Do the Harlem Shake

In the middle of the cereal aisle at the supermarket my host sister did
the Harlem Shake.

     Yes, I have arrived safe and sound in the Dominican Republic. Many things here are not how I envisioned them Stateside, and that's a good thing. During my first full day of training myself and the other Peace Corps Trainees were taught what we might encounter when we arrived at our host family's house. I was prepared to need to take bucket baths and answer a lot of personal questions. I was not expecting my current reality of 24/7 electricity, running water, and even WiFi. Not everyone has been so lucky - some Trainees live in communities that only receive water once a week. I feel very blessed but I have a feeling it will be harder to adjust to the campo (rural area) when I move there in a few weeks.

     Everyday since I left for DC has been a whirlwind. In the past four days I have: met 32 other Peace Corps Trainees, flown to Santo Domingo, learned how to use a mosquito net, been fitted for my motorcycle helmet, drunken countless bottles of water, eaten: platanos verde, yucca, tostones, harina de la negrita y mucho más, spoken Spanish for countless hours, met my host family, received vaccines, used public transportation, and had my wallet stolen...kinda.

     During our class on how to use public transportation, we also learned how easy it is to be the victim of theft. At one point all 33 of us had to cram into a small roped off area - in order to understand how cramped we will become on guaguas and carros publicos (buses and public taxis) - eventually we all squeezed in with only minimal injuries. After the exercise people began to discover pieces of paper slipped into their pockets and purses that said, "Your wallet has been stolen." I was one of the unlucky Trainees who was "pick pocketed" but at least I didn't find two papers like some people did!

This is a normal, and not illegal amount of passengers for a guagua.

     Aside from being the victim of an imaginary theft everything else has been wonderful! All of my fellow Trainees are super nice and excited to be here. We are a pretty young group - the average age is 25. My host family is also great. I have an 11 year-old sister, a 13 year-old brother, and a 16 year-old brother. I am continually surprised by how much American pop culture they know. My sister is in love with Zane from One Direction, and my brothers are always singing songs by Bruno Mars. I also have a perrita, Rubí, named after the famous telenovela that I happen to have watched. There have been so many weird coincidences here, and I am looking forward to the next one!

     One final note, my host sister and I both agree that this is the best Harlem Shake video.