motorcycle taxi, and it's the most common way to travel to remote locations in the countryside since the odds of catching a bola are often slim. This is how I get up the mountain to where I live. PCV's are required to wear helmets, so whenever I am out and about I am dragging along my sleek looking motorcycle helmet. It makes me feel cool. The motorcycle ride up a mountain is an interesting experience. A lot of these bikes are not in the best shape, so one spends the entire trip up the hill wondering if the engine will make it or not. On the downhill side there is another cause for worry. These drivers like to go FAST. I won't offer more details here, because I know my mother and grandmother are reading and I do not wish to cause them concern. Just be aware that I ALWAYS wear my helmet.

Mule - A common beast of burden on the farms around where I live. I have used them on a couple visits. They are not fast or flashy, but they get the job done and don't smell that bad.

Horse - Quick, loyal and glamorous. I spent a weekend toward the beginning riding a horse on mountain trails, and had a blast. My own horse should be arriving any week now. I am working on growing my cowboy moustache, and I am going shopping for a suitable hat as soon as I finish this entry.

Anyone who comes to visit me can rest assured that they will experience many of the types of transport on this list, and maybe more. I am sure the list will grow!

Regarding Food

An easy trap to stumble into when describing an experience like mine is to only share the stories that seem sensational, and forget about the everyday stuff. There is so much that has become commonplace for me, but that I forget would strike all of my readers as new and interesting. So from now on I will try to spend more time talking about some of the many routine and often repetitive elements of what it means to be in the Peace Corps.

My diet here is much less varied than it was back home, but still delicious. The big meal of the day is lunch, which almost always consists of white rice, beans (red or black), and some kind of meat (usually chicken). There is sometimes a salad too. This meal is popularly referred to as ¨La Bandera Dominicana¨ (the Dominican flag) because it offers all the colors that are present on the flag. It is nourishing and delicious, and I am starting to think it might be addictive. Around mid-day, every day of the week, I get a craving in my gut. If the menu happens to be different that day, or if I am on the road and not able to sit down to eat, I experience a wave of disappointment at not getting my bandera. I am actually starting to get hungry just writing this.

Breakfast and dinner are made up primarily of what they call ¨vivres¨, what we would usually call starches. Green bananas, plantain, yucca, squash, potatoe, and yam are all common features during these meals, usually boiled but sometimes fried. The vivre will usually come with some salami (basically summer sausage, but not as good as it is back home), fried cheese, or an egg.

I live in a very lush tropical valley where agriculture is the name of the game, so I also eat a lot of amazing fruit. There´s a giant mango tree right next to my house that the kids are always throwing rocks at to get down whatever fruit might be ready. There are THOUSANDS of them on this tree, just waiting to turn orange and drop. Delicious. There´s also a lot of oranges, lemons, bread fruit, banana, and an amazing fruit called ¨guanabana¨ which I never had before coming here, and don´t know the english for.

Despite the fact that my community is poor, the fact that they are farmers means that there is almost always plenty of food. The food shortages that have been striking much of the world have been felt here with rice being more expensive, but fortunately there is no emergency. There have been problems in the past, as we live right in the middle of hurricane alley. When a storm hits directly, it has the potential to wipe out any and all crops that are in the ground at the time. Some of my work is going to focus on growing a greater variety of food to 1) keep the soil healthy and happy and 2) reduce dependence on one or two kinds of crops for income. We will be starting a community vegetable garden project sometime soon here.

Stay tuned!