Villa Almonte Sosua

... guys, who actually lives in New Jersey, offered to go up with him. It was funny, because clearly no one thought he would jump - after he walked away, there was a chorus of, "Look! The gringo is going up to the cliff! Snicker snicker snicker.." Shen is definitely not one to show off, but the poor expectations made it totally necessary, so he did a back flip off a 35-foot cliff. The group made several comments about how the gringos never jump, they had ...

... seen. They almost have a strip-mall feel to them - shop after shop, power cables criss-crossing the street all over the place, and no real center. There's nothing pretty about them. The towns we've seen do have a Plaza Central, but life doesn't seem to revolve around it as it does in many places. I can't seem to find the town's anchor. One thing that does give a sense of character is that everyone is out on ...

... gives me the fortitude to be a good mother and role model for my<br>daughter.  Someday I'll share stories about these people, and I hope that<br>by doing so, my daughter will grow up to be sensitive and caring, and<br>hopefully, will have the same opportunity to offer her time and expertise to<br>those less fortunate than her.<br>I'm certain that I will be staying home for a while.  Only two semesters left<br>until graduation, so I have a long haul ...

... 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

... hit the beach - that was the worst place to be, because you'd get totally creamed by some of the bigger waves, which totally crashed into you and made you topple over in somersaults into the sand and then get totally disoriented as to which way you were facing while you tried to get the salt water out of your face and hopefuly not be hit by another menacing wave in the process! This happened to me many times! It would have made for some great video ...

... my Otrivin! Well, not Otrivin exactly, but a Spanish nasal spray for children, and it actually worked too, so I was very thankful to start feeling a little bit more normal again. He said at the pharmacy there was a little girl there around 6 years old (her mother was working there) and my dad said to her: "Como te llames?" (sp?) ("what is your name?") and she said "Rachely". And my dad said to her "Mi espousa es Machely" ("My wife's name is ...

... money), so my dad paid for it. Walking further down the street elicited more strange people coming up to us to ask us to come into their store and buy something from them. My dad took us into a store where he actually knows the person who works there (he bought our laramar jewellery from there last year). Coincidentally enough, they had fake Rolex watches there, which Ben had specifically requested if I saw any, but the guy wanted way too much for them ...

... but about every other day). I just need to hear it because it helps me get through the day or just helps me feel a little normal. Why is it that the music helps me feel a little normal? There is Christmas music just in Spanish. However, last year I just was so engrossed in books and getting through the holidays that I rarely brought my head up for air to see that this culture is very much like the states, just the difference of a language. However, I was ...

... a daily basis and it is not good alone, but fills you up otherwise. I think one of the funniest things will be when I return and shopping and the supermarket. First, I will be looking for the green bananas and then maybe want to argue why they are not there is there none available. The colmados (house stores) are funny in that you can ask for what you only need. So if you just want a spoonful of tomato paste, it is done or just an egg. I know that we usually are ...

... the island seemed dirty, we were cheated at the airport being naive new comers and after the long flight without much sleep we probably all were a bit down. But spirits lifted after the first impressions and after arriving at our club, the Caribe Campo in Sosua, the club proofed to have everything we were looking for. A nice swimming pool, tennis courts, nice restaurants -one local, one Italian- and a nice enclosure. We spent ...