Casa Laguna Beach Resort Puerto Plata

... for Juan Dolio...and made it home by 4 in the afternoon. Although it was an exhausting and whirlwind trip, and even though I felt sick for most of it, I am still glad that I went, and I was very taken with the beauty...I had forgotten how beautiful this country really is, so it was nice to get away and take in my surroundings, which are easy to forget in the daily grind of work. If anyone is considering coming to vacation here, I would say NORTH COAST ALL THE WAY!!

... the next six months.  The<br>comforts of home with the people I love, will surely see me through. That I<br>know for sure-<br>I hope you have all enjoyed the blog.  I have loved sharing some thoughts,<br>albeit probably a bit superficial at times, as feelings are often difficult to<br>retrieve-<br><br>Thank you for following my journey.  <br>Please look for more pictures in the days to come.<br><br>Love,<br><br>Lani<br><br>< !--EndFragment--><br><br><br>

... he said, "I don't have the money or the time."  It was maddening.  I truly believe in my heart that this child will not survive this illness, just because of his living situation.  It was difficult to walk away-<br>Please offer your positive thoughts, good karma, prayers, or wishful thinking to this little one tonight.  Maybe they will help.<br>Missing all of you,<br>Love,<br>Lani

We pray for children<br>Who sneak popsicles before supper,<br>Who erase holes in math workbooks,<br>Who can never find their shoes.<br>And we pray for those<br>Who stare at photographers from behind barbed wire,<br>Who can't bound down the street in a new pair of sneakers,<br>Who are born in places we wouldn't be caught dead.<br>We pray for those who never go to the circus,<br>Who live in an X-rated world,<br ...

... pass us by around Thursday afternoon, thanks in advance, Bill.  It rained all night last night, and looks like Thursday will be a wet day as well.  <br>I'm attaching a very recent pic of my little one, taken last week.  I think she's learning to play the piano in my absence, and definitely growing up too fast while mommy is away.<br>Take care.  Hope you are all well-<br>Love,<br>Lani<br> 

... this is my first, "I'm really homesick, and am admitting it to the world" blog since arriving here.  I'm hoping that I continue to stay busy, as that makes the days seem shorter :)<br>I'm attaching a group picture.  This picture was taken after the Campo clinic and education session.  Yes, we are really as tired as we look!<br>Please feel free to drop me an email and let me know how you all are doing.<br>Adios,<br>Love,<br>Lani

... building homes, churches, clinics, and schools for Haitian refugees and the poorest Dominicans, as well as donating food and clothes to the same. She also used the money to build herself an amazing estate, which we have been staying at for the past week. Her property includes a girl's dorm, boy's dorm, outdoor dining area, kitchen, living room, glass room, her sons' house, her house, a yoga room, truck room, swimming pool with a ...

... went to find him. That also cost $20. <br><br>So with empty wallet Pete returned to inform us that we could all now go ashore. <br>Talk about Pirates! The government officials will rob you blind! (One bloke also wanted Petes shoes, but was told, no way.) <br><br>We set off for the main street of Luperon and found this decidedly dodgey. The locals looked friendly enough but the lady at the post office/internet cafe was quite unhelpful and very abrupt with Mike, that ...

... and played with it for a while. It found our luggage rather entertaining. There would also be a pair of peacocks hanging around the breakfast buffet area during the day...we were surrounded by all sorts of animals (not to mention the bugs). We went on a 4 hour Catamaran trip, during which I caught my first ever glimpse of flying fish. We stopped at an amazingly gorgeous beach where I borrowed a native's mask (it was SO useful being able to speak Spanish!) and ...

... to get to the bus stop to catch an 8:30 am bus to Pedernales. The bus was jam packed to the brim, and the driver had to lash all of our backpacks on the front and back of the bus with rope. Now, never in my life have I heard a Dominican say "no, we are too full." So, as a result, the guagua was packed to the brim with sweating Dominicans and Peace Corps volunteers for the six hour ride down to the southwest. The bus has an aisle with two seats on ...