Dominican Essentials, part 1

Decoding the Dominican Republic The Finger Wag This is one of the most valuable gestures I learned for dealing with Dominicans. If you are in public and a Dominican tries to shine your shoes or sell you something, just saying “no”, shaking your head, or walking away will not work. They will follow you and …

What Country Am I In?

My life in the States is like many others who are middle-income and raising children. I wake up early to get my kids on the school bus. I work hard when they are in school. After school I juggle their activities, my remaining work and dinnertime. Bedtime finally comes and after I work a little …

Wet Night, Sunny Morn

Last night we went out to meet the Tamil/Dominican couple we first got to know on my last visit. The power went out yesterday about noon and as of 7:00 it still had not returned. So we had to get ready in the dark, using the flashlight from my cell phone to find clothes. When …

Flying Above A Storm

After five hours of killing time in San Juan Airport, a feat which was harder than expected, it was finally time to board the flight to Santo Domingo. The contrast was immediate as soon as I stepped on to the plane — whereas the flight from Jacksonville to San Juan was basically geared to American …

Don’t Fence Me In

We are in the midst of a lovely (note sarcasm) election year. no matter what the outcome you may wish, an election year is not much fun. No one wants to see hours of ads for the opposing candidate or for either candidate depending on how you feel. An election only magnifies what already exists …