Aloha Sol Hotel Santiago

Hi everyone,<br>Just when I thought I had seen what living in destitution represented, I walked into a neighborhood this morning that redefined the word "poor" for me.  It seems that this redefinition is a consistent happening here.<br>This community lives in squalor, not only in ramshackle "buildings" but in filth.  In fact, their homes are literally built upon a dump. So, you ...

... community (men go for seasonal work).  The women recently learned how to make candles and bracelets, which they are allowed to go outside the Batey to sell, but have to "pay off" the checkpoint guards when they enter and exit the compound.  There are so many moral and ethical issues surrounding the Bateys, too numerous to mention.  The children came running to meet us, some naked, some ...

... eye-opening.<br>We were hosted by separate families.  My roomie and I stayed with a family who were quite influential and involved in the community.  They were very kind people, who were so hospitable.  Our "mama" kept telling us to "come in" with our muddy shoes.  I would shake my head 'no', and take them off, and walk in barefoot.  Here she was, with little, yet didn't think twice about me walking into her home with mud, etc.  I couldn ...

... mi camisa.  Yuck!<br>After lunch, we went to the orphanage.  I had to step away several times because it was heartbreaking. Rows and rows of cribs, with children who lie in them most of their lives.  It's so unfortunate.  Some of these precious ones are so contracted that you can't tell whether they are lying face down, or up.  One child smiled when I pulled out some red beads.  I suspect he doesn't have the ...

... had the welfare of all persons in mind. I'm excited, and humbled to think that I am helping with this cause. Occupational therapy is the one profession that can reach across continents and cultural barriers, simply because we look at a person holistically, and that speaks volumes regardless of differences. I'm proud of that! Hola to mi familia! I love you all and miss you- XOXOXO I will send pictures tonight. Love, Lani

... four nights we stayed in Cabarete, which is the adventure capital of the Caribbean. We stayed in Hotel-Condos that were extremely nice, two story townhouses. The first day we learned how to surf (though I didn't even stand up on the board once!). The second day we went canyoning through 27 waterfalls. This was amazing! We hiked up through the jungle then jumped or slid down a total of 27 waterfalls to the bottom of the hill. I never ...

... around a little bit more that night, and went up to our hotel room. The sound from the raucous street party below traveled up uninhibited to our room, so we found an access stairway to our roof, and went up to observe the partying from on high. We enjoyed the cool night air, and watched the people dance on the corners, drink, laugh, and try out pick up lines, when in an instant things turned ugly. From our vantage point on the roof we saw two men burst out of a corner bar, swinging ...

... they came across an enormous man in a loud shirt, reading an issue of People magazine. Steve recognized him from a poster he'd had on his bedroom wall, and asked him, "Excuse me, are you Frank Thomas?" Frank Thomas confirmed that he was, in fact, Frank Thomas. They then asked for some pictures with him, and the future hall of famer complied. These pictures were later used to confirm the story to George, making him intensely jealous that he had no pictures with any members of the ...

... sat and watched the final quarter of play, as the poor athletes carried on bravely in the sub-zero temperatures. Our New Yorker was cheering lustily (and singly) for his team, the Giants, against the throngs of Green Bay fans, but New York eventually prevailed in overtime. I'm not a big football fan, but I have to say this was a lot of fun! After the game the three of us walked for a while to see what the streets and parks were like on a Sunday ...

... to teach me how to correctly dance bachata, and he taught me some new turn moves, so I guess the trip wasn´t in vain :) The hardest part of the trip was that Robyn gave me a bicycle that she wasn´t using, which is so great because I need one, but I wish I had the process on tape of getting that bike across the country on guaguas, taxis, and buses. It was an ordeal, and this bike will never leave my site again! So ...