New Garden Hotel Sosua

... rum and playing in the water (not so sure about that combination, but...) The water was cool but not cold, perfectly clear, and a beautiful blue-green color. We were told that Scuba divers had been unable to find the bottom of the pool. It's not that wide across, but apparently it's just a straight shot down to who-knows-where.

Some of the locals were jumping from the high cliffs, and that is something that Shen just can't resist. One of ...

... t think it existed here! I wouldn't go so far as to call it delicious, but we had some good mangú (a strange casserole of platanos and corn, maybe? I don't really know...) and rice with a few beans thrown in.

In the evening we strolled around Rio San Juan, another small but chaotic town. The people here have been super friendly, and the natural beauty is remarkable, but I can't say I like the towns we ...

Greetings,< br>
Sitting
in the sun in Sosua, it's a little seaside town about 2 hours from Santiago.
 It's beautiful here.  We have had access to a private beach, which
has been so relaxing.  We've been sunning for a few days now, and are
headed back to Santiago this afternoon.  One more night in the Dominican
Republic, and back on a airplane tomorrow, headed home to my family!  It's
been a long trip and ...

... 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-
Please offer your positive thoughts, good karma, prayers, or wishful thinking to this little one tonight.  Maybe they will help.
Missing all of you,
Love,
Lani

... never get dessert,
Who have no safe blanket to drag behind them,
Who watch their parents watch them die.
We pray for those who can't find any bread to steal,
Who don't have any rooms to clean up,
Whose pictures aren't on anybody's dresser,
Whose monsters are real,
Whose nightmares come in the daytime.
And we pray for those who will eat anything,
Who have never seen a dentist,
Santiago, Dominican Republic lstockwell

... 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.  
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.
Take care.  Hope you are all well-
Love,
Lani
 

... place. The ride was only 20 minutes from Cabarete, not too long. I then wandered the streets of Sosua for a bit, and had to ask 3 people along the way where my Spanish school was before I found it. Whew! It turns out that before 1940, Sosua had only a hundred or so residents. But in 1940, the US pressured the DR dictator Trujillo to allow German and other European Jewish immigrants to settle in the DR, and they migrated ...

... to the beach where everyone was, and I sat there for a bit until it was time to go. Although it was still very, very warm, it was not a sunny day today by any means. The sky was overcast, so the sun wasn't beating down. There were still lots of people on the beach sunbathing though, and in the water. We were at the larger beach today (yesterday we went to the small beach which is a lot more private and not busy with people). I went for my pedicure awhile after ...

... the ring and the bracelet for there. Finally he said "$25" and I accepted. Then I realized I didn't have any money on me, so I told him I'd go to my room to get the money and be back in 5 minutes. And then for some reason he just gave me the two pieces of jewellery and told me to take them with me and then bring back the money, so I did that (trusting guy!). So that was my first successful barter experience in this country. Not sure if I'll have any ...

... House... the local house where volunteers at Ascension live with Faith and Amber (Jana and Bob's biological daughters). I painted a bathroom and in the process, a HUGE tarantulla-ish spider walked across my foot and I freaked. Zion told me later that those ones do bite, but aren't poisionous.. YIKES! We met up with the rest of the group at lunch and then we went to the Puerta Plata dump and gave out "blessing bags." These are kind ...